1961 Stanley Cup champion Ab McDonald dies at 82

Ab McDonald, who scored what proved to be the Blackhawks’ championship-clinching goal in the 1961 Stanley Cup Final, died Tuesday night. He was 82.

McDonald, whose given name was Alvin, won the Stanley Cup in each of his first four NHL seasons — the first three with the Montreal Canadiens, then again in 1960-61 with the Hawks. The left winger scored the second goal of the Hawks’ 5-1 Game 6 victory over the Detroit Red Wings in the Final. The Winnipeg native played four of his 14 NHL seasons with the Hawks, posting 73 goals and 107 assists in 265 games. He had 182 goals and 248 assists in 762 games over his career.

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“Ab McDonald was an important member of the Chicago Blackhawks family and will forever have a connection to the 1961 Stanley Cup championship team,” the Hawks said in a released statement. “In addition to his many contributions on the ice throughout his 14-year National Hockey League career, Ab was very involved in the Blackhawks Alumni Association upon retirement and made it a priority to give back to the game that gave so much to him. The Blackhawks organization extends their deepest condolences to the entire McDonald family and all of Ab’s friends and former teammates.”

McDonald also scored the first goal in the history of his hometown team, the World Hockey Association’s Winnipeg Jets, for whom he played two seasons to close out his career.