William Edward McCreary Jr. (born April 15, 1960) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played 12 games in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1980–81 season. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1980 to 1988, was spent in the minor leagues.
| Bill McCreary Jr. | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
April 15, 1960 Springfield, Massachusetts, U.S. | ||
| Height | 6 ft 0 in (183 cm) | ||
| Weight | 196 lb (89 kg; 14 st 0 lb) | ||
| Position | Left wing | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for | Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| NHL Draft |
114th overall, 1979 Toronto Maple Leafs | ||
| Playing career | 1980–1988 | ||
Early life edit
McCreary Jr. was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, and raised in Hudson, Ohio.
Playing career edit
Bill McCreary Jr. was drafted in the 6th round, 114th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1979 NHL Entry Draft. He played two seasons of hockey for the Colgate University in the NCAA before signing a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs in June 1980. He then split the 1980–81 season between the New Brunswick Hawks of the AHL and the Maple Leafs. He played 61 games in the AHL and 12 in the NHL with the Leafs that season. In those twelve games, he scored one goal, had no assists, and added four penalty minutes. That would be the extent of his NHL playing experience as he played out the rest of his career in the CHL, IHL, and AHL. He retired following the 1987–88 IHL season.
Bill McCreary is most remembered for his open ice hit on Wayne Gretzky on January 3, 1981. The myth that McCreary never played another shift in the NHL is false – the January 3 game was McCreary's second game in his 12-game NHL career.[1]
Family edit
He is the son of former NHLer Bill McCreary Sr., nephew of former NHLers Keith McCreary and Ron Attwell, and cousin of former NHLer Bob Attwell and NHL referee Bill McCreary.[2] His son, William "Billy" McCreary III, was a minor league hockey player in the Southern Professional Hockey League, Central Hockey League, and Federal Hockey League.[3]
Career statistics edit
Regular season and playoffs edit
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1976–77 | Cleveland Barons NAHL | GLJHL | 40 | 26 | 24 | 50 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1977–78 | Cleveland Barons NAHL | GLJHL | 40 | 51 | 72 | 123 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1978–79 | Colgate University | ECAC | 24 | 19 | 25 | 44 | 70 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1979–80 | Colgate University | ECAC | 12 | 7 | 13 | 20 | 44 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1980–81 | New Brunswick Hawks | AHL | 61 | 19 | 24 | 43 | 120 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 13 | ||
| 1981–82 | Cincinnati Tigers | CHL | 69 | 8 | 27 | 35 | 61 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 1982–83 | Saginaw Gears | IHL | 60 | 19 | 28 | 47 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | Peoria Prancers | IHL | 16 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 11 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1982–83 | St. Catharines Saints | AHL | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1983–84 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 81 | 28 | 35 | 63 | 44 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1984–85 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 10 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1985–86 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 80 | 30 | 31 | 61 | 83 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 6 | ||
| 1986–87 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 74 | 30 | 35 | 65 | 64 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 10 | ||
| 1987–88 | Milwaukee Admirals | IHL | 67 | 23 | 30 | 53 | 51 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| IHL totals | 388 | 135 | 175 | 310 | 274 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 18 | ||||
| NHL totals | 12 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
References edit
- ^ "player stats". Retrieved 17 November 2014.
- ^ "Skylands adds McCreary to coaching staff". North American 3 Hockey League. July 13, 2016.
- ^ "Billy McCreary". EliteProspects. Retrieved October 26, 2019.
External links edit
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or The Internet Hockey Database