Neil Colville—Assist After Assist

Neil Colville was born in Edmonton in 1914, as the First World War raged in Europe. Both military life and the sport of hockey would play major roles in the life of this Hall of Fame legend.

Colville was a celebrated junior player in Edmonton. In 1932, he was a slick-passing forward with the Edmonton Poolers, the city’s top junior team. It was there that Colville caught the attention of the New York Rangers. He signed a contract with the Blueshirts, joining a minor league affiliate called the Crescents in 1934. In 1935-36, Colville was promoted to the Philadelphia Ramblers, the Rangers’ top minor league team, and he led them to an Eastern Amateur League championship.

He made his full-season debut with the Rangers in 1936-37; that season, he scored 10 times and added 18 assists. In the five ensuing seasons, Colville finished in the top 10 of the NHL scoring race each spring. But Colville never scored more than 20 goals in a season, for most of his points came from his great play-making ability. In 1940, he enjoyed his greatest moments in the game. With brother Mac, who was also in the Rangers lineup, Colville led the Blueshirts to a first-round playoff upset of the first-place Boston Bruins. Colville and the Rangers would go on to play the Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1940 Cup final. The Rangers were supposed to have home-ice advantage in the series, but a scheduling glitch at Madison Square Garden caused massive problems for the home team. The circus was scheduled for an extended run at Madison Square Gardens, and after the Rangers won the first two games of the series at home, they would be forced to play the rest of the series at Maple Leaf Gardens. The Leafs won the next two games at home, which allowed the nay-sayers to gloat that the Rangers could indeed not win on the road. The Blueshirts responded with a valiant 2-1 double overtime win in Game 5, and then clinched the Cup with a 3-2 overtime win in Game 6. Colville finished tied with teammate Phil Watson at the top of the playoff scoring race. Both finished with nine points.

In 1942, Colville left the NHL for military duty. But Colville did not serve on the battlefields—he served as a player. He starred for the Ottawa Commandos team that won the 1943 Allan Cup as the country’s senior men’s amateur champions.

When he returned to the NHL, Colville adapted to his new position on defence. He and his brother were reunited as teammates—but that reunion would not last long. Colville retired in 1949 after an outstanding career that saw him score 99 goals and add 166 assists in 464 games; numbers that were good enough to earn him a spot in the Hall of Fame.

But Colville’s association work with the Rangers wasn’t done—he took over as head coach of the club, staying on for 93 regular-season games from 1950-51 before poor health forced him to leave the job. He would later have half his stomach removed thanks to ongoing ulcer problems.

In 1975, he was named to the Hall of Fame selection committee. Nine years later, he lost a leg to cancer and retired from that post. In 1987, Colville passed away.

But Colville’s name is well-remembered in British Columbia, where he settled in his later years. The leading scorer in the British Columbia-based Pacific International Junior Hockey League receives the Neil Colville Trophy.

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