"Stickin'" It To the Man...1980s West German Style!

[IrbeFan4Life]

So here she is, the newest piece for the museum. My general opinion of sticks is that they are by and far the most boring pieces of memorabilia for the museum. However, with certain players, exceptions need to be made, whether they be my favorite players, or if their play careers were criminally short. This is the latter.

Born on June 30, 1958 in Winnipeg, Manitoba, but also possessing West German citizenship, Karl Friesen was a competent prospect playing out of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League in the late 1970s before leaving Canada to play pro hockey in Germany. From 1980-1985, Friesen represented the German National Hockey Team 34 times, recording a 9-15-5 record. His competent play got the notice of the scouts of the New Jersey Devils so he was signed as a free agent by the Devils in 1985. He spent the entire 1985-86 season with the Maine Mariners of the AHL, appearing in 35 games and winning the Hap Holmes Award for lowest team goals against average that season. In 1986-87, he got his crack at "the show". He made his NHL debut on October 18, 1986 stopping 27 of 35 shots in an 8-4 loss to Pittsburgh. After two additional appearances, he got one final shot on November 9, 1986, however, after letting in a further seven goals, the team placed Friesen on waivers and he immediately left North America to go back to Germany. He had a long career with various teams in the German Hockey League, and he also played a further 20 games with Germany's National Team before retiring at the conclusion of the 1995-96 season.

In his NHL career, Friesen appeared in 4 games, recording an 0-2-1 record with 1 assist, a 7.38GAA, and a 0.800% save average.

The piece you are looking at right now is a game used stick utilized by Karl Friesen in the 1985-86 Maine Mariners' season. The stick is stamped for September 3, 1985, however exact dates of use for the stick are unknown.

Acquired from: Keith Parker, former equipment manager for the New Jersey Devils

Dates of Game Use: Unknown

Photomatched: No, referenced

[creasecollector]

Vintage. So much awesome ! Congrats on the sweet addition to the collection !

[jameslacarte]

Nice addition!! I remember Friesen.. He didn't play much.. That's when Gretzky called the Devils a Mickey Mouse Club.. Betcha with the Devils success and they're 3 Cups he don't think that way now..