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Legends of Hockey - Induction Showcase - Dino Ciccarelli
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Dino Ciccarelli - Player Category
Ciccarelli was a scoring star for the London Knights of the OHL
Ciccarelli was a scoring star for the London Knights of the OHL.
Dino Ciccarelli was born February 8, 1960 in Sarnia, Ontario. A junior phenom with the London Knights, Ciccarelli spent four seasons in London, scoring 39 goals and 82 points as a 16-year-old rookie, earning a berth on the league's Second All-Star Team with a staggering 72 goals and 142 points in his second season and in his fourth and final year with the Knights, he scored 50 goals and 103 points. Dino's sweater number 8 was retired by the London Knights to commemorate his extraordinary contributions to the franchise between 1976 and 1980.

Ciccarelli joined the Minnesota North Stars in 1980-81
Ciccarelli joined the Minnesota North Stars in 1980-81.
Having suffered a broken leg that hampered his burgeoning career at the age of 16 and considered too small to play in the NHL (5'10" and 185 pounds), Ciccarelli was signed as a free agent by the Minnesota North Stars in September 1979 and joined the NHL club during the 1980-81 season. While he played 32 games with the North Stars that season, Dino took the NHL by storm that spring with a dominating performance in the 1981 Stanley Cup playoffs. His 14 goals and 21 points in 19 games was a major contributor to Minnesota's march to the Stanley Cup final.

Ciccarelli recorded two 50-goal seasons in Minnesota
Ciccarelli recorded two 50-goal seasons in Minnesota.
Ciccarelli built on his rookie success, scoring a career-high 106 points on the strength of 55 goals in his first full season. As a North Star, Dino not only developed into a consistent goal-scoring force, but he quickly established a reputation as a gritty, in-your-face forward, scoring the majority of his goals from the lip of the crease, and usually after absorbing considerable punishment from opposing defencemen and netminders.

In March of 1989, his ninth season with the North Stars, Ciccarelli was traded to the Washington Capitals with defenceman Bob Rouse for sniper Mike Gartner and offensive defenceman Larry Murphy. When he left Minnesota, Dino's 651 points were the fourth-most in club history.

Ciccarelli went to the Stanley Cup Final with the Detroit Red Wings in 1995
Ciccarelli went to the Stanley Cup Final with the Detroit Red Wings in 1995.
Ciccarelli played his gritty style with Washington, and continued to score consistently. However, the team's repeated playoff failures caused Capitals' management to make changes and Ciccarelli was traded to the Detroit Red Wings for Kevin Miller during the summer of 1992. \

The Red Wings were a club with plentiful scoring, but they lacked a forward with Ciccarelli's grit and tenacity. Dino was an immediate hit in Motown, scoring 41 goals and 97 points in 1992-93. In the spring of 1995, Ciccarelli made his second trip to the Stanley Cup final, but Detroit fell to the New Jersey Devils, in spite of Dino's 9-goal output. In both 1995 and 1996, the Red Wings finished first overall, winning the Presidents' Trophy.

Ciccarelli spent much of his career parked in front of the opposing net.
Ciccarelli spent much of his career parked in front of the opposing net.
Dino was traded to the Tampa Bay Lightning for a fourth round draft pick in August 1996. His veteran presence inspired the Lightning and invigorated Dino, who rebounded from a couple of less-productive seasons with a 35-goal and 60-point campaign. Yet, despite his personal success, the team continued to flounder in the standings and in January 1998, Dino was traded to the cross-state Florida Panthers along with Jeff Norton for Mark Fitzpatrick and Jody Hull. In his eighteenth NHL season, Ciccarelli reached a personal milestone, scoring his 600th career goal.

The 1998-99 season was the last for Ciccarelli, who was limited to just 14 games after suffering a back injury against the Chicago Blackhawks on November 4, 1998. At season's end, the Panthers released Ciccarelli. Dino subsequently retired on August 31, 1999, ranked ninth in NHL history in goals scored. Through his NHL career, Dino played 1,232 regular season games, finishing with 608 goals and 592 assists for 1,200 points. In 141 playoff games, he scored 73 goals and added 45 assists for 118 points.

Dino Ciccarelli silenced critics who cited his size as a detriment to playing in the NHL, and in spite of having never been drafted by an NHL squad, he enjoyed a spectacular career, filled with fire, brimstone and points that earned him selection to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2010.

CAREER STATISTICS
REGULAR SEASON PLAYOFFS
Season Club League GP G A TP PIM +/- GP G A TP PIM
1974-75 Sarnia Army Vets Minor-ON
1975-76 Sarnia Bees OHA-B 40 45 43 88
1976-77 London Knights OMJHL 66 39 43 82 45 20 11 13 24 14
1977-78 London Knights OMJHL 68 72 70 142 49 9 6 10 16 6
1978-79 London Knights OMJHL 30 8 11 19 35 7 3 5 8 0
1979-80 London Knights OMJHL 62 50 53 103 72 5 2 6 8 15
1979-80 Canada WJC-A 5 5 1 6 2
1979-80 Oklahoma City Stars CHL 6 3 2 5 0
1980-81 Minnesota North Stars NHL 32 18 12 30 29 +2 19 14 7 21 25
1980-81 Oklahoma City Stars CHL 48 32 25 57 45
1981-82 Minnesota North Stars NHL 76 55 51 106 138 +14 4 3 1 4 2
1981-82 Canada WEC-A 9 2 1 3 0
1982-83 Minnesota North Stars NHL 77 37 38 75 94 +16 9 4 6 10 11
1983-84 Minnesota North Stars NHL 79 38 33 71 58 +1 16 4 5 9 27
1984-85 Minnesota North Stars NHL 51 15 17 32 41 -10 9 3 3 6 8
1985-86 Minnesota North Stars NHL 75 44 45 89 51 +12 5 0 1 1 6
1986-87 Minnesota North Stars NHL 80 52 51 103 88 +10
1986-87 Canada WEC-A 10 4 2 6 2
1987-88 Minnesota North Stars NHL 67 41 45 86 79 -29
1988-89 Minnesota North Stars NHL 65 32 27 59 64 -16
1988-89 Washington Capitals NHL 11 12 3 15 12 +10 6 3 3 6 12
1989-90 Washington Capitals Fr-Tour 3 3 0 3 2
1989-90 Washington Capitals NHL 80 41 38 79 122 -5 8 8 3 11 6
1990-91 Washington Capitals NHL 54 21 18 39 66 -17 11 5 4 9 22
1991-92 Washington Capitals NHL 78 38 38 76 78 -10 7 5 4 9 14
1992-93 Detroit Red Wings NHL 82 41 56 97 81 +12 7 4 2 6 16
1993-94 Detroit Red Wings NHL 66 28 29 57 73 +10 7 5 2 7 14
1994-95 Detroit Red Wings NHL 42 16 27 43 39 +12 16 9 2 11 22
1995-96 Detroit Red Wings NHL 64 22 21 43 99 +14 17 6 2 8 26
1996-97 Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 77 35 25 60 116 -11
1997-98 Tampa Bay Lightning NHL 34 11 6 17 42 -14
1997-98 Florida Panthers NHL 28 5 11 16 28 -2
1998-99 Florida Panthers NHL 14 6 1 7 27 -1
NHL Totals 1232 608 592 1200 1425 141 73 45 118 211


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