Lloyd “Shrimp” Andrews Born in Tillsonburg, left winger Lloyd Andrews was a part of the Tillsonburg Reds, Dunnville Mud- cats and Niagara Falls Cataracts be- fore making his NHL debut in 1921. During his four seasons with the To- ronto St. Patricks, the 5’4” Andrews played 53 games, scored eight goals and had five assists. Undoubtedly, he would have had more points had he not volunteered for World War I. Nevertheless, Andrews made the most of his limited time. In the 1922 Stanley Cup playoffs he scored twice in five games to help the St. Pats win over Tillsonburg’s Russell Oatman and the Vancouver Millionaires. Re- leased by Toronto in 1925, Andrews joined the Can-Am league, where he scored 24 goals during the 1929-30 season. He finished his career in the CHL before retiring in 1934. In 2017, Hayhoe Homes named their newest Tillsonburg housing development “Andrews Crossing” in Shrimp’s honour. Stan Crossett Born on April 18, 1900, defenceman Stan Crossett began his professional hockey career at the advanced age of 29. Standing six feet tall and weigh- ing 200 pounds, Crossett enjoyed a significant size advantage over most of his opponents. In 1931, he signed a free agent contract with the Philadelphia Quakers and played 21 NHL games. When the team folded at year’s end, Crossett returned to Ontario and went into business. John Gofton During the 1960s and 70s, John Gofton was a gritty presence on a host of professional and semi-pro hockey teams. He was a part of the Memorial Cup-winning Hamilton Red Wings in the 1961-1962 season, and in 1977, won the National Se- nior Hockey Championships with the Brantford Alexanders. In an un- usual twist, Gofton also played ‘Bro- phy’ in the 1977 cult movie hit, Slap Shot , opposite actor Paul Newman. Gofton is the former proprietor of Tillsonburg Rent-Alls.
Harley Hotchkiss (above) Harley Hotchkiss may have been “Mr. Calgary”, but he was a Tillson- burg boy at heart. Growing up “dirt poor” on a tobacco farm, Hotchkiss studied geology before heading to Alberta and the lucrative oil and gas industry. In 1980, he was one of six investors that purchased the Atlanta Flames and brought the team to Cal- gary. Over the next nine years, the Flames won the President’s Trophy twice, and played in two Stanley Cup finals (winning the champion- ship in 1989). Hotchkiss served as chairman of the NHL board of gov- ernors from 1995-2007. At the time of his death in 2011, he was credited for saving not only the Flames, but the NHL as well, through the cur- rency equalization program.
Gary Green (above) When 21-year-old Gary Green real- ized he wouldn’t play in the NHL, he could have given up. Instead, the Tillsonburg native went to see Roger Neilson and offered to be an unpaid assistant coach for the Peterborough Petes. His gamble paid off. Three years later, Green was promoted to head coaching duties and led the Pe- tes to two consecutive league cham- pionships and a Memorial Cup. In 1979, Green moved to Pennsylvania to coach the Hershey Bears (AHL). Two months into the season, he be- came head coach of the Washing- ton Capitals. With a phone call and the stroke of a pen, the 26-year-old became the youngest head coach in professional sports. Terminated three seasons later, Green decided
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