Category
Athlete
Sport
Hockey
Hometown
Saint John
Year Inducted
2008
athlete
Yvon Vautour
HONOURED MEMBER
Biography
Yvon Vautour’s career started in his hometown of Saint John and took him on a journey that included four teams in the National Hockey League. At 16, he was with Laval Nationale of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, scoring 115 goals and adding 193 assists in three seasons. His 10-year pro journey then started with Muskegon Mohawks of the International League, scoring 43 goals. He later won a Central Hockey League championship with Fort Worth Texans. A prolific goal-scorer in the minor pros, he became an outstanding NHL defensive player and penalty-killer, when he suited up with New York Islanders, Colorado Rockies, Quebec Nordique and New Jersey Devils. He later turned to coaching, spending three seasons as an assistant with the AHL’s Saint John Flames, who won the 2001 Calder Cup. A leader throughout his career, Vautour is also in the Saint John Sports Hall of Fame. Inducted into the New Brunswick Sports Hall of Fame, May 31, 2008.
Quick Facts
Captain of every team for which he played during his time in the minor pros.
Won the Adams Cup and a league championship in 1978 while playing with the Central Hockey League's Fort Worth Texans ('77 to '79).
Began his NHL career with the New York Islanders in the 1979-80 season before being traded to the Colorado Rockies, where he played from 1980 to 1982.
He then moved to the New Jersey Devils for parts of the 1982-83 and 1983-84 seasons. He spent some time in the American Hockey League and Central Hockey League before returning to the NHL to play for the Quebec Nordiques for the 1984-85 season.
Played 204 National Hockey League games, scoring 26 goals and 33 assists with the New York Islanders, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils, and Quebec Nordiques.
He played 10 years in the world of professional hockey.
Became involved in coaching minor hockey in the Saint John area, and was an assistant coach for the Saint John Flames of the AHL, winning the Calder Cup in 2001.