Nick Harbaruk

Mikołaj Nicholas "Nick" Harbaruk (August 16, 1943 – March 10, 2011) was a professional ice hockey player. Harbaruk played 364 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) and 181 in the World Hockey Association (WHA). Harbaruk played for the Pittsburgh Penguins, St. Louis Blues, and Indianapolis Racers.

Biography

Harbaruk was of Ukrainian descent, born in Poland and immigrated to Toronto, Ontario at the age of five. Harbaruk died from bone cancer on March 10, 2011, at the age of 67. He was buried at York Cemetery, Toronto. At the time of his death, he was survived by his wife, Nancy, and two daughters.

Playing career Prior to his NHL career, Harbaruk played three seasons with the Toronto Marlboros and helped the Marlies win the 1964 Memorial Cup. Harbaruk then spent five seasons with the Tulsa Oilers, a minor league affiliate of the Toronto Maple Leafs, where he got a college degree. Harbaruk was claimed by the Penguins in the 1969 Intra-league draft. Harbaruk played four seasons with the Penguins. In October 1973 he was traded to the St. Louis Blues. After one season with the Blues, Harbaruk then joined the WHA and spent 2-1/2 seasons with the Indianapolis Racers. Harbaruk also played in the minors with Vancouver Canucks, Oklahoma City Blazers, Pittsburgh Hornets and Rochester Americans. After retiring from active play, Harbaruk became the coach of Seneca College in Toronto.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1960–61 Toronto Marlboros OHA 36 4 8 12 0 — — — — — 1961–62 Toronto Marlboros MetJAHL 31 7 10 17 0 — — — — — 1961–62 Pittsburgh Hornets AHL 1 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1962–63 Toronto Marlboros MetJAHL 16 12 8 20 23 — — — — — 1963–64 Toronto Marlboros OHA 54 15 25 40 71 — — — — — 1963–64 Toronto Marlboros M-Cup — — — — — 11 5 4 9 15 1964–65 Rochester Americans AHL 2 0 0 0 0 — — — — — 1964–65 Tulsa Oilers CHL 67 27 43 70 65 12 5 8 13 25 1965–66 Tulsa Oilers CHL 70 20 46 66 97 11 1 4 5 10 1966–67 Tulsa Oilers CHL 70 14 26 40 84 — — — — — 1967–68 Tulsa Oilers CHL 54 20 30 50 96 11 1 6 7 14 1968–69 Tulsa Oilers CHL 69 26 19 45 89 7 2 5 7 18 1968–69 Vancouver Canucks WHL 3 1 1 2 2 — — — — — 1969–70 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 74 5 17 22 56 10 3 0 3 20 1970–71 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 78 13 12 25 108 — — — — — 1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 78 12 17 29 46 4 0 1 1 0 1972–73 Pittsburgh Penguins NHL 78 10 15 25 47 — — — — — 1973–74 St. Louis Blues NHL 56 5 14 19 16 — — — — — 1974–75 Indianapolis Racers WHA 78 20 23 43 52 — — — — — 1975–76 Indianapolis Racers WHA 76 23 19 42 26 7 2 0 2 10 1976–77 Oklahoma City Blazers CHL 42 17 18 35 22 — — — — — 1976–77 Indianapolis Racers WHA 27 2 2 4 2 6 1 1 2 0 WHA totals 181 45 44 89 80 13 3 1 4 10 NHL totals 364 45 75 120 273 14 3 1 4 20