Bill Lesuk

William Anton Lesuk ( ; born November 1, 1946) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey left winger who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Boston Bruins, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, Washington Capitals, and Winnipeg Jets. He also played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) with Winnipeg. He won the Stanley Cup in 1970 with the Bruins. He was traded along with Serge Bernier and Jim Johnson from the Flyers to the Kings for Ross Lonsberry, Bill Flett, Jean Potvin and Eddie Joyal on January 28, 1972.

Career Nicknamed the tractor Lesuk, a junior with Weyburn Red Wings, he had 3 successive years with the red wings including an appearance in the memorial cup. Then the following year in 1966–67 after having a 82-point season in 56 games for the Red wings He was then drafted to the Boston Bruins. Playing for the Bruins affiliate team the Oklahoma City Blazers in 1967–68. He then spent a majority of the year with the Blazers the following year but also made 5 appearances for the Bruins as well during the 1968-69 season. The following year in 1969–70 season he played 70 games with the Hershey Bears but also made a few appearances for the Boston Bruins including 2 playoff games with the Bruins winning the 1970 Stanley cup. He then went on to play 388 total games in the NHL with the Boston Bruins Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles kings and Washington capitals finishing with 44 goals and 63 assists.

In 1975 he joined the Winnipeg Jets of the WHA. Being a decent offensive player but his real value was as a defensive forward. Those Jet teams had great offense, but they needed a shut-down winger like Lesuk. During his time with the team he helped them win the Avco Cup in 1976, 1978 and 1979. He would play one final year in the NHL during the 1979-80 season when the jets joined the league. after retiring, Lesuk was a scout for Boston, Chicago and Winnipeg-Phoenix. He still lives in the Winnipeg area.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1963–64 Weyburn Red Wings SJHL 62 12 18 30 78 8 4 2 6 18 1964–65 Weyburn Red Wings SJHL 55 25 33 58 73 15 3 11 14 28 1965–66 Weyburn Red Wings SJHL 60 36 40 76 111 18 6 10 16 40 1965–66 Weyburn Red Wings M-Cup — — — — — 4 1 0 1 4 1966–67 Weyburn Red Wings SJHL 56 36 46 82 62 5 0 5 5 4 1967–68 Oklahoma City Blazers CHL 67 14 10 24 53 7 3 3 6 0 1968–69 Boston Bruins NHL 5 0 1 1 0 1 0 0 0 0 1968–69 Oklahoma City Blazers CHL 64 17 30 47 46 12 0 4 4 8 1969–70 Boston Bruins NHL 3 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 0 1969–70 Hershey Bears AHL 70 20 20 40 82 7 5 4 9 10 1970–71 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 78 17 19 36 81 4 1 0 1 8 1971–72 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 45 7 6 13 31 — — — — — 1971–72 Los Angeles Kings NHL 27 4 10 14 14 — — — — — 1972–73 Los Angeles Kings NHL 67 6 14 20 90 — — — — — 1973–74 Los Angeles Kings NHL 35 2 1 3 32 2 0 0 0 4 1974–75 Washington Capitals NHL 79 8 11 19 77 — — — — — 1975–76 Winnipeg Jets WHA 81 15 21 36 92 13 2 2 4 8 1976–77 Winnipeg Jets WHA 78 14 27 41 85 18 2 1 3 22 1977–78 Winnipeg Jets WHA 80 9 18 27 48 9 2 5 7 12 1978–79 Winnipeg Jets WHA 79 17 15 32 44 10 1 3 4 6 1979–80 Winnipeg Jets NHL 49 0 1 1 43 — — — — — 1979–80 Tulsa Oilers CHL 9 1 2 3 0 — — — — — WHA totals 318 55 81 136 269 50 7 11 18 48 NHL totals 388 44 63 107 368 9 1 0 1 12

Awards CMJHL Second All-Star Team – 1967 Stanley Cup champion —1970 Avco Cup champion — 1976, 1978 and 1979 Honoured Member of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame