Hall-of-Famer Norm Ullman: A distinguished Leaf

Those who follow VLM know that I really enjoy talking about the "old" days, especially recalling those times when the Leafs were very good and actually building a mini-dynasty in the late 1950s and early '60s.  One Maple Leaf I haven't talked about nearly enough here is an individual who came to the organization a bit later, but nonetheless brought a lot of class to the organization.

In fact, Normie Ullman may have been one of the most accomplished individuals ever to play for the Toronto Maple Leafs. Sadly, though he spent 7 plus seasons in blue and white, he arrived at a time when the team was in aging and in decline, late in the 1967-’68 season.  By the time new General Manager Jim Gregory had re-molded the team in the early ‘70s, then owner Harold Ballard refused to take the threat and existence of the new World Hockey Association seriously.  Just when the franchise—with Ullman as a center-ice mainstay, still in is later prime years—was beginning to look like a serious contender,  the Leafs lost a number of solid, young players, including rugged center Jim Harrison, defenseman Ricky Ley and future Hall-of-Fame goalie Bernie Parent, to the fledgling league.

This all contributed to making Ullman’s time in Toronto less than it otherwise might have been, in terms of overall team success.

Interestingly, despite being a Leaf for those many years, Ullman was actually best known for his great years with the Red Wings in Detroit. (The old photo above shows Ullman in playoff action against the Hawks at the Detroit Olympia in the spring of '63, I think it was.  That's Glenn Hall in goal, with "Red" Hay and Hall-of-Famer Pierre Pilote #3 looking on.  Ullman is wearing the "A" and celebrating the Red Wing goal...) He played a dozen seasons with the Red Wings—arriving too late, unfortunately, to be part of their early 1950s Stanley Cup successes—and became one of the best all-around centers in the old six-team NHL.  I’ll go as far as to suggest that he was perhaps one of the finest all-around players in the old six-team NHL.  I remember him vividly as a masterful forechecker and conscientious two-way center.  He hounded guys relentlessly, though you wouldn’t say he was a physical, tough forward.  He used his skating skill and anticipation, much like his counterpart, Dave Keon, in Toronto.

I seem to recall a wonderful season when he scored something like 42 goals for the Wings, in an era when that was a huge number. (I guess it is again nowadays...)  Interestingly, he was not known primarily as an offensive player- he was a guy who could check the top centres on the opposing team.  Alex Delvechhio was the "number-one" centerman in Detroit, playing on a line with Gordie Howe.

Ullman, though, was good enough offensively to score 324 career goals before he ever even suited up with the Leafs. That "324" number stands out, because I was in “standing room” at the old Olympia the night Ullman tied the legendary Nels Stewart with goal number 324 against the Montreal Canadiens.  (Ironically, after tying what was in those days a prestigious goal-scoring mark, he was dealt to the Leafs the very next day.  I was in one of my high school classes when I heard the news about the massive trade…)

With Detroit, he had come achingly close to the Stanley Cup in 1961, 1963, 1964 and 1966.  Each time they lost in the finals.  (In 1964, the Wings lost to the Maple Leafs in 7 games, in a series that, as I have posted here in the past, easily could have gone Detroit’s way.)  But Ullman was a smart, intuitive player, so good that he was an end-of-season All-Star twice in his time with the Red Wings.

He was a centerpiece of the aforementioned trade that sent Frank Mahovlich to Detroit in 1968.  While Ullman was a classy, productive player for Toronto, Mahovlich’s success overshadowed Norm’s accomplishments just a bit.  Frank set a personal offensive best in his Detroit days (49 goals in a single season) and then thrived with a great team when he was eventually dealt to the Habs.  (The “Big M” was integral in Montreal winning Stanley Cups in 1971 and 1973.)

Timing is everything, eh?  While Ullman certainly played with some good players in Toronto (including for some years on a very good line with Paul Henderson and Ronnie Ellis) he never had the kind of surrounding cast in his years with the Leafs that Mahovlich had in Montreal. (At right, I've included an early '70s Dan Baliotti photo of Ullman in action at the Gardens against the Minnesota North Stars.  I'm not certain, but I believe that's Jude Drouin of the Stars in the photo with Ullman.)

In his full seven seasons with the Leafs, the team made the playoffs five times, but never advanced past the first round (except for the odd two-out-of-three preliminary series against the LA Kings in Ullman’s final NHL season).   He was a quiet leader, not a rah, rah guy, but he was a tremendous influence on emerging Leaf players like Darryl Sittler, who ultimately become a very respected captain with the Leafs.

Ullman finished his career in the WHA with the Oilers, retiring at the age of 41, adding to his NHL total of 490 goals.  While he never won a Cup, he was a clutch player, averaging almost a point a game in more than 100 NHL playoff games with the Wings and Leafs.  He was a deserving inductee in to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

I only wish he had been a Leaf a lot sooner.