Willie Huber

Willie Huber
Date of birth	January 15, 1958
place of birth	Straßkirchen , Germany
date of death	June 28, 2010
Place of death	Hamilton , Ontario , Canada
size	196 cm
Weight	102 kg
position	defender
Shot hand	Right
Draft
NHL Amateur Draft	1978 , 1st lap, 9th position Detroit Red Wings
Career stations
1975-1976	Hamilton Fincups
1976-1977	St. Catharines Fincups
1977-1988	Hamilton Fincups
1978-1983	Detroit Red Wings
1983-1987	New York Rangers
1987-1988	Vancouver Canucks
1988	Philadelphia Flyers

William Heinrich "Willie" Huber (born January 15, 1958 in Straßkirchen , Germany ; † June 28, 2010 in Hamilton , Ontario ) was a Canadian ice hockey defender of German origin who played in the National Hockey League for the Detroit Red Wings , New York Rangers , Vancouver Canucks and Philadelphia Flyers was active.

Career

Born in Germany, his parents immigrated to Canada when he was ten months old. He began his career in 1975 with the Hamilton Fincups from the Canadian Junior League OMJHL and won the J. Ross Robertson Cup , as winner of the OMJHL Playoffs , and the Memorial Cup in his first season with the Fincups . After he was not particularly noticeable in his first season, he developed significantly in the 1976/77 season and with 34 points in 36 games showed his skills as an attacking defender. In the same season he also took part in the Junior World Championship with the Canadian youth national team and won the silver medal.

In his third year with the juniors, Huber was able to continue promoting himself. On the one hand, he continued to prove his skills on the offensive with twelve goals and 45 assists , on the other hand, the Fincups conceded the fewest goals in the entire league during the season and moved back to the final of the playoffs, where they were defeated by the Peterborough Petes . There was also the bronze medal at the Junior World Championship in 1978 .

Due to his good performance, Huber was finally selected in the NHL Amateur Draft 1978 by the Detroit Red Wings in the first round in ninth position. In October of the same year he made his debut in the NHL and was part of the Detroit squad for the entire season , with the exception of ten games in the lower class CHL with the Red Wings farm team .

Huber, who was the tallest player in the NHL for a long time with his height of 1.96 meters, quickly established himself in Detroit and together with Reed Larson formed the Red Wings' strongest defensive line at the time, which was able to set accents especially in the majority game. From 1979 to 1983 he reached the 40-point mark in four consecutive seasons for the stumbling Red Wings and scored at least 14 goals each season, which is why he was invited to the NHL All-Star Game in the 1982/83 season . He was also called to the squad of the Canadian national team for the World Cup in 1981 .

Disputes over Willie Huber's contract ultimately led to the Red Wings transferring him to the New York Rangers in the summer of 1983 . In New York he was able to build on his good performances, but he was absent in the first two seasons due to knee injuries for more than 30 games. When he was able to play through the 1985/86 season largely injury-free, however, he got into a weak phase and was with only 15 points from 70 games well below the values ​​from his time in Detroit. The following year, however, he was able to overcome his crisis and found his way back to his old form.

Shortly after the start of the 1987/88 season , he was transferred to the Vancouver Canucks , where he stayed only a few months, since he was sent to the Philadelphia Flyers in another transfer business . For New York and Vancouver he had already played 46 games in the season with five goals and 13 assists, which are moderate for him, but in Philadelphia he was again in top form and collected 13 points scorer in ten games.

Since the Philadelphia Flyers offered him a contract in the summer of 1988 that was more than a third below his previous pay, Huber refused to sign the contract and went on strike during the 1988/89 season before ending his career in 1989.

On June 28, 2010, Willie Huber died at the age of 52 as a result of a heart attack.

Achievements and Awards

• 1976 J. Ross Robertson Cup winner with the Hamilton Fincups
• 1976 Memorial Cup winner with the Hamilton Fincups
• 1977 OMJHL All-Star Game
• 1977 silver medal at the Junior World Championship
• 1978 OMJHL Second All-Star Team
• 1978 bronze medal at the Junior World Championship
• 1983 NHL All-Star Game

NHL statistics

	Seasons	Games	Gates	Assists	Points	Penalty minutes
Regular season	10	655	104	217	321	950
Playoffs	5	33	5	5	10	35

Web links

• Willie Huber at hockeydb.com (English)
• Willie Huber at legendsofhockey.net (English)
• Willie Huber at hockeydraftcentral.com