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Thursday, December 3, 2015

1982-83 New Jersey Devils Bob MacMillan Jersey

Born on this date in 1952, Bob MacMillian first played for his hometown Charlottetown Islanders of the Maritime Junior Hockey League, scoring 33 goals and 68 points in 40 games and then added 21 points in 15 playoff games as the Islanders advanced to the Memorial Cup playoffs quarterfinals, as the MJHL was eligible for the Memorial Cup before it was downgraded to Tier II status.

MacMillan then joined the St. Catharines Black Hawks of the Ontario Hockey Association where he had a 41 goal, 103 point season in 1970-71. He was limited to just 39 games in 1971-72, but still excelled with 53 points.

Recognizing his potential, MacMillan was drafted by the New York Rangers in the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft 15th overall. However, 1972 was a year of upheaval in professional hockey, as the World Hockey Association arrived to challenge the NHL. During the WHA General Player Draft, MacMillan was chosen by the Minnesota Fighting Saints and chose to sign with Minnesota.

He would play 75 games for the Fighting Saints, scoring 13 goals and 40 points. He would play a second season with Minnesota, raising his point total to 48.

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A young MacMillan played during the
inaugural WHA season with the Fighting Saints

MacMillan would jump to the NHL for the 1974-75 season, playing 22 games for the Rangers, which included scoring his first NHL goal, but spent the majority of his time with the Providence Reds of the AHL, scoring 47 points in 46 games.

Just prior to the 1975-76 season, MacMillan was dealt to the St. Louis Blues. He would play the full season in St. Louis where he would register his first 20 goal season on his way to 52 points. While he would fall short of 20 goals with 19 in 1976-77, he would raise his point total to 58.

In 1977-78, MacMillan would start the season with the Blues, but after 28 games he was dealt to the Atlanta Flames as a part of a six player swap. The trade to the Flames ignited MacMillan's career, as he immediately averaged a point per game, scoring 52 points in the final 52 games of the season, scoring 31 with the Flames alone after scoring 7 in his 28 games to start the season in St. Louis.

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MacMillan with the Blues

MacMillan was paired with linemate Guy Chouinard in 1978-79 and exploded with 37 goals and 71 assists for 108 points, while Chouinard hit 50 goals thanks to MacMillan's playmaking abilities. Additionally, MacMillan was only whistled for 14 penalty minutes that season and was subsequently named the recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy as the league's Most Gentlemanly Player for 1979.

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MacMillan had a career season with Atlanta in 1978-79

MacMillan came back down to Earth with a 22 goal, 61 point season in 1979-80, which was still the second highest of his career at the time. For 1980-81, the Flames relocated to Calgary and MacMillan made the move with the franchise, where he eclipsed his previous season with 28 goals and 63 points.

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MacMillan moved with the Flames to Calgary,
but soon found himself on the move to Colorado

He began the 1981-82 season with the Flames, but after 23 games, he was sent to yet another franchise facing an uncertain future when he was dealt to the Colorado Rockies. The move to Denver didn't slow him down, as he stepped right into the Rockies lineup and scored 50 points in 57 games, good for third on the team despite playing over 20 games less than his higher scoring teammates.

The combination of losing on the ice and poor attendance in the stands doomed the Rockies and for the 1982-83 season, the franchise was sold and relocated, where they became the New Jersey Devils. MacMillan would play two seasons with the Devils, first scoring 48 and then 40 points in 1983-84.

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MacMillan endured another franchise move, this time to New Jersey

The Devils then traded MacMillan to the Chicago Black Hawks for the 1984-85 season, where his NHL career wound down with 36 games and his final 12 points. He would also play 8 games with the Milwaukee Admirals of the IHL that season before retiring with 753 games played, 228 goals and 349 assists and 577 points as well as 27 goals and 88 points in the WHA.

Today's featured jersey is a 1982-83 New Jersey Devils Bob MacMillan jersey as worn during the Devils first season in New Jersey in their original red and green colors. The move from Colorado to New Jersey was MacMillan's second franchise relocation in four seasons.

The Devils wore their original color scheme from their inaugural 1982-83 season through the 1991-92 season before changing their look to red and black from 1992-93 onwards.

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Bonus jersey: Today's bonus jersey is a 1982-83 New Jersey Devils Bob MacMillan jersey, the white home version of today's featured road jersey from the Devils inaugural season.

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