Ted Tucker

The California Golden Seals found themselves in quite the goaltending hole in the 1973-74.

Workhorse goalie Gilles Meloche suffered a serious injury in November 1973. Marv Edwards, the regular back up, became the starter while Ted Tucker, the only other goalie the Seals had under contract, sat on the bench. For whatever reason coach Fred Glover never warmed to Mr. Tucker.

But Glover had no choice but to play Tucker when Edwards, too, went down with an injury. But Glover quickly turned to another minor league veteran named Bob Champoux, who was signed as the goaltending emergency emerged.

Champoux would go on to play the bulk of the games while Tucker got into only five contests, winning one.

That would be Tucker's only taste of NHL action. He was originally a Montreal prospect but was discarded to the Atlanta Flames in 1972. After his brief NHL appearance he bounced around minor league cities like Toledo, Port Huron, Muskegon, Dayton and Saginaw before retiring in 1981.

Tucker settled in Toledo, where he backstopped the Goaldiggers to the 1975 Turner Cup championship. He was regularly seen on the local golf courses and the rinks, always willing to talk about either sport.