Sportscasting Wiki
Register
Advertisement

Template:Short description Template:Infobox ice hockey player Peter Maxwell McNab (born May 8, 1952) is a Canadian-born American former professional ice hockey player who appeared in 954 National Hockey League (NHL) regular season games between 1973 and 1987. He has served as the color commentator for the Colorado Avalanche since the inaugural 1995–96 season.

Biography[]

Amateur career[]

Born in Vancouver, British Columbia, McNab spent his early childhood in British Columbia before moving to San Diego, California at age 14, where his father was head coach of the minor-league San Diego Gulls. Peter initially excelled as a baseball player; he entered the University of Denver (DU) on a baseball scholarship and later made the hockey team, becoming an all-WCHA selection in 1973. In the early 1970s NCAA players rarely made it to the National Hockey League, but McNab was drafted by the Buffalo Sabres while playing forward for the DU Pioneers in 1972.

Professional career[]

McNab led the Cincinnati Swords of the American Hockey League (AHL) in scoring in 1973–74, despite just playing in 49 of 76 games, and debuted with Buffalo that same season. While with Buffalo, he scored his first NHL goal on December 15, 1973, against the Minnesota North Stars.

After a trip to the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals, McNab was traded to the Boston Bruins. He enjoyed the best years of his NHL career in Boston, scoring at least 35 goals and 75 points six seasons in a row and playing in the 1977 NHL All-Star Game. He twice scored a playoff overtime winning goal. On December 23, 1979, during a game at Madison Square Garden in New York, McNab, teammate Mike Milbury, and several other Bruins climbed into the stands to confront fans. McNab engaged in a physical confrontation with one fan, and was soon joined by Milbury, who removed the fan's shoe and proceeded to strike the fan with it. On April 9, 1981, North Stars goaltender Don Beaupre stopped a McNab penalty shot, the first penalty shot ever taken by a member of the Bruins in a playoff game.Template:Citation needed Today, McNab is among Boston's top ten career leaders in goals, points and playoff scoring.

The Bruins traded McNab to the Vancouver Canucks in 1984; he played in Vancouver for two seasons before signing with the New Jersey Devils, for whom his father Max was the general manager at the time. He also made his international debut for Team USA at the 1986 Ice Hockey World Championship tournament in Moscow. He retired from professional hockey at the end of the 1986–87 season after playing two seasons in New Jersey.

Post playing career[]

After retiring, McNab began his broadcasting career as a color analyst for the Devils starting in the 1987–88 season. After eight years broadcasting on SportsChannel for the Devils, he moved to Colorado for the inaugural season of the Colorado Avalanche. He was also a TV announcer on NBC as an analyst on NHL on NBC during the 2006 Winter Olympic games in Torino, Italy, and as a color analyst on TNT for the Olympic games in Nagano, Japan. He also served as TSN’s studio analyst and host for the 2002 Winter Olympic Games in Salt Lake City, Utah.

On June 8, 2009, McNab signed a multi-year deal with Altitude, where he started his 14th season as color commentator for the Colorado Avalanche at the beginning of the 2009-2010 NHL season.

Awards and honors[]

Award Year
All-WCHA First Team 1972–73 [1]
All-NCAA All-Tournament Team 1973 [2]
  • † (participation later vacated)
  • Played in NHL All-Star Game (1977)

Career statistics[]

Regular season and playoffs[]

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1970–71 University of Denver WCHA 29 19 14 33 6
1971–72 University of Denver WCHA 38 27 38 65 16
1972–73 University of Denver WCHA 38 32 40 72 18
1973–74 Cincinnati Swords AHL 49 34 39 73 16 5 2 6 8 0
1973–74 Buffalo Sabres NHL 22 3 6 9 2
1974–75 Buffalo Sabres NHL 53 22 21 43 8 17 2 6 8 4
1975–76 Buffalo Sabres NHL 79 24 32 56 16 8 0 0 0 0
1976–77 Boston Bruins NHL 80 38 48 86 11 14 5 3 8 2
1977–78 Boston Bruins NHL 79 41 39 80 4 15 8 11 19 2
1978–79 Boston Bruins NHL 76 35 45 80 10 11 5 3 8 0
1979–80 Boston Bruins NHL 74 40 38 78 10 10 8 6 14 2
1980–81 Boston Bruins NHL 80 37 46 83 24 3 3 0 3 0
1981–82 Boston Bruins NHL 80 36 40 76 19 11 6 8 14 6
1982–83 Boston Bruins NHL 74 22 52 74 23 15 3 5 8 4
1983–84 Boston Bruins NHL 52 14 16 30 10
1983–84 Vancouver Canucks NHL 13 1 6 7 10 3 0 0 0 0
1984–85 Vancouver Canucks NHL 75 23 25 48 10
1985–86 New Jersey Devils NHL 71 19 24 43 14
1986–87 New Jersey Devils NHL 46 8 12 20 8
NHL totals 954 363 450 813 179 107 42 40 82 20

International[]

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1986 United States WC 10 0 1 1 4

Personal life[]

McNab belongs to one of ice hockey's most prominent families. His father Max McNab was a journeyman center who won the Stanley Cup with the Detroit Red Wings in 1950. Max's long career as a player and coach was honored by his hometown of Watson, Saskatchewan, where a recreational park is named after him. Peter's brother, David, spent 43 seasons as an NHL scout and executive before retiring from his position as the senior vice president of hockey operations for the Anaheim Ducks in May 2021.[3]

References[]

External links[]

Template:Navboxes

Template:Authority control

Advertisement