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Quickies

Did you know …

that the first Finnish-born player in the National Hockey League was Albert Pudas, who played one season (1926–27) for the Toronto St. Patricks (now the Maple Leafs)? Actually, Pudas, who was born in Siikajoki, Finland, but grew up and played hockey in Port Arthur, Ontario, only got into four games in his entire NHL career. The second Finn to make the NHL was Pentti Lund, also from Port Arthur, who was awarded the Calder Trophy as best rookie in 1948–49 with the New York Rangers. The reason there were so many Finns playing hockey in and around what is now Thunder Bay is that the area attracted a lot of Finnish immigrants, as well as a fair number of other Scandinavians.

What were the first NHL teams to play exhibition matches in Europe?

If you’re thinking the answer to this question lies in the 1970s onward, you would be wrong. After the 1937–38 season, the Detroit Red Wings and the Montreal Canadiens sailed for Europe by ship to take part in a nine-game exhibition tour in Britain and France. The first match was staged in London before an audience of 8,000 people. The Habs beat the Red Wings in that game 5–4 with an overtime goal by Toe Blake. The Canadiens went on to win the entire series, with five victories, three losses, and one tie. More than 20 years later, in 1959, the New York Rangers and the Boston Bruins did the Canadiens and Red Wings one better by participating in a 23-game exhibition tour through Europe, battling each other in 10 cities, including London, Paris, Geneva, Berlin, and Vienna. The Rangers added the Chicago Black Hawks’ Bobby Hull to their team for the series, and in a weird twist, the Toronto Maple Leafs’ resident clown Eddie Shack was paired with the Golden Jet on a line!