With all due respect to George Armstrong, the Hockey Hall of Fame may not be the right place for him. It was not that Armstrong wasn’t a good player; he was a multi time All Star game participant who spend his long career as a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs who won four Stanley Cups. Although he played in multiple All Star Games, the Right Winger never had more than 25 goals or 55 points in a season and was never considered by his peers to be an elite player. George Armstrong was however considered a great leader and was the Leafs Captain for many years and was also considered a very intelligent player who knew how to make the best of his ability, and had some of his performances in the playoffs. Frankly, we are on the fence on this one.

A dedicated administrator to Amateur Hockey in Ontario, Frank Buckland worked his way into the Ontario Hockey Association and would serve a two year term as its President. He would also be the organization’s treasurer for a fifteen year span and was considered one of the most efficient executives they ever had. As the OHA has always been a big part of the growth of Hockey, it is not hard to understand why any beloved executive of that association would get a look from the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Ace Bailey played his entire professional career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and in 1929 won the NHL scoring championship (as well as leading the league in goals). Bailey was very popular in Toronto and for a three year period was a top star for the Blue and White. His production declined sharply, but he was still effective in Toronto’s Stanley Cup win in 1932. Unfortunately, Bailey is best known for a near death injury on the ice when he was decked by Eddie Shore who was retaliating from a hit by Bailey’s teammate. The injury was a skull fracture that ended his career and almost ended his life. Bailey did recover and would work in various capacities for the Maple Leafs for decades after.  

Tommy Ivan may not have made it to the NHL as a player (a serious cheekbone injury as an amateur player derailed that) but through a series of circumstances he found himself as the Head Coach of the Detroit Red Wings. He inherited a team with young talent on the rise and honed their skills to where they won three Stanley Cups in the early 1950’s. Ivan would seek a new challenge and left Detroit to Chicago in 1954. The Blackhawks were in the dregs of the National Hockey League and through slow rebuilding took them to the Stanley Cup in 1961 as its General Manager and were a Cup contender for years to come.