Persistent might be a good word to describe Jack ‘Tex’ Evans. In fact, he was so persistent in hockey that one website reports that Evans remained an NHL scout for a handful of years after his death in 1996.
He was persistent in that he came from Wales, had trouble learning English and started hockey at a late age. It was his transition to English that earned him the nickname ‘Tex’. His accent came out sounding like a southern drawl.
He was persistent in hockey, playing just six games over his first two years with the New York Rangers. He then carried on in the minors for nine seasons after a 753 game NHL career. Jack was persistent in coaching as well, lasting through the entire history of the Cleveland Barons as head coach before returning to coach in the minors before a chance to return to the NHL with the Hartford Whalers came up.
Minor Pro
Hockey Card Collection
NHL Career
Coaching Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Jack Evans – Minor Pro
Between 1949-50 and 1954-55, Evans split his time between the New York Rangers and the minors. He appeared in the AHL and WHL over that span. In his pro rookie season, 1949-50, Jack played for the New Haven Ramblers in the American Hockey League and placed third in the league with 150 penalty minutes.
Jack Evans Collection
In 1952-53, Evans was with the Saskatoon Quakers of the WHL. The Quakers were coached by Doug Bentley and finished first overall in the eight team league. Saskatoon reached the finals before falling to the fourth seed Edmonton Flyers in six games. Jack finished second in the WHL with 179 PIM.
After his NHL career ended after the 1962-63 season, Evans returned to the minors for the 1963-64 season. His first year was spent as player / head coach of the Buffalo Bisons in the AHL. He finished with eight seasons in the WHL. His final three years saw him take on the role of player / assistant coach with the San Diego Gulls from 1969-70 to 1971-72.
Jack finished up his WHL career playing 675 regular season games, scoring 23 goals and adding 155 assists for 178 points. He also appeared in 57 playoff games and added eleven assists.
Jack Evans – NHL
Evans played 753 regular season games in the National Hockey League between 1948-49 and 1962-63 with the Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks. Over that time, the defenseman scored 19 and assisted on 80 for 99 points. He played an additional 56 games in the Stanley Cup playoffs, with two goals and two assists to show for it.
1955-56 was Jack’s first full season in the NHL. As a member of the Rangers, he tied for sixth in the NHL with Leo Labine of the Boston Bruins with 104 PIM. Over the next two years, Evans finished fifth in the league for time spent in the sin bin.
The Chicago Blackhawks made Evans a Stanley Cup champion in 1960-61. The Hawks placed third of six in the NHL, 17 points behind the first place Montreal Canadiens. Yet, Chicago ousted the Habs in the opening round at took out the fourth seed Detroit Red Wings in the finals, 4-2.
The following year was nearly a carbon copy for the Blackhawks. Chicago placed third again, 23 points behind the first place Canadiens. For the second straight season, the Hawks upset Montreal in the opening round. However, this time the Toronto Maple Leafs topped Chicago in the finals.
Jack Evans – Coach
As mentioned, Jack’s coaching career started in 1963-64 when he served as player / head coach of the AHL’s Buffalo Bisons. He then had a dual role as player / assistant coach with the WHL’s San Diego Gulls of the WHL from 1969-70 to 1971-72. Evans then retired as a player and remained as head coach of the Gulls for two more seasons.
Success came in 1974-75 with Evans coaching the Salt Lake Golden Eagles of the Central Hockey League. The team that had Charlie Simmer on the roster for much of the regular season placed first overall in the eight team league. The Golden Eagles then reached the finals and took out the Dallas Black Hawks in seven games.
Salt Lake was outscored on the series 28-24 with three games, including game seven, going to overtime. Jack was awarded the Jake Milford Trophy as CHL coach of the year for the first of three times. He was the only coach to ever win the award more than once.
In 1975-76, Evans took on the head coaching job with the California Golden Seals in the NHL. He moved with the franchise to Cleveland, Ohio the following season and is the only head coach in Cleveland Barons history. Of course, the franchise lasted just two years in Ohio before merging with the Minnesota North Stars.
Jack returned to the CHL and the Salt Lake Golden Eagles for an amazing stretch from 1978-79 to 1982-83. In his first two years back in Utah, Evans was awarded the Jake Milford Trophy.
In 1978-79, the Golden Eagles placed first overall in the six team CHL and fell in the finals to the John Muckler coached Dallas Black Hawks. The following year, Salt Lake once again finished first in the expanded nine team league and won the championship with a seven game win over the Fort Worth Texans in the finals.
1980-81 brought the Golden Eagles their second straight playoff championship. The team dropped to second overall in the nine team league and was led in scoring by Joe Mullen. Mullen was also the league’s scoring champ. Salt Lake met the sixth seed Wichita Wind in the finals and took the full seven games before coming out on top of the Garnet ‘Ace’ Bailey coached team.
In his final year with Salt Lake, Jack coached the team to a first overall finish in 1981-82. However, the team fell in the semi-finals to the Dallas Black Hawks. On that Golden Eagles roster were Alain Vigneault, Claude Julien and Bill Stewart, a trio that would all go on to head coaching jobs in the NHL.
From 1983-84 to 1987-88, Evans returned to the National Hockey League as head coach of the Hartford Whalers. He was replaced 54 games into the 1987-88 season by Larry Pleau. 1986-87 was to be a long run in the Stanley Cup playoffs with Hartford placing first in the Adams Division with 93 points. The Whalers finished fourth overall in the 21 team NHL. However, Hartford was upset by the Quebec Nordiques in the opening round. Quebec finished the regular season 21 points behind the Whalers.
Jack Evans – Rookie Card
The Jack Evans rookie card appears as number 90 in the 1951-52 Parkhurst set. The card shows Evans as a member of the New York Rangers. Jack’s first hockey card is valued at more than twice that of a common card.
His final card was included in the 1962-63 Topps NHL hockey card. He was shown with the Chicago Blackhawks and, indeed, 1962-63 was his last season in the National Hockey League, despite playing pro hockey until the end of 1971-72.
Jack Evans Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1947-48 | Lethbridge Maple Leafs | WCSHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1948-49 | Lethbridge Maple Leafs | WCSHL | 48 | 7 | 10 | 17 | 124 |
| 1948-49 | New York Rangers | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 1949-50 | New York Rangers | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1949-50 | New Haven Ramblers | AHL | 69 | 3 | 12 | 15 | 150 |
| 1950-51 | New York Rangers | NHL | 49 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 95 |
| 1950-51 | Cincinnati Mohawks | AHL | 16 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 56 |
| 1951-52 | New York Rangers | NHL | 52 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 83 |
| 1952-53 | Saskatoon Quakers | WHL | 68 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 179 |
| 1953-54 | Saskatoon Quakers | WHL | 27 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 49 |
| 1953-54 | New York Rangers | NHL | 44 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 73 |
| 1954-55 | Saskatoon Quakers | WHL | 22 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 16 |
| 1954-55 | New York Rangers | NHL | 47 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 91 |
| 1954-55 | Victoria Cougars | WHL | Playoffs only | ||||
| 1955-56 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 104 |
| 1956-57 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 110 |
| 1957-58 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 108 |
| 1958-59 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 70 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 75 |
| 1959-60 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 68 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 60 |
| 1960-61 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 69 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 58 |
| 1961-62 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 70 | 3 | 14 | 17 | 80 |
| 1962-63 | Chicago Blackhawks | NHL | 68 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 46 |
| 1963-64 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 72 | 0 | 17 | 17 | 87 |
| 1964-65 | Los Angeles Blades | WHL | 69 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 91 |
| 1965-66 | Vancouver Canucks | WHL | 72 | 2 | 31 | 33 | 103 |
| 1966-67 | California Seals | WHL | 71 | 3 | 18 | 21 | 52 |
| 1967-68 | San Diego Gulls | WHL | 65 | 1 | 15 | 16 | 36 |
| 1968-69 | San Diego Gulls | WHL | 73 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 50 |
| 1969-70 | San Diego Gulls | WHL | 67 | 0 | 8 | 8 | 46 |
| 1970-71 | San Diego Gulls | WHL | 69 | 1 | 10 | 11 | 82 |
| 1971-72 | San Diego Gulls | WHL | 72 | 0 | 20 | 20 | 87 |
| NHL Totals | 753 | 19 | 80 | 99 | 989 | ||