Height: 5-10
Weight: 170
Catch: L
Born: 3 Apr 1945, Montreal PQ
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Regular Season Goaltending Record (key)
| year | team | ||||||||
| 1972-73 | Philadelphia | ||||||||
| Totals: |
Playoff Goaltending Record
| year | team | ||||||||
| 1973 | Philadelphia | ||||||||
| Totals: |
Shutouts
| Date | Opponent | Home/Away | Score | Saves |
| Jan 1, 1973 | New York | Away | 3-0 | 39 |
| Jan 27, 1973 | Alberta | Away | 1-0 | 23 |
• Member, Hockey Hall of Fame.
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It's Always Bernie • by Frank Bertucci • The Hockey Spectator • February 23, 1973
After finally evacuating the Eastern Division basement, the Blazers are finding 4th place harder to reach. They ended their eight-game road trip at 4-4, but lost the last two vital games to Ottawa and Quebec. Which left them seven points behind the Nordiques and New York Raiders. Bernie Parent was in goal both nights for the Blazers. Bernie Parent is always in goal for the Blazers. A syndicated hockey columnist recently rated Bernie among hockey's 10-most-overrated players. He has obviously not seen the Blazers play in 1973. At the end of that trip, Bernie had played 32 straight games. Since December 1 when he recovered from his broken foot, his goals-against average is 3.87. Since January 1, it is 3.20 with two shutouts, one of which went 2:38 into overtime. "I haven't played this much since I was 16," Bernie admitted. Parent will not get much rest from here on, since the Blazers have a long way to go before they're in the playoffs. And Bernie Parent has to be their most valuable performer. "I don't think there's any extra pressure on me," he said. "I know I'll be playing every game and I'm ready for it." While Parent was out for 11 games in November, the Blazers used four goalies, including Marcel Paille, who watches Bernie from the Blazers bench every game. And during that time when Parent, John McKenzie and Derek Sanderson were injured, Danny Lawson for one admitted that Bernie was the most vital of the three. "We really miss Bernie," he said at the time. "We have to have him playing behind us if we're going to do anything." In the last month, Bernie Parent has been playing as well as he ever has as a professional and has personally kept the Blazers in the playoff battle. |
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Parent Will Play 'em All • by Frank Bertucci • The Hockey Spectator • March 30, 1973
Bernie Parent's streak almost ended during warmups before the Blazers final home meeting with Houston March 12. Just before the buzzer sounded to end the warmup, Bernie was hit inside his right knee by a shot. He went down on his hands and knees and stayed there for at least 10 seconds before he got up and limped off the ice. End of Blazers playoff hopes? "I knew I'd play," Parent said after the game. "Warren Elliott (Blazers trainer) didn't even know about it so he didn't do anything to my knee before I went out for the game." So Bernie played in his 49th straight game and won 4-3, making the team's record 28-21 in that time. And he's lowered his goals against average to 3.74 per game. The Houston game was his seventh and 10 days and 5th in the last six. "It's a funny thing, but I haven't felt tired," Bernie admitted. "In the third period tonight (when he shut out the Aeros on 11 shots), I felt better than I did in the first period. I'm used to it. I know I'll be playing every game and that we have to win them all." Which is the kind of pressure that has caused other goalies to live less than normal lives and look for saner employment. "The pressure in this league is a lot tougher than in the NHL," he said. "When I was with Toronto, we had to play Boston, New York and Montreal. We couldn't beat those teams. This team has a chance to go all the way." The win over the Aeros — the Blazers first in four meetings this season — left them in third place, only four points ahead of last place Ottawa. They have eight games remaining, four at home, four away, but only one game with an Eastern Division opponent (New England). Bernie Parent knows he'll play all those games and probably won't ask for a break even if the Blazers clinch it playoff berth with a game or two remaining. "I think at that time I'd rather play all the games," he said. "You have momentum built up and there's no use breaking. When we win, I feel great. After a loss, I'm tired. I have to think positive. It's easier knowing and playing all the time than finding out the day of a game." Parent has a special method for keeping his sanity. "My brother is a psychiatrist," he said. "I call him every week and you better believe that I don't miss a week. He winds up telling me his problems and I do all the listening." After the Houston game, Bernie was still 453 games short of the record goalie streak held by Glenn Hall. If he has any plans of reaching it, he may wind up up a permanent guest at his brother's office. |
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