Bannerman was born in
Fort Frances, Ontario. As a youth, he played in the 1969
Quebec International Pee-Wee Hockey Tournament with a
minor ice hockey team from
Winnipeg. His NHL career started with the
Vancouver Canucks in the 1977 season, where he played one period for the team without allowing a goal making him the only goalie in Canucks history to not allow a goal. He spent most of his career with the
Chicago Blackhawks. In 1983, he was a part of the
Campbell Conference's roster at the
35th National Hockey League All-Star Game.
Tony Esposito's backup for the early portion of his career, Bannerman finally got a chance to shine in the first round of the 1982 playoffs. He won his first two games-on the road-and powered his Chicago team to a series victory over the
Minnesota North Stars. His career ended after the 1988 season. He became the number one goaltender in Chicago the next season, with Esposito acting as his backup, and eventually tended goal twice in the NHL All-Star game for his yeoman work in the Chicago net. Bannerman was the 'player to be named later' when he came to Chicago in 1978.
Pit Martin, once traded for
Phil Esposito, was dealt by Chicago to
Vancouver in 1977. Bannerman sits fifth on the Blackhawks' all-time goaltender list with 116 wins and 288 games played. He finished with 3.83
goals against average and over 16,000 minutes played in a Chicago jersey. Bannerman is also fourth on the all-time Blackhawks' goaltender playoff statistics list with 20 wins and 40 games played. ==Post-playing career==