{{Short description|Canadian ice hockey player (born 1935)}} {{Infobox ice hockey player | image = NormUllman.jpg | image_size = 230px | caption = Ullman with the Detroit Red Wings, {{c.|1963}} | position = Centre | played_for = Detroit Red Wings<br>Toronto Maple Leafs<br>Edmonton Oilers | shoots = Left | height_ft = 5 | height_in = 10 | weight_lb = 185 | birth_date = {{birth date and age|1935|12|26}} | birth_place = Provost, Alberta, Canada | career_start = 1955 | career_end = 1977 | halloffame = 1982 }} '''Norman Victor Alexander Ullman''' (born December 26, 1935) is a Canadian former ice hockey forward. He previously played for the Detroit Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs of the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1955 to 1975, and with the Edmonton Oilers of the World Hockey Association from 1975 to 1977. His career statistics rank him among the greatest centres to ever play in the NHL, with 490 career regular-season goals and 739 assists for 1229 points. Ullman was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982.
==Early life== Ullman was born on December 26, 1935, in Provost, Alberta, Canada.<ref name="EP">{{cite web |title=Norm Ullman |url=https://www.eliteprospects.com/player/24028/norm-ullman |publisher=Elite Prospects |access-date=February 13, 2026}}</ref> He was one of seven children born to parents John and Madeline Ullman. John worked as a janitorial supervisor for the Edmonton Separate School Board.<ref>{{cite news |title=Father of NHL Star supervised janitors |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/edmonton-journal-john-ullman/173598813/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=Edmonton Journal |date=March 6, 1985|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> His eldest sister died in 1961,<ref>{{cite news |title=Norm Ullman Loses Sister |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/telegraph-journal-norm-ullman-loses-sist/191191286/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=Telegraph-Journal |date=March 23, 1961|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> while his youngest brother Gordie died of cancer at the age of 13.<ref name="Sanderson">{{cite news |last1=Sanderson |first1=Iris |title=With Nary A Word From Norm |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-globe-and-mail-with-nary-a-word-from/191191301/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=The Globe and Mail |date=April 13, 1968|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
==Playing career== Growing up in Edmonton, Ullman learned to skate on a rink built by the United States Army before World War II. He began his minor hockey career playing for the Edmonton Oil Kings of the Western Canada Junior Hockey League (WCJHL).<ref name="Sanderson"/> Due to his commitment to hockey, Ullman dropped out of high school before Grade 11.<ref name="Weston">{{cite news |title=Norm Ullman wants to win |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-weston-downsview-mirror-norm-ullman/191191086/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=The Weston-Downsview Mirror |date=April 7, 1971|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He then skated with the Edmonton Flyers of the Western Hockey League before turned pro with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League in the 1955–56 NHL season.<ref>{{cite news |title=With the big club |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/edmonton-journal/87847001/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=Edmonton Journal |date=September 16, 1955|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Ullman spent the majority of his rookie season on Detroit's fourth line with fellow former Flyer Bronco Horvath.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Powers |first1=Ned |title=Power Plays |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/star-phoenix-power-plays/191278089/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=Saskatoon Star-Phoenix |date=March 1, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He scored his first career NHL goal on October 16, 1955, against the Toronto Maple Leafs.<ref>{{cite news |title=Norm Ullman Scores 1st NHL Goal As Red Wings Regain Their Form |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/edmonton-journal-norm-ullman-scores-1st/191212269/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=Edmonton Journal |date=October 17, 1955|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Ullman finished his rookie season with nine goals and nine assists for 18 points through 66 games.<ref name="tips">{{cite news |last1=O'Brien |first1=Andy |title=Hockey Tips From The All-Stars |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-ottawa-citizen-hockey-tips-from-the/191214195/ |access-date=February 13, 2026 |publisher=The Ottawa Citizen |date=December 31, 1965|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
Ullman improved upon returning to the Red Wings for his sophomore season. He credited his improvement to following the advice of his former coach, Ken McAuley.<ref name="tips"/> Through his first five games of the 1956–1957 season, Ullman tied for second in scoring with five points.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ex-Flyer Second With Three Others |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/edmonton-journal-ex-flyer-second-with-th/191213654/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=Edmonton Journal |date=October 24, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> He was also promoted to center the Red Wings' Production Line between Ted Lindsay and Gordie Howe.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Ralby |first1=Herb |title=Ullman, 21, Fine Pivot For Howe and Lindsay |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-boston-globe-ullman-21-fine-pivot/191291129/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Boston Globe |date=November 8, 1956}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Red Wings Register 3-1 Win Over Hawks |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-morning-union-red-wings-register-3-1/191290784/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Morning Union |date=October 12, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> By the end of October, Ullman ranked among the top five scorers in the NHL with seven points.<ref>{{cite news |title=Ted Lindsay Tops in NHL |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-journal-times-ted-lindsay-tops-in-nh/191290680/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Journal Times |date=October 30, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> Coach Jimmy Skinner credited the Production Line for Detroits improvements from the previous season.<ref>{{cite news |title=Casual Comment On Sport |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-kingston-whig-standard-casual-commen/191291368/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Kingston Whig-Standard |date=November 20, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> By mid-November, all three members of the Production Line ranked among the top of the NHL in scoring and points.<ref>{{cite news |title=Red Wing Production Line Tightens Scoring Chase |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-saginaw-news-red-wing-production-lin/191291530/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Saginaw News |date=November 20, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Production Line Is Setting Fast Pace |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-times-transcript-production-line-is/191291700/ |access-date=February 14, 2026 |publisher=The Times-Transcript |date=November 21, 1956|via=newspapers.com}}</ref>
upright|thumb|Ullman in 1958.
Ullman led Detroit in goals in 1961, 1965, and 1966 and led the league in 1964–65 with 42 goals. In that same season, he missed the overall scoring title by 4 points, second to Stan Mikita, and was voted a first team All-Star.
He appeared in eleven All-Star games during his 20-year career scored 30 goals and added 53 assists during Stanley Cup Playoff action in 106 games played. Ullman was twice the playoff-scoring leader.
He was part of a six-player blockbuster transaction in which he was traded along with Paul Henderson and Floyd Smith from the Red Wings to the Toronto Maple Leafs for Frank Mahovlich, Pete Stemkowski, Garry Unger and Carl Brewer on March 4, 1968. The Maple Leafs and Red Wings were in fifth and sixth place respectively at the bottom of the East Division standings at the time of the deal.<ref>[https://news.google.com/newspapers?id=zCpmAAAAIBAJ&sjid=EoINAAAAIBAJ&pg=842%2C726774 "Mahovlich, Ullman Traded," ''The Edmonton Journal'', Monday, March 4, 1968.] Retrieved January 25, 2023.</ref> Ullman finished his NHL career with Toronto and ended his hockey career after two seasons with the WHA's Edmonton Oilers. On December 10, 1975, versus the Quebec Nordiques, he scored his 500th professional goal.<ref>https://www.nytimes.com/1975/12/11/archives/sabres-rangers-play-tie-rangers-sabres-play-another-tie.html</ref>
==Honours and legacy==
Ullman was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1982.<ref>{{cite news |title=Size not a factor in hall selection |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-hamilton-spectator-size-not-a-factor/191360720/ |access-date=February 15, 2026 |publisher=The Hamilton Spectator |date=June 9, 1982|via=newspapers.com}}</ref> In 1998, he was ranked number 90 on ''The Hockey News''' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.<ref>{{cite book |editor-last=Dryden |editor-first=Steve |title=The Top 100 NHL Players of All Time |publisher=McClelland & Stewart |location=Toronto |year=1998 |edition=Cloth |isbn=0-7710-4175-6 |url=https://archive.org/details/top100nhlplayers0000unse/page/n5/mode/2up |access-date=2024-03-07 |via=Internet Archive text collection |url-access=limited}}</ref>
==Career statistics== ===Regular season and playoffs=== {| border="0" cellpadding="1" cellspacing="0" style="text-align:center; width:60em" |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" bgcolor="#ffffff"| ! rowspan="100" bgcolor="#ffffff"| ! colspan="5"|Regular season ! rowspan="100" bgcolor="#ffffff"| ! colspan="5"|Playoffs |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! Season ! Team ! League ! GP !! G !! A !! Pts !! PIM ! GP !! G !! A !! Pts !! PIM |- | 1951–52 | Edmonton Oil Kings | WCJHL | 1 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 | 1 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 0 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1952–53 | Edmonton Oil Kings | WCJHL | 36 || 29 || 47 || 76 || 4 | 13 || 4 || 6 || 10 || 0 |- | 1953–54 | Edmonton Oil Kings | WCJHL | 36 || 56 || 45 || 101 || 17 | 10 || 11 || 26 || 37 || 0 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1953–54 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 1 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 | — || — || — || — || — |- | 1954–55 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 60 || 25 || 34 || 59 || 23 | 9 || 3 || 1 || 4 || 6 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1955–56 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 66 || 9 || 9 || 18 || 26 | 10 || 1 || 3 || 4 || 13 |- | 1956–57 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 64 || 16 || 36 || 52 || 47 | 5 || 1 || 1 || 2 || 6 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1957–58 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 || 23 || 28 || 51 || 38 | 4 || 0 || 2 || 2 || 4 |- | 1958–59 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 || 22 || 36 || 58 || 42 | — || — || — || — || — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1959–60 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 24 || 34 || 58 || 46 | 6 || 2 || 2 || 4 || 0 |- | 1960–61 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 28 || 42 || 70 || 34 | 11 || 0 || 4 || 4 || 4 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1961–62 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 26 || 38 || 64 || 54 | — || — || — || — || — |- | 1962–63 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 26 || 30 || 56 || 53 | 11 || 4 || 12 || 16 || 14 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1963–64 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 61 || 21 || 30 || 51 || 55 | 14 || 7 || 10 || 17 || 6 |- | 1964–65 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 42 || 41 || 83 || 70 | 7 || 6 || 4 || 10 || 2 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1965–66 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 70 || 31 || 41 || 72 || 35 | 12 || 6 || 9 || 15 || 12 |- | 1966–67 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 68 || 26 || 44 || 70 || 26 | — || — || — || — || — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1967–68 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 58 || 30 || 25 || 55 || 26 | — || — || — || — || — |- | 1967–68 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 13 || 5 || 12 || 17 || 2 | — || — || — || — || — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1968–69 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 75 || 35 || 42 || 77 || 41 | 4 || 1 || 0 || 1 || 0 |- | 1969–70 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 74 || 18 || 42 || 60 || 37 | — || — || — || — || — |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1970–71 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 73 || 34 || 51 || 85 || 24 | 6 || 0 || 2 || 2 || 2 |- | 1971–72 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 77 || 23 || 50 || 73 || 26 | 5 || 1 || 3 || 4 || 6 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1972–73 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 65 || 20 || 35 || 55 || 10 | — || — || — || — || — |- | 1973–74 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 78 || 22 || 47 || 69 || 12 | 4 || 1 || 1 || 2 || 0 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1974–75 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 80 || 9 || 26 || 35 || 8 | 7 || 0 || 0 || 0 || 2 |- | 1975–76 | Edmonton Oilers | WHA | 77 || 31 || 56 || 87 || 12 | 4 || 1 || 3 || 4 || 2 |- bgcolor="#f0f0f0" | 1976–77 | Edmonton Oilers | WHA | 67 || 16 || 27 || 43 || 28 | 5 || 0 || 3 || 3 || 0 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | NHL totals ! 1,410 !! 490 !! 739 !! 1,229 !! 712 ! 106 !! 30 !! 53 !! 83 !! 67 |- bgcolor="#e0e0e0" ! colspan="3" | WHA totals ! 144 !! 47 !! 83 !! 130 !! 40 ! 9 !! 1 !! 6 !! 7 !! 2 |}
==Career awards== *1965: Most goals (Later called Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy)
==See also== *List of NHL statistical leaders *List of NHL players with 1,000 points *List of NHL players with 1,000 games played
==References== {{reflist}}
==External links== *{{icehockeystats|legendsm=P198203}}
{{S-start}} {{succession box | before = Bobby Hull | title = NHL Goal Leader | years = 1965 | after = Bobby Hull}} {{S-end}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ullman, Norm}} Category:1935 births Category:Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Category:Canadian ice hockey centres Category:Canadian people of German descent Category:Detroit Red Wings players Category:Edmonton Flyers (WHL) players Category:Edmonton Oil Kings (WCHL) players Category:Edmonton Oilers (WHA) players Category:Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Category:Ice hockey people from Alberta Category:Living people Category:Toronto Maple Leafs players Category:20th-century Canadian sportsmen