Charlie Burns

For the English footballer, see Charlie Burns (footballer).

Charles Frederick Burns (February 14, 1936 – November 5, 2021) was an American-born Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played 749 games in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Oakland Seals, Pittsburgh Penguins, and Minnesota North Stars between 1958 and 1973. He later worked as the head coach of Minnesota in both 1970 and 1974–75. Burns was mainly known for being an excellent skater, playmaker and defensive player who performed checking and penalty-killing. His trademark was the heavily padded helmet that he was forced to wear after suffering a serious head injury while playing junior hockey in 1954–55.

Charlie Burns
Born	(1936-02-14)February 14, 1936 Detroit, Michigan, U.S.
Died	November 5, 2021(2021-11-05) (aged 85) Wallingford, Connecticut, U.S.
Height	5 ft 11 in (180 cm)
Weight	170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position	Center
Shot	Left
Played for	Detroit Red Wings Boston Bruins Oakland Seals Pittsburgh Penguins Minnesota North Stars
National team	Canada
Playing career	1952–1974
Medal record Men's ice hockey Representing Canada World Championships 1958 Oslo

Playing career

In 1959, he was the only US-born player in the NHL. Burns was born in Detroit, Michigan, his family moved to Toronto, Ontario, when he was a child. Burns chose Canadian citizenship when he turned 21 and later played for the 1958 world champion Whitby Dunlops.

Post-playing career

Burns had three spells as a player-coach, twice with the San Francisco Seals (1965–66 and 1966–67) and one with the Minnesota North Stars (1969–70). He coached the North Stars again in 1974–75 upon his active career retirement. Curiously, all of these were midseason assignments. He coached youth hockey for the Wallingford Hawks of Wallingford, Connecticut, in his spare time. Burns died in Wallingford, Connecticut, on November 5, 2021, at the age of 85.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1952–53	Toronto Marlboros	OHA		33	5	7	12	17		—	—	—	—	—
1953–54	Toronto Marlboros	OHA		59	17	14	31	45		—	—	—	—	—
1954–55	Toronto Marlboros	OHA		3	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1955–56	Toronto Marlboros	OHA		20	5	8	13	0		—	—	—	—	—
1956–57	Whitby Dunlops	OHA Sr		40	16	25	41	29		—	—	—	—	—
1957–58	Whitby Dunlops	OHA Sr		31	24	28	52	32		—	—	—	—	—
1958–59	Detroit Red Wings	NHL		70	9	11	20	32		—	—	—	—	—
1959–60	Boston Bruins	NHL		62	10	17	27	46		—	—	—	—	—
1960–61	Boston Bruins	NHL		62	15	26	41	16		—	—	—	—	—
1960–61	Kingston Frontenacs	EPHL		8	3	6	9	4		—	—	—	—	—
1961–62	Boston Bruins	NHL		70	11	17	28	43		—	—	—	—	—
1962–63	Boston Bruins	NHL		68	12	10	22	13		—	—	—	—	—
1963–64	San Francisco Seals	WHL		68	33	36	69	27		11	1	3	4	2
1964–65	San Francisco Seals	WHL		51	27	36	63	19		—	—	—	—	—
1965–66	San Francisco Seals	WHL		40	10	35	45	26		7	1	5	6	0
1966–67	California Seals	WHL		71	22	38	60	29		6	0	0	0	9
1967–68	Oakland Seals	NHL		73	9	26	35	20		—	—	—	—	—
1968–69	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		76	13	38	51	22		—	—	—	—	—
1969–70	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		50	3	13	16	10		6	1	0	1	2
1970–71	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		76	9	19	28	13		12	3	3	6	2
1971–72	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		77	11	14	25	24		7	1	1	2	2
1972–73	Minnesota North Stars	NHL		65	4	7	11	13		6	0	0	0	0
1973–74	New Haven Nighthawks	AHL		64	10	19	29	73		10	1	3	4	16
NHL Totals				749	106	198	304	252		31	5	4	9	6

Coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season						Post season
		G	W	L	T	Pct	Finish	G	W	L	Result
Minnesota North Stars	1969–70	44	10	22	12	0.364	3rd in West	6	2	4	Lost in quarter-finals
Minnesota North Stars	1974–75	42	12	28	2	0.310	4th in Smythe	Did not qualify
NHL totals		86	22	50	14	.204	—	6	2	4	1 playoff appearance

Further reading

• Wulf, Steve (June 20, 2013). "The evolution of player-coaches". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 10, 2024.

External links

• Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database