Bruno Baseotto is a Canadian/Italian retired ice hockey right winger and coach. He won four separate Italian League championships with two teams in the 1980s and 1990s.

Bruno Baseotto
Born (1960-03-24) March 24, 1960 (age 64)
Calgary, Alberta, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Right Wing
Shot Right
Played for Michigan
Calgary Wranglers
Flint Generals
Fort Wayne Komets
New Brunswick Hawks
HC Gherdëina
Calgary
HC Bolzano
HC Devils Milano
National team  Italy
Playing career

1980–1993

Coaching career
Coaching career (HC unless noted)
1993–1997Calgary Royals
1997–2000Seattle Thunderbirds (asst.)
2000–2004Saskatoon Blades (asst.)
2004–2005Tri-City Americans (asst.)
Head coaching record
Overall91–130–15 (.417)

Playing career

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A Calgary native, Baseotto played junior hockey for his hometown Calgary Canucks. He was a top scorer for the club, helping the club win the league championship in 1978 and then paced the team in scoring the following year as they reached the championship but were unable to repeat. In the fall of 1979 be began attending the University of Michigan and helped turn around a program coming off of one of the worst seasons in its history. Baseotto helped the Wolverines win 15 more games in 1980 and finished 7th in the nation in scoring. He returned the following season, but after just 2 games, new head coach Wilf Martin resigned due to ill health.[1][2] At the same time the team was going through a hazing scandal that saw three of his teammates suspended.[3] While Baseotto was not a part of the scandal, he had been unhappy with his treatment by the team and news of the hazing incident convinced him to leave.

Baseotto returned home to Calgary and played for the Calgary Wranglers while continuing his studies at the University of Calgary. He led the Wranglers in scoring and led the team to the team to the league finals, losing in seven games to the Victoria Cougars. His scoring exploits in the junior and college ranks enabled Baseotto to sign his first professional contract the following year and he spent most of the year with the Fort Wayne Komets, producing at a near point-per-game pace. Despite the solid numbers, Baseotto decided to leave minor league hockey behind and travelled to Italy to play for HC Gherdëina. True to form, he led the club in scoring by averaging more than 3 points per game and led them to a runner-up finish for the league championship.

After the year abroad, Baseotto finished his collegiate career with the Calgary Dinos in 1984. He then returned to Italy and made a home for himself in his new country. Baseotto joined HC Bolzano and arrived in time to help the team win the league championship in 1985. He remained one of the team best offensive players over the next 4 years and helped them win another championship in 1988. During that season, Baseotto made his first appearance with the Italian national team, however, because the team had finished 14th in the 1987 Ice Hockey World Championships, they were left out of the 1988 Winter Olympics.[4] With Baseotto on the national team, Italy performed much better at the next World Championships and finished as the group B runners-up in 1989. While the team was unable to win promotion at the time, their elevated level of play put the Italians on the right path and they returned to Olympic competition in 1992.

In 1989 Baseotto joined the newly founded HC Devils Milano and led the team in scoring in their inaugural year. Baseotto remained a key figure for the team as it swiftly rose to the top of the league. In 1991 he played with future hall-of-famer Jari Kurri during his year-long contract dispute with the Edmonton Oilers. Baseotto later helped the club win consecutive championships in 1992 and 1993 before retiring as a player.

Baseotto began his coaching career in 1993 by returning to his roots. He served as the bench boss for the Calgary Royals for four years in the mid-1990s. Unfortunately, his return to the AJHL didn't meet with much success and, after four losing seasons, he was out as head coach. Baseotto continued his coaching career as an assistant and worked in that capacity with the Seattle Thunderbirds, Saskatoon Blades and Tri-City Americans.[5] He resigned from his position in 2005 for personal reasons and has yet to return to the game.[6]

Career statistics

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Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1977–78 Calgary Canucks AJHL 60 40 46 86 23
1978–79 Calgary Canucks AJHL 59 54 83 137 31 7 15 22
1979–80 Michigan WCHA 38 31 45 76 16
1980–81 Michigan WCHA 2 1 2 3 0
1980–81 Calgary Wranglers WHL 61 55 59 114 66 22 13 14 27 33
1981–82 Flint Generals IHL 22 6 8 14 9
1981–82 Fort Wayne Komets IHL 40 22 23 45 29 9 5 5 10 11
1981–82 New Brunswick Hawks AHL 2 0 0 0 0
1982–83 HC Gherdëina Serie A 32 46 55 101 47
1983–84 Calgary CIAU 12 7 12 19 14
1984–85 HC Bolzano Serie A 25 43 39 82 37 9 7 8 15 4
1985–86 HC Bolzano Serie A 36 59 61 120 39 7 12 5 17 6
1986–87 HC Bolzano Serie A 36 58 33 91 34
1987–88 HC Bolzano Serie A 35 36 47 83 22 8 7 10 17 2
1988–89 HC Bolzano Serie A 46 35 35 70 41
1989–90 HC Devils Milano Serie A 46 43 49 92 52
1990–91 HC Devils Milano Serie A 34 25 32 57 12 10 6 7 13 6
1991–92 HC Devils Milano Alpenliga 2 3 0 3 0
1991–92 HC Devils Milano Serie A 17 11 9 20 8 11 7 7 14 43
1992–93 HC Devils Milano Alpenliga 32 9 17 26 8
1992–93 HC Devils Milano Serie A 16 15 19 34 12 11 2 3 5 2
Serie A totals 323 371 379 750 294 56 41 40 81 63

International

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Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM
1987–88 Italy International 11 6 7 13 16
1988–89 Italy International 11 3 1 4 4
1989 Italy WC 7 2 1 3 2
1989–90 Italy International 2 1 0 1 0
Totals 31 12 9 21 22

Coaching Record

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AJHL

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Team Year Regular season Post season
G W L T Pts Finish Result
Calgary Royals 1993–94 56 26 27 7 (55) 6th Quarterfinals (0–4)
Calgary Royals 1994–95 56 25 30 1 (51) T–6th Quarterfinals (1–4)
Calgary Royals 1995–96 56 23 33 4 (50) 8th Quarterfinals (1–4)
Calgary Royals 1996–97 60 17 40 3 (37) 11th no playoffs
Totals 228 91 130 15

References

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  1. ^ "Martin resigns Wolve hockey post". Wisconsin State Journal. November 28, 1980.
  2. ^ Martha Crall (February 11, 1981). "It's official: Giordano named permanent icer coach". The Michigan Daily.
  3. ^ "Hazed Player, star center quit hockey team". Michigan Daily. October 23, 1980. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  4. ^ "Qualifications pour les Jeux Olympiques 1988 - Hockey sur glace".
  5. ^ "Ams Hire Baseotto As Assistant Coach". Our Sports Central. August 12, 2004. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
  6. ^ "WHL HEADLINES". Western Hockey League. May 29, 2005. Retrieved May 26, 2023.
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