Evans was born in Morriston, Wales, but emigrated with his parents to Drumheller, Alberta in his youth. He spoke only the Welsh Language and no English until he entered school, and later spoke the language with an elongated drawl; the similarities between Evans' manner of speaking and the traditional Southern accent led to him earning the nickname of "Tex" from teammates. Although he did not begin playing hockey until age 14, by age 20, a quick-learning Evans was a leading junior league defenceman and participated in the 1948 Memorial Cup. That same year, he signed a minor league contract with the Rangers. [1]
Professional career
Evans played five games over the next two seasons, while gaining experience in the American Hockey League. He would then spend the next four years as the Rangers' seventh defenceman, moving in and out of the lineup as needed and serving as a valuable defensive reserve. During the 1954–55 NHL season, Evans finally cracked the regular lineup and worked significant minutes for the next three years on the blue line.[2] In 1958, he was claimed by Chicago, where he would play in a similar role for his final four seasons. He was a member of the 1961 Stanley Cup winning team making him the first Welsh born Stanley Cup Champion. Jack Evans played in 1962 NHL All Star game in Toronto also making him the first NHL All Star player originating from Wales. In 1964, the Black Hawks released Evans, but the veteran continued to play in a variety of minor leagues until he finally retired in 1972 at the age of 44.[3]
Coaching career
In 1974, Evans was hired to coach the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the WHL. After one season that included coach of the year honors, he was promoted to the parent club California Golden Seals. He coached the anemic franchise in its final year in the Bay Area and its two seasons as the Cleveland Barons before the financially troubled organization merged with the Minnesota North Stars in 1978. The NHL returned to the Bay Area when the San Jose Sharks franchise started play in 1991.
Evans returned to the ECHL bench before being hired by the Hartford Whalers in 1983. In his third season with the club, he earned a playoff berth, and in 1987, he led the club to a division title. A poor performance the following year resulted in Evans being fired midseason.
jack, evans, hockey, other, people, named, jack, evans, jack, evans, disambiguation, william, john, trevor, jack, evans, april, 1928, november, 1996, canadian, professional, hockey, defenceman, coach, played, seasons, national, hockey, league, york, rangers, c. For other people named Jack Evans see Jack Evans disambiguation William John Trevor Jack Evans April 21 1928 November 10 1996 was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman and coach who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers and Chicago Black Hawks Jack EvansBorn 1928 04 21 April 21 1928Morriston Wales United KingdomDiedNovember 10 1996 1996 11 10 aged 68 Manchester Connecticut U S Height6 ft 0 in 183 cm Weight185 lb 84 kg 13 st 3 lb PositionDefenceShotLeftPlayed forNew York Rangers Chicago Black HawksPlaying career1946 1972 Contents 1 Early life 2 Professional career 3 Coaching career 4 Death 5 NHL Coaching record 6 See also 7 References 8 External linksEarly life EditEvans was born in Morriston Wales but emigrated with his parents to Drumheller Alberta in his youth He spoke only the Welsh Language and no English until he entered school and later spoke the language with an elongated drawl the similarities between Evans manner of speaking and the traditional Southern accent led to him earning the nickname of Tex from teammates Although he did not begin playing hockey until age 14 by age 20 a quick learning Evans was a leading junior league defenceman and participated in the 1948 Memorial Cup That same year he signed a minor league contract with the Rangers 1 Professional career EditEvans played five games over the next two seasons while gaining experience in the American Hockey League He would then spend the next four years as the Rangers seventh defenceman moving in and out of the lineup as needed and serving as a valuable defensive reserve During the 1954 55 NHL season Evans finally cracked the regular lineup and worked significant minutes for the next three years on the blue line 2 In 1958 he was claimed by Chicago where he would play in a similar role for his final four seasons He was a member of the 1961 Stanley Cup winning team making him the first Welsh born Stanley Cup Champion Jack Evans played in 1962 NHL All Star game in Toronto also making him the first NHL All Star player originating from Wales In 1964 the Black Hawks released Evans but the veteran continued to play in a variety of minor leagues until he finally retired in 1972 at the age of 44 3 Coaching career EditIn 1974 Evans was hired to coach the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the WHL After one season that included coach of the year honors he was promoted to the parent club California Golden Seals He coached the anemic franchise in its final year in the Bay Area and its two seasons as the Cleveland Barons before the financially troubled organization merged with the Minnesota North Stars in 1978 The NHL returned to the Bay Area when the San Jose Sharks franchise started play in 1991 Evans returned to the ECHL bench before being hired by the Hartford Whalers in 1983 In his third season with the club he earned a playoff berth and in 1987 he led the club to a division title A poor performance the following year resulted in Evans being fired midseason Death EditEvans died of prostate cancer at his Manchester Connecticut home in 1996 at the age of 68 1 NHL Coaching record EditTeam Year Regular season Post seasonG W L T Pts Finish ResultCalifornia Golden Seals 1975 76 80 27 42 11 65 4th in Adams Missed PlayoffsCleveland Barons 1976 77 80 25 42 13 63 4th in Adams Missed PlayoffsCleveland Barons 1977 78 80 22 45 13 57 4th in Adams Missed PlayoffsHartford Whalers 1983 84 80 28 42 10 66 5th in Adams Missed PlayoffsHartford Whalers 1984 85 80 30 41 9 69 4th in Adams Missed PlayoffsHartford Whalers 1985 86 80 40 36 4 84 4th in Adams Lost in 2nd RoundHartford Whalers 1986 87 80 43 30 7 93 1st in Adams Lost in 1st RoundHartford Whalers 1987 88 54 22 25 7 77 4th in Adams fired Total 614 237 303 74See also EditList of National Hockey League players from the United KingdomReferences Edit Jack Evans Hockey Coach 68 The New York Times 14 November 1996 External links EditBiographical information and career statistics from NHL com or Eliteprospects com or Hockey Reference com or The Internet Hockey DatabasePreceded byBill McCreary Sr Head coach of the California Golden Seals Cleveland Barons1975 78 Succeeded byPosition abolishedPreceded byJohn CunniffLarry Pleau Head coach of the Hartford Whalers1983 871987 89 Succeeded byLarry Pleau Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Jack Evans ice hockey amp oldid 1100490352, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
