William Martin Boucher (November 10, 1899 – November 10, 1958) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Boucher played in the National Hockey League (NHL) with the Hamilton Tigers, Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins and New York Americans from 1921 to 1928. With the Canadiens he won the Stanley Cup in 1924. His brothers Bobby, Frank and Georges were also professional ice hockey players and all four were members of Stanley Cup championship teams.[1]
| Billy Boucher | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 | |||
| Born |
November 10, 1899 Ottawa, Ontario, Canada | ||
| Died | November 10, 1958 (aged 59) | ||
| Height | 5 ft 7 in (170 cm) | ||
| Weight | 155 lb (70 kg; 11 st 1 lb) | ||
| Position | Right wing | ||
| Shot | Right | ||
| Played for |
Hamilton Tigers Montreal Canadiens Boston Bruins New York Americans | ||
| Playing career | 1921–1933 | ||
Playing career
editHe played in the National Hockey League for the Hamilton Tigers, Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins and New York Americans. He also played for the New Haven Eagles and Bronx Tigers of the Canadian-American Hockey League. Boucher signed with the Canadiens in 1921, and scored 17 goals in his rookie season. Boucher scored 24 goals in 24 games in his second season. In his third season, 1923–24 Boucher was placed on a line with rookie Howie Morenz and Aurele Joliat in a high-scoring trio. Boucher led the Canadiens in scoring, and runner-up in the league. The team defeated defending champion Ottawa in the NHA playoffs and the Calgary Tigers in the Stanley Cup Finals. When the team played its first game in the Montreal Forum in November 1924, Boucher scored the first goal in the facility, and the first hat trick. In the 1926–27 season, Boucher was loaned to the Boston Bruins before being traded to the New York Americans, where he finished his NHL career.[2]
Personal life
editBorn in Ottawa, Ontario, Billy was one of six sons born to Tom Boucher and Annie Carroll: Billy, Bobby, Carroll, Frank, George and Joseph and two sisters, Irene and Lily. His paternal grandfather, Antoine Boucher was French while his other grandparents were of Irish descent. Tom Boucher played rugby football, winning the Canadian championship in 1894, 1896, 1897 and 1901 with teams in Ottawa. Boucher attended St. Joseph's Separate School in Ottawa. Boucher married Theresa Payette in 1921. They had two sons: E. William and Robert J., and daughter June.[3]
After finishing with hockey, Boucher returned to Ottawa and worked for the Defence Department of the Canadian government.[3] Boucher died of a heart attack on his 59th birthday, November 10, 1958.[4] Boucher was buried in Notre Dame Cemetery in Ottawa.[3]
Career statistics
editRegular season and playoffs
edit| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1915–16 | Creighton | HS-CA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1916–17 | Ottawa Munitions | OCJHL | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1917–18 | Ottawa Munitions | OCHL | 6 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 24 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1918–19 | Ottawa Munitions | OCHL | 8 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1919–20 | Ottawa Munitions | OCHL | 8 | 4 | 0 | 4 | — | 5 | 11 | 4 | 15 | — | ||
| 1920–21 | Iroquois Falls Papermakers | NOHA | 5 | 5 | 0 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1921–22 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 24 | 17 | 5 | 22 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1922–23 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 24 | 24 | 7 | 31 | 55 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1923–24 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 23 | 16 | 6 | 22 | 48 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 9 | ||
| 1923–24 | Montreal Canadiens | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 5 | 1 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 1924–25 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 30 | 17 | 13 | 30 | 92 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1924–25 | Montreal Canadiens | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 13 | ||
| 1925–26 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 34 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 112 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1926–27 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 21 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1926–27 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 14 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 12 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1927–28 | New York Americans | NHL | 43 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 58 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1928–29 | New Haven Eagles | Can-Am | 38 | 11 | 1 | 12 | 117 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 1929–30 | New Haven Eagles | Can-Am | 32 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 54 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1930–31 | New Haven Eagles | Can-Am | 38 | 20 | 8 | 28 | 98 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1931–32 | Bronx Tigers | Can-Am | 39 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 25 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1932–33 | Quebec Granites | ECHA | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 213 | 93 | 38 | 131 | 409 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 8 | ||||
References
edit- Zweig, Eric (2012). Stanley Cup: 120 years of hockey supremacy. Firefly Books. ISBN 978-1-77085-104-7.
Notes
- ^ Zweig 2012, p. 247.
- ^ "BILLY BOUCHER (1921-1927)". Montreal Canadiens. Archived from the original on December 24, 2017. Retrieved January 6, 2014.
- ^ a b c "Former Star of NHL, Billy Boucher Dies". Ottawa Citizen. November 11, 1958. p. 7.
- ^ "Billy Boucher - Bio, pictures, stats and more | Historical Website of the Montreal Canadiens". Ourhistory.canadiens.com. Archived from the original on 2017-12-24. Retrieved 2014-01-05.
External links
edit- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Hockey-Reference.com
- Montreal Canadiens profile of Billy Boucher Archived 2017-12-24 at the Wayback Machine