Secord to None: Honoring 20
Al Secord hurt teams with points and punches. In the 1981-82 season for the Chicago Blackhawks, he recorded 44 goals and 303 penalty minutes, making him the only player in NHL history to record 40 goals and 300 PIMS in a single season. The next season he had 53 goals and 180 PIMs. He was a great compliment to linemates Denis Savard and Steve Larmer in his playing days.
Secord spent 12 seasons in the NHL, eight with Chicago, where he was part of arguably one of the most prolific lines in franchise history. In the 1982-83 season, the line of Secord-Savard-Larmer combined for 298 points (133G, 165A). In that season, he scored 54 goals, joining Bobby Hull as the only other Blackhawk to score 50 or more goals in a season. Jeremy Roenick would join that club in the 1991-92 season. Only 93 players have reached the 50-goal mark in NHL History.
Secord was drafted 16th overall by the Boston Bruins in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft. He scored 39 goals in two seasons, but after failing to score in his first 18 games of the 1980-81 season, he was dealt to the Blackhawks on December 18, 1980, in a trade for defenseman Mike O'Connell.
The biggest fight for Secord wasn't on the ice, but ended up being with injuries. He missed almost all of the 1983-84 season with a major injury and half of the next season. After a 29-goal season in 1986�87, Secord was dealt to the Toronto Maple Leafs on September 3, 1987 along with Eddie Olczyk. He spent two seasons with Toronto and half a season with the Philadelphia Flyers, before returning to Chicago for the 1989-90 season.
Secord only played in 766 career NHL games, but he sure was memorable, putting up an impressive 273 goals, 223 assists and 2,095 PIMs. His 1,426 PIMs with Chicago rank third in franchise history behind Chris Chelios (1,495) and Keith Magnusson (1,440).
After retiring from hockey, Secord turned in his feathers on the Indian Head, for pilot wings with United Airlines.
| POLL | ||
JUIN 20 | 159 ANSWERS Secord to None: Honoring 20 Should the league have more enforcers like Secord? | ||
| Yes, sorely missed | 96 | 60.4 % |
| No, the game is better without them | 63 | 39.6 % |
| List of polls | ||
