Chicago Blackhawks Greatest 100- #59 Bob Probert

I’m sure there are a lot of Chicago Blackhawks fans that became hockey fans for the simple reason of watching Bob Probert drop his gloves while defending his turf for the Chicago Blackhawks. 

It’s hard to believe that Bob Probert passed away over 7 years ago at the age of 45.  He lived a hard life on and off the ice, but many came to the game because of his job class in that era of the NHL.

When you look back at Probert’s career, it’s not like he was just a big guy circling the ice looking to fight without any hockey skills.  He wasn’t John Scott or Brandon Bollig, Probert could put the puck in the net. At the age of 22 he scored 29 goals for the Detroit Red Wings, and he had 5 seasons with 14 or more goals so he was no slouch when it came to the game of hockey.

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Probert signed with the Chicago Blackhawks as a free agent in the summer of 1994, and was almost immediately suspended for the entire year for violating the NHL substance abuse policy.

Probert would go on to play 7 seasons with the Chicago Blackhawks to end his career playing over 400 games and picking up over 1200 penalty minutes in the process which made him a fan favorite at the newly opened United Center.

Probert was a force to be reckoned with while playing for the Detroit Red Wings, but he really was a shell of himself with the Hawks but he always put up a good fight.

Like I said earlier, Probert could play hockey, forecheck, and score, and a cool thing about Probert’s career is that he scored the very last goal at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Sadly, Probert left us too soon in 2010, and his family spread his ashes in the penalty box at Joe Louis Arena after it’s final game this past season.

Probert was a tough guy, but I’d like to think he was a hockey player as well. Where do you rank him in your all-time Blackhawks list?

Next: The Best and Worst Mid-Season Trades By Stan Bowman

Only 59 days left until opening night from the United Center!