In the night of November 20, 1991, the arch rival Flyers visited De Penguins in the Civic Arena. Early in the second period, Philly Vooruit Rick Tocchet crashed with Troy Loney Along the shelves. The gloves came off and Tocchet continued to defeat the daily lights from the rawboned black-gold attackerReduce him to a bloody pulp with a volley of hard rights and uppercuts.
I had long been aware of Tocchet’s wild reputation, reinforced by his struggle with Loney, as a mean, ruthless hunter in the real ‘wide street pest heads’ tradition. Yet he was also a diamond in the rough who had a burning desire to prove himself as a hockey player. Although he skater at best, he had the touch of a target scale and a hugely underrated hockey feeling that made up for his lack of speed. Fits his rugged nature, he was not the least shy to venture into traffic to make plays.
“Rick is a homemade player who had to work for everything he has achieved,” said Mike KeenanHis coach with the flyers. “He is a tireless worker who likes to play under pressure.”
I couldn’t help it, but be jealous. If the pens only had a player of those peers.
It is remarkable that I would get my wish soon. After scoring 185 goals for a period of four years, Tocchet was on the trade block. On February 19, 1992, the pens acquired the brushed 27-year-old wing player in a blockbuster of three teams.
“I was ecstatic,” he said. “I started playing with some of the biggest players in the world: Mario Lemieux” Kevin Stevens” Jaromir Jagr” Ronnie Francis And Ulf Samuelsson. It was an incredible list and I would be with these guys. “
“He said he was just a chance to win,” said good friend Paul Coffey. “He will have that in Pittsburgh. He is a good player that nobody in this city will disappoint. He has the heart as big as a building. He will do what is needed to win.”
Tocchet brought that heart to see immediately. During a showdown of 15 March with the Blackhawks, he hit the jaw through a wandering shot from Mario’s stick. With blood stains splashed on the front of his uniform, He returned Gamely in the third period with an improvised facial shield to protect his wounded jaw.
A player of lesser determination would have avoided the scrums, but not the Warrior wing player. He refused to compromise his Smash-Mondstijl and plowed Koplang in a goal-mouth and stopped the puck past Chicago target defender Dominik Hasek.
Minutes later, Tocchet again planted in the way of Harm and scored the game that was on a deflection. It was a representation of rough courage rarely seen. Suitable inspired, the pens took the lead and won the competition. Then it was revealed that Tocchet had played with a broken jaw.
“I know the type of person he is,” said Pens Trainer Skip Thayer. “He is a rare merchandise. He is a tough boy, a competitor. His jaw had to hurt him, no doubt about it. But he was able to go outside and keep a positive attitude.”
“We were at that time .500, you want to play and you want to try to win,” said Tocchet. “It’s great if you have adrenaline. The next day I was clearly in pain, but you just don’t think about it during the game.”
From that moment on, “Dicky” became a cherished member of the team. It is no coincidence that the pens started to look like Stanley Cup champions again. Along the way there were many more examples of the legendary toughness of Tocchet, including battles with Kris King And Kevin Hatcher While his broken jaw was still recovering and an early return of a separate shoulder during the final of the Patrick Division when the club desperately needed its fire and physical presence. Tocchet also contributed to the score sheet, with six goals and 19 points in just 14 play -off games.
“Rick delivered when we needed it the most,” Coach Scotty Bowman said. “He is versatile enough to beat you in many ways: with his shot, with his smart, and with his body.”
The tough winger was never better than during the record-breaking campaign of 1992-93. He achieved 48 goals and 109 points together with a team of leading 252 penalty minutes. During a crucial confrontation in the late season against Montreal when the pens were about to bind the 15-game extraction streak of the islanders, he scored a hat trick to combine a huge victory.
Extremely popular with teammates and fans, it seemed that Tocchet would have a long and eventful stay in the Burgh. It would not be the case. After a season plagued by the injuries in ’93 -94, he was traded to Los Angeles for All -Star Sniper Luc Robitaille.
Tocchet would return to Pittsburgh in 2014 and win two more Stanley Cups as an assistant coach and an important member of Mike Sullivan’s staff. In the process that cultivates a special relationship with Star Forward Phil Kessel That earned him the Sobriquet, “The Phil Whisperer.”
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