Edward M. Bumbacco is a Canadian retired ice hockey

left wing Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy. Left-wing politics typically involve a concern for those in soci ...

who was an All-American for

Notre Dame Notre Dame, French for "Our Lady", a title of Mary, mother of Jesus, most commonly refers to: * Notre-Dame de Paris, a cathedral in Paris, France * University of Notre Dame, a university in Indiana, United States ** Notre Dame Fighting Irish, th ...

Career

Bumbacco was a hot commodity as a junior player, being selected by the Toronto Marlboros in the 1969 OHA Priority Selection. He decided to remain with his junior-B club, the

Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds The Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (often shortened to Soo Greyhounds) are a Junior ice hockey#Major junior, major junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. The Greyhounds play home games at the GFL Memorial Gardens. The present team was ...

and produced a fantastic season, scoring at a nearly 3-point-per-game pace. Bumbacco led the Greyhounds to a league championship and was named as the playoff MVP. In the

1970 Memorial Cup The 1970 Memorial Cup was the 52nd annual Memorial Cup competition, organized by the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) to determine the champion of junior A ice hockey. It was a best-of-seven series between the Montreal Jr. Canadiens o ...

Sault Ste. Marie received a bye into the quarterfinal round but were defeated by eventual champion

Montreal Junior Canadiens The Montreal Junior Canadiens were a junior ice hockey team in the Quebec Junior Hockey League from 1933 to 1961, and the Ontario Hockey Association from 1961 to 1972. They played out of the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. History The ...

four games to one. After the season Bumbacco began attending the University of Notre Dame and played four seasons with the varsity hockey team. Bumbacco missed part of his freshman season due to a bout of mononucleosis and then had surgery to repair a separated shoulder in the offseason. Prior to his sophomore season the Fighting Irish joined the WCHA and the team was predictably near the bottom of league standings. Bumbacco did, however, acquit himself well enough to be selected by the Montreal Canadiens in the NHL Draft. The next year it appeared that Montreal may have made a very shrewd pick when Bumbacco went on a scoring rampage, posting the best offensive season for any Notre Dame player in history. Bumbacco's 90-point season placed him second in the nation and helped Notre Dame finish second in the WCHA. Bumbacco was one of Notre Dame's first two All-Americans (the other being

Bill Nyrop William Donald Nyrop (July 23, 1952 – December 31, 1995) was a professional ice hockey player who won three Stanley Cups with the Montreal Canadiens in 1976, 1977, and 1978. Early life Born in Washington, D.C., his father, Donald Nyrop, served ...

) and the Fighting Irish came within a goal of making their first NCAA Tournament appearance. There were high hopes that Notre Dame could contend in Bumbacco's senior season but the winger's point totals were nearly halved and the Irish dropped back to 8th place in the conference. Bumbacco chose to end his playing career after graduating and he returned to

Sault Ste. Marie Sault Ste. Marie is a cross-border region of Canada and the United States located on St. Marys River, which drains Lake Superior into Lake Huron. Founded as a single settlement in 1668, Sault Ste. Marie was divided in 1817 by the establishment of ...

to work as an executive in the steel industry.

Personal life

Bumbacco's father, Angelo, became the general manager for the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds when Eddie was in college. Angelo was instrumental in bringing Wayne Gretzky onto the team and also suggested that the teenage phenom wear the number '99'. Angelo died on October 27, 2020.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bumbacco, Eddie 1952 births Living people American ice hockey right wingers Ice hockey people from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Notre Dame Fighting Irish men's ice hockey players Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds players Montreal Canadiens draft picks AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans