Shaun Patrick Price (born March 24, 1955) is a Canadian former professional hockey player. He played in the World Hockey Association (WHA) for the Vancouver Blazers and in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the New York Islanders, Edmonton Oilers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Quebec Nordiques, New York Rangers, and Minnesota North Stars. He made it to the NHL playoff semifinals four times—three times with the Islanders and once with the Nordiques.

Early life

Price was born in Nelson, British Columbia. He played for the Saskatoon Blades in the Western Canada Hockey League (WCHL) as a junior player. During the 1973–74 WCHL season, he scored 95 points, even though he played as a defenseman. In 1974, he was selected to the WCHL All-Star Team.

Career

In the 1974 WHA Amateur Draft, Price was selected first overall by the Vancouver Blazers. The WHA had difficulty keeping its draft picks, who often joined more established NHL teams, but the Blazers signed the young player with a contract worth $1.3 million ($8.1 million today).

Price did not meet the Blazers' expectations, scoring 34 points in the 1974–75 WHA season. He joined the NHL after being drafted 11th overall by the New York Islanders in the 1975 NHL Amateur Draft. Price spent most of that season in the minor leagues, learning the professional game.

Price became an NHL regular in 1976–77 and played three seasons with the Islanders before being claimed by the Edmonton Oilers in the 1979 NHL Expansion Draft.

Although he was expected to be a scoring defenceman with Vancouver in his rookie season, Price developed into a well-rounded player. He played 726 total NHL games over 13 seasons, scoring 43 goals and recording 218 assists before retiring in 1988.

After retiring, Price returned to his hometown of Nelson, British Columbia.