Tony Tanti

Tony Tanti
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Height Weight	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m) 185 lb (84 kg)
Teams	NHL  Chicago Black Hawks  Vancouver Canucks  Pittsburgh Penguins  Buffalo Sabres DEL  BSC Preussen Berlin
Nationality	Canadian
Born	(1963-09-07)September 7, 1963, Toronto, Ontario, Canada
NHL Draft	12th overall, 1981 Chicago Black Hawks
Pro Career	1981 – 1998

Tony Tanti (born September 7, 1963 in Toronto, Ontario) is a retired professional player. He was a left winger and played the majority of his career in the National Hockey League with the Vancouver Canucks. Originally drafted 12th overall by the Chicago Black Hawks in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft, he also played briefly for the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres in the latter stages of his NHL career. After twelve seasons in the NHL, Tanti began a playing career in Germany's Bundesliga. He played in Berlin for six seasons before retiring after the 1997–98 season.

Playing career

As a junior in the Ontario Hockey League for three seasons, Tanti played with the Oshawa Generals, breaking a league rookie record previously set by Wayne Gretzky. Tanti still holds the record for most goals by a rookie with 81 in 1980–81. He was selected by the Chicago Black Hawks as the 12th overall pick in the 1981 NHL Entry Draft, but was traded after just three games over two seasons to the Vancouver Canucks for feared fighter and able scorer Curt Fraser in 1982-83.

As a proficient scorer in junior, Vancouver hoped he'd bring that scoring touch to the West Coast. In his first full season as a Canuck (1983–84), he set a new club goal scoring record with 45, passing Darcy Rota's total of 42 from the previous season. Adding 41 assists for 86 points, he finished second in team scoring to linemate Patrik Sundstrom. He followed that up with two consecutive 39-goal seasons before earning the Cyrus H. McLean Trophy as the Canucks leading points scorer in 1986–87 and 1987–88. In eight seasons with the Canucks, Tanti totaled 250 goals and 220 assists for 470 points - sixth overall in all-time franchise scoring. He is also second in all-time power play goals with 102.

At the height of his game, Tanti was one of the most feared snipers in the league. At just 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m), 180 pounds (82 kg), he had a knack for eluding opposing checkers and darting around defensemen. He earned the Canucks' Most Exciting Player Award five years in a row (1983–84 through 1987–88), leading the team in goal scoring in that same span. He was also selected to play in the 1984 and 1986 NHL All-Star Game. Although he was unable to play in 1984 due to injury, in 1986, he played on a line with Denis Savard and Mark Messier, and scored the first goal of the event. He was named Vancouver Canucks MVP for the 1987–88 season. Internationally, he played for Canada at the 1983 World Junior Championships and at the World Championships in 1985, 1986, and 1987. He was invited to the training camp for the 1987 Canada Cup, but failed to make the team.

Tanti concluded his NHL career with brief stints in Pittsburgh and Buffalo before playing for six seasons in Berlin, Germany. He has now retired from the game and resides in West Vancouver, working as an agent for a wholesale flooring business. In his spare time, he coaches youth hockey alongside another former Canuck Dave Babych.

Awards and achievements

• NHL All-Star Game - 1984, 1986
• Most Exciting Player Award (Vancouver Canucks) - 1984, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988
• Cyrus H. McLean Trophy (Vancouver Canucks' leading scorer) - 1987, 1988
• Cyclone Taylor Trophy (Vancouver Canucks MVP) - 1988

Records

• Ontario Hockey League rookie goal scoring record - 81 (1980–81)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season	Team	League		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1979–80	St. Michael's Buzzers	OHA-B		37	31	27	58	67		—	—	—	—	—
1980–81	Oshawa Generals	OHL		67	81	69	150	197		11	7	8	15	41
1981–82	Oshawa Generals	OHL		57	62	64	126	138		12	14	12	26	15
1981–82	Chicago Black Hawks	NHL		2	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1982–83	Oshawa Generals	OHL		30	34	28	62	35		—	—	—	—	—
1982–83	Chicago Black Hawks	NHL		1	1	0	1	0		—	—	—	—	—
1982–83	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		39	8	8	16	16		4	0	1	1	0
1983–84	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		79	45	41	86	50		4	1	2	3	0
1984–85	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		68	39	20	59	45		—	—	—	—	—
1985–86	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		77	39	20	59	45		3	0	1	1	11
1986–87	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		77	41	38	79	84		—	—	—	—	—
1987–88	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		73	40	37	77	90		—	—	—	—	—
1988–89	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		77	24	25	49	69		7	0	5	5	4
1989–90	Vancouver Canucks	NHL		41	14	18	32	50		—	—	—	—	—
1989–90	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		37	14	18	32	22		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	Pittsburgh Penguins	NHL		46	6	12	18	44		—	—	—	—	—
1990–91	Buffalo Sabres	NHL		10	1	7	8	6		5	2	0	2	8
1991–92	Buffalo Sabres	NHL		70	15	16	31	100		7	0	3	3	4
1992–93	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		34	14	17	31	73		—	—	—	—	—
1993–94	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		43	19	24	43	50		—	—	—	—	—
1994–95	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		42	25	33	58	114		9	2	2	4	8
1995–96	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		43	32	28	60	56		11	9	5	14	16
1996–97	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		43	14	25	39	42		4	0	2	2	6
1997–98	BSC Preussen Berlin	DEL		41	6	24	30	84		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				697	287	273	560	661		30	3	12	15	27

International

Year	Team	Event		GP	G	A	P	PIM
1983	Canada	WJC		7	0	4	4	0
1985	Canada	WC		10	5	2	7	12
1966	Canada	WC		8	5	3	8	22
1987	Canada	WC		10	6	2	8	6
Senior Int'l Totals				28	16	7	23	40

All Star Games

Year	Location		G	A	P
1984	East Rutherford		-	-	-
1986	Hartford		1	0	1
All-Star Totals			1	0	1

External links

• Tony Tanti's career stats at The Internet Hockey Database
• Profile at hockeydraftcentral.com

Preceded by Denis Savard

Chicago Blackhawks first round draft pick 1981

Succeeded by Ken Yaremchuk