Charlie Simmer

Charlie Simmer (born Charles Robert Simmer on March 20, 1954) is a retired ice hockey forward who most notably for the Los Angeles Kings in the National Hockey League (NHL) and was notable for his scoring & power play prowess.

Playing Career
After a junior career with the Soo Greyhounds of the Ontario Hockey Association that saw him score 99 points in his only season in 1973–74, Charlie was selected in the third round of the 1974 NHL Amateur Draft, 39th overall, by the California Golden Seals of the NHL.

He split his first three professional seasons between the Seals and the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the CHL, meeting success in the minors but receiving limited playing time in the NHL. The Seals relocated to Cleveland in 1976, but Charlie received little more playing time.

Charlie was traded in 1977 to the Los Angeles Kings, but spent the season with the Springfield Indians of the AHL, winning All-Star accolades. The next season, he was promoted halfway through the campaign to the Kings, and scored 21 goals in 39 games.

While with the Kings, he played left wing on the "Triple Crown Line" with Marcel Dionne and Dave Taylor, one of the most potent and famed forward lines of the era. Despite injuries costing him significant playing time, he had back-to-back 56-goal seasons & was further named an NHL First Team All-Star in 1980 and 1981.

In the latter season, Charlie almost accomplished one of hockey's most difficult feats: scoring 50 goals in 50 games, with 50 in 51 games. That same season, Mike Bossy became only the second player in NHL history to score 50 in 50. His shooting percentage of 32.75 in 1981 was (and remains) an NHL record.

Charlie was traded at the beginning of the 1985 season to the Boston Bruins where despite the cumulative effects of several injuries throughout his career, he starred for three more seasons. In 1986, he won the Bill Masterton Trophy for his perseverance and dedication to hockey.

He played his final NHL season for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1988 and subsequently played the 1989 season for Eintracht Frankfurt in the German Bundesliga. After a season off and playing parts of two seasons as a player-coach for the minor league San Diego Gulls before retiring in 1992.

Charlie finished his NHL career with 711 points (342 goals, 369 assists) in 712 career games.

At the time of his retirement, he was the last active player in North American professional hockey to have played for the California Seals/Cleveland Barons franchise (even though Dennis Maruk was the last alum of the franchise to play in the NHL upon his retirement in 1989.)

Accolades

 * MJHL First All-Star Team (1973)
 * MJHL Scoring Champion (1973)
 * Played in NHL All-Star Game in 1981 and 1984
 * Named to NHL First All-Star Team in 1980 and 1981.
 * Won the Bill Masterton Trophy in 1986.
 * Named to the Central Hockey League's Second All-Star Team in 1977.
 * Named to the American Hockey League's Second All-Star Team in 1978.

Records

 * Holds the highest career scoring percentage in NHL history for a player playing in at least 700 games.
 * Scored goals in thirteen consecutive games in 1980, the longest such streak since Punch Broadbent's still unbroken record of sixteen in 1922.

Personal Life
Charlie was formerly married to one-time Playboy Playmate of the Year Terri Welles; the couple had one daughter. He spent years as a color commentator for the Phoenix Coyotes and the Calgary Flames on Sportsnet.