Bill McCreary, Jr.

William Edward McCreary Jr. (born April 15, 1960) is an American former professional ice hockey player who played 12 games in the National Hockey League with the Toronto Maple Leafs during the 1980–81 season. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1980 to 1988, was spent in the minor leagues.

Early life McCreary Jr. was born in Springfield, Massachusetts, and raised in Hudson, Ohio.

Playing career Bill McCreary Jr. was drafted in the 6th round, 114th overall, by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1979 NHL entry draft. He played two seasons of hockey for the Colgate University in the NCAA before signing a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs in June 1980. He then split the 1980–81 season between the New Brunswick Hawks of the AHL and the Maple Leafs. He played 61 games in the AHL and 12 in the NHL with the Leafs that season. In those twelve games, he scored one goal, had no assists, and added four penalty minutes. That would be the extent of his NHL playing experience as he played out the rest of his career in the CHL, IHL, and AHL. He retired following the 1987–88 IHL season.

Bill McCreary is most remembered for his open-ice hit on Wayne Gretzky on January 3, 1981. The myth that McCreary never played another shift in the NHL is false – the January 3 game was McCreary's second game in his 12-game NHL career.

Family He is the son of former NHLer Bill McCreary Sr., nephew of former NHLers Keith McCreary and Ron Attwell, and cousin of former NHLer Bob Attwell and NHL referee Bill McCreary. His son, William "Billy" McCreary III, was a minor league hockey player in the Southern Professional Hockey League, Central Hockey League, and Federal Hockey League.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1976–77 Cleveland Barons NAHL GLJHL 40 26 24 50 — — — — — — 1977–78 Cleveland Barons NAHL GLJHL 40 51 72 123 — — — — — — 1978–79 Colgate University ECAC 24 19 25 44 70 — — — — — 1979–80 Colgate University ECAC 12 7 13 20 44 — — — — — 1980–81 Toronto Maple Leafs NHL 12 1 0 1 4 — — — — — 1980–81 New Brunswick Hawks AHL 61 19 24 43 120 12 2 0 2 13 1981–82 Cincinnati Tigers CHL 69 8 27 35 61 4 0 4 4 2 1982–83 Saginaw Gears IHL 60 19 28 47 17 — — — — — 1982–83 Peoria Prancers IHL 16 4 6 10 11 — — — — — 1982–83 St. Catharines Saints AHL 4 0 1 1 2 — — — — — 1983–84 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 81 28 35 63 44 4 0 2 2 2 1984–85 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 10 1 10 11 4 — — — — — 1985–86 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 80 30 31 61 83 5 3 0 3 6 1986–87 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 74 30 35 65 64 6 2 2 4 10 1987–88 Milwaukee Admirals IHL 67 23 30 53 51 — — — — — IHL totals 388 135 175 310 274 15 5 4 9 18 NHL totals 12 1 0 1 4 — — — — —