Tiger was truly in a class of his own, and he further cemented that today in 1981.
The Vancouver Canucks were taking on the Montreal Canadiens in the Forum, a game the west coast club would lose 5-3. But it wasn’t for lack of fight, that’s for sure.
Referee Ron Hoggarth had his work cut out for him as a staggering 186 penalty minutes were handed out. Surprise surprise, as Tiger was right in the middle of it.
He alone accounted for 31 PIM, second in the game to Habs forward Mario Tremblay, as Tiger’s first penalty came at the 9:20 mark of the first period. He was levied a two-minute minor for interference, then dropped the gloves with Guy Lapointe.
8:17 into the second period, he found himself in hot water once again. Multiple players from both teams were penalized, and Williams was issued two 10-minute misconducts and two unsportsmanlike conducts.
By the end of the season, Williams ended up notching career highs in goals (35), points (62) and PIM (343).
Wiliams joined the Canucks in a Feb. 1980 trade alongside Jerry Butler with Vancouver sending back Bill Derlago and Rick Vaive. He left the team in a Aug. 1984 trade being sent to the Detroit Red Wings in exchange for Rob McClanahan.
Zach Laing is the Nation Network’s news director and senior columnist. He can be followed on Twitter at @zjlaing, or reached by email at zach@oilersnation.com.