Reginald Joseph Leach (born April 23, 1950) is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

former professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) 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. In ice hockey, two o ...

right winger who played 13 seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL) for 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 ...

, California Golden Seals,

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wel ...

, and

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 ...

. He is best known for his time in Philadelphia, winning a Stanley Cup with the Flyers in 1975 and being a member of the LCB line.

Playing career

Nicknamed "The Riverton Rifle" and "The Chief", Leach was drafted third overall by the

in the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft. Leach scored his first NHL goal in Boston's 6-0 home win over St. Louis on January 31, 1971. He scored nine goals during his time with the Bruins. Boston traded Leach, Rick Smith and Bob Stewart to California for Carol Vadnais and Don O'Donoghue on February 23, 1972. After playing three seasons in Oakland, the Golden Seals traded Leach to Philadelphia for Larry Wright, Al MacAdam and 1974 first rounder (Ron Chipperfield) on May 24, 1974. He contributed to the Philadelphia Flyers' Stanley Cup win in 1974-75. He finished his NHL career with a one-season stop with the Detroit Red Wings. His best season was the 1975–76 season with the Philadelphia Flyers, when he set career highs in goals (61), points (91), game-winning goals (11), and plus-minus with a +73 rating. Leach's 61 goals earned him the goal-scoring title (now the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy) for that season, as well as the current Flyers franchise record for most goals in a season. Leach is perhaps best remembered for being one of only five players, the first Flyer, and the only non-goaltender to win the

Conn Smythe Trophy The Conn Smythe Trophy (french: Trophée Conn Smythe) is awarded annually to the most valuable player (MVP) of his team during the National Hockey League's (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs. It is named after Conn Smythe, the longtime owner, general m ...

, awarded to the MVP of the Stanley Cup playoffs, as a member of the losing team in the Final. He followed Roger Crozier (

, in 1966) and Glenn Hall ( St. Louis Blues, 1968) and preceded Ron Hextall (Philadelphia, 1987) and Jean-Sebastien Giguere ( Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, 2003). He earned this distinction in 1976 while setting NHL records for most goals in a single post-season, with 19 in 16 games, surpassing the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

' Newsy Lalonde's 1919 mark of 17 goals, and longest consecutive games goal-scoring streak in the playoffs at 10, bettering the 7 set by another Canadien, Maurice Richard, as his team went on to be swept in the final by Montreal. The latter record remains unrivaled, but the former was matched by 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 of the Western Conference. They play their home games at Rogers Place, which ...

Jari Kurri Jari Pekka Kurri (; born May 18, 1960) is a Finnish former professional ice hockey winger and a five-time Stanley Cup champion. In 2001, he became the first Finnish player to be inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. In 2017 Kurri was named o ...

in 1985, although Leach established it in 2 fewer games. During that same playoff season, Leach recorded a five-goal game against the

, a record he shares today with Maurice Richard,

Darryl Sittler Darryl Glen Sittler (born September 18, 1950) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player who played in the National Hockey League from 1970 until 1985 for the Toronto Maple Leafs, the Philadelphia Flyers and the Detroit Red Wings. He was ...

Mario Lemieux Mario Lemieux (; ; born October 5, 1965) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. He played parts of 17 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Pittsburgh Penguins between 1984 and 2006, and he assumed ownership of the ...

and Newsy Lalonde. Also, his total of 80 goals for the season and playoffs together set a new NHL record, which stood until 1980-81 when Mike Bossy of the

New York Islanders The New York Islanders (colloquially known as the Isles) are a professional ice hockey team based in Elmont, New York. The Islanders compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference ( ...

scored 85. Leach played 934 career NHL games, scoring 381 goals and 285 assists for 666 points. Reggie was also part of the Flyers' 35-game unbeaten streak in 1980, which is a record that still stands today, in addition to the Flyers' home game unbeaten streak of 22 games in the same year. Leach also played for Team Canada in the 1976

Canada Cup The Canada Cup (french: Coupe Canada) was an invitational international ice hockey tournament held on five occasions between 1976 and 1991. The brainchild of Toronto lawyer Alan Eagleson, the tournament was created to meet demand for a true worl ...

, helping to win the championship. He was also a member of the NHL All-Star teams in 1976 and 1980.

Coaching career

In late 2007, Leach joined the Manitoulin Islanders of the

Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League The Northern Ontario Junior Hockey League (NOJHL) is a Canadian Junior ice hockey league and member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League and Northern Ontario Hockey Association. The winner of the NOJHL playoffs competes for the Dudley Hewitt Cup ...

as an associate coach. In the spring of 2008, it was announced that Leach would return to Manitoulin for the 2008–09 season as the full-time head coach and director of hockey operations.

Personal life

Leach is of Ojibwe ethnicity, a member of

Berens River First Nation Berens River First Nation ( oj, Mememwi-ziibiing) is a First Nations band government in Manitoba, Canada. The First Nation has two reserves: Berens River 13 and Pigeon River 13A, located in the boreal forest east of Lake Winnipeg. The First Natio ...

in Manitoba. His son

Jamie Leach William "Jamie" Leach (born August 25, 1969) is a Canadian-born American former National Hockey League right wing. He is the son of former NHLer Reggie Leach. He was included on both Stanley Cup winning pictures with Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992. ...

played in the NHL for parts of 5 seasons, winning the Stanley Cup with the

Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division of the Eastern Conference, and have play ...

in 1992. Reggie and his two children have all represented Canada: Leach with Team Canada in 1976; son Jamie in the World Juniors in 1989; and daughter Brandie in the world Lacrosse championships in Scotland in

1993 File:1993 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: The Oslo I Accord is signed in an attempt to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict; The Russian White House is shelled during the 1993 Russian constitutional crisis; Czechoslovakia is peace ...

. In 1985, Leach entered rehab for alcohol abuse. He has remained sober for over 30 years.

Awards

MJHL The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior ice hockey, Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirtee ...

First All-Star Team (1967) *Turnbull Cup MJHL Championship (1967) * WCJHL First All-Star Team (1968) * WCHL All-Star Team ( 1969 and 1970) *WCHL Goal Scoring Leader (1968 and 1970) *WCHL Scoring Champion (1970) *WCHL Player of the Year (1970) * Stanley Cup championship (

1975 It was also declared the ''International Women's Year'' by the United Nations and the European Architectural Heritage Year by the Council of Europe. Events January * January 1 - Watergate scandal (United States): John N. Mitchell, H. R. ...

) *

NHL 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 ...

Goal Scoring Leader ( 1976) *NHL Second All-Star Team (1976) *

( 1976) *

championship ( 1976) *Played in NHL All-Star Game ( 1976 and 1980) *Inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1997 *Selected to

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Win ...

's All-Century Second All-Star Team *"Honoured Member" of the

Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum is a hall of fame and museum for ice hockey in Manitoba, located on the main level of the Canada Life Centre in downtown Winnipeg. It was established in 1985, when the first honoured members were named ...

* Inducted into

Hall of Fame (1992) *Selected as the

National Aboriginal Achievement Awards The Indspire Awards, until 2012 the National Aboriginal Achievement Awards, are annual awards presented by Indspire in Canada. The awards are intended to celebrate and encourage excellence in the Aboriginal community. About The awards were fir ...

, now the Indspire Awards, recipient in the sports category (2008) * Member of the Order of Manitoba (2016) * Member of the

Order of Canada The Order of Canada (french: Ordre du Canada; abbreviated as OC) is a Canadian state order and the second-highest honour for merit in the system of orders, decorations, and medals of Canada, after the Order of Merit. To coincide with the c ...

(2019) *

Honorary degree An honorary degree is an academic degree for which a university (or other degree-awarding institution) has waived all of the usual requirements. It is also known by the Latin phrases ''honoris causa'' ("for the sake of the honour") or '' ad ho ...

Doctor of Laws,

Brock University Brock University is a public research university in St. Catharines, Ontario, Canada. It is the only university in Canada in a UNESCO Biosphere Reserve, at the centre of Canada's Niagara Peninsula on the Niagara Escarpment. The university bea ...

(2019)

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

''In bold are NHL record(s) (tied with

)''

International

Popular culture

John K. Samson John Kristjan Samson (born 1973) is a Canadian musician from Winnipeg, Manitoba. He is a singer-songwriter and best known as the frontman of the Canadian indie folk/rock band The Weakerthans. He also played bass in the punk band Propagandhi duri ...

wrote and recorded a song about Leach, which was titled "Petition" on his 2010 EP '' Provincial Road 222'' and retitled "www.ipetitions.com/petition/rivertonrifle/" on his 2012 album '' Provincial''."John K. Samson to Bring Petition to Hockey Hall of Fame"
''

Exclaim! ''Exclaim!'' is a Canadian music and entertainment publisher based in Toronto, which features in-depth coverage of new music across all genres with a special focus on Canadian and emerging artists. The monthly Exclaim! print magazine publishes 7 ...

'', February 21, 2013. The song recites the text of Samson's own petition to have Leach inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, and was formally presented to the HHOF in 2013. Leach was the answer to a radio question in the TV series ''

It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia ''It's Always Sunny in Philadelphia'' is an American sitcom created by Rob McElhenney and developed by McElhenney and Glenn Howerton that premiered on August 4, 2005 on FX and later FXX beginning with the ninth season in 2013. It stars Charlie ...

''. In the fourth episode of the show's sixth season, Mac wins a radio prize after guessing Leach's name at the last second to the question, "Who holds the Philadelphia Flyers' franchise record for goals in a season?" Leach is cited as inspirational example in

Richard Wagamese Richard Wagamese (October 14, 1955 – March 10, 2017) was an Ojibwe Canadian author and journalist from the Wabaseemoong Independent Nations in Northwestern Ontario."Indian Horse is a dark ride". ''Calgary Herald'', February 28, 2012. He was be ...

's novel '' Indian Horse'' (2012) and the 2017 film adaptation directed by Stephen Campanelli.

References

External links

*
Reggie Leach's profile
a

a
Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum
a

{{DEFAULTSORT:Leach, Reggie 1950 births Boston Bruins draft picks Boston Bruins players California Golden Seals players Canadian ice hockey right wingers Conn Smythe Trophy winners Detroit Red Wings players First Nations sportspeople Flin Flon Bombers players Ice hockey people from Manitoba Living people Madison Monsters players Members of the Order of Manitoba Montana Magic players National Hockey League All-Stars National Hockey League first-round draft picks Ojibwe people Oklahoma City Blazers (1965–1977) players Philadelphia Flyers players Stanley Cup champions Indspire Awards Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Members of the Order of Canada