Bill Barilko

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Template:Short description Template:Infobox ice hockey player William "Bashin' Bill" Barilko (March 25, 1927 – c. Template:TrimScript error: No such module "Check for unknown parameters".) was a Canadian ice hockey player who played his entire National Hockey League career for the Toronto Maple Leafs.[1][2] Over five seasons, Barilko won the Stanley Cup four times in 1947, 1948, 1949, and 1951. Barilko died in August 1951 in a floatplane crash during a fishing trip to Quebec. Barilko's #5 was retired by the Leafs. He was the subject of the 1993 single "Fifty Mission Cap" by The Tragically Hip.

Personal life

Barilko was of Ukrainian descent and had a brother, Alex, and sister, Anne.[3] He was engaged to Louise Hastings.[4]

Professional career

In February 1947, Bill Barilko was called up to the Toronto Maple Leafs from the PCHL's Hollywood Wolves and played for Toronto until his death.[5] He was assigned sweater #21 when he debuted for the Leafs. He changed to #19 for the 1948–49 and 1949–50 seasons. The #5 (which was retired by the Leafs) was worn by Barilko for only one season, 1950–51. During that span of five seasons, Barilko and the Toronto Maple Leafs were Stanley Cup champions on four occasions: 1947, 1948, 1949, and 1951.[6] The last goal ever scored by Barilko was in overtime against the Montreal Canadiens' netminder Gerry McNeil. The goal was the overtime series-winning goal in Game 5 of the 1951 Stanley Cup Finals (April 21, 1951).

Disappearance and death

On August 26, 1951, Barilko joined his dentist, Henry Hudson, on a flight aboard Hudson's Fairchild 24 floatplane to Rupert House in northern Quebec for a weekend fishing trip.[7][8] On the return trip to Porcupine Lake, the single-engine plane disappeared and its passengers remained missing.[7][9] Eleven years later, in June 1962, helicopter pilot Gary Fields discovered the wreckage of the plane[10] about Script error: No such module "convert". north of Cochrane, Ontario,[11][12] about 56 kilometres (35 miles) off course. The cause of the crash was deemed to have been a combination of pilot inexperience, poor weather, and overloaded cargo.[13][11][14]

Barilko is buried in Timmins, Ontario, Canada, at the Timmins Memorial Cemetery.

"Fifty Mission Cap"

The 1993 song "Fifty Mission Cap" by The Tragically Hip is about Barilko's death and the Leafs' subsequent Stanley Cup drought.[7][12] The song has been credited as singlehandedly reviving Barilko's fame after he had lapsed into semi-obscurity;[15] the song remains a staple part of the Leafs' warm-up playlist at every home game, and the Leafs have a framed, handwritten copy of Gord Downie's lyrics to the song in their private players' lounge.[16] Whenever the band played the Air Canada Centre, Barilko's retired-number banner was always left in place during the concert,[15] and when Downie died on October 17, 2017, the team incorporated Barilko's banner into its Downie tribute.[17]

Honours

Barilko played in the 1947, 1948 and 1949 NHL All-Star Game, scoring a goal in the 1949 game.

Barilko won four Stanley Cups with the Maple Leafs in 1947, 1948, 1949, and 1951.

Until October 15, 2016, Barilko's #5 was one of only two numbers retired by the Maple Leafs (Ace Bailey's #6 was the other).[2][7][11]

Barilko's story was published in the 1988 book Overtime, Overdue: The Bill Barilko Story, by John Melady, and the 2004 book Barilko — Without A Trace, by Kevin Shea.

In 2017, TSN aired the short documentary film The Mission, profiling a project to recover the remaining wreckage of Barilko's plane; the film took its title from "Fifty Mission Cap", and it thematically touched on the song's role in Barilko's story.[18] The film received a Canadian Screen Award nomination for Best Sports Feature Segment at the 6th Canadian Screen Awards in 2018.

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1943–44 Holman Pluggers NOHA — — — — — — — — — —
1944–45 Timmins Canadians NOHA — — — — — — — — — —
1944–45 Porcupine Combines NOHA — 3 2 5 8 — — — — —
1945–46 Hollywood Wolves PCHL 38 4 5 9 103 12 2 3 5 26
1946–47 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 18 3 7 10 33 11 0 3 3 18
1946–47 Hollywood Wolves PCHL 47 9 2 11 69 — — — — —
1947–48 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 57 5 9 14 147 9 1 0 1 17
1948–49 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 60 5 4 9 95 9 0 1 1 20
1949–50 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 59 7 10 17 85 7 1 1 2 18
1950–51 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 58 6 6 12 96 11 3 2 5 31
NHL totals 252 26 36 62 456 47 5 7 12 104

See also

References

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  1. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
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  3. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  4. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  5. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  6. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  7. ↑ a b c d Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  8. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  9. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  10. ↑ Victims of Aviation Accidents or Incidents in Canada: Cal Jones, Billy Joe Booth, Jonathan Mann, Brice Herbert Goldsborough, Bill Barilko, Template:ISBN
  11. ↑ a b c Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  12. ↑ a b Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  13. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  14. ↑ Script error: No such module "citation/CS1".
  15. ↑ a b "The late Gord Downie helped us remember Bill Barilko". Toronto Sun, October 18, 2017.
  16. ↑ "Leafs mourn ‘huge inspiration’ Downie". Toronto Star, October 18, 2017.
  17. ↑ "Maple Leafs honour Gord Downie with unique 50 Mission Cap tribute". Daily Hive, October 19, 2017.
  18. ↑ "TSN Original: The Mission". The Sports Network.

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External links

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