Bob Pleasure, former Rangers and Blues player, dead at 78

According to several players, Bob Pledger of the NHL Defense, who spent more than 50 years with the Blues as a player, coach, scout and ambassador, died Wednesday after a two-vehicle crash on the St. Louis Highway. He was 78.

An unknown woman in the other car involved in the crash on Interstate 64 was being treated at a hospital for minor injuries, Police told CBS affiliate KMOV.

Details surrounding the accident were scarce.

“It is unimaginable to imagine the St. Louis Blues without Bobby Plagger,” the Blues said in a statement.

Known for his trademark hip check and run out of ice, which once included Sending a teammate’s false teeth home during a long road trip, They are “Mr.” Blue ”grew up in Ontario, Canada and began his career with the Rangers in 1964.

In his first game with the Rangers at the old Madison Square Garden, after giving the Chicago Blackhawks a crushing hit on Hall of Famer Bobby Hull, Pleasure placed himself in front of fans.

“For the next game, fans have Bob Pleasure banners hanging from the balcony,” Plager In 2017 PuckStruck.com was recalled.

His time in New York lasted just 29 games before being traded to the Blues as part of the 1967 NHL expansion draft, which included a league of six teams, including St. Louis and five other franchises.

The 5-foot-11, 195-pound Brewer immediately became an important part of the Blues team that lost its first three seasons in the Stanley Cup Finals each time.

He played four of his 11 seasons in St. Louis with brothers Bill and Barclay – in 1972, the trio leaped to the stands in Philadelphia when Flyers fans danced their head coach, Al Arbor, with a beer.

Plager, whose No. 5 pick for the Raptors in 2017, retired from the NHL in 1977 after 645 NHL games, including 20 goals, 126 assists and 800 penalty minutes.

He topped a lesser professional hockey league for a few years and joined the Blues front office, where he would work for the rest of his life.

After years of success as a scout, he became a minor league coach and was named head coach of the Blues in 1992, but resigned after just 11 games because he was not happy in his new role. He returned to his post as vice president of player development.

Pleasure has since served as the team’s ambassador, and saw the Blues win their first Stanley Cup in 2019.

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