Career
His rights being held by the Chicago Black Hawks, Kearns served a four-year apprentice in the minor leagues, principally with the Portland Buckaroos of the Western Hockey League. Between the 1969 and 1971 seasons, Kearns was a First or Second Team league All-Star all three years. In the summer of 1971, Chicago - then being deep on defence, behind perennial All-Stars Pat Stapleton and Bill White - exposed Kearns in the Intra-League Draft, and he was claimed by Vancouver, for whom he made his National Hockey League debut that fall.
Kearns would play his next ten years in Vancouver, his entire National Hockey League career, becoming a star playmaker with noteworthy skill on offense and the power play despite his small size for a defenceman.
His production declined sharply after the 1979 season, and no longer a frontline defenceman as the team moved younger players into prominence, retired after the 1981 season. Kearns finished his career with 31 goals and 290 assists for 321 points in 677 games, adding 386 penalty minutes.
His 55 assists in 1977 remains the franchise record for defencemen. His 321 career points was the all-time mark for Canucks defencemen for over three decades until surpassed by Mattias Öhlund at the end of the 2009 season.
He remains the franchise leader in assists by a defenceman.
Bracken is currently in the New York Islanders organization.