Born in Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario, Lou Nanne centered his adult life around the State of Minnesota and even became a citizen of his new country in 1967. Nanne first starred with the University of Minnesota Gophers before becoming a fan favourite with the North Stars.
After a career as general manager with the Stars, Lou is now a restauranteur is his transplanted home town of Edina, Minnesota. Folks can eat at his Tavern23 (named so for the number he wore with the North Stars), a restaurant opened in 2016 and originally dubbed Lou Nanne’s Steakhouse.
University and Minor Pro
NHL Career
Hockey Card Collection
Staff
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Lou Nanne – University and Minor Pro
Lou Nanne spent three years playing for the University of Minnesota Gophers from 1960-61 to 1962-63. In his first season, the Gophers were WCHA champions and competed in the NCAA Frozen Four tournament. The team won the third place game over Renssalaer Polytechnic Institute, better known as RPI.
Nanne was team captain for Minnesota in his senior year, 1962-63. He was named a WCHA First Team All-Star and the WCHA Player of the Year. Also, he was named an NCAA West First All-American.
While retaining his amateur status, Lou played with the Rochester Mustangs from 1962-63 to 1966-67. Becoming a citizen of the United States in 1967, Nanne played for the U.S. at the 1968 Winter Olympic Games at Grenoble, France. He added four points over seven games with the U.S. finishing sixth.
Lou’s professional hockey career started shortly after the Olympics with him appearing in two NHL games with the North Stars in 1967-68. In 1968-69, Nanne saw his only minor pro action. He appeared in ten American Hockey League games with the Cleveland Barons and three Central Hockey League games with the Memphis South Stars, both affiliates of the North Stars.
Lou Nanne – NHL
Between 1967-68 and 1977-78, Lou Nanne played in 635 regular season games, all with the Minnesota North Stars. Over that time, he scored 68 goals and assisted on 157 for 225 points. In the playoffs, Nanne scored four and assisted on ten for 14 points over 32 games. His first year, 1967-68, consisted of just two games after his amateur career came to a close.
Lou Nanne Collection
Lou started as a defenseman but made his way up to the right wing position. His rookie card states he is a blue liner. The next time is was featured on cardboard, 1971-72, he was listed as a right winger. By his 1976-77 O-Pee-Chee hockey card, Nanne was back on the point.
Playing for the North Stars in the 1970’s meant not much playoff success. The deepest the team went with Lou on the player roster was 1970-71. That year, they beat the St. Louis Blues in six games in the opening round. In the semi-finals, Minnesota took the Montreal Canadiens to six games before bowing out. The Habs would beat the Chicago Blackhawks in seven games for the Stanley Cup championship.
Nanne’s top offensive season came in 1971-72 when he topped the 20 goal plateau for the only time during his NHL career. Over 78 games, Lou finished with 21 goals and 28 assists for 49 points.
On the international front, Lou never made it back to the Olympics but did compete for the U.S. at the 1976 Canada Cup tournament and two IIHF World Championships. In 1976, the United States finished fifth of six teams at the Canada Cup. That same year, the team finished fourth at the 1976 World Championships. That tournament was held at Katowice, Poland and Lou contributed four points over ten games.
The 1977 IIHF World Championships were hosted by Vienna, Austria. The United States finished a distance sixth out of eight teams. Nanne scored two and assisted on two over the ten games.
Lou is a cousin of fellow former NHLer, Jerry Korab.
Lou Nanne – Staff
After playing 26 games for the North Stars at the start of the 1977-78 National Hockey League season, Lou Nanne retired as a player and stepped behind the bench. He replaced Jack Gordon midseason as general manager and replaced Andre Beaulieu as head coach. Beaulieu was already a midseason replacement for Ted Harris. Harris lasted just 19 games. Beaulieu remained as an assistant coach. That Minnesota team finished dead last in the NHL, losing 53 of 80 games.
Nanne was general manager of the North Stars from 1977-78 to 1987-88. The Stanley Cup continued to elude him but a few of his teams got close. In 1979-80, Minnesota lost in the semi-finals to the Philadelphia Flyers. The following year, they reached the finals before losing out to the mighty New York Islanders. In 1983-84, it was another semi-final loss, this time to the Edmonton Oilers. In his final two years as GM, the North Stars failed to qualify for the post season.
Lou continued to play a part on the international scene, acting as general manager for the United States at the Canada Cup in 1981, 1984 and 1987. The team had little success in the tournament.
For his efforts with U.S.A. hockey, Lou Nanne was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1998. He is also a member of the IIHF Hall of Fame, inducted in 2004 as a player.
Lou Nanne – Rookie Card
The Lou Nanne rookie card appears in the 1969-70 O-Pee-Chee NHL hockey card set as number 198. He is shown as a defenseman for the Minnesota North Stars. His final card has Nanne back on defense with the North Stars in the 1977-78 O-Pee-Chee set. That final card features a cameo by Dennis O’Brien.
Lou is not included in the 1970-71 O-Pee-Chee or Topps sets, despite being a regular with Minnesota. His 1974-75 OPC card is technically an uncorrected error, stating his pro career began with Minnesota in 1968-69 although he appeared in two games with the North Stars during the previous season. His first card as a right winger is in the 1971-72 OPC set.
All his cards refer in some way to his success with the U.S. National Team and the University of Minnesota Gophers.
Lou Nanne Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1960-61 | Minnesota Gophers | NCAA | 30 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 52 |
| 1961-62 | Minnesota Gophers | NCAA | 22 | 4 | 11 | 15 | 37 |
| 1962-63 | Minnesota Gophers | NCAA | 29 | 14 | 29 | 43 | 30 |
| 1962-63 | Rochester Mustangs | USHL | Statistics Unavailable | ||||
| 1963-64 | Rochester Mustangs | USHL | Statistics Unavailable | ||||
| 1964-65 | Rochester Mustangs | USHL | — | 14 | 21 | 35 | 0 |
| 1965-66 | Rochester Mustangs | USHL | 24 | 23 | 22 | 45 | 4 |
| 1966-67 | Rochester Mustangs | USHL | 24 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 8 |
| 1967-68 | U.S. Olympic Team | Intl | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 12 |
| 1967-68 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1968-69 | Memphis South Stars | CHL | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 1968-69 | Cleveland Barons | AHL | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 8 |
| 1968-69 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 41 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 47 |
| 1969-70 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 74 | 3 | 20 | 23 | 75 |
| 1970-71 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 68 | 5 | 11 | 16 | 22 |
| 1971-72 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 78 | 21 | 28 | 49 | 27 |
| 1972-73 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 74 | 15 | 20 | 35 | 39 |
| 1973-74 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 76 | 11 | 21 | 32 | 46 |
| 1974-75 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 49 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 35 |
| 1975-76 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 79 | 3 | 14 | 17 | 45 |
| 1976-77 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 68 | 2 | 20 | 22 | 12 |
| 1977-78 | Minnesota North Stars | NHL | 26 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 |
| NHL Totals | 635 | 68 | 157 | 225 | 356 |