Gary Bergman was a Memorial Cup champion as a junior and helped Canada win the Summit Series over the Soviet Union in 1972. Yet, Bergman was denied a Stanley Cup championship, coming close in 1965-66 when the Detroit Red Wings reached the finals.
Spending much of his NHL career with Detroit when they spiraling into the Dead Wings era, Gary appeared in just 21 Stanley Cup playoff games to go with his 838 regular season NHL games.
Junior and Minor Pro
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Gary Bergman – Junior and Minor Pro
Gary Bergman spent two years, 1957-58 and 1958-59, playing junior hockey for the Winnipeg Braves of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL). In his second season, the Braves met up with the Peterborough T.P.T.’s (Petes) in the Memorial Cup finals, coming out on top four games to one. The Petes were coached by legendary Scotty Bowman. Joining Gary on the Braves roster were future NHLers Ted Green and Ernie Wakely.
Gary’s first pro season came in 1959-60 with the Winnipeg Warriors of the WHL. Playing just 58 of Winnipeg’s 70 regular season games, the defenseman placed third in the league with 147 penalty minutes. The Warriors finished sixth in the seven team league and did not qualify for the post season.
Bergman played in the American Hockey League from 1960-61 to 1963-64, before getting his break in the NHL. With the 1961-62 Cleveland Barons, he tied for third in the AHL with 164 PIM, behind Aldo Guidolin and Ed Van Impe. His offensive numbers were great for a defenseman with ten goals and 30 assists for 40 points over 68 games.
In 1961-62, Cleveland finished first in the four team West Division and second overall in the eight team AHL. However, due to a bizarre playoff format, the Barons faced the first overall Springfield Indians in the opening round, falling in six games.
His last year in the minors was spent with that Springfield Indians team that shut him down two years before. His 13 goals led all American Hockey League defensemen.
Gary Bergman – NHL
Between 1964-65 and 1975-76, Gary Bergman played 838 regular season games in the NHL with the Detroit Red Wings, Minnesota North Stars and Kansas City Scouts. In fact, all but 57 games with the North Stars in 1973-74 and 75 games with the Scouts in 1975-76 were played with the Red Wings. Over that time, Gary scored 68 and assisted on 299 for 367 points. He also sat 1,249 minutes in the sin bin.
Gary Bergman Collection
As mentioned, Bergman’s nearest encounter with the Stanley Cup came in 1965-66 when Sid Abel coached Detroit faced off against the Montreal Canadiens in the finals. Montreal won the series in six games. Gary’s 12 playoff games that season were more than half of his career total of 21. He would play just four more playoff games in the NHL over the rest of his career.
With the 1967-68 Red Wings, Bergman topped out offensively. His 28 assists placed him fourth on the Wings and his 41 points put him fifth on the club. Despite a roster that included Gordie Howe, Alex Delvecchio, Dean Prentice and the Mahovlich brothers, Detroit finished last in the six team Eastern Division and ahead of just the Oakland Seals in the overall NHL standings.
In 1972, Bergman was an unsung hero for Canada at the 1972 Summit Series against the Soviet Union. Gary played in all eight games, providing defense for the team that finally came out on top after eight games.
After winning for Canada, Bergman returned to the struggling Red Wings. The team was terrible in 1972-73 but Gary reached out to his community and was honoured with the Charlie Conacher Humanitarian Award for the NHL player who makes an outstanding contribution to humanitarian or community service projects. That trophy was last awarded in 1983-84.
The Kansas City Scouts played their second of just two season in the NHL in 1975-76 and Gary was on the roster. For a brief time during the season of futility, Sid Abel was once again Bergman’s head coach. Kansas City won just 12 games and were off to Denver to become the Colorado Rockies the following season.
The Scouts were led offensively by Guy Charron and Wilf Paiement with Bergman third on the team with 38 points. His 33 assists were second best on the club. However, his -52 was also a team high.
Gary Bergman passed away in December, 2000 at the age of 62.
Gary Bergman – Rookie Card
The Gary Bergman rookie card appears as number 8 in the 1964-65 Topps Tall Boys set. The card shows Bergman as a member of the Red Wings and is valued as a common card. In the non-politically correct era of the 1960’s, it is noted on the back that Gary is prematurely going bald.
It also states that Bergman was originally property of the Montreal Canadiens but never played for the club. Finally, the cartoon picture inexplicably show him goalie.
Gary Bergman Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1957-58 | Winnipeg Warriors | WHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1959-60 | Winnipeg Warriors | WHL | 58 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 147 |
| 1960-61 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 67 | 5 | 14 | 19 | 104 |
| 1961-62 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 68 | 10 | 30 | 40 | 164 |
| 1962-63 | Quebec-Cleveland | AHL | 55 | 5 | 21 | 26 | 141 |
| 1963-64 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 60 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 106 |
| 1964-65 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 58 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 85 |
| 1965-66 | Memphis Wings | CPHL | 5 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 4 |
| 1965-66 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 61 | 3 | 16 | 19 | 96 |
| 1966-67 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 | 5 | 30 | 35 | 129 |
| 1967-68 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 74 | 13 | 28 | 41 | 109 |
| 1968-69 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 76 | 7 | 30 | 37 | 80 |
| 1969-70 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 122 |
| 1970-71 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 68 | 8 | 25 | 33 | 149 |
| 1971-72 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 75 | 6 | 31 | 37 | 138 |
| 1972-73 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 68 | 3 | 28 | 31 | 71 |
| 1973-74 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 11 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 18 |
| 1973-74 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 57 | 3 | 23 | 26 | 66 |
| 1974-75 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 76 | 5 | 25 | 30 | 104 |
| 1975-76 | Kansas City Scouts | NHL | 75 | 5 | 33 | 38 | 82 |
| NHL Totals | 838 | 68 | 299 | 367 | 1249 |