| Dave Poulin | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Poulin (right) withNancy Reagan andRod Langway in 1988 | |||
| Born | (1958-12-17)December 17, 1958 (age 66) Timmins, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Centre | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Rögle BK Philadelphia Flyers Boston Bruins Washington Capitals | ||
| NHL draft | Undrafted | ||
| Playing career | 1982–1995 | ||
| Coaching career | |||
| Biographical details | |||
| Alma mater | Notre Dame | ||
| Playing career | |||
| 1978–1982 | Notre Dame | ||
| Position(s) | Center | ||
| Coaching career (HC unless noted) | |||
| 1995–2005 | Notre Dame | ||
| Head coaching record | |||
| Overall | 139–197–50 (.425) | ||
| Tournaments | 0–1 (.000) | ||
David James Poulin (born December 17, 1958) is a Canadian professionalice hockey executive and former player. Acentre, Poulin played 13 seasons in theNational Hockey League (NHL) with thePhiladelphia Flyers,Boston Bruins andWashington Capitals. In his post-playing career, Poulin has coached college hockey, been an Assistant General Manager with the Toronto Maple Leafs and has been an analyst on NHL television broadcasts. Currently, he is Senior Vice-President, Hockey Operations for the Ottawa Senators of the NHL.
Poulin went undrafted in theNHL Entry Draft and played with theNotre Dame Fighting Irish at theUniversity of Notre Dame from 1978–1982. He was named to the Second All-Star Team in 1982. Following his NCAA career, he moved toSweden to play forRögle BK. Poulin's head coach wasTed Sator, who was also a scout for thePhiladelphia Flyers in theNational Hockey League. Sator was impressed with Poulin's abilities and called for him to be put on board the Flyers' roster.
In1982–83, Poulin made the leap to the NHL after a brief stint with theMaine Mariners of theAmerican Hockey League. On the second-last day of the season, Poulin made his debut atMaple Leaf Gardens, scoring two goals in a 6-3 Philadelphia victory.
The following season, Poulin was put on a line withBrian Propp andTim Kerr. The line became a dangerous offensive line in the league for the bulk of the next three seasons, and in his first full NHL campaign, helped him set a club record (now since passed) for most points by a Flyers rookie with 76. Poulin quickly established himself as a strong leader and a player that could play at both ends of the ice, as he was 25 years old before taking a regular shift in the NHL. Those attributes aided in his being named team captain on the eve of the1984–85 season, replacingHall of FamerBobby Clarke,[1] who had dealt former teammateDarryl Sittler to theDetroit Red Wings on the day he was to take the captaincy.
Poulin continued to be a strong presence offensively and defensively during his eight-year stay in Philadelphia, and overcame debilitating injuries at key times to help the club win. In 1985, though slowed by knee and rib injuries, he helped a young Flyers club reach the1985 Stanley Cup Finals, where they lost to theEdmonton Oilers in five games. During Game 6 of theWales Conference Finals at theSpectrum, Poulin scored a memorable two-man disadvantage short-handed goal which helped close out theQuebec Nordiques. Two years later, Poulin missed chunks of playoff time with fractured ribs, but contributed to a pair of series clinchers—a 5–1 win over theNew York Islanders in Game 7 of thePatrick Division Finals, and in Game 6 of the Wales Finals at theMontreal Forum. Once healthy, he could not aid Philly in the1987 Stanley Cup Finals, as the Flyers lost to Edmonton again, but this time in a seven-game thriller. For his efforts during the regular season, he was awarded theFrank J. Selke Trophy in1986–87 and was named to the1986 and1988NHL All-Star Games.[1] Poulin also played at theRendez-vous '87 event[1] where he recorded the winner late in the third period of Game 1.
The switch fromMike Keenan toPaul Holmgren as Flyers head coach meant a shift in responsibilities, as Poulin became more of a defensive specialist. By1989–90, Poulin's play was deteriorating due to injuries and inconsistent play of his teammates, and less than a month after being stripped of the captaincy, was traded to theBoston Bruins for former Flyers centreKen Linseman.
In his first season with the Bruins, Poulin, along with former teammateBrian Propp, made it all the way to the Stanley Cup Finals against the Edmonton Oilers, but Boston lost in five games. He stayed with the team for three more years which saw him win theKing Clancy Memorial Trophy and finish as runner-up for the Frank J. Selke Trophy in1992–93. He left the team as a free agent following the 1992–93 season and signed on with theWashington Capitals. Poulin lasted another season-and-a-half before retiring from professional play.
Poulin spent 10 years as head hockey coach at his alma mater, theUniversity of Notre Dame. In 2004, Poulin was inducted into the Flyers Hall of Fame.[1] On July 23, 2009,Toronto Maple Leafs GMBrian Burke introduced Poulin as the club's new Assistant General Manager. In January 2013, Poulin began also serving as the GM of theToronto Marlies.
On July 22, 2014, the Maple Leafs announced that they had fired Poulin.[2] He has since joinedTSN as a hockey analyst on radio and TV.[3][4] He is also a freelance contributor to the Toronto Star newspaper.
On December 31, 2023, Dave Poulin was hired by theOttawa Senators to the role of Senior Vice-President, Hockey Operations.[5][6][7]
| Award | Year | |
|---|---|---|
| All-CCHASecond Team | 1981-82 | [8] |
| NHLAll-Star Game | 1986,1988 | |
| NHLFrank J. Selke Trophy | 1986-87 | |
| NHLKing Clancy Memorial Trophy | 1992-93 |
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1977–78 | Dixie Beehives | OPJHL | 34 | 28 | 31 | 59 | 59 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1978–79 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | WCHA | 37 | 28 | 31 | 59 | 32 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1979–80 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | WCHA | 24 | 19 | 24 | 43 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | WCHA | 35 | 13 | 22 | 35 | 53 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1981–82 | Notre Dame Fighting Irish | CCHA | 39 | 29 | 30 | 59 | 44 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Rögle BK | SWE.2 | 32 | 35 | 27 | 62 | 64 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Maine Mariners | AHL | 16 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | ||
| 1983–84 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 73 | 31 | 45 | 76 | 47 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1984–85 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 73 | 30 | 44 | 74 | 59 | 11 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 6 | ||
| 1985–86 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 79 | 27 | 42 | 69 | 49 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1986–87 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 75 | 25 | 45 | 70 | 53 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 14 | ||
| 1987–88 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 68 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 32 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 4 | ||
| 1988–89 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 69 | 18 | 17 | 35 | 49 | 19 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 16 | ||
| 1989–90 | Philadelphia Flyers | NHL | 28 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1989–90 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 32 | 6 | 19 | 25 | 12 | 18 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 8 | ||
| 1990–91 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 31 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 25 | 16 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 20 | ||
| 1991–92 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 18 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 18 | 15 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 22 | ||
| 1992–93 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 84 | 16 | 33 | 49 | 62 | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1993–94 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 63 | 6 | 19 | 25 | 52 | 11 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 19 | ||
| 1994–95 | Washington Capitals | NHL | 29 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| NHL totals | 724 | 205 | 325 | 530 | 482 | 129 | 31 | 42 | 73 | 132 | ||||
| Year | Location | G | A | P | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | Hartford | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1987 (Rendez-vous '87) | Quebec | 1 | 1 | 2 | |
| 1988 | St. Louis | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| All-Star totals | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Notre Dame Fighting Irish(CCHA)(1995–2005) | |||||||||
| 1995–96 | Notre Dame | 9–23–4 | 6–20–4 | t-9th | |||||
| 1996–97 | Notre Dame | 9–25–1 | 6–20–1 | 10th | |||||
| 1997–98 | Notre Dame | 18–19–4 | 12–14–4 | t-6th | CCHA first round | ||||
| 1998–99 | Notre Dame | 19–14–5 | 15–11–4 | 4th | CCHA first round | ||||
| 1999–00 | Notre Dame | 16–18–8 | 11–10–7 | 5th | CCHA Semifinals | ||||
| 2000–01 | Notre Dame | 10–22–7 | 7–15–6 | 11th | |||||
| 2001–02 | Notre Dame | 16–17–5 | 12–12–4 | t-7th | CCHA Quarterfinals | ||||
| 2002–03 | Notre Dame | 17–17–6 | 13–12–3 | t-5th | CCHA Quarterfinals | ||||
| 2003–04 | Notre Dame | 20–15–4 | 14–11–3 | 5th | NCAA Midwest Regional semifinals | ||||
| 2004–05 | Notre Dame | 5–27–6 | 3–20–5 | 12th | CCHA first round | ||||
| Notre Dame: | 139–197–50 | 99–145–41 | |||||||
| Total: | 139–197–50 | ||||||||
National champion Postseason invitational champion | |||||||||
| Sporting positions | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | Philadelphia Flyers captain 1984–89 | Succeeded by |
| Awards and achievements | ||
| Preceded by | Winner of theFrank J. Selke Trophy 1987 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | Winner of theKing Clancy Memorial Trophy 1993 | Succeeded by |