The Toughest Penguins Ever: Dave “the Hammer” Schultz

Mention the name Dave Schultz to an old-time Penguins fan and you’re liable to draw anything but a favorable reaction. You might even elicit a few choice expletives. After all, “the Hammer” and his fellow Philly Mad Squaders beat on our Pens without mercy back in the early 1970s.

However, some may remember that the NHL penalty king actually sported the skating Penguin logo for a time.

During the summer of 1977, popular enforcer Bob “Battleship” Kelly signed a free-agent deal with Chicago, leaving the Pens without a protector. Although general manager Baz Bastien imported a trio of rugged players, Brian “Spinner” Spencer and former Pens Colin Campbell and Bob Paradise, to help resident tough…