McDonald, the owner of one of hockey's most iconic mustaches, ended his Hall of Fame career on the highest of highs. His last NHL regular-season goal was the 500th of his career, and his final playoff goal put the Calgary Flames ahead to stay in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on the way to the first championship in their history.
Born in Hanna, Alberta, McDonald was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs with the No. 4 pick of the 1973 NHL Draft. After scoring 14 and 17 goals in his first two NHL seasons, McDonald broke out in 1975-76 with 37 goals and 93 points. He scored at least 43 goals in each of the next three seasons and scored the series-winning goal in overtime against the New York Islanders in the 1978 NHL Quarterfinals.
McDonald, the owner of one of hockey's most iconic mustaches, ended his Hall of Fame career on the highest of highs. His last NHL regular-season goal was the 500th of his career, and his final playoff goal put the Calgary Flames ahead to stay in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final on the way to the first championship in their history.
Born in Hanna, Alberta, McDonald was selected by the Toronto Maple Leafs with the No. 4 pick of the 1973 NHL Draft. After scoring 14 and 17 goals in his first two NHL seasons, McDonald broke out in 1975-76 with 37 goals and 93 points. He scored at least 43 goals in each of the next three seasons and scored the series-winning goal in overtime against the New York Islanders in the 1978 NHL Quarterfinals.
McDonald's time in Toronto ended when he was traded to the Colorado Rockies on Dec. 29, 1979. He scored 25 goals in 46 games for Colorado, completing his fourth straight 40-goal season, then had 81 points (35 goals, 46 assists) in 1980-81. After scoring six goals in Colorado's first 16 games in 1981-82, McDonald was traded to the Flames, bringing him back near his hometown.
He helped turn the Flames into Stanley Cup contenders. McDonald's best season came in 1982-83, when he had with NHL career highs of 66 goals and 98 points. McDonald had 24 goals and 71 points in 1985-86, then helped Flames upset the two-time defending Cup champion Edmonton Oilers in the second round of the 1986 playoffs and advance to the Cup Final, where they lost to the Canadiens in five games.
Injuries began to take their toll in 1986-87, when he was limited to 14 goals in 58 games. McDonald dropped to 10 goals in 60 games in 1987-88 and mostly was a role player by 1988-89. Still, he achieved two significant milestones during his final season, reaching 1,000 points by scoring a goal against the Winnipeg Jets on March 7, 1989, and joining the 500-goal club two weeks later by scoring against the New York Islanders.
McDonald was a healthy scratch for Games 4 and 5 of the Final, but he dressed for Game 6 at Montreal Forum and scored his last NHL goal, beating Patrick Roy during the second period to put Calgary ahead 2-1. The 4-2 victory gave Calgary its first championship since entering the NHL as the Atlanta Flames in 1972. As captain, McDonald was the first to take the Cup for a victory lap.
It's fitting that McDonald scored his final goal at Montreal Forum, which was the same building where he scored his first NHL goal, on Oct. 17, 1973.
After announcing his retirement after the Cup championship, McDonald remained with the Flames for several years as a vice president. His No. 9 was retired March 17, 1990, and two years later he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. He served on the Hall's selection committee for a number of years being named chairman of the board in 2015.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- AJHL Second All-Star Team (1971)
- WCJHL First All-Star Team (1973)
- NHL Second All-Star Team (1977, 1983)
- Played in NHL All-Star Game (1977, 1978, 1983, 1984)
- Traded to Colorado by Toronto with Joel Quenneville for Pat Hickey and Wilf Paiement, December 29, 1979.
- Traded to Calgary by Colorado with Colorado's 4th round pick (later traded to NY Islanders, NY Islanders selected Mikko Makela) in 1983 NHL Draft for Bob MacMillan and Don Lever, November 25, 1981.
