Canadian Winter Olympic medallist Cliff Pennington has died ©Anderson McQueen

Olympic ice hockey silver medallist Cliff Pennington has died at the age of 80.

The former centre was a member of the Canadian team which competed at the 1960 Winter Games in Squaw Valley.

They finished second in the final round-robin to seal the silver medals, winning four out of their five matches after coming through the opening group stage with a 100 per cent record.

Canada's only loss in the final round was a narrow 2-1 defeat to hosts United States, who did not lose a match en route to gold.

Cliff Pennington won silver at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley ©Getty Images
Cliff Pennington won silver at the 1960 Winter Olympics in Squaw Valley ©Getty Images

Pennington, who passed away in St. Petersburg in Florida, moved to the National Hockey League after the Squaw Valley Games and played for Montreal Canadiens and Boston Bruins.

He also won two Eastern Professional Hockey League titles during his career and was named as the International Hockey League's most valuable player in 1970.

Born in Winnipeg, Pennington was inducted into the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame in 2005.

He retired from the sport in 1974 after playing in Florida with the St. Petersburg Suns.