Syl Apps

A career Centre for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Syl Apps won a large share of hardware for the Buds. Considered by his peers, his fans and his employers to be one of the classiest guys in the sport, Apps was also a very skilled player. He would twice lead the NHL in assists and retired with a point per game average. He won the first ever Calder Trophy in1937 as the Rookie of the Year, and won the Lady Byng in 1942 and three Stanley Cups. Apps would go down as one of the best captains the Toronto Maple Leafs ever had.
Read more...

Percy LeSueur

Initially a Right Winger, Percy LeSueur achieved his greatest success in organized hockey as a Goaltender. LaSueur was not just a student of the net, but a teacher as well. He wrote a manual on the position while in his prime and led Ottawa to two Stanley Cups. While playing, he created the gauntlet style glove and the style of net used in hockey from 1912 to 1925. “Peerless” Percy may not have been the best Goalie of his time, but his innovations aided the game and for his overall contributions to goaltending makes his induction to the Hockey Hall of Fame was warranted. 
Read more...

Paul Loicq

Although he was a decent player in his native Belgium, it was Paul Loicq’s work in promoting hockey across Europe that earned his induction into the Hockey Hall of Fame Builder’s category. Loicq would become the president of the IIHF in 1927 and spent his life dedicated to growing the sport. This is arguably the first true International induction to the Hall.
Read more...

Oliver Siebert

One of the first players to turn professional, Oliver Seibert was a local legend in the Berlin (Kitchener) area. He was alleged to be one of the first players to use a wrist shot, and he was a prolific goal scorer in the old Western Ontario Hockey Association. Seibert turned professional in 1904 when he joined the Canadian Soo.   His son, Earl Seibert would also become a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Read more...

Milt Schmidt

The Centre of Boston’s famed “Kraut Line”, Milt Schmidt was a study in contrasts. His hardnosed play was combined with stellar playmaking and as such was the lynch pin to two Bruins Cup victories in 1939 and 1941. Schmidt would serve his country in World War II and lost three productive seasons of professional hockey, but would return as an effective force and won the coveted Hart Trophy as the NHL’s Most Valuable Player in 1951.   
Read more...

Joe Hall

English born and Canadian bred, “Bad” Joe Hall was a rough and tough Defenseman in the first era of organized hockey. Hall was also a very good goal scorer and was a solid part of the Quebec Bulldogs winning the Stanley Cup in 1912 and 1913. Unfortunately, Joe Hall’s life met with a tragic ending. Hall was part of the Montreal Canadians who were competing with the Seattle Metropolitans for the Cup in 1919. The series was halted at two games apiece when an influenza epidemic rocked the West Coast and most of the players contracted it. The Cup was not awarded that season and all of the sick players recovered; except for Joe Hall.
Read more...

Hap Day

Clarence “Hap” Day may not have been the best scoring Defenseman in Hockey history, but he was part of dynamic tandem with King Clancy and was the Toronto Maple Leafs Captain for a decade. Hap Day’s natural leadership skills transferred well behind the bench and as the Leafs Head Coach he won five Stanley Cups. Despite being a demanding and detailed coach, he received the most from his teams. This is the mark of an excellent leader.
Read more...

George Hainsworth

The winner of the Vezina Trophy in the first year of its existence, George Hainsworth became the workhorse for the Montreal Canadians between the pipes. He would lead the NHL in Goals Against Average twice posting an insane 0.92 in the 1928-29 campaign. Although passing changes opened up the game and prevented a similar statistical effort, Hainsworth was still among the better goalies and would backstop the Canadians to consecutive Stanley Cups.
Read more...
Subscribe to this RSS feed