Bernie Nicholls

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Position	Centre
Shoots	Right
Height Weight	6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) 185 lb (84 kg/13 st 3 lb)
Pro clubs	Los Angeles Kings New York Rangers Edmonton Oilers New Jersey Devils Chicago Blackhawks San Jose Sharks
Nationality	Canada
Born	June 24, 1961 (1961-06-24) (age 46), Haliburton, ON, CAN
NHL Draft	73th overall, 1980 Los Angeles Kings
Pro career	1981 – 1999

Bernie Irvine Nicholls (born June 24, 1961 in Haliburton, Ontario) is a former professional ice hockey centre. His junior career was spent with the Kingston Canadians, where he established himself as a dynamic scorer and a multi-faceted talent. He was selected by the Los Angeles Kings in the fourth round of the 1980 NHL Entry Draft, 73rd overall. Over his 17 year playing career, Nicholls would play 1127 games for The Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers, Edmonton Oilers, New Jersey Devils, Chicago Blackhawks and San Jose Sharks, scoring 1209 points. He is one of only 8 players in NHL history to score 70 goals in one season.

Contents 1 Playing career 2 Career statistics 3 Transactions 4 See also 5 External links

[edit] Playing career

After Nicholls was drafted, he played one more year of junior before making his professional debut with the New Haven Nighthawks of the AHL. He scored 41 goals in 55 games as a rookie, and was recalled to the Kings to finish the season, where he had 32 points in 22 games, and was a contributor in the playoffs, where the Kings upset the Edmonton Oilers to reach the second round. Nicholls would never again play in the minor leagues.

For the next six and a half years, Nicholls was a key offensive talent for the Kings, with his best year (79gp, 70g, 80a, 150pts) coming after the acquisition of Wayne Gretzky. During that season, he joined Gretzky as one of only 12 players to ever record an eight point game in NHL history. However, with Stanley Cup aspirations, the Kings made the decision to trade the star centre for a pair of wingers. Nicholls joined the New York Rangers, helping to propel his new club to the second round of the playoffs.

Although Nicholls performed well for the Rangers, he was dealt after less than two full seasons to the Edmonton Oilers, as part of a blockbuster deal that saw Mark Messier join the Rangers. After just over a year with the Oilers organization, Nicholls saw himself traded again, this time to the New Jersey Devils, as Edmonton attempted to rebuild their team.

Nicholls adapted his game to become more of a defensive forward in the tight-checking system of then-Devils coach Jacques Lemaire. When his contract expired, Nicholls signed a two-year deal with the Chicago Blackhawks, where he was allowed to take more offensive liberties. He averaged better than a point-per-game in Chicago.

Nicholls finished his NHL career with the San Jose Sharks. At the age of 36, and with a budding, young franchise, Nicholls took on more of an elder statesman role. At the end of the 1998–99 NHL season, Nicholls retired.

[edit] Career statistics

				Regular Season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1978–79	Kingston Canadians	OHA		2	0	1	1	0
1979–80	Kingston Canadians	OHA		68	36	43	79	85		3	1	0	1	10
1980–81	Kingston Canadians	OHL		65	63	89	152	109		14	8	10	18	17
1981–82	New Haven Nighthawks	AHL		55	41	30	71	31
1981–82	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		22	14	18	32	27		10	4	0	4	23
1982–83	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		71	28	22	50	124
1983–84	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		78	41	54	95	83
1984–85	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		80	46	54	100	76		3	1	1	2	9
1985–86	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		80	36	61	97	78
1986–87	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		80	33	48	81	101		5	2	5	7	6
1987–88	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		65	32	46	78	114		5	2	6	8	11
1988–89	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		79	70	80	150	96		11	7	9	16	12
1989–90	Los Angeles Kings	NHL		47	27	48	75	66
1989–90	New York Rangers	NHL		32	12	25	37	20		10	7	5	12	16
1990–91	New York Rangers	NHL		71	25	48	73	96		5	4	3	7	8
1991–92	New York Rangers	NHL		1	0	0	0	0		0
1991–92	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		49	20	29	49	60		16	8	11	19	25
1992–93	Edmonton Oilers	NHL		46	8	32	40	40
1992–93	New Jersey Devils	NHL		23	5	15	20	40		5	0	0	0	6
1993–94	New Jersey Devils	NHL		61	19	27	46	86		16	4	9	13	28
1994–95	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		48	22	29	51	32		16	1	11	12	8
1995–96	Chicago Blackhawks	NHL		59	19	41	60	60		10	2	7	9	4
1996–97	San Jose Sharks	NHL		65	12	33	45	63
1997–98	San Jose Sharks	NHL		60	6	22	28	26		6	0	5	5	8
1998–99	San Jose Sharks	NHL		10	0	2	2	4
OHA/OHL Totals				135	99	133	232	194		17	9	10	19	27
NHL Totals				1127	475	734	1209	1292		118	42	72	114	164

[edit] Transactions

• January 20, 1990- Traded by the Los Angeles Kings to the New York Rangers in exchange for Tomas Sandstrom and Tony Granato.

• October 4, 1991- Traded by the New York Rangers, along with Steven Rice and Louie DeBrusk, to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Mark Messier and future considerations

• January 13, 1993- Traded by the Edmonton Oilers to the New Jersey Devils in echange for Zdeno Ciger and Kevin Todd.

• July 14, 1994- Signed as a free agent with the Chicago Blackhawks

• August 5, 1996- Signed as a free agent with San Jose Sharks.

[edit] See also

• List of NHL players
• List of NHL seasons
• List of NHL players with 1000 points

[edit] External links

• Bernie Nicholls's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Bernie Nicholls's biography at Legends of Hockey