Athlete.
Born at Grenfell, Saskatchewan on 31 July 1913, son of Bentley Hextall (?-?) and Emma Charlotte Bend (1880-1961), at the age of 6 he moved with his family to Poplar Point. He played his first hockey there, then played junior hockey with the Winnipeg Monarchs (1931-1932) and Portage Terriers (1932-1933).
His professional career began with the Vancouver Lions then the Philadelphia Ramblers before joining the NHL’s New York Rangers in 1937. He led the NHL in goal-scoring twice and a member of the All-Star team three times. He helped the Rangers to a Stanley Cup win in 1940. He retired from sports in 1948 and operated a lumberyard at Poplar Point.
Hextall was also the patriarch of one of Manitoba’s greatest hockey families, as his sons Bryan Hextall Jr. and Dennis Hextall both played in the NHL, as did his grandson Ron Hextall. In 1970, he received a Manitoba Centennial Medal for his contribution to sports. He was inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame (1985) and Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame (1985). Circulation problems in his legs led to both of them being amputated below the knee in 1978.
He died at Poplar Point on 25 July 1984 and was buried in the Portage Hillside Cemetery.
Obituary [Emma Charlotte Hextall], Winnipeg Tribune, 10 August 1961.
Obituary, Winnipeg Free Press, 26 July 1984, page 51.
Obituaries and burial transcriptions, Manitoba Genealogical Society.
This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 2 January 2014
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