Cleon Daskalakis had a special connection with Boston. He was born there, raised there, played NCAA all star hockey at Boston University and later signed and played with the Boston Bruins. However, Cleon's NHL stint was short. He played in only 12 games over 3 years starting in 1984-85. Despite a save percentage of just .839 and a GAA of 4.86, he managed to post a 3-4-1 record, but was never able to stick in Boston.
In 1987-88 with his contract expiring with Boston, the 1987-88 season became a whirlwind minor league hockey tour for Daskalakis, as he would play in the AHL with three different teams: three games for the Hershey Bears (1-1-0), six games for the Binghamton Whalers (2-2-1), and eight games for the Rochester Americans (4-3-0) before making a tour of the IHL with the Milwaukee Admirals for nine games (1-5-3).
Daskalakis decided to try his hand overseas, playing the 1988-89 season with Jokerit Helsinki for 21 games, helping them win the Finnish Second League Championship, as well as playing in one game for Team USA in the World Championships before deciding to hang up the pads for good. In 1990, Daskalakis was named to the ECAC Goaltender of the Decade for the 1980s. In 1994, Daskalakis was inducted into the Boston University Hall of Fame. Here are 2 versions of his 1985-86 Bruins Missing link rookie card.
Geofff Courtnall had his official rookie card issued in the 1989-90 OPC & Topps sets as a Washington Capital, his third
NHL team. In 1982-83 as an overage junior with the Victoria Cougars Courtnall appeared in 71 games, scoring 41 times while assisting on 73 others for 114 points while also racking up a feisty 186 minutes in penalties.
That extra year in junior hockey caught the attention of several NHL teams, including the Boston Bruins who signed Courtnall to a contract. In 1983-84, he appeared in 74 games with the Hershey Bears before being called up for five games with the Bruins. The following year, Courtnall worked himself into the lineup for 64 games, scoring 12 goals and 28 points. Courtnall played with the Bruins for another three seasons before being sent to the Edmonton Oilers late in the 1987-88 season
Here is my version of his 1984-85 Missing Link rookie card.
In his first year with the Blues, Lapointe broke his cheekbone and played only 50 games. The next season he signed with the Boston Bruins anxious to show fans that the eye and face injuries of previous years wouldn't slow him down. He would appear in 45 games with the Bruins before retiring after the season but never had a Bruins card issued by Topps or OPC, here's my version of his 1984-85 Missing Link card.
Howe played two years of major junior hockey in the OHA with the Toronto Marlboros and was a member of the Memorial Cup champion team in 1973 along with brother, Mark. Howe was selected in the third round of the 1974 NHL Amateur Draft by the Montreal Canadiens, despite having already played a year of pro hockey with the Houston Aeros of the WHA. The Howe family made headlines when Marty, brother, Mark, and father, Gordie, all suited up for the same team. The Aeros won two WHA Avco Cup championships in 1974 and 1975, with all three Howes on the roster.
The Howe brothers and father, Gordie, were united again in the NHL in the 1979-80 season when Marty was called up for six games with the Hartford Whalers. After two more years in Hartford, Marty Howe joined the Boston Bruins for the 1982-83 season, playing 78 games, scoring a goal and 12 points. He also never had a Bruins card issued by Topps or OPC, here's my version of his 1983-84 Missing Link card.
However, Baron had a rotten string of luck when he first entered the NHL. In his first sustained spell with the Boston Bruins, in 1980-81, he was replaced by a U.S. national hero, Jim Craig, hot off the thrill of his Olympic victory, and appeared in only ten games. Craig, of course, didn't work out, and Baron lugged the majority of the Bruins workload the next year, but despite his solid play and 22-16-4 record he was relegated to the minors for much of 1982-83. On January 3, 1984, he was traded to Los Angeles Kings without ever getting a hockey card issued.
Here are 2 versions of his 1980-81 Missing Link rookie card.
1974-75 saw him make a 53 game stop in Beantown before being traded to Detroit. He also never had a Bruins card issued by Topps or OPC so here's my version of his 1975-76 Missing Link card.
During his first pro season, Hayes scored 53 points for the CHL's Oklahoma City Blazers before his unexpected callup to Boston in the post-season. He later played in three minor leagues with his best year being a 20-goal performance for the CHL's Albuquerque 6-Guns in 1973-74. Injuries forced him to sit out the next season and he was eventually forced to retire after playing four games for the Mohawk Valley Comets of the NAHL in 1975-76. Here is my version of his 1972-73 Missing link rookie card.
Bill Goldsworthy was a junior standout with the OHA's Niagara Falls Flyers. In1965 he helped the Boston Bruins sponsored club win the Memorial Cup and also made a 2 game NHL debut. 1965-66 saw him split the year between Oklahoma City in the CPHL and Boston. He started the 1966-67 season with the Bruins but the talented forward was claimed by Minnesota in the 1967 Expansion Draft and his 1968-69 OPC & Topps rookie cards are in a North Stars uniform.
Here is my version of his 1966-67 Boston Missing Link card.
Here is my version of his 1966-67 Boston Missing Link rookie card.
Here is my version of his 1966-67 Boston Missing Link rookie card.