Now that we’ve more or less recovered from the green beer and shenanigans of St. Patrick’s Day, it’s time to take a look at some other important parts of Irish history: infractions and Boston. Former NHL winger Terry O’Reilly was famous for both. The ex-Bruin made a name for himself in Beantown thanks largely to his scoring touch, but more significantly for his staggeringly large number of penalty minutes. O’Reilly tallied 2,095 in his 14-year career.

O’Reilly In 1977-78, he had career highs for offense, scoring 29 goals and 61 assists for 90 points in 77 games. He became the first player in NHL history to finish in the top 10 in scoring while amassing over 200 penalty minutes. He had 211. Over his career, he finished with 204 goals and 402 assists in 891 games. He added 25 goals and 42 assists in 108 playoff games, as well as an additional 335 penalty minutes.

Nicknamed “Taz” for his devastating play, O’Reilly was reckless. He’d bash and crash anybody in his way and was known for not backing down from any confrontations. He was even ejected from a playoff game for punching a referee. He was so beloved in Boston that once his playing career ended in 1985, he was given the job as Bruins head coach from 1986-89 where his team made the playoffs each year, and lost in the finals to Edmonton in five games.

O’Reilly was a man’s man. The Canadian-born with the Irish name had a reputation that preceded him as a player who could beat you in many ways; whether it is with his stick or his fists. Playing under Don Cherry in the 70s, O’Reilly was in the perfect venue for his style of play. He resurfaced in New York in 2002 as an assistant coach to the Rangers for two seasons, but since the lockout, he’s been out of the limelight, which may be exactly where he wants to be.