Ed Van Impe

Athlete (1992)

Hockey

Ed Van Impe was one of the first players to join Philadelphia Flyers in the National Hockey League's expansion in 1967-68 and, as fortune would have it, the Flyers became the first-ever expansion team to win the Stanley Cup.

Ed played midget and juvenile hockey in Saskatoon Riversdale and played three seasons with the Saskatoon Quaker juniors.

He turned pro with Calgary of the Western League in 1960-61, spent four seasons with Buffalo of the American League and was called up to Chicago Blackhawks for regular defence duty in 1966-67. He was drafted by the Flyers and their first close call came in 1972-73 when they lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the semifinals.

In 1973-74, they beat Atlanta and New York Rangers along the playoff trail and then beat Boston, four games to two, including a 1-0 victory in the final game. In 1974-75, they beat Toronto and New York Islanders in the first two rounds and then beat Buffalo, four games to two, including 2-0 in the final game.

Ed played 700 NHL games, getting 27 goals, 126 assists, 153 points and 1,025 penalty minutes. He played in 66 playoff games. He was captain of the Flyers for four seasons. He was selected to play in two of the NHL's all-star games.

Ed was traded to the Pittsburgh Penguins in March 1976, and played a full season before retiring.