Amateur
Lauer graduated to the Regina Pats of the Western Hockey League (WHL) ahead of the 1983–84 season. [3] In the second half of the season, Lauer took on a penalty killing role for the Pats. [4] In 60 games with Regina, Lauer scored five goals and seven assists for 12 points. [5] The Pats qualified for the playoffs but Lauer missed time with a broken knuckle suffered in a game on March 7, 1984. [6] [7] He returned to the lineup on April 13, but the Pats ultimately fell to the Kamloops Junior Oilers in the WHL finals. [8] In 16 playoff games, Lauer added one assist. [5] He returned to the Pats for the 1984–85 season and was placed on a line with Brent Fedyk and Allan Acton. The line was matched against opposing team's top scoring lines. [9] By December, Lauer was on a line with Acton and Doug Trapp. [10] In 72 games with Regina, he tallied 33 goals and 79 points. [5] The Pats once again made the playoffs, but were knocked out by the Medicine Hat Tigers. [11] In eight playoff games, Lauer registered six goals and 12 points. [5]
For the 1985–86 season, Lauer missed time early with a shoulder injury, [12] and later in November, with a broken knuckle. [13] Lauer was invited to attend Team Canada's training camp ahead of the 1986 World Junior Championships in December 1985. [14] However, he was not among those selected to play in the tournament for Canada. [15] He was instead selected to play in the WHL Eastern Division all-star game in January 1986. [16] With the Pats missing defencemen, Lauer played the final six games of the regular season on defence. [17] In 57 games with Regina, he recorded 36 goals and 74 points. [5] The Pats qualified for the playoffs and entered the round-robin portion of the playoffs, in which they were eliminated. [17] [18] In ten playoff games, Lauer tallied four goals and nine points. [5]
Professional
Lauer was selected by the New York Islanders of the National Hockey League (NHL), who took him in the second round with the 34th selection of the 1985 NHL entry draft. He was projected as a scoring threat and was considered part of the Islanders "best draft in years." [19] [20] He attended the Islanders 1985 training camp, but was returned to Regina on September 30, 1985. [21] He signed a three-year contract plus an option year with New York in April 1986. [22] He made the Islanders team out of training camp ahead of the 1986–87 season and made his NHL debut on October 9, 1986, against the Chicago Blackhawks on a line with Brent Sutter and Mike Bossy. [23] [24] He scored his first NHL goal in his second game, scoring on the power play against goaltender Bob Janecyk in a 5–4 loss to the Los Angeles Kings on October 11. [25] Patrick Flatley later replaced Bossy on Sutter and Lauer's line. [26] Lauer tallied seven goals and 21 points in 61 games with the Islanders. [5] New York finished third in the Patrick Division and qualified for the playoffs. They faced the Washington Capitals in the opening round best-of-seven series. [27] Lauer was a healthy scratch for the team's opening game, but made his NHL playoff debut on April 9, replacing Greg Gilbert in the lineup in a 3–1 victory over the Capitals. He played on the fourth line alongside Bob Bassen and Duane Sutter. [28] [29] Lauer scored his first playoff goal in the following game on April 12, marking the team's only goal against Bob Mason in a 4–1 loss. [30] The Islanders advanced, winning the series, though Lauer missed the final game, and the first two of the next series against the Philadelphia Flyers with a bruised hip. In his return to the lineup on April 24, he played on the fourth line with Brent Sutter and Patrick Flatley. [31] He appeared in one more game before missing the rest of the series with a thigh injury as the Flyers eliminated the Islanders. [32] [33] In six playoff games, Lauer added two goals. [5]
Going into the 1987–88 season, Lauer was among the Islanders' young players that was looked upon to complement the ageing core from the team's dynasty in the earlier part of the decade. [34] [35] However, in training camp, Lauer suffered a fractured right hand that kept him from participating in drills and as a result was a healthy scratch for the first four games of the season. [36] In his first game in the lineup, he was placed on the left wing alongside Brent Sutter and Patrick Flatley and assisted on Sutter's goal in a 5–4 win over the Calgary Flames on October 20. [37] After getting into the lineup, his play was deemed "excellent through the early part of the season". [35] However, in a 5–2 loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs on October 28, Lauer was one of three players along with Mikko Mäkelä and Gerald Diduck who head coach Terry Simpson told to stay in the locker room after the second intermission, with the coach stating that the three players were not fulfilling his expectations. [38] The incident became a major story amongst New York media, with the various outlets dividing the season's performance pre and post benching. [39] In the middle of the season, Lauer went on an eight-game goal scoring drought, broken on January 5, 1988, in a 3–3 tie with the Minnesota North Stars. [40] He had a multi-goal game, tallying two goals, in a 4–2 victory over the Washington Capitals on February 5. [41] In 69 games with New York, he recorded a career-high 17 goals and 35 points. [5] The Islanders won the Patrick Division and faced the New Jersey Devils in the first round of the playoffs. [42] Lauer began the playoffs on the team's second line alongside Brent Sutter and Dale Henry. [43] However, he once again found himself scratched from the lineup, replaced by Mick Vukota for Game 3 of the series. [44] He returned to the lineup, replacing Vukota, for Game 4 and played the remainder of the series. [45] In Game 7, with the Islanders facing elimination, Lauer recorded a three-point game, scoring two goals and assisting on Steve Konroyd's goal in a 6–5 loss to the Devils, ending their season. [46] [47] In five playoff games, he contributed three goals and four points. [5]
Lauer opened the 1988–89 season on the second line with Brent Sutter and David Volek. [48] However, shortly after the season began, Lauer's nose was broken by Mick Vukota in practice. [49] Volek was replaced by Alan Kerr, but the line struggled and then Lauer suffered a significant injury after taking a Mark Howe shot above the knee in a game against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 27. [50] [51] He suffered a fractured left kneecap from the shot and returned only in January 1989, being assigned to the Islanders' American Hockey League (AHL) affiliate, the Springfield Indians, on a conditioning loan. [52] [53] Lauer was recalled after three games in which he had a goal and four points with Springfield and made his NHL return on January 30. [54] However, after five games, he felt some recurring issues with his leg and was scratched from the lineup. [55]
He made appearances with the Islanders, Chicago Blackhawks, Ottawa Senators and Pittsburgh Penguins. Lauer was also a part of the Dallas Stars' system where he provided veteran leadership for their International Hockey League (IHL) affiliate, the Utah Grizzlies.
His most successful season of professional hockey was the 1992–93 season with the Indianapolis Ice of the IHL. Lauer notched 50 goals and 41 assists for 91 points in just 62 games played.
He also suited up for the American Hockey League (AHL) Springfield Indians, Capital District Islanders and the IHL Las Vegas Thunder, and Cleveland Lumberjacks. He retired following 2001–02 season after playing one season with the Sheffield Steelers in the EIHL in which he took the role as player-coach and went on to win the Playoff Championship.
