Cliff Cox

Cliff Cox
Born (1954-10-31) October 31, 1954 (age 69)
Don Mills, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 8 in (173 cm)
Weight 173 lb (78 kg; 12 st 5 lb)
Position Center
Played for New Hampshire
Nova Scotia Voyageurs
Flint Generals
NHL draft 187th, 1974
Montreal Canadiens
WHA draft 200th, 1974
New England Whalers
Playing career 1972–1978

Clifford Cox (born October 31, 1954) is a Canadian retired ice hockey center who was an All-American for New Hampshire.[1]

Career[edit]

Cox' college career began slowly with him scoring just 16 points in 26 games as a freshman. In his sophomore season, Cox' scoring exploded and he ended with 57 points to lead the Wildcats and help the team finish atop the ECAC Hockey standings. Unfortunately, UNH was stunned in the quarterfinals and lost an overtime game 6–7. After the season, Cox was drafted in both the NHL and WHA drafts.[2] He was selected in the later rounds as professional teams typically didn't believe smaller players could handle the rigors of the professional game.

During his junior season, Cox suffered a shoulder injury and missed a chunk of the season. He managed to finish with respectable numbers and entered his senior season looking to give New Hampshire its first deep playoff run. The Wildcats finished the season in second place with both Cox and Jamie Hislop tied for the team lead in scoring. Both players were named as All-Americans but neither were able to get UNH a playoff victory. The Wildcats lost in the conference quarterfinals for the fourth consecutive year and Cox' college career was over.[3]

After graduating, Cox joined the Montreal Canadiens's farm system but had a rough year to start. He played just 30 games with the Nova Scotia Voyageurs, scoring 6 points in 1976–77 He appeared in 2 playoff games as the team won the Calder Cup. The following season, Cox was in the IHL (though still a part of Montreal's system) and had a much better year, producing 57 points. He returned to the AHL briefly but otherwise spent the entire season in Flint. The team finished in the middle of the standings and were bounced in the quarterfinals. After the season, Cox retired as a player.[4]

Cliff Cox was inducted into the New Hampshire athletic Hall of Fame in 1983.[5]

Career statistics[edit]

Regular season and playoffs[edit]

    Regular Season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1972–73 New Hampshire ECAC Hockey 26 9 7 16 16
1973–74 New Hampshire ECAC Hockey 31 27 30 57 30
1974–75 New Hampshire ECAC Hockey 21 17 19 36 28
1975–76 New Hampshire ECAC Hockey 30 34 32 66 37
1976–77 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 30 1 5 6 8 2 0 0 0 0
1977–78 Flint Generals IHL 67 31 26 57 67 5 0 2 2 13
1977–78 Nova Scotia Voyageurs AHL 1 0 0 0 0
NCAA Totals 108 87 88 175 111

Awards and honors[edit]

Award Year
All-ECAC Hockey Second Team 1975–76 [6]
AHCA East All-American 1975–76 [1]

References[edit]

  1. ^ a b "1975-1976 All-American Team". The American Hockey Coaches Association. Retrieved 2017-06-21.
  2. ^ "Cliff Cox". Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  3. ^ "MHOC Year-by-Year Quick Look". New Hampshire Wildcats. Retrieved May 6, 2019.
  4. ^ "Cliff Cox and his life in hockey". YouTube. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  5. ^ "Hall of Fame". New Hampshire Wildcats. Retrieved April 26, 2021.
  6. ^ "ECAC All-Teams". College Hockey Historical Archives. Retrieved May 19, 2013.

External links[edit]