1970-71 O-Pee-Chee 144 Jim Watson Hockey Card (Front)
1970-71 O-Pee-Chee 144 Jim Watson Hockey Card (Back)
Card Notes
At 6’2″, Jim does not shy away from the heavy hitting. Led the WHL in most penalties during the 1966-67 season with San Diego. Will definitely keep oppositions heads up around the Sabres blue line.
En Français
Jim, qui mesure 6’2″, n’a pas peur du jeu dur. Joueur le plus puni de la WHL en 1966-67 à San Diego. Il forcera sûrement les adversaires à patiner la tête en l’air près de la ligne bleue des Sabres.
Details
Typical of the 1970-71 O-Pee-Chee NHL set, the stats on the back are not entirely correct. Jim Watson did play during the 1969-70 season, although appearing in just four games with the Detroit Red Wings. To that date, he had appeared in 77 games with the Red Wings between 1963-64 and 1969-70. His four assists and 97 PIM noted on the back were accurate.
Watson did lead the WHL in penalty minutes for the 1966-67 season. Playing 72 games for the last place San Diego Gulls, he sat 158 PIM, eleven more than the next competitor.
With the expansion Buffalo Sabres, he got a fresh start in 1970-71, playing in all the team’s 78 games. He certainly didn’t shy away from the rough stuff with 147 penalty minutes. The following year would be his last in the NHL, appearing in 66 games with Buffalo before jumping the World Hockey Association for the 1972-73 season.
Between 1963-64 and 1971-72, Watson appeared in 221 regular season games in the National Hockey League with the Red Wings and Sabres. He never appeared in a Stanley Cup playoff game.
In the WHA, he played 231 regular season and 22 playoff games from 1972-73 to 1975-76 with the Los Angeles Sharks, Chicago Cougars and Quebec Nordiques. The bulk of his post season action came in 1973-74 when he played 18 games, helping the Cougars reach the Avco World Trophy final before losing out to the Houston Aeros.