Jim Wiste

James Andrew Wiste (born February 18, 1946, died January 2, 2018) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who spent parts of three seasons in the National Hockey League between 1968 and 1971. He was an original member of the Vancouver Canucks upon their entry into the NHL in 1970, although his time with the club would be limited.

Wiste was a college hockey star at the University of Denver, where he was named a Western Collegiate Hockey Association First-Team All-Star and NCAA First-Team All-American in both 1966–67 and 1967–68. He would also lead Denver to a memorable triumph over the University of North Dakota in the 1968 NCAA Championship game.

Following his graduation, Wiste was signed as a free agent by the NHL Chicago Black Hawks in 1968, one of three University of Denver teammates to join Chicago along with Keith Magnuson and Cliff Koroll. He would establish himself as a quality scorer in minor-pro, but unlike Magnuson and Koroll who both became fixtures in the Chicago lineup for more than a decade, Wiste found the adjustment to the NHL difficult, and found it hard to get icetime on a deep Black Hawk team. After a 3-game stint in Chicago in 1968–69, he spent most of the 1969–70 campaign with the Black Hawks, but was often a healthy scratch and failed to record a goal in 26 games.

Exposed by Chicago in the 1970 NHL Expansion Draft, Wiste was claimed by the Vancouver Canucks. He was a member of the inaugural Vancouver Canuck squad in 1970–71, but again struggled to produce. After recording just 1 goal and 3 points through 23 games, he was re-assigned to the Seattle Totems of the WHL.

After another season in the minors, Wiste was one of many fringe NHL players to jump to the rival upstart World Hockey Association for the 1972–73 campaign, signing with the Cleveland Crusaders. In Cleveland, he would experience the most successful portion of his career, recording totals of 71 and 58 points in his two years there.

Wiste moved to the Indianapolis Racers for the 1974–75 season, but slumped to totals of 13 goals and 41 points. After a poor start to the 1975–76 campaign, Wiste was assigned to the minors and would eventually retire.

Wiste recorded 1 goal and 10 assists for 11 points in 52 NHL games, and added 64 goals and 108 assists for 172 points in 228 WHA contests.

He owned and operated the Campus Lounge near the University of Denver for over 40 years. He suffered a heart attack while playing a scrimmage game at Magness Arena in 2013. Teammates performed CPR and saved him. He had a defibrillator implanted. He passed away on January 2, 2018 at Porter Adventist Hospital in Denver.