The Islanders select Trottier, a center with Swift Current of the Western Hockey League, in the second round (No. 22) of the 1974 NHL Draft. He joins the Islanders in 1975-76 and wins the
Calder Trophy
by scoring 32 goals and finishing with 95 points, then an NHL record for rookies.
Trottier wins the
Hart
and
Art Ross
trophies in 1979, when he leads the League in scoring and helps the Islanders finish first in the regular season. In
1980
, he earns the
Conn Smythe Trophy
after the Islanders win the
Stanley Cup
for the first of four straight years. Trottier scores exactly 500 goals as a member of the Islanders before being released in July 1990; he quickly signs with the Pittsburgh Penguins and helps them win the Cup in
1991
and
1992
.
Trottier retires after the 1993-94 season with 524 goals, 1,425 points and six Stanley Cup championships. He is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1997.
MORE MOMENTS
1989:
Bob Gainey
, one of the best defensive forwards in NHL history, announces his retirement after 16 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens. Gainey wins the
Selke Trophy
as the League's top defensive forward from 1978-82 and helps the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup four years in a row, from 1976-79, and again in 1986. He retires after the 1988-89 season with 502 points (239 goals, 263 assists) in 1,160 games. Gainey is inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1992.
