A decade after Barclay Plager went to the Memorial Cup finals with the Scotty Bowman coached Peterborough T.P.T.’s, both saw their first National Hockey League action. 1967 NHL Expansion provided jobs for both Plager and Bowman with Barclay on the ice for the St. Louis Blues and Bowman behind the bench. The two carried on their winning ways and led the Blues to the Stanley Cup finals in their first year of existence.
Barclay Plager – Junior and Minors
Plager played for the Peterborough T.P.T.’s (name, of course, has since been reduced to Petes) from 1957-58 to 1960-61. 1958-59 was the pinnacle season for Barclay during his time in Peterborough, Ontario. It was also the first taste of success for the franchise, having moved from Kitchener for the 1956-57 season.
Barclay Plager Collection
With a young Scotty Bowman behind the bench, the Petes won the Robertson Cup with a win in the finals over Toronto St. Michael’s. In the Eastern Canada Memorial Cup finals, the Petes came up against the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens and were not expected to win. However, it was Peterborough that was off to the Memorial Cup final. The team came up against the Winnipeg Braves in the finals but after winning the first game of the series, lost the next four.
Barclay played his first pro hockey in 1960-61, while still a junior. He appeared in three games with the EPHL version of the Hull-Ottawa Canadiens. Plager then moved on to play six full seasons in the minors before appearing in his first National Hockey League game.
In his first full season of pro hockey, Plager appeared in one game with the Quebec Aces of the AHL while spending the rest of the season in the EPHL with Ottawa-Hull. The team placed first overall in the six team league and won the playoff championship with a victory over the Kingston Frontenacs in the finals. The series went the full seven games. Barclay left his mark, placing ninth in the EPHL with 102 penalty minutes.
In 1963-64, Plager and Bowman reunited for a short time in the CPHL with the Omaha Knights. Bowman coached the first eight games of the season before being replaced by Bill McCreary. The Knights placed first in the five team league. The 1963-64 CPHL head coaches are perhaps the league’s greatest highlight, looking back. Besides Bowman and McCreary, other bench bosses included Fred Shero, Harry Sinden, Gus Kyle and Tony Leswick.
That year with Omaha saw Barclay’s only true offensive outburst during his pro career. He scored 14 and assisted on 61 for 75 points over 70 regular season games, also sitting 208 minutes in the penalty box. Plager led the league in assists, seven ahead of Phil Esposito of the St. Louis Braves. His 75 points tied him for ninth. Barclay also led the league in penalty minutes.
The Knights were crowned playoff champions, taking down Fred Shero’s St. Paul Rangers in five games. Plager added 13 points over ten playoff games.
1966-67 was his last full year in the minors before entering the NHL. He played much of the season with the Springfield Indians of the American Hockey League. In the end, his success came in the CPHL with Omaha. Fred Shero had moved over from St. Paul to coach the Knights and Barclay appeared in eleven regular season games with the club.
In the playoffs, Plager added eleven points in 12 games with the Knights reaching the finals. Omaha met up with the powerful 1966-67 Oklahoma City Blazers and lost the series in five games.
After playing just two games with the St. Louis Blues in 1976-77, Plager returned to the CHL to play for the Kansas City Blues. Also acting as head coach, Barclay totalled 48 points over 75 regular season games and was named league MVP. The CHL Blues were led offensively by a young Bernie Federko.
Kansas City finished first overall in the six team league and won the playoff championship by sweeping the Tulsa Oilers in the finals. Plager placed fifth in the CHL with 157 PIM. He finished out his pro career in the CHL in 1977-78, playing with the Salt Lake Golden Eagles.
Barclay Plager – NHL
Expansion opened the doors to the National Hockey League for many players, including Plager. After toiling in the minors for six years, he got his shot at the NHL with the 1967-68 St. Louis Blues. He played 614 regular season games in the league from 1967-68 to 1976-77, all with the Blues. Over that time, the defenseman scored 44 and added 187 assists for 231 points. He also sat 1,115 minutes in the sin bin.
Over his time with the Blues, Barclay played 68 games in the playoffs, adding 23 points. For the first three years of their existence, St. Louis reached the Stanley Cup finals but, to this day, have never won the big prize.
Not an offensive threat, Plager is in the books for placing in the top ten for PIM in four of his NHL seasons. In 1967-68, he led the league with 153 PIM, despite playing just 49 games. In 1969-70, Barclay placed seventh with 128, three minutes ahead of Bobby Orr from the Boston Bruins. The following year, the number increased considerably to 172 but he still placed seventh. In 1971-72, Plager’s 176 PIM put him fourth overall in the NHL.
Barclay played in four NHL All-Star Games between 1969-70 and 1973-74. He served as team captain for the St. Louis Blues from 1972-73 to 1975-76. His number 8 was retired by the Blues in 1981 and is one of six St. Louis Blues retired numbers. Plager passed away in 1988 at the age of 46.
Barclay Plager – Rookie Card
The Barclay Plager rookie card appears as number 177 in the 1968-69 O-Pee-Chee set. The card is valued at twice that of a common card and features Plager as a member of the St. Louis Blues. The card is actually an uncorrected error card (UER) as the player pictured on the front of the card is actual Barclay’s brother, Bob Plager.
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1957-58 | Peterboro T.P.T’s | OHA | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1958-59 | Peterboro T.P.T’s | OHA | 54 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 252 |
| 1959-60 | Peterboro T.P.T’s | OHA | 48 | 8 | 27 | 35 | 165 |
| 1960-61 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1960-61 | Peterboro T.P.T’s | OHA | 48 | 11 | 33 | 44 | 155 |
| 1961-62 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 60 | 8 | 16 | 24 | 102 |
| 1961-62 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 1962-63 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 52 | 2 | 18 | 20 | 67 |
| 1962-63 | Pittsburgh Hornets | AHL | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 15 |
| 1963-64 | Omaha Knights | CPHL | 70 | 14 | 61 | 75 | 208 |
| 1964-65 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 39 | 2 | 16 | 18 | 65 |
| 1965-66 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 58 | 11 | 20 | 31 | 54 |
| 1966-67 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 36 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 60 |
| 1966-67 | Omaha Knights | CPHL | 11 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 39 |
| 1967-68 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 20 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 37 |
| 1967-68 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 49 | 5 | 15 | 20 | 153 |
| 1968-69 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 61 | 4 | 26 | 30 | 120 |
| 1969-70 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 75 | 6 | 26 | 32 | 128 |
| 1970-71 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 69 | 4 | 20 | 24 | 172 |
| 1971-72 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 78 | 7 | 22 | 29 | 176 |
| 1972-73 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 68 | 8 | 25 | 33 | 102 |
| 1973-74 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 72 | 6 | 20 | 26 | 99 |
| 1974-75 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 76 | 4 | 24 | 28 | 96 |
| 1975-76 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 64 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 67 |
| 1976-77 | Kansas City Blues | CHL | 75 | 6 | 42 | 48 | 157 |
| 1976-77 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 1977-78 | Salt Lake Golden Eagles | CHL | 46 | 2 | 19 | 21 | 80 |
| NHL Totals | 614 | 44 | 187 | 231 | 1115 |