A tribute to departed legends Episode 70 of the Pro Hockey Alumni Podcast is a tribute to three NHL and WHA players who passed away recently: Tom “Hawkeye” Webster, Pat “Whitey” Stapleton and John “Tank Hughes. We begin with a look back at the remarkable career of Tom Webster. Tom was my favorite Whaler in the early days of the franchise. In fact, in my very first trip to Whalers Gift Store in 1975, I purchased a Whalers #8 replica sweater. Tom was the Whalers first star, scoring 52 goals to lead the Whalers to the WHA championship in 1973. Although Tom had been a 30-goal scorer with the Detroit Red Wings, he was a high-risk signing with New England due to severe back injuries that limited him to just 12 NHL games with the California Golden Seals in 1971-72. As noted, Tom was beset by back injuries throughout his WHA career but he scored 220 goals in 352 games and added 28 more in 43 playoff games … based on 80 games, Tom averaged over 50 goals per season in the WHA. Tom went ...