Recognizing the Unsung, Pt. 2

I waited, waited, and waited for this day! While many sports fans gave their attention to the NBA Finals, or the sanctions that await the USC athletic program, there was a recent feat that deserves attention: the Chicago Blackhawks won their first Stanley Cup in 49 years beating the Philadelphia Flyers. Yet, their victory is not the focus of this blog, nor the politically incorrectness of their mascot. The subject is Dustin Byfuglien (pronunced Buff-lin). Growing up as a child, the presence of African Americans in hockey seemed silly to me, until I moved to Columbus where I met a brother who ran a hockey shop in Columbus.  That interaction and Byfuglien's role in this series (and the 2010 playoffs) led me to search for the role of people of African descent in the NHL. I learned that the contributions have gone unrecognized.


In Game 5, Byfuglien recorded 2 assists and added 2 goals in his teams' 7-4 win. In Game 6, he scored the first goal of the game which would help lead his team to a 4-3 overtime win. While Byfuglien has achieved recognition from Sports Illustrated and Sporting News magazine for his play, he is not the only person of African descent amongst the NHL ranks to achieve "star" status.

With comedian Cedric The Entertainer's reference about "Nuck Nuck," whom he identified as "a brother skating around without a stick looking for a fight," African Americans have had a presence in the NHL. Examining the activity of Black males at the professional level, you must begin with Willie O'Ree who entered the league in 1958,

followed by Mike Marson (1974)

and Bill Riley (1976).

The first African American inducted into the NHL Hall of Fame, was Grant Fuhr, a goalkeeper.

Below you will find a list of current and former players who have played professionally within the National Hockey League. For those who have not watched hockey, the numbers may be insightful.



Active Players currently playing in the NHL or on an affiliate team:

Forwards

▪ Donald Brashear, Left Wing: (Montreal Canadiens, Vancouver Canucks, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals, New York Rangers)

▪ Dustin Byfuglien, Right Wing/Defenseman: (Chicago Blackhawks)

▪ Nigel Dawes , Left Wing: (New York Rangers, Phoenix Coyotes, Calgary Flames)

▪ Mike Grier, Right Wing: (Edmonton Oilers, Washington Capitals, San Jose Sharks, Buffalo Sabres)

▪ Jarome Iginla, Right Wing: (Calgary Flames)

▪ Evander Kane, Center/Left Wing (Atlanta Thrashers)

▪ Greg Mauldin, Right Wing: (Columbus Blue Jackets, Ottawa Senators, New York Islanders)

▪ Jamal Mayers , Left Wing: (St. Louis Blues, Toronto Maple Leafs, Calgary Flames)

▪ Kenndal McArdle, Left Wing: (Florida Panthers)

▪ Kyle Okposo, Right Wing: (New York Islanders)

▪ Wayne Simmonds, Right Wing: (Los Angeles Kings)

▪ Anthony Stewart, Centre: (Florida Panthers, Atlanta Thrashers)

▪ Chris Stewart, Right Wing: (Colorado Avalanche)

▪ Joel Ward, Right Wing: (Nashville Predators)

Defensemen

▪ Shawn Belle: (Minnesota Wild, Montreal Canadiens)

▪ Francis Bouillon: (Montreal Canadiens, Nashville Predators)

▪ Trevor Daley: (Dallas Stars)

▪ Maxime Fortunus (Dallas Stars)

▪ Mark Fraser: (New Jersey Devils)

▪ Derek Joslin: (San Jose Sharks)

▪ Johnny Oduya: (New Jersey Devils, Atlanta Thrashers)

▪ Theo Peckham: (Edmonton Oilers)

▪ Bryce Salvador: (St. Louis Blues, New Jersey Devils)

▪ P. K. Subban: (Montreal Canadiens)

Goaltenders

▪ Chris Beckford-Tseu (St. Louis Blues, Florida Panthers)

▪ Ray Emery (Ottawa Senators, Philadelphia Flyers)

Past Players retired or no longer playing with an NHL affiliate team:

Forwards

▪ Darren Banks- Left Wing (Boston Bruins)

▪ Anson Carter- Forward (Boston Bruins, Washington Capitals, Edmonton Oilers, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings, Carolina Hurricanes, Vancouver Canucks,Columbus Blue Jackets)

▪ John Craighead- Right Wing (Toronto Maple Leafs)

▪ Dale Craigwell - Centre (San Jose Sharks)

▪ Steven Fletcher - Left Wing (Montreal Canadiens, Winnipeg Jets)

▪ Dirk Graham - Right Wing (Minnesota North Stars, Chicago Blackhawks)

▪ Val James - Left Wing (Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs)

▪ Brian Johnson - Right Wing (Detroit Red Wings)

▪ Nathan LaFayette - Centre (St. Louis Blues, Vancouver Canucks, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings)

▪ Georges Laraque, Right Wing: (Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Phoenix Coyotes, Montreal Canadiens)

▪ Darren Lowe - Right Wing (Pittsburgh Penguins)

▪ Mike Marson - Forward (Washington Capitals, Los Angeles Kings)

▪ Craig Martin - Forward (Winnipeg Jets, Florida Panthers)

▪ Sandy McCarthy - Right Wing (Calgary Flames, Tampa Bay Lightning, Philadelphia Flyers, Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, Boston Bruins)

▪ Mike McHugh - Left Wing (Minnesota North Stars, San Jose Sharks)

▪ Tony McKegney - Forward (Buffalo Sabres, Quebec Nordiques, Minnesota North Stars, New York Rangers, St. Louis Blues, Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Blackhawks)

▪ Sean McMorrow - Forward (Buffalo Sabres)

▪ Ray Neufeld - Right Wing (Hartford Whalers, Winnipeg Jets, Boston Bruins)

▪ Willie O'Ree (first black player in NHL)- Right Wing (Boston Bruins)

▪ Bill Riley - Wing (Washington Capitals, Winnipeg Jets)

▪ Nathan Robinson, Forward: (Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins)

▪ Bernie Saunders -Right Wing (Quebec Nordiques)

▪ Reggie Savage - Right Wing (Washington Capitals, Quebec Nordiques)

▪ Graeme Townshend - Right Wing (Boston Bruins, New York Islanders, Ottawa Senators)

▪ Claude Vilgrain - Right Wing (Vancouver Canucks, New Jersey Devils, Philadelphia Flyers)

▪ Alton White - Right Wing (New York Raiders, Los Angeles Sharks , Michigan Stags , Baltimore Blades) of the (WHA). First hockey player of African descent to score 20 goals in a single season, as well as the first to score a hat-trick (1972-72) for a professional major league hockey team.

▪ Clarke Wilm -Center (Calgary Flames, Nashville Predators, Toronto Maple Leafs)

▪ Peter Worrell -Left Wing (Florida Panthers, Colorado Avalanche)



Defensemen

▪ Sean Brown - Defense (Edmonton Oilers, Boston Bruins, New Jersey Devils, Vancouver Canucks)

▪ Jason Doig - Defense (Winnipeg Jets, Phoenix Coyotes, New York Rangers, Washington Capitals)

▪ Jean-Luc Grand-Pierre - Defense (Buffalo Sabres, Columbus Blue Jackets, Washington Capitals, Atlanta Thrashers)

▪ Paul Jerrard - Defense (Minnesota North Stars)

▪ Rumun Ndur - Defense (Buffalo Sabres, New York Rangers, Atlanta Thrashers)

Goaltenders

▪ Fred Brathwaite (Edmonton Oilers, Calgary Flames, St. Louis Blues, Columbus Blue Jackets)

▪ Gerald Coleman (Tampa Bay Lightning)

▪ Grant Fuhr (First black player inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame) (Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Buffalo Sabres, Los Angeles Kings, St. Louis Blues,Calgary Flames)

▪ Joaquin Gage (Edmonton Oilers)

▪ Tyrone Garner (Calgary Flames)

▪ Pokey Reddick (Winnipeg Jets, Edmonton Oilers, Florida Panthers)

▪ Kevin Weekes (Florida Panthers, Vancouver Canucks, New York Islanders, Tampa Bay Lightning, Carolina Hurricanes, New York Rangers, New Jersey Devils