Former National Hockey League coach and executive Pat Quinn, who led teams to 15 playoff appearances and coached Canada to its first Olympic hockey gold after a 50-year drought, has died. He was 71 years old.

Quinn’s death was announced Monday by the Vancouver Giants, a major junior hockey team in the Western Hockey League that he co-owned.

Quinn died Sunday night at Vancouver General Hospital after a “lengthy illness,” the team announced.

"Words cannot express the pain we all feel today for the Quinn family," Giants majority owner Ron Toigo said in a statement posted to the team’s website.

"Pat was an inspiration to all of us. He always said that respect was something that should be earned, not given, and the respect that he garnered throughout the hockey world speaks for itself. He will be sorely missed."

The Quinn family has asked for privacy, the statement concluded.

Prime Minister Stephen Harper tweeted his condolences to Quinn’s family Monday morning.

“Pat Quinn was a giant of the hockey world, on the ice and off,” Harper said.

The Hockey Hall of Fame also issued a statement to say the organization is “deeply saddened” by Quinn’s passing.

“Pat is one of hockey's most respected individuals whose lifetime involvement as a player, coach and executive has made an indelible mark on the game, and our thoughts and prayers are with Sandra and all of Pat's family and friends at this extremely difficult time."

Quinn served on the Hall of Fame’s selection committee.

Quinn twice won the Jack Adams Award as the NHL’s top coach, first with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1980 and then again in 1992, when he was coach of the Vancouver Canucks.

Quinn also served as head coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs between 1998 and 2006 and the Los Angeles Kings in the 1980s.

His last stint as a head coach was with the Edmonton Oilers in 2009-10.

While he never won a Stanley Cup, Quinn served as head coach of the gold medal-winning men’s hockey team at the 2002 Salt Lake City Olympics, Canada’s first Olympic hockey gold since 1952.

That led him to a distinguished international career as a head coach, including gold at the 2008 Under-18 World Championship and gold at the 2009 World Juniors.

Former player Jeff O’Neill, who was coached by Quinn for one season with the Leafs, called Quinn’s passing “a tough loss for everybody involved in hockey.”

O’Neill told CTV News Channel that Quinn was a “players’ coach,” meaning “every decision was based around making it the best situation for the players.”

Quinn’s desire to win was what kept him in the game so long, O’Neill said.

Former Canucks player and current team president of hockey operations, Trevor Linden, was drafted by Quinn in 1987.

“He really taught me the game,” Linden told reporters Monday. “A lot of the lessons he taught me I still think about today.”

Linden last saw Quinn on Friday, and although he did not look well, Quinn was still following the team’s season, Linden said.

Despite a “gruff and tough” exterior, Quinn “loved his players and he cared about people,” Linden said.

“He was a great man and he will most certainly be missed.”

The team is planning a tribute to the former coach and general manager, Linden added.

‘Larger than life’

He was also known for a “larger-than-life” personality that matched his 6’3” frame.

"What I always remember most about him is when it was time to talk to him about something, or he wanted to talk to me about something, walking into his office through the haze of cigar smoke, there was this huge, square-jawed, cigar-chomping Irishman who had a real presence about him and is intimidating at times," former Washington Capitals general manager George McPhee told The Canadian Press.

McPhee served as vice- president and director of hockey operations for the Canucks under Quinn, and gave his son the middle name “Quinn” in honour of his hockey mentor.

"When you went to talk to him about things, you better have been prepared and knew what you were talking about."

Quinn was born on Jan. 29, 1943 in Hamilton, Ont.

He played defence for the 1963 Memorial Cup-winning Edmonton Oil Kings before playing for parts of nine NHL seasons. He racked up more than 600 games with the Leafs, Canucks and the Atlanta Flames before becoming a coach and general manager.

The highlight of his playing career came in 1969, when he knocked out Boston Bruins legend Bobby Orr with a blindside hit in the playoffs.

Quinn retired as a player in 1977.

As a head coach, Quinn led two teams to the Stanley Cup Finals, the 1979-80 Flyers and the 1993-94 Canucks, but lost both times.

As coach of the Leafs, Quinn led the team to the Eastern Conference final twice: in 1999 and again in 2002. During the latter series, he had to watch two games from home when he suffered from a heart problem.

“We had a lot of success playing for Pat, obviously, the years here with the Maple Leafs," longtime Leafs captain Mats Sundin told CP.

"As a coach (he) had a presence in the dressing room that demanded respect and had a way of talking and getting the guys ready for each game that really got the best out of the teams that he coached."

Quinn was appointed an Officer of the Order of Canada in 2012.

Team Canada coach Pat Quinn hugs goaltender Martin Brodeur after beating Team Finland 3-2 in the World Cup of Hockey final Tuesday, Sept. 14, 2004 in Toronto. (Frank Gunn / THE CANADIAN PRESS)