Ron Ellis

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Ron Ellis

Born	(1945-01-08) January 8, 1945 Lindsay, ON, CAN
Height	5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight	195 lb (88 kg; 13 st 13 lb)
Position	Right Wing
Shot	Right
Played for	Toronto Maple Leafs
National team	Canada
Playing career	1963–1981

Ronald John Edward Ellis (born January 8, 1945) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player. Ellis played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Toronto Maple Leafs. After playing, Ellis went into business, and later joined the staff of the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Playing career

Ellis was signed by the Leafs and played junior hockey with the Toronto Marlboros of the Ontario Hockey Association from 1961–1964. He played on the team that won the Memorial Cup in 1964. Ellis became a full-time Leaf in 1964–65 and played 11 seasons to 1974–75, winning the Stanley Cup in 1967. He was also a member of Team Canada at the 1972 Summit Series. Ellis retired at age 30 during training camp in 1975, coming off the most productive season of his career with 61 points. He said he no longer had the desire to play and denied that his decision had anything to do with being passed over as team captain in favour of Darryl Sittler a month earlier. In 1977, Ellis came out of retirement to play for Canada at the world hockey championships and then decided to resume his NHL career with the Leafs in 1977–78.

Punch Imlach was hired to run the Leafs for the 1979–80 season and didn't feel that Ellis was worth the money he was being paid. He offered to buy out Ellis's contract at the end of the season, but the two couldn't reach an agreement. Despite objections from new coach Mike Nykoluk, Imlach put Ellis on waivers during the 1980–81 season and gave him an ultimatum: retire or be sent to the minor leagues. The 36-year-old Ellis chose to retire. He had played 1,034 career NHL games scoring 332 goals and 308 assists for 640 points.

After his life in hockey, worked as a teacher and in insurance. For six years, Ellis ran his own sporting goods store. In 1993, he joined the Hockey Hall of Fame as a director of public affairs and assistant to the president.^[1] As of 2012, Ellis is still director of public affairs for the Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto.

The stresses of life after hockey took its toll. In 1986 a bout with clinical depression began. He would later go public with his story by writing a book with Kevin Shea titled Over The Boards: The Ron Ellis Story, published in 2002. Today, he is a speaker on the importance of diagnosing and treating clinical depression.

Awards and achievements

Ellis earned an unusual tribute in 1968 when former Leafs star Ace Bailey—then working as a timekeeper at Maple Leaf Gardens—declared that he admired Ellis so much, he wanted the team to give his retired #6 to Ellis. Bailey's number had been retired following his career-ending injury in 1933. Ellis, who had been wearing #8, changed to #6 for the rest of his career, after which the number was re-retired.

1966–67 - Stanley Cup Champion
1963–64 - NHL All-Star Game
1964–65 - NHL All-Star Game
1967–68 - NHL All-Star Game
1969–70 - NHL All-Star Game
1972 Summit Series

Career statistics

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1960–61	Toronto Marlboros	OHA	3	2	1	3	0	—	—	—	—	—
1961–62	Toronto Marlboros	OHA	33	17	12	29	0	—	—	—	—	—
1963–64	Toronto Marlboros	OHA	54	46	38	84	0	—	—	—	—	—
1963–64	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	1	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—
1964–65	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	62	23	16	39	14	6	3	0	3	2
1965–66	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	70	19	23	42	24	4	0	0	0	2
1966–67	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	67	22	23	45	14	12	2	1	3	4
1967–68	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	74	28	20	48	8	—	—	—	—	—
1968–69	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	72	25	21	46	12	4	2	1	3	2
1969–70	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	76	35	19	54	14	—	—	—	—	—
1970–71	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	78	24	29	53	10	6	1	1	2	2
1971–72	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	78	23	24	47	17	5	1	1	2	4
1972–73	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	78	22	29	51	22	—	—	—	—	—
1972–73	Team Canada	Summit	—	—	—	—	—	8	0	3	3	8
1973–74	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	70	23	25	48	12	4	2	1	3	0
1974–75	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	79	32	29	61	25	7	3	0	3	2
1977–78	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	80	26	24	50	17	13	3	2	5	0
1978–79	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	63	16	12	28	10	6	1	1	2	2
1979–80	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	59	12	11	23	6	3	0	0	0	0
1980–81	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	27	2	3	5	2	—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals			1034	332	308	640	207	70	18	8	26	20

International play

1972 - Member of Team Canada in the Summit Series
1977 - Member of Team Canada in the World Hockey Championships

References

↑ Kearney, Mark; Ray, Randy (2009). The Big Book of Canadian Trivia. Dundurn Press. p. 238. ISBN 978-1-55488-417-9.

External links

Ron Ellis's career statistics at The Internet Hockey Database

Authority control	VIAF: 106417033

Persondata
Name	Ellis, Ron
Alternative names
Short description	Canadian ice hockey player
Date of birth	January 8, 1945
Place of birth	Lindsay, ON, CAN
Date of death
Place of death

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