Bobby Gould obit

Bobby Gould, former Washington Capitals forward, dies at 69

 

He was not on the list.

Bobby Gould, who played most of his 11-year NHL career with the Washington Capitals, has died. He was 69.

The death was announced Saturday in social media posts by the Capitals and the NHL. The cause of death was not disclosed.

"The Washington Capitals organization is deeply saddened by the passing of alumnus Bobby Gould," the team posted. "Gould spent eight seasons with the Capitals from 1981 to 1989, appearing in 600 games. A consistent scoring threat, he reached the 20-goal mark four times and recorded a career-high 50 points during the 1986-87 season."

He started his career with the Atlanta/Calgary Flames and played his last season with the Boston Bruins, helping the team reach the Stanley Cup Final in 1990 where they lost to the Edmonton Oilers.

Gould, from Petrolia, Ontario, scored 145 goals and had 159 assists in his career. He also had 572 penalty minutes.

He twice finished third in voting for the Frank J. Selke Trophy for top defensive forward, first after the 1982-83 season, when Philadelphia's Bobby Clarke won it, and again in 1986-87 when it was awarded to the Flyers' Dave Poulin.

"Beyond the rink, Gould was valued for the relationships he built and the positive impact he made on those around him," the Capitals posted.

Gould was drafted by the Atlanta Flames of the National Hockey League in the seventh round, 118th overall, of the 1977 NHL amateur draft. He was also drafted by the Calgary Cowboys of the World Hockey Association in the eighth round, 70th overall, of the 1977 WHA Amateur Draft. Gould never played in the WHA, although he did eventually play in Calgary; after one game for the Atlanta Flames in 1979–80 he relocated to Calgary with the team the following season. He played parts of the next two seasons, 1980–81 and 1981–82, for the Calgary Flames before being traded to the Washington Capitals on November 25, 1981, along with Randy Holt for Pat Ribble and a second round selection from the 1983 NHL entry draft.

After three seasons of bouncing between the minors and the NHL, Gould finally got a chance to play full-time at the NHL level with the Capitals and made the most of it, scoring 18 goals and 31 points in his first 60 games. He continued to play well with three straight seasons with over 20 goals, peaking in 1986–87 with a career-high 23 goals and 50 points.

Gould is also remembered for a March 20, 1987, fight with Mario Lemieux. Giving up 5 inches and 25 lbs, Gould ended up breaking Lemieux's jaw with a solid right uppercut. Lemieux spent the night at George Washington University Hospital. "The first thing that came to mind when he said, 'Let's go,' was that I could get him off the ice for five minutes," Gould said. "I never thought about hurting him." Lemieux would not fight again in the NHL for another 9 years.

Nearing the end of his career, Gould was traded by the Capitals to the Boston Bruins for defenseman Alain Cote on September 28, 1989. This was Gould's final NHL season, and he helped the Bruins reach the Stanley Cup finals, including advancing past his former team, the Capitals. Gould played for the Maine Mariners of the American Hockey League in 1990–91 before retiring altogether.

 

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season                        Playoffs

Season Team   League GP       G         A         Pts       PIM     GP       G         A         Pts       PIM

1974–75          Petrolia Jets     WOHL            —        —        —        —        —        —        —        —        —            —

1975–76          University of New Hampshire            ECAC 31        13        14        27        16        —        —            —        —        —

1976–77          University of New Hampshire            ECAC 39        24        25        49        36        —        —            —        —        —

1977–78          University of New Hampshire            ECAC 30        23        34        57        40        —        —            —        —        —

1978–79          University of New Hampshire            ECAC 35        31        28        59        46        —        —            —        —        —

1978–79          Tulsa Oilers     CHL    5          2          0          2          4          —        —        —        —        —

1979–80          Birmingham Bulls       CHL    79        27        33        60        73        4          2          4          6            0

1979–80          Atlanta Flames            NHL    1          0          0          0          0          —        —        —        —            —

1980–81          Birmingham Bulls       CHL    58        25        25        50        43        —        —        —        —            —

1980–81          Fort Worth Texans      CHL    18        8          6          14        6          5          5          2          7            10

1980–81          Calgary Flames           NHL    3          0          0          0          0          11        3          1          4            4

1981–82          Oklahoma City Stars   CHL    1          0          1          1          0          —        —        —        —            —

1981–82          Calgary Flames           NHL    16        3          0          3          4          —        —        —        —            —

1981–82          Washington Capitals   NHL    60        18        13        31        69        —        —        —        —            —

1982–83          Washington Capitals   NHL    80        22        18        40        43        4          5          0          5            4

1983–84          Washington Capitals   NHL    78        21        19        40        74        5          0          2          2            4

1984–85          Washington Capitals   NHL    78        14        19        33        69        5          0          1          1            2

1985–86          Washington Capitals   NHL    79        19        19        38        26        9          4          3          7            11

1986–87          Washington Capitals   NHL    78        23        27        50        74        7          0          3          3            8

1987–88          Washington Capitals   NHL    72        12        14        26        56        14        3          1          4            21

1988–89          Washington Capitals   NHL    75        5          13        18        65        6          0          2          2            0

1989–90          Boston Bruins NHL    77        8          17        25        92        17        0          0          0          4

1990–91          Maine Mariners           AHL    71        10        15        25        30        2          0          0          0            0

NHL totals       697      145      159      304      572      78        15        13        28        58