Clear the track, we’re taking a look at Eddie Shack. He was the ‘Entertainer’ and the ‘Clown Prince of Hockey’, yet Shack was more than that. Eddie could play the game and was, perhaps, underused for the talent he possessed.
Eddie was a Stanley Cup champion with the Toronto Maple Leafs on four occasions. In 1962-63, he scored the championship winning goal. One has to wonder just how different a career Shack would have had if a nixed trade during the 1959-60 NHL season had sent him to the Detroit Red Wings from New York.
Junior and Minor Pro
Hockey Card Collection
NHL Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Eddie Shack – Junior and Minor Pro
Eddie Shack played five years in what is now the Ontario Hockey League with the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters from 1952-53 to 1956-57. Over his time in Guelph, he scored 91 and assisted on 128 for 219 points over 194 regular season games.
Eddie Shack Collection
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It all came together for Shack and the Biltmores in 1956-57. Guelph finished first in the seven team league. Eddie scored 47 and assisted on 57 for 104 points over 52 games. He placed third in goal scoring, behind Frank Mahovlich of the St. Michael’s Majors and teammate Bill Sweeney.
Sweeney and Shack tied for the most assists and Eddie fell just two points behind Sweeney in the race for the Eddie Powers Trophy as the league’s top scorer. Shack was named to the All-Star team at left wing.
Guelph won the OHA Junior A title with a win over the St. Catherines Teepees in the finals. This was no easy task. The Teepees were loaded with the likes of Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Chico Maki and John McKenzie. The Biltmores moved on but fell to the Ottawa Junior Canadiens in the Richardson Cup finals.
Shack’s pro career began with the Providence Reds of the American Hockey League in 1957-58. Over 35 games, Eddie contributed 34 points. The following year, his time in the AHL was limited to nine games with the Springfield Indians, spending the bulk of his time in the NHL with the New York Rangers.
Eddie returned to the AHL for another short stint in 1965-66. He spent eight games with the Rochester Americans before returning to the Maple Leafs and putting in a career year. His career ended with eight games in the Central Hockey League with the Oklahoma City Blazers in 1974-75.
Eddie Shack – NHL
Between 1958-59 and 1974-75, Eddie Shack appeared in 1,047 regular season National Hockey League games with the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, Buffalo Sabres and Pittsburgh Penguins. Over that time, he scored 239 and assisted on 226 for 465 points while sitting 1,439 minutes in penalties.
In the Stanley Cup playoffs, Shack appeared in 74 games, contributing 13 points. He was a Stanley Cup champion with the Maple Leafs four times. These titles include three consecutive from 1961-62 to 1963-64, along with the 1966-67 win. As mentioned, Eddie scored the series winning goal in the 1962-63 finals.
He was the first NHL player to score 20 or more goals in a season for five different teams. He accomplished the feat with the Maple Leafs, Bruins, Kings, Sabres and Penguins. The only other player to date to do this is Bill Guerin, who scored 20 or more with seven different clubs.
Shack topped out with 27 goals in 1970-71, two with Los Angeles and 25 with Buffalo. His previous high was 26 with the Maple Leafs in 1965-66. His 1973-74 O-Pee-Chee hockey card mistakenly refers to that 1965-66 total as his career high.
Not one to shy away from the rough stuff, Eddie tied for fifth in his rookie season with 109 penalty minutes, playing for the Rangers. In 1959-60, he added one minute to that total and tied for sixth with Elmer Vasko of the Chicago Blackhawks. In 1963-64, his 128 PIM with the Maple Leafs put him sixth in the NHL.
His NHL transactions are as interesting as any other part of Shack’s career. On February 5, 1960, the Rangers traded Eddie and Bill Gadsby to the Red Wings for Red Kelly and Billy McNeill. However, Kelly and McNeill refused to report to New York and the deal was voided. Kelly chose to retire, rather than play for the Rangers.
The Rangers did get rid of Shack in 1960. In November of that year, he was dealt to Toronto for Pat Hannigan and Johnny Wilson. He stayed with the Maple Leafs until a trade sent him to the Bruins in May, 1967 for Murray Oliver.
In May, 1969, Shack was sent to Los Angeles, along with Ross Lonsberry for Ken Turlik and draft picks. His time with the Kings was short. L.A. shipped him out in late November, 1970 with Dick Duff for Mike McMahon and draft picks.
In March, 1972, Eddie went to the Pittsburgh Penguins for Rene Robert. Over the summer of 1973, he was dealt back to the Maple Leafs for cash.
Eddie Shack – Rookie Card
The Eddie Shack rookie card appears as number 30 in the 1958-59 Topps set. He is shown with the New York Rangers and the card is one of the most valuable, after the rookie card of Bobby Hull.
His final card was with the Maple Leafs and included in the 1973-74 O-Pee-Chee set. He did play 26 games with Toronto in 1974-75 but did not appear on cardboard that year. As mentioned, on the back of the 1973-74 OPC hockey card, it states that his best season was the 26 goals he scored with Toronto in 1965-66. In fact, he scored 27 in 1970-71, split between the Kings and Sabres. This would make this an uncorrected error that is not recognized by the guides.
Most of his cards refer to him being ‘Eddie the Entertainer’ and the ‘Clown Prince of Hockey’. His rink long dashes are also often noted. Shack’s 1967-68 Topps card uses the term ‘rock ’em, sock ’em’ – an early use of the term made famous by Don Cherry some time later…
Eddie Shack Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1952-53 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 21 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 45 |
| 1953-54 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 54 | 13 | 9 | 22 | 46 |
| 1954-55 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 19 | 6 | 7 | 13 | 35 |
| 1955-56 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 48 | 23 | 49 | 72 | 93 |
| 1956-57 | Guelph Biltmores | OHA | 52 | 47 | 57 | 104 | 129 |
| 1957-58 | Providence Reds | AHL | 35 | 16 | 18 | 34 | 98 |
| 1958-59 | New York Rangers | NHL | 67 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 109 |
| 1959-60 | New York Rangers | NHL | 62 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 110 |
| 1959-60 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 9 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 10 |
| 1960-61 | New York Rangers | NHL | 12 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 17 |
| 1960-61 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 55 | 14 | 14 | 28 | 90 |
| 1961-62 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 44 | 7 | 14 | 21 | 62 |
| 1962-63 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 63 | 16 | 9 | 25 | 97 |
| 1963-64 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 64 | 11 | 10 | 21 | 128 |
| 1964-65 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 67 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 68 |
| 1965-66 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 8 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 12 |
| 1965-66 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 63 | 26 | 17 | 43 | 88 |
| 1966-67 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 63 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 58 |
| 1967-68 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 70 | 23 | 19 | 42 | 107 |
| 1968-69 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 50 | 11 | 11 | 22 | 74 |
| 1969-70 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 73 | 22 | 12 | 34 | 115 |
| 1970-71 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 8 |
| 1970-71 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 56 | 25 | 17 | 42 | 93 |
| 1971-72 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 50 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 34 |
| 1971-72 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 18 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 12 |
| 1972-73 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NHL | 74 | 25 | 20 | 45 | 84 |
| 1973-74 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 59 | 7 | 8 | 15 | 74 |
| 1974-75 | Oklahoma City Blazers | CHL | 8 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 10 |
| 1974-75 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 26 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 11 |
| NHL Totals | 1047 | 239 | 226 | 465 | 1439 |