Peter Joseph Mahovlich (born October 10, 1946) 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 ...
player, coach and executive. Known in his playing years as "Little M", as his older brother
Frank
Frank or Franks may refer to:
People
* Frank (given name)
* Frank (surname)
* Franks (surname)
* Franks, a medieval Germanic people
* Frank, a term in the Muslim world for all western Europeans, particularly during the Crusades - see Farang
Curr ...
was the "Big M", Mahovlich 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 ...
(NHL) with several clubs, including 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 ...
, where he played with his brother and was a member of four
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 ...
championship teams.
Early life
Mahovlich played as a
first baseman
A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...
on his high school baseball team, beating out
Gord Kirke
Gordon I. Kirke (born 1945/1946) is a Canadian sports and entertainment lawyer, university professor, and regular commentator on radio and television.
He is a graduate of the Osgoode Hall Law School, and has Bachelor of Laws and Master of Law ...
for the position.
Playing career
Mahovlich was drafted second overall by the
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...
in the
1963 NHL Amateur Draft. He played for 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 ...
's Detroit Red Wings twice,
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 ...
,
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...
, the
Ontario Hockey Association
The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey As ...
's
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 we ...
, the
AHL's
Pittsburgh Hornets
The Pittsburgh Hornets were a minor-league professional men's ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Contrary to popular belief, the Pittsburgh Hornets did not evolve from the International Hockey League's Pittsburgh Shamrocks. The ...
,
Montreal Voyageurs
Montreal ( ; officially Montréal, ) is the second-most populous city in Canada and most populous city in the Canadian province of Quebec. Founded in 1642 as '' Ville-Marie'', or "City of Mary", it is named after Mount Royal, the triple-pe ...
,
Adirondack Red Wings
The Adirondack Red Wings were a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Glens Falls, New York, United States at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The team was affiliated with the Detroit Red Wings of the Natio ...
, 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 ...
's
Fort Worth Wings and the
IHL's
Toledo Goaldiggers
The Toledo Goaldiggers were a minor professional ice hockey club based in Toledo, Ohio, from 1974 to 1986. They played in the International Hockey League (IHL) and held their home games at the Toledo Sports Arena on the east side of Toledo. Pr ...
.
Mahovlich was an important contributor to the Canadiens' cup-winning teams of 1971, 1973, 1976 and 1977, before eventually being traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins. He enjoyed a breakout season in 1970–71, scoring 35 goals in the regular season and another 10 in the playoffs as the Canadiens won the championship. His best year came in 1974–75, when he racked up 117 points as part of a deep forward corps that included the likes of
Guy Lafleur
Guy Damien Lafleur (September 20, 1951 – April 22, 2022), nicknamed "the Flower" and "Le Démon Blond", was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was the first player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to score 50 goals in six c ...
,
Jacques Lemaire
Jacques Gerard Lemaire (born September 7, 1945) is a Canadian former ice hockey forward and head coach who was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1984. He spent his entire twelve-year National Hockey League (NHL) playing career with the Mo ...
,
Yvan Cournoyer
Yvan Serge Cournoyer (born November 22, 1943) is a Canadian former professional hockey right winger who played in the National Hockey League for the Montreal Canadiens from 1963 to 1979. In 1972, Cournoyer scored the tying goal in the deciding ...
,
Steve Shutt
Stephen John Shutt (born July 1, 1952) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and NHL Hall of Famer who played 13 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), 12 seasons for the Montreal Canadiens and 1 season for the Los Angeles King ...
and
Bob Gainey
Robert Michael Gainey (born December 13, 1953) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played for the Montreal Canadiens from 1973 until 1989. After retiring from active play, he became a hockey coach and later an executive with ...
. He hit the 100-point mark again the following year, finishing with 105.
Immensely popular as a Pittsburgh Penguin, cheers of "Pete, Pete" were common when Mahovlich made one of his end-to-end dashes up ice. He was characterized as easy-going, joyful, and a party-goer in
Ken Dryden
Kenneth Wayne Dryden (born August 8, 1947) is a Canadian politician, lawyer, businessman, author, and former National Hockey League (NHL) goaltender. He is an Officer of the Order of Canada and a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. He was a Liber ...
's book
''The Game''.
In his 16-year
NHL
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 ...
career, Mahovlich totalled 288 goals and 485 assists for 773 points in 884 games. Internationally, he was a member of the
1972 Summit Series, in which he scored a memorable shorthanded goal in Game 2 of the series. He also played on the
1976 Canada Cup
The 1976 Canada Cup was an international ice hockey tournament held September 2 to 15, 1976, in Ottawa, Toronto, Montreal, Winnipeg and Quebec City in Canada as well as in Philadelphia, in the United States. It was the first of five Canada Cup to ...
team.
Post-playing career
After his retirement, Mahovlich was head coach of the Toledo Goaldiggers, IHL Colorado Rangers (co-coach),
Denver Rangers
The Denver Rangers were a professional hockey team based in Denver, Colorado that played for two seasons in the late 1980s. They were a member of the International Hockey League, and an affiliate of the New York Rangers. The team was originally ...
, CHL
Fort Worth Fire
The Fort Worth Fire were a professional ice hockey team in the Central Hockey League. Their home games were played in the Fort Worth Convention Center Arena. They began operations in 1992 and ceased operations in 1999.
At the conclusion of the ...
, and the AHL
Cape Breton Oilers
The Cape Breton Oilers were a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. The team was the top minor league affiliate of the Edmonton Oilers of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Oilers' organization relocated the team from Hali ...
. He is also the brother of former
Canadian Senator
The Senate of Canada (french: region=CA, Sénat du Canada) is the upper house of the Parliament of Canada. Together with the Crown and the House of Commons, they comprise the bicameral legislature of Canada.
The Senate is modelled after the Bri ...
and former hockey star
Frank Mahovlich
Francis William Mahovlich CM (born January 10, 1938) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player and a former Liberal Senator in the Canadian Senate. He played on six Stanley Cup-winning teams and is an inductee of the Hockey Hall of Fa ...
. The two were teammates on the Red Wings from 1967 to 1969 and on the Canadiens from 1971 to 1974.
Mahovlich was a scout for 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 ...
from 1995 to 1997 before joining the
Tampa Bay Lightning
The Tampa Bay Lightning (colloquially known as the Bolts) are a professional ice hockey team based in Tampa, Florida. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. They play th ...
and then the
Atlanta Thrashers
The Atlanta Thrashers were a professional ice hockey team based in Atlanta. Atlanta was granted a franchise in the National Hockey League (NHL) on June 25, 1997, and became the League's 28th franchise when it began play in the 1999–2000 seaso ...
. He is currently a pro scout for the
Florida Panthers
The Florida Panthers are a professional ice hockey team based in the Miami metropolitan area. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern ...
.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
International
See also
*
List of family relations in the NHL
This is a list of family relations in the National Hockey League. Since the creation of the National Hockey League in 1917, family members have been involved in all aspects of the league. Although most connections are among players, there have be ...
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mahovlich, Peter
1946 births
Living people
Adirondack Red Wings players
Atlanta Thrashers personnel
Canadian ice hockey coaches
Canadian ice hockey centres
Canadian people of Croatian descent
Detroit Red Wings draft picks
Detroit Red Wings players
Edmonton Oilers scouts
Florida Panthers scouts
Fort Worth Wings players
Hamilton Red Wings (OHA) players
Ice hockey people from Ontario
Montreal Canadiens players
Montreal Voyageurs players
National Hockey League first-round draft picks
New Jersey Devils announcers
Pittsburgh Hornets players
Pittsburgh Penguins players
Sportspeople from Timmins
Stanley Cup champions
Tampa Bay Lightning scouts
Toledo Goaldiggers players