First Name: Cam
Last Name: Russell
Sport: Hockey
Inductee Type: Athlete
Year Inducted: 2011
Home Town: Dartmouth
County: Halifax County
Details:

It may be hard to picture now, but Cam Russell was a skilled offensive defenceman who rarely took penalties when he was a minor hockey player. It wasn’t until he got to the higher levels that he adopted the rugged stay-at-home style that produced a 10-year NHL career. As a third-round pick trying to make the Blackhawks in the late 1980s and early 1990s, Russell used his six-foot-four, 200-pound frame to his advantage, literally fighting his way into the big leagues. He accumulated 872 penalties to go with 30 points during a 10-year, 396-game NHL career, mostly in Chicago. In 1991, Russell’s Hawks made the Stanley Cup final which they eventually lost to Pittsburgh.

But the rough-and-tumble role took its toll. Russell had numerous injuries and a dozen surgeries during his playing career and it was a major shoulder reconstruction in 1999 that forced him into early retirement.

Nevertheless, there are very few Nova Scotians that have played more than 10 seasons in the NHL, and Cam Russell is one of them. A rugged defenseman who played in 440 NHL games (396 regular season and 44 playoff games) and once went to the Stanley Cup final with the Chicago Blackhawks (He played 10 seasons with them). Cam was a tremendous junior player and All-star with the Gatineau Olympics of the Quebec league.

Facts:

• Ten years in the NHL
• 396 regular season games
• Stanley Cup finalist
• Stay-at-home defenceman
• 30 points
• 872 penalty minutes
• Twice QMJHL champion with Hull Olympics
• Played in two Memorial Cup championships