Vintage Minnesota Hockey - History

KEITH “HUFFER” CHRISTIANSEN
2005 Hall of Fame Enshrinee

Christiansen, a native of Ft. Francis, Ontario, further developed his hockey career when he moved across the border and began his outstanding high school career while playing for International Falls, MN in the early 1960s. During those years, he helped lead the Broncos to the 1962 Minnesota State High School Hockey Championship while being named to the All-State Team.

Moving on the Division I hockey at the University of Minnesota - Duluth, Christiansen was a key figure in helping to elevate the UMD program into national prominence. During his career, he amassed 196 points in 102 games and shared the UMD record for the most points scored in one game (6) which occurred in the inaugural game at the Duluth Arena against the Minnesota Golden Gophers.  He was the first UMD Bulldog to lead the WCHA in scoring and was named the leagues’ player of the year in 1966-67. Other collegiate honors include MVP as a freshman, junior, and senior, NCAA All-American and all WCHA first team in 1966-67, and UMD’s Outstanding Senior Athlete Award in 1966-67 after he was team captain.  In 1988, Christiansen was granted the honor of being the only UMD athlete to have his jersey (#9) retired.  

In International competition, Christiansen represented the United States at the 1969, 1970, and 1971 World Tournaments.  He was captain and one of the leading scorers for the 1972 silver medal winning United States Olympic Team in Sapporo, Japan.

In 1972, after the Olympic Games, Christiansen went to play major league professional hockey and was signed by the Minnesota Fighting Saints in the newly formed World Hockey Association (WHA).  He retired from hockey in 1975 after helping the Fighting Saints to the playoffs in 1972-73 and 1973-74.

Christiansen became a Charter Member of the University of Minnesota-Duluth, Athletic Hall of Fame in 1991, was honored as one of the “Top 50 Players in 50 Years” of the WCHA in 2002, and was inducted into the Duluth Entertainment Convention Center Athletic Hall of Fame in 2004.

LANE MACDONALD
2005 United States Hockey Hall of Fame Enshrinee

A Wisconsin native, Lane MacDonald played collegiate hockey at Harvard University and led the Crimson to the 1989 National Championship as captain.  MacDonald capped his 1989 season by winning college hockey’s top individual honor, the Hobey Baker Memorial Award.  

As a forward, MacDonald is Harvard’s all-time leading goal scorer with 111 goals and second all-time leading scorer with 225 total points.  A two-time All-American in 1987 and 1989, MacDonald was also a two-time Hobey Baker Award finalist.  He was named ECAC Player of the Year in 1989, MVP of the ECAC Tournament in 1987 and was voted All-ECAC First Team and All-Ivy League First Team in 1987 and 1989.  MacDonald still holds the ECAC record for most playoff points in one season with 15 points in four games and most career playoff points with 39 points in 16 games.  He holds Harvard records for most career power-play goals (52) and shorthanded goals (12) and also has the second-highest, single-season goal total in Crimson history with 37 goals in 32 games played during the 1986-87 season.  MacDonald helped lead the Crimson to four NCAA Tournaments, three Final Four appearances and two national championship games in 1986 and 1989 (when he was named to the All-Tournament Team).  He was also named MVP of the Beanpot Tournament in 1989 leading Harvard to the championship.

MacDonald has represented USA Hockey in three international tournaments. Most notably, he starred in the 1988 Olympic Games in Calgary, Alberta, where he co-led the team with six goals in six games, including two goals against the Soviet Union.  MacDonald also played a key role on the 1986 bronze-medal winning U.S. National Junior Team that competed at the World Junior Championships in Hamilton, Ontario.  The bronze medal in 1986 represented USA Hockey’s first-ever medal in the World Junior Championships.

A third round draft choice of Calgary and subsequently traded to the Hartford Whalers, MacDonald was forced to give up hockey after college due to recurring head injuries which he battled throughout his career.  

MacDonald comes from a hockey family as his father, Lowell, played in the NHL for 14 seasons and was a three-time NHL All-Star.  His brother, Lowell Jr., also played hockey at Colgate University.  

MacDonald graduated with honors from Harvard University with a degree in Economics and received an MBA from the Stanford University Graduate School of Business.  He resides in Weston, Massachusetts with his wife Wendy and two children, Cate and Ben.

MAURICE “MOE” ROBERTS
2005 United States Hockey Hall of Fame Enshrinee

Moe Roberts learned his hockey in Somerville, MA, where he played in high school before moving on to be the back-up goaltender with the major league amateur Boston Athletic Association Unicorns.  It was there that Boston Bruins’ General Mgr/Coach Art Ross spotted him and signed him as a practice goalie and stick boy.  It was in that role that Moe relieved the injured Charlie Stewart and went on to lead his team to victory over the Montreal Maroons.  That game launched a lifetime in hockey that saw the 5’9”, 165 lb Roberts play with a number of teams in various leagues to include a return to the NHL with the New York Americans and Chicago Blackhawks.  It was, however, in Cleveland with the Falcons and Barons that he achieved his greatest success.

Arriving in Cleveland for the 1933-34 campaign, he would play there through the 1941-42 season after which he left for WWII Navy service.  The 1937-38 Barons finished first in the league’s Western Division, compiling a 21 game winning streak during which Moe recorded four of his five shutouts.  His efforts resulted in a spot on the league’s second all-star team and a 2.20 GAA.

The 1938-39 Barons would go on to win the Calder Cup, the AHL’s Stanley Cup, defeating Philadelphia.  During the regular season, Roberts came up with four shutouts and a 2.43 GAA while in the playoffs he equaled his regular season shutout total in only nine games while posting a sterling 1.13 GAA. Moe would make the AHL’s first all-star team the following year as he was honored with a special night on December 18, 1940, but the Barons failed to make the playoffs.  They returned to Calder Cup winning status in 1940-41, but Roberts would miss the final five play-off games because of an injury. However, there was a little doubt that his play was instrumental in Cleveland’s eventual cup win over Hershey.

Moe played one year of senior amateur hockey after WWII and then retired. Roberts compiled a distinguished record in minor professional hockey over a period of sixteen years.  During those years, he compiled a GAA of 2.48 while shutting out the opposition 56 times.  His playoff numbers were 2.38 with five shutouts.

MURRAY WILLIAMSON 
2005 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame Enshrinee

While playing senior hockey in Eveleth, Minnesota, Williamson was noticed by the legendary John Mariucci and was recruited to play for the University of Minnesota in 1955.  His collegiate hockey skills eventually culminated with All-American honors in 1959.

Following a short semi-pro career in Ontario, Williamson took on the role as player/coach and general manager of the St. Paul Steers in the USHL from 1962-1966.  That team eventually became the U.S. National Team launching Williamson into an illustrious international coaching career beginning with the world tournament in Vienna, Austria, in 1967 and continuing through the World Tournament in Winnipeg, Canada in 1974.  In 1970, he coached the U.S. Team to the gold medal in the World Championships and the 1972 Olympic Games.  Williamson’s guidance over the U.S. National Teams shook the world with a silver medal at the 1972 Olympics in Sapporo, Japan. That team compiled an impressive domestic record of 60 wins, 6 losses, and 4 ties.

As a coach and a mentor, Williamson was active in promoting the sport of hockey to youth hockey players from all over the world.  In 1968, he helped to co-find the first formal Youth Hockey Camp in the world at Bemidji, MN. Through his active participation spanning thirty-two years, he has been instrumental in helping teach hockey skills to over 30,000 youth hockey players from over 423 states and 15 foreign countries.

In 1973, Williamson was behind the formation of two hockey projects that are still in operation today; the formation of the six team Midwest Junior Hockey League (known as the USHL Junior League), and the inaugural U.S. National Junior Team which he coached in the first ever World Junior Championships in Leningrad, Russia.

Always striving to promote hockey, Williamson in 1980, became very active to develop the founding committee for the creation of the Hobey Baker Memorial Award and helped to implement the program.  In 2000, Williamson was awarded the honor of being inducted into the Massachusetts Hockey Hall of Fame.