Anthony Francis Huck (born December 4, 1945) is a Canadian former

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 ...

player. Huck played professionally in both 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) and

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) ...

(WHA) between 1970 and 1978. However his greatest contributions may have been with the Canadian national team during years before NHL professionals were allowed to compete internationally. His tenure culminated at the

1968 Winter Olympics The 1968 Winter Olympics, officially known as the X Olympic Winter Games (french: Les Xes Jeux olympiques d'hiver), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 18 February 1968 in Grenoble, France. Thirty-seven countries participated. Frenchm ...

where he helped the team win the bronze medal. In 1999, Huck was inducted into the

IIHF Hall of Fame The IIHF Hall of Fame is a hall of fame operated by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It was founded in 1997, and has resided at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto since 1998. Prior to 1997, the IIHF housed exhibits at the Interna ...

Amateur career

Huck excelled in

junior hockey Junior hockey is a level of competitive ice hockey generally for players between 16 and 21 years of age. Junior hockey leagues in the United States and Canada are considered amateur (with some exceptions) and operate within regions of each cou ...

with the

Regina Pats Regina (Latin for "queen") may refer to: Places Canada * Regina, Saskatchewan, the capital city of the province ** Regina (electoral district) ** Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Regina France * Régina, French Guiana, a commune United States * R ...

. His achievements included winning the scoring title, making the all-star team and being named league MVP. After junior, Huck shocked many hockey by joining the Canadian national team instead of the NHL. At the time the program, run by Father David Bauer, afforded hockey players the alternative of pursuing higher education while still playing hockey. Huck wanted to study law. He was with the national team from 1965 to 1969 winning the bronze medal at the 1968 Olympics and also bronze at the

IIHF World Championships The Ice Hockey World Championships are an annual international men's ice hockey tournament organized by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). First officially held at the 1920 Summer Olympics, it is the sport's highest profile annual ...

in 1966 and 1967.

Professional career

After playing with the national team, Huck began his professional career with 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 ...

, followed by two seasons with 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 ...

and 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 ...

Denver Spurs The Denver Spurs were a professional ice hockey team based in Denver. The Spurs began play in the Western Hockey League in 1968, and played at the Denver Coliseum. The Spurs became the first professional sports team in Colorado to win a champions ...

. He then moved over to the WHA, joining the

Winnipeg Jets The Winnipeg Jets are a professional ice hockey team based in Winnipeg. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference, and is owned by True North Sports & Entertainment, pl ...

and

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 ...

. In all, Huck played three seasons in the NHL and five in the WHA. He retired after the 1977-78 season.

Personal life and post-hockey career

Huck graduated from the

University of Manitoba The University of Manitoba (U of M, UManitoba, or UM) is a Canadian public research university in the province of Manitoba.British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include rocky coastlines, sandy beaches, ...

. He is also senior partner in a firm which specializes in helping former athletes make the transition to life after their sporting career.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Honours and awards

* Named to First All-Star Team 1966 and 1968 IIHF World Championships. * Inducted

International Ice Hockey Federation Hall of Fame The IIHF Hall of Fame is a hall of fame operated by the International Ice Hockey Federation (IIHF). It was founded in 1997, and has resided at the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto since 1998. Prior to 1997, the IIHF housed exhibits at the Inter ...

in 1999 * WHL Most Valuable Player, 1971–72 * Inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of fame in 2006

References

External links

*
Biography
in the

Regina Leader-Post The ''Regina Leader-Post'' is the daily newspaper of Regina, Saskatchewan, Canada, and a member of the Postmedia Network. Founding The newspaper was first published as ''The Leader'' in 1883 by Nicholas Flood Davin, soon after Edgar Dewdney, Li ...

Testimonial
from the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fall {{DEFAULTSORT:Huck, Fran 1945 births Living people Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey centres Canadian ice hockey coaches Denver Spurs (WHL) players Edmonton Oil Kings (WCHL) players Ice hockey players at the 1968 Winter Olympics IIHF Hall of Fame inductees Minnesota Fighting Saints players Montreal Canadiens players Olympic bronze medalists for Canada Olympic ice hockey players for Canada Olympic medalists in ice hockey Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League (1890–1979) players St. Louis Blues players Ice hockey people from Regina, Saskatchewan Winnipeg Jets (WHA) players Winnipeg Warriors coaches