Al Hamilton

Last updated
Al Hamilton
Born (1946-08-20) August 20, 1946 (age 77)
Flin Flon, Manitoba, Canada
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Right
Played for New York Rangers
Buffalo Sabres
Alberta/Edmonton Oilers
National teamFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
Playing career 1964–1980

Allan Guy Hamilton (born August 20, 1946) is a Canadian former ice hockey defenceman, most notably with the Edmonton Oilers of the World Hockey Association. He also played in the National Hockey League for the Oilers, as well as the New York Rangers and Buffalo Sabres.

Contents

Playing career

Signed by the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League (NHL) as a teenager, Hamilton spent his junior career with the Edmonton Oil Kings. He met with great success in juniors, being one of the rare players to play in the Memorial Cup tournament three consecutive years. [1] His final season in 1966 with the Oil Kings saw the team win the Memorial Cup, led by Hamilton's remarkable 82 points in 55 regular season and playoff games, drawing frequent comparisons with his junior contemporary Bobby Orr of the Oshawa Generals. In fact in Hamilton's Memorial Cup-winning final junior year, Hamilton and Orr highlighted the championship game by trading end-to-end rushes. [2]

Hamilton made a rather auspicious debut with the Rangers on a Wednesday night hockey broadcast. As Frank Mahovlich was skating down the boards, Hamilton entered the playing surface from the bench on a line change and knocked out the unsuspecting Mahovlich with a thundering shoulder check that required smelling salts to help him retain consciousness.[ citation needed ]. While he played a few games for the Rangers in 1966, he toiled for the next three seasons in the minors, winning all-star accolades for the Omaha Knights of the Central Hockey League in 1967 and spending the two years thereafter with the Buffalo Bisons of the American Hockey League. Hamilton finally cracked the Rangers' lineup in 1969, playing in 59 games, but he had arrived at a time when the Ranger defence was stacked and a new kid named Brad Park was turning heads. Hamilton was left unprotected for the 1970 NHL Expansion Draft and was selected by the Buffalo Sabres as their third choice. [1]

However, when the World Hockey Association began in 1972, Hamilton jumped over to the fledgling league, signing with the Alberta Oilers for their first season. Named the team's captain at the age of 26, he immediately responded with a 61-point season, his best as a pro, [1] A superb defender and leader, he captained the Oilers for four seasons and was chosen to represent Canada in the 1974 Summit Series against the Soviet Union. [2] Overcoming injuries that frequently struck—and which cost him most of the 1975 season—Hamilton remained the leader of the Oilers' defence corps for the whole of the WHA's history. When the Oilers joined the NHL for the 1979–80 NHL season, Hamilton had set the record for most games played (455) and most points scored (311) by any player while a WHA Oiler.

Retirement

Hamilton finished his career back in the NHL, playing 31 games with the Edmonton Oilers in 1979–80; however, beset by a lingering eye injury from the previous season, he retired at season's end. His number "3" was the first retired by the franchise. [2] As of 2021, Hamilton is the only Oiler not to be a member of the 1980s Stanley Cup teams to have his number retired.

For the WHA all-time, he is 13th in games played, 15th in assists, 40th in points and 38th in penalty minutes. He was also the franchise leader for the WHA Oilers in games, assists and points, and second in penalty minutes.

Hamilton remains active with the Oiler alumni and community affairs in the Edmonton area.

Family

His son, Steve Hamilton (born 1973) is the current head coach with the Calgary Hitmen of the Western Hockey League. [3]

Awards and achievements

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

   Regular season   Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1963–64 Edmonton Oil Kings CAHL 14471126523515
1963–64 Edmonton Oil Kings M-Cup —————19481215
1964–65Edmonton Oil KingsCAHL30101525——————
1964–65 St. Paul Rangers CPHL 30220—————
1964–65 Edmonton Oil KingsM-Cup—————204121640
1965–66Edmonton Oil Kings ASHL 281522379983101316
1965–66 New York Rangers NHL 40000—————
1965–66 Edmonton Oil KingsM-Cup—————199233229
1966–67 Omaha Knights CPHL68112536961243716
1967–68 New York RangersNHL20000—————
1967–68 Buffalo Bisons AHL 729213082504423
1968–69 New York RangersNHL16000810000
1968–69 Buffalo BisonsAHL414141861604412
1969–70 New York RangersNHL590555450002
1970–71 Buffalo Sabres NHL692283071—————
1971–72 Buffalo SabresNHL7643034105—————
1972–73 Alberta Oilers WHA 7811506112410002
1973–74 Edmonton OilersWHA78144559104411215
1974–75 Edmonton OilersWHA251131442—————
1975–76 Edmonton OilersWHA54232347840116
1976–77 Edmonton OilersWHA81837456050444
1977–78 Edmonton OilersWHA5911435446—————
1978–79 Edmonton OilersWHA806384438134594
1979–80 Edmonton OilersNHL31415192010000
1979–80 Houston Apollos CHL40000—————
WHA totals45553258311492275111631
NHL totals25710788825870002

International

YearTeamEvent GPGAPtsPIM
1974 Canada SS30114

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References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Al Hamilton player profile". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2010-01-27.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 "Al Hamilton – Number 3 forever". Edmonton Oilers Heritage Foundation. Archived from the original on 21 January 2010. Retrieved 2010-01-27.
  3. ↑ "Steve Hamilton - Elite Prospects".
  4. ↑ "Al Hamilton profile". Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame. Archived from the original on 2012-02-15. Retrieved 2010-01-27.
  5. ↑ "WHA Hall of Fame Members". Archived from the original on 2018-08-26. Retrieved 2013-09-13.
Preceded by
Position created
 Edmonton Oilers captain
1972 – 76 		Succeeded by
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