Remember when I said this was going to be a list about my (not necessarily your) top 19 Thunderbirds? Well, I’m going to level with you, because not all of them are going to technically be Thunderbirds. In fact, the next guy on our list was never a Thunderbird at all, he was a Breaker, and before that, a Kamloops Chief! Next on my list, at number 16, is Errol Rausse.
Rausse, a native of Quesnel, British Columbia played his first game in, what was known then as the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) with the Kamloops Chiefs, where he would have a modest first taste of major junior hockey, compiling 40 points in 68 games. However, the next two season saw Rausse turn heads with his blazing speed and high offensive IQ.
Rausse has always been regarded as small, for a hockey player. At the time of his playing career he was listed at 5-foot-10 and a meager 180 pounds.
But that did not stop him from putting up huge numbers. In the first season in Seattle Breakers history, Rausse proved himself an offensive machine. Rausse played in all 72 games that season with Seattle and his legend was cemented. During that 1977-1978 season, Rausse put up 62 goals, 92 assists for a jaw dropping 154 points.
The following season, Rausse had gained the attention of opposing coaches and players, but it did not stop him from continuing his ridiculous production. The 1978-1979 season was Rausse’s final year in the Western Hockey League, and it was a memorable one. Errol continued to light up the league, scoring 65 goals and adding 47 assist for 112 points. He also went to the 1979 World Juniors for Hockey Canada, which caught the eyes of NHL scouts.
Unfortunately, these two Breaker’s teams would miss the playoffs both years, so Rausse never got a taste of WHL playoff hockey.
Rausse was selected by the Washington Capitals, 24th overall in the 1979 NHL entry draft. He spent the next part of four season splitting time between the NHL and AHL before calling it a career in North America following the 1983 season. Rausse then spent the next 10 years in Italy, playing nine of those seasons for HC Alleghe. He remained a point-per-game player in all of his seasons overseas.
Although his time in Seattle was brief, his offensive production and flair could not be ignored. At a time where big, bruising forwards were the toast of the sport, Rausse carved out a legacy for smaller forwards everywhere, showing that skill and speed were just as valuable as size and brute strength.
