Savard Greatest 18 in NHL History
Denis Savard played the first seven years of his 17-year career with the Chicago Blackhawks, scoring at least 32 goals and 90 points from 1981-88. In five of those seven seasons, he had at least 105 points with a career-high 131 points (44 goals, 87 assists) in 1987-88.
He ranks third in points (1,096), second in assists (719) and fifth in goals (377) in Blackhawks history.
Savard was traded to the Montreal Canadiens (a team that many thought would draft him), for Chris Chelios and a second-round pick (Mike Pomichter) on June 29, 1990. Savard won the Stanley Cup with the Canadiens in 1993, but he missed the majority of the postseason due to an ankle fracture. He signed as a free agent with the Tampa Bay Lightning and played a season and a half there before he was traded back to Chicago for a 1996 sixth-round pick (Xavier Delisle) to play out the final two seasons of his career.
The Blackhawks retired No. 18 in Savard's honor March 19, 1998. He was inducted into the Pro Hockey Hall of Fame on November 13, 2000.
For the 1980 NHL Entry Draft, the Canadiens held the first overall pick and many fans hoped they would use it to draft Savard. Instead, the Canadiens drafted Doug Wickenheiser and Savard was chosen third overall by the Blackhawks. He was the highest drafted player in Blackhawks' history, until the organization drafted Patrick Kane with the first overall pick in 2007.
He was known for his trademark move, the "Spin-o-rama," in which Savard whirled around with the puck in a full rotation allowing him to defeat defenders and goaltenders alike.
In 1,196 NHL games, he scored 473 goals and 865 assists. In 169 playoff games, he scored 66 goals and 109 assists (175 points).
On November 27, 2006, Savard was named interim head coach of the Chicago Blackhawks after Trent Yawney was fired mid-season. He was commended for leading a young Blackhawks team to within 3 points of a playoff berth during his second season as coach. But just four games into the 2008-09 season, Savard was fired and replaced by Joel Quenneville, who led the Hawks to three Cups in six seasons.
Savard posted a 65�66�16 record in 147 games as the Chicago coach. He remains an ambassador for the Blackhawks.
| POLL | ||
Favorite Savard memory? | ||
| Spin-o-rama | 35 | 48.6 % |
| 131 points in 1987-88 season | 19 | 26.4 % |
| Time as head coach | 10 | 13.9 % |
| Something else | 8 | 11.1 % |
| List of polls | ||
