Rodney Carl Zaine (May 18, 1946 – July 7, 2022) 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 hock ...

player who played two seasons 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). He played for the

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 ...

and

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 1970 to 1972. He later played for the

Chicago Cougars The Chicago Cougars were a franchise in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1975. The Cougars played their home games in the International Amphitheatre. During the 1974 Avco Cup Finals against Gordie Howe and the Houston Aeros, the team's ...

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) ...

from 1972 to 1975.

Early life

Zaine was born in

Ottawa Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

on May 18, 1946. He attended

Rideau High School Rideau High School was an Ottawa-Carleton District School Board high school in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada . It was located at 815 St. Laurent Boulevard in the east end of the city on the edge of Vanier. It was located next to the Queen Elizabeth ...

in his hometown, where he was

quarterback The quarterback (commonly abbreviated "QB"), colloquially known as the "signal caller", is a position in gridiron football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive platoon and mostly line up directly behind the offensive line. In modern Ame ...

and

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to risk management, the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are ...

on its Canadian football team that won three municipal championships, and scored the championship-winning

single Single may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media * Single (music), a song release Songs * "Single" (Natasha Bedingfield song), 2004 * "Single" (New Kids on the Block and Ne-Yo song), 2008 * "Single" (William Wei song), 2016 * "Single", by ...

in November 1962. He began his junior career by playing for the

Oshawa Generals The Oshawa Generals are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. They are based in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. The team is named for General Motors, an early sponsor (commercial), sponsor which has its Canadian headquarters in Oshawa. ...

of the

Ontario Hockey League The Ontario Hockey League (OHL; french: Ligue de hockey de l'Ontario (LHO)) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues which constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The league is for players aged 16–19. There are exceptions for overag ...

(OHL) during the 1963–64 season, before joining the

Ottawa Montagnards Ottawa (, ; Canadian French: ) is the capital city of Canada. It is located at the confluence of the Ottawa River and the Rideau River in the southern portion of the province of Ontario. Ottawa borders Gatineau, Quebec, and forms the core ...

and

Smiths Falls Bears The Smiths Falls Bears are a Junior "A" ice hockey team from Smiths Falls, Ontario, Smiths Falls, Ontario, Canada. They are a part of the Central Canada Hockey League. The team was an original member of the league, but then left Smiths Falls in ...

. He then played two seasons for the

Clinton Comets The Clinton Comets were an American ice hockey team in Clinton, New York. Founded in 1927–28 as the Clinton Hockey Club and nicknamed the Comets in 1949, the team played primarily at the Clinton Arena from 1949 until 1973. The team was origin ...

of the

Eastern Hockey League The Eastern Hockey League was a minor professional United States ice hockey league. Eastern Amateur Hockey League (1933–1953) The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League (EAHL). The league was founded by Tommy Lockhart, ...

(EHL) from 1966 to 1968. Zaine played the 1968–69 season with the Ottawa Nationals.

Career

Zaine signed with the

Baltimore Clippers The Baltimore Clippers were a minor league professional ice hockey team from in Baltimore, Maryland, playing in the Baltimore Civic Center. The Clippers were members of the American Hockey League from 1962 to 1976, and then played one season in ...

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 Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

(AHL) in October 1969. Over the next two seasons, he scored 20

goals A goal is an objective that a person or a system plans or intends to achieve. Goal may also refer to: Sport * Goal (sports), a method of scoring in many sports, or the physical structure or area where scoring occurs ** Goals, the goal frame in ...

and 25 assists in 61 games played. He was later traded to the

in July 1970 for cash considerations and was assigned to its Amarillo Wranglers affiliate. Zaine made his

(NHL) debut for the Penguins on November 4, 1970, against 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 ...

at the Civic Arena. After appearing in four games, he did not play in the NHL between November 10 and December 31, 1970, when he was recalled from the Wranglers after

Ken Schinkel Kenneth Calvin Schinkel (November 27, 1932 – November 20, 2020) was a Canadian professional ice hockey right wing and coach. He played for the New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins in the National Hockey League. Playing career After a junior ...

suffered a broken collarbone. During his rookie season, Zaine scored eight goals and recorded five assists in 37 games played for the Penguins. He was subsequently claimed by the

in the Intra-League Draft on June 8, 1971. He went on to have two goals and one assist in 24 games with the franchise. Zaine was drafted by the

of the

on February 12, 1972. In his three seasons with the team, he scored 11 goals and added 33 assists in 219 games. He also briefly co-owned the Cougars with Pat Stapleton,

Ralph Backstrom Ralph Gerald Backstrom (September 18, 1937 – February 7, 2021) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and later a coach, entrepreneur and hockey executive. He played in the National Hockey League with the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles ...

, and

Dave Dryden David Murray Dryden (September 5, 1941 – October 4, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender, who created and first used the modern goaltending mask, consisting of fibreglass and a cage. From 1962 to 1980, he played nine season ...

. He later served as field manager of the Northumberland Whiskey Jacks baseball team in

Cobourg Cobourg ( ) is a town in the Canadian province of Ontario, located in Southern Ontario east of Toronto and east of Oshawa. It is the largest town in and seat of Northumberland County. Its nearest neighbour is Port Hope, to the west. It is ...

, leading them to the Canada–New York league playoff title in 1998.

Personal life

Zaine had five children. He resided at a retirement home in Ottawa during his later years. Zaine died on July 7, 2022, at

Queensway Carleton Hospital Queensway Carleton Hospital (QCH) is a 355-bed hospital located in the west end of Ottawa, Ontario, Canada that delivers acute care and is west Ottawa's only full-service hospital. QCH was officially opened on October 5, 1976, by then Ontario Prem ...

in Ottawa. He was 76 years old.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Zaine, Rod 1946 births 2022 deaths Amarillo Wranglers players Baltimore Clippers players Buffalo Sabres players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey centres Chicago Cougars players Cincinnati Swords players Clinton Comets players Ice hockey people from Ottawa Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League (1890–1979) players Oshawa Generals players Pittsburgh Penguins players