Reggie Dunlop Obituary

[BullsWinBucsWin]

For people like myself who loved "Slap Shot".

http://slapshot.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/27/hockey-mourns-the-passing-of-reggie-dunlap/

September 27, 2008,  1:39 pm

Hockey Mourns the Passing of Reggie Dunlop

By Stu Hackel

The Charlestown Chiefs announced today the passing of former coach Reginald (Reggie) Dunlop, who famously coached the Chiefs to the Federal League Championship in 1977.

Dunlop (aka Paul Newman) died Friday at his home in Westport, Conn. He was 83.

As player coach of the Chiefs in the mid-’70s, Dunlop presided over a rag-tag group of players who were floundering near the basement of the Federal League when he engineered a remarkable turnaround that catapulted the club into the playoffs and, eventually, the league championship.

“This is a sad day for Chiefs fans around the world,†said former Chiefs General Manager Joe McGrath. “Reggie symbolized the never-say-die underdog spirit of our club that so many people around the world have come to identify with. Our hearts are broken today, but we are all better for having Reg in our lives.â€

“Reggie was one of a kind,†said former Charlestown Bugle Sports Editor Dickie Dunn. “He was a wise veteran with a young attitude. We were good friends away from the rink and he always would give me inside information and scoops. I’ll miss him terribly.â€

The exploits of the Chiefs have become widely known within hockey circles, both professional and amateur, through the film Slap Shot, which was based on the team’s miraculous reversal of fortune. Untold numbers of hockey fans, players, coaches and executives have memorized lines of dialog from the film and it is considered one of the best sports movies of all time.

Rarely has their been such a penetrating portrait of any sport’s culture and the depiction of this controversial era of hockey, the tumultuous 70s, remains a touchstone of hockey humor three decades later.

A disciple of what he liked to call “old time hockey,†Dunlop was a veteran near the end of his playing career when he hit upon a scheme to transform the Chiefs into a winning club. Taking a page from the successful NHL coach Fred Shero, Dunlap encouraged his players to use intimidation tactics as well as verbal taunts to upset the opposition, using the battle cry, “Let ‘em know you’re there!â€

Key to this new approach was the acquisition of three young brothers, the Hansons, who wrecked havoc on the entire league in route to the title. Other players on the team, with the notable exception for former collegiate star Ned Braden, followed suit and the Chiefs began to steamroll the opposition.

Reached by phone, Braden — who had a mercurial relationship with his former linemate — was emotionally distraught upon hearing the news. “We had our ups and downs,†Braden reflected, “but Reg always had the best interests of the Chiefs in mind. In some ways, he was like an older brother to me and I credit him for saving my marriage that season.

“I’d like to think he’s up in heaven playing with his heroes, Eddie Shore, Dit Clapper and Toe Blake. He always said those guys were the real greats of the game.â€

While not known to fans at the time, other players on the team began to embrace some unusual superstitions and other deviant forms of behavior, but Dunlop did not discourage them as they helped build team morale and the club kept winning.

The club, however, was in dire financial straits and its situation was worsened when it was announced the local steel mill was to be closed. Rumors abounded that the Chiefs would be sold to a group in Florida, but they turned out to be unfounded.

The championship game, played in Charlestown, was actually awarded to the Chiefs on a forfeit, when the opposition Syracuse Bulldogs captain, Tim “Dr. Hook†McCracken, punched the game referee. Earlier in the season on a radio phone-in show, Dunlop had put a bounty on McCracken’s head, offering a bonus to any Chiefs player who would injure him.

Following the season, the original Chiefs folded and Dunlop secured a coaching job in Minnesota.

Dunlop is survived by his former wife, Francine.

[Triple B]

Very nice ....