| Keith Allen | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Hockey Hall of Fame, 1992 (Builder) | |||
 Keith Allen pictured with the Saskatoon Quakers, circa 1941 | |||
| Born | (1923-08-21)August 21, 1923 Saskatoon,Saskatchewan, Canada | ||
| Died | February 4, 2014(2014-02-04) (aged 90) Newtown Square,Pennsylvania, U.S. | ||
| Height | 5 ft 11 in (180 cm) | ||
| Weight | 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Detroit Red Wings | ||
| Coached for | Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| Playing career | 1941–1957 | ||
| Coaching career | 1956–1969 | ||
Courtney Keith "Bingo"[1] Allen (August 21, 1923 – February 4, 2014) was a Canadian professionalice hockeydefenceman andNational Hockey League (NHL) head coach and general manager. He played 28 games in the NHL for theDetroit Red Wings during the1953–54 and1954–55 seasons. The rest of his career, which lasted from 1941 to 1957, was spent in various minor leagues.
After his playing career, he turned to coaching and managing, first in the minorWestern Hockey League before returning to the NHL in 1967 as the first coach and general manager of thePhiladelphia Flyers. He coached the Flyers from 1967 to 1969, staying as general manager until 1983. He was the executive vice-president of thePhiladelphia Flyers, a position he held from 1980 for the rest of his life.[2]
Allen played junior hockey for theSaskatoon Quakers in 1940–41, and then joined theWashington Eagles of theEastern Amateur Hockey League for the 1941–42 season, followed by a year with the Buffalo Bisons of theAmerican Hockey League. During theSecond World War, he played on the Saskatoon Navy hockey team, and then played the 1945–46 season in theWestern Canada Senior Hockey League with theSaskatoon Elks.
In 1946, Allen joined theSpringfield Indians of the American Hockey League, for whom he played the next five seasons. The Indians moved to Syracuse in 1951, becoming theWarriors, and he was a steady presence in the line-up for the next two and a half seasons. In February 1954, Warriors ownerEddie Shore tried to assign Allen to the Springfield Indians of theQuebec Hockey League, but he (along with several other players) balked and he was suspended. He was sold to theDetroit Red Wings two weeks later. He played 10 games with Detroit in the 1953–54 season and appeared in the playoffs, getting his name engraved on theStanley Cup. Allen played another 18 games for the Red Wings in 1954–55, which would be the end of his NHL playing career.
He spent most of the 1954–55 season in theWestern Hockey League with theEdmonton Flyers—Detroit's farm team, whose roster included futureHockey Hall of Fame inducteesJohnny Bucyk,Norm Ullman,Glenn Hall,Al Arbour, and player-coachBud Poile. He then played one season with theBrandon Regals before being hired by theSeattle Americans as player-head coach in 1956. He retired as a player in 1957 to become a full-time coach.
From 1956 to 1965, Allen was a head coach in theWestern Hockey League with theSeattle Americans/Seattle Totems, with only one losing season in eight years. With the NHL expansion in1967, Allen was hired as the first head coach of thePhiladelphia Flyers, with his former coach and teammate Bud Poile as general manager. In their inaugural season, the Flyers finished first in their division with the best record among the six new teams. They fell to third place in their division in the1968–69 NHL season, and Allen then became the Flyers' general manager while serving in the same capacity with theQuebec Aces at the same time. There, he would help construct the famed "Broad Street Bullies" that led the Flyers to consecutiveStanley Cups in 1974 and 1975. He would also help start theAHL'sMaine Mariners, one of the most successful franchises in that league's history.
Allen was elected to theHockey Hall of Fame as a Builder in 1992. He was the executive vice-president of the Flyers.
He was born inSaskatoon, Saskatchewan.
Allen was married to Joyce Webster for 65 years. Together they had a daughter, Traci, and two sons, Brad and Blake.[3] Relocating from Seattle in the 1960s, he and his wife Joyce settled inBryn Mawr, Pennsylvania.
Due to developing dementia in his later years, Allen lived in the care of an assisted living community, along with wife Joyce, inNewtown Square, Pennsylvania. He died on February 4, 2014. He was 90-years-old.[4][5]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1939–40 | North Battleford Beavers | N-SJHL | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1940–41 | Saskatoon Quakers | SJHL | 10 | 4 | 0 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | ||
| 1940–41 | Saskatoon Quakers | M-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 14 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 8 | ||
| 1941–42 | Washington Eagles | EAHL | 60 | 13 | 11 | 24 | 27 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1942–43 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 55 | 1 | 14 | 15 | 29 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1943–44 | Saskatoon Navy | SSHL | 15 | 9 | 7 | 16 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1944–45 | Saskatoon Navy | SJHL | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1945–46 | Saskatoon Elks | WCHL | 33 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 42 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 1946–47 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 61 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 23 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |||
| 1947–48 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 51 | 2 | 12 | 14 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1948–49 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 68 | 3 | 28 | 31 | 28 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | ||
| 1949–50 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 69 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 30 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1950–51 | Springfield Indians | AHL | 70 | 8 | 34 | 42 | 18 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1951–52 | Syracuse Warriors | AHL | 67 | 4 | 17 | 21 | 24 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1952–53 | Syracuse Warriors | AHL | 64 | 1 | 18 | 19 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1953–54 | Syracuse Warriors | AHL | 47 | 6 | 17 | 23 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1953–54 | Sherbrooke Saints | QHL | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1953–54 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1954–55 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 18 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1954–55 | Edmonton Flyers | WHL | 34 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 10 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 1955–56 | Brandon Regals | WHL | 69 | 0 | 13 | 13 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1956–57 | Seattle Americans | WHL | 41 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| AHL totals | 552 | 30 | 165 | 195 | 202 | 19 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 4 | ||||
| NHL totals | 28 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||||
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | Pts | Finish | W | L | Win % | Result | ||
| PHI | 1967–68 | 74 | 31 | 32 | 11 | 73 | 1st inWest | 3 | 4 | .429 | Lost in quarterfinals (STL) |
| PHI | 1968–69 | 76 | 20 | 35 | 21 | 61 | 3rd in West | 0 | 4 | .000 | Lost in quarterfinals (STL) |
| NHL total | 150 | 51 | 67 | 33 | 3 | 8 | .273 | 2 playoff appearances | |||
| Preceded by Position created | Head coach of the Philadelphia Flyers 1967–69 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | General Manager of the Philadelphia Flyers 1969–83 | Succeeded by |