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In 1958, he led the Canucks to the WHL Championship and the coveted Lester Patrick Cup. He was also a part of the 1969 championship team, after which he retired as the most popular player in Canucks’ history and the franchise scoring leader, with 923 points.

But the Ottawa native, who was born Oct. 6, 1927, didn’t stay away from the club long. Maloney soon returned for a stint in the club’s front office and in 1974 took over in a dual role as coach and general manager.

As a coach, Maloney was able to instil a sense of discipline and work ethic, and he kept players on their toes, developing a reputation as an impulsive man with a flair for dramatics. After a loss one evening, he tried to get his team’s attention by pulling the pin on a grenade and tossing it into the dressing room. It was just a prop, but it did the trick.

Maloney’s tenure as coach was short-lived, however. In 1976, he fired himself following a 5-4 loss to the Montreal Canadiens.

“I am disappointed with my record as head coach and can no longer tolerate it,” he said, handing the reins to former Canucks’ captain Orland Kurtenbach.

Greg Douglas, the Canucks’ original Public Relations Director when they entered the NHL in 1970, remembered Maloney as a players’ coach in the truest sense of the world.

“He loved them and they loved him back,” Douglas said, “finishing first in 74-75 and winning the Smythe Division championship. Gary (Suitcase) Smith played in an unprecedented 72 games and registered 32 wins, which put him in the running for the Hart Trophy as the league’s most valuable player, won by Philadelphia Flyers’ captain Bobby Clarke. To this day, Smith refers to Phil Maloney as his favourite all-time NHL coach… and that’s something special, considering ’Smitty” played for 7 NHL teams and at least a dozen coaches.”

In his later years, Maloney made his home in the small Vancouver Island community of Yellow Point, between Ladysmith and Nanaimo. He remained a fan of the Canucks throughout his life and closely followed the team on its run to the Stanley Cup Final in 2011.

Maloney was inducted into the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame in 2001.

The Canucks offered their thoughts and prayers to Maloney’s family in a statement Friday.