Edward Robert "Rosie" Helmer (April 19, 1890 – December 25, 1951) was a Canadian ice hockey and baseball coach. Helmer was born in Windsor, Ontario, but grew up in Sarnia, Ontario. He developed into an outstanding baseball player and travelled to western Canada to participate in the minor leagues. While playing in

Fort William, Ontario Fort William was a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Kaministiquia River, at its entrance to Lake Superior. It amalgamated with Port Arthur and the townships of Neebing and McIntyre to form the city of Thunder Bay in January 1970. Since th ...

(now part of Thunder Bay), he began his hockey career, and he subsequently became interested in attaining a coaching position. He spent one season behind the bench of a junior league team in Swift Current, Saskatchewan before moving to

Calgary Calgary ( ) is the largest city in the western Canadian province of Alberta and the largest metro area of the three Prairie Provinces. As of 2021, the city proper had a population of 1,306,784 and a metropolitan population of 1,481,806, makin ...

, Alberta in 1919. He spent eight years coaching the Calgary Tigers. During his tenure, he also put together a barnstorming baseball team of top players from the province. After the demise of this franchise, Helmer took over the Winnipeg Maroons. While coaching Calgary, Helmer maintained a close friendship with

Red Dutton Norman Alexander Dutton (July 23, 1897 – March 15, 1987) was a Canadian ice hockey player, coach and executive. Commonly known as Red Dutton, and earlier by the nickname "Mervyn", he played for the Calgary Tigers of the Western Canada Hockey ...

, who went on to become coach and general manager of the New York Americans of the National Hockey League (NHL). Helmer served in multiple capacities with this team and was the Americans' head coach during the

1935–36 NHL season The 1935–36 NHL season was the 19th season of the National Hockey League (NHL). The St. Louis Eagles dropped out of the league, leaving eight teams. The Detroit Red Wings were the Stanley Cup winners as they beat the Toronto Maple Leafs three ...

. Beginning in 1940, Helmer had a series of strokes, which forced his retirement from hockey management. He died in 1951.

Coaching career

External links

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Essay from son Ronald HelmerObituary from ''Lethbridge Herald''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Helmer, Rosie 1890 births 1951 deaths Ice hockey people from Ontario New York Americans coaches Sportspeople from Sarnia Sportspeople from Windsor, Ontario