On This Date in Sports March 7, 1989: McDonald 1K
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
Lanny McDonald of the Calgary Flames becomes the 23rd player to reach 1,000 points in an NHL career. McDonald gets the milestone with a goal at 2:46 into the first period. Lanny McDonald would add a second goal in the third period, as the Flames scorched the Winnipeg Jets 9-5 at the Saddledome. McDonald would add five more goals over the next two weeks to reach 500. He would retire following the season, with 500 goals and 506 assists for 1,006 points.
Lanny King McDonald was born on February 16, 1953, in Hanna, Alberta. Lanny McDonald developed a passion for hockey at an easy age. Listening to the radio calls of Foster Hewitt, he dreamed of one day playing in the NHL. While playing junior hockey in Medicine Hat, McDonald became a highly sought prospect. Drafted fourth by the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1973, Lanny McDonald signed one of the biggest rookie contracts in NHL history.
With his flowing red hair and bush red mustache, Lanny McDonald became an instant fan favorite. Nicknamed "Machine Gun Lanny", McDonald made his first All-Star team in 1977, beginning a stretch of four straight 40-goal seasons. McDonald helped lead the Maple Leafs to the Stanley Cup semifinals in 1978. However, after getting swept by the Montreal Canadiens, the relationship between McDonald and the Maple Leafs became strained. Just before New Years Day in 1980, Lanny McDonald was traded along with Joel Quenneville to the Colorado Rockies with Joel Quenneville for Wilf Paiement and Pat Hickey. The deal stunned Toronto and McDonald.
Playing for a dreadful Colorado Rockies team, Lanny McDonald did his best in parts of three seasons, but the Rockies viewing a relocation to New Jersey, traded him to the Calgary Flames in 1981. McDonald excelled in Calgary as his leadership helped turn the team into a contender. The Flames upset the Edmonton Oilers in 1986 and reached the Stanley Cup Finals.
As Lanny McDonald began the 1988/89 season, he was near three milestones. He needed one assist for 500, 11 goals for 500, and 12 points for 1,000. McDonald was able to reach each milestone as the Flames were the best team in the NHL. The Flames would go on to win the Stanley Cup, as Lanny McDonald ended his career as a winner.