Gord Cruickshank
Born (1965-05-04)May 4, 1965
Mississauga, Ontario, Canada
Died August 9, 2021(2021-08-09) (aged 56)
Height 5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight 185 lb (84 kg; 13 st 3 lb)
Position Forward
Shot Right
Played for Providence
Maine Mariners
Johnstown Chiefs
Nashville Knights
Raleigh IceCaps
Greensboro Monarchs
NHL Draft 178th, 1985
Boston Bruins
Playing career 1984–1992

Gordon Cruickshank (May 4, 1965 – August 9, 2021[1]) was a Canadian retired ice hockey forward who was an All-American for Providence.[2]

Career

Cruickshank arrived in Providence in 1984 and had a pedestrian first season with the ice hockey team. Despite underperforming, he was selected by the Boston Bruins in the NHL Draft. Cruickshank seemed to prove the Bruins' scouts correct when he nearly tripled his point production and took over as the top offensive threat for the Friars. He was 23 goals better than the next highest teammate and was named to the second All-Conference team despite Providence finishing 10 games below .500.[3] This trend continued through Cruickshank's final two seasons with the Friars and, though he was not able to help the team achieve much success, he was an All-American in his final college season. Cruickshank joined the Maine Mariners for the tail end of the 1988 season and prepared to continue his professional career the following season.

Just before the Bruins' training camp, Cruickshank injured his left ankle. He ended up needing surgery to fix a bone chip and was sidelined for several months. When he tried to return in February, Cruickshank was out of shape and his ankle still had not completely healed.[4] Cruickshank lost the entire season to the injury but did return for Boston's training camp in 1989. He demonstrated the scoring touch he had in Providence and was assigned to Maine at the start of the season but he found it difficult to get into the lineup. Cruickshank played just 24 games for the Mariners before being sent down to the ECHL to finish out the year. The next season, Cruickshank was one of the top goal-scorers for the Johnstown Chiefs, finishing 8th in the league with 44 markers. Despite the performance, Cruickshank was not called up and spent his third year as a professional bouncing between three teams before hanging up his skates.

Statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1981–82 Mississauga Reps (AAA) GTHL ——————————
1982–83 St. Michael's Buzzers MJBHL 3620244454—————
1984–85 Providence Hockey East 40891732—————
1985–86 Providence Hockey East 3833175080—————
1986–87 Providence Hockey East 3127184538—————
1987–88 Providence Hockey East 3629164531—————
1987–88 Maine Mariners AHL 41120—————
1989–90 Maine Mariners AHL 24981716—————
1989–90 Johnstown Chiefs ECHL 53472—————
1990–91 Johnstown Chiefs ECHL 57443377112823510
1991–92 Nashville Knights ECHL 1747118—————
1991–92 Raleigh Icecaps ECHL 2713132634—————
1991–92 Greensboro Monarchs ECHL 7661201168148
NCAA totals 1459860157181—————
ECHL totals 1137063133156198111918

Awards and honors

Award Year
All-Hockey East Second Team 1985–86 [5]
All-Hockey East Second Team 1986–87 [5]
AHCA East Second-Team All-American 1987–88 [2]

References

  1. ↑ "Gordon Richard Cruickshank". Legacy.com. The Globe and Mail. Retrieved September 10, 2023.
  2. 1 2 "Men's Ice Hockey Award Winners" (PDF). NCAA.org. Retrieved June 11, 2013.
  3. ↑ "Providence Friars men's Hockey 2018-19 Media Guide". Providence Friars. Retrieved August 10, 2019.
  4. ↑ "Cruickshank has nose for puck". UPI. September 26, 1989. Retrieved June 24, 2021.
  5. 1 2 "Hockey East All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.
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