Don Luce: 1971-72 O-Pee-Chee 166

1971-72 O-Pee-Chee 166 Don Luce Hockey Card (Front)

1971-72 O-Pee-Chee 166 Don Luce Hockey Card (Back)

1971-72 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist

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Card Notes

A young player whom the Sabres expect to blossom into a star with the club as he gains experience. Within the space of six months, Don was traded twice, by New York and Detroit, but his aggressive style indicates he’ll be in Buffalo for some time. A tough player who doesn’t draw as many penalties as one would think watching him.

En Français

Un jeune joueur qui devrait briller pour les Sabres à mesure qu’il acquiert de l’expérience. Don fut échangé deux fois en six mois, par New-York et par Détroit. D’est un joueur agressif et robuste qui n’est pas puni aussi souvent qu’on pourrait le croire à le regarder jouer.

Details

A third round pick by the New York Rangers at the 1966 NHL Amateur Draft, Don Luce played a total of 21 regular season and five playoff games with the team over two seasons before being traded to the Detroit Red Wings on November 1, 1970 for Steve Andrascik. His time in Detroit lasted for 58 games in 1970-71. Prior to the start of the 1971-72 NHL season, Luce was traded to the Buffalo Sabres with Mike Robitaille for goalie Joe Daley.

Don spent much of his NHL career with Buffalo and topped the 20 goal plateau in six straight seasons. His career best came in 1974-75 when he scored 33 goals and totaled 76 points. He also contributed 13 points in 16 playoff games that year, helping the Sabres reach the Stanley Cup final before bowing out to the Philadelphia Flyers.

His time in Buffalo started off slow with eleven goals over 78 games in 1971-72. One of those eleven was the only goal scored in a 1-0 win over the Vancouver Canucks on January 20, 1972 at the Aud in Buffalo. At 6:15 of the first, Don put one past Vancouver goalie Dunc Wilson, assisted by Danny Lawson and Al Hamilton for what would be the game winner. Roger Crozier turned away all 29 shots for the shutout while Wilson had a strong game, stopping all but one of 37.

Between 1969-70 and 1981-82, Don Luce played 894 regular season and 71 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Buffalo Sabres, Los Angeles Kings and Toronto Maple Leafs. In 1974-75 with the Sabres, Luce was awarded the Bill Masterton Trophy.

Don Luce NHL Career Stats

Regular Season

Year	Team	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1969-70	New York Rangers	12	1	2	3	8
1970-71	New York Rangers	9	0	1	1	0
1970-71	Detroit Red Wings	58	3	11	14	18
1971-72	Buffalo Sabres	78	11	8	19	38
1972-73	Buffalo Sabres	78	18	25	43	32
1973-74	Buffalo Sabres	75	26	30	56	44
1974-75	Buffalo Sabres	80	33	43	76	45
1975-76	Buffalo Sabres	77	21	49	70	42
1976-77	Buffalo Sabres	80	26	43	69	16
1977-78	Buffalo Sabres	78	26	35	61	24
1978-79	Buffalo Sabres	79	26	35	61	14
1979-80	Buffalo Sabres	80	14	29	43	30
1980-81	Buffalo Sabres	61	15	13	28	19
1980-81	Los Angeles Kings	10	1	0	1	2
1981-82	Toronto Maple Leafs	39	4	4	8	32
	Totals	894	225	328	553	364

Playoffs

Year	Team	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1969-70	New York Rangers	5	0	1	1	4
1970-71	New York Rangers	0	0	0	0	0
1970-71	Detroit Red Wings	0	0	0	0	0
1971-72	Buffalo Sabres	0	0	0	0	0
1972-73	Buffalo Sabres	6	1	1	2	2
1973-74	Buffalo Sabres	0	0	0	0	0
1974-75	Buffalo Sabres	16	5	8	13	19
1975-76	Buffalo Sabres	9	4	3	7	6
1976-77	Buffalo Sabres	6	3	1	4	2
1977-78	Buffalo Sabres	8	0	2	2	6
1978-79	Buffalo Sabres	3	1	1	2	0
1979-80	Buffalo Sabres	14	3	3	6	11
1980-81	Buffalo Sabres	0	0	0	0	0
1980-81	Los Angeles Kings	4	0	2	2	2
1981-82	Toronto Maple Leafs	0	0	0	0	0
	Totals	71	17	22	39	52