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Keith Acton

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Canadian ice hockey player (born 1958)

Ice hockey player
Keith Acton
Acton in 2014
Born (1958-04-15) April 15, 1958 (age 66)
Stouffville, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
Minnesota North Stars
Edmonton Oilers
Philadelphia Flyers
Washington Capitals
New York Islanders
National team  Canada
NHL draft 103rd overall, 1978
Montreal Canadiens
Playing career 1978–1995

Keith Edward Acton (born April 15, 1958) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre who played 15 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL), with the Montreal Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars, Edmonton Oilers, Philadelphia Flyers, Washington Capitals and New York Islanders between 1980 and 1994. In his NHL coaching career he has been an assistant coach with the Columbus Blue Jackets, the Philadelphia Flyers, the New York Rangers, the Toronto Maple Leafs and most recently the Edmonton Oilers, who released Acton and fellow assistant Craig Ramsay on June 4, 2015.

Acton ran for mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville in the 2018 elections.

Playing career

Montreal Canadiens (1978–1984)

Acton was selected 103rd overall by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1978 NHL Amateur Draft. He spent most of the first two seasons of his career in the American Hockey League (AHL), playing for the Nova Scotia Voyageurs, who were the Montreal Canadians' AHL affiliate team at the time. He would also play 2 games for Montreal at this time, making his NHL debut on December 11, 1979 against the New York Islanders. In his first game he would record his first point in the NHL, an assist on a goal scored by Guy Lapointe.

Acton would make Montreal's final roster in the beginning of the 1980–81 season. He would score his first NHL goal on October 21, 1980 in a 3–4 loss against the St. Louis Blues. He finished his first full season in the NHL with 30 points in 61 games.

His most productive NHL season came in 1981–82 when he registered 88 points in 78 games with Montreal. He began the season on Montreal's fourth line but his productive play soon earned him a promotion to the first line, where he centered all-stars Steve Shutt and Guy Lafleur. He became known as one of the best faceoff men in the NHL. Acton would score two hat tricks during the season. He would score his first in an 11–2 victory against the Philadelphia Flyers on October 27, 1981. His second hat trick would happen almost a month later on November 21, 1981 in a 9–5 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins. Acton would play in the 1982 NHL All-Star Game.

When his production dipped in the 1982–83 season to just fifty points, his stock in Montreal fell, leading to Acton being traded early in the 1983-84 season. On October 28, 1983, Acton was traded alongside teammate Mark Napier to the Minnesota North Stars for Bobby Smith.

Minnesota North Stars (1983–1988)

With Minnesota, Acton reeled off three consecutive 20-goal seasons. On January 22, 1988, after a slow start to the 1987-88 season, Acton was traded to the Edmonton Oilers in exchange for Moe Mantha.

Edmonton Oilers (1988–1989)

With Edmonton and their high-powered offence, Acton was not expected to help carry the offence and settled into a more defensive role. That spring he won the Stanley Cup though he played just seven games in the postseason. Acton was a healthy scratch through the first two rounds and remained in the press box through the first three games of the conference final against the Detroit Red Wings. However, with the Oilers' coaching staff looking for more speed on their fourth line, Acton was inserted into the lineup for game four and he paid immediate dividends, scoring the series-clinching goal. His clutch play continued in the Stanley Cup Finals when he ended game one against the Boston Bruins by tipping a Steve Smith point shot for the game-winning goal. Despite his playoff heroics, it still proved difficult to carve out a place on the Oilers' deep roster and late in the 1988-89 season, on February 7, 1989, Acton was traded to the Philadelphia Flyers for Dave Brown.

Philadelphia Flyers (1989–1993)

Acton spent the next four seasons with the Flyers. Acton would only play 50 games in the 1991–92 season after breaking his wrist. After his contract ran out, the Flyers decided to release Acton, and he would become a free agent for the first time in his career.

Washington Capitals, New York Islanders and retirement (1993–1995)

During the 1993-94 season he signed with the Washington Capitals but was put on waivers after just six games, and was claimed by the New York Islanders, where he would play for the rest of the season. Acton would sign with the Hershey Bears of the American Hockey League (AHL) for the 1994–95 season, where he would play 12 games before retiring from professional hockey.

Coaching career

After retiring from playing, Acton would become the assistant coach of multiple NHL teams including the Philadelphia Flyers, New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Columbus Blue Jackets, and Edmonton Oilers.

Personal life

Acton's son, Will, is also a hockey player. Like his father, Will played parts of two seasons with the Edmonton Oilers. After playing in the DEL for five seasons, Will retired from playing and is currently a pro scout for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

In 2018, Acton became a candidate for mayor of Whitchurch-Stouffville, Ontario, in the Ontario municipal elections in which he came in second.

Awards and achievements

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1974–75 Wexford Raiders OPJHL 43 23 29 52 46 — — — — —
1975–76 Peterborough Petes OMJHL 35 9 17 26 30 — — — — —
1976–77 Peterborough Petes OMJHL 65 52 69 121 93 4 1 4 5 6
1977–78 Peterborough Petes OMJHL 68 42 86 128 52 21 10 8 18 16
1977–78 Peterborough Petes MC — — — — — 3 0 1 1 0
1978–79 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 79 15 26 41 22 10 4 2 6 4
1979–80 Montreal Canadiens NHL 2 0 1 1 0 — — — — —
1979–80 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 75 45 53 98 38 6 1 2 3 8
1980–81 Montreal Canadiens NHL 61 15 24 39 74 2 0 0 0 6
1981–82 Montreal Canadiens NHL 78 36 52 88 88 5 0 4 4 16
1982–83 Montreal Canadiens NHL 78 24 26 50 63 3 0 0 0 0
1983–84 Montreal Canadiens NHL 9 3 7 10 4 — — — — —
1983–84 Minnesota North Stars NHL 62 17 38 55 60 15 4 7 11 12
1984–85 Minnesota North Stars NHL 78 20 38 58 90 9 4 4 8 6
1985–86 Minnesota North Stars NHL 79 26 32 58 100 5 0 3 3 6
1986–87 Minnesota North Stars NHL 78 16 29 45 56 — — — — —
1987–88 Minnesota North Stars NHL 46 8 11 19 74 — — — — —
1987–88 Edmonton Oilers NHL 26 3 6 9 21 7 2 0 2 16
1988–89 Edmonton Oilers NHL 46 11 15 26 47 — — — — —
1988–89 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 25 3 10 13 64 16 2 3 5 18
1989–90 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 69 13 14 27 80 — — — — —
1990–91 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 76 14 23 37 131 — — — — —
1991–92 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 50 7 10 17 98 — — — — —
1992–93 Philadelphia Flyers NHL 83 8 15 23 51 — — — — —
1993–94 Washington Capitals NHL 6 0 0 0 21 — — — — —
1993–94 New York Islanders NHL 71 2 7 9 50 4 0 0 0 8
1994–95 Hershey Bears AHL 12 5 7 12 58 — — — — —
NHL totals 1,023 226 358 584 1,172 66 12 21 33 88

International

Year Team Event   GP G A Pts PIM
1986 Canada WC 10 3 0 3 2
1990 Canada WC 10 2 0 2 0
1992 Canada WC 6 1 0 1 2
Senior totals 26 6 0 6 4

Coaching statistics

Season  Team                Lge Type 
1994-95 Philadelphia Flyers NHL Assistant               
1995-96 Philadelphia Flyers NHL Assistant               
1996-97 Philadelphia Flyers NHL Assistant               
1997-98 Philadelphia Flyers NHL Associate               
1998-99 New York Rangers    NHL Assistant               
1999-00 New York Rangers    NHL Assistant               
2001-02 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant               
2002-03 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant               
2003-04 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant               
2005-06 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant               
2006-07 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant               
2007-08 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant 
2008-09 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant 
2009-10 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant 
2010-11 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL Assistant
2013-14 Edmonton Oilers     NHL Assistant

See also

References

  1. Columbus Blue Jackets Name Keith Acton Assistant Coach, June 20, 2012
  2. Michael Hayakawa, "Leafs part ways with Acton," Stouffville Sun-Tribune, June 20, 2011.
  3. Acton Joins Oilers Staff as an Associate Coach, June 28, 2013
  4. "Keith Acton, Craig Ramsay, assistant coaches, let go by Oilers". CBC Sports. The Canadian Press. June 4, 2015. Retrieved June 4, 2015.
  5. "Former NHL player Keith Acton looking to challenge scandal-ridden Stouffville mayor". The Globe and Mail, August 6, 2018.
  6. "Montreal Canadiens vs. New York Islanders Box Score: December 11, 1979". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  7. "Montreal Canadiens vs. St. Louis Blues Box Score: October 21, 1980". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  8. Legends of Hockey - NHL Player Search - Player - Keith Acton
  9. Red, Fisher (October 28, 1981). "Allen at a loss for words after Canadiens jolt Flyers". The Montreal Gazette. p. 99. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  10. "2008 NHL ALL-STAR GAME - ATLANTA". July 14, 2011. Archived from the original on July 14, 2011. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  11. "The Philadelphia Flyers acquired center Keith Acton from the... - UPI Archives". UPI. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  12. "Acton joins Eakins on Oilers coaching staff". www.sportsnet.ca. Retrieved December 27, 2024.
  13. Orpik, Hooks (July 12, 2021). "Penguins hire host of new scouts to add to hockey operations department". PensBurgh. Retrieved December 8, 2024.
  14. "Keith Acton Seeks Stouffville Mayor's Chair". Stouffville Media. September 4, 2018. Retrieved October 17, 2018.
  15. "Whitchurch-Stouffville election night live 2018: Iain Lovatt unseats Justin Altmann". Stouffville Sun-Tribune. October 22, 2018. Retrieved November 24, 2021.

External links

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