The first ever captain of the New Jersey Devils after their move from Denver. He played over a thousand National Hockey League games and also captained the Vancouver Canucks. Don Lever was an MVP with the Niagara Falls Flyers in junior and a Calder Cup champion in the AHL but never hoisted the Stanley Cup in the NHL.
Junior and Minor Pro
Hockey Card Collection
NHL Career
Coaching
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Don Lever – Junior and Minor Pro
Don Lever played three years of major junior hockey with the Niagara Falls Flyers from 1969-70 to 1971-72. His first year consisted of just two games but he made up for it by the time his third year rolled around.
In 1971-72, Lever scored 61 and assisted on 65 for 126 points over 69 regular season games for Niagara Falls. He finished second in the league for goals, just two behind Steve Shutt of the Toronto Marlboros. Don tied for fourth in assists with David Lee of the Ottawa 67’s. When it came to the Eddie Powers Trophy as top scorer, Lever sat in third, three behind both Dave Gardner and Billy Harris, teammates with the Marlboros.
Don Lever Collection
In that 1971-72 season, Lever was named a First Team All-Star and was awarded the Red Tilson Trophy as most outstanding player. Teamed with Eric Vail and Jim Schoenfeld, the Flyers were stopped in the first round of the playoffs by the Oshawa Generals. The six games in that series were the only six playoff games Don would play in the OHL.
Following junior, Lever jumped right to the National Hockey League. He would not play his first game in the minors until near the end of his career. In 1985-86 and 1986-87, Don split time between the Buffalo Sabres and the Rochester Americans. In 1986-87, the Amerks won the Calder Cup championship with a win over the Sherbrooke Canadiens in the finals.
Don Lever – NHL
Between 1972-73 and 1986-87, Don Lever played 1,020 regular season games in the NHL. Over that time, he scored 313 and assisted on 367 for 680 points. The Vancouver Canucks drafted him third overall at the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft, behind just Billy Harris and Jacques Richard. He was picked just ahead of Steve Shutt, Jim Schoenfeld, Michel Larocque and Bill Barber. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, Lever played a modest 30 games, adding 17 points.
A nine time 20 goal scorer, Lever did not miss a single game over his first five seasons in the NHL. He topped out with a 38 goal season in 1974-75 with the Canucks, just outside the leagues top ten scorers. Rene Robert of the Buffalo Sabres finished tenth with 40.
At the time, his 38 goals were a team record, tied with Bobby Schmautz who scored the same amount in 1972-73. Ron Sedlbauer broke the mark in 1978-79 with 40 goals. Ultimately, Pavel Bure set the current team mark with back-to-back 60 goal campaigns in 1992-93 and 1993-94.
The captain of the Canucks in 1977-78 and 1978-79 was traded on February 8, 1980 to the Atlanta Flames with Brad Smith for Ivan Boldirev and Darcy Rota. He moved with the Flames to Calgary but was traded again on November 25, 1981 to the Colorado Rockies with Bob MacMillan for Lanny McDonald.
Lever was again part of a franchise on the move, going with the Rockies from Denver to the Meadowlands to play for the New Jersey Devils. He was captain of the Devils in 1982-83 and 1983-84. He would be replaced as captain by Mel Bridgman.
On the international front, Don played for Canada at the 1978 IIHF World Championships. Over ten games, he scored four and assisted on three in the tournament held in Prague, Czechoslovakia. Canada took bronze, falling behind the Soviet Union and the hosts.
Don Lever – Coaching
Right after his playing career was over, Lever jumped right into coaching. Don has been assistant coach for the Buffalo Sabres, St. Louis Blues and Monteal Canadiens. He was behind the bench when the Sabres lost in the Stanley Cup finals to the Dallas Stars in 1998-99.
Lever returned to the Rochester Americans as head coach in 1989-90 and 1990-91. In the second season, the Amerks reached the Calder Cup finals before losing to the Springfield Indians. He was named the recipient of the Louis A.R. Pieri Award as AHL coach of the year.
From 2005-06 to 2008-09, Don Lever was head coach of the AHL’s Hamilton Bulldogs. In his second season, the Bulldogs won the Calder Cup championship with a win over the Hershey Bears in the finals. He was replaced by Ron Wilson midway through the 2008-09 season.
Lever moved on to the Chicago Wolves and was head coach in 2009-10 and 2010-11. Since, he has been a scout in the Chicago Blackhawks organization.
Don Lever – Rookie Card
The Don Lever rookie card appears as number 259 in the 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee set. OPC considered him a sure bet as 1972-73 was his rookie season with the Canucks after playing junior in 1971-72.
On his 1973-74, 1974-75 and 1975-76 hockey cards, Lever is wearing number 10. Although he is known for wearing number 9 for much of his career, in 1972-73 that number belonged to Dale Tallon. After Tallon was shipped to the Blackhawks for 1973-74, Lever switched numbers.
So, it seems Don Lever has pictures from his rookie season used for hockey cards over his first four years in the league. The 1974-75 and 1975-76 cards have the same photo on the front, with some roughly done cosmetic changes.
Since we’re on Don Lever jersey numbers, he wore number 12 with the Flames. Jean Pronovost had number 9 when Lever arrived in Atlanta. He didn’t switch when Pronovost left and the number went to Denis Cyr. With the Rockies and Devils, the number 9 returned to his back. In Buffalo, he wore 20 and 8 during his limited stints with the club.
The final Don Lever hockey card shows up in the 1985-86 O-Pee-Chee set. He is shown as a member of the Buffalo Sabres, although he spent much of his time with their affiliate in Rochester.
For a time, and it may still be going on, it was nearly impossible to win a bid on eBay for a Don Lever hockey card. There was a sniper out there that was always there to win the Lever cards, no matter the final price.
Don Lever Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1969-70 | Niagara Falls Flyers | OHA | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 1970-71 | Niagara Falls Flyers | OHA | 59 | 35 | 36 | 71 | 112 |
| 1971-72 | Niagara Falls Flyers | OHA | 69 | 61 | 65 | 126 | 69 |
| 1972-73 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 78 | 12 | 26 | 38 | 49 |
| 1973-74 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 78 | 23 | 25 | 48 | 28 |
| 1974-75 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 80 | 38 | 30 | 68 | 49 |
| 1975-76 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 80 | 25 | 40 | 65 | 93 |
| 1976-77 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 80 | 27 | 30 | 57 | 28 |
| 1977-78 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 75 | 17 | 32 | 49 | 58 |
| 1978-79 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 71 | 23 | 21 | 44 | 17 |
| 1979-80 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 51 | 21 | 17 | 38 | 32 |
| 1979-80 | Atlanta Flames | NHL | 28 | 14 | 16 | 30 | 4 |
| 1980-81 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 62 | 26 | 31 | 57 | 56 |
| 1981-82 | Calgary Flames | NHL | 23 | 8 | 11 | 19 | 6 |
| 1981-82 | Colorado Rockies | NHL | 59 | 22 | 28 | 50 | 20 |
| 1982-83 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 79 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 68 |
| 1983-84 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 70 | 14 | 19 | 33 | 44 |
| 1984-85 | New Jersey Devils | NHL | 67 | 10 | 8 | 18 | 31 |
| 1985-86 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 29 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 16 |
| 1985-86 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 29 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 6 |
| 1986-87 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 57 | 29 | 25 | 54 | 69 |
| 1986-87 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 10 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 |
| NHL Totals | 1020 | 313 | 367 | 680 | 593 |