George Francis "Duke" Harris (February 25, 1942 – August 2, 2017) was a Canadian professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

right winger In the sport of association football, a midfielder takes an outfield position primarily in the middle of the pitch. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. ...

who played 26 games in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

during the 1967–68 season with the

Minnesota North Stars The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, and the team's colors for ...

and

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...

. He also played in the WHA from 1972 to 1975 with the

Chicago Cougars The Chicago Cougars were a professional ice hockey team in Chicago. They competed in the World Hockey Association from 1972 to 1975. The Cougars played their home games in the International Amphitheatre. History During the 1974 Avco Cup Finals ...

and Houston Aeros. He died in 2017, six months after heart surgery.

Early life

Harris grew up in Point Edward, Ontario. He played 5 seasons with the St. Catharines Teepees, starting his first season in 1958 at the age of 16. In the 1960 season with the Teepees Harris helped the team win the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

against the

Edmonton Oil Kings The Edmonton Oil Kings are a Canadian junior ice hockey team based in Edmonton, Alberta, that play in the Western Hockey League (WHL). The team, founded in 2006, shares an ownership group with the National Hockey League's Edmonton Oilers. The te ...

. In the 1961–62 season he played with the Guelph Royals

Professional career

In 1961–62 Harris played his first professional games, appearing in 7 games with the

Sault Thunderbirds The Sault Thunderbirds were a professional ice hockey team in the Eastern Professional Hockey League from 1959 to 1962. The Thunderbirds were based in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, and played at the Sault Memorial Gardens. Players Hockey Hall of ...

of the Eastern Professional Hockey League (EPHL). in 1962–63 he scored 28 goals as an EPHL's St. Louis Braves.

NHL career

Harris played 26 NHL games in 1967–68, 22 with the

. He was traded to the

during the season, where he played 4 more games. The rest of the season was spent in the minor leagues.

Post-NHL career

After the NHL Harris played two seasons with the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. The Canucks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conferenc ...

of the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior hocke ...

. In the 1968–69 season Harris scored 23 goals and had 17 assists for a total of 40 points. He also played 3 non-consecutive seasons with the

Rochester Americans The Rochester Americans (colloquially known as the Amerks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Rochester, New York. They are the American Hockey League affiliate of the National Hockey League's Buffalo Sabres. The team plays its home g ...

in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

, 1967–68, 1970–71, and 1971–72.

World Hockey Association

In 1972 Harris joined the Houston Aeros of the newly founded

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association () was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972–73 WHA season, 1972 to 1978–79 WHA season, 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (N ...

(WHA). He scored 30 goals for Houston during the 1972–73 season. He then played two seasons with the

before retiring in 1975.

Personal life

Harris was married for 55 years, until his death, to Eleanor Marie Harris. They had two children, Kimberly Marie Harris and Robert Harris. After retiring from professional hockey Harris worked as a crane operator in Sarnia, Ontario.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Harris, Duke 1942 births 2017 deaths Canadian ice hockey right wingers Chicago Cougars players Fort Worth Wings players Guelph Royals players Houston Aeros (WHA) players Minnesota North Stars players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Pittsburgh Hornets players Rochester Americans players Sault Thunderbirds players Ice hockey people from Sarnia St. Louis Braves players St. Louis Braves (EPHL) players Toronto Maple Leafs players Vancouver Canucks (WHL) players