The late Bill Barilko and Senator Frank Mahovlich, two all time, great Toronto Maple Leafs, had banners raised in their honour Sunday at the McIntyre Centre.
“This whole weekend is going to be a great opportunity to celebrate Timmins’ rich hockey history, ” said Mayor Steve Black.
“My dad used to always say about my favourite players Doug Gilmour or Wendel Clark,– we’ll he is no Frank Mahovlich,” recalled Mayor Black. “Because Frank Mahovlich was my dad’s favourite players growing up.”
“It just goes to show you the successful hockey players that have come out of Timmins with some of these names,” Mayor Black added. “It is a true honour to have the Toronto Maple Leafs bring these banners to the city of Timmins, where they will permanently reside.”
The raising this week is part of the Leafs 100th anniversary celebrations and it also happens to coincide and be part of Roger’s SportCentre’s Hometown Hockey festivities. It will take place during the second intermission of the Arizona Coyotes vs. Calgary Flames game broadcast by Rogers SportsCentre.
“The Maple Leafs are redoing the banners to hang at the ACC,” explained Wayne Bozzer, the President of the Timmins Sports Hall of Fame of which both Barilko and Mahovlich are members.
“The Leafs are then delivering the original banners which hung from the Air Canada Centre to the players' home towns,” Bozzer added. “Timmins is fortunate to have two players whose achievements have been commemorated with banners.”
“The legacy of both Barilko and Mahovlich is huge,” noted Bozzer. “Barilko scoring the Stanley Cup winning goal in April 1952 — and the tragic plane crash a few months later — while Mahovlich had great career with Toronto, Detroit and Montreal and he was also part of Team Canada 1972.”
Mahovlich was on the Leafs’ 1962 Stanley Cup winning team, the first in 10 years, after Barilko’s overtime goal won it in 1952. Barilko died in a plane crash at the age of 24 in August of 1952 And as we all know from the Tragically Hip’s song "50 Mission Cap", they didn’t win another until Barilko's the plane crash and Barilko’s body was discovered in 1962.
“Frank was my favourite hockey player as a little boy,” said Mike Mulryan, owner of Quinns Sports on Third Avenue. “He is by far my favourite.”
Mahovlich was also on the last Stanley Cup winning Toronto Maple Leaf winning team in 1967, a team that also featured 8 northern Ontario players. Now a Senator of the talking kind, not the hockey playing version, Mahovlich won a total of six Stanley Cups — four with Toronto and two with Montreal Canadiens. He also played on Team Canada 1972.
Mahovlich born in Timmins when his parents lived at 219 ½ Cedar St. North, the family moved to Schumacher shortly after.
Nicknamed “the Big M," Mahovlich was considered a superstar as a teenager.
Mahovlich at age 17,while playing with the St. Michael's team that represented Toronto in the Ontario Hockey Association, scored 52 goals in 49 games to the league's most valuable player.
In his first NHL season, 1957-58, Mahovlich scored 20 goals and beat out Bobby Hull for rookie of the year . In 1960-61 he scored 48 goals. Only two people at that time scored 50 goals Maurice Richard and Bernie Boom Boom Geoffrion both of Montreal.
After winning four Stanley Cups with the team, the Leafs traded Mahovlich to Detroit Red Wings where he scored 49 goals playing on a line with Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio.
The Leafs have never won another Stanley Cup since Mahovlich was traded from Toronto.
He was put on a line with Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio and had his best goal-scoring year in his first full season with the team, 49 goals in 1968-69.
Mahovlich was traded to Montreal in 1971 and was united with his younger brother Pete. Mahovlich had an outstanding playoffs Montreal and his effort led to a Stanley Cup that year as he led in scoring with 14 goals and 27 post-season points.
Mahovlich had his best NHL season in 1971-72 with Montreal, collecting 96 points, earning a place on Team Canada that battled the Russians in the 1972 Summit Series.
Frank Mahovlich was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1981. In 1998,he was appointed to the Canadian Senate.
“It will be great to see the Mahovlich family again as we did when they were up here a couple of years ago for Frank’s induction into the Timmins Sports Hall of Fame,” Mayor Black said.
Bill Barilko had an outstanding career with the Toronto Maple Leafs from 1948 to 1952 winning four Stanley Cups. Barilko, born in Timmins, achieved his lifelong dream to play for the Maple Leafs.
Barilko’s checking and determined play earned him a spot on the Leafs . After scoring the winning goal in overtime in April 1952, tragedy struck, in August, 1952 when a plane piloted by Timmins dentist Dr. Henry Hudson crashed on the return from a fishing trip.
Barilko scored one of the most dramatic Stanley Cup winning goals in the fifth game of the 1952 Stanley Cup finals against Montreal in a series where all five games went into overtime.
With the Leafs leading 3 games to 1, Barilko scored the winning goal in overtime.
The plane and Barilko’s remains were not found until 1962, the first Leafs’ cup victory since Barilko's heroics in 1952.
Barilko has never been elected or selected to the Hockey Hall of Fame despite winning more Stanley Cups than either Bobby Orr or Bobby Hull (two and one respectively).
“There have been efforts to get Barilko inducted,” said Bozzer. “Nothing at this time, to my knowledge, is happening to push for his induction.”
In 2007 Dr. John Shaw, Timmins dentist, and others made an unsuccessful pitch to have Barilko named to the hall.
