Robert James Schmautz (March 28, 1945March 28, 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 h ...

forward who played 13 seasons 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). He played for the

Chicago Black Hawks (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

, and Colorado Rockies from 1967 to 1981. He featured in three Stanley Cup Finals with the Bruins.

Early life

Schmautz was born in

Saskatoon Saskatoon () is the largest city in the Canadian province of Saskatchewan. It straddles a bend in the South Saskatchewan River in the central region of the province. It is located along the Trans-Canada Yellowhead Highway, and has served as th ...

Saskatchewan Saskatchewan ( ; ) is a province in western Canada, bordered on the west by Alberta, on the north by the Northwest Territories, on the east by Manitoba, to the northeast by Nunavut, and on the south by the U.S. states of Montana and North Dak ...

, on March 28, 1945. He played junior hockey in his hometown with the junior

Quakers Quakers are people who belong to a historically Protestant Christian set of denominations known formally as the Religious Society of Friends. Members of these movements ("theFriends") are generally united by a belief in each human's abil ...

and the Blades, before signing his first professional contract in 1964 with the

Los Angeles Blades The Los Angeles Blades were a professional inline hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. The Blades played in Roller Hockey International from 1993–1997 and played their home games at the Great Western Forum. Two other franchises have us ...

of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

(WHL).

Career

Schmautz played with the Blades until 1967, when he was signed by the

of the

(NHL). His NHL rights were transferred to the

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference. The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the ...

in the 1969 intraleague draft; he ultimately never played for the Blues, instead being traded to the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

three weeks later, and subsequently sold to the

Salt Lake Golden Eagles The Salt Lake Golden Eagles were a minor professional hockey team based in Salt Lake City from 1969 to 1994. History They played in the Western Hockey League from 1969 to 1974, the Central Hockey League from 1974 to 1984 and the International H ...

of the WHL. Salt Lake would also trade him, to the

Seattle Totems The Seattle Totems were a professional ice hockey franchise in Seattle, Washington. Under several names prior to 1958, the franchise was a member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League (renamed the Western Hockey League in 1952) between 1944 and 19 ...

. Schmautz was signed as a

free agent In professional sports, a free agent is a player who is eligible to sign with other clubs or franchises; i.e., not under contract to any specific team. The term is also used in reference to a player who is under contract at present but who is a ...

in 1970 by the

, an expansion team starting their first season in the NHL. Though he started the season in the WHL, he joined the Canucks in February 1971. He led the team in scoring during the 1972–73 season with 38 goals and 33 assists, and had the second-most

hat-tricks A hat-trick or hat trick is the achievement of a generally positive feat three times in a match, or another achievement based on the number three. Origin The term first appeared in 1858 in cricket, to describe H. H. Stephenson taking three wi ...

in the NHL with three. He was named to the

1973 Events January * January 1 - The United Kingdom, the Republic of Ireland and Denmark 1973 enlargement of the European Communities, enter the European Economic Community, which later becomes the European Union. * January 15 – Vietnam War: ...

and 1974 NHL All-Star Games. Schmautz was subsequently traded to the

midway through the 1974 season. Playing under Bruin coach

Don Cherry Donald Stewart Cherry (born February 5, 1934) is a Canadian former ice hockey player, coach, and television commentator. Cherry played one game in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins, and later coached the team for five se ...

, Schmautz developed into an accomplished forechecker and backchecker, usually playing right wing on a line with future Hall-of-Famer

Johnny Bucyk John Paul Bucyk (born May 12, 1935) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger and member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. Having played most of his career with the Boston Bruins, he has been associated in one capacity or another with the ...

and versatile center Gregg Sheppard. He spent five seasons with Boston in all, finishing ninth in the NHL in game-winning goals in 1976 and 1978. Schmautz scored the overtime goal for Boston in Game Four of the 1978 Stanley Cup final versus Montreal to level the series at two games apiece. A photograph of Schmautz celebrating his goal was used as the cover photo for the Bruins' 1978–1979 media guide. Overall, Schmautz scored 26 playoff goals for Boston – the same total as Bobby Orr. At the time of Schmautz's death, he ranked 20th in Boston history with 56 playoff points. Schmautz was known for having perhaps the great snap shot in the game. He then briefly played for the Colorado Rockies and

, before signing back with Vancouver in 1980. After the 1980–81 season, Schmautz was not offered a new contract by the Canucks, so he opted to retire. He subsequently moved to

Portland, Oregon Portland (, ) is a port city in the Pacific Northwest and the list of cities in Oregon, largest city in the U.S. state of Oregon. Situated at the confluence of the Willamette River, Willamette and Columbia River, Columbia rivers, Portland is ...

and worked in roofing.

Personal life

Two of Schmautz's brothers also played hockey. Cliff Schmautz played one season in the NHL at the same position as Bobby, appearing in 57 games for the

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

and

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Well ...

and scoring 32 points in 1970–71. Arnie Schmautz played 13 seasons in the WHL with the New Westminster Royals,

Victoria Cougars The Victoria Cougars were a major league professional ice hockey team that played in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association (PCHA) from 1911 to 1924 under various names, and (after the PCHA's merger with the Western Canada Hockey League) in the W ...

, and Portland Buckaroos. Both his brothers predeceased him. Schmautz died on March 28, 2021, his 76th birthday, at his home in

Peoria, Arizona Peoria is a city in Maricopa and Yavapai counties in the state of Arizona. Most of the city is located in Maricopa County, while a portion in the north is in Yavapai County. It is a major suburb of Phoenix. As of the 2020 census, the popul ...

Career statistics

Source:

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Schmautz, Bobby 1945 births 2021 deaths Boston Bruins players Canadian ice hockey right wingers Chicago Blackhawks players Colorado Rockies (NHL) players Dallas Black Hawks players Edmonton Oilers players Ice hockey people from Saskatchewan Los Angeles Blades (WHL) players National Hockey League All-Stars Rochester Americans players Saskatoon Blades players Seattle Totems (WHL) players Sportspeople from Saskatoon Vancouver Canucks players