George, aka, Punch Imlach is just one of those many players who would have probably played in the NHL post 1967 expansion. He was over a point per game player in the QSHL with the Quebec Aces during his short playing career. Imlach, however, certainly made his mark in the National Hockey League later on as a coach and general manager.
Punch Imlach – The Player
Imlach played junior hockey in the OHA from 1935-36 to 1937-38 with the New York Young Rangers. He followed that up with three more years in the OHA Senior A with the Toronto Goodyears and Toronto Marlboros between 1938-39 and 1940-41.
His QSHL career lasted from 1941-42 to 1948-49. Along with the Quebec Aces, Imlach appeared with the Cornwall Flyers and Cornwall Army. His final four years of pro hockey were spent with the Aces. In 236 regular season games in the QSHL, Punch scored 125 goals and assisted on 135 for 260 points.
Punch Imlach – The Coach and GM
His coaching career started in 1947-48 as a player/head coach with Quebec. He then took over the head coaching job in 1949-50.
His proving grounds for the National Hockey League was the AHL in 1956-57 and 1957-58. Imlach coached the Springfield Indians and turned the team into a contender. In 1956-57, the Indians placed last in the six team league during the regular season. Springfield finished with ten less points than the fifth place Buffalo Bisons and 34 points back of the first place Providence Reds.
1957-58 saw a Springfield lineup full of future NHL head coaches. Don Cherry, Orval Tessier, Floyd Smith and Joe Crozier were in the lineup for the Indians. Joe Crozier would later take over for Punch as head coach of the Buffalo Sabres during the 1971-72 season. Floyd Smith then took over as head coach of the Sabres for the start of the 1974-75 season. Imlach, of course, stayed on as general manager of the Sabres during that time.
The Indians placed fourth out of the six teams that season, a moderate increase in performance. It was in the Calder Cup playoffs, however, that the team shone. Springfield reached the finals before losing in six games to the Hershey Bears. Despite the loss in total games, the Indians outscored Hershey 20-18.
Two years later, he was behind the bench of the Toronto Maple Leafs and leading the club to an appearance in the Stanley Cup finals in just his first year in the league. Imlach was head coach and general manager of the Maple Leafs from 1959-60 to 1968-69. In four of his first five years, Toronto reached the finals four times, winning the championship on three occasions. He would win another with the team in 1966-67.
In his first year, the Leafs were swept by the mighty Montreal Canadiens. It was the end of a dynasty in Montreal after winning five consecutive championships. In 1960-61, Toronto lost in the semi-finals to the Detroit Red Wings in five games. Toronto then won three consecutive Stanley Cups from 1961-62 to 1963-64 beating Chicago the first year and Detroit in the following two.
Punch Imlach Collection
Punch was the first ever coach and general manager of the Buffalo Sabres and was the man responsible for selecting Gilbert Perreault first overall at the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft. Punch built the Sabres team that reached the Stanley Cup finals in 1974-75 before bowing out to the Philadelphia Flyers.
Imlach returned to Toronto for a short stint as general manager of the Maple Leafs in the late 1970’s and early 1980’s. He even spent time behind the bench in an interim capacity. In 1980, Punch, along with Frank Christie and Roger Crozier, was among the first ever inductees into the Buffalo Sabres Hall of Fame. In 1984, Punch Imlach was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in the builder’s category. The three players that entered along with him that year were Phil Esposito, Jacques Lemaire and Bernie Parent.
Imlach passed away December 1, 1987 after a lengthy history of heart problems.
Punch Imlach – Hockey Cards
Imlach appeared on major cardboard six times, all as a coach. The Punch Imlach rookie card appears as number 15 in the 1959-60 Parkhurst set. The card is valued at less than double the value of a common card, around 60% more.
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1941-42 | Cornwall Flyers | QSHL | 37 | 25 | 17 | 42 | 11 |
| 1942-43 | Cornwall Army | QSHL | 34 | 24 | 23 | 47 | 6 |
| 1945-46 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 40 | 19 | 21 | 40 | 14 |
| 1946-47 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 33 | 10 | 28 | 38 | 20 |
| 1947-48 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 42 | 21 | 20 | 41 | 44 |
| 1948-49 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 50 | 26 | 26 | 52 | 32 |