Bob Barlow

Robert George Barlow (born June 17, 1935) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player. He played 77 games in the National Hockey League with the Minnesota North Stars between 1969 and 1970, and 51 games in the World Hockey Association between 1974 and 1975. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1955 to 1976, was spent in various minor leagues.

Playing career Barlow was born in Hamilton, Ontario. He was the captain of the Vancouver Canucks of the Western Hockey League during the 1968–69 season. He played in 77 National Hockey League games with the Minnesota North Stars over parts of two seasons and 51 World Hockey Association games with the Phoenix Roadrunners during the 1974–75 season. He retired after that season and became the coach of the Tucson Mavericks in 1975–76. He played 2 games for the team, which marked the end of his playing career. Bob served as the captain of the 1968-69 Vancouver Canucks, where he won the WHL championship that led the Canucks into the NHL. He was one of the most potent scoring machines in that League, and for that matter, in most of the teams he played on. His career spanned twenty-four years in five professional Hockey leagues-NHL, WHL, AHL, CHL, WHA-accumulating a total of 1,052 points (including 522 goals)-one AHL Championship and four WHL Championships.

On Oct. 11, 1969, at the age of 34, Barlow made his NHL debut as a member of the Minnesota North Stars; becoming the oldest rookie to play a game in NHL history (to be eclipsed three years later, by 38-year-old Connie Madigan. He scored on his first shift, beating Bernie Parent of the Philadelphia Flyers. Bob scored his first NHL goal, on the first shot of his first shift after six seconds on the ice. This record fastest first goal remains the NHL record.

Personal life

Barlow's daughter, Wendy Barlow, was an All-American tennis player at Brigham Young University. In addition, she played six years of professional tennis and was inducted into the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame. His granddaughter, Hillary Pattenden, was an all-star-goaltender for the Mercyhurst Lakers women's ice hockey program. Bob and his wife Marilyn reside in Victoria, BC They have three daughters and five grandchildren.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1953–54 Barrie Flyers OHA 29 5 7 12 4 — — — — — 1954–55 Barrie Flyers OHA 46 33 27 60 41 — — — — — 1954–55 Cleveland Barons AHL 3 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1955–56 Cleveland Barons AHL 2 1 0 1 0 — — — — — 1955–56 North Bay Trappers NOHA 56 20 18 38 56 10 2 2 4 4 1956–57 Cleveland Barons AHL 3 0 2 2 2 — — — — — 1956–57 North Bay Trappers NOHA 56 21 20 41 27 13 7 5 12 8 1957–58 Cleveland Barons AHL 6 4 0 4 2 7 2 2 4 4 1957–58 North Bay Trappers OHA Sr 60 27 36 63 39 — — — — — 1958–59 Cleveland Barons AHL 70 27 27 54 39 7 1 2 3 20 1959–60 Quebec Aces AHL 72 28 32 60 50 — — — — — 1960–61 Quebec Aces AHL 67 12 17 29 41 — — — — — 1961–62 Quebec Aces AHL 61 11 12 23 25 — — — — — 1962–63 Seattle Totems WHL 70 47 30 77 17 17 8 9 17 10 1963–64 Seattle Totems WHL 66 35 20 55 18 — — — — — 1964–65 Seattle Totems WHL 70 30 17 47 50 7 3 2 5 10 1965–66 Victoria Maple Leafs WHL 71 42 39 81 20 14 10 9 19 21 1966–67 Victoria Maple Leafs WHL 70 21 38 59 44 — — — — — 1967–68 Rochester Americans AHL 72 43 52 95 72 11 9 3 12 25 1968–69 Vancouver Canucks WHL 74 36 48 84 50 8 4 6 10 11 1969–70 Minnesota North Stars NHL 70 16 17 33 10 6 2 2 4 6 1970–71 Minnesota North Stars NHL 7 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1970–71 Phoenix Roadrunners WHL 44 19 26 45 21 10 3 3 6 26 1971–72 Phoenix Roadrunners WHL 64 16 21 37 24 5 0 1 1 2 1972–73 Phoenix Roadrunners WHL 51 26 42 68 41 10 4 7 11 28 1973–74 Phoenix Roadrunners WHL 48 19 30 49 12 9 6 5 11 6 1974–75 Phoenix Roadrunners WHA 51 6 20 26 8 — — — — — 1974–75 Tulsa Oilers CHL 25 7 12 19 10 2 0 1 1 2 1975–76 Tucson Mavericks CHL 2 0 3 3 2 — — — — — WHA totals 51 6 20 26 8 — — — — — NHL totals 77 16 17 33 10 6 2 2 4 6