Toe Blake Hector " Toe " Blake , Order of Canada ( August 21 , 1912 – May 17 , 1995 ) was a Canadian player and coach in the National Hockey League ( NHL ) . Nickname . His nickname came out of his childhood for his younger sister was unable to pronounce his name . When she said it , it often sounded like Hec - " toe " , hence Toe as his nickname which later replaced the nickname he had been given as a scorer , the Old Lamplighter , because he often activated the light behind the goal . Biography . Born in what is now the ghost town of Victoria Mines ( now part of Sudbury ) , Ontario , he was raised playing outdoor hockey in the town of Coniston near the city of Sudbury , Ontario . Blake played junior and senior hockey in the Sudbury area and was part of the 1932 Memorial Cup champions , the Sudbury Cub Wolves . He played for the Hamilton Tigers of the Ontario Hockey Association before joining the NHL club with which he won his first Stanley Cup , the Montreal Maroons , in 1935 . He then joined the Montreal Canadiens when the Maroons folded and played with them until his retirement in 1948 . For the last eight seasons , he was team captain , and led the Canadiens to Stanley Cup s in 1944 and 1946 . He won the Art Ross Trophy and the Hart Trophy in 1938 - 39 despite the Canadiens ' terrible records in the late 1930s and early 1940s . He was the only bright spot on the team . Starting in 1943 - 44 , he was part of a trio called the " Punch Line , " which featured Elmer Lach and Maurice Richard . He won the Lady Byng Trophy in 1945 - 46 . A little after January 11 , 1948 , he suffered a double fracture of his ankle , ending his NHL career . After retiring from the Canadiens he resided permanently in Montreal , raising his children and subsequently where his grand children were raised . The " Toe " Blake Tavern , which he owned , became a successful watering hole in Montreal . He coached several minor league teams in the Canadiens ' system . In 1947 - 48 he led the Houston Huskies to the United States Hockey League championship . In 1950 - 51 he coached the Valleyfield Braves to the Alexander Cup . He also coached the American Hockey League ' s Buffalo Bisons . After eight years coaching in the minors , he was named head coach of the Canadiens in 1955 , replacing Dick Irvin . Blake was fluent in French ( his mother was a Franco - Ontarian ) , and Canadiens management also felt that Blake was best - suited to control Richard ' s explosive temper ( which had led to a suspension the past spring ) . In his first five years as Canadiens ' coach , the team won the Stanley Cup each year , He also won the Stanley Cup in 1964 - 65 , 1965 – 66 , and 1967 - 68 . His eight Stanley Cup wins are the most for any Canadiens ' coach and second in the National Hockey League . He is still the winningest coach in Canadiens ' history . Blake turned down Jacques Plante ' s request to wear a mask during games for fear that it would impair his vision . However , after a shot broke Plante ' s nose on November 2 , 1959 ; Blake finally relented . Blake was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966 . In the end , it was Alzheimer ' s Disease , which Blake had for more than eight years , that ended his life . Toe Blake died of pneumonia , typical of Alzheimer ' s patients , on May 17 , 1995 , at the age of 82 .