Frederick Edmondstone Speck (July 22, 1947 – February 10, 2011) 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 ...
player. A
centre
Center or centre may refer to:
Mathematics
* Center (geometry), the middle of an object
* Center (algebra), used in various contexts
** Center (group theory)
** Center (ring theory)
* Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentri ...
, Speck had a brief major league career, playing in 28 games 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 ...
with the
Detroit Red Wings and
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 ...
, and 111 games in the
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...
. For most of his career Speck played in the minor leagues, and in
1970–71, his first season in 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 developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
, he was the top scorer, and was also named the most valuable player and rookie of the year.
Professional career
Minor league hockey
Speck was signed by the
Detroit Red Wings of the NHL after a scout saw him playing junior hockey in Ontario. He was signed and played one game with the
Hamilton Red Wings
The Hamilton Red Wings were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association from 1960 to 1974. The team was based in Hamilton, Ontario, at the Barton Street Arena, also known as the Hamilton Forum.
History
The Hamilton Tiger Cubs wer ...
of the
Ontario Hockey Association in 1963. He received more ice time the following season and began to produce offensively, scoring 8 points in 17 games. His totals increased the following year, with 34 points in 41 games. Over the next three seasons with Hamilton Speck's totals increased, and he scored 197 points between 1965–66 and 1967–68, including 85 points in his final season. In
1967–68 he made his professional debut, playing one regular season game and three more in the playoffs for the
Fort Worth Wings of the
Central Hockey League
The Central Hockey League (CHL) was a North American mid-level minor professional ice hockey league which operated from 1992 until 2014. It was founded by Ray Miron and Bill Levins and later sold to Global Entertainment Corporation, which opera ...
that season, scoring a goal and an assist in his first game, and scoring four points in the playoffs. Speck joined Fort Worth full-time for the
1968–69, recording 45 points.
Playing in the NHL
Speck made his
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 ...
debut with the
Detroit Red Wings during the
1968–69 season, playing five games for them. He played another five games for Detroit in the
1969–70 season, but was held pointless. Still playing with Fort Worth, Speck scored 76 points in
1969–70. After CHL playoffs ended Speck joined the
San Diego Gulls
The San Diego Gulls are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that began play in the 2015–16 season. Based in San Diego, California, and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Anaheim Ducks, the Gulls play th ...
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 ...
for a two playoff games, and moved to the
Baltimore Clippers 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 developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...
in
1970–71. Speck scored 92 points and led the team to a first place AHL finish. Speck was named to the AHL first All-star team, and won three league awards: the
Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award, the
John B. Sollenberger Trophy The John B. Sollenberger Trophy is given to American Hockey League's leading scorer for the season.
History
The award was named for John B. Sollenberger in 1955. Sollenberger was a long-time contributor to the league as manager and president of ...
, and the
Les Cunningham Award The Les Cunningham Award is given annually to American Hockey League's "Most Valuable Player" of the regular season, as voted on by AHL media and players.
The award was first presented in the 1947–48 season, is named after Les Cunningham, a five ...
. On June 8, 1971, after the season ended the
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 ...
claimed Speck in the
Intra-League Draft. Speck joined the new NHL club for their first 18 games scoring one goal and two assists.
Finishing in the WHA and the minors
The Canucks reassigned Speck to the minor leagues, and he split the season between the
Cleveland Barons The name Cleveland Barons has been used by three professional hockey teams and one junior team.
*Cleveland Barons (NHL), the National Hockey League team that played between 1976 and 1978
*Cleveland Barons (1937–1973), the original American Hockey ...
of the AHL and 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 ...
of the WHL. The
following season saw Speck sign with the
Minnesota Fighting Saints
The Minnesota Fighting Saints was the name of two professional ice hockey teams based in Saint Paul, Minnesota, that played in the World Hockey Association. The first team was one of the WHA's original twelve franchises, playing from 1972 to 19 ...
of the
World Hockey Association
The World Hockey Association (french: Association mondiale de hockey) was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972 to 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (NHL) ...
, where he played 47 games before being traded for
Bill Young
Charles William Young (December 16, 1930 – October 18, 2013) was an American politician who served in the United States House of Representatives from 1971 until his death in 2013. A Republican from Florida, Young served as chairman of the H ...
in February to the
Los Angeles Sharks
The Los Angeles Sharks were an ice hockey team that played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) from 1972 to 1974. Their primary home arena was the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena but they sometimes played at the Long Beach Sports Arena whe ...
. He played with the Sharks for 18 games of the
1973–74 season. Speck finished the season with the
Greensboro Generals
The Greensboro Generals were an East Coast Hockey League team based in Greensboro, North Carolina, and played at the Greensboro Coliseum from 1999 to 2004. The name was originally used by the Greensboro Generals in the Eastern Hockey League.
Th ...
of the
Southern Hockey League. The Sharks moved to Detroit for the 1974–75 season and became the
Michigan Stags
The Michigan Stags were a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit that played a portion of the 1974–75 season in the World Hockey Association. On January 18, 1975, the team folded, but the league immediately took over operation and moved ...
, midway through the season the Stags relocated to Baltimore becoming the Baltimore Blades. Speck split the 74–75 season between Michigan/Baltimore and with the
Syracuse Blazers
The Syracuse Blazers were a minor league professional ice hockey team that played in the Onondaga County War Memorial and State Fair Coliseum in Syracuse, New York. The team played in the Eastern Hockey League from 1967 to 1973 and the North ...
of the
North American Hockey League. Speck scored 34 points in 17 games and led the Blazers to a first-place finish during the season. After Syracuse, Speck re-joined the Baltimore Clippers, leading the team in scoring with 75 points in 76 games for the
1975–76 season. After one season in Baltimore Speck joined the
Brantford Alexanders
The Brantford Alexanders were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Major Junior Hockey League and Ontario Hockey League from 1978 to 1984. The team was based in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.
History
The Hamilton Fincups were relocated in 1978 be ...
of the upstart
OHA Senior A Hockey League
The OHA Senior A Hockey League was a top tier Canadian Senior ice hockey league in Ontario from 1975 until 1987. The league was sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Association and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association and competed for the Allan ...
and played two seasons before retiring in 1977.
Personal
Speck met his wife while playing junior hockey with the
Hamilton Red Wings
The Hamilton Red Wings were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association from 1960 to 1974. The team was based in Hamilton, Ontario, at the Barton Street Arena, also known as the Hamilton Forum.
History
The Hamilton Tiger Cubs wer ...
. Fred and Linda had two children, son Wade and daughter Paige. After retiring from hockey in 1978, Speck became a sales manager, a career he continued until he became ill in November 2010. He started to lose weight and died of an unknown illness on February 10, 2011.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Awards and achievements
*
AHL First All-Star Team':
1970–71
*
Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award, (AHL Rookie of the Year): 1970–71
*
John B. Sollenberger Trophy The John B. Sollenberger Trophy is given to American Hockey League's leading scorer for the season.
History
The award was named for John B. Sollenberger in 1955. Sollenberger was a long-time contributor to the league as manager and president of ...
, (AHL Leading Scorer): 1970–71
*
Les Cunningham Award The Les Cunningham Award is given annually to American Hockey League's "Most Valuable Player" of the regular season, as voted on by AHL media and players.
The award was first presented in the 1947–48 season, is named after Les Cunningham, a five ...
, (AHL MVP): 1970–71
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Speck, Fred
1947 births
2011 deaths
Baltimore Blades players
Baltimore Clippers players
Canadian ice hockey centres
Cleveland Barons (1937–1973) players
Detroit Red Wings players
Fort Worth Wings players
Greensboro Generals (SHL) players
Hamilton Red Wings (OHA) players
Ice hockey people from Ontario
Los Angeles Sharks players
Michigan Stags players
Minnesota Fighting Saints players
People from Thorold
San Diego Gulls (WHL) players
Seattle Totems (WHL) players
Syracuse Blazers players
Vancouver Canucks players