Guyle Fielder

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Guyle Fielder
1957 Topps Guyle Fielder.jpg
Born (1930-11-21) November 21, 1930 (age 94)
Potlatch, Idaho, U.S.
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 160 lb (73 kg; 11 st 6 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for Chicago Black Hawks
Detroit Red Wings
Boston Bruins
Playing career 19511973

Guyle Abner Fielder (born November 21, 1930) is an American-born Canadian former professional ice hockey center. He is most known for his time in the minor Western Hockey League, where he played from 1952 to 1973. Fielder also played 9 regular season and 6 playoff games in the National Hockey League between 1951 and 1958. He is the fourth-leading scorer in North American professional ice hockey history, behind Wayne Gretzky, Jaromír Jágr, and Gordie Howe, [1] and holds the career records for minor-league ice hockey for the most games played, assists and points scored.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Playing career

Fielder moved to Nipawin, Saskatchewan with his Canadian parents early and played junior hockey in Prince Albert and Lethbridge before becoming professional. Fielder's National Hockey League (NHL) career consisted of 15 regular season and playoff games for the Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings and Boston Bruins. He played a total of 22 seasons in the Western Hockey League (WHL), mainly for the Seattle Totems, as well as for the New Westminster Royals, the Salt Lake Golden Eagles and the Portland Buckaroos. He also played a single season for the St. Louis Flyers of the American Hockey League and had short stints with the Quebec Aces and the Edmonton Flyers.

Fielder won Rookie of the Year honors with New Westminster in 1952. He was a six-time WHL MVP, including four consecutive awards between 1957 and 1960, the league scoring leader nine times (including two stints of three straight), and a three-time honoree as the most gentlemanly player. He won Rookie of the Year honors after his one AHL season in 1953. He was drafted by the Houston Aeros of the WHA in 1972 but chose to remain out west, playing his final season for the Buckaroos in 1973 before retiring. [1]

Among Fielder's scoring feats were four seasons of more than 100 points and 10 seasons of 70 assists or more. His 122 points in 1957 broke the professional record.[ citation needed ] He retired having scored 438 goals and 1,491 assists for 1,929 points. His point total set a professional record, exceeding Gordie Howe's output to that point, and is still the all-time minor league mark.[ citation needed ] His assist total is first all-time in the minor leagues and is double that of his nearest rival. Fielder played in 1,487 games, also the all-time minor league record.[ citation needed ]

The Seattle Kraken created the Guyle Fielder Award to recognize the player who best exemplifies Fielder's "perseverance, hustle and dedication" throughout the season. Yanni Gourde won the inaugural award on April 29, 2022. [2] [3]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season TeamLeagueGP G A Pts PIM GPGAPtsPIM
1947–48 Prince Albert Mintos SJHL 252615412020110
1948–49Prince Albert MintosSJHL20172643229914234
1948–49 Lethbridge Native Sons WCJHL 21120
1949–50Lethbridge Native SonsWCJHL394758105191027914
1950–51Lethbridge Native SonsWCJHL374456100673588
1950–51 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 30000
1951–52 New Westminster Royals PCHL 572550751071342
1952–53 St. Louis Flyers AHL 6222618312
1952–53 Edmonton Flyers WHL 30110
1952–53 Detroit Red Wings NHL40000
1953–54 Seattle Bombers WHL6824648820
1953–54 Boston Bruins NHL20002
1954–55 New Westminster RoyalsWHL7020678737
1955–56 Seattle Americans WHL7018617942
1956–57 Seattle AmericansWHL6933891223062460
1957–58 Detroit Red WingsNHL60002
1957–58 Seattle AmericansWHL62268511122929112
1958–59 Seattle Totems WHL692495119181249134
1959–60 Seattle TotemsWHL693164951241120
1960–61 Seattle TotemsWHL69247195321129114
1961–62 Seattle TotemsWHL692152734620000
1962–63 Seattle TotemsWHL691780972017517226
1963–64 Seattle TotemsWHL66178510234
1963–64 Quebec Aces AHL10000
1964–65 Seattle TotemsWHL701478923870772
1965–66 Seattle TotemsWHL7019759410
1966–67 Seattle TotemsWHL72207191221027912
1967–68 Seattle TotemsWHL7015557026965112
1968–69 Seattle TotemsWHL742074941240224
1969–70 Salt Lake Golden Eagles WHL558586620
1970–71 Salt Lake Golden EaglesWHL6415466122
1971–72 Salt Lake Golden EaglesWHL30522274
1971–72 Portland Buckaroos WHL40940491011010102
1972–73 Portland BuckaroosWHL701147584
WHL totals136839113801771481102248010438
AHL totals622261831210000
NHL totals9000260002

Career achievements

References

  1. 1 2 Baker, Geoff (November 24, 2024). "94 Years And Counting For Guyle Fielder". Seattle Kraken . Retrieved April 23, 2025.
  2. Condor, Bob (April 29, 2022). "Gourde, McCann, Grubauer Win First Player Awards". NHL.com. Retrieved April 30, 2022.
  3. Baker, Geoff (April 29, 2022). "Kraken thank the fans at Climate Pledge Arena by winning their final home game of season". The Seattle Times. Retrieved April 30, 2022.