Douglas Robert Favell (born April 5, 1945) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
former 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 ...
goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...
and former
box lacrosse
Box lacrosse, also known as boxla, box, or indoor lacrosse, is an indoor version of lacrosse played mostly in North America. The game originated in Canada in the 1930s, where it is more popular than field lacrosse. Lacrosse is Canada's official ...
player. Favell 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 ...
for the
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 Wells ...
,
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
and
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
.
Playing career
Favell, along with future Flyers' teammate
Bernie Parent
Bernard Marcel Parent (born April 3, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played 13 National Hockey League (NHL) seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers, Boston Bruins, and Toronto Maple Leafs, and also spent one seaso ...
, played his junior hockey for the
Niagara Falls Flyers
The Niagara Falls Flyers were two junior ice hockey franchises that played in the top tier in the Ontario Hockey Association. The first, a Junior "A" team existed from 1960 until 1972, and the second in Tier I Junior "A" from 1976 until 1982.
...
in the
OHA. After the club won the
Memorial Cup
The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League, a consortium of three major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tournament played between t ...
in
1965
Events January–February
* January 14 – The Prime Minister of Northern Ireland and the Taoiseach of the Republic of Ireland meet for the first time in 43 years.
* January 20
** Lyndon B. Johnson is Second inauguration of Lyndo ...
, both goalies began their professional careers in the
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 ...
organization, who held their rights. Over the next two seasons, Favell played in the Bruins' farm system.
Favell, like
Chicago Black Hawks
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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, subdivision_name ...
goaltender
Tony Esposito
Anthony James "Tony O" Esposito (April 23, 1943 – August 10, 2021) was a Canadian-American professional ice hockey goaltender, who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), 15 of those for the Chicago Black Hawks. He was one of t ...
, was one of the few goaltenders then to employ the now-popular
butterfly style
In ice hockey, butterfly style is a technique of goaltending distinguished by the goaltender guarding the lower part of the net by dropping to the knees to block attempts to score. The butterfly style derives its name from the resemblance of the ...
, often going down to the ice to block shots in an era where the stand-up style of play dominated.
With the arrival of the six new expansion clubs for the
1967–68 NHL season, Favell and Parent were selected by the
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 Wells ...
in the
1967 NHL Expansion Draft. The goalies split the work that first season and led the Flyers to a first-place finish in the NHL's Western Division. Favell had a stellar 2.27
GAA with four shutouts. Both goalies toiled for the Flyers until Parent was dealt to the
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...
in February 1971.
Without Parent, Favell became the Flyers' workhorse goalie. He recorded seasons of 44, 54 and 44 games with GAAs of 2.66, 2.81 and 2.83 on an improving Flyers team. In
1973, the Flyers reached the league semifinals and Favell was one of the top players, appearing in 11 playoff games and recording a 2.60 GAA and one shutout.
Before the
next season, Favell was traded to the Maple Leafs for none other than Bernie Parent. The Leafs had three veteran goalies but Favell played the most games in the regular season and playoffs. He recorded a strong win–loss record with a solid 2.71 GAA in 32 games. The following season saw the Leafs rely on two goalies, but Favell struggled in 39 games with the poorest goals against (4.05) of his career. His third season with the team was his last with only three games played and extended time on the injury list.
Favell's NHL rights were sold to the
Colorado Rockies
The Colorado Rockies are an American professional baseball team based in Denver. The Rockies compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) West division. The team plays its home baseball games at Coors Fie ...
for the
1976–77 NHL season
The 1976–77 NHL season was the 60th season of the National Hockey League. The Kansas City Scouts moved to Denver, Colorado, and became the Colorado Rockies and the California Golden Seals moved to Cleveland, Ohio, and became the Cleveland Baron ...
. After appearing in 30 games that season, Favell became the Rockies top goalie the following year, appearing in 47 contests. The 1978-79 campaign, however, would be his last in the NHL; battling injuries, Favell appeared in only seven games with the Rockies, with a dismal 0-5-2 record and a 5.38 GAA. He wound up playing most of the season in Philadelphia, with the
Firebirds
Firebird and fire bird may refer to:
Mythical birds
* Phoenix (mythology), sacred firebird found in the mythologies of many cultures
* Bennu, Egyptian firebird
* Huma bird, Persian firebird
* Firebird (Slavic folklore)
Bird species
''Various sp ...
of the
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...
.
Colorado exposed him to the
1979 NHL Expansion Draft
The 1979 NHL Expansion Draft was held on June 13, 1979. The draft took place to fill the rosters of the National Hockey League's new teams for the 1979–80 season: the Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques and Winnipeg Jets. These ...
. Selected by the
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 ...
, he opted to retire instead of start fresh with a new franchise. Favell holds the distinction of being the only player selected in both the 1967 and 1979 NHL Expansion Drafts. Favell was known for an abruptly curved blocker pad on his stick hand. While Bruins goaltender
Gerry Cheevers
Gerald Michael "Cheesie" Cheevers (born 7 December 1940) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) and World Hockey Association (WHA) between 1961 and 1980. Cheevers is best known for ...
, Favell's goaltending partner for the
Oklahoma City Blazers, was the first goaltender to have artwork on his mask, Favell was the first to use a painted design, just before Halloween 1970.
Lacrosse
Favell also played
lacrosse
Lacrosse is a team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game was extensively ...
professionally for the Detroit Olympics of the
National Lacrosse Association
The National Lacrosse Association was a professional box lacrosse league that operated in 1968-1969 with teams from both the United States and Canada.
Due to poor attendance, the league folded in March 1969. After the folding, two teams (the Map ...
in 1968 and the
Philadelphia Wings of the
National Lacrosse League
The National Lacrosse League (NLL) is a men's professional box lacrosse league in North America. The league is headquartered in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.
The NLL currently has fifteen teams: ten in the United Stat ...
in 1974. Favell was inducted into the Ontario Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 2005.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Favell, Doug
1945 births
Living people
Canadian ice hockey goaltenders
Canadian lacrosse players
Colorado Rockies (NHL) players
Sportspeople from St. Catharines
Memorial Cup winners
Niagara Falls Flyers (1960–1972) players
Oklahoma City Blazers (1965–1977) players
Philadelphia Firebirds (AHL) players
Philadelphia Flyers players
Philadelphia Wings players
Quebec Aces (AHL) players
San Francisco Seals (ice hockey) players
Toronto Maple Leafs players
Ice hockey people from Ontario
Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States