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George Faulkner (ice hockey)

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George Faulkner
Shawinigan Cataracts 1955
Born (1933-12-27) December 27, 1933 (age 90)
Bishop's Falls, Newfoundland, Canada
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 156 lb (71 kg; 11 st 2 lb)
Position Left wing/Defence
Shot Left
Played for Shawinigan-Falls Cataracts
Jacksonville Rockets
Playing career 1950–1975

Robert George Faulkner (born December 27, 1933) is a Canadian retired professional hockey player. In 1954 George became the first professional hockey player from Newfoundland and Labrador when he signed with the minor-pro Shawinigan-Falls Cataracts of the Quebec Senior Hockey League.

Playing career

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Shawinigan Falls Cataracts

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In 1954 George became the first player from Newfoundland to sign a professional contract with an NHL team.[1] Faulkner played four seasons with the minor-pro Shawinigan Cataracts from 1954 to 1958. The Cataracts were owned by the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League.

Conception Bay CeeBees

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In 1958 George, at age 24, was hired by the town of Harbour Grace as the community's recreational director. He helped run the hockey program with stadium manager Lorne Wakelin at the new Conception Bay Recreational Centre which opened in January 1958. His first task was to form a senior hockey team. The Conception Bay CeeBees, with George on defense as their playing-coach, were immediately a dominant force in the Newfoundland senior league making seven finals appearances in their first nine seasons, including four all-Newfoundland hockey championships.

1966 World Hockey Championships

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In 1966 at the age of 32 Faulkner won a bronze medal and led Canada's national team in scoring with 6 goals and one assist in 7 games at the World Hockey Championships in Ljubljana, Yugoslavia. He finished 8th in tournament scoring with 7 points and tied for 3rd in goals with 6.[2]

Personal life

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George was born in the town of Bishop's Falls located on the shores of the Exploits River in Bishop's Falls, Newfoundland, Canada. His parents were Lester, also born in Bishop's Falls, and Olive who was a native of Point Leamington. Lester's mother (Svea) was born in Burträsk, Sweden and his father (William) was born in Sherbrooke, Guysborough County, Nova Scotia. George had four hockey-playing brothers (Lindy, Seth, Alex, and Jack) and two sisters (Marie and Elizabeth). He first learned how to play hockey on the Exploits River with his brothers. His brother Alex was the first Newfoundlander to play in the National Hockey League. George started his senior hockey career at age 15 playing with the Bishop's Falls Woodsmen in the Grand Falls Senior league. In 1951 he played Junior B with the Quebec Citadelles.

His biography, titled Faulkner: A Hockey History, was published on November 30, 2011. It was written by Tom P. Rossiter, a retired educator.

As of 2016, at the age of 82, he was still skating and sometimes played hockey. In February 2016, he participated in a parents-versus-kids hockey game with his grandson George Faulkner Jr. "I can say now that I've played with my two sons, Bob and Peter, and now I've played with my grandson," he said.[1]

In April 2023, while in a nursing home, Faulkner married Barbara Paddock.

Career achievements

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Championships

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  • 1952 Quebec Junior B Championship with the Quebec Junior B Citadelles.
  • 1952 Ottawa District Hockey Association (ODHA)-Quebec Junior B Championship with the Quebec Junior B Citadelles.
  • In 1953 won his first all-Newfoundland senior hockey championship and Herder Memorial Trophy with the Grand Falls All-Stars.
  • Won the Thomas O'Connell Memorial Trophy as Quebec Senior Hockey League champions in 1955[2] and 1958 with the Shawinigan Falls Cataractes.
  • In 1955 won the Edinburgh Trophy with the Shawinigan Falls Cataractes. This was an east–west minor-pro hockey series between the champions of the Quebec Hockey League and the Western Hockey League.
  • Four Herder championships as playing-coach with the Conception Bay CeeBees in 1960, 1961, 1965 and 1967.
  • Won three Herders as Newfoundland provincial senior hockey champions with the St. John's Capitals, in 1973, 1974 and 1975.
  • In 1979 coached the St. John's Mike's Shamrocks to a Herder championship.

Awards and honours

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  • Bronze medal winner with Canada's National Team at the 1966 World Hockey Championships
  • Inducted into the Sport Newfoundland and Labrador Hall of Fame in 1982[3]
  • Inducted into the Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Hall of Fame in 1994[4]
  • Honoured by the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame as a member of Canada's National Team of 1966.[5] Manitoba was home to the National Team from 1965 to 1970.
  • Voted Best Newfoundland and Labrador Hockey Player in a 1994 poll by The Telegram[6]
  • Named Top Newfoundland and Labrador Athlete of all time in 1999 by The Telegram
  • Honorary Doctor of Laws Degree from Memorial University of Newfoundland, 2010
  • Torch bearer at 1992 Newfoundland Summer Games
  • Torch bearer at 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics

Career statistics

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Note: GFISL = Grand Falls Inter-town School League, GFSHL = Grand Falls Senior Hockey League, QJBHL = Quebec Junior B Hockey League, NAHA = Newfoundland Amateur Hockey Association, QJAHL = Quebec Junior A Hockey League, QHL = Quebec Hockey League, NSHL = Newfoundland Senior Hockey League

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM +/- PP SH GW GP G A Pts PIM
1946–47 Bishop's Falls Station Midgets — — — — — — — — —
1948–49 Bishop's Falls Academy[7] GFISL — — — — — — — — —
1948–49 Bishop's Falls Woodsmen GFSHL — — — — — — — — —
1949–50 Bishop's Falls Woodsmen GFSHL — — — — — — — — —
1950–51 Bishop's Falls Woodsmen GFSHL 24 8 11 19[8] 0 — — — — — — — — —
1950–51 Bishop's Falls Academy GFISL — — — — — — — — —
1950–51 Grand Falls Junior All-Stars NAHA-Jr. — — — — — — — — —
1951–52 Quebec 'B' Citadelles QJBHL — — — —
1951–52 Bishop's Falls Woodsmen GFSHL — — — — — — — — —
1952–53 Bishop's Falls Woodsmen GFSHL 12 27 17 44[9] — — — — — — — — — —
1952–53 Grand Falls All-Stars NAHA-Sr. 12 16 11 27[10] 4 — — — — 4 5 4 9[11] 0
1953–54 Quebec Citadelles QJAHL — — — —
1953–54 Quebec Frontenacs QJAHL — — — —
1954–55 Shawinigan Falls Cataracts QHL 59 18 25 43 — — — —
1955–56 Shawinigan Falls Cataracts QHL 52 17 16 33 — — — — — — — — —
1956–57 Shawinigan Falls Cataracts QHL 55 19 26 45 — — — —
1957–58 Shawinigan Falls Cataracts QHL 51 19 17 36 — — — — — — — — —
1958–59 Conception Bay All-Stars NAHA-Sr. 14 20 13 33 — — — — — — — — —
1959–60 Conception Bay CeeBees NAHA-Sr. 13 11 11 22 — — — — — — — — —
1960–61 Conception Bay CeeBees NAHA-Sr. 10 10 16 26 — — — — — — — — —
1961–62 Conception Bay CeeBees NAHA-Sr. 7 3 6 9 — — — — — — — — —
1962–63 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL 16 12 14 26 — — — — — — — — —
1963–64 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL 20 15 24 39 — — — — — — — — —
1964–65 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL 20 19 45 63 — — — — — — — — —
1965–66 Canada's National Team IIHF 22 11 13 24 — — — — — — — — —
1965–66 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL — — — — — — — — —
1966–67 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL 40 35 46 81 — — — — — — — — —
1967–68 Conception Bay CeeBees NSHL 40 34 35 69 — — — — — — — — —
1968–69 Corner Brook Royals NSHL 38 6 31 37 — — — — — — — — —
1969–70 Corner Brook Royals NSHL 32 14 37 51 — — — — — — — — —
1970–71 Did not play senior hockey — — — — — — — — —
1971–72 Jacksonville Rockets EHL 7 0 0 0 4 — — — — — — — —
1971–72 St. John's Capitals NSHL 26 12 23 35 — — — — — — — — — —
1972–73 St. John's Capitals NSHL 33 13 27 40 — — — — — — — — —
1973–74 St. John's Capitals NSHL 2 0 1 1 — — — — — — — — —
1974–75 St. John's Capitals NSHL 7 2 11 13 — — — — — — — — —

References

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  1. ^ Oliver, Kenn (February 28, 2016). "By George, that was fun!". The Telegram. Retrieved May 3, 2019.
  2. ^ The Shawinigan Standard, April 27, 1955, p.11
  3. ^ "Sport Newfoundland and Labrador". Archived from the original on 2016-07-01. Retrieved 2016-06-05.
  4. ^ "GEORGE FAULKNER | HockeyNL". Archived from the original on 2019-05-30. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
  5. ^ "Teams". Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2015-08-31.
  6. ^ "GEORGE FAULKNER | HockeyNL". Archived from the original on 2019-05-30. Retrieved 2019-03-20.
  7. ^ The Grand Falls Advertiser February 5, 1949 p.4
  8. ^ The Grand Falls Advertiser, March 9, 1951 p.4
  9. ^ The Grand Falls Advertiser, January 15, 1953 p.4
  10. ^ The Grand Falls Advertiser, February 19, 1953 p.4
  11. ^ The Grand Falls Advertiser, March 19, 1953 p.4

Bibliography

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  • Rossiter, Tom P. (2011). Faulkner, A Hockey History: Stars and Records. Breakwater Books.
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