Bill Barber

Bill Barber
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1990
Born	(1952-07-11) July 11, 1952 Callander, ON, CAN
Height	6 ft 0 in (183 cm)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Played for	Philadelphia Flyers
NHL draft	7th overall, 1972 Philadelphia Flyers
Playing career	1972–1984

William Charles "Bill" Barber (born July 11, 1952 in Callander, Ontario) is a former Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League. As part of the famed LCB (Leach, Clarke, Barber) line, Barber helped lead the Flyers to the franchise's two Stanley Cups in 1974 and 1975.

Playing career

Barber was drafted by the Flyers 7th (his jersey number) in the first round of the 1972 draft. He was called up after only 11 games in the AHL with the Richmond Robins. In his first season with the Flyers Barber scored 30 goals and 34 assists and was a strong contender for the Calder Trophy for rookie of the year.

Barber was converted to left wing by Coach Fred Shero. He scored at least 20 goals every season. His best season was 50 goals and 62 assists in the 1975-76 season, when the LCB line totaled 141 goals. In the Flyers' successful 1974 and 1975 Stanley Cup playoff campaigns, Barber contributed 6 goals in each, 15 and 13 points respectively. In addition to his respectable scoring abilities, Barber was also a well rounded player. On a power play he was equally valuable for setting up the play as he was a pulling the trigger. And if forced into a defensive role, he was capable. Barber said of himself, "I want to be remembered as being capable of doing my job day in and day out, not just as a goal scorer, but as a good all-around player for every kind of situation."

In the 1976 Canada Cup, Barber scored one of his most famous goals while playing for Team Canada. Behind in the final against Czechoslovakia, Barber scored to send the game into overtime, and an eventual Team Canada victory.

Barber captained the Flyers in the 1981-82 season and part of 1982-83. As of 2006 he still holds the Flyers career scoring record with 420 goals.

Coaching career

After his playing career, Barber started coaching. He coached the Hershey Bears for 16 games in 1985. He was the Flyers assistant coach between 1985-1988. After coaching the Flyers farn team (Phantoms) for 4 years, he was hired by the Flyers to be the head coach of the NHL club. Barber won the Jack Adams Award in 2001 as coach of the year. He was fired in 2002, and has since stopped coaching.

MINOR LEAGUE

Team        League   Season    Wins Losses OTL/T
Hershey      AHL     1984-85    6     9      1
Philadelphia AHL     1996-97    49    18    13
Philadelphia AHL     1997-98    47    21    12
Philadelphia AHL     1998-99    44    31     5

National Hockey League

Team          Season      Wins Losses OTL/T
Philadelphia  2000-01      31    13    10*
Philadelphia  2001-02      42    27    13*
* - Qualified for NHL Playoffs

Total NHL Coaching Record - 73-40-23

00-01 Playoffs - Lost to Buf 2-4
01-02 Playoffs - Lost to Ott 1-4

Total NHL Playoff Record - 3-8 

Retirement

File:Bill Barber plaque hhof.jpg

Bill Barber's plaque in the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Barber was forced to retire as a player after the 1984-85 season after being unable to return from reconstructive knee surgery in the spring of 1984.

The Flyers retired his number, 7, on October 7, 1990. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1990. After his playing career he would coach the Flyers from December 2000 until April 2002, winning the Jack Adams Trophy after 2000-01. He also coached the Flyers' AHL affiliate, the Philadelphia Phantoms, to their first Calder Cup victory in 1998. He is currently the Director of Player Personnel for the Tampa Bay Lightning, a position he has held since August 2002.

See also

• Captain (ice hockey)
• List of NHL players
• List of NHL seasons

External links

• Bill Barber biography
• Flyers Hall of Fame biography