1985-86 Washington Capitals Dave Christian Jersey

Born into a legendary American hockey family on this date in 1959, Dave Christian, son and nephew of 1960 Olympic gold medalists and founders of the Christian Brothers hockey stick company Bill and Roger Christian, as well as nephew of 1956 Olympic silver medalist Gordon Christian, played his youth hockey for Warroad High School followed by college hockey at the University of North Dakota in 1977-78 and 1978-79.

He first donned a United States National Team sweater for the 1979 World Junior Tournament and was then a member of the United States National Team for the schedule of games they would play in 1979 in preparation for the 1980 Olympics in Lake Placid, New York. Coached by Herb Brooks, Christian and the rest of the 1980 United States Olympic Hockey Team would pull off the upset of the century, as the team of college age players would defeat the mighty Soviet Union National Team in "The Miracle on Ice" and go on to defeat Finland to capture the gold medal, adding to the family legacy of Olympic gold.

Following the Olympics, Christian turned professional with the Winnipeg Jets, who selected him in the second round of the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, the Jets first draft as a new member of the NHL after being founded in the WHA. He played 15 games with the Jets that season, scoring 18 points in 15 games which included his first goal on his first shot of his first shift, just seven seconds into his NHL career!

Playing his first full season with the Jets, Christian proved himself right at home in the NHL, scoring 28 goals and 71 points to lead the team in scoring while playing in all 80 of the Jets games, setting the tone for a career noted for his dependability as well as his durability.

At the conclusion of the season Christian played for the United States once again, this time at the 1981 World Championships where he had a great tournament, scoring 8 goals and 11 points in 8 games. Before the next NHL season began, his country came calling once again, this time for the 1981 Canada Cup.

His second season with Winnipeg saw his point total increase to 76. His last season with the Jets was cut short by 25 games due to torn shoulder muscles, but over the course of the next nine seasons he would miss just 10 total games.

His rights were traded to the Washington Capitals in June of 1983. He made the transition to the Capitals with ease, scoring a point per game with 81 points in 80 games, which began a streak of three consecutive seasons without missing a game.

Before the 1984-85 NHL season, Christian added to his international resume by competing in his second Canada Cup for the United States. After a 69 point season in 1984-95, he had the best offensive season of his career when he scored 41 goals and 83 points to lead the club in scoring.

He would play three more seasons with the Capitals, extending his 20 goal, 50 point streak to six, as well as fitting in another World Championship appearance for the US in 1989, contributing 7 points in 6 games.

After 28 games of the 1989-90 season, Christian was acquired by the Boston Bruins for his offensive skills and veteran leadership. The move paid off for both sides as Christian and the Bruins made the longest postseason run of his career as Boston made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals.

He played one more season with the Bruins before being transferred to the St. Louis Blues as compensation for a pair of free agent signings by the Bruins of former Blues players. Prior to joining the Blues, Christian had the honor of competing for the United States in his third Canada Cup, this one in 1991.

After one season with the Blues, Christian was claimed by the Chicago Blackhawks in the 1992 waiver draft. He played 60 games for Chicago in 1992-93 and 9 at the start of the 1993-94 season before being assigned to the Indianapolis Ice of the IHL for 40 games.

His final two seasons of pro hockey were spent with the brand new Minnesota Moose of the IHL, scoring 38 goals and 80 points in 81 games in 1994-95 and 46 points in 69 games of the 1995-96 season before retiring.

He finished his NHL career with 1,009 games played, 340 goals and 433 assists for 773 points and an appearance in the 1991 NHL All-Star Game to go along with his gold medal won in 1980.

Today's featured jersey is a 1985-86 Washington Capitals Dave Christian jersey as worn during this finest NHL season when he set a career high with 83 points to lead the Capitals in scoring.

While many may assume the Capitals jerseys remained the same during this era, there were subtle detail changes, which included adding names to the back of the red road jerseys in 1977, changing to single color names beginning in 1979-80, dropping the number of stars on the arms to just four for 1983-84 and 1984-85, adding the fifth star on the arms back in 1985-86 and making the names two colors again in 1987-88 through the end of the lifespan of this classic jersey style until it was replaced with an entirely new set of jerseys, which sported an entirely new identity package consisting of a new logo and all new team colors in 1995-96.

Photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

Bonus jersey: Today's bonus jersey is a 1980 United States Olympic Team Dave Christian jersey as worn in the gold medal clinching game against Finland on the final day of the 1980 Olympic tournament, the sixth time the United States had come from behind during their seven games.

The blue jerseys are the lesser known jerseys from the tournament, as it was the white ones they were wearing when they defeated the Soviet Union and the style which has been much more heavily marketed since then.

Extra bonus jersey: Today's extra bonus jersey is a 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Dave Christian jersey. This Starter brand jersey features the IHL 50th Anniversary patch, worn by all the teams in the IHL that season. It might be difficult to make out, but the letters and numbers are three color, white trimmed in forest green and outlined in purple, a frankly impossible combination to see against the black background and probably only visible from the front row of the seats, and even then only when someone was plastered up against the glass!

Even on the white jerseys, where they used purple numbers trimmed in forest green and outlined in black the similar values of the green and purple blended together for the most part. A very odd choice to be certain.

Today's video section is an interview with Christian talking about his memories of the 1980 Miracle on Ice.

1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stephane Morin Jersey

Born on this date in 1969, Stéphane Morin played junior hockey for the Shawinigan Cataractes and then the Chicoutimi Sagueneens. After splitting the 1987-88 season between the two clubs, Morin would get himself noticed with 77 goals and 109 assists for 186 points in just 77 games in 1988-89, which led to him being drafted 43rd overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques.

He would spend the majority of the 1989-90 season with the Halifax Citadels of the American Hockey League, but would make his NHL debut with six games with the Nordiques, in which he would register his first NHL points with a pair of assists.

While he would split the next two seasons between Quebec and Halifax, he would see action in 48 NHL games, which included scoring his first NHL goal, in 1990-91, a season in which he would place fourth in scoring for the Nordiques with 13 goals and 40 points despite only competing in a total of just 48 games.

Morin made his NHL debut with Quebec

The 1991-92 season with Quebec as a disappointment, with just two goals and eight assists for ten points in 30 games.

Released by the Nordiques organization, Morin signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 1992. Assigned to the Hamilton Canucks of the AHL, Morin led the team in scoring with 31 goals and 85 points in 70 games. He did play a game in Vancouver, registering an assist, in his only NHL appearance that season.

The following season was very productive offensively for Morin, as he again led Hamilton in scoring with 109 points in 69 games, good for fourth overall in the AHL that season. He would also contribute a goal and an assist in five games with Vancouver.

With his time in Vancouver at an end, Morin signed on with the brand new Minnesota Moose of the International Hockey League, who came into being to fill some of the void left by the departure of the Minnesota North Stars. Morin not only led the Moose in scoring, but the entire IHL in 1994-95 with 33 goals and 81 assists for 114 points in 81 games.

Morin won the IHL scoring title with the Moose

His point total would decline the following season to 78, but he would still lead the Moose in scoring.

1996-97 saw Morin and the team move to Manitoba, but he would find himself moving to the Long Beach Ice Dogs, still in the IHL, after only 12 games in Winnipeg. Long Beach was a strong team that season, winning the South Division and making it all the way to the IHL Turner Cup Finals. Morin, making the first real playoff run of his professional career, responded with 19 points in 18 games.

Morin's next season with Long Beach was limited to just 27 games in which he scored 27 points. Another playoff run for Long Beach would see them win a pair of rounds before falling in the semifinals, but not before Morin would contribute 11 points in 13 games.

For the 1998-99 season, Morin relocated to Europe, signing with the Berlin Capitals of the DEL.

Morin made the move to Europe and joined the Berlin Capitals

Off to a good start in Germany, Morin scored a pair of goals plus six assists for eight points in his first handful of games, but then shockingly and tragically, after complaining of not feeling well during the first period of the seventh game of the season, Morin died of a heart attack at the age of 29 on October 6, 1998 after he collapsed at the bench early in the second period leaving behind a wife and newborn son.

Today's featured jersey is a 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stéphane Morin jersey from the season Morin led the Moose and the IHL in scoring.

The Moose would only play two seasons in Minnesota and Morin would hold the team records for most assists and points in a season, as well as career goals, assists and points, as well as games played.

While the three color combination of the forest green trim and purple outline against the black was a questionable choice at best, as the separation of the green from the purple and black is nearly impossible to make out for even the larger numbers and really becomes a dark mass when reduced in size for the name on the back.

While the back of the jersey has it's flaws, the front of the jersey is a winner, with the IHL 50th Anniversary patch providing a shot of color and the very popular Moose logo, which was ranked #1 in a poll by The Hockey News and led all minor league teams in terms of merchandise sales, making for a very attractive jersey.

Today's videos begin with some game action of the Moose from the 1994-95 season.

But what would minor league hockey be without the fights? Here is some rare footage of the Moose playing at the St. Paul Civic center with solid white dasherboards after having replaced the original clear boards due to their age and the advent of dasherboard advertising rendering them ineffective.

For comparison, here's some footage from the St. Paul Civic Center in 1984 with the original set of clear boards.

1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stephane Morin Jersey

July by the Numbers reaches #25 as we head north to Minnesota.

While the Minnesota Moose only played two seasons in St. Paul, Minnesota after the departure of the NHL's North Stars for Dallas, they provided some exciting hockey, generally of the rougher kind typical of the International Hockey League in those days.

One of the highlights for the Moose during their first season in the old St. Paul Civic Center was undoubtedly the play of Stephane Morin.

Morin played junior hockey for the Shawinigan Cataractes and then the Chicoutimi Sagueneens. After splitting the 1987-88 season between the two clubs, Morin would get himself noticed with 77 goals and 109 assists for 186 points in just 77 games in 1988-89, which led to him being drafted 43rd overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques.

He would spend the majority of the 1989-90 season with the Halifax Citadels of the American Hockey League, but would make his NHL debut with six games with the Nordiques, in which he would register his first NHL points with a pair of assists.

Morin with the Citadels

While he would split the next two seasons between Quebec and Halifax, he would see action in 48 NHL games, which included scoring his first NHL goal, in 1990-91, a season in which he would place fourth in scoring for the Nordiques with 13 goals and 40 points despite only competing in a total of just 48 games.

The 1991-92 season with Quebec as a disappointment, with just two goals and eight assists for ten points in 30 games.

Morin made his NHL debut with the Nordiques

Released by the Nordiques organization, Morin signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 1992. Assigned to the Hamilton Canucks of the AHL, Morin led the team in scoring with 31 goals and 85 points in 70 games. He did play a game in Vancouver, registering an assist, in his only NHL appearance that season.

The following season was very productive offensively for Morin, as he again led Hamilton in scoring with 109 points in 69 games, good for fourth overall in the AHL that season. He would also contribute a goal and an assist in five games with Vancouver.

With his time in Vancouver at an end, Morin signed on with the brand new Minnesota Moose of the International Hockey League, who came into being to fill some of the void left by the departure of the Minnesota North Stars. Morin led the Moose in scoring with 33 goals and 81 assists for 114 points, nearly double the next closest on the roster, to win the league scoring title to capture the Leo Lamoureux Memorial Trophy

Morin on his way to win the 1994-95 IHL scoring title

while with the Moose

His point total would decline the following season to 78, but he would still lead the Moose in scoring.

1996-97 saw Morin and the team move to Manitoba, but after only 12 games in Winnipeg he would find himself moving to the Long Beach Ice Dogs, still in the IHL. Long Beach was a strong team that season, winning the South Division and making it all the way to the Turner Cup Finals. Morin, making the first real playoff run of his professional career, responded with 19 points in 18 games.

The 1996-97 Long Beach Ice Dogs

Morin's next season with Long Beach was limited to just 27 games in which he scored 27 points. Another playoff run for Long Beach would see them win a pair of rounds before falling in the semifinals, but not before Morin would contribute 11 points in 13 games.

For the 1998-99 season, Morin relocated to Europe, signing with the Berlin Capitals of the DEL.

Morin during his brief time in Germany

Off to a good start in Germany, Morin scored a pair of goals plus six assists for eight points in his first handful of games, but then shockingly and tragically, after complaining of not feeling well during the first period of the seventh game of the season, Morin died of a heart attack at the age of 29 on October 6, 1998 after he collapsed at the bench early in the second period leaving behind a wife and newborn son.

Today's featured jersey is a 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stéphane Morin jersey from the season Morin led the Moose and the IHL in scoring.

The Moose would only play two seasons in Minnesota and Morin would hold the team records for most assists and points in a season, as well as career goals, assists and points, as well as games played.

While the three color combination of the forest green trim and purple outline against the black was a questionable choice at best, as the separation of the green from the purple and black is nearly impossible to make out for even the larger numbers and really becomes a dark mass when reduced in size for the name on the back.

While the back of the jersey has it's flaws, the front of the jersey is a winner, with the IHL 50th Anniversary patch providing a shot of color and the very popular Moose logo, which was ranked #1 in a poll by The Hockey News and led all minor league teams in terms of merchandise sales, making for a very attractive jersey.

Here's some rare non-fighting clips of the Moose in action.

It's back to business as usual with the fisticuffs, but another rarity, the Moose in action at the St. Paul Civic center after the famous clear boards had finally been replaced due to age and the advent of dasherboard advertising rendering them ineffective.

For comparison, here's a WHA Fighting Saints highlight package with some road games with the usual boards and some home game action with the unmistakable clear boards.

1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stephane Morin Jersey

Born on this date in 1969, Stéphane Morin played junior hockey for the Shawinigan Cataractes and then the Chicoutimi Sagueneens. After splitting the 1987-88 season between the two clubs, Morin would get himself noticed with 77 goals and 109 assists for 186 points in just 77 games in 1988-89, which led to him being drafted 43rd overall in the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques.

He would spend the majority of the 1989-90 season with the Halifax Citadels of the American Hockey League, but would make his NHL debut with six games with the Nordiques, in which he would register his first NHL points with a pair of assists.

While he would split the next two seasons between Quebec and Halifax, he would see action in 48 NHL games, which included scoring his first NHL goal, in 1990-91, a season in which he would place fourth in scoring for the Nordiques with 13 goals and 40 points despite only competing in a total of just 48 games.

The 1991-92 season with Quebec as a disappointment, with just two goals and eight assists for ten points in 30 games.

Released by the Nordiques organization, Morin signed with the Vancouver Canucks in 1992. Assigned to the Hamilton Canucks of the AHL, Morin led the team in scoring with 31 goals and 85 points in 70 games. He did play a game in Vancouver, registering an assist, in his only NHL appearance that season.

The following season was very productive offensively for Morin, as he again led Hamilton in scoring with 109 points in 69 games, good for fourth overall in the AHL that season. He would also contribute a goal and an assist in five games with Vancouver.

With his time in Vancouver at an end, Morin signed on with the brand new Minnesota Moose of the International Hockey League, who came into being to fill some of the void left by the departure of the Minnesota North Stars. Morin not only led the Moose in scoring, but the entire IHL in 1994-95 with 33 goals and 81 assists for 114 points in 81 games.

His point total would decline the following season to 78, but he would still lead the Moose in scoring.

1996-97 saw Morin and the team move to Manitoba, but he would find himself moving to the Long Beach Ice Dogs, still in the IHL, after only 12 games in Winnipeg. Long Beach was a strong team that season, winning the South Division and making it all the way to the IHL Turner Cup Finals. Morin, making the first real playoff run of his professional career, responded with 19 points in 18 games.

Morin's next season with Long Beach was limited to just 27 games in which he scored 27 points. Another playoff run for Long Beach would see them win a pair of rounds before falling in the semifinals, but not before Morin would contribute 11 points in 13 games.

For the 1998-99 season, Morin relocated to Europe, signing with the Berlin Capitals of the DEL.

Off to a good start in Germany, Morin scored a pair of goals plus six assists for eight points in his first handful of games, but then shockingly and tragically, after complaining of not feeling well during the first period of the seventh game of the season, Morin died of a heart attack at the age of 29 on October 6, 1998 after he collapsed at the bench early in the second period leaving behind a wife and newborn son.

Today's featured jersey is a 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stéphane Morin jersey from the season Morin led the Moose and the IHL in scoring.

The Moose would only play two seasons in Minnesota and Morin would hold the team records for most assists and points in a season, as well as career goals, assists and points, as well as games played.

While the three color combination of the forest green trim and purple outline against the black was a questionable choice at best, as the separation of the green from the purple and black is nearly impossible to make out for even the larger numbers and really becomes a dark mass when reduced in size for the name on the back.

While the back of the jersey has it's flaws, the front of the jersey is a winner, with the IHL 50th Anniversary patch providing a shot of color and the very popular Moose logo, which was ranked #1 in a poll by The Hockey News and led all minor league teams in terms of merchandise sales, making for a very attractive jersey.

Today's videos begin with some game action of the Moose from the 1994-95 season.

But what would minor league hockey be without the fights? Here is some rare footage of the Moose playing at the St. Paul Civic center with solid white dasherboards after having replaced the original clear boards due to their age and the advent of dasherboard advertising rendering them ineffective.

For comparison, here's some footage from the St. Paul Civic Center in 1984 with the original set of clear boards.

1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stephane Morin Jersey

July by the Numbers reaches #25 as we head north to Minnesota.

While the Minnesota Moose only played two seasons in St. Paul, Minnesota after the departure of the NHL's North Stars for Dallas, they provided some exciting hockey, generally of the rougher kind typical of the International Hockey League in those days, and one wildly successful logo, which was ranked #1 in a poll by The Hockey News and led all minor league teams in terms of merchandise sales.

One of the highlights for the Moose during their first season in the old St. Paul Civic Center was undoubtedly the play of Stephane Morin, who scored 33 goals and a 81 assists, nearly double the next closest on the roster, for 114 points to win the league scoring title to capture the Leo Lamoureux Memorial Trophy.

Other players to suit up for the Moose in Minnesota were Dave Christian, who set the team record for goals in a season with 38 and whose Moose road jersey was featured earlier here at Third String Goalie, team captain and current University of North Dakota head coach Dave Hakstol, all-time team penalty minute leader Brad Miller, former Red Wing and 16 year NHL veteran Reed Larson, the first North American to play in Russia Tod Harjte, whose memoir of his experience "From Behind the Red Line" can be purchased here (six used copies for a PENNY at the time of this writing!), former NHLers goaltender Tom Draper, Stew Gavin, Gordie Roberts and last but not least, the unfortunately named goaltender Parris Duffus.

Today's featured jersey is a Starter 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Stephane Morin home jersey which features the IHL 50th Anniversary patch worn during the Moose's first season when Morin won the IHL scoring title.

While the three color combination of purple, forest green and black was a questionable choice at best on the black road jerseys, it does come across slightly better on the home white jerseys, but not by much. While the separation of the green from the purple and black is marginal for the larger numbers, it really becomes a dark mass when reduced in size for the name on the back.

While the back of the jersey has it's flaws, the front of the jersey is a winner, with the popular Moose logo and the added shot of color from the IHL anniversary patch.

Here's some rare non-fighting clips of the Moose in action.

It's back to business as usual with the fisticuffs, but another rarity, the Moose in action at the St. Paul Civic center after the famous clear boards had finally been replaced due to age and the advent of dasherboard advertising rendering them ineffective.

For comparison, here's a WHA Fighting Saints highlight package with some road games with the usual boards and some home game action with the unmistakable clear boards.

1994-95 Minnesota Moose Dave Christian Jersey

When Norm Greed Moved the Minnesota North Stars to Dallas after the 1992-93 season the professional hockey void in the Twin Cities was filled by the arrival of the IHL Minnesota Moose, starting with the 1994-95 season.

The Moose played in the aging St. Paul Civic Center, former home of the WHA Minnesota Fighting Saints. Still stung by the loss of the North Stars, and probably carrying the attitude that minor league hockey was beneath them, the Moose were never embraced by the population as a whole.

When it was assumed that the relocating Winnipeg Jets were headed for the Target Center in Minneapolis, the Moose management figured the writing was on the wall and moved the team to Winnipeg after their second season in St. Paul, to once more fill the void of a departing NHL team, where they still play today as the Manitoba Moose.

Never the greatest success on the ice or with the fans, the greatest legacy of he Moose is undoubtedly their logo, once ranked by The Hockey News as the best in all the minors. It's featured here on a black road jersey, customized with Minnesota native, member of the Gold Medal winning 1980 USA Olympic Hockey Team, and 14 year NHL veteran Dave Christian, who was born on this day in 1959. Christian led the Moose in 94-95 with 38 goals. He was also named to the 1991 NHL All-Star Game, a Captain of the Winnipeg Jets, leading them in points in 80-81 and did the same for the Washington Capitals in 85-86.

Today's featured jersey is a 1994-95 Minnesota Moose Dave Christian jersey. This Starter brand jersey features the IHL 50th Anniversary patch, worn by all the teams in the IHL that season. It might be difficult to make out, but the letters and numbers are three color, white trimmed in forest green and outlined in purple, a frankly impossible combination to see against the black background and probably only visible from the front row of the seats, and even then only when someone was plastered up against the glass!

Even on the white jerseys, where they used purple numbers trimmed in forest green and outlined in black the similar values of the green and purple blended together for the most part. A very odd choice to be certain.

In classic IHL fashion, the 95-96 Moose had seven players with over 100 penalty minutes. Check out the video below for some vintage IHL mayhem.

Dasherboard: Another night of intense playoff hockey last night. Not as exhilarating as Monday night, but both games set up Game 7's as Boston and Anaheim fight off elimination. The problem is that, once more, the games are scheduled to start just an hour apart. Isn't there some way to schedule one for 6 PM Eastern and the other for 9 PM? We'd even settle for 6 PM and 8 PM. C'mon, work with us here.

The ending of the Anaheim/Detroit game was some Old Time Hockey with practically everyone squaring off after the horn sounded. What was with Scott Niedermayer violently elbowing and then punching out Pavel Datsyuk? Doesn't he know that Datsyuk is nominated to win his fourth straight Lady Bing Memorial Trophy? What the hell? That's like picking a fight with a fluffy kitten. Or Alexander Semin.

The intensity of the next game is going to be off the charts with the fans hanging off the rafters at The Joe. Prediction - happy Red Wings fans will celebrate the launching of an octopus as Detroit does their part to give us an renewal of an Original Six rivalry with the Blackhawks for the first time since 1995.

For Boston and Carolina, based on the way this series has gone so far, expect a 4-1 win. Only we're not sure in whose favor it will be. Watch, the damn thing will now go four overtimes now that we've said that. We suspect predictions will not be a regular feature of this blog...