Melvin John Bridgman (born April 28, 1955) is a Canadian former 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 ...

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who played 14 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) from 1975–76 until 1988–89. He featured in two

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

Finals with the Flyers (1976, 1980). Bridgman was born in

Trenton, Ontario Trenton (2001 population 16,770) is a large community in Central Ontario in the municipality of Quinte West, Ontario, Canada. Located on the Bay of Quinte, it is the starting point for the Trent-Severn Waterway, which continues northwest to Pe ...

, but grew up in

Thunder Bay, Ontario Thunder Bay is a city in and the seat of Thunder Bay District, Ontario, Canada. It is the most populous municipality in Northwestern Ontario and the second most populous (after Greater Sudbury) municipality in Northern Ontario. Its population i ...

, before moving to

Victoria, British Columbia Victoria is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of British Columbia, on the southern tip of Vancouver Island off Canada's Pacific Ocean, Pacific coast. The city has a population of 91,867, and the Gre ...

. After his playing career, he earned his MBA from the

Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania The Wharton School ( ) is the business school of the University of Pennsylvania, a private Ivy League research university in Philadelphia. Established in 1881 through a donation from Joseph Wharton, a co-founder of Bethlehem Steel, the Wharton ...

. In 1992, Bridgman was the first general manager of the modern-day

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. The Senators compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Di ...

of the NHL.

Playing career

Bridgman was drafted first overall by the

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 ...

in the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft. He played 977 career NHL games, scoring 252 goals and 449 assists for 701 points, as well as adding 1625 penalty minutes. His best offensive season was the 1981–82 season, when he set career highs with 33 goals, 54 assists, and 87 points. Throughout his career Bridgman was known as a consistent offensive contributor, a smart defensive centre, and a gritty, hard-nosed, power forward who would check and fight regularly.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Awards

* Bob Brownridge Memorial Trophy (WCHL leading scorer) - 1975 * WCHL All-Star Team – 1975

References

External links

* *Meltzer, Bil
Flyers Heroes of the Past: Mel Bridgman at philadelphiaflyers.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bridgman, Mel 1955 births Living people Adirondack Red Wings players Calgary Flames players Canadian ice hockey centres Denver Spurs draft picks Detroit Red Wings players Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Nanaimo Clippers players First overall NHL draft picks NHL first-round draft picks National Hockey League general managers New Jersey Devils players Ottawa Senators general managers Sportspeople from Quinte West Philadelphia Flyers captains Philadelphia Flyers draft picks Philadelphia Flyers players Ice hockey people from Thunder Bay Vancouver Canucks players Victoria Cougars (WHL) players 20th-century Canadian sportsmen