Bob Froese

Last updated
Bob Froese
Bob Froese 1986.JPG
Froese in 1986
Born (1958-06-30) June 30, 1958 (age 65)
St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Left
Played for Philadelphia Flyers
New York Rangers
National teamFlag of Canada (Pantone).svg  Canada
NHL Draft 160th overall, 1978
St. Louis Blues
Playing career 1979–1990

Robert Glenn Froese (born June 30, 1958) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers.

Contents

Early life

Froese was born in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. He was the middle child to Frank and Agnes Froese with sisters Dorothy (elder) and Patti (younger).

Playing career

Junior and minor leagues

At 16 Froese made his Ontario Major Junior Hockey League debut for his hometown St. Catharines Blackhawks, having been protected as a homegrown player instead of entering the OMJHL draft. His rookie campaign he played in 15 games. Bob played all four of his junior years for the Emms family, moving across the Niagara Region to the Niagara Falls Flyers for the latter two. Following the 1977–78 season, Froese was drafted by the St Louis Blues in the 10th round, 160th overall.

Due to the Blue's financial woes, Froese was not offered a contract out of junior, but instead signed for the Saginaw Gears of the International Hockey League. Halfway through his rookie IHL campaign, Froese was loaned to the Milwaukee Admirals, where he led them to a playoff berth. Froese played a total of three seasons in Saginaw, culminating with the 1980–81 Turner Cup.

1981–82 saw Froese sign with the Philadelphia Flyers, who placed him with the Maine Mariners. Froese played 33 AHL games for the Mariners in each of the 1981–82 and 1982–83 seasons. His call-up to the NHL came after Pelle Lindbergh injured his wrist in an exhibition game against a travelling Soviet exhibition team.

Philadelphia Flyers

Froese made his NHL debut on January 8, 1983, against the Hartford Whalers. The Flyers won 7–4. Froese went on to win his first 8 NHL starts and go undefeated for his first 13, compiling a 12–0–1 record along the way. These were both records for a rookie goaltender at the time. His first NHL shutout came in his third game against the New York Rangers.

The 1983–84 season saw Froese lead the Flyers in games played. 1984–85 saw injuries limit Froese to 17 NHL games along with 4 AHL games for the Hershey Bears. In the 1984–85 playoffs, Froese made 1 start and came in 3 times in relief as the Flyers went to the Stanley Cup finals.

After Pelle Lindbergh died early in the 1985–86 season, Froese became the Flyers' starting goalie. Froese was selected as the Wales Conference backup goaltender for the 1986 All-Star Game, leading the Wales Conference to an overtime victory. At the close of this season he shared the William M. Jennings Trophy (for backstopping the team that gave up the fewest goals) with Darren Jensen. Froese also came second in Vezina Trophy voting to John Vanbiesbrouck by only two votes. During this season he led the NHL in save % (.909), shutouts (5), wins (31) and was named to the NHL Second All-Star Team.

1986–87 saw Froese lose the starting job for the Flyers to Ron Hextall. After appearing in only 3 games for the Flyers that season, he was traded to the New York Rangers on December 19, 1986, for Kjell Samuelsson and a second-round draft pick. [1]

New York Rangers

Following his trade to the Rangers, Froese became half of one of the best tandems in the NHL along with the man he lost the Vezina Trophy to the year before, John Vanbiesbrouck. Appearing in only 28 games that season for the Rangers, he set the team record for most penalty minutes in a season, with 56. [2] Following the season and the Rangers' early exit from the playoffs, Froese went to the IIHF World Championships in Vienna, Austria, where he shut out the Soviet Union during a 0–0 tie.

On November 29, 1987, Froese briefly became the second NHL goalie to score a goal in a game. An errant pass by the New York Islanders' Brent Sutter slid the length of the ice and into the Islanders' empty net on a delayed penalty call. Froese, who had appeared to make a save seconds earlier, was given credit for the goal. Later reviews showed that the shot had actually hit the post and not Froese, so the goal was given to David Shaw. [3]

Altogether, he played for a total of eight seasons, appearing in 242 games and winning 128.

Coaching career

Following his career, Froese joined the New York Rangers coaching staff as their goaltending consultant, working primarily with young prospects Mike Richter and Corey Hirsch. Following two years on the Rangers staff, he joined the New York Islanders in the same role. After three years on the Islanders staff, Froese stepped away from hockey to pursue ministry full-time.

Personal life

Froese is married to his high school sweetheart Ruth.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGPWLTMINGA SO GAA SV% GPWLMINGASOGAASV%
1974–75 St. Catharines Black Hawks OMJHL 15———8717104.89—————————
1975–76 St. Catharines Black HawksOMJHL39———197619305.86—4132402005.00—
1976–77 Niagara Falls FlyersOMJHL39———206316124.68—————————
1977–78 Niagara Falls Flyers OMJHL53———312824604.72—4222361704.36—
1978–79 Saginaw Gears IHL 21———10505803.31—————————
1978–79 Milwaukee Admirals IHL14———7154213.52—7——3342304.14—
1979–80 Maine Mariners AHL 101060505.00—————————
1979–80 Saginaw GearsIHL52———282717803.78—4——2131303.66—
1980–81 Saginaw GearsIHL43———229811432.98—131218062922.16—
1981–82 Maine MarinersAHL3316114190010423.28—————————
1982–83 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 25174214075942.52.896————————
1982–83 Maine MarinersAHL3318113196611023.36—————————
1983–84 Philadelphia FlyersNHL4828137286315023.14.8873021541104.29.857
1984–85 Philadelphia FlyersNHL1713209233712.41.9134011461104.52.845
1984–85 Hershey Bears AHL41212451503.67—————————
1985–86 Philadelphia FlyersNHL5131103272811652.55.9095232931503.07.880
1986–87 Philadelphia FlyersNHL3300180802.67.909————————
1986–87 New York Rangers NHL281411014749203.74.8834111651003.64.896
1987–88 New York RangersNHL25811314408503.54.878————————
1988–89 New York RangersNHL309144162110213.78.87020272806.68.843
1989–90 New York RangersNHL155718124503.33.873————————
NHL totals242128722013,448694133.10.88918398305503.98.869

International

YearTeamEventGPWLTMINGASOGAA
1987 Canada WC 51313001813.60

"Froese's stats". The Goaltender Home Page. Retrieved 2017-09-22.

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References

  1. ↑ Wolff, Craig (1986-12-19). "Froese Is Traded to Rangers". The New York Times. ISSN   0362-4331 . Retrieved 2018-01-03.
  2. ↑ "New York Rangers goaltending history". goaliesarchive.com. Archived from the original on 2018-12-16. Retrieved 2018-01-03.
  3. ↑ , The New York Times, December 5, 1987, accessed April 14, 2011.
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