Sports
Tommy Ivan
1911–1999 · ice hockey coach and executive
Red Wings head coach from 1947 to 1954 who won three Stanley Cups and six straight regular-season titles with Gordie Howe's generation.
- Born
Toronto, Ontario- Died
Chicago, Illinois
aged 88- Birth name
- Thomas Nathaniel Ivan
- Detroit years
- 1947–1954
- Field
- Sports
01 / The Detroit story
The Detroit story
Ivan never played in the NHL; a serious injury ended his playing days young, and he learned coaching in the Red Wings' farm system, including with the Omaha Knights. He also had a sharp eye for young players and helped identify prospects such as Gordie Howe. In 1947 general manager Jack Adams gave him the Detroit bench, and Ivan built his teams around the Production Line of Howe, Ted Lindsay and Sid Abel, with Red Kelly on defense and Terry Sawchuk later in goal. The result was one of the NHL's great dynasties: Detroit finished first in the regular season six years in a row, from 1949 to 1954, and won the Stanley Cup in 1950, 1952 and 1954, with the 1952 team sweeping the playoffs in eight straight games. In 1954 he left to run the Chicago Black Hawks, whom he later guided to the 1961 Cup as general manager. He entered the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1974.
Highlights
- Red Wings head coach 1947–1954
- Stanley Cup champion in 1950, 1952 and 1954
- Six straight first-place finishes, 1949–1954
- Coached the Production Line of Howe, Lindsay and Abel
- Hockey Hall of Fame (builder), 1974
02 / Their Detroit places
Their Detroit places 1
Where they lived, worked, performed and liked to hang out. Closed and demolished places stay here too, because they are part of the city's history.
Worked here · 1947–1954
Olympia Stadium
Demolished · 1927–1979
Home of his dynasty-era Red Wings; demolished in the 1980s.