For those who played in the 1960’s, it wasn’t unusual too see a little National Hockey League action, entwined with a solid minor league career. This would typically be followed by a full-time job in the NHL after the 1967 expansion.
For Bill White, it was a little different. He spent from 1960-61 to 1966-67, entirely in the minors. He played 464 regular season games in the American Hockey League without once getting even a single game call-up to the NHL. But, when expansion did happen, Bill became almost instantly one of the top defensemen in the NHL.
Bill White – Junior and Minor Pro
White played his junior hockey with the Toronto Marlboros between 1956-57 and 1959-60. In 1957-58, the Marlies were Robertson Cup champions, taking out the Hamilton Tiger Cubs in the finals. Toronto then fell to the Ottawa-Hull Canadiens in the George Richardson Cup finals.
Bill’s first pro game came during his final year in junior, appearing in a single AHL game with the Americans in Rochester, New York. From 1960-61 to 1966-67, he would spend most of his time in the AHL, appearing in 464 regular season games, scoring 38 ad assisting on 173 for 211 points.
Most of his time in the AHL was spent with the Springfield Indians. Unfortunately, White missed out on the glory days of the club and appeared in a career total of eight Calder Cup playoff games.
Bill White – NHL
White finally got his big break with the expansion Los Angeles Kings in 1967-68. He was not taken in the expansion draft. Instead, the Kings bought to whole Springfield Indians team and were able to access all their players.
From 1967-68 to 1975-76, Bill appeared in 604 regular season games in the National Hockey League with the Kings and Chicago Blackhawks. Over that time, he scored 50 and assisted on 215 for 265 points. A big but clean blue liner, Bill sat a modest 495 minutes in the penalty box over his career.
When it came to post season, White was a little more active in the Stanley Cup playoffs than he had been in the Calder Cup matchups. He played 91 playoff games, adding 39 points.
Offensively, his career year came in his first year with the Kings, 1967-68. Playing for the Red Kelly coached and Eddie Joyal led club, White scored eleven and assisted on 27 for 38 points. He also sat an uncharacteristic 100 minutes in the box. He added four points over seven games in the team’s first ever playoff series. Unfortunately, Los Angeles lost in seven to the Minnesota North Stars.
On February 20, 1970, midway through the 1970-71 season, Bill was traded, along with Bryan Campbell and Gerry Desjardins to Chicago in exchange for Denis Dejordy, Gilles Marotte and Jim Stanfield. That season, the Hawks reached the Stanley Cup finals before losing to the Montreal Canadiens. White was paired with Pat Stapleton on defense and the two were played a major role in Chicago’s success.
White would play in one more Stanley Cup final but would not win a championship. In 1972-73, the Blackhawks once again met up with the Habs and once again came up short.
Bill was a Second Team All-Star for three consecutive seasons, starting in 1971-72. He also played seven of the eight games in Canada’s 1972 Summit Series with the Soviet Union.
Bill White – Coaching
Bill had a short and somewhat sweet coaching career. 35 games into the 1976-77 NHL season, White took over the head coaching job with the Chicago Blackhawks, replacing Billy Reay. With player assistant coaches Stan Mikita and Bobby Orr, he was able to take Chicago into the playoffs. However, the Blackhawks fell in two games to the New York Islanders in the preliminary round.
The following year, he journeyed back to his roots and took a head coaching job in the OHL. The 1976-77 Oshawa Generals finished with just 14 points. White took over behind the bench for 1977-78 and that number improved to 72. The drastic improvement earned Bill the Matt Leyden Trophy as coach of the year. The Generals reached the post season but fell in the opening round to the Peterborough Petes.
White left Oshawa for his old junior club in 1978-79. The Toronto Marlboros with Bill White as head coach finished fifth of six in the Emms Division. The did qualify for the post season but were ousted by the Kitchener Rangers in the first round.
Bill White – Rookie Card
The Bill White rookie card appears as number 37 in the 1968-69 O-Pee-Chee set. He is shown with the Los Angeles Kings and the hockey card is worth about 50% more than a common card from that 1968-69 set. The card is infamous for White’s missing right leg with his leg is mysteriously missing below the pant line.
Right from the get-go, O-Pee-Chee emphasizes the fact that White played so long in the minors before getting his shot in the National Hockey League. On the backs of nearly all his cards, it states this is some way or another.
Bill White Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1957-58 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 52 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 34 |
| 1958-59 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 54 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 63 |
| 1959-60 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1959-60 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 48 | 2 | 17 | 19 | 66 |
| 1960-61 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 47 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 37 |
| 1960-61 | Sudbury Wolves | EPHL | 21 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 20 |
| 1961-62 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 67 | 5 | 21 | 26 | 58 |
| 1962-63 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 69 | 8 | 38 | 46 | 38 |
| 1963-64 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 72 | 7 | 31 | 38 | 76 |
| 1964-65 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 71 | 7 | 31 | 38 | 66 |
| 1965-66 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 68 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 42 |
| 1966-67 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 69 | 5 | 29 | 34 | 68 |
| 1967-68 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 74 | 11 | 27 | 38 | 100 |
| 1968-69 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 75 | 5 | 28 | 33 | 38 |
| 1969-70 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 40 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 21 |
| 1969-70 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 21 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 18 |
| 1970-71 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 67 | 4 | 21 | 25 | 64 |
| 1971-72 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 76 | 7 | 22 | 29 | 58 |
| 1972-73 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 72 | 9 | 38 | 47 | 80 |
| 1973-74 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 69 | 5 | 31 | 36 | 52 |
| 1974-75 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 51 | 4 | 23 | 27 | 20 |
| 1975-76 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 59 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 44 |
| NHL Totals | 604 | 50 | 215 | 265 | 495 |