Ed Hospodar

Edward David "Boxcar" Hospodar (born February 9, 1959 in Bowling Green, Ohio and raised in Mississauga, Ontario) is an American-Canadian former professional ice hockey defenseman who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Rangers, Hartford Whalers, Philadelphia Flyers, Minnesota North Stars and Buffalo Sabres. Hospodar did not see a great deal of ice time at any point in his career, used primarily as an enforcer.

Ed Hospodar
Born (1959-02-09) February 9, 1959
Bowling Green, Ohio, USA
Height 6 ft 2 in (188 cm)
Weight 210 lb (95 kg; 15 st 0 lb)
Position Defence
Shot Right
Played for New York Rangers
Hartford Whalers
Philadelphia Flyers
Minnesota North Stars
Buffalo Sabres
National team  United States
NHL Draft 34th overall, 1979
New York Rangers
Playing career 1979–1988

He was best known for being one of the instigators of a pregame brawl between the Montreal Canadiens and the Philadelphia Flyers in the Montreal Forum prior to game six of the Wales Conference finals on May 14, 1987, an act which earned him a suspension for the remainder of that year's playoffs.

While with the Rangers, Hospodar's face was badly damaged by Clark Gillies of the New York Islanders in a 1981 fight at Madison Square Garden. In 450 NHL games, Hospodar scored 17 goals and had 51 assists, with four goals and one assist during 44 playoff games. He acquired 1314 penalty minutes during his regular season games, and 208 penalty minutes during his playoff games. Hospodar retired from hockey in 1988.[1]

As a youth, Hospodar played in the 1972 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a minor ice hockey team from Toronto.[2]

Hospodar received his nickname in junior hockey after a writer deemed the force of his checks to be commensurate with that of a "runaway boxcar". Although born in the United States, Hospodar learned the game in Canada; his father was a plant manager for the Campbell's Soup Company, overseeing plants in New Jersey, Ohio, and later Ontario.[3] Hospodar's brother became a Byzantine Catholic priest.[4]

Career statistics
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1976–77 Ottawa 67's OMJHL 5131922140 193912113
1977–78 Ottawa 67's OMJHL 6272633172 1636978
1978–79 Ottawa 67's OMJHL 4571623131 501139
1979–80 New York Rangers NHL 2001176 710142
1979–80 New Haven Nighthawks AHL 253912131 501139
1980–81 New York Rangers NHL 6151419214 1220293
1981–82 New York Rangers NHL 413811152 —————
1982–83 Hartford Whalers NHL 721910199 —————
1983–84 Hartford Whalers NHL 59099163 —————
1984–85 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 50347130 1811269
1985–86 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 1731455 —————
1985–86 Minnesota North Stars NHL 4302291 20002
1986–87 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 45224136 50002
1987–88 Buffalo Sabres NHL 4201198 —————
1988–89 Rochester Americans AHL 500010 —————
NHL totals 450 17 51 68 1,314 44 4 1 5 208

References
  1. "Ed Hospodar player profile". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2010-01-28.
  2. "Pee-Wee players who have reached NHL or WHA" (PDF). Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament. 2018. Retrieved 2019-01-10.
  3. "LeBow College of Business to Award John Hospodar 85 Father of Ed Boxcar Hospodar Honorary MBA | Now | Drexel University". Drexel.edu. 2009-05-20. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
  4. "1979 NHL Entry Draft - Ed Hospodar". Hockeydraftcentral.com. Retrieved 2013-02-05.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.