Donald Charles Head (born June 30, 1933) is a Canadian former 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 h ...

player. He played 38 games 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 ...

with the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...

during the 1961–62 season. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1953 to 1971, was spent in the senior Ontario Hockey Association and the

Western Hockey League The Western Hockey League (WHL) is a major junior ice hockey league based in Western Canada and the Northwestern United States. The WHL is one of three leagues that constitutes the Canadian Hockey League (CHL) as the highest level of junior h ...

. Head also played for the Canadian national team at the 1960 Winter Olympics, winning a silver medal.

Playing career

Amateur career

Head, a

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

, played junior hockey for the

Toronto Marlboros The Toronto Marlborough Athletic Club, commonly known as the Toronto Marlboros, was founded in 1903. It operated junior ice hockey and senior ice hockey teams in the Ontario Hockey Association and later the Ontario Hockey League. The Marlboros ...

where he won the

Dave Pinkney Trophy The Dave Pinkney Trophy is awarded to the goaltenders of the Ontario Hockey League team that has the lowest goals against average. It has been awarded annually since 1949. Winners List of winners of the Dave Pinkney Trophy. See also * List of C ...

for outstanding goaltender in the 1952-53 season. He was the goalie for the Canadian ice hockey team at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley, California, which was expected to take home the gold medals, but settled for silver behind the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territori ...

Professional career

Following the Olympics, Head signed with the expansion Portland Buckaroos of the

. The Buckaroos would go on to win the league championship, and Head was named to the league all-star team, and was chosen the league's rookie of the year and outstanding goalkeeper. He was among the very few goalies who did not wear a helmet in a game. The next year, Head was called up to the NHL

, but did not fare as well, winning only 9 of the 38 games he played as the Bruins finished last in the league. He returned to the WHL and won two more outstanding goalkeeper awards with the Buckaroos and was named to two more all-star teams. He also played for the

Seattle Totems The Seattle Totems were a professional ice hockey franchise in Seattle, Washington. Under several names prior to 1958, the franchise was a member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League (renamed the Western Hockey League in 1952) between 1944 and 19 ...

before ending his career with the Buckaroos in 1975, the same year the franchise folded.

Legacy

Head was named to the

Oregon Sports Hall of Fame The Oregon Sports Hall of Fame honors Oregon athletes, teams, coaches, and others who have made a significant contribution to sports in Oregon. The first class was inducted in 1980, with new inductees added in the fall. Operated by the Oregon Sports ...

in 1993.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

International

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Head, Don 1933 births Living people Boston Bruins players Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Ice hockey players at the 1960 Winter Olympics Medalists at the 1960 Winter Olympics Olympic ice hockey players of Canada Olympic medalists in ice hockey Olympic silver medalists for Canada Ontario Hockey Association Senior A League (1890–1979) players People from York, Toronto Portland Buckaroos players Seattle Totems (WHL) players Sportspeople from Toronto Toronto Marlboros players Windsor Bulldogs (OHA) players