Howie Meeker, Kent Douglas and Brit Selby. Three players to win the Calder Memorial Trophy as members of the Toronto Maple Leafs. Three players to have their NHL careers mostly fizzle out after the high expectations that come with winning the top rookie honours.
Selby won the Calder in 1965-66 after a stellar junior career in the OHA with the Toronto Marlboros. He would never quite make his mark after that.
Junior and Minor Pro
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
WHA Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Brit Selby – Junior and Minor Pro
Brit Selby played for the Toronto Marlboros from 1960-61 to 1964-65. However, he played in just two games his first year and three in his second before securing a regular spot with the club in 1962-63.
The 1963-64 Marlboros placed first overall in the OHA Junior ‘A’ during the regular season. In the Robertson Cup playoffs, Toronto met up with the Montreal Junior Canadiens and won the series and the championship. At the Memorial Cup finals, it was the ever-present Edmonton Oil Kings as Toronto’s opponents. The Marlies swept the series and were crowned Major Junior hockey champions for Canada.
The following year, the team was good but Selby was great. Over 52 regular season games, Brit scored 45 and assisted on 43 for 88 points. He tied for seventh in OHA goal scoring with Andre Lacroix of the Peterborough Petes. Selby was named the league’s First Team All-Star left winger. The Marlboros once again reached the Robertson Cup finals but fell to the Niagara Falls Flyers.
After his Calder Trophy winning season with the Maple Leafs in 1965-66, Selby took a step back the following season, appearing in just six games with Toronto while playing most of the year in the WHL with the Vancouver Canucks.
Selby’s only other stint in the minors came in 1971-72. Traded to the St. Louis Blues by Toronto, Brit played minimally with the NHL Blues while spending most of his season in the Central Hockey League with the Kansas City Blues.
Brit Selby – NHL
Brit Selby’s first National Hockey League action came in 1964-65 while still a junior with the Marlboros. Selby appeared in three games that year, posting a respectable two goals. The following year, he appeared in 61 of Toronto’s 70 regular season games, scoring 14 and assisting on 13 for 27 points. As mentioned, he earned the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie player.
Brit Selby Collection
Selby played 350 regular season games in the NHL between 1964-65 and 1971-72, appearing with the Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers and St. Louis Blues. Over that time, he scored 55 and assisted on 62 for 117 points. Brit also appeared in 16 Stanley Cup playoffs games with just a goal and assist to show for it.
During his career, Selby had two separate stints with the Maple Leafs. The Philadelphia Flyers picked him up in the fifth round of the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft, 27th overall. The Flyers kept him for a few years then traded him back to Toronto.
Brit Selby – WHA
When the World Hockey Association opened for business in 1972-73, Brit Selby jumped at the chance to play major league hockey again after almost a full season in the CHL. He started the year with the Quebec Nordiques but six games in, he switched sides to the New England Whalers. New England placed first overall in the 12 team league and won the Avco World Trophy with a victory over Bobby Hull and the Winnipeg Jets in the finals.
The following year, Selby was back in Toronto, this time with the Toronto Toros. The Toros did well in 1973-74 and advanced to the semi-finals before losing to the Chicago Cougars. Brit played for the Toros in 1974-75, his final season of pro hockey, but the team was not nearly as successful.
Over 153 regular season World Hockey Association games between 1972-73 and 1974-75, Selby recorded 23 goals and 51 assists for 74 points. In the playoffs, he played 23 more games, adding 11 points.
Brit Selby – Rookie Card
The Brit Selby rookie card appears as number 18 in the 1966-67 Topps set. The first Brit Selby hockey card is valued as a common and shows him as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs. The set is better known for the Bobby Orr rookie card, the 1966-67 Calder Trophy winner with the Boston Bruins.
Selby’s final NHL card appears in the 1971-72 O-Pee-Chee set and he is shown with the St. Louis Blues. He played just six games with the Blues that season, his last games in the NHL. His only appearance on WHA cardboard came in the 1973-74 Quaker Oats collection. On that card, he is shown in the New England Whalers jersey he wore in 1972-73 but is a member of the Toronto Toros, his team for 1973-74.
Brit Selby Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1960-61 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1961-62 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1963-64 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 48 | 24 | 28 | 52 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Toronto Marlboros | OHA | 52 | 45 | 43 | 88 | 0 |
| 1964-65 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 3 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| 1965-66 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 61 | 14 | 13 | 27 | 26 |
| 1966-67 | Vancouver Canucks | WHL | 15 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 12 |
| 1966-67 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 1967-68 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 56 | 15 | 15 | 30 | 24 |
| 1968-69 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 63 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 23 |
| 1968-69 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 14 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 19 |
| 1969-70 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 74 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 40 |
| 1970-71 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 11 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| 1970-71 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 53 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 23 |
| 1971-72 | St. Louis Blues | NHL | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| 1971-72 | Kansas City Blues | CHL | 63 | 11 | 24 | 35 | 82 |
| 1972-73 | Quebec Nordiques | WHA | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 1972-73 | New England Whalers | WHA | 65 | 13 | 29 | 42 | 48 |
| 1973-74 | Toronto Toros | WHA | 64 | 9 | 17 | 26 | 21 |
| 1974-75 | Toronto Toros | WHA | 17 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 0 |
| NHL Totals | 347 | 55 | 62 | 117 | 171 | ||
| WHA Totals | 153 | 23 | 51 | 74 | 73 |