Gary Croteau

Gary Croteau (born June 20, 1946) is a Canadian former ice hockey forward who played most notably with the Colorado Rockies of the National Hockey League. Born in Sudbury, Ontario, he was the son of Earl and Georgina Croteau; his father worked as a miner.

Croteau played collegiate hockey at St. Lawrence University under coach George Menard, and was selected to the ECAC First All-Star Team in 1968. He signed as a free agent with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1968, who promptly dealt him to the Los Angeles Kings. He spent two seasons with the Kings' American Hockey League farm team, the Springfield Kings, and in limited action with Los Angeles in 1968 scored five goals in eleven games. On the strength of that performance, he played with the Kings in the playoffs that year, scoring five goals in eleven games as Los Angeles reached the semifinals. Kings owner Jack Kent Cooke nicknamed Croteau "Bull." After only three further games for the Kings early in 1969-70, he was dealt to the Detroit Red Wings in February 1970.