1969-70 O-Pee-Chee 74 Ken Wharram Hockey Card (Front)
1969-70 O-Pee-Chee 74 Ken Wharram Hockey Card (Back)
1969-70 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist
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Card Notes
They call Ken Wharram “The Whip” and it’s an apt description. His scoring totals have bordered on the spectacular, but he’s usually underrated. He’s one of the NHL’s fastest skaters. Clean, effective play is his style.
En Français
On surnomme Ken Wharram “Le Fouet”, et ça lui va bien. Son total de buts n’est peut-être pas spectaculaire, mais il est habituellement sous-estimé. Il est un des patineurs les plus rapides de la LNH. Un jeu propre, efficace, c’est son style.
Details
This would be the final hockey card to feature Kenny Wharram. In training camp prior to the 1969-70 NHL season, he was diagnosed with myocarditis and was forced to retire. His final season in the league was outstanding with 30 goals and 69 points in 1968-69 with the Chicago Blackhawks.
Ken was a late bloomer. For his first five seasons of pro hockey from 1953-54 to 1957-58, he appeared in a total of 32 games with the Blackhawks. The rest of his time was spent in the AHL with the Buffalo Bisons, along with a short stint in the QHL with the Quebec Aces.
In his first full year with Buffalo, Wharram finished second in league scoring with 82 points, just six behind the leader. In 1955-56, he upped the total to 90 but finished fourth in the AHL, a single point behind third place Camille Henry.
Wharram topped out in 1963-64, scoring 39 goals and totaling 71 points with the Blackhawks. Him and Chicago teammate Stan Mikita tied for second while fellow teammate Bobby Hull led the NHL with 43. He was sixth in the race for the Art Ross Trophy, two points behind Gordie Howe and three ahead of Murray Oliver.
Between 1951-52 and 1968-69, Ken Wharram played in 766 regular season and 80 playoff games in the National Hockey League, all with the Chicago Blackhawks. He helped the team to a Stanley Cup championship in 1960-61 and won the Lady Byng Trophy in 1963-64.