THE CANADIAN PRESS
DEASE LAKE, B.C. — Former hockey coach Ernie (Punch) McLean, who went missing in a remote region of northern British Columbia, has been found alive.
The 77-year-old McLean had been surveying property near the community of Dease Lake, about 250 kilometres south of the Yukon border, when he disappeared Sunday.
McLean was in a mountainous area accessible only by all-terrain vehicle and both air and ground units were called in to find him.
McLean coached 16 seasons in the Western Hockey League and led New Westminster to four consecutive league championships and two Memorial Cups. He is a member of the B.C. Hockey Hall of Fame.
The RCMP said McLean and two other prospectors were out on a gold claim when the former coach went off on his own to flag a new access road.
When he didn’t return by nightfall, his friends reported him missing. McLean was on foot and had no food.
