Blaine Stoughton: 50 Goal Scorer in the NHL, WHA and WCHL

Cast away by the National Hockey League after just parts of three seasons, Blaine Stoughton jumped to the WHA when most were starting to create their exit plans. Blaine had a quietly forgotten hockey career that saw him lead the WCHL and NHL in goals for a season each and score 52 in his first season in the WHA.

Blaine Stoughton – Junior

Stoughton spent four years in the WCHL with the Flin Flon Bombers from 1969-70 to 1972-73. The Bombers franchise became the Edmonton Oil Kings for the 1978-79 season and Great Falls Americans for 1979-80. After moving to Spokane, Washington to become the Flyers, the franchise folded part way through the 1981-82 WHL season.

In his first year with Flin Flon, the team was led by Reggie Leach who led the league in scoring. The Bombers finished first overall in the eight team league but fell to the original version of the Edmonton Oil Kings in the finals in a four game sweep.

Stoughton got noticed as a sniper in 1971-72. He scored 60 goals and assisted on 66 for 126 points over 68 regular season games. He led the WCHL in goals, placed fifth for assists and tied for third in the points department with Tom Lysiak and Stan Weir, both of the Medicine Hat Tigers.

In his final season of junior, Blaine’s numbers dropped slightly. He scored 58 goals and assisted on 60 for 118 points over 66 games. He led his team in assists and points while finishing tied for seventh in the WCHL for goals, tied for ninth for assists and placing fifth for points.

Blaine Stoughton – NHL

The Pittsburgh Penguins selected Stoughton seventh overall at the 1973 NHL Amateur Draft. That year, the New York Islanders had the first overall pick and chose Denis Potvin from the Ottawa 67’s. Blaine played a total of 34 games with the Penguins in 1973-74 and was traded in the off-season to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Rick Kehoe.

After a full season with Toronto in 1974-75, Stoughton was banished the the Oklahoma City Blazers of the Central Hockey League for the last half of the 1975-76 season. That was incentive enough to make the risky move to the World Hockey Association.

When the NHL swallowed up the final four WHA teams for the start of the 1979-80 season, Stoughton was on the roster of the Hartford Whalers. He played with the Whalers until a trade to the New York Rangers 54 games into the 1983-84 season. 1983-84 turned out to be his last year in the NHL.

In his first year back in the NHL, 1979-80, Stoughton exploded for 56 goals while assisting on 44 for exactly 100 points over 80 games. The goal total tied Blaine with Danny Gare of the Buffalo Sabres and Charlie Simmer of the Los Angeles Kings for the goal scoring title. His 100 points placed him eighth in the league.

The following year, Stoughton topped the 50 goal plateau once more. In 1981-82, he scored 52 goals and assisted on 39 for 91 points over 80 games. His 52 goals placed him sixth in the NHL while his point total was out of the top ten.

After his final year in the National Hockey League, Stoughton joined the New Haven Nighthawks of the American Hockey League for the 1984-85 season. After some time off, he played one more year of elite level hockey with Asiago in Italy for the 1987-88 season.

Blaine Stoughton – WHA

Blaine was drafted by the Quebec Nordiques in the second round of the 1973 WHA Amateur Draft, 14th overall. However, as mentioned, Stoughton took the NHL road, at least to start.

From 1976-77 to 1978-79, Blaine played in the WHA with the Cincinnati Stingers, Indianapolis Racers and New England Whalers. His first year was the only year he stayed with one team. With the Stingers, Stoughton scored 52 and assisted on 52 for 104 points. He tied for fourth in the WHA for goals and placed ninth for points.

Blaine Stoughton – Coaching Staff

For the 1990’s, Stoughton spent most of his time behind the bench or in the front office. He started out as an assistant coach of the Cincinnati Cyclones at the start of the decade. At first, the Cyclones played in the ECHL before switching to the IHL. The team didn’t enjoy much success with Blaine behind the bench.

In 1993-94, Stoughton moved up the AHL and was assistant coach of the Springfield Indians. He remained in Springfield for 1994-95 but the team name changed to the Falcons.

For three years from 1996-97 to 1998-99, Stoughton bought into a WPHL franchise and spent time as an owner and a general manager. The team was the Austin Ice Bats but, unfortunately, like the rest of Blaine’s teams, they weren’t very successful.

Blaine Stoughton – Rookie Card

The Blaine Stoughton rookie card appears as number 348 in the 1974-75 O-Pee-Chee NHL set. He is shown as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Stoughton’s first Topps card didn’t come out until 1975-76. His rookie hockey card is valued at twice that of a common card. Blaine got on the front of just one WHA card, number 6 in the 1977-78 O-Pee-Chee set.

Blaine Stoughton Career Stats

Season	Team	Lge	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1968-69	Dauphin Kings	MJHL	33	15	19	34	100
1969-70	Flin Flon Bombers	WCHL	59	19	20	39	161
1970-71	Flin Flon Bombers	WCHL	35	26	24	50	96
1971-72	Flin Flon Bombers	WCHL	68	60	66	126	121
1972-73	Flin Flon Bombers	WCHL	66	58	60	118	86
1973-74	Hershey Bears	AHL	47	23	17	40	35
1973-74	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL	34	5	6	11	8
1974-75	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	78	23	14	37	24
1975-76	Oklahoma City Blazers	CHL	30	14	22	36	24
1975-76	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	43	6	11	17	8
1976-77	Cincinnati Stingers	WHA	81	52	52	104	39
1977-78	Cincinnati Stingers	WHA	30	6	13	19	36
1977-78	Indianapolis Racers	WHA	47	13	13	26	28
1978-79	Indianapolis Racers	WHA	25	9	9	18	16
1978-79	New England Whalers	WHA	36	9	3	12	2
1979-80	Hartford Whalers	NHL	80	56	44	100	16
1980-81	Hartford Whalers	NHL	71	43	30	73	56
1981-82	Hartford Whalers	NHL	80	52	39	91	57
1982-83	Hartford Whalers	NHL	72	45	31	76	27
1983-84	Hartford Whalers	NHL	54	23	14	37	4
1983-84	New York Rangers	NHL	14	5	2	7	4
1984-85	New Haven Nighthawks	AHL	60	20	25	45	35
1987-88	Asiago HC	Italy-A	15	10	16	26	2
	NHL Totals		526	258	191	449	204
	WHA Totals		219	89	90	179	121