Bryan Aldwyn Hextall (July 31, 1913 – July 25, 1984) was a Canadian professional

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 hock ...

forward Forward is a relative direction, the opposite of backward. Forward may also refer to: People * Forward (surname) Sports * Forward (association football) * Forward (basketball), including: ** Point forward ** Power forward (basketball) ** Sm ...

who played for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

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 ...

(NHL). Considered one of the top wingers of the 1940s, he led the NHL in goal scoring twice and in points once. Additionally, he was named a first-team All-Star three times, and a second-team All-Star once. Hextall scored the overtime winning goal that clinched the 1940

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

for the Rangers. He is the father of one of hockey's greatest

families Family (from la, familia) is a group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its members and of society. Ideal ...

, as his sons Bryan Jr. and

Dennis Dennis or Denis is a first or last name from the Greco-Roman name Dionysius, via one of the Christian saints named Dionysius. The name came from Dionysus, the Greek god of ecstatic states, particularly those produced by wine, which is someti ...

, and grandson

Ron Ron is a shortening of the name Ronald. Ron or RON may also refer to: Arts and media * Big Ron (''EastEnders''), a TV character * Ron (''King of Fighters''), a video game character *Ron Douglas, the protagonist in ''Lucky Stiff'' played by Joe ...

all had lengthy NHL careers. Bryan Sr. was elected to the

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

in 1969.

Playing career

Born in

Grenfell, Saskatchewan Grenfell (Canada 2016 Census population 1,099) is a town in Southern Saskatchewan, Canada. It is situated at the junction of Highway 47 and the Trans-Canada Highway 1 east of Regina, the provincial capital. It is south of the Qu'Appelle Val ...

in 1913, Hextall grew up in

Poplar Point, Manitoba Poplar may refer to: Plants *''Populus'', the plant genus which includes most poplars, as well as aspen and cottonwood ** Black poplar (''Populus nigra'') ** Carolina or Canadian poplar, ''Populus × canadensis'' ** Grey poplar (''Populus × can ...

. He played his first hockey there, winning the Manitoba juvenile championship in 1929–30. He played junior hockey with the

Winnipeg Monarchs Winnipeg Monarchs is a name used by several Canadian ice hockey teams in Winnipeg, Manitoba and may refer to: *Winnipeg Monarchs (senior), a defunct ice hockey team, 1935 World Ice Hockey Champions *Winnipeg Monarchs (MJHL) The Winnipeg Monarch ...

in 1931–32 before switching to the

Portage Terriers The Portage Terriers are a Canadian junior "A" ice hockey team from Portage la Prairie, Manitoba, Canada. They are members of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, a part of the Canadian Junior Hockey League. History The Portage Terriers were fou ...

with whom he won the

Manitoba Junior Hockey League The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all based ...

scoring title in 1932–33. Hextall began his professional career in 1933–34 with the

Vancouver Lions Vancouver ( ) is a major city in western Canada, located in the Lower Mainland region of British Columbia. As the most populous city in the province, the 2021 Canadian census recorded 662,248 people in the city, up from 631,486 in 2016. The ...

of the

North West Hockey League The North West Hockey League was an ice hockey minor league with teams in the western United States and western Canada that existed from 1933 to 1936. It was formed from the Calgary and Vancouver franchises of the Western Canada Hockey League and ...

(NWHL). He played three seasons in Vancouver, leading the NWHL in scoring with 27 goals in 1935–36. He moved onto the

Philadelphia Ramblers The Philadelphia Ramblers were a minor professional ice hockey team based in the Philadelphia Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Ramblers played for six seasons during the infancy of the American Hockey League from 1935 to 1941. History T ...

of the International-American Hockey League the following year, again leading the league with 27 goals. The

brought Hextall up for three games in 1937, and he made the team full-time in 1937–38. A left-handed shooter, Hextall played his "off wing" –

right wing Right-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that view certain social orders and hierarchies as inevitable, natural, normal, or desirable, typically supporting this position on the basis of natural law, economics, authori ...

– at a time before it was common practice. He scored at least 20 goals seven times in his career, mainly while playing on the Rangers' top line with

Phil Watson Joseph Philippe Henri Watson (April 24, 1914 — February 1, 1991) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and coach in the National Hockey League. He played for the Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers between 1936 and 1948, and coached ...

and

Lynn Patrick Joseph Lynn Patrick (February 3, 1912 – January 26, 1980) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player and executive. As a player, Patrick played ten seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers. He was twice named to the NHL ...

. Hextall led the NHL in goal scoring and was named a first-team All-Star for the first time in 1939–40. He was one of the Rangers' top players during the 1940 Stanley Cup Final against the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

. Hextall scored a

hat trick A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...

against the Leafs and added an assist to lead the Rangers to a come from behind victory in game two of the series, and scored the overtime winning goal in the sixth game that clinched the third

championship in Rangers history. The Rangers would not win another for 54 years. A second All-Star selection followed in 1940–41 as Hextall again led the NHL in goal scoring and finished in a tie for second in overall points. He led the league in points in 1941–42; his total of 56 standing seven better than second place. Additionally, he was named to the first All-Star team for the third consecutive season. Hextall scored career highs in goals, 27 and points, 59, in 1942–43 and was again named a post-season All-Star, this time on the second team. In addition to being a top scorer, Hextall was also durable. He appeared in 340 consecutive games for the Rangers between 1937 and 1944. His streak came to an end in 1944 when Canadian war authorities denied him a permit to cross into the United States. The Rangers' attempts to regain his services were unsuccessful, Unable to play in the NHL, Hextall regained his amateur status and played senior hockey briefly with the

St. Catharines Saints The St. Catharines Saints was a minor league ice hockey team in St. Catharines, Ontario. It played in the American Hockey League from 1982 to 1986 as the farm team of the Toronto Maple Leafs. History The Moncton-based New Brunswick Hawks had bee ...

in the

Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association (OHA) is the governing body for the majority of junior and senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey As ...

's senior division. The conclusion of

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

allowed Hextall to return to the Rangers in 1945–46, however his return was short-lived. He was hospitalized with a liver ailment, an illness that ruled him out of the season after just three games, and led to fears it would end his career. Hextall overcame doctors expectations, appearing in all 60 games for the Rangers in 1946–47. After a final season in the NHL in 1947–48, Hextall split the 1948–49

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary Minor league#Ice hockey, developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 AHL se ...

season between the

Cleveland Barons The name Cleveland Barons has been used by three professional hockey teams and one junior team. *Cleveland Barons (NHL), the National Hockey League team that played between 1976 and 1978 *Cleveland Barons (1937–1973), the original American Hockey ...

and

Washington Lions The Washington Lions were a professional ice hockey team based in Washington, D.C. They were founded as a member of the American Hockey League in the 1941–42 season. The Lions played for two seasons and then disbanded during World War II. Anot ...

before announcing his retirement. Hextall was inducted into the

in 1969, and is an honoured member of the

Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum is a hall of fame and museum for ice hockey in Manitoba, located on the main level of the Canada Life Centre in downtown Winnipeg. It was established in 1985, when the first honoured members were named an ...

. Additionally, the Manitoba hall named him to its all-century second All-Star team.

Off the ice

He was the first of three generations of Hextalls in the NHL. His sons Bryan Jr. and

both had long careers, and his grandson

was a longtime goaltender in the league and the current

general manager A general manager (GM) is an executive who has overall responsibility for managing both the revenue and cost elements of a company's income statement, known as profit & loss (P&L) responsibility. A general manager usually oversees most or all of ...

of the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have playe ...

. Hextall battled circulation problems in his lower legs following his retirement, an ailment that ultimately led to the amputation of both legs below the knee in 1978. Artificial legs allowed him to maintain his hobby of hunting. He died of a heart attack at his home of

in 1984.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Hextall, Bryan 1913 births 1984 deaths Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey left wingers Cleveland Barons (1937–1973) players Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Ice hockey people from Saskatchewan Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame inductees National Hockey League scoring leaders (prior to 1947–48) New York Rangers players North West Hockey League players Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League (1890–1979) players People from Grenfell, Saskatchewan Philadelphia Ramblers players Portage Terriers players Stanley Cup champions Washington Lions players Winnipeg Monarchs players