Bill McCreary, Sr.

Bill McCreary, Sr.
Born	December 2, 1934 Sundridge, ON, CAN
Height	5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight	172 lb (78 kg; 12 st 4 lb)
Position	Left Wing
Shot	Left
Played for	New York Rangers Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens St. Louis Blues
Playing career	1953–1971

William Edward McCreary, Sr. (born December 2, 1934 in Sundridge, Ontario) is a former National Hockey League left winger, coach and general manager.

Career

During his pro career McCreary played for the New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and the St. Louis Blues. He later coached the Vancouver Canucks for the first half of the 1973–74 season and then became general manager of the California Golden Seals in 1974–75. Although the Seals were performing fairly well, a dispute with coach Marshall Johnston led to his firing of Johnston and going behind the bench himself for the remainder of the season. He hired Jack Evans as coach the following year. The team moved to Cleveland and became the Cleveland Barons. Yet, the club struggled and McCreary was fired as general manager.

He was the elder brother of Keith McCreary, also an NHL left winger. His son, Bill McCreary, Jr. played 12 games in the NHL with the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1980–81 season.

Awards and achievements

• WHL Prairie Division Second All-Star Team (1957)
• CPHL First All-Star Team (1964, 1966)

Coaching record

Team	Year	Regular season						Post season
		G	W	L	T	Pts	Finish	Result
St. Louis Blues	1971–72	24	6	14	4	(67)	3rd in West	(interim coach)
Vancouver Canucks	1973–74	41	9	25	7	(59)	7th in East	(fired)
California Golden Seals	1974–75	32	8	20	4	(51)	4th in Adams	Missed playoffs
NHL Total		97	23	59	15

External links

• Bill McCreary's biography at Legends of Hockey
• Bill McCreary, Sr.'s career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database