John Arbour Explained

John Gilbert Arbour (born September 28, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in both the National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association. A stocky, physical defenceman, Arbour also developed an offensive dimension to his game later in his career.

Playing career

NHL years

Arbour came up through the Boston Bruins organization, but only played 6 games in Boston before being sold to the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1968. He appeared in 17 games for the Penguins in 1968–69, but found himself in the Western Hockey League for 1969–70 with the Vancouver Canucks. After a fine season in Vancouver, Arbour was one of 6 players to remain a Vancouver Canuck when the team became an NHL franchise the following year. However, he only lasted 13 games before being dealt to the St. Louis Blues. 1970–71 would be his only full NHL campaign, as he appeared in 66 games between Vancouver and St. Louis, recording his only career NHL goal and 7 points. The following year, he appeared in 17 more games for the Blues, but again found himself mainly in the WHL.

WHA years

Arbour jumped to the upstart World Hockey Association in 1972, joining the Minnesota Fighting Saints. In Minnesota, he experienced the most successful portion of his pro career. He immediately established himself as one of the club's top defenceman, finishing his first season with 6 goals and 33 points, along with 186 penalty minutes. In 1973–74, his numbers continued to improve, as he led the Saints' defenceman in scoring with 6 goals and 49 points. In 1974–75, he posted career highs of 12 goals and 55 points, again the highest-scoring defenceman on his team.

Early in the 1975–76 season, he was dealt to the Denver Spurs, who ultimately folded mid-season. For 1976–77, he found himself back with the Fighting Saints, but finished out the season with the Calgary Cowboys after Minnesota, too, folded mid-year. He then chose to retire from pro hockey.

Arbour appeared in 106 NHL games, recording 1 goal and 10 points, along with 149 PIM. He also recorded 30 goals and 194 points in 335 WHA games, along with 568 PIM.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

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				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP				PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1963–64	Niagara Falls Flyers	OHA		56	12	6	18	0		—	—	—	—	—
1965–66	Niagara Falls Flyers	OHA		47	13	31	44	196		—	—	—	—	—
1965–66	Boston Bruins	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1965–66	Oklahoma City Blazers	CHL		3	0	0	0	0		3	0	0	0	0
1966–67	Oklahoma City Blazers	CHL		67	3	21	24	140		9	0	1	1	11
1967–68	Oklahoma City Blazers	CHL		62	2	15	17	224		7	1	0	1	42
1967–68	Boston Bruins	NHL		4	0	1	1	11		—	—	—	—	—
1968–69	Baltimore Clippers	AHL		59	4	17	21	157		4	0	0	0	15
1968–69	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		17	0	2	2	35		—	—	—	—	—
1969–70	Vancouver Canucks	WHL		72	7	28	35	251		11	2	3	5	42
1970–71	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		13	0	0	0	12		—	—	—	—	—
1970–71	St. Louis Blues	NHL		53	1	6	7	81		5	0	0	0	0
1971–72	Denver Spurs	WHL		20	4	12	16	73		—	—	—	—	—
1971–72	St. Louis Blues	NHL		17	0	0	0	10		—	—	—	—	—
1972–73	Minnesota Fighting Saints	WHA		76	6	27	33	186		6	0	3	3	22
1973–74	Minnesota Fighting Saints	WHA		77	6	43	49	192		11	3	6	9	27
1974–75	Minnesota Fighting Saints	WHA		70	12	43	55	67		12	0	6	6	23
1975–76	Minnesota Fighting Saints	WHA		7	0	4	4	14		—	—	—	—	—
1975–76	Denver Spurs/Ottawa Civics	WHA		35	2	13	15	49		—	—	—	—	—
1976–77	Calgary Cowboys	WHA		37	1	15	16	38		—	—	—	—	—
1976–77	Minnesota Fighting Saints	WHA		33	3	19	22	22		—	—	—	—	—
WHA totals				335	30	164	194	568		29	3	15	18	72
NHL totals				106	1	9	10	149		5	0	0	0	0