Bill Needham
Canadian ice hockey player and coach (1932–2022)
Ice hockey player
| Bill Needham | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born | (1932-01-12)January 12, 1932 Kirkland Lake, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Died | January 25, 2022(2022-01-25) (aged 90) | ||
| Height | 5 ft 9 in (175 cm) | ||
| Weight | 175 lb (79 kg; 12 st 7 lb) | ||
| Position | Wing | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | IHL Grand Rapids Rockets Toledo Hornets WHL New Westminster Royals AHL Cleveland Barons | ||
| Playing career | 1952–1972 | ||
Bill Needham (January 12, 1932 – January 25, 2022) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward and coach.
Playing career
Needham played for the following minor league teams during his career: Grand Rapids Rockets, Valleyfield Braves, Glace Bay Miners, New Westminster Royals, North Bay Trappers, Toledo Hornets and Cleveland Barons. He holds the franchise record of most games played for the Cleveland Barons, a total of 981, where he spent 15 seasons of his career. In this span, Needham scored 62 goals and 246 assists.
Later life
Needham assumed the role of Coach-Player for the 1971/72 Toledo Hornets, but suited up to play in less than half of their games that year. From 1972-1974 he was the Cleveland Crusaders head coach in the World Hockey Association Goaltender Gerry Cheevers emerged as a star for The Crusaders, after several All-Star years with the NHL Boston Bruins.
Needham died January 25, 2022, at the age of 90.[1]
Coaching record
WHA
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | Pts | Division rank | Result | ||
| Cleveland Crusaders | 1972-73 | 78 | 43 | 32 | 3 | 89 | 2nd in East | Lost in Division Finals |
| Cleveland Crusaders | 1973-74 | 78 | 37 | 32 | 9 | 83 | 3rd in East | Lost in Semifinals |
| WHA Total | 156 | 80 | 64 | 12 | ||||
College
| Season | Team | Overall | Conference | Standing | Postseason | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Massachusetts Redmen Independent (1950–1951) | |||||||||
| 1950–51 | Massachusetts | 0–7–0 | |||||||
| Massachusetts: | 0–7–0 | ||||||||
| Total: | 0–7–0 | ||||||||
References
- ^ "WILLIAM NEEDHAM Obituary (2022) - Strongsville, OH - the Plain Dealer".
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from The Internet Hockey Database
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UMass Minutemen ice hockey
Formerly the Massachusetts Agricultural Aggies, Massachusetts State Aggies and UMass Redmen
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- Pat Keenan (180 Points)
- Pat Keenan (105 Goals)
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Cale Makar (2019)
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- Amherst, MA
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