Louis Frederick Angotti (January 16, 1938 – September 15, 2021) 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 ...

player and coach who played ten seasons 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 ...

(NHL). He played for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...

Chicago Black Hawks Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team play ...

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...

, and

St. Louis Blues The St. Louis Blues are a professional ice hockey team based in St. Louis. The Blues compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division (NHL), Central Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

from 1964 to 1974.

Early life

Angotti was born in

Toronto Toronto ( , locally pronounced or ) is the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, most populous city in Canada. It is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Ontario. With a p ...

on January 16, 1938. He played his junior hockey for the Toronto St. Michael's Majors. He then enrolled in Michigan Tech University where he earned an engineering degree while skating for powerful college clubs. He appeared in two NCAA championship games, losing the 1960 game while winning in 1962. He was MVP of both tournaments and was All- WCHA First Team for 1961–62.

Professional career

Angotti signed with the

of the

(NHL), playing two seasons with the minor league

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 ...

before being called up to the big league club in 1964-65. Angotti quickly became known for his high-energy, speedy play. Over the next nine seasons, he played with the

, and

. He had his best offensive season in 1967–68 with the Flyers, when he scored 49 points while serving as the club's first captain. During his second stint with Chicago (from 1969 through 1973), he served as a key defensive component on a team that narrowly lost two Stanley Cup Finals series. During his final season with the Blues in 1973–74, Angotti was hired as coach after Jean-Guy Talbot was fired with 23 games remaining in the season. He retired to serve as head coach on a full-time basis, but was fired just nine games into the next year. He returned to play hockey with the Chicago Cougars of the

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). Angotti again served as head coach during the 1983-84 season, this time with the Pittsburgh Penguins. Angotti also coached the

New Brunswick Hawks The New Brunswick Hawks were a professional ice hockey team based in Moncton, New Brunswick. Home games were played at the Moncton Coliseum. They were a member of the American Hockey League (AHL) between 1978 and 1982. The Hawks operated as a mi ...

, Erie Blades, and Baltimore Skipjacks of 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 ...

(AHL) for one season each.

Later life

Following his playing career, Angotti was a color commentator for Chicago Blackhawks games on WSNS-TV and WCFL radio. He was first inducted into the Michigan Tech Sports Hall of Fame in 1991 as an individual player. He was enshrined again in 2012 together with the 1962 team on the 50th anniversary of the school's first NCAA title. He periodically participated in community activities by the Chicago Blackhawk Alumni Association. Angotti died on September 15, 2021, at Holy Cross Hospital in

Fort Lauderdale, Florida Fort Lauderdale ( ) is a coastal city located in the U.S. state of Florida, north of Miami along the Atlantic Ocean. It is the county seat of and most populous city in Broward County, Florida, Broward County with a population of 182,760 at the ...

. He was 83 years old.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Sources:

Coaching record

Source:

Awards and honors

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Angotti, Lou 1938 births 2021 deaths AHCA Division I men's ice hockey All-Americans Baltimore Skipjacks coaches Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian ice hockey right wingers Chicago Blackhawks announcers Chicago Blackhawks players Chicago Cougars players Detroit Red Wings players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Ice hockey people from Toronto Michigan Tech Huskies men's ice hockey players National Hockey League broadcasters NCAA men's ice hockey national champions New Brunswick Hawks New York Rangers players Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League (1890–1979) players Philadelphia Flyers captains Philadelphia Flyers players Pittsburgh Penguins coaches Pittsburgh Penguins players Pittsburgh Penguins scouts St. Louis Blues coaches St. Louis Blues players Toronto St. Michael's Majors players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen