Phil Bourque Explained

Played For:Pittsburgh Penguins
New York Rangers
Ottawa Senators
League:NHL
Position:Left Wing/Defence
Shoots:Left
Height Ft:6
Height In:1
Weight Lb:196
Nickname:The Old Two Niner
Nationality:USA
Birth Date:8 June 1962
Birth Place:Chelmsford, MA, USA
Career Start:1982
Career End:2000

Phil Bourque (born June 8, 1962, in Chelmsford, Massachusetts) is a former National Hockey League left wing and defenceman. He was never selected in the NHL Entry Draft; instead, he was signed as a free agent by the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 4, 1982.

Playing career

Bourque joined the Penguins organization after playing two seasons in the Ontario Hockey League with the Kingston Canadians. He joined the Penguins' American Hockey League affiliate, the Baltimore Skipjacks for the 1982–83 season, and made his NHL debut with Pittsburgh in 1983–84, playing in five games.

Bourque would not become a mainstay on the Penguins roster until the 1988–89 season, during which he played in all 80 of the team's games. He would be a member of the Penguin teams which won the Stanley Cup in the 1990–91 and 1991–92 seasons. He would leave the Penguins after the 1992 Cup victory, and play sparingly with the New York Rangers and Ottawa Senators. Just prior to the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Bourque was nearly killed when he took a 40-foot fall down a cliff near Arizona's Lake Powell. He suffered three broken vertebrae in his neck, a broken skull, a shattered sinus cavity, a broken cheekbone and a broken nose in the incident.http://www.findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1208/is_n1_v219/ai_16045693

Bourque left the NHL after the 1995–96 season. He played with the IHL's Chicago Wolves for one season, and then spent three seasons playing in Germany before retiring following the 1999–2000 season.

Bourque currently works as the color commentator alongside Mike Lange for Penguins radio broadcasts. Bourque is lovingly known by Penguins faithful as the Ol' Two-Niner. Bourque's final segment of the Penguins pre-game broadcasts is known as "Two Minutes with the Ol' Two-Niner." in which Bourque interviews a player, coach, or personality relevant to the upcoming game.

In his NHL career, Bourque appeared in 477 games. He scored 88 goals and added 111 assists. He also appeared in 56 playoff games, scoring 13 goals and recording 12 assists.

Career statistics

  Regular Season Playoffs
SeasonTeamLeagueGPGAPtsPIMGPGAPtsPIM
1980–81Kingston CanadiansOHL4744846----------
1981–82Kingston CanadiansOHL6711405111140000
1982–83Baltimore SkipjacksAHL651151693----------
1983–84Baltimore SkipjacksAHL585172296----------
1983–84Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL501112----------
1984–85Baltimore SkipjacksAHL79615211641325723
1985–86Baltimore SkipjacksAHL7481826226----------
1985–86Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL40002----------
1986–87Baltimore SkipjacksAHL49151631183----------
1986–87Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL2223532----------
1987–88Muskegon LumberjacksIHL5216365266612316
1987–88Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL214121620----------
1988–89Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL80172643971141566
1989–90Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL76221739108----------
1990–91Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL7820143410624671316
1991–92Pittsburgh PenguinsNHL58101626582134725
1992–93New York RangersNHL556142039----------
1993–94New York RangersNHL160118----------
1993–94Ottawa SenatorsNHL112350----------
1994–95Ottawa SenatorsNHL3843720----------
1995–96Detroit VipersIHL3641317701013410
1995–96Ottawa SenatorsNHL1311214----------
1996–97Chicago WolvesIHL77714215040222
1997–98Rosenheim Star BullsDEL40471160----------
1998–99Hamburg Crocodiles2.GBun358202898----------
1999–00Hamburg Crocodiles2.GBun3617857----------
NHL Totals4778811119951656131225107

See also