Pete Conacher

Charles William "Pete" Conacher, Jr. (born July 29, 1932) is a retired professional ice hockey player who played 229 games in the National Hockey League.

Pete Conacher
Born (1932-07-29) July 29, 1932
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 165 lb (75 kg; 11 st 11 lb)
Position Left Wing
Shot Left
Played for Toronto Maple Leafs
Chicago Black Hawks
New York Rangers
Buffalo Bisons (AHL)
St. Louis Flyers
Hershey Bears
Playing career 1949–1966

Conacher played with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Chicago Black Hawks, and New York Rangers. In 1959, Conacher played for the World Champion Belleville McFarlands. He is the son of NHL Hall of Famer, Charlie Conacher.

Junior Hockey career

Pete Conacher began his hockey career in the Toronto Hockey League in 1943 with the Leaside PeeWee team. He went on to play for the North Toronto Kinsmen Terriers in the 1944-45 season; where he would go on to be a Minor Bantam finalist. At the age of 16, he became property of the Chicago Blackhawks but was sent to their Ontario Hockey Association affiliate, the Galt Black Hawks. He would play in Galt (now part of Cambridge, Ontario) for two seasons. His best offensive season came in 1951-'52 where he would score 120 points (53G, 67A) in 51 games. In 1952, he turned pro the Chicago Blackhawks to play in the National Hockey League.

Professional Hockey career

In his 13 years as a professional hockey player, he would also end up playing for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Hershey Bears, St. Louis Flyers, and Buffalo Bisons (AHL). In 1959, he would play for the Belleville McFarlands and go on to win the World Championship in Prague.[1] By the end of his professional hockey career, Pete had played 229 NHL regular season games, with 47 goals and 39 assists.[2]

After ending his professional career in 1966, he would join the NHL Oldtimers Hockey Club and would play charity hockey games across Canada for the following 13 years. To this day, he still plays for the Oldtimers hockey team. Pete was recognized for his 1959 World Championship success with the Belleville McFarlands by being inducted into the Belleville Hall of Fame.

Life Outside of Hockey

Pete was also a past President of the Ontario chapter of Special Olympics Canada. During summers he was not playing hockey, he would play in the Beaches Major Fastball League and senior baseball for Lizzies at the old Viaduct Stadium. He has also served as a board member for the Charlie Conacher Throat Cancer Research Fund at the Toronto General Hospital. Pete and his wife Ann have lived in Etobicoke for the past 48 years. He currently sits on the Board of Directors with the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame.

Conacher's uncles, Lionel Conacher, and Roy Conacher, also played in the NHL and were later inducted into the Hall of Fame. His cousins, Lionel Conacher Jr., was a first round draft pick in 1960 for the Montreal Alouettes of the Canadian Football League. Another cousin Brian Conacher represented Canada at the 1964 Winter Olympics and played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, winning a Stanley Cup with them during the 1966–67 NHL season. Cory Conacher, currently of the Tampa Bay Lightning, is also a distant relative of Pete's.[3] He is also a cousin with Murray Henderson.

Awards & Inductions
  • Belleville Hall of Fame
  • Province of Ontario Special Achievement Award (1991)
  • Ontario Special Olympics Hall of Fame (First Inductee, 1992)[4]
  • Queen Elizabeth II Golden Jubilee Medal (2002)
  • Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame (2002) [5]
  • Bobby Orr Hall of Fame (2010) [6]

References
  1. "Board of Directors". Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 20 February 2016.
  2. "Pete Conacher". The Internet Hockey Database. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  3. Cristodero, Damian (September 22, 2011). "Undrafted free agent Cory Conacher in mix for roster spot with Tampa Bay Lightning". Tampa Bay Times. Archived from the original on April 26, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
  4. "Pete Conacher". Bobby Orr Hall of Fame. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  5. "Pete Conacher". Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
  6. "Pete Conacher". Etobicoke Sports Hall of Fame. Retrieved 22 February 2016.
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