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Bill Torrey

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Sports Executive

The Resume

    (June 23, 1934-May 2, 2018)
    Born in Montréal, Quebec, Canada
    Died in West Palm Beach, Florida
    General manager for the California Golden Seals (1969-71) and the New York Islanders (1972-92)
    President for the Florida Panthers (1993-2001)
    Hockey Hall of Fame inductee (1995)
    #93 retired by the Panthers in his honor

Why he might be annoying:

    His nickname 'Bow Tie Bill' was a result of him wearing a bowtie, rather then a traditional one.
    He was fired by Charles Finley, upon the latter taking over the Seals, as he refused to agree with Finley's methods.
    He drew a lot of flack from the Islander fanbase after he traded away franchise mainstays Billy Harris and Dave Lewis at the 1980 trade deadline.
    He left the Islanders on sour terms following the team's change in ownership.
    He was strongly despised by New York Ranger fans during the Islanders dynasty years (didn't help matters that the Rangers sucked in contrast).

Why he might not be annoying:

    He served as the first general manager in the history of the New York Islanders franchise.
    He drafted the likes of Denis Potvin, Mike Bossy, Bryan Trottier, Bob Nystrom and Billy Smith, all would serve as the core of the team's Stanley Cup dynasty of the early 1980's.
    He was a staunch advocate of building teams through the draft.
    He attended St. Lawrence University on a hockey scholarship, but he suffered an eye injury which forced him to quit playing.
    He was considered a mentor to many of the NHL executives who got their start in high ranking front office positions.
    He was honored by the Panthers for his contributions to establishing and developing hockey in the South Florida region by having #93 retired.
    His hiring of Al Arbour and acquisition of Butch Goring forever made him immortalized in New York hockey annals.

Credit: Ricky


Featured in the following Annoying Collections:

Year In Review:

    For 2024, as of last weekly ranking, Out of 1 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2023, Out of 1 Votes: 0% Annoying
    In 2022, Out of 2 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2021, Out of 8 Votes: 50.0% Annoying
    In 2019, Out of 2 Votes: 100% Annoying
    In 2018, Out of 79 Votes: 53.16% Annoying