Bob Probert

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CanadaCanada  Bob Probert Ice hockey player
Date of birth June 5, 1965
place of birth Windsor , Ontario , Canada
date of death 5th July 2010
Place of death Windsor , Ontario , Canada
size 191 cm
Weight 102 kg
position Left wing
Shot hand Left
Draft
NHL Entry Draft 1983 , 3rd lap, 46th position
Detroit Red Wings
Career stations
1982-1984 Brantford Alexander
1984 Hamilton Steelhawks
1984-1985 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds
1985-1994 Detroit Red Wings
1994-2002 Chicago Blackhawks

Robert A. "Bob" Probert (born June 5, 1965 in Windsor , Ontario , † July 5, 2010 ibid) was a Canadian ice hockey player . The winger played between 1985 and 2002 a total of over 1000 games for the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League . He is considered one of the most famous enforcers and pugilists in NHL history.

Career

Bob Probert played in the OMHA junior league until 1982, before moving to the Brantford Alexanders in the Ontario Hockey League , one of the most important junior leagues in Canada . There he drew attention to himself in his first season due to his physical toughness and was selected in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft alongside Steve Yzerman by the Detroit Red Wings . Probert was drafted in the third round in 46th position.

He stayed a year with the Brantford Alexanders and played the following season 1984/85 with the Hamilton Steelhawks and the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds also in the OHL. With the Greyhounds he was able to qualify for the final round of the Memorial Cup , but failed there in the semifinals. In his last two years in the OHL he showed that he is also a good scorer and can not only collect penalty minutes.

In 1985 he moved to the Red Wings in the NHL , but played in the following two years also games for the Adirondack Red Wings , the AHL farm team from Detroit. In the 1987/88 season he made the final breakthrough and scored 62 points in 74 games. There were also 398 penalty minutes. In the playoffs he was able to improve again and scored 21 times in 16 games, making it Detroit's best scorer in the playoffs and setting a new team record. For his good performance he was invited to the NHL All-Star Game during the season .

But as early as 1989, his career seemed to have ended after cocaine was found on him . Probert was jailed for nine months and he was suspended from the NHL for life. After he was released from prison, he participated in a rehab program and during the 1989/90 season , the NHL lifted the ban on him so that he could make his comeback.

In the following three seasons, Probert scored around 40 points and at least 275 penalty minutes each time. At times he even wore an assistant captain's "A" on his jersey. In the 1993/94 season he was only able to reach 17 points and made headlines again in July 1994 when his motorcycle collided with a car. Probert sustained only minor injuries, but he was found to have an alcohol level three times the allowable limit. He was a free agent at the time and was in negotiations with the Red Wings. But just four days after the accident, the management stated that he would not get a new contract and justified the decision with the negative incidents in recent years.

Shortly thereafter, he was signed by the Chicago Blackhawks . But a few months later, the NHL decided to ban Probert for alcohol abuse until further notice, as he was a repeat offender. In the 1995/96 season he was allowed to be used again and made his debut with the Blackhawks. His point yield decreased over the years, but he did not weaken when collecting penalty minutes.

After seven years for the Blackhawks, the team put him on the waiver list after the 2001/02 season , but he was not selected by any other team. In November 2002 he finally announced the end of his career and became a radio commentator with the Blackhawks. However, he did not keep this job for long, as he went into a rehab program in February 2003.

Bob Probert was one of the most famous enforcers of his time and is still considered one of the best and most feared pugilists to have ever stood on the ice. Probert accumulated a total of 3300 penalty minutes, with only three other players in the history of the NHL had more penalty minutes on their account than Probert ended his career. At the Detroit Red Wings he formed the "Bruise Brothers" together with Joe Kocur . Kocur spent a total of 2519 minutes in the penalty box during his career.

After the end of his career

After retiring from his career, he continued to come into conflict with the law. He was arrested in 2004 after allegedly parked his car on the wrong side of the road and then got into an argument about drugs with bystanders. Several police officers tried unsuccessfully to overpower Probert, and several blows to his leg with a baton had no effect. It was only after using a stun gun several times that he was overwhelmed. Probert was later acquitted on all counts.

On July 1, 2005, he was arrested at his home in Windsor for assaulting the security of the state, resisting state authority and assaulting a police officer. His attorney announced that Probert would plead not guilty. On August 23, 2005, Probert was arrested again in a bar for violating two of his parole conditions. So he was not allowed to consume alcohol and not be in a facility that serves high-proof alcohol. After paying Canadian $ 200, he was released.

All charges against Probert resulting from the July 1, 2005 arrest were eventually dropped. Probert caused a stir when he was photographed with a member of the Hells Angels that same summer .

On July 5, 2010, while on a boat trip on Lake St. Clair near Windsor, Bob Probert complained of chest pain and collapsed. His father-in-law, a police officer, took care of the stabilization of the circulatory system until Probert was admitted to the hospital. However, all medical measures were unsuccessful, whereupon Probert died a short time later in the hospital. He left behind his wife and four children. Most recently Probert worked as a toolmaker near his home town of Windsor.

A post-mortem analysis of his brain revealed that Bob Probert had the neurodegenerative disease chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE). CTE is caused by repeated head butts.

Some of his ashes were scattered in their penalty box in April 2017 at the last NHL game at the Joe Louis Arena .

Achievements and Awards

Career statistics

Regular season Play-offs
season team league Sp T V Pt SM Sp T V Pt SM
1982/83 Brantford Alexander OHL 51 12 16 28 133 8th 2 2 4th 23
1983/84 Brantford Alexander OHL 65 35 38 73 189 6th 0 3 3 16
1984/85 Hamilton Steelhawks OHL 4th 0 1 1 21st - - - - -
1984/85 Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds OHL 44 20th 52 72 172 15th 6th 11 17th 60
1985/86 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 32 12 15th 27 152 10 2 3 5 68
1985/86 Detroit Red Wings NHL 44 8th 13 21st 186 - - - - -
1986/87 Adirondack Red Wings AHL 7th 1 4th 5 15th - - - - -
1986/87 Detroit Red Wings NHL 63 13 11 24 221 16 3 4th 7th 63
1987/88 Detroit Red Wings NHL 74 29 33 62 398 16 8th 13 21st 51
1988/89 Detroit Red Wings NHL 25th 4th 2 6th 106 - - - - -
1989/90 Detroit Red Wings NHL 4th 3 0 3 29 - - - - -
1990/91 Detroit Red Wings NHL 55 16 23 39 315 6th 1 2 3 50
1991/92 Detroit Red Wings NHL 63 20th 24 44 276 11 1 6th 7th 28
1992/93 Detroit Red Wings NHL 80 14th 29 43 292 7th 0 3 3 10
1993/94 Detroit Red Wings NHL 66 7th 10 17th 275 7th 1 1 2 8th
1994/95 Chicago Blackhawks NHL not played due to suspension
1995/96 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 78 19th 21st 40 237 10 0 2 2 23
1996/97 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 82 9 14th 23 326 6th 2 1 3 41
1997/98 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 14th 2 1 3 48 - - - - -
1998/99 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 78 7th 14th 21st 206 - - - - -
1999/00 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 68 4th 11 15th 114 - - - - -
2000/01 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 79 7th 12 19th 103 - - - - -
2001/02 Chicago Blackhawks NHL 61 1 3 4th 176 2 0 0 0 0
OHL total 164 67 107 174 515 29 8th 16 24 99
AHL total 39 13 19th 32 167 10 2 3 5 68
NHL overall 935 162 221 384 3300 81 16 32 48 274

( Legend for player statistics: Sp or GP = games played; T or G = goals scored; V or A = assists scored ; Pkt or Pts = scorer points scored ; SM or PIM = penalty minutes received ; +/− = plus / minus balance; PP = overpaid goals scored ; SH = underpaid goals scored ; GW = winning goals scored; 1  play-downs / relegation )

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Bob Probert dead at 45: reports
  2. ^ Alan Schwarz: Hockey Enforcer Bob Probert Paid a Price, With Brain Trauma. The New York Times, March 2, 2011, accessed September 11, 2017 .
personal data
SURNAME Probert, Bob
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Probert, Robert A.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION Canadian ice hockey player
DATE OF BIRTH June 5, 1965
PLACE OF BIRTH Windsor
DATE OF DEATH 5th July 2010
Place of death Windsor