René Boileau was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 professional ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 player who played seven games in the National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 (NHL) for the New York Americans

New York Americans

The New York Americans were a professional ice hockey team based in New York, New York from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League and the second to play in the United States. The team never won the Stanley Cup, but reached the semifinals...

 and five seasons in various minor-professional leagues. As a publicity stunt, the Americans billed Boileau, a French Canadian

French Canadian

French Canadian or Francophone Canadian, , generally refers to the descendents of French colonists who arrived in New France in the 17th and 18th centuries...

, as "the first Native American

Indigenous peoples of the Americas

The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...

 in the NHL" and claimed his name was Rainy Drinkwater.

Playing career

Boileau, a 150 lb (68 kg) native of Pointe-Claire, Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, played his only season in the NHL in 1925–26. Prior to joining the Americans, he played three seasons of amateur hockey in Montreal. Americans manager Tommy Duggan

Tommy Duggan

Tommy Duggan was a U.S. soccer outside right who played in both the National Association Football League and American Soccer League. He is a member of the National Soccer Hall of Fame.Duggan’s early career is sketchy. He moved to the United States in 1911...

 was anxious to promote the first-year Americans and upon signing Boileau used him as part of a publicity stunt. The Americans official announcement on the signing promoted Boileau under the pseudonym "Rainy Drinkwater" and announced that the French-Canadian player was instead from the Caughnawaga Indian Reservation, and the first Native American to play in the NHL. The Canadian press took note of the promotion; former Toronto Star

Toronto Star

The Toronto Star is Canada's highest-circulation newspaper, based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its print edition is distributed almost entirely within the province of Ontario...

sports editor Milt Dunnell said that "He received more ink than Sitting Bull

Sitting Bull

Sitting Bull Sitting Bull Sitting Bull (Lakota: Tȟatȟáŋka Íyotake (in Standard Lakota Orthography), also nicknamed Slon-he or "Slow"; (c. 1831 – December 15, 1890) was a Hunkpapa Lakota Sioux holy man who led his people as a tribal chief during years of resistance to United States government policies...

". He played only seven games with the Americans, scoring no points.

Boileau spent the next five seasons playing professional hockey with the Niagara Falls Cataracts of the Canadian Professional Hockey League

Canadian Professional Hockey League

The Canadian Professional Hockey League, also known as Canpro, was a minor professional hockey league founded in 1926. After three seasons, it became the International Hockey League in 1929...

, New Haven Eagles

New Haven Eagles

The New Haven Eagles were a professional ice hockey team that played in New Haven, Connecticut. The Eagles were one of five inaugural franchises in the Canadian American Hockey League, and a founding member of the American Hockey League.-History:...

 of the Canadian American Hockey League and St. Louis Flyers

St. Louis Flyers

The St. Louis Flyers were a minor league ice hockey team, based in St. Louis, Missouri, playing home games at the St. Louis Arena in the city's Central West End, across from Forest Park....

 of the American Hockey Association

American Hockey Association (1926–1942)

The American Hockey Association was a minor professional hockey league that operated between 1926 and 1942. It had previously operated as the Central Hockey League , and before that as part of the United States Amateur Hockey Association. The founding president was Alvin Warren, who also owned the St...

. He then played two seasons of semi-professional hockey in Quebec teams before retiring in 1934. His son, Marc

Marc Boileau

Marc Claude Boileau is a former Canadian ice hockey coach and player. Boileau played one season in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings. He was head coach of the Pittsburgh Penguins from 1973 to 1976...

, played and coached in the NHL.

Career statistics

				Regular season						Playoffs
Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...	Team	League		GP	G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...	A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...	Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...	PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...		GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1925–26	New York Americans New York Americans The New York Americans were a professional ice hockey team based in New York, New York from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League and the second to play in the United States. The team never won the Stanley Cup, but reached the semifinals...	NHL National Hockey League The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...		7	0	0	0	0		—	—	—	—	—
1926–27	Niagara Falls Cataracts	CPHL Canadian Professional Hockey League The Canadian Professional Hockey League, also known as Canpro, was a minor professional hockey league founded in 1926. After three seasons, it became the International Hockey League in 1929...		18	4	0	4	8		—	—	—	—	—
1927–28	New Haven Eagles New Haven Eagles The New Haven Eagles were a professional ice hockey team that played in New Haven, Connecticut. The Eagles were one of five inaugural franchises in the Canadian American Hockey League, and a founding member of the American Hockey League.-History:...	CAHL Canadian-American Hockey League The Canadian-American Hockey League, popularly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional ice hockey league that operated from 1926 to 1936. It was a direct ancestor of the American Hockey League....		36	5	3	8	51		—	—	—	—	—
1928–29	St. Louis Flyers St. Louis Flyers The St. Louis Flyers were a minor league ice hockey team, based in St. Louis, Missouri, playing home games at the St. Louis Arena in the city's Central West End, across from Forest Park....	AHA American Hockey Association (1926–1942) The American Hockey Association was a minor professional hockey league that operated between 1926 and 1942. It had previously operated as the Central Hockey League , and before that as part of the United States Amateur Hockey Association. The founding president was Alvin Warren, who also owned the St...		36	4	0	4	28		—	—	—	—	—
1929–30	St. Louis Flyers	AHA		30	2	1	3	46		—	—	—	—	—
1931–32	St. Louis Flyers	AHA		37	3	0	3	43		—	—	—	—	—
NHL totals				7	0	0	0	0		0	0	0	0	0

External links