Larry Hillman kind of reminds me of the Steve Buscemi of the hockey world. Hillman was never the star but he was everywhere. Six Stanley Cup finals and two Avco Cup championships in the World Hockey Association, one as a player and one as a coach. Yet, Larry was denied coverage on cardboard during the heart of his NHL career and never appeared in a WHA set.
However, he sort of was included in the 1966-67 Topps set. Although he didn’t have his own card, he was in the background of everyone else’s.
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
WHA Career
AHL Career
Coaching Career
Hockey Card Info
Career Stats
Larry Hillman – NHL
Larry Hillman came up through the OHA, playing junior hockey with the original Windsor Spitfires in 1952-53 then moving with the franchise to Hamilton and playing two years with the Hamilton Tiger Cubs. This is not the Windsor Spitfires that exist in the Ontario Hockey League today. In fact, the Spitfires that Larry played for are the present day Erie Otters.
Larry Hillman Collection
Between 1954-55 and 1972-73, Larry appeared in 791 regular season NHL games and an additional 74 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. Well travelled, over his career Hillman played for eight different NHL teams, including the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs, Minnesota North Stars, Montreal Canadiens, Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings and Buffalo Sabres.
In his final year of junior hockey, Hillman also played seven regular season games for the Red Wings and three more in the playoffs. The three post season games were enough to get his name engraved on the Stanley Cup with Detroit winning the championship with a four games to three victory over the Canadiens in the finals. Larry remains the youngest player to have his name scribed on the Stanley Cup.
The following year, 1955-56, the Habs exacted their revenge and beat Larry and the Red Wings in five games in the final series. Two years later, in 1957-58, Hillman had moved on to the Bruins but once again it would be the Canadiens that ruined his hopes for a second Stanley Cup. Montreal took out Boston in the finals in six games.
Hillman was a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs during their mini-dynasty in the early 1960’s. Toronto won the Stanley Cup in three consecutive years from 1961-62 to 1963-64. Larry played five games during the regular season in both 1961-62 and 1962-63 but did not appear in a post season games and did not get his name on the Stanley Cup. However, in 1963-64, he was a regular defenseman with the club and won the championship with Toronto downing his old club Detroit in seven games.
Larry had two more Stanley Cup championships left in him. He was a member of the 1966-67 Maple Leafs that defeated the Canadiens in the finals for their last ever championship. In 1968-69, Hillman was traded to Montreal mid-season and played 25 regular season games with the team. He also appeared in one playoff game. The Habs won the Stanley Cup with a four game sweep of the St. Louis Blues in the finals.
Larry Hillman – WHA
Larry Hillman jumped to the World Hockey Association for the 1973-74 season, the second in the league’s existence. Hillman played three years in the WHA, his first two with the Cleveland Crusaders and his final year with the Winnipeg Jets. Over 192 regular season WHA games, he scored six goals and added 49 assists for 55 points. He played an additional 17 playoff games, contributing six points.
In that final season, 1975-76, the Jets overpowered the WHA. Winnipeg advanced to the Avco World Trophy finals against Gordie Howe and the Houston Aeros. The Jets, with the help of Bobby Hull, came out victorious with a four game sweep. It marked the end of Larry Hillman’s playing career.
Larry Hillman – AHL
Like many in the Original Six era of the NHL, Hillman spent his fair share of time in the American Hockey League. Larry appeared in 319 regular season AHL games with the Buffalo Bisons, Providence Reds and Rochester Americans. His offensive production was significantly higher in the AHL with 32 goals and 165 assists for 197 points. He also appeared in 15 Calder Cup playoff games, adding nine more points.
In 1959-60, he played 70 regular season games for the Providence Reds, scoring 12 goals and assisting on 31 for 43 points. Hillman also appeared in two games with the NHL Bruins that year. He was awarded the Eddie Shore Award as the AHL’s top defenseman. It was just the second time the award had been handed out. His 159 penalty minutes placed him sixth in the league. Larry also played in five playoff games for the Reds as they fell in the opening round to the Springfield Indians.
His Calder Cup championship came in 1964-65 with the Rochester Americans. Hillman was the top scoring defenseman on the Amerks with 52 points over 71 regular season games. Rochester placed first overall in the nine team AHL with 99 points over 72 games. The Americans were crowned Calder Cup champions with a victory over the Hershey Bears in five games.
Larry Hillman – Coach
Larry Hillman wasted no time entering the coaching world after retiring from the game as a player. In 1976-77, he became general manager and assistant coach of the Calgary Cowboys. The head coach for Calgary that year was Joe Crozier. Crozier was head coach of those 1964-65 Rochester Americans that won the Calder Cup. The Cowboys placed fifth out of six teams in the Western Division and did not qualify for the post season.
The following year marked a return to Winnipeg as head coach of the Jets. The 1977-78 Jets placed first overall in the eight team WHA with 102 points over 80 games. With a sweep of the New England Whalers in the finals, they became Avco Trophy champs.
Hillman was replaced as head coach of the Jets midseason in 1978-79 by Tom McVie. The WHA came to an end at the end of that season and the coaching career of Larry Hillman also ceased after leaving the Jets.
Larry Hillman – Hockey Cards
The Larry Hillman rookie card appears as number 17 in the 1957-58 Topps set and is valued as a common card. Hillman was not included in a major hockey card set for the 1963-64, 1964-65, 1965-66 and 1966-67 seasons.
However, he does make a cameo appearance on most cards in the 1966-67 Topps set. The background images on each card is the same with each player’s profile superimposed overtop. The one player in the image is number 2 for the Maple Leafs, Larry Hillman.
Interestingly, Hillman played as a regular in the World Hockey Assocation for three consecutive years. Yet, Larry was never included in a single O-Pee-Chee WHA set.
Larry Hillman Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1952-53 | Windsor Spitfires | OHA | 56 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 39 |
| 1953-54 | Hamilton Tiger Cubs | OHA | 58 | 6 | 14 | 20 | 99 |
| 1954-55 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1954-55 | Hamilton Tiger Cubs | OHA | 49 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 106 |
| 1955-56 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 15 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 21 |
| 1955-56 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 47 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 53 |
| 1956-57 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 46 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 87 |
| 1956-57 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 16 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 |
| 1957-58 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 70 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 60 |
| 1958-59 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 55 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 19 |
| 1959-60 | Providence Reds | AHL | 70 | 12 | 31 | 43 | 159 |
| 1959-60 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| 1960-61 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 62 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 59 |
| 1961-62 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 26 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
| 1961-62 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1962-63 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 65 | 5 | 23 | 28 | 56 |
| 1962-63 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1963-64 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 32 | 1 | 18 | 19 | 48 |
| 1963-64 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 33 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 31 |
| 1964-65 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 71 | 9 | 43 | 52 | 98 |
| 1964-65 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1965-66 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 22 | 2 | 20 | 22 | 34 |
| 1965-66 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 48 | 3 | 25 | 28 | 34 |
| 1966-67 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 12 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 16 |
| 1966-67 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 55 | 4 | 19 | 23 | 40 |
| 1967-68 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1967-68 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 55 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 13 |
| 1968-69 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 25 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 17 |
| 1968-69 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 12 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 0 |
| 1969-70 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 76 | 5 | 26 | 31 | 73 |
| 1970-71 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 73 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 39 |
| 1971-72 | Los Angeles Kings | NHL | 22 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 11 |
| 1971-72 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 43 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 58 |
| 1972-73 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 78 | 5 | 24 | 29 | 56 |
| 1973-74 | Cleveland Crusaders | WHA | 44 | 5 | 21 | 26 | 37 |
| 1974-75 | Cleveland Crusaders | WHA | 77 | 0 | 16 | 16 | 83 |
| 1975-76 | Winnipeg Jets | WHA | 71 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 62 |
| NHL Totals | 791 | 36 | 196 | 232 | 579 | ||
| 192 | 6 | 49 | 55 | 182 |