NHL Hall Of Fame player Bill Gadsby has died at the age of 88. The former Detroit Red Wings star played 20 seasons in the league and in multiple Stanley Cup finals.
Gadsby died on Thursday in Farmington Hills, Mich., his wife Edna said, after previously being in failing health. Gadsby reportedly had fallen two separate times over the past week. The defenseman's death was confirmed by Lynn Anderson, who is the director of communications for Beaumont Hospital of Farmington Hills. Gadsby played for the Red Wings, New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks during the course of his career, appearing in over 1,200 games in that time.
Gadsby started his NHL career in 1946 and during the course of his playing days he made it to the finals with the Red Wings three different times. Gadsby also served as coach of the Red Wings for one season. The defenseman finished his career with 130 goals and 438 assists in 1,248 games played. Gadsby was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in the 1970 class.
Gadsby was considered one of the premier defensive players of his era, setting the then-record for assists by a player at his position in the 1958-59 season for the Rangers. At the time of his retirement, Gadsby was the all-time league leader for defenseman in games played, points and penalty minutes. Gadsby also was named to the All-Star team seven times in his career.
While Gadsby did not win a Stanley Cup during the course of his career, the defenseman was involved in some notable events on the ice. Gadsby was involved in a big, but "legal" hit on Toronto defenseman Tim Horton in 1955 while he was a member of the New York Rangers. Horton was hit hard on the play and knocked unconscious while also suffering a broken jaw and right leg injury.
"It scared the hell out of me, seeing the blood coming out of Tim's mouth and ear," Gadsby told The Montreal Gazette in 2012, per the New York Times. "I thought he was dead. Thank God it wasn't a dirty check."
Gadsby started his career with the Blackhawks and was later traded to the New York Rangers in 1954. The defenseman spent over six seasons with the team before being traded to the Detroit Red Wings. Gadsby finished in the top five of Norris Trophy voting five different times in his career, including three times as the runner-up for the award, which goes to the top defenseman in the league.
