Robert Bryant Plager (March 11, 1943 – March 24, 2021) was a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice hock ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from Goal (ice hockey), scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the la ...

who played in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL) for 14 seasons from

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 - In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patriarch ...

until

1978 Events January * January 1 – Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747 passenger jet, crashes off the coast of Bombay, killing 213. * January 5 – Bülent Ecevit, of Republican People's Party, CHP, forms the new government of Turkey (42nd go ...

, primarily for the St. Louis Blues. Plager spent over half a century with the Blues organization in various capacities.

Early career

Plager was born in Kirkland Lake, Ontario, on March 11, 1943. His father, Gus, worked as the chief official in the

Northern Ontario Hockey Association The Northern Ontario Hockey Association (NOHA) is an ice hockey governing body for minor, junior and senior ice hockey. The NOHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation and Hockey Canada. The major league run by the NOHA is the Northern ...

. Plager played junior hockey with the

Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters The Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters were a Canadian junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) from 1940 to 1942, and 1947 to 1960. The team was often known as the "Biltmores" and sponsored by the Guelph Biltmore Hat Company, and ...

and the Guelph Royals. Known for his aggressive, highly physical play, he broke what was then the

Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey As ...

record for penalty minutes in a season in 1961–62. He subsequently signed a professional contract with the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

in 1964, but only played 29 games with this club over the next three years, spending most of his time with the minor league

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season in ...

. The NHL's expansion gave Plager his chance to become an NHL regular; he was traded to St. Louis with

Gary Sabourin Gary Bruce Sabourin (born December 4, 1943) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey right winger who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League from 1967–68 until 1976–77. Career Sabourin played in the NHL All-Star Game in 1970 ...

Tim Ecclestone Timothy James Ecclestone (born September 24, 1947) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger who played eleven seasons in the National Hockey League from 1967 until 1978. Ecclestone played 692 career NHL games, scoring 126 goals an ...

, and

Gord Kannegiesser Gordon Cameron Kannegiesser, Jr. (December 21, 1945 – March 1, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. Kannegiesser played 23 games in the National Hockey League for the St. Louis Blues and 127 games in the World Hockey Associ ...

for

Rod Seiling Rodney Albert Seiling (born November 14, 1944) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman. Rod is the brother of Ric Seiling. Playing career Signed by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1962, Seiling played only one game with the Leafs and ...

on June 6, 1967.

Blues playing career

Plager was reunited with his brothers Bill and Barclay as all three took the ice for St. Louis Blues as the team started its existence with a hard-hitting, defensive-oriented squad that appeared in three straight Stanley Cup Finals. Bob Plager earned a reputation as a bruising player with a devastating hip check. Off the ice, he was known as a prankster who was able to bond teammates through his lighthearted demeanor. Despite injuries, Plager was able to play 615 games over 11 years on the St. Louis blue line.

Post-playing career

Plager retired from on-ice action in 1978 and took a job with the Blues front office. He is credited with developing the process of advanced scouting. During the 1990–91 season, he took over as head coach of the

Peoria Rivermen Peoria Rivermen is the name of four minor league hockey clubs: *Peoria Rivermen (IHL), named as such 1984–1996, formerly the Peoria Prancers 1982–1984 *Peoria Rivermen (ECHL), 1996–2005 *Peoria Rivermen (AHL), 2005–2013 *Peoria Rivermen (SP ...

, a Blues affiliate club. In his one season behind the bench, he led the team to a Turner Cup championship and won the Commissioners' Trophy as coach of the year. During the 1992–93 season, he became the Blues' head coach, but, unhappy with his new role, he resigned after 11 games to return to his job as vice president of player development. His jersey was retired on February 2, 2017, the seventh for a Blues player. He was either a player, coach or executive for nearly all of the Blues' existence until his death.

Personal life

Plager's brothers,

Bill Bill(s) may refer to: Common meanings * Banknote, paper cash (especially in the United States) * Bill (law), a proposed law put before a legislature * Invoice, commercial document issued by a seller to a buyer * Bill, a bird or animal's beak Plac ...

and

Barclay Barclay may refer to: People * Barclay (surname) * Clan Barclay Places * Barclay, Kansas * Barclay, Maryland, a town in Queen Anne's County * Barclay, Baltimore, Maryland, a neighborhood * Barclay, Nevada, a town in Lincoln County * Barclay, ...

, also played in the NHL. All three of them played together with the St. Louis Blues from 1968 to 1972. Plager was a convert to Judaism.

Death

Plager died of a "cardiac event" suffered while driving eastbound near St. Louis' Vandeventer neighborhood, on Interstate 64, on March 24, 2021, leading to a two-vehicle collision. During a commemoration ceremony at

Enterprise Center The Enterprise Center is an 18,096-seat arena located in downtown St. Louis, Missouri, United States. Its primary tenant is the St. Louis Blues of the National Hockey League, but it is also used for other functions, such as NCAA basketball, NC ...

, organist Jeremy Boyer played "When The Blues Go Marching In" while Blues alumni carried his coffin out of Enterprise Center to be transported.

Career statistics

Source:

Regular season and playoffs

Coaching record