Despite scoring at nearly a goal a game pace in his final year of junior hockey with the Edmonton Oil Kings, roles would drastically change for Bert Marshall when he reached the NHL. It was not until his third season in the National Hockey League that Marshall scored his first goal in the league.
Even with no goals in his first season in the NHL, the defender was in the running for the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year. He would go on to captain the California Golden Seals and help with the building process of the New York Islanders Dynasty.
Unfortunately, like fellow Islander Ed Westfall, Bert would leave Long Island the season before the four consecutive Stanley Cup championships.
Bert Marshall – Junior and Minor Pro
Marshall played two years with the Edmonton Oil Kings, 1962-63 and 1963-64. In both seasons, the Oil Kings were Abbott Cup champions and made appearances in the Memorial Cup finals.
Bert Marshall Collection
In the 1963 Memorial Cup, Edmonton defeated the Niagara Falls Flyers in six games for the championship. That year, Marshall was teamed with Pat Quinn and Glen Sather.
Bert scored 28 and assisted on 35 for 63 points over 30 regular season games for the Oil Kings in 1963-64. Edmonton was again Abbott Cup champions but were swept in the Memorial Cup by the Toronto Marlboros. During the Abbott Cup/Memorial Cup run, Marshall contributed 29 points in 19 games.
Marshall’s first pro action came in 1963-64, playing in one CPHL game with the Cincinnati Wings while still a junior. The following year, 1964-65, was Bert’s only full season in the minors, playing for the Memphis Wings in the CPHL.
He played 12 games in the American Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Hornets in 1965-66 before getting the call to be a regular with the Detroit Red Wings. He would return to the minors for six games in 1979-80. That year, Marshall was also serving as head coach with the CHL’s Indianapolis Checkers.
Bert Marshall – NHL
Between 1965-66 and 1978-79, Bert Marshall played in 868 regular season National Hockey League games with the Detroit Red Wings, Oakland Seals/California Golden Seals, New York Rangers and New York Islanders.
Over his career, Bert scored just 17 goals and assisted on 181 for 198 points. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, he added another 26 points over 72 games. In his rookie season, the Red Wings lost in the Stanley Cup finals to the Montreal Canadiens. Marshall was a contender for the Calder Trophy, which ultimately went to Brit Selby of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
After starting his career in Detroit, Marshall was traded to the Oakland Seals in January of 1968 with John Brenneman and Ted Hampson for Kent Douglas. With the Seals, Bert played in all of the franchise’s eleven playoff games. He was captain of the team in 1972-73 before being traded again.
In March, 1973, he was traded to the New York Rangers for Gary Coulter. He would play just eight regular season and six playoff games with the Rangers before starting the following season with the Islanders.
Bert helped the Islanders to some early playoff success. However, his final season was 1978-79, a year before New York went on a run of four consecutive Stanley Cup championships.
Bert Marshall – Staff
In his final NHL season, 1978-79, Marshall also started his coaching career, serving as player/assistant coach of the Islanders. The following two seasons saw Bert head coach the Indianapolis Checkers of the Central Hockey League.
In 1979-80, the Checkers finished second in the nine team CHL but fell in the semi-finals. The following year, the team dropped a position and were ousted from the playoffs a round earlier.
His only stint as a NHL head coach came in 1981-82. For 24 games, he was at the helm of the Colorado Rockies until being replaced by Marshall Johnston. He carried on for the rest of the season as assistant coach.
From 1983-84 to 1995-96, Marshall served as amateur scout for the Islanders. In 1996-97, he switched sides to the Hartford Whalers. Since, he has been an amateur scout with the Carolina Hurricanes.
Bert Marshall – Rookie Card
The Bert Marshall rookie card appears as number 51 in the 1966-67 Topps NHL hockey card set. More than one of his cards refer to the fact that he played the 1969-70 season with an undetected wrist fracture.
Bert Marshall Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1962-63 | Edmonton Oil Kings | CAHL | Statistics Unavailable | ||||
| 1963-64 | Edmonton Oil Kings | CAHL | 30 | 28 | 35 | 63 | 78 |
| 1963-64 | Cincinnati Wings | CPHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Memphis Wings | CPHL | 51 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 43 |
| 1965-66 | Pittsburgh Hornets | AHL | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 |
| 1965-66 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 61 | 0 | 19 | 19 | 45 |
| 1966-67 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 57 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 68 |
| 1967-68 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 37 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 56 |
| 1967-68 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 20 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 18 |
| 1968-69 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 68 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 81 |
| 1969-70 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 72 | 1 | 15 | 16 | 109 |
| 1970-71 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 32 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 48 |
| 1971-72 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 66 | 0 | 14 | 14 | 68 |
| 1972-73 | California Golden Seals | NHL | 55 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 71 |
| 1972-73 | New York Rangers | NHL | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 |
| 1973-74 | New York Islanders | NHL | 69 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 84 |
| 1974-75 | New York Islanders | NHL | 77 | 2 | 28 | 30 | 58 |
| 1975-76 | New York Islanders | NHL | 71 | 0 | 16 | 16 | 72 |
| 1976-77 | New York Islanders | NHL | 72 | 4 | 21 | 25 | 61 |
| 1977-78 | New York Islanders | NHL | 58 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 44 |
| 1978-79 | New York Islanders | NHL | 45 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 29 |
| 1979-80 | Indianapolis Checkers | CHL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
| NHL Totals | 868 | 17 | 181 | 198 | 926 |