Reggie Leach

Reggie Leach

Sports (2008)

Reggie Leach was a hockey hero to many when he played for one of the greatest hockey teams ever. Now he is even a bigger champion to a generation that is too young to recall the right-winger’s record-breaking games and legendary slapshot.

Playing 14 seasons in the NHL, Leach became the first First Nations player to reach super-star status. His achievements have inspired junior and amateur hockey players worldwide. He is in the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and the Philadelphia Flyers Hall of Fame. Today Reggie teaches his skills to Aboriginal youth across Canada, gives numerous presentations about his prolific NHL career and raising awareness about the harmful effects of alcoholism.

Visiting with schools, friendship centres, golf tournaments, charities and remote First Nations, Leach also a successful entrepreneur, has found an eager audience in awe of his storytelling abilities and his likeable, down-to-earth manner.

Nicknamed the ‘Rifle’, Leach was known for his hard slapshot, mostly by the goalies of the NHL who were intimidated by his strength. It is reported that it was clocked at 115 mph, and that was with a wooden stick.

His infamous quote is “Success is not the result of spontaneous combustion. You must set yourself on fire.”

Always willing to chat with a fan or sign an autograph, Leach will always be the young man his grandparents raised on the small farm in Riverton, Manitoba.