Denis Savard

Verified Timeline

Lore & Background

Savard's tenure in Chicago coincided with a period where the franchise sought to rebuild its identity after decades without a championship. He brought a flair for the game that captivated fans at Chicago Stadium, known for his elusive skating and ability to thread passes through traffic using his trademark 'spin-o-rama,' a move performed by whirling around with the puck in a full rotation to defeat defenders. His presence signaled a shift toward skill-based hockey, distinguishing the Blackhawks from their more physical rivals. Savard was the highest drafted player in Blackhawks history until Patrick Kane was selected first overall in 2007. He recorded three assists in his first game and set a then-franchise rookie record with 75 points. His career highs included 131 points in 1987–88 and 47 goals in 1985–86. During his absence from Chicago, he played for the Montreal Canadiens (1990–1993) and Tampa Bay Lightning (1993–1995), winning the Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1993 despite playing through a hairline fracture in his ankle.

In Their Own Story

On June 29, 1990, Savard was infamously traded to the Montreal Canadiens for star defenceman Chris Chelios and a second-round pick (Mike Pomichter), a transaction considered largely in Chicago's favor as Chelios produced some of his best seasons with the Blackhawks while Savard's career began to decline. However, Savard returned to glory in 1993. Kept out of much of the postseason due to an ankle fracture, he served essentially as an assistant coach by game five. After that clinching game, when Canadiens captain Guy Carbonneau took the Cup, he beckoned Savard to join him and let him hoist it first. This broke tradition; normally, as an alternate captain who had waited the longest to win the Cup, Savard would have gotten the first lap only after the captain. He later signed with Tampa Bay in 1993 before returning to Chicago on April 6, 1995, for a 1996 sixth-round pick (Xavier Delisle), ending his career where it started.

Reader's Guide

The 1980s marked a pivotal era for the Chicago Blackhawks, defined by Savard's arrival and his immediate impact. He set the franchise record for most points by a rookie with 75 and maintained elite production, scoring at least 20 goals in each of his first twelve seasons. His five 100-point seasons remain a franchise record. In total, he scored 473 goals and 865 assists in 1,196 NHL games, totaling 1,338 points. He trails only Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, and Patrick Kane for total points in Blackhawks history. Savard averaged 1.12 points per game, ranking 10th best for players with at least 1,000 games played in NHL history. In the playoffs, he scored 66 goals and 109 assists for 175 points in 169 games; his 61 playoff goals with Chicago rank second in franchise history behind Hull. His leadership extended to coaching; named head coach of the Blackhawks in November 2006, he led a young team to within three points of a playoff berth in his second season and posted a 65–66–16 record in 147 games before being fired on October 16, 2008. He currently serves as an ambassador for the organization.

Did You Know?

• Savard was kept out of much of the 1993 Stanley Cup postseason due to a hairline fracture in his ankle, essentially acting as an assistant coach by the clinching game.
• When Savard won the Stanley Cup with Montreal in 1993, captain Guy Carbonneau broke tradition by letting him hoist the Cup first instead of taking the initial lap himself.
• The 'spin-o-rama' move was actually a term coined by Danny Gallivan referencing Serge Savard, though Denis Savard made it famous with his full rotation technique.