Billy Reay
William Tulip Reay (August 21, 1918 – September 23, 2004) was a Canadian National Hockey League hockey player and coach.
Born in Winnipeg, Manitoba, he played in the NHL for 10 seasons with the Montreal Canadiens and the Detroit Red Wings. In 479 games, he scored 105 goals and 267 points and in 63 playoff games, he scored 13 goals and 29 points. He won two Stanley Cups in 1946 and 1953, both with the Montreal Canadiens. He was the head coach for the Toronto Maple Leafs (1957–1959) and the head coach for the Chicago Black Hawks (1963–1977). He has won the most games for a Chicago Black Hawks coach. Although he coached the Black Hawks to three Stanley Cup finals (1965, 1971, and 1973), he was never able to win.
Before beginning a career from which he retired as the NHL's second-alltime-winningest coach, Reay was a Canadiens centre who is believed to be the first player to raise his arms and stick to celebrate a goal when he did so after scoring in a game in 1947.
He died of liver cancer in Madison, Wisconsin.
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