Gerald Joseph Korab (born September 15, 1948) 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

hockey Hockey is a term used to denote a family of various types of both summer and winter team sports which originated on either an outdoor field, sheet of ice, or dry floor such as in a gymnasium. While these sports vary in specific rules, numbers o ...

player, who was a defenceman 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 ...

from 1971 to 1985. Korab was born in Sault Ste. Marie,

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

. Nicknamed "King Kong", Korab made a solid reputation for himself in the 1970s-era NHL as a physical defenceman. His size gave him a distinct advantage in his own zone, and he possessed a hard shot and some offensive skills. Making his NHL debut with 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 ...

in 1970-71, Korab was asked to keep the front of his own net clear. He continued to play the same role for the next two seasons while scoring 12 goals in 1972-73 and helping Chicago reach the

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

finals in 1971 and 1973. Korab's best years were spent on the blueline of 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 ...

from 1973 to 1980, where he blossomed into an effective defenceman on one of the best young teams in the league. Korab was a physical presence while hitting double-digits in goals four times, helping the Sabres reach their first Stanley Cup final in 1975. He was selected to play in the 1975 and 1976 NHL All-Star Games. During this period he also established himself as the NHL's "best dressed player" for three years running,Rattan, Surj. "Master tailor back in business". (April 28, 1991). North Shore News, p.37 beginning with his time with 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 of the Western Conference, and play their home games at Rogers Arena. Bruce B ...

during the 1973-74 season, when he became a fan of designer and master tailor Paul Minichiello. Korab was traded to the

Los Angeles Kings The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...

on March 10, 1980, for a first-round draft choice that Buffalo used to select offensive defenceman

Phil Housley Phillip Francis Housley (born March 9, 1964) is an American professional ice hockey coach and former player. He most recently served an assistant coach for the Arizona Coyotes of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 2019 to 2022. Housley was th ...

. In 1983, he retired but two months into the season he was offered a chance to make a comeback with the Sabres. He would retire for good after playing 25 games with the Sabres in 1984-85. Korab currently owns and operates Korab Inc., a packaging service located in Bellwood,

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

Career statistics

References

External links

* 1948 births Living people Buffalo Sabres players Canadian ice hockey defencemen Chicago Blackhawks players Ice hockey people from Ontario Los Angeles Kings players Port Huron Flags (IHL) players Portland Buckaroos players Rochester Americans players St. Catharines Black Hawks players Sportspeople from Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario Vancouver Canucks players {{Canada-icehockey-defenceman-1940s-stub