His time in the National Hockey League lasted a modest 500 regular season games. He will never be considered for the Hockey Hall of Fame. His junior career was uneventful. Yet, there’s not a hockey fan that doesn’t know the name John Ferguson.
Ferguson was brought up to the Montreal Canadiens more for his brawn than his skills. Yet, John finished with a decent 303 points in those 500 games. He barely missed the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 1963-64. In 1968-69, he was just outside the top ten with 29 goals.
The Habs tried to extend his career but Ferguson retired after just eight years in the NHL. He went on to a lengthy off-ice career that saw him take on the roles of head coach, general manager and other front office roles.
Junior and Minor Pro Career
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
Staff
Rookie Card
Career Stats
John Ferguson – Junior and Minor Pro
John Ferguson spent three relatively uneventful years with the Melville Millionaires of the Saskatchewan Junior Hockey League (SJHL) from 1956-57 to 1958-59. John earned to individual accolades in the SJHL and was kept off the all-star team in each of his three seasons. Melville played in just one playoff series over Ferguson’s stay, losing in the 1958-59 quarter-finals to the Estevan Bruins.
Ferguson stepped into the world of pro hockey with a bang in 1959-60. With the Fort Wayne Komets of the IHL, John scored 32 and assisted on 33 for 65 points in 68 games. He also finished tenth in the IHL with 126 PIM.
The Komets finished first overall and reached the Turner Cup finals before falling to the Fred Shero coached St. Paul Saints. John contributed just two points in 13 playoff games.
John spent the next three years in the American Hockey League with the Cleveland Barons. In his first year, 1960-61, Ferguson finished eighth in the AHL with 126 PIM. The following year, 1961-62, he tied Larry Zeidel of the Hershey Bears for ninth spot, both with 146 penalty minutes.
In his final season with Cleveland, Ferguson caught the eye of the Montreal Canadiens. He tied for third in the AHL with 38 goals, equaling Bill Sweeney of the Springfield Indians. The two were just four goals behind league leader Hank Ciesla. The First Team All-Star left winger finished second with 179 PIM, 17 behind the leader, Ed Van Impe of the Buffalo Bisons.
John Ferguson – NHL
Between 1963-64 and 1970-71, John Ferguson played in exactly 500 regular season games in the National Hockey League, all with the Montreal Canadiens. Over that time, the ‘policeman’ scored a decent 145 goals and assisted on 158 more for 303 points. He also sat 1,214 minutes in the penalty box.
John Ferguson Collection
In the Stanley Cup playoffs, John played 85 games, adding 20 goals and 18 assists. He was a member of five championship teams in Montreal: 1964-65, 1965-66, 1967-68, 1968-69 and 1970-71. Ferguson scored the Stanley Cup clinching goal in game four of the 1968-69 finals. That year, the Habs swept the St. Louis Blues for the championship.
In his rookie season, Ferguson was among the top scorers on a strong Canadiens team. His 45 points were the fourth most, behind Jean Beliveau, Bobby Rousseau and Henri Richard.
As per his 1964-65 Topps hockey card, John was a leading candidate for the Calder Trophy in 1963-64 before a thumb injury reduced his season to 59 games. Teammate Jacques Laperriere ultimately took the rookie of the years honours.
Ferguson was a 20 goal scorer twice, topping out with 29 in 1968-69. He was among the top ten for PIM in seven of his eight seasons. John led the league in 1966-67 with 177 PIM. In 1965-66, he was second behind Reg Fleming. In 1968-69, he was second again, this time behind Forbes Kennedy.
John Ferguson – Staff
John Ferguson’s first steps behind the bench came at the 1972 Summit Series. He was assistant coach for Canada under head coach Harry Sinden with the team winning the series against the Soviet Union.
In 1975-76, Ferguson replaced Ron Stewart as head coach of the New York Rangers 39 games into the season. Despite the trade with Boston that brought Phil Esposito, Carol Vadnais and Ken Hodge to the team, the Rangers could not reach the post season, finishing last in the four team Patrick Division, 15 points behind the third place Atlanta Flames.
He was behind the bench for the full 1976-77 season for the Rangers. Again, the team finished last in the Patrick, this time eight points behind the Flames. Ferguson would not return as head coach with New York for the 1977-78 NHL season but would be the team’s general manager.
John returned behind the bench for one last short stint as head coach in 1985-86. He was serving as general manager of the Winnipeg Jets at the time. With 14 games left, he relieved Barry Long as HC. The Jets finished fourth in the Smythe Division and were swept in the opening round by the Calgary Flames.
As general manager, he joined the Jets for the final season in the World Hockey Association, 1978-79. John then moved to the NHL with Winnipeg and served as GM until the end of the 1987-88 season.
From 1992-93 to 1994-95, Ferguson was director of player personnel with the fledgling Ottawa Senators. From 1996-97 to 2006-07, he served with the San Jose Sharks as a scout and as special assistant to the general manager.
John Ferguson – Rookie Card
John Ferguson must have been a sure thing in 1963-64 as Parkhurst included him twice in their final set with no previous NHL experience. Both the 1963-64 Parkhurst 33 and 92 cards are considered John Ferguson rookie cards.
His final card is included in the 1970-71 O-Pee-Chee NHL hockey card set. The back of the card refers to John announcing his retirement before the 1970-71 season but that the Habs convinced him to play another season. They tried the same before the 1971-72 season but Ferguson refused to return.
John Ferguson Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1956-57 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 51 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 49 |
| 1957-58 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 50 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 100 |
| 1958-59 | Melville Millionaires | SJHL | 44 | 32 | 34 | 66 | 83 |
| 1959-60 | Fort Wayne Komets | IHL | 68 | 32 | 33 | 65 | 126 |
| 1960-61 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 62 | 13 | 21 | 34 | 126 |
| 1961-62 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 70 | 20 | 21 | 41 | 146 |
| 1962-63 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 72 | 38 | 40 | 78 | 179 |
| 1963-64 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 59 | 18 | 27 | 45 | 125 |
| 1964-65 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 69 | 17 | 27 | 44 | 156 |
| 1965-66 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 153 |
| 1966-67 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 67 | 20 | 22 | 42 | 177 |
| 1967-68 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 61 | 15 | 18 | 33 | 117 |
| 1968-69 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 71 | 29 | 23 | 52 | 185 |
| 1969-70 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 48 | 19 | 13 | 32 | 139 |
| 1970-71 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 60 | 16 | 14 | 30 | 162 |
| NHL Totals | 500 | 145 | 158 | 303 | 1214 |