Stan Mikita, who led Blackhawks to 1961 title, dies at 78

Jay Cohen, The Associated Press

CHICAGO — Stan Mikita, the hockey great who helped the Chicago Blackhawks to the 1961 Stanley Cup title while becoming one of the franchise’s most revered figures, died Tuesday. He was 78.

Mikita’s family announced his death in a statement released by the team. No further details were provided, but the Hall of Famer had been in poor health after being diagnosed with a brain disorder called Lewy body dementia.

“He was surrounded by his loving family whom he fiercely loved,” the family said in the statement.

Mikita spent his entire career with Chicago, beginning with his NHL debut in 1959 and running through his retirement after playing 17 games in the 1979-80 season. He is the franchise’s career leader for assists (926), points (1,467) and games played (1,394), and is second to former teammate Bobby Hull with 541 goals.

Mikita remains the only NHL player in history to win the Art Ross (scoring champion), Hart (MVP) and Lady Byng (sportsmanship) trophies in the same season, and he accomplished the feat in consecutive years in 1967 and 1968. He became the first player to have his jersey retired by the Blackhawks in 1980, and was inducted into the Hall of Fame three years later.

He was named one of the top 100 NHL players of all time by The Canadian Press in 2017. Born is the Slovak Republic before moving from Czechoslovakia to St. Catharines, Ont., as a young boy, Mikita was on Canada’s roster for the 1972 Summit Series, but was limited to two games due to injury.

Mikita’s relationship with the Blackhawks deteriorated over time, but the franchise reached out to the former captain after longtime owner William Wirtz died in 2007 and his son, Rocky, took over. Mikita and Hull each became a team ambassador and were honoured with bronze statues outside the United Center.

Mikita was a regular at home games before his health deteriorated, drawing loud cheers when he was shown on the videoboard, often with Hull right beside him.

“I was proud to wear the Indianhead uniform for 22 years,” Mikita said when he was honoured before a 2008 home game.

The five-foot-nine Mikita was just 18 when he was promoted from the Ontario Hockey Association’s St. Catharines Teepees to join a mediocre Blackhawks franchise in 1959. He made his debut at home against mighty Montreal, and his first faceoff came against Jean Beliveau during his prime.

“I was still in a daze when I went out to take that faceoff against a legend like Beliveau, who was around six-foot-five and a towering presence on the ice,” Mikita wrote in his 2011 book, “Forever a Blackhawk.”

“He had to outweigh me by 60 pounds. The faceoff was in Montreal’s end. I looked up at him from the circle and wound up staring at his belly button. That’s how tall he was. My knees were shaking. My head was spinning. Somehow I got my stick down and managed to get the puck to our point man. Don’t ask me who it was. I was too nervous to remember names.”

But Mikita showed steady improvement at the start of his career, helping Chicago develop into one of the most feared teams in the league. He had eight goals and 18 assists in his first full season, and then helped the Blackhawks to their first NHL title in 23 years.

The 1960-61 team, coached by Rudy Pilous, went 29-24-17 in the regular season, finishing third in the NHL. Chicago then upset Beliveau and heavily favoured Montreal, and beat Detroit in six games for the championship. Mikita had 19 goals and 34 assists in the regular season, and then added six more goals and five assists in 12 playoff games.

Mikita and the Blackhawks played for the Stanley Cup again in 1962, but lost to Toronto in six games. They also lost in the finals in 1965, 1971 and 1973 despite continued post-season success for Mikita, who tops the franchise playoff lists for assists (91), points (150) and games (155).

— With files from The Canadian Press.