At the time of his retirement Taylor had served as Yale's head ice hockey coach for longer than anyone else, earning more wins (337) and losses (433) for the Bulldogs than all others.
After graduating with a degree in English,[6] Taylor sought a spot on the 1964 US Olympic Team to defend its first Gold medal, but was ultimately cut from the roster shortly before the games began.
After the disappointment, Taylor joined the Waterloo Blackhawks of the USHL (then a semi-professional league), suiting up for them from 1964 thru 1969, excluding a brief stint for the 1965 US National Team and the Warroad Lakers later that year.
During the 1968–69 season, Taylor made his way back to the Northeast, briefly playing for the Manchester Blackhawks of the New England Hockey League before accepting an assistant coaching position with his alma mater.
Behind the bench for his alma mater's arch-rival, Taylor swiftly returned Yale to respectability, shepherding the team to a winning season by his third year.
He died on April 27, 2013, but not before he was able to witness Yale, the team he had coached for almost three decades, win its first national title under former assistant Keith Allain, which it was able to do two weeks before Taylor's death.