Tim Horton, the Mysterious Disappearance of Toronto Maple Leaf “Bashing” Bill Barilko and the “Bill Barilko Curse”; all Canadian Cultural Icons, But What’s The Connection?

The Connection!

Bill Barilko the Player: He was a great Toronto Maple Leaf defenseman and 1 of only 2 players ever to have their number retired by the Leafs (#5).  He helped the Leafs to 4 Stanley Cups in 5 years. 

The “Goal”

In Toronto Maple Leaf history it’s known as “The Goal”! The last goal he ever scored (in overtime against the Montreal Canadians in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup final, on April 21, 1951) won the Leafs the Cup.

The Goal

Bill Barilko Disappears:

That same summer tragedy struck!  Bill got on an airplane for a fishing trip and never returned. 

The Legend:

The disappearance of Bill Barilko became a great Canadian mystery and the story spawned several books and a song by Tragically Hip.

“The Bill Barilko Curse”:

There would be no Maple Leaf Stanley Cup until Bill was found! That was the curse. With each passing year without a cup the curse/legend grew. The media began referring to it as the “Ghost of the Gardens” . The Maple Leafs did not win another Cup for 11 years.  Then after 11 years a helicopter pilot spotted the airplane wreckage and they found the remains of Barilko’s body.   Would that end the curse? Enter Tim Horton.

Ken Dryden Revisits the Bill Barilko's famous " Goal" Video:

Tim Horton Connection:

1) The wreckage of the airplane was found 35 miles off course, near Cochrane, Ontario- Tim Horton’s birthplace.

2) Tim Horton was playing for the Pittsburgh Hornets of the AHL (considered Toronto’s farm team) when Barilko scored the cup winning goal. With only 6 teams in the NHL the jump up from the AHL was difficult. Toronto Maple Leafs had won 4 Stanley Cups in 5 years, leaving no room in the strong Leaf roster for a rookie defenseman.

3)  Then the disappearance of star defensemen Bill Barilko meant a roster opening on the Leafs for a defenseman.  Tim Horton was that player and became a star Maple Leaf for the next 11 years but with no Stanley Cup.

4) In 1962, the year they found Barilko’s body, the Leafs were making a great run in the playoffs but was the “Barilko Curse” finally over?

5) Strangely,  it was a defenseman Tim Horton who was leading the Leafs in the playoffs with outstanding play. He led them to the finals against Chicago Black Hawks. Tim  Horton was  known as a defensive-defenseman yet he  scored 16 points in the 12 playoff games to lead the Leafs in scoring in the 1962 playoffs.

6)  Then the strange connection between Tim Horton and Barilko took a mystical step when Tim Horton, the man that replaced him, assisted on the goal that ended the “curse”.  As if the Ghost of the Gardens was directing the proceedings, Tim Horton  assisted on the Stanley Cup winning goal by Dick Duff.  



First Tim Hortons in Hamilton



7)  Tim Horton went on to have a great NHL career and after the Leafs had just won their 3^rd straight Stanley Cup in 1964,  he partnered to start the Tim Horton Donut company with the first Tim Hortons in Hamilton, Canada in 1964.

8)  There are 5 Tim Hortons in Timmins, Ontario-Bill  Barilko's hometown.

9)  The connection has a sad irony, neither player retired from the NHL as Tim Horton also died tragically in an accident while a player with the Buffalo Sabres.

Hockey history and Canadian culture come together in many interesting, complex and sometimes mysterious ways.

Tragically Hip Song About Bill Barilko:

Books: 

1988 book Overtime, Overdue: The Bill Barilko Story, by John Melady, and the 2004 book Barilko — Without A Trace, by Kevin Shea. A 2009 children's book about Bill Barilko, So, You Be Keon and I'll Be Mahovlich by Oksanna Crawley.

Tim Horton: From Stanley Cups to Coffee Cups by Don Quinlan (2010)

For more photos and stories about Bill Barilko go to Mike Boons blog:

http://www.mikeboon.com/billbarilko.html