Denis Bernard Herron (born June 18, 1952) is a Canadian 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 h ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

who played for 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 ...

Kansas City Scouts The Kansas City Scouts were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1974 to 1976. In 1976, the franchise relocated to Denver, and became the Colorado Rockies. In 1982, the Rockies relocated to New Jersey where ...

, and

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 ...

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 ...

Playing career

Herron played junior hockey with the

Trois-Rivières Ducs Trois-Rivières (, – 'Three Rivers') is a city in the Mauricie administrative region of Quebec, Canada, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and Saint Lawrence rivers, on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River across from the city of ...

of the

Quebec Junior Hockey League The Ligue de Hockey Junior du Québec (LHJQ) or Quebec Junior Hockey League (QJHL) is a Hockey Québec Canadian Junior A ice hockey league and is a member of Hockey Canada and the Canadian Junior Hockey League. The winner of the QJHL playoffs c ...

. He had a good junior career and in

1972 Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using mean solar tim ...

, he was named to the Second All-Star Team with the Trois-Rivières Ducs. In

, Herron was drafted 40th overall by the

. In his first season, he split his time between the Penguins, and the

Hershey Bears The Hershey Bears are a professional ice hockey team based in Hershey, Pennsylvania, a town located 14 miles east of the state capital of Harrisburg. The current Bears club has played in the American Hockey League since the 1938–39 season maki ...

of the AHL. In 1974, Herron played for three teams. He played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Hershey Bears and the

Salt Lake Golden Eagles The Salt Lake Golden Eagles were a minor professional hockey team based in Salt Lake City from 1969 to 1994. History They played in the Western Hockey League from 1969 to 1974, the Central Hockey League from 1974 to 1984 and the International H ...

. Next season, Herron played the first half of the season with the Pens and the Bears before being traded to the

. He played 22 games with them that season and spent another year in Kansas City before becoming a free agent. While playing for Kansas City, Herron put himself on a diet consisting of high-protein milkshakes in an effort to gain size and strength. In January of 1976, he was taken to Baptist Hospital in Kansas City after suffering a kidney stone believed to have been a result of the milkshakes. (''Icing on the Plains: The Rough Ride of Kansas City's NHL Scouts'', pp. 193-194) He was signed by Pittsburgh again and played with them for the next three years. In 1978, Herron made an appearance with Team Canada in the

World Championships A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game, ...

where he won a bronze medal. In

1979 Events January * January 1 ** United Nations Secretary-General Kurt Waldheim heralds the start of the '' International Year of the Child''. Many musicians donate to the '' Music for UNICEF Concert'' fund, among them ABBA, who write the so ...

, the Penguins traded him to the

. He remained with the Canadiens for the next three years where he shared goaltending duties. In

1981 Events January * January 1 ** Greece enters the European Economic Community, predecessor of the European Union. ** Palau becomes a self-governing territory. * January 10 – Salvadoran Civil War: The FMLN launches its first major offensiv ...

, Herron was awarded the

Vezina Trophy The Vezina Trophy is awarded annually to the National Hockey League's (NHL) goaltender who is "adjudged to be the best at this position". At the end of each season, the thirty-two NHL general managers vote to determine the winner. It is named in ...

with teammates Michel Larocque and Richard Sevigny. In 1982, Herron shared the William M. Jennings Trophy with fellow netminder

Rick Wamsley Richard James Wamsley (born May 25, 1959) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey goaltender who played in the National Hockey League for the Montreal Canadiens, St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames and Toronto Maple Leafs. He was the goaltending ...

. In

1983 The year 1983 saw both the official beginning of the Internet and the first mobile cellular telephone call. Events January * January 1 – The migration of the ARPANET to TCP/IP is officially completed (this is considered to be the beginning ...

, Herron returned to Pittsburgh for the third time in his career. He remained there until

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 **Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. **Spain and Portugal enter ...

, when he retired.

Personal life

Herron is the third of six children born to a mechanic with the Imperial Tobacco Company and a stay-at-home mother. He is married to Debbie Pike, of St. Lambert Quebec and has two daughters, Elissa and Mandi. His brother Ronald was also a professional goalie, having played in France, and his niece Catherine Herron tended nets for the women's Marlet team at McGill University. She also won the 2012 Clarkson Cup as a backup goaltender for the

Montreal Stars 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 ...

of the CWHL

Awards and achievements

* Selected to the

QMJHL The Quebec Major Junior Hockey League (french: Ligue de hockey junior majeur du Québec; abbreviated ''QMJHL'' in English, ''LHJMQ'' in French) is one of the three major junior ice hockey leagues that constitute the Canadian Hockey League. The le ...

Second All-Star Team in

. *

winner in

(shared with Michel Larocque and Richard Sevigny). * William M. Jennings Trophy winner in 1982 (shared with

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

''Herron finds room at the inn''; Ian MacDonald. ''The Gazette''. Montreal, Que.: Dec 23, 2004. pg. C.3 ''Icing on the Plains: The Rough Ride of Kansas City's NHL Scouts'', Troy Treasure, 2018, Balboa Press

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Herron, Denis 1952 births Living people Baltimore Skipjacks players Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Hershey Bears players Ice hockey people from Quebec Kansas City Scouts players Montreal Canadiens players People from Chambly, Quebec Pittsburgh Penguins draft picks Pittsburgh Penguins players Trois-Rivières Ducs players Vezina Trophy winners William M. Jennings Trophy winners