Billie Dawe
| Billie Dawe | ||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Born |
June 8, 1924 Cochrane, AB, CAN | |||||||||||||||||
| Died |
May 20, 2013 (aged 88) Edmonton, AB, CAN | |||||||||||||||||
| Position | Left wing | |||||||||||||||||
| Played for | Edmonton Mercurys | |||||||||||||||||
| National team |
 Canada | |||||||||||||||||
| Playing career | 1949–1952 | |||||||||||||||||
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Medal record
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Billie "Billy, Bill" Dawe (June 8, 1924 – May 20, 2013) was a Canadian ice hockey player.
Dawe was a member of the Edmonton Mercurys ("Mercurys", "Mercs"), an intermediate senior-A ice hockey team that played in Edmonton, Alberta. Dawe played with the Mercurys when they won the 1950 World Ice Hockey Championships in London, England.
Two years later, Dawe was team captain when the Mercs won the gold medal at the 1952 Winter Olympics/1952 World Championship in Oslo, Norway. Dawe tied for second in team scoring, with 6 goals and 6 assists during 8 games, as the Mercurys outscored their opponents 71-14 en route to the gold medal.[1][2]
Dawe was born in Cochrane, Alberta, but lived most of his life in Edmonton. His mother, Hilda, was a British war bride of his father, Bill, who met her while he was serving in the Canadian Expeditionary Force during World War I. The hockey-playing Dawe would meet his own wife, Lee, in Manitoba, Canada, while training to be a pilot for the Royal Canadian Air Force during World War II.
Dawe retired from hockey following the 1952 Olympics, going to work at the Edmonton Waterloo Mercury car dealership, sponsor of the Edmonton Mercurys hockey team, for a number of decades. Dawe became parts manager at the dealership and a partner in the firm, along with Mercurys teammate and eventual principal owner Al Purvis.[3]
Canada did not win the ice hockey Olympic gold medal again for 50 years following the win by the Mercurys. Dawe and a number of the surviving Mercury players were invited to Salt Lake City in 2002 to watch – then help Team Canada celebrate – their next gold medal win.
Dawe, as part of the 1952 Olympic/World Champion Edmonton Mercurys, was inducted to the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 1968.[4] The 1952 Mercurys, including Dawe, was inducted to the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame in 2002 - the same year that Team Canada finally broke its 50-year gold medal drought.[5] Dawe, as part of the 1950 World Champion version of the Mercs, was inducted to the Alberta Sports Hall of Fame in 2011.[6]
See also
- Canada men's national ice hockey team
- Ice hockey at the 1952 Winter Olympics
- Ice hockey at the Olympic Games
- List of Canadian national ice hockey team rosters
- List of ice hockey teams in Alberta
References
- ↑ "Billy Dawe Bio, Stats, and Results". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ↑ "Canada Ice Hockey at the 1952 Oslo winter Games". Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ↑ "Billie Dawe Obituary". Edmonton Journal. 25 May 2013. Retrieved 26 May 2013.
- ↑ "Edmonton Waterloo Mercurys 1952". Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
- ↑ "Members of the Canadian Olympic Hall of Fame - Sport: Ice Hockey". Canadian Olympic Committee. Retrieved May 22, 2013.
- ↑ "Edmonton Waterloo Mercurys 1950". Alberta Sports Hall of Fame and Museum. Retrieved May 21, 2013.
External links
- bio
- 3-3 tie gives Mercurys Olympic Hockey Crown, Edmonton Journal, February 25, 1952
- Edmonton Mercurys page from canoe.ca's 2002 Winter Olympics page
- Edmonton Mercurys at the Canadian Encyclopedia