Rick Blight was a big, solid winger who excelled during his three seasons with the Brandon Wheat Kings of the WCJHL from 1972 to 1975. He was an offensive standout during his final campaign that precipitated his selection as 10th overall by the Vancouver Canucks in the 1975 Amateur Draft.
The Canucks were sufficiently impressed with the shooting and playmaking skills of their new recruit. But they did have reservations about his skating ability and his potential durability in the NHL trenches. Blight jumped right into the lineup in 1975-76, however, and immediately put to rest any fears about his aptitude as an NHLer. He more than exceeded his promise during his first three seasons of big-league hockey. During that time, he tallied 187 points.
But at the start of the 1978-79 campaign, his game seemed to start slipping away. He put his first stint in as a minor-leaguer with the Dallas Blackhawks of the CHL but recovered to finish the year with the Canucks. But the following year, injuries and slumps became his NHL way of life.
By 1980, Blight was made a permanent minor-leaguer, with the exception of 2 games as an LA King in 1982. Otherwise he collected mounds of travel points with stops in Dallas, Cincinnati, Wichita, Moncton, New Haven and Switzerland before hanging up his blades in 1983.
