Armand "Bep" Guidolin (December 9, 1925 – November 24, 2008) was a Canadian

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

player and coach. He is notable for being the youngest player in

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

history. He was born in

Thorold Thorold is a city in Ontario, Canada, located on the Niagara Escarpment. It is also the seat of the Regional Municipality of Niagara. The Welland Canal passes through the city, featuring lock 7 and the Twin Flight Locks. History The first surv ...

Ontario Ontario is the southernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada. Located in Central Canada, Ontario is the Population of Canada by province and territory, country's most populous province. As of the 2021 Canadian census, it ...

. He and Eleanor, his wife of 62 years, had four children. His family moved to

Timmins Timmins ( ) is a city in northeastern Ontario, Canada, located on the Mattagami River. The city is the fourth-largest city in the Northeastern Ontario region with a population of 41,145 at the 2021 Canadian census and an estimated population of ...

. Guidolin stood 5'8" at 175 lbs, and was a left-shooting left winger in the NHL. He later went on to a coaching career. He was nicknamed "Bep" because his mother spoke Italian and very little English. Armand was the baby of the family and his mother pronounced baby as "beppy". The nickname stuck and was shortened to "Bep". He is the cousin of fellow NHL player and coach Aldo Guidolin.

Early life

Guidolin and his family moved to Timmins when he was young. It was there that he learned how to skate at the age of 13. His abilities excelled through practicing on local outdoor rinks. When the NHL lost many of its talented players to the Second World War, Guidolin's talents caught the eyes of pro scouts as being a viable replacement option.

Playing career

Guidolin played junior hockey with the

Oshawa Generals The Oshawa Generals are a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey League. They are based in Oshawa, Ontario, Canada. The team is named for General Motors, an early sponsor (commercial), sponsor which has its Canadian headquarters in Oshawa. ...

of the OHA, playing in the

Memorial Cup The Memorial Cup () is the national championship of the Canadian Hockey League (CHL), a consortium of three Junior ice hockey, major junior ice hockey leagues operating in Canada and parts of the United States. It is a four-team round-robin tou ...

in 1942. Later that year he became the youngest player (16 years, 11 months) to play in an NHL game, on November 12, 1942. His quick rise to the NHL was a direct result of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. 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 (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...

were in dire need of replacements to fill the roster holes created by so many players leaving for military service. In 1944, his eligibility for military service brought a one-year break from his NHL career. Guidolin also played for the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

and the

Chicago Black Hawks Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

. Armand was an ardent supporter of the formation of a players' union, which led to the early demise of his NHL career in 1952. He played for nine years in the minors, then retired to a coaching career.

Coaching career

Guidolin coached the Belleville McFarlands, winning the

Allan Cup The Allan Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the senior ice hockey champions of Canada. It was donated by Sir Montagu Allan of Ravenscrag, Montreal, and has been competed for since 1909. It was most recently won by the Wentworth Gryphins ...

in 1958, and the

World Championship A world championship is generally an international competition open to elite competitors from around the world, representing their nations, and winning such an event will be considered the highest or near highest achievement in the sport, game ...

in 1959. In 1965 he became the coach of his former junior team the Oshawa Generals, featuring 17-year-old future

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

defenceman

Bobby Orr Robert Gordon Orr (born March 20, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time. Orr used his skating speed, scoring, and play-making abilities to revolutionize the ...

. He led the Generals to the Memorial Cup final in 1966 versus the Edmonton Oil Kings. Guidolin later coached the

London Knights The London Knights are a junior ice hockey team from London, Ontario, Canada, playing in the Ontario Hockey League, one of the leagues of the Canadian Hockey League. The Knights started out in 1965 as the London Nationals but changed to their ...

of the OHL,

and the

Kansas City Scouts The Kansas City Scouts were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1974 to 1976. In 1976–77 NHL season, 1976, the franchise relocated to Denver and became the Colorado Rockies (NHL), Colorado Rockies. In 1982– ...

of the NHL, the

Edmonton Oilers The Edmonton Oilers are a professional ice hockey team based in Edmonton. The Oilers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division in the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference. Th ...

of the

World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association () was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972–73 WHA season, 1972 to 1978–79 WHA season, 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (N ...

, and the

Boston Braves The Boston Braves were a Major League Baseball club that originated in Boston, Boston, Massachusetts, and played from 1871 to 1952. Afterwards they moved to History of the Atlanta Braves#Milwaukee, Milwaukee (and became the Milwaukee Braves). ...

and Philadelphia Firebirds of the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league in North America that serves as the primary developmental league of the National Hockey League (NHL). The league comprises 32 teams, with 26 in the United States and 6 in Cana ...

. It was a dream of Guidolin's to coach in the NHL, which became a reality when he got the opportunity to coach the Boston Bruins midway through the 1972–73 season when he was bench boss for 26 games. He coached Boston again in 1973–74, leading the Bruins to the

Stanley Cup Finals The Stanley Cup Finals in ice hockey (also known as the Stanley Cup Final among various media, ) is the annual championship series of the National Hockey League (NHL). The winner is awarded the Stanley Cup, North America's oldest professional spo ...

. Guidolin also coached the

for the 1974–75 and 1975–76 campaigns.Hockey Reference – Bep Guidolin Coaching Records
Retrieved July 20, 2021. (Legree, 2018). Guidolin also coached the Timmins Northstars of the Northland Intermediate Hockey League which went on to the Hardy Cup Finals for the All Canadians. He also coached a Junior C team for a short time out of Angus Ontario known as the Essa 80s at the end of his career.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Coaching statistics

NHL

: - replaced mid-season : – mid-season replacement

WHA

WOJBHL

OHA

AHL

OHL

Bep also coached the Essa 80s junior C team out of Angus Ontario .

OHASr

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Guidolin, Bep 1925 births 2008 deaths Boston Bruins coaches Boston Bruins players Brantford Alexanders coaches Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian ice hockey left wingers Canadian sportspeople of Italian descent Chicago Blackhawks players Detroit Red Wings players Edmonton Oilers coaches Ice hockey people from Ontario Kansas City Scouts coaches London Knights coaches Oshawa Generals players Oshawa Generals coaches Ottawa Senators (QSHL) players People from Thorold Sportspeople from the Regional Municipality of Niagara World Hockey Association coaches 20th-century Canadian sportsmen