Gordon Arthur Drillon was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 Hockey Hall of Fame

Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

 ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 player. Born in Moncton, New Brunswick

New Brunswick

New Brunswick is one of Canada's three Maritime provinces and is the only province in the federation that is constitutionally bilingual . The provincial capital is Fredericton and Saint John is the most populous city. Greater Moncton is the largest Census Metropolitan Area...

, Canada. From 1936 through to 1942 he was part of one of the NHL's most prolific scoring lines as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs

Toronto Maple Leafs

The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...

. He won a Stanley Cup

Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

 during the 1941–1942 season.

Drillon played only seven seasons in the NHL, six of those with Toronto and one with the Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

. A winger

Winger (ice hockey)

Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...

 noted for his deadly accurate shot, he created a specific style of play that made him a leading scorer. Drillon's strong frame made it difficult for opposing defencemen

Defenceman (ice hockey)

Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...

 to clear him from the front of the net. Drillon was able to securely park himself in front of the opposing netminder to re-direct shots or pick up rebounds. This style of play would earn him a league scoring title in the 1937–38

1937–38 NHL season

-European tour:After the Stanley Cup final finished, the Detroit Red Wings and the Montreal Canadiens played a nine-game exhibition series in Europe, becoming the first NHL teams to play outside North America. Six games were played in England, three in France...

 season. Future stars such as Phil Esposito

Phil Esposito

Philip Anthony Esposito, OC is a former Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Chicago Black Hawks, Boston Bruins and New York Rangers. He is an Honoured Member of the Hockey Hall of Fame and is considered to be one of the best to have...

, Dino Ciccarelli

Dino Ciccarelli

.Dino Ciccarelli is a Canadian former professional hockey player who played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League, primarily with the Minnesota North Stars. He scored 1,200 points in his NHL career. His 608 career NHL goals are also the most goals scored by a draft-eligible player who was not...

 and Dave Andreychuk

Dave Andreychuk

David John Andreychuk is a former professional ice hockey left winger who played in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres, Toronto Maple Leafs, New Jersey Devils, Boston Bruins, Colorado Avalanche and Tampa Bay Lightning...

 emulated his innovative style with great success.

Traded to the Montreal Canadiens

Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...

 for the 1943

1942–43 NHL season

-NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes-Leading goaltenders:...

 season he finished second on the team in goals scored. At season's end, Drillon cut short his hockey career and joined the Royal Canadian Air Force

Royal Canadian Air Force

The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...

, serving for the remainder of World War II

World War II

World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...

. After the war, he worked as a hockey coach and returned to his native New Brunswick where he was employed as a scout for the Maple Leafs, covering the Maritime provinces. He eventually accepted a job with the New Brunswick civil service

Civil service

The term civil service has two distinct meanings:* A branch of governmental service in which individuals are employed on the basis of professional merit as proven by competitive examinations....

. In 1975, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame

Hockey Hall of Fame

The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...

.

Gordie Drillon died in Saint John, New Brunswick

Saint John, New Brunswick

City of Saint John , or commonly Saint John, is the largest city in the province of New Brunswick, and the first incorporated city in Canada. The city is situated along the north shore of the Bay of Fundy at the mouth of the Saint John River. In 2006 the city proper had a population of 74,043...

, in 1986 and was interred there in the Ocean View Memorial Gardens cemetery.

Awards

• Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
  Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
  The Lady Byng Memorial Trophy, formerly known as the Lady Byng Trophy, is presented each year to the National Hockey League "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability"...
  
   (1938
  1937–38 NHL season
  -European tour:After the Stanley Cup final finished, the Detroit Red Wings and the Montreal Canadiens played a nine-game exhibition series in Europe, becoming the first NHL teams to play outside North America. Six games were played in England, three in France...
  
  )
• League Scoring Champion (1938)
• First All-Star Team
  NHL All-Star Team
  The NHL All-Star Teams were first named at the end of the 1930–31 NHL season, to honor the best performers over the season at each position.Representatives of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association vote for the All-Star Team at the end of the regular season.The career leaders in citations are...
  
   — left wing (1938, 1939)
• Second All-Star Team — left wing (1942)

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...	Team	League		GP	G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...	A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...	Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...	PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1935–36	Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets The Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets was an amateur hockey team that existed between . They evolved from being an amateur to a semi-pro team and are one the earliest sports organizations in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The Yellow Jackets played primarily in the United States Amateur Hockey Association...	EHL Eastern Hockey League -Eastern Amateur Hockey League :The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League . The league was founded by Thomas Lockhart, who served as its commissioner from 1933 to 1972...		40	22	12	34	4		—	—	—	—	—
1936–37	Syracuse Stars Syracuse Stars The Syracuse Stars were a minor professional ice hockey team from Syracuse, New York, existing for 10 season from 1930 to 1940. The Stars name had previously been used by sports teams, including several Syracuse Stars baseball teams from the 19th century....	IAHL		5	2	3	5	0		—	—	—	—	—
1936–37	Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...	NHL		41	16	17	33	2		2	0	0	0	0
1937–38 1937–38 NHL season -European tour:After the Stanley Cup final finished, the Detroit Red Wings and the Montreal Canadiens played a nine-game exhibition series in Europe, becoming the first NHL teams to play outside North America. Six games were played in England, three in France...	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		48	26	26	52	4		7	7	1	8	2
1938–39	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		40	18	16	34	15		10	7	6	13	4
1939–40	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		43	21	19	40	13		10	3	1	4	0
1940–41	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		42	23	21	44	2		7	3	2	5	2
1941–42	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL		48	23	18	41	6		9	2	3	5	2
1942–43 1942–43 NHL season -NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes-Leading goaltenders:...	Montreal Canadiens Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...	NHL		49	28	22	50	14		5	4	2	6	0
1944–45	Valleyfield Braves Valleyfield Braves Les Braves de Valleyfield are a Canadian Junior ice hockey team from Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada. They are a part of the Quebec Junior AAA Hockey League.-History:...	QPHL		8	11	4	15	0		—	—	—	—	—
1949–50	Saint John Beavers	MSHL		69	48	24	72	40		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				311	155	139	294	56		50	25	15	41	10

External links