1970-71 O-Pee-Chee 172 Walt McKechnie Hockey Card (Front)
1970-71 O-Pee-Chee 172 Walt McKechnie Hockey Card (Back)
1970-71 O-Pee-Chee NHL Checklist
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Card Notes
A hard-hitter who can also be a shifty center, Walt appears to have finally made it in the NHL after almost gaining a regular berth in the 1968-69 and 1970-71 seasons with Minnesota. Played Junior “A” for London in the OHA League.
En Français
Walt, un joueur robuste et rapide, semble finalement avoir fait le saut permanent dans la LNH après avoir presque réussi en 1968-69 et 1969-70 avec Minnesota. Joua comme Junior “A” pour London de la Ligue de l’AHO.
Details
Walt McKechnie did not quite “make it” in 1970-71. He played just 30 games with the Minnesota North Stars, spending the rest of the season in the AHL with the Cleveland Barons. He played 112 games with Minnesota over four years, scoring just eight goals. Ending up with the California Golden Seals for 1971-72 did finally launch Walt’s NHL career.
Despite his limited time with the Stars, McKechnie had an outstanding game against the Detroit Red Wings during his only somewhat regular year with the club. In 1968-69, he played 58 games, scoring five goals. Two of the five came on the night of February 15, 1969. Walt had two goals in a 6-2 home win while also assisting on markers by Bill Goldsworthy and Claude Larose.
McKechnie went on to four seasons with 20 or more goals. He hit career highs of 26 goals, 56 assists and 85 points playing for the Detroit Red Wings in 1975-76. He had a four assist game that year on December 12, 1975 against the Washington Capitals. He had helpers on all three of Michel Bergeron’s hat trick goals, along with a goal by Dan Maloney. The Wings won the game 5-3.
Between 1967-68 and 1982-83, Walt McKechnie played 955 regular season but just 15 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Minnesota North Stars, California Golden Seals, Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Washington Capitals, Cleveland Barons, Toronto Maple Leafs and Colorado Rockies.