Passing: Pit Martin, NHLer of 1960's & 70's (AP)

From The Associated Press through The Chicago Tribune:

ROUYN-NORANDA, Quebec - Police divers recovered the body of Hubert "Pit" Martin, a four-time NHL All-Star in the 1960s and '70s, who drowned after the snowmobile he was driving plunged into an icy lake near his home.

Martin, who would have turned 65 next week, lived on an island in the lake that was reached by boat in summer and snowmobile in winter, but there were always tricky periods in spring and fall when the ice had to be tested regularly, said former Chicago Blackhawks teammate Dale Tallon, who is now the team's general manager.

Martin played 1,101 NHL games with the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks and Vancouver Canucks, amassing 809 points from 1963-79.

Martin was part of one of the biggest blockbuster trades in hockey history in 1967, when he and two other players were shipped to Chicago in the deal that made Phil Esposito, Ken Hodge and Fred Stanfield part of a Bruins dynasty.

The 5-foot-8, 165-pound Martin was a strong skater and passer whose best years came on Chicago's MPH line with Jim Pappin and Dennis Hull. The Blackhawks had been planning to honor the line at the United Center this season.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/local/wire/chi-ap-hkn-obit-martin,0,7847443.story