NHL player, Stanley-Cup winning coach Al MacNeil dead at 89

By The Canadian Press on January 6, 2025.

Calgary Flames employee Al MacNeil waves as his wife Norma looks on during a ceremony before the start of NHL hockey action against the Montreal Canadiens in Calgary, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2006. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

CALGARY – Al MacNeil, a former NHL player and Stanley Cup-winning coach, has died at age 89.

The Flames said in a press release Monday that MacNeil died Sunday in Calgary. No cause of death was provided.

MacNeil was an Original Six defenceman who played 524 NHL games for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, Chicago Blackhawks, New York Rangers and Pittsburgh Penguins between 1955 and 1968.

He was a rookie head coach of the Montreal Canadiens when the team won the Stanley Cup in 1971. MacNeil was Montreal’s director of player personnel for Stanley Cup wins in 1978 and 1979.

MacNeil, from Sydney, N.S., was an assistant general manager of the Calgary Flames for their Stanley Cup victory in 1989.

He was Calgary’s head coach for the Flames’ first two seasons after the team’s relocation from Atlanta. MacNeil was also interim head coach of the Flames for 13 games in 2002-03.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 6, 2025.