Dryden, Parent, Delvecchio among deaths in hockey world in 2025

The hockey community was hit hard in 2025 with the death of a Hockey Hall of Fame goalie and six-time Stanley Cup champion for the Montreal Canadiens in the 1970s, another who keyed the Philadelphia Flyers to back-to-back NHL titles in 1974 and 1975, and a member of the famed "Production Line" with the Detroit Red Wings.

Generations of fans also mourned the loss of the radio voice of the Pittsburgh Penguins for 46 years; a senior adviser to the general manager of the Minnesota Wild who helped build the 2009 Stanley Cup champion Penguins, and the owner of the 1999 champion Dallas Stars who played an active role in hockey's growth throughout the city.

Here's a look at some of those in the hockey world who died during the year, in chronological order:

Al MacNeil

Jan. 5 (age 89)

A rugged defenseman who had 92 points (17 goals, 75 assists) in 524 regular-season games for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Canadiens, Chicago Black Hawks, New York Rangers and Penguins. MacNeil is a four-time Stanley Cup winner as Canadiens coach (1971) and director of player personnel (1978, 1979), and assistant GM of the 1988-89 Calgary Flames. He was 138-113 with 55 ties in 306 games coaching the Canadiens and the Calgary/Atlanta Flames and 22-21 in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. MacNeil won three Calder Cup championships as coach/GM of Montreal's American Hockey League affiliate in Nova Scotia (1972, 1976, 1977) and is a two-time Louis A.R. Pieri Memorial Award as AHL coach of the year (1972, '77). Players who skated under his tutelage in the AHL include Hall of Famers Larry Robinson, Bob Gainey, Steve Shutt and Guy Lapointe.

Dwight Foster

Jan. 6 (age 67)

The forward was chosen by the Boston Bruins in the first round (No. 16) of the 1977 NHL Draft and had 274 points (111 goals, 163 assists) in 541 regular-season games for the Bruins, Colorado Rockies, New Jersey Devils and Red Wings before retiring in 1987 because of knee injuries. Foster first played for the Bruins from 1977-81 and 1985-87 as part of the “Lunch Pail Athletic Club,” a group known for its charisma, camaraderie and grit that reached the Stanley Cup Final in 1977 and 1978.

Marcel Bonin

Jan. 19 (age 93)

The four-time Stanley Cup champion with the Canadiens was a colorful forward who wrestled a bear and ate glass for fun and profit. Bonin played his first NHL game for the Red Wings against the Canadiens in Montreal on Dec. 27, 1952, and three seasons with Detroit and one for the Bruins before joining the Canadiens ahead of the 1957-58 season, helping them to the Cup from 1958-60. He had 272 points (97 goals, 175 assists) in 454 games for the Red Wings, Bruins and Canadiens, and 25 points (11 goals, 14 assists) in 50 playoff games, winning his first NHL championship with Detroit in 1954-55.

Tom McVie

Jan. 19 (age 89)

A Bruins ambassador for more than 30 years who coached the Devils, Washington Capitals and Winnipeg Jets, McVie's NHL coaching career began with the Capitals on Dec. 31, 1975. He coached two more seasons in Washington and guided the Jets of the World Hockey Association to the Avco Cup after taking over for Larry Hillman 61 games into the 1978-79 season. He replaced Bill Sutherland as coach for the Jets' first two NHL seasons (1979-80, 1980-81) and became the second Devils coach after the franchise relocated from Denver in 1982. McVie went 15-38 with seven ties in 60 games and returned to replace John Cunniff 67 games into the 1990-91 season. He was 126-263 with 73 ties in 462 regular-season games as an NHL coach and got his name on the Stanley Cup with the 2010-11 Bruins.

Danny McCourt

Jan. 20 (age 70)

McCourt officiated more than 1,600 NHL games as a linesperson from 1979 to 2004 and worked with the League's officiating department in scouting and development for nearly two decades. He is a member of the Sudbury Sports Hall of Fame whose uncle, Hall of Famer George Armstrong, was captain of the 1966-67 Maple Leafs’ Cup championship team. Danny's younger brother, Dale McCourt, 67, was the No. 1 pick by the Red Wings in the 1977 draft.

Willard Ikola

Jan. 21 (age 92)

The 1990 U.S. Hockey Hall of Fame inductee and Minnesota hockey legend was a goalie on the Eveleth High School team that won three consecutive state titles from 1948-50. Ikola won two national championships at the University of Michigan in 1951 and 1952, a silver medal at the 1956 Cortina Olympics while serving in the U.S. Air Force and played for United States national teams in 1957 and 1958. "Coach Ike" then began a 33-year run as coach at Edina High School, guiding it to eight state titles. He was named Minnesota High School Hockey Coach of the Year six times before retiring in 1991.

Tobias Eder

Jan. 29 (age 26)

The forward with Eisbaren in DEL, the top professional league in Germany, was diagnosed with cancer weeks after the Tegernsee native represented his country at the 2024 IIHF World Championship. Eder's 31 points (22 goals, nine assists) in 52 regular-season games and six points (three goals, three assists) in 15 playoff games helped Eisbaren win the 2024 league championship. He scored 73 goals in 296 games for Red Bull Munich, Dusseldorf and Eisbaren. Eder's brother, 29-year-old forward Andreas Eder, began the 2024-25 season with Munich.

Shawn Simpson

Jan. 29 (age 56)

He was known as "Simmer" by friends, colleagues and fans and who the Ottawa Senators called "a lionhearted member of their media landscape and proud member of the Ottawa community." The goalie was part of Canada's team disqualified from the 1997 IIHF World Junior Championship following an infamous bench-clearing brawl with the USSR, also known as the "Punch-up in Piestany," Simpson was chosen by the Capitals in the third round (No. 60) of the 1986 NHL Draft. He played 35 games for Baltimore of the AHL and dressed in 1988 and 1990 as Washington's backup goalie for several playoff games before an extensive career in pro hockey management after retiring as a player in 1991. Simpson was a Capitals scout from 1995-97 and promoted to director of hockey operations, a role he held until 2004. He worked for the Maple Leafs as a pro scout from 2004-08 and in 2012 returned home to Ottawa, where he became a host with TSN 1200. He was open about his struggles with mental health, using his platform to advocate for more awareness and better health services. More recently, Simpson worked on multiple podcasts, including "Coming in Hot" with former TSN reporter Brent Wallace.

Paul Morris

Feb. 6 (age 86)

The former Maple Leafs public address announcer never missed a game from 1961 to 1999. Morris called the final NHL game played at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto's 6-2 loss to the Blackhawks on Feb. 13, 1999, that ended more than 67 years of Maple Leafs hockey inside the venerable arena and was the voice when Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena) opened for the Maple Leafs' 3-2 overtime victory against the Canadiens seven days later. Morris started with the Toronto Marlies (AHL) in 1958 and succeeded Red Barber as Maple Leafs PA announcer. He was there for the franchise's most recent Stanley Cup championship, a six-game win against Montreal in the 1967 Final, and retired at the end of the 1998-99 season.

Miika Elomo

Feb. 9 (age 47)

The forward was chosen by the Capitals in the first round (No. 23) of the 1995 NHL Draft after an impressive junior hockey career with the TPS in his hometown of Turku, Finland. Elomo made his NHL debut Oct. 16, 1999, and had an assist three days later, his first and only NHL point, in Washington's 7-1 loss to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim. He played the remainder of 1999-00 with Portland of the AHL and won the Calder Cup with Saint John in 2001, his final season in North America. He played for TPS and Espoo of SM-Liiga, Finland's top professional league, in 2001-02 and retired following the 2004-05 season. His coaching career began in a Finland-based junior league and took him through his native country, Norway, Poland and France.

Mike Lange

Feb. 19 (age 76)

The longtime radio voice of the Penguins "was a wordsmith -- a magician behind the mic," the team said in a statement, and known for his colorful phrases like, "He beat him like a rented mule." Lange retired in 2021 after 46 years of calling Penguins games on radio and television. He was the 2001 winner of the Foster Hewitt Award, presented annually by the Hockey Hall of Fame, and selected by the NHL Broadcasters Association for excellence in hockey broadcasting and contributions to the game. The Sacramento, California, native studied broadcasting at Sacramento State University before starting his career as the radio voice of the Phoenix Roadrunners in the Western Hockey League in 1970. He was play-by-play announcer for the San Diego Gulls of the WHL in 1973-74 before joining the Penguins in 1974, calling games exclusively on radio until the team began simulcasting on radio and television in 1979. He worked on television broadcasts through the end of the 2005-06 season before returning to the radio booth for the rest of his career.

Al Trautwig

Feb. 23 (age 68)

Trautwig covered the Rangers, New York Knicks and New York Yankees as MSG Networks pre and postgame host for more than 30 years while doing occasional play by play. He took a leave of absence in September 2019 for personal reasons, did not have his contract renewed in late 2020 and told Newsday in February 2024 he recently was treated for cancer and since cleared. Trautwig, a New York Islanders stick boy in the early 1970s, hosted USA Network's coverage of the NHL during the 1980s. He worked 16 Olympic games (11 for NBC and five for ABC), was named the 2000 New York Sportscaster of the Year, won four national and 28 New York Emmy Awards, and had a cameo as the lead announcer in "Cool Runnings," a 1993 film based on the debut of the Jamaican bobsled team at the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

Dick Cherry

March 7 (age 87)

Cherry made his NHL debut with the Bruins on Dec. 30, 1956, where his brother, Don Cherry, debuted the season prior. He played the next nine seasons in the minors before returning to the League with the Flyers for the 1968-69 season. Dick Cherry scored his first NHL goal in a 3-1 win against the Red Wings at The Spectrum in Philadelphia on Jan. 19, 1969, and played 68 games the following season. He then played one season for Oklahoma City in the Central Hockey League before returning to Kingston to play with his hometown Aces in the Ontario Hockey Association Senior League and ended his career with Napanee. Cherry worked for the St. Louis Blues as an amateur scout from 1996 to 2000 and was director of player development for Kingston in the Ontario Hockey League from 2005 to 2011 and a scout the past 13 seasons.

Jamie Bramburger

March 11 (age 58)

A community leader and Lumber Kings play-by-play announcer who wrote the book "Go Kings Go! A Century of Pembroke Lumber Kings Hockey" about the Junior A level circuit team in Eastern Ontario where players range from ages 16-20. Bramburger also broadcasted on community television and was the interim Dean at Algonquin College on the Pembroke Waterfront campus.

Tomas Kloucek

March 16 (age 45)

The defenseman was chosen by the Rangers in the fifth round (No. 131) of the 1998 NHL Draft and had 10 points (two goals, eight assists) with 250 penalty minutes in 141 games for New York, the Nashville Predators and Atlanta Thrashers between 2000 and 2006. Kloucek played in Czechia, the Kontinental Hockey League, Slovakia and Epinal in France from 2007 before retiring from hockey in 2017. He made his NHL debut with the Rangers against the Phoenix Coyotes on Nov. 12, 2000, and scored his first NHL goal against Flyers goalie and fellow Czechia native Roman Cechmanek on Jan. 16, 2001.

Mark Laforest

March 31 (age 62)

The undrafted goalie nicknamed "Trees" played 103 games for the Red Wings, Flyers, Maple Leafs, Rangers and Senators from 1985-94. Laforest won the 1986 Calder Cup with Adirondack, the AHL affiliate of the Red Wings in Glens Falls, New York, from 1979-99, and is a two-time winner of the Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award (1987, '91). His 53 games for Milwaukee in the International Hockey League in 1995-96 were a career high.

Greg Millen

April 7 (age 67)

The goalie was a sixth-round pick (No. 102) of the Penguins in the 1977 NHL Draft and played 14 seasons in the League, going 215-284 with 89 ties, a 3.88 goals-against average, .873 save percentage and 17 shutouts in 604 regular-season games (582 starts) for the Penguins, Hartford Whalers, Blues, Quebec Nordiques, Blackhawks and Red Wings. Millen was 27-29 with a 3.43 GAA and .885 save percentage in 59 playoff games (58 starts). His best season came with the Blues in 1988-89, when he went 22-20 with seven ties, a 3.38 GAA, .879 save percentage and a League-leading six shutouts. He became a broadcaster after retiring from the NHL following the 1991-92 season. He covered the Senators during their inaugural season of 1992-93 and was an analyst on "Hockey Night in Canada" and Sportsnet who worked three Olympic Games, the World Cup of Hockey twice and the Stanley Cup Final 12 times.

Alex Faulkner

April 7 (age 88)

The native of Bishop's Falls became the first player from Newfoundland and Labrador to play in the NHL when he debuted for the Maple Leafs in a 4-1 loss to the Canadiens at the Montreal Forum on Dec. 7, 1961. The forward returned to Rochester of the AHL for the remainder of the 1961-62 season, where he had 73 points (19 goals, 54 assists) in 65 games. He played 70 games (20 points; 10 goals, 10 assists) for the Red Wings in 1962-63 and 30 games (12 points; five goals, seven assists) the following season. Alex's brother, George Faulkner, won bronze with Canada at the 1966 IIHF World Championship and died Jan. 19 at the age of 91. George became the first Newfoundland-born hockey player to sign with an NHL team when he joined the Canadiens organization, playing four seasons with their Quebec Hockey League affiliate in Shawinigan Falls from 1954-58.

Ray Shero

April 9 (age 62)

A senior adviser to Wild general manager Bill Guerin since June 9, 2021, Shero was GM of the Penguins from 2006-14 and Devils from 2015-20, and on the United States management team for the 2010 Vancouver and 2014 Sochi Olympics. Shero was Penguins GM when they won the Stanley Cup with a seven-game victory against the Red Wings in the 2009 Final, one season after losing to Detroit in six. He also won the Jim Gregory GM of the Year award in 2012-13 when Pittsburgh advanced to the Eastern Conference Final for the first time since 2009. Shero was Devils GM when New Jersey selected Nico Hischier with the No. 1 pick in the 2017 NHL Draft; the team made the playoffs the next season for the first time in six years, losing in five games to the Tampa Bay Lightning in the Eastern Conference First Round. Ray's father, Fred Shero, coached the Flyers to Stanley Cup championships in 1974 and 1975 and was inducted into the Hall of Fame as a Builder with the Class of 2013.

Gerry McNamara

April 11 (age 90)

McNamara played seven games as a goalie for the Maple Leafs, scouted future Hall of Fame defenseman Borje Salming, was Toronto's GM in the 1980s and then as a scout helped build the 1989 Stanley Cup champion Flames. His playing career took him through the minor pros during the mid-to-late 1950s, playing for Pittsburgh, Hershey, Buffalo and Cleveland in the AHL and Sudbury in the Eastern Professional Hockey League. He replaced Punch Imlach as Maple Leafs GM on Oct. 26, 1981, and held the position through Feb. 7, 1988. McNamara was inducted into the Sudbury Sports Hall of Fame in 2013.

Bob Fisher

April 9 (age 80)

Fisher was the Canadiens photographer from 1985 to 2010 and part of two Stanley Cup championships (1986, '93). He once told NHL.com columnist Dave Stubbs about how certain he was that Montreal was going to win Game 5 of the 1986 Stanley Cup Final against the Flames and had instructions for trainer Eddy Palchak. "I told Eddy: 'I want you to have Bob Gainey's teeth nearby. I didn't want Bob to look (gap-toothed) like he did in 1976.'" In the late stages of a 4-3 Canadiens victory, Palchak told Fisher to vacate the bench area lest he be a jinx. Amid the celebration that preceded the Stanley Cup presentation, Palchak waved Gainey over and gave him his teeth from a glass of water. Montreal defenseman Larry Robinson thrust the trophy over his head. Gainey grinned on the left with a full smile and Mats Naslund beaming on the right.

Will Norris

April 14 (age 88)

Norris worked more than 1,500 regular-season games as an NHL linesperson, debuting Christmas Day in 1966 when the Maple Leafs defeated the Bruins 4-2 at Boston Garden. He worked through the 1984-85 season before taking on an officiating management role with the League. He was on the ice for Darryl Sittler's 10-point game (six goals, four assists) that helped Toronto defeat Boston 11-4 at Maple Leaf Gardens on Feb. 7, 1976, and inducted into the Officials category of the Guelph Sports Hall of Fame on May 7, 2003.

Ed Van Impe

April 29 (age 84)

The defenseman was a two-time Stanley Cup champion with the Flyers (1974, '75), for whom he played nine of his 11 NHL seasons after he was selected in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft. Van Impe had 19 points (eight goals, 11 assists) in 61 games as a 26-year-old rookie for the Black Hawks in 1966-67 and was runner-up to Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr in voting for the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie of the year. He was the Flyers' second captain from 1968 until sharing the role with Bobby Clarke in 1972-73 before Clarke took over full time the following season.

Phil Roberto

April 30 (age 76)

The forward played 385 NHL games between 1969-77 and assisted on Jean Beliveau's 500th NHL goal. Roberto had 181 points (75 goals, 106 assists) for the Canadiens, Blues, Red Wings, Kansas City Scouts, Rockies and Cleveland Barons. His pass found Beliveau, the Canadiens captain, charging toward Minnesota North Stars goalie Gilles Gilbert, resulting in the milestone goal to complete a hat trick at the Montreal Forum on Feb. 11, 1971.

Murray Anderson

May 13 (age 75)

The defenseman was selected by the Canadiens in the fourth round (No. 44) of the 1969 NHL Draft and played 40 games for the Capitals in 1974-75. Anderson played three seasons of junior hockey (1967-70) with Flin Flon of the Western Canada Junior Hockey League (later the Western Hockey League), 90 minutes from his hometown of The Pas, Manitoba. In his first pro season, Anderson played 50 games for Rochester of the AHL in 1970-71, then won the Calder Cup with Nova Scotia in 1972 and was named captain of New Haven in 1973-74. He was chosen by the Capitals in the 1974 NHL Expansion Draft and was the first player in their history to wear No. 8.

Chris Collins

June 17 (age 65)

A San Jose Sharks television and radio analyst from 1992-97, Collins helped bring the NHL to China after leaving the organization. He founded the China Sharks, a Sharks venture, and was general manager from 2007-09. His sports broadcasting career began when he helped launch KSFM 102.5-FM in Sacramento, whose award-winning Morning Zoo dominated local ratings for years.

Fred Hucul

June 27 (age 93)

The undrafted defenseman had 41 points (11 goals, 30 assists) in 162 NHL games over five seasons, the last one with the expansion Blues in 1967-68. The native of Tuberose, Saskatchewan, made his NHL debut for the Black Hawks on March 3, 1951, and scored his first NHL goal March 15. Hucul signed with the Blues for the 1967-68 season after a 13-year absence from the League, having played most of that time in the WHL, where he was teammates with his brother, Alex, in Calgary. After retiring as a player, Fred coached the Blues' Central Hockey League affiliate in Kansas City until the end of the 1969-70 season. His death was announced by the NHL Alumni Association on June 27.

Alex Delvecchio

July 1 (age 93)

The longtime Red Wings center who skated with fellow Hall of Famer Gordie Howe played 24 seasons for Detroit, most of them with Howe on his right side. Delvecchio replaced Sid Abel in the middle of the famed “Production Line” between Howe and Ted Lindsay and was a key member of the Stanley Cup-winning teams in 1952, 1954 and 1955. He played in 13 NHL All-Star Games, was named to the NHL Second-Team All-Star Team twice and won the Lady Byng Trophy, awarded for skill and sportsmanship, three times. He was also Red Wings captain for 12 seasons, a team record later broken by Steve Yzerman, and at age 41 scored 18 goals and 71 points in 1972-73. Delvecchio retired after playing 11 games in 1973-74, finishing his career with 1,281 points (456 goals, 825 assists) and 383 penalty minutes in 1,550 games, all with Detroit, and was coach and general manager at different times until being let go for good midway through the 1976-77 season. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1977, the Red Wings retired his No. 10 on Nov. 10, 1991, and he was named to the 100 Greatest NHL Players during the League's Centennial celebration in 2017. In 2008, a statue of Delvecchio was unveiled inside Joe Louis Arena and placed next to similar tributes to Howe and Lindsay in the main concourse.

Lyndon Byers

July 4 (age 61)

The forward played nine NHL seasons for the Bruins and helped them reach the Stanley Cup Final in 1988 and 1990. A second-round pick (No. 39) by Boston in the 1982 NHL Draft, Byers had 71 points (28 goals, 43 assists) and 1,081 penalty minutes in 279 games for the Bruins and Sharks, and four points (two goals, two assists) in 37 playoff games. His 959 penalty minutes are 11th in Bruins history. After his final NHL season, with the Sharks in 1992-93, Byers was a longtime radio personality on WAAF-FM in Boston and appeared in TV shows and movies.

Wayne Thomas

July 16 (age 77)

Thomas was the 10th goalie in NHL history to have a shutout in his debut, a 3-0 win for the Canadiens at the Vancouver Canucks on Jan. 14, 1973. He won his first seven home starts, going 8-1 (zero ties) overall with a 2.37 GAA and .911 save percentage in 1972-73, and was a member of Montreal's Stanley Cup-winning team that season. In 1973-74, Thomas set a Canadiens record with 53 saves in a 5-4 win against the Penguins, a mark since tied by Carey Price. Thomas ended his NHL playing career in 1981, finishing with a record of 103-93 with 34 ties, a 3.34 GAA, .891 save percentage and 10 shutouts in 243 games (227 starts) with the Canadiens, Maple Leafs and Rangers. He also played in 15 playoff games (6-8, 3.54, .898, one shutout). Thomas played varsity hockey at the University of Wisconsin under coach Bob Johnson and had a shutout in his first game in 1968, an 11-0 victory against Pennsylvania. In 1970, Wisconsin's first season in the Western Collegiate Hockey Association, he helped the Badgers reach the Frozen Four.

John Miszuk

July 27 (age 84)

The defenseman played professionally in the NHL and WHA between 1963 and ’77. Miszuk was chosen by the Flyers in the 1967 expansion draft and played two seasons for them before moving on to the North Stars and then Michigan/ Baltimore and Calgary in the WHA. He returned to his native Naliboki, Belarus, more than seven decades after his family was driven out during World War II. After part of his childhood was spent in forced labor and refugee camps, he emigrated to Canada and began his journey to the NHL, where he had 46 points (seven goals, 39 assists) in 237 games over five seasons with the Red Wings, Black Hawks, Flyers, and North Stars. He also had three assists in 19 playoff games. Miszuk and his wife of 62 years, Cora, launched several Tim Hortons franchises in Hamilton, Ontario, following his retirement from hockey.

Mark Kirton

Aug. 17 (age 67)

Kirton played six seasons as a center in the NHL and was a board member of ALS Action Canada. He was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease, in 2018. He met a group of people fighting the neurodegenerative disorder in September 2020 who had come together to create the patient-led initiative to find a cure. In December 2023, the seven Canada-based NHL teams united in their support to raise funds and awareness for research to solve the disease. Selected by Toronto in the third round (No. 48) of the 1978 NHL Draft, Kirton had 113 points (57 goals, 56 assists) in 266 regular-season games for the Maple Leafs, Red Wings and Canucks, and three points (one goal, two assists) in four playoff games.

Caroline Klein

Aug. 21 (age 40)

The chief communications officer for the Utah Mammoth (previously Utah Hockey Club) and the NBA’s Utah Jazz was hired by Smith Entertainment Group in 2022 and worked in public relations, community relations and broadcasting. Klein helped develop SEG+, a state-of-the-art streaming platform for the Jazz and Mammoth, and was instrumental in the production of "Note Worthy: 50 Seasons of Jazz Basketball," which launched in the summer of 2024. Also in 2024, she was named to Sports Business Journal's "Forty Under 40," an award for executives recognized for achievement and innovation in their careers, and was front and center in getting the Utah NHL team off the ground after the League approved the establishment of a franchise to be owned and controlled by SEG on April 18, 2024.

Patrick O'Donnell

Aug. 25 (age 23)

"Paddy" was a goalie at the University of Utah diagnosed with glioblastoma, a fast-growing, aggressive and fatal brain cancer, in August of 2022. He and his family were guests of the Anaheim Ducks during their Hockey Fights Cancer Night on Nov. 17, 2023, when he spent time with Anaheim goalie Lukas Dostal. The two met for the first time in 2022 when O'Donnell was honored by the San Diego Gulls of the AHL at their Hockey Fights Cancer Night, a bond formed with Dostal having lost his grandmother to pancreatic cancer. O'Donnell played youth hockey for the San Diego Jr. Gulls and Pacific Ridge School in the Anaheim Ducks High School Hockey League, where he helped the Firebirds to an ADHSHL Division 1 Championship in 2020 and was the tournament MVP.

Mindaugas Kieras

Sept. 2 (age 45)

The coach of Hockey Punks Vilnius, the reigning champions of the Latvian Hockey Higher League, was killed in a kayaking accident while vacationing in Lithuania. Kieras holds the record for most games played for the Lithuanian men's national hockey team. The defenseman represented his country 100 times, including 20 consecutive senior IIHF World Championship tournaments from 1999 to 2018. He debuted as an 18-year-old at the 1999 World Championship Pool C and was an assistant for the national team that won gold at the 2025 IIHF World Championship Division I Group B tournament. His death was announced by the International Ice Hockey Federation on Sept. 2.

Lonnie Loach

Sept. 3 (age 57)

The forward was selected by the Blackhawks in the fifth round (No. 98) of the 1986 NHL Draft, made his NHL debut with the expansion Senators on Oct. 12, 1992, and finished the season with the Los Angeles Kings after he was claimed off waivers nine days later. Loach was then chosen by the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the 1993 NHL Expansion Draft and played three games for them before finishing his career in the International Hockey League, Switzerland, the United Hockey League and the AHL. He had 23 points (10 goals, 13 assists) in 56 NHL games, played one playoff game and won the 1986 Memorial Cup with Guelph of the OHL.

Ken Dryden

Sept. 5 (age 78)

A Hall of Famer whose goaltending helped the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup six times in the 1970s, Dryden later became an author, TV analyst, hockey executive and member of Canada's Parliament. He was selected by the Bruins in the third round (No. 14) of the 1964 NHL Draft, but Boston traded the 16-year-old to the Canadiens later that month. He put hockey on hold to pursue a college degree at Cornell University rather than attend an NHL training camp, a decision unusual for its time, and did not join the Canadiens organization until 1970. Dryden retired after the 1978-79 championship season, finishing his eight-season NHL career 258-57 with 74 ties, a 2.24 GAA, .922 save percentage and 46 shutouts in 397 regular-season games (389 starts). He also went 80-32 with a 2.41 GAA, .915 save percentage and 10 shutouts in 112 playoff games. Dryden won the Vezina Trophy as the NHL’s best goalie five times (1972-73, 1975-76, 1976-77, 1977-78, 1978-79), the fourth most in NHL history behind Jacques Plante (seven), Bill Durnan (six) and Dominik Hasek (six). He was a TV analyst for the 1980 Lake Placid Olympics paired with Al Michaels for the telecast of the United States' upset win against the Soviet Union in the "Miracle on Ice," in addition to working the 1984 Sarajevo and 1988 Calgary Olympics.

Bob Goodenow

Sept. 13 (age 72)

The second executive director of the NHL Players' Association joined the collective bargaining representative of NHL players as deputy executive director in 1990 and succeeded Alan Eagleson as executive director in 1992, remaining in the position through 2005. Goodenow oversaw a significant expansion in the NHLPA's professional staff, co-founded NHLPA Goals & Dreams in 1999, and worked with the NHL to launch the World Cup of Hockey in 1996, bring NHL players to the Olympics for the first time at the 1998 Nagano Games and implement the Substance Abuse and Behavioral Health Program for players and their families.

Wade MacLeod

Sept. 13 (age 38)

The forward played in the AHL with Springfield and Toronto, the ECHL for Evansville, Orlando, Idaho and Allen, and in Germany and England after four seasons at Northeastern University. The native of Coquitlam, British Columbia, was named Northeastern’s rookie of the year in 2007-08 before earning team MVP honors as a senior in 2010-11 and ending his college career as the program leader in games played (149).

Orca Wiesblatt

Sept. 14 (age 25)

The forward signed a contract with Allen in the ECHL for this season after he had 42 points (17 goals, 25 assists) in 37 games for Athens of the Federal Prospects Hockey League in 2024-25. He made his pro debut with Pensacola of the SPHL in 2023-24 and had 104 points (27 goals, 77 assists) in 138 games for Calgary in the WHL. Orca's brother, Ozzy Wiesblatt, is a forward with the Predators.

Ed Giacomin

Sept. 15 (age 86)

The Hall of Fame goalie led the NHL in wins (30) and shutouts (nine) in 1966-67, when he was named to the NHL First All-Star Team and helped the Rangers make the playoffs for only the second time in nine seasons. Giacomin teamed with Gilles Villemure to win the Vezina Trophy in 1970-71, when New York allowed the fewest goals during the regular season. He and the Rangers advanced to the 1972 Stanley Cup Final, a six-game loss to the Bruins, lost in the 1973 and '74 Semifinals and were upset by the third-year Islanders in the 1975 Preliminary Round. Giacomin was claimed by the Red Wings on Oct. 31, 1975, after the Rangers placed him on waivers. Two nights later, he returned to Madison Square Garden as a visiting player for the first time, with fans chanting "Eddie, Eddie" throughout Detroit’s 6-4 win. Giacomin played three seasons for the Red Wings before retiring Jan. 17, 1978, finishing 290-209 with 96 ties, a 2.82 GAA, .902 save percentage and 54 shutouts in 13 seasons with New York and Detroit. He entered the Hall of Fame with the Class of 1987, and the Rangers retired his No. 1 on March 15, 1989.

Bernie Parent

Sept. 21 (age 80)

On a team nicknamed the Broad Street Bullies, Parent's superb play was crucial to the only two titles in Flyers history, and he entered the Hall of Fame with the Class of 1984. Parent earned trust with two of the greatest seasons ever by an NHL goalie; from 1973-75, he won 91 games, 24 by shutout, and was awarded the Vezina Trophy each time. The Flyers became the first expansion team to win the Stanley Cup in 1974 and repeated in '75, with Parent winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP each time. His career ended abruptly when an errant stick entered the right eyehole of his mask during a game against the Rangers on Feb. 17, 1979. Parent was hospitalized for two weeks but sustained permanent damage to his vision and retired at age 34. The Flyers retired his No. 1 on Oct. 11, 1979, and he was named to the 100 Greatest NHL Players in 2017.

Bobby Grier

Sept. 22 (age 82)

The father of Sharks general manager Mike Grier was a football coach and front office executive with three NFL teams over seven decades. Bobby Grier began his NFL career in 1981 as a New England Patriots assistant coach. He rose through the organizational ranks to the top role of vice president of player personnel, a position he held through the 2000 NFL Draft, when the Patriots selected University of Michigan quarterback Tom Brady in the sixth round (No. 199). Grier later worked as associate director of pro scouting and senior personnel adviser for the Houston Texans from 2000 to 2016 and as a Miami Dolphins consultant through 2025. Bobby's older son, Chris Grier, was Dolphins GM before leaving the organization Oct. 31.

Mike Boland

Oct. 5 (age 75)

The undrafted forward played two games for the Flyers in 1974-75 before excelling in a film career as "The Human Steadicam" who won an Emmy and Gemini Award. Boland, a Montreal native, played 41 games for Ottawa of the WHA in 1972-73, and was one of the first North Americans to play pro hockey in Europe when he skated for HIFK in SM-Liiga, Finland's top professional league, in 1976-77. His series work included the CBC's "The Fifth Estate" and "The Nature of Things," and with journalist Bob McKeown he co-directed "The Boys on the Bus," a documentary on the 1986-87 Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers that's enshrined in the Hall of Fame.

Gerry Ouellette

Oct. 6 (age 86)

The forward played 34 games for the Bruins in 1960-61, six AHL seasons for Providence and Buffalo, and the minors circuit before retiring after the 1971-72 season with Omaha in the Central Hockey League. Ouellette had nine points (four goals, five assists) for Boston, was Buffalo captain during its 1970 Calder Cup run, and Omaha captain en route to the 1971 Adams Cup.

Jake Patterson

Oct. 16 (age 31)

The goalie and Sault Ste. Marie native won the 2013 J. Ross Robertson Cup with London after making 30 saves in a 3-2 victory against Barrie in Game 7 of the Ontario Hockey League championship series. Patterson was selected by Plymouth in the seventh round (No. 135) of the 2010 OHL Draft and played for London from 2011-14. Among his London teammates on the 2013 championship team were Anthony Stolarz (Maple Leafs) and Bo Horvat (Islanders).

Cameron Noble-Montour

Oct. 20 (age 34)

The older brother of Seattle Kraken defenseman Brandon Montour died after a battle with ALS. The Kraken announced Oct. 18 that Brandon would be away from the team on a temporary leave of absence because of a family matter.

Cam Brown

Oct. 25 (age 56)

The undrafted forward was inducted to the ECHL Hall of Fame with the Class of 2010 that included Olaf Kolzig, the 2000 Vezina Trophy winner with the Capitals. Brown played one game for the Canucks, when he had seven minutes in penalties during an 8-0 loss to the Blackhawks on March 3, 1990. He played 16 pro seasons in the AHL, International Hockey League and Czech Extraliga. His 789 ECHL games and 2,245 penalty minutes over 13 seasons are fourth and second in league history. Brown coached Baton Rouge in 2002-03 before coming out of retirement to play three seasons for Gwinnett, helping the Gladiators to the 2006 Kelly Cup Finals, a five-game loss to Alaska.

Leon Stickle

Nov. 5 (age 77)

The longtime NHL linesperson officiated 1,948 regular-season games and 219 playoff games including six Stanley Cup Finals (1977, 1978, 1980, 1981, 1984, 1985) over 27 seasons. Stickle worked four NHL All-Star games (1975, 1978, 1983, 1997), the 1979 Challenge Cup -- a series of games between NHL All Stars and the Soviet Union National Team -- the 1981 and 1984 Canada Cup and Rendez-vous '87, when a team of NHL All-Stars played two exhibition games against the USSR. He then joined the Western Professional Hockey League for three seasons as supervisor of officials before being named director of officiating in July 2000. Stickle was named NHL supervisor of officials in 2003.

Roger Picard

Nov. 7 (age 92)

The forward played 15 games for the expansion Blues in 1967-68, and in the Central Hockey League (Kansas City and Omaha), the AHL (Buffalo) and WHL (Denver) before ending his playing career following the 1968-69 season. Picard coached Rosemont of the Quebec Junior "A" Hockey League (1973-74), and Laval and Granby of the QMJHL from 1981 to '84. His younger brother Noel, who died at the age of 78 on Sept. 6, 2017, is remembered for tripping Orr, launching the Bruins defenseman into "The Flight" after he scored to give Boston a Stanley Cup-clinching 4-3 overtime win against St. Louis in Game 4 of the 1970 Final.

Mel Bridgman

Nov. 8 (age 70)

The center was the Flyers' first and only player taken No. 1 in the NHL Draft (1975). Bridgman had 157 points in 66 games for Victoria of the Western Canada Hockey League and played 977 games over 14 seasons for the Flyers, Flames, Devils, Red Wings and Canucks. He was captain of the Flyers and Devils, scored his first NHL goal in his Flyers debut Oct. 9, 1975, and helped Philadelphia to the Stanley Cup Final in 1976 and 1980. Bridgman was named the first general manager of the expansion Senators on Aug. 30, 1991, two seasons removed from his final season as a player and was inducted into the Greater Victoria Sports Hall of Fame with the Class of 2005.

Larry Brooks
Nov. 13 (age 75)

Brooks was selected for the Elmer Ferguson Award in 2018, voted on by the Professional Hockey Writers Association and given by the Hall of Fame "in recognition of distinguished members of the newspaper profession whose words have brought honor to journalism and to hockey." He covered hockey and the Rangers for the New York Post for nearly 40 years after beginning his career in 1975 as a part-time clerk working the overnight shift. His first out-of-office assignment was covering the Islanders in 1976, which led to a move to cover the Rangers in 1978-79, when they advanced to the Stanley Cup Final. Brooks stayed as a hockey columnist for three more seasons until becoming Devils public relations director and then vice president of communications from 1982-92. In 1993, Brooks returned to the Post to resume covering the Rangers and write his well-known "Slap Shots" column. He continued his roles until taking a medical leave of absence at the start of this season.

Richard Zamboni

Nov. 15 (age 93)

Richard's father, Frank Zamboni, developed and patented the first ice resurfacing machine in 1949. Richard joined the Frank J. Zamboni Company in 1957, following his service in the U.S. Air Force, took over as president of the company in 1976 and devoted himself to the growth of ice sports around the world. He was inducted into the Ice Skating Institute Hall of Fame in 1994, the NEISMA Frank J. Zamboni Hall of Fame in 1998, and won the 2001 Ice Skating Institute Frank J. Zamboni Award, the 2010 Ice Skating Institute Lifetime Achievement Award in 2010, and the 2013 Ice Skating Institute President's Award.

Weston Paszkiewicz

Nov. 18 (age 10)

Weston's mother, Anne, wrote on her son's CaringBridge page that he died from leukemia "surrounded by his family and passed peacefully while watching a hockey game" less than one month after signing a one-day contract with the Wild through the Make-A-Wish Foundation on Oct. 30. Paszkiewicz, who was diagnosed with Leukemia in January, spent the morning in the Wild locker room, where he had his own stall and jersey. He then put on a No. 83 jersey, got on the ice and scored some goals accompanied by cheers and stick taps from players. Before the game, Weston helped former Wild goalie Marc-Andre Fleury pull some pranks on forward Kirill Kaprizov when the two taped up all of his shoes and cut holes in his socks. Following the Wild's 4-1 loss to the Penguins, Pittsburgh coach Dan Muse said in his postgame talk, "It was a good team win, another good step," before introducing Paszkiewicz to the room. He was a guest of the Wild again for their Hockey Fights Cancer night Nov. 16.

Tom Hicks

Dec. 6 (age 79)

Hicks owned the Stars from 1995 to 2011, a time when they won the Presidents' Trophy twice (1998, '99) and the 1999 Stanley Cup championship. He played an instrumental role in the development and planning of American Airlines Center, the grassroots growth of hockey through the creation of numerous StarCenter facilities, and made extraordinary contributions to the city of Dallas by helping shape the region's cultural, educational and civic landscape. Hicks also owned the Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball from 1998 to 2010, a team that won three American League West Division titles and the 2010 AL pennant, and acquired a 50 percent stake in Liverpool of the Premier League (soccer) in 2007.

Randel McCoy

Dec. 6 (age 40)

The son-in-law of Hall of Famer Pat LaFontaine was diagnosed with ALS in 2018. McCoy was a football captain at Huntington High School on Long Island, an assistant wrestling and football coach at the nearby Cold Spring Harbor School District and married Brianna LaFontaine on Nov. 8, 2019. The couple and McCoy's fight against the disease were the subjects of the "E:60" film "A Love Story" that premiered on ESPN prior to the Islanders' 4-1 win against the Blackhawks at United Center in Chicago on Oct. 19, 2021. "Our family has been blessed to share a lifetime of special memories with Randel in just the past eight years -- holidays, trips, birthday dinners, family gatherings," Pat LaFontaine wrote on Instagram. "It was a gift to know and love him; he was a gift to so many -- someone who inspired, taught, and impacted those around him. 'We' will always love you. Pop."

Bobby Rousseau

Dec. 13 (age 85)

The four-time Stanley Cup-winning forward with the Canadiens between 1965-69 battled Alzheimer's disease for several years. Rousseau, the 1962 Calder Trophy winner, had 703 points (245 goals, 458 assists) in 15 NHL seasons for the Canadiens, North Stars and Rangers. He became one of eight players in Canadiens history to score five goals in one game when he beat Red Wings goalie five times in a 9-3 victory at the Montreal Forum on Feb. 1, 1964, the first of his four hat tricks in the League. Rousseau won the 1958 Memorial Cup with Hull-Ottawa and helped Canada to a silver medal at the 1960 Squaw Valley Olympics.

Paul Gagne

Dec. 17 (age 63)

The first-round pick (No. 19) of the Colorado Rockies in the 1980 NHL Draft played left wing on "The Kid Line" at age 21 with Jeff Larmer, 20, and Aaron Broten, 22, for the Devils beginning with the 1982-83 season, their first in New Jersey after relocating from Denver. Gagne scored his first NHL goal in his second game, a 3-2 victory in Edmonton on Oct. 12, 1980, and played 390 games for the Rockies, Devils, Maple Leafs and Islanders. He left North America after playing for Newmarket and Springfield of the AHL in 1989-90, and retired from pro hockey after 1998-99 to coach Biel in Switzerland's National League for one season. Gagne then returned to his native Iroquois Falls, where he was coach and general manager of the Iroquois Falls Storm in the Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League for 16 seasons and won a league championship in 2010.

Guy Chouinard

Dec. 28 (69)

The forward, who scored the first goal in the history of the Calgary Flames, played 10 seasons in the NHL with the Atlanta/Calgary Flames and St. Louis Blues. He had 575 points (205 goals, 370 assists) in 578 regular-season games. Chouinard had at least 80 points in a season three times, including in 1978-79, when he led Atlanta with 50 goals, and was second with 107 points in 80 games. He also had 37 points (nine goals, 28 assists) in 46 Stanley Cup Playoff games. Chouinard scored at 8:45 of the first period in a 5-5 tie against the Quebec Nordiques at Stampede Corral on Oct. 9, 1980, in the first home game for the Flames since moving to Calgary. After he retired, Chouinard coached for 16 seasons in the QMJHL, including with Quebec, where he coached his son, Eric. He had his No. 7 retired by Quebec in 2016 and was inducted into the QMJHL Hall of Fame in 2025.