Introduction
Richard Claude Vaive (born May 14, 1959) is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League from 1979 to 1992.
He is best remembered as the first 50-goal scorer in Toronto Maple Leafs franchise history.
Biography
Vaive was born in Ottawa, Ontario, but grew up in Charlottetown, Prince Edward Island. As a youth, he played in the 1970 and 1971 Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournaments with a minor ice hockey team from Amherst, Nova Scotia.
Vaive was selected fifth overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft, after a stellar junior hockey career with the Sherbrooke Castors. His professional career, which began in the World Hockey Association (WHA) with the Birmingham Bulls, lasted from 1978 until 1992.
In 1980, the Canucks traded Vaive, along with Bill Derlago, to the Toronto Maple Leafs in exchange for Dave "Tiger" Williams and Jerry Butler. In Toronto, Vaive and Derlago were teamed with Pat Hickey, and Derlago became Vaive's setup man. Vaive scored prolifically with the Leafs, becoming the first 50-goal scorer in franchise history, surpassing that threshold three times. He recorded 54 goals in 1981–82, 51 goals in 1982–83, and 52 goals in 1983–84. Vaive was a late cut from the 1984 Canada Cup team. He also served as captain of the Maple Leafs from 1982 to 1986. Vaive was stripped of his captaincy during the 1985–86 NHL season, for missing a morning practice.
His trade from the Maple Leafs, along with Steve Thomas and Bob McGill, to the Chicago Blackhawks in exchange for Al Secord and Ed Olczyk before the 1987 season was one of several lamentable trades arranged by team owner Harold Ballard in the 1980s. Vaive netted 43 goals in his first season in Chicago but would never manage more than 31 in a season after that. He spent 4 seasons with the Buffalo Sabres before retiring as a member of the American Hockey League's Hamilton Canucks in 1993.
In May 2000, Vaive was inducted into the Prince Edward Island Sports Hall of Fame.
He was found not guilty of impaired driving despite a positive breathanalyzer test given by policeJuly 14, 2009.
Coaching career
Vaive had a career as a professional hockey coach in the East Coast Hockey League and the American Hockey League after his retirement from the NHL, serving as a head coach in 1993 with the expansion South Carolina Stingrays, winning two division titles (1995 and 1997), a conference championship (1997), and under his watch became the first ECHL coach in history to win both the Brabham Cup and Kelly Cup in the same season, in the 1996–97 season. Vaive coached the Mississauga Ice Dogs during the 2000-01 season, guiding the team to the worst record in the league, tying the 1995-96 London Knights for fewest wins in a season. Vaive was fired at the end of the season and replaced by Don Cherry.
Personal
Vaive currently hosts various shows on Leafs TV, an MLSE-run property focusing on the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Vaive has two sons. Jeff, who played for the Streetsville Derbies before moving on to a successful career working for Beam Suntory and Justin, an ice hockey forward who was selected by the Anaheim Ducks in the 2007 NHL Entry Draft.
Vaive has brothers named Ron and Steve, and a sister Barb.
Vaive married Kirstin Potvin on August 5th 2018 in Charleston, South Carolina. The couple chose the venue based on the years they had spent in Charleston while Rick coached the local ECHL team the South Carolina Stingrays.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1976–77 | Sherbrooke Castors | QMJHL | 68 | 51 | 59 | 110 | 93 | 18 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 78 | ||
| 1976–77 | Sherbrooke Castors | MC | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | ||
| 1977–78 | Sherbrooke Castors | QMJHL | 68 | 76 | 79 | 155 | 199 | 9 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 38 | ||
| 1978–79 | Birmingham Bulls | WHA | 75 | 26 | 33 | 59 | 248 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1979–80 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 47 | 13 | 8 | 21 | 111 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1979–80 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 22 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 77 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 11 | ||
| 1980–81 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 75 | 33 | 29 | 62 | 229 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1981–82 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 77 | 54 | 35 | 89 | 157 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 78 | 51 | 28 | 79 | 105 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 6 | ||
| 1983–84 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 76 | 52 | 41 | 93 | 114 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1984–85 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 72 | 35 | 33 | 68 | 112 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 61 | 33 | 31 | 64 | 85 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 9 | ||
| 1986–87 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 73 | 32 | 34 | 66 | 61 | 13 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 23 | ||
| 1987–88 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 76 | 43 | 26 | 69 | 108 | 5 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 38 | ||
| 1988–89 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 30 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 60 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1988–89 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 28 | 19 | 13 | 32 | 64 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 8 | ||
| 1989–90 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 70 | 29 | 19 | 48 | 74 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 1990–91 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 71 | 25 | 27 | 52 | 74 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 1991–92 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 12 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 4 | 16 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 10 | ||
| 1991–92 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 20 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1992–93 | Hamilton Canucks | AHL | 38 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 34 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2001–02 | Dundas Real McCoys | ACH | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 2002–03 | Dundas Real McCoys | ACH | 9 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 34 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 6 | ||
| NHL totals | 876 | 441 | 347 | 788 | 1445 | 54 | 27 | 16 | 43 | 111 | ||||
International
| Year | Team | Event | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1978 | Canada | WJC | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 4 | |
| 1982 | Canada | WC | 9 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 12 | |
| 1985 | Canada | WC | 10 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 16 | |
| Senior totals | 19 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 28 | |||
Coaching statistics
| Season | Team | League | G | W | L | T | OTL | PCT. | Playoff Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1993-94 | South Carolina Stingrays | ECHL | 68 | 33 | 26 | 0 | 9 | 0.551 | Lost in round 1 |
| 1994-95 | South Carolina Stingrays | ECHL | 68 | 42 | 19 | 0 | 7 | 0.669 | Lost in round 2 |
| 1995-96 | South Carolina Stingrays | ECHL | 70 | 40 | 22 | 0 | 8 | 0.629 | Lost in round 2 |
| 1996-97 | South Carolina Stingrays | ECHL | 70 | 45 | 15 | 10 | 0 | 0.714 | Won Championship |
| 1997-98 | South Carolina Stingrays | ECHL | 70 | 41 | 23 | 6 | 0 | 0.629 | Lost in round 1 |
| 1998-99 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 80 | 31 | 40 | 8 | 1 | 0.444 | Lost in round 2 |
| 1999-00 | Saint John Flames | AHL | 80 | 32 | 32 | 11 | 5 | 0.500 | Lost in round 1 |
| 2000-01 | Mississauga IceDogs | OHL | 68 | 3 | 56 | 7 | 2 | 0.110 | |
| 2004-05 | Dundas Real McCoys | OHASr | 34 | 20 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 0.618 |
Note: G = Games, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, OTL = Overtime Losses, PCT. = Winning Percentage