Pat Quinn Exhibit, Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto. (Photo credit: Wikipedia)
It has bee reported that long time coach Pat Quinn has passed away at the age of 71. It passed away during the evening hours of November 23rd in hospital.
Mr. Quinn played parts of nine seasons for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, and Atlanta Flames.
However, Mr. Quinn is remembered as a hockey coach and General Manager. He coached several teams over the years: Philadelphia Flyers, Los Angeles Kings, Vancouver Canucks, Toronto Maple Leafs, and Edmonton Oilers. He also served as the General Manager in both Vancouver and Toronto. He would lead both the Flyers (in 1980) and Canucks (in 1994) to the Stanley Cup finals only to lose to the New York Islanders and New York Rangers, respectfully.
Mr. Quinn achieved a far amount of success with the Maple Leafs, serving as General Manager and Coach for seven seasons from 1998-2006. In 574 games, he had a record of 300-214-52-8. As such, he ranks second on the team’s coaching list in games coached and games won, behind only Punch Imlach. He would also lead the team to the Eastern Conference Finals in 1999 and 2002.
In his coaching career, Mr. Quinn coached 1,400 games with a record of 684-528-154-34. He ranks fifth overall in the NHL as a coach in games coached, and games won.
Highlights of Mr. Quinn’s career include:
- 2 Memorial Cup wins (as a player with the Edmonton Oil Kings in 1963 and as an owner with the Vancouver Giants in 2007.)
- Honorary Doctor of Laws from McMaster University
- 2002 Gold Medal in Men’s Hockey in the Winter Olympics (as Head Coach)
- 2 IIHF Gold Medals as Head Coach (2008 U18 and 2009 U20 compeitions)
- 2004 World Cup as Head Coach
- 2 time Jack Adams winner (1980 and 1992) as Top NHL Coach
Mr. Quinn was born on January 29th, 1943 in Hamilton, Ontario. He died November 23rd, 2014 in Vancouver, British Columbia. He is survived by two children and three grandchildren.
