William Ferguson Thomson (March 23, 1914 – August 6, 1993) was a British-born Canadian
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
player. He played nine games in the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
with the
Detroit Red Wings during the
1938–39 and
1943–44 seasons. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1931 to 1947, was spent in various minor leagues. Internationally Thomson played for
Canada
Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...
at the
1936 Winter Olympics
The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games (german: IV. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 ( bar, Garmasch-Partakurch 1936), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 16 ...
, winning the silver medal.
Early life
Thomson was born in
Troon
Troon is a town in South Ayrshire, situated on the west coast of Ayrshire in Scotland, about north of Ayr and northwest of Glasgow Prestwick Airport.
Troon has a port with freight services and a yacht marina. Up until January 2016, P&O ope ...
,
Scotland
Scotland (, ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a Anglo-Scottish border, border with England to the southeast ...
,
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...
, and grew up in
Port Arthur, Ontario
Port Arthur was a city in Northern Ontario, Canada, located on Lake Superior. In January 1970, it amalgamated with Fort William and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay.
Port Arthur had been the district seat o ...
. He played in Port Arthur for several years before turning professional in 1937.
Career
Thomson played nine games professionally in the
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
for the
Detroit Red Wings. Thomson played with the
Port Arthur Bearcats who won the
1935 Allan Cup as senior champions in Canada, and served as the
Canadian national team at the
1936 Winter Olympics
The 1936 Winter Olympics, officially known as the IV Olympic Winter Games (german: IV. Olympische Winterspiele) and commonly known as Garmisch-Partenkirchen 1936 ( bar, Garmasch-Partakurch 1936), were a winter multi-sport event held from 6 to 16 ...
. Thomson scored seven goals in eight games to help win the silver medal. In 1987, he was inducted into the
Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame as a member of that Olympic team.
Bill Thomson at Sports Reference
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Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
International
See also
* List of National Hockey League players from the United Kingdom
References
External links
*
Bill Thomson's profile at databaseOlympics
{{DEFAULTSORT:Thomson, Bill
1914 births
1993 deaths
Canadian ice hockey right wingers
Dallas Texans (USHL) players
Detroit Red Wings players
Hershey Bears players
Ice hockey players at the 1936 Winter Olympics
Indianapolis Capitals players
Medalists at the 1936 Winter Olympics
Minneapolis Millers (AHA) players
Olympic ice hockey players for Canada
Olympic medalists in ice hockey
Olympic silver medalists for Canada
Omaha Knights (AHA) players
Pittsburgh Hornets players
St. Louis Flyers players
Scottish emigrants to Canada
Seattle Ironmen players
Sportspeople from Troon
Ice hockey people from Thunder Bay
Syracuse Stars (AHL) players
Tulsa Oilers (USHL) players