Bryan Trottier

Early life

Trottier grew up in the town of Val Marie, Saskatchewan, Canada, located between Swift Current and the Montana border with his parents and four siblings. His father was of Cree Métis descent, and his mother is of Irish origin. He experienced racism as a child, but his parents encouraged him to be proud of his native heritage. Trottier has one older sister, Carol, and three younger siblings, Kathy, Monty and Rocky. Monty played professional minor league hockey, and Rocky played in 38 games for the New Jersey Devils.

Growing up in the 1960s, Trottier wanted to be like his idol Jean Béliveau. When he was learning to skate, his father would clear out the dam on the creek across their home with a machete, to create a surface to practice on.

As a child, Trottier played for the Climax Hockey Team in Climax, Saskatchewan and for the Swift Current Broncos as a junior.

Playing career

Trottier claims that without his friend Tiger Williams, he would have dropped out of hockey due to homesickness. Trottier and Tiger became best friends due to the special bond they built early on in their careers/academy.

Nicknamed "Trots," Trottier was drafted in the second round, 22nd overall, by the New York Islanders in the 1974 NHL Entry Draft, the team he played his first 15 seasons in the NHL with. He set an NHL rookie record of 95 points and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL's rookie of the year in 1975–76, though the record was later broken by Peter Šťastný of the Quebec Nordiques in 1980–81.

Trottier's best offensive season was 1978–79 when he scored 134 points, earning him the Art Ross Trophy as the League's top scorer, as well as the Hart Memorial Trophy as NHL MVP. In winning the Art Ross, he became the first player from a post-Original Six expansion team to win the award. In that same season, he led the NHL in assists with 87, which he had also done the year before with 77.

Trottier was one of the core players on the Islanders' dynasty teams from the 1980s. He won four Stanley Cups during his time with the Islanders from 1980 to 1983. During New York's first Stanley Cup in 1980, he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP. In 1981–82, Trottier scored 50 goals, the highest single-season total of his career.

During the early 1980s, when Wayne Gretzky set numerous scoring marks, Islanders broadcaster Stan Fischler and head coach Al Arbour nonetheless maintained that Trottier was the league's best player over Gretzky. Trottier was described as a forward possessing an all-around game including ruggedness and defensive responsibility, and there were comparisons to Milt Schmidt and Gordie Howe. Arbour stated, "Gretzky is an offensive genius for sure. But at this stage Trots gives you more things. Defensively, he's outstanding. And he's physically tough. He comes up with his 100 points a year, automatically, along with everything else!"

Trottier was often referred to as the "glue" on the Islanders team, centring his fellow stars Clark Gillies and Mike Bossy on a line known as "The Trio Grande." While the 1977–78 season was Bossy's rookie year, the Trio Grande at one point led the NHL in scoring above the top lines of the Montreal Canadiens and the Colorado Rockies. Other linemates that played with Trottier included John Tonelli, Bob Bourne and Bob Nystrom. Trottier, however, was most known for his dynamic on-ice partnership with Mike Bossy during his prime years with the Islanders until Bossy's early retirement at the end of the 1987 season.

Undaunted by heavy criticism from fellow Canadians, Trottier chose to play for the United States in the 1984 Canada Cup tournament, after having previously represented Canada in 1981, because he wanted to pay back the country in which he lived and because his wife was American. He was able to obtain the necessary U.S. citizenship in July 1984 because he had Métis ancestry on his father's side (Cree/Chippewa). His North American Indian Card (for which he qualified because his grandmother was a Chippewa) entitled him to citizenship in both the U.S. and Canada, as well as a U.S. passport, which was all he needed for tournament eligibility.

Unlike other star centremen, longevity was not Trottier's hallmark. Following his 13th season, his skills seemed to deteriorate precipitously, decreasing from 82 points in 1988 to 45 points just one year later, and 24 points in 1990. After that low output, Islanders management released Trottier from his contract, believing that his best years were behind him and that younger centers such as Pat LaFontaine and Brent Sutter should get his ice time. He ranks second in Islanders history in goals, and first in assists and points. It could be noted, however, that even as Trottier's scoring declined, he remained a strong defensive player and team leader.

The Pittsburgh Penguins signed Trottier as a free agent on July 20, 1990, to provide experience and leadership to a young team. He won the Stanley Cup for the fifth and sixth times with Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992, respectively. Trottier took the 1992–93 season off, returning to the Isles in a front-office capacity, but financial troubles, stemming from poor investments, forced Trottier to re-sign as a free agent with the Penguins on June 22, 1993, and return to the ice with the Penguins for the 1993–94 season. He retired again following a disappointing final season where he scored just four goals in 41 games. At the time of his retirement, his point total ranked sixth in NHL history.

Coaching and executive career

After serving as an assistant coach with the Pittsburgh Penguins until 1997, he took a similar position with the Colorado Avalanche, where he won his seventh career Stanley Cup in 2001.

Trottier was named as head coach of the New York Rangers in 2002, much to the ire of Islander fans. However, his brief stint with the Rangers lasted only 54 games, slightly longer than the halfway mark of the season. In addition to receiving criticism from Isles fans who labeled him a traitor, he drew the rage of Ranger fans as well, who felt he misused his offensively-gifted players—such as Eric Lindros and Pavel Bure—by having them play the neutral-zone trap (a defensive tactic used to slow down the opponent, but also limiting the user's offensive chances). At the time of his dismissal at the hands of General Manager Glen Sather, Trottier had coached 54 games, posting a 21–26–6–1 record and a .454 winning percentage.

On June 1, 2006, Trottier returned to the Islanders as the team's executive director of player development.

On July 29, 2014, Trottier was hired as an assistant coach for the Buffalo Sabres.

Legacy

Steve Yzerman considered Trottier his favourite player, donning the number 19 in his honour.

Trottier was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in his first year of eligibility in 1997. During his induction speech, Trottier spoke about his mother's encouragement of his pride in his Aboriginal identity.

After many of his Islander teammates, including linemates Mike Bossy and Clark Gillies, were honored by the Islanders organization by having their numbers retired, Trottier was expected to be next; his number 19 was eventually raised to the rafters on October 20, 2001.

As of 2025, Trottier sits 13th all-time with 182 playoff points (71 goals and 111 assists) in 221 games played. Trottier is currently ranked 19th all-time in NHL regular-season points. He is the Islanders' all-time career leader in assists and points, for the regular season and playoffs. Trottier was named by Islanders fans as the second greatest player in franchise history, ahead of Denis Potvin and behind Mike Bossy.

Personal life

Trottier has four children from two marriages. Following his retirement from playing, Trottier played for the Pittsburgh Phantoms of the Roller Hockey International league in its 1994 season.

One of Bryan's grandsons, Parker Trottier, captained the United States to the gold medal in the men's tournament at the 2024 Winter Youth Olympics.

Playing statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

Coaching statistics

Awards

• Western Canada Hockey League All-Star team: 1975
• Stanley Cup champion: 1980, 1981, 1982, and 1983 (all with the New York Islanders), 1991 and 1992 (all with the Pittsburgh Penguins), and 2001 (with the Colorado Avalanche as an assistant coach)
• NHL All-Star Game: 1976, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, and 1992
• NHL first All-Star team: 1978 and 1979
• NHL second All-Star team: 1982 and 1984
• Calder Memorial Trophy: 1976
• Art Ross Trophy: 1979
• Hart Memorial Trophy: 1979
• Conn Smythe Trophy: 1980
• King Clancy Memorial Trophy: 1989
• Recipient of the National Aboriginal Achievement Award (now the Indspire Awards) in the sports category: 1998
• Recipient of the Order of Sport, marking induction into Canada's Sports Hall of Fame: 2016
• Inducted into the Saskatchewan Sports Hall of Fame: 1997

Records and achievements

Team records

• Most career games (Islanders) – 1,123
• Most career points (Islanders) – 1,353
• Most career assists (Islanders) – 853
• Most assists in a season (Islanders) – 87 in 1978–79

League records

• Most points in a period (Tied with Mika Zibanejad) – 6 (vs. New York Rangers), December 23, 1978
• Fastest goal to start a game (tied with three others) – 0:05 (vs. Boston Bruins), March 22, 1984
• Most Power Play goals in one game (tied with several others) – 4 (vs. Philadelphia) February 13, 1982

References

References

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18. "Report: Buffalo Sabres Sign Bryan Trottier as Assistant Coach".
19. (2001–2007). "Legends of Hockey – Induction Showcase – Mario Lemieux". The Learning Edge Corporation.
20. [https://records.nhl.com/records/playoff-skater-records/points/most-points-career-playoff NHL Playoff Skater Records: Most Points, Playoff Career] – NHL.com
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