1972-73 O-Pee-Chee 254 Steve Vickers Hockey Card (Front)
1972-73 O-Pee-Chee 254 Steve Vickers Hockey Card (Back)
1972-73 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist
Card Notes
Rangers’ first choice in the 1971 Amateur Draft, Steve appeared to have gained a regular berth with New York in 1972-73. Seldom does a rookie score two hat-tricks in a season but Steve went better than that – getting back-to-back three goal games early in the 1972-73 season.
En Français
Premier choix des Rangers au repêchage des amateurs de 1971. Steve semble s’être mérité une position régulière à New-York pour 1972-73. C’est rare qu’une recrue réussisse deux tours du chapeau en une saison, mais Steve fit mieux que ça: il en réussit deux en deux joutes consécutives au début de la saison 1972-73.
Details
First off – Steve Vickers was not captain of the New York Rangers. In his first few years with the club, the C was worn by Vic Hadfield before Brad Park took over the role. However, for his first two hockey cards, this one and the 1973-74 O-Pee-Chee card, Vickers has a C on his jersey.
His consecutive hat tricks as a rookie was quite a feat, especially in only the second month of the season. On November 12, 1972, the Rangers hosted the Los Angeles Kings at Madison Square Garden. The Blue Shirts came out on top 5-1 in the match. Vickers scored his 5th, 6th and 7th goals of the season, including the game winning goal. All three were scored on Kings goalie Gary Edwards.
A few nights later, on November 15, New York was again at home, this time playing the Philadelphia Flyers. The Rangers won 7-3 and Steve scored his 8th, 9th and 10th goals of the campaign. Bill Fairbairn assisted on all three goals, along with another scored by Jim Neilson while scoring a goal of his own for a five point night. Michel Belhumeur was between the pipes for the Flyers, turning away 42 of 49 shots.
These six goals were part of a 30 goal rookie season while playing in just 61 games. Vickers won the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year with a clear edge over second place Bill Barber of the Philadelphia Flyers.
His top performance came in 1974-75 when he scored 41 goals and totaled 89 points. He led the Rangers in goal scoring and finished ninth overall in the NHL, 20 goals behind leader Phil Esposito of the Boston Bruins.
As far as hat tricks in 1974-75, he had just one that year. On March 30, 1975, New York easily handled the Kansas City Scouts 8-2. Steve scored his final four goals of the season and added an assist for good measure, giving him a five point night. All that offense came against a bombarded Peter McDuffe in the Kansas City nets. McDuffe faced 59 shots while Gilles Villemure had just 18 come his way.
Between 1972-73 and 1981-82, Steve Vickers appeared in 698 regular season and 68 playoff games in the National Hockey League, all with the Rangers.