Former NHLer played his way throughout North America

By C. Scott Holland

Sometimes life throws you a few curves, but for a Leamington native and former NHLer, that curve came during his professional playing days. Pat Ribble’s career certainly reads like a roadmap with stops throughout North America.

His rise to the big leagues began of course at the Leamington arena. As a late starter, he began playing hockey at the age of 15.

After making the Leamington Legion Midget team in his second year, where they won an Ontario championship, Pat’s size and abilities were quickly noticed, and by 1971 he had cracked the Leamington Flyers Jr. C lineup. Earlier that same season, he also played a few games with the Windsor Spitfires Tier II Jr. A club.

Ribble playing for the Atlanta Flames, alongside goaltender Daniel Bouchard.

The Flyers won the Ontario title in 1971-72 and Pat headed east to Oshawa, where he made the Generals Jr. A squad as a walk-on. Little did he know, he’d eventually become one of that team’s 184 players to graduate to the NHL. He returned for a second season at Oshawa in 1973-74.

In 1974, Ribble was selected 58th overall (4th round) by the Atlanta Flames and was also drafted by the Indianapolis Racers of the World Hockey Association. He elected to go the NHL route.

Assigned to the Omaha Knights of the CHL, he was first called up by Atlanta for three contests in 1975. He spent the following year split with the parent club Atlanta and Tulsa (CHL).

Over the course of four seasons, Pat became a steady blueliner for the Flames before being traded to the Chicago Blackhawks near the end of the 1978-79 season. Over a year-and-a-half, he suited up for 35 games with the Chicago Blackhawks. He was then sent to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1979-80 and played 13 games before being shipped off to the Washington Capitals, where he’d play parts of three seasons before winding up his NHL career in Calgary in the 1982-83 season.

Pat Ribble, right, with former Red Wings Captain, Alex Delvecchio in the 1990s.

Scott Holland photo

Overall, Pat played 349 NHL games and had 19 goals and 60 assists for 79 points along with 365 penalty minutes.

Before his career wound up in 1987, he had played in the CHL and IHL with Oklahoma (CHL), the Colorado Flames (CHL), Salt Lake City Eagles and Indianapolis Checkers (IHL).

One of the highlights along the way was playing 10 games for Team Canada in 1978 at the World Championships where the team won a bronze medal.

Ribble’s second stop in his NHL career was in Chicago with the Blackhawks.

In the intervening years, Ribble has become involved with several NHL team alumni events and has often appeared with the Detroit Red Wing alumni teams in Leamington.

His career has cultivated many friends and he’s gotten to know quite a few places over the years, but Leamington and Essex County will always be his home.