Nick Damore got a chance to play in the NHL in the middle of his minor league career when Boston Bruins goaltender Frank Brimsek was injured. He joined the Bruins for a game versus the Montreal Canadiens on January 25th, 1942 and recorded the victory. After his one game audition Damore returned to the minors for good, perhaps the only undefeated NHL goalie ???
Phil Hergesheimer played parts of four seasons in the NHL in the 30s and 40s. He was a fine goal scorer in the minors and at the senior hockey level though he was more of a utility player as a big leaguer. Beginning in 1939-40, Hergesheimer was a decent role player in Chicago for 2 1/2 seasons. In January, 1942 things turned sour when the Hawks suspended him for refusing a demotion to the minors. He was traded to the Boston Bruins for cash but the Hawks held his rights of recall. Following the season his rights were returned to Chicago but he only played nine games for them the next season. In his 125 game NHL career he would record 21 goals and add 41 assists.
Harvey "Busher" Jackson started his NHL career as a member of the Kid Line, the Toronto Maple Leaf trio that dominated the National Hockey League in the 1930s. When Busher's output sagged in 1938-39, Conn Smythe traded him to the New York Americans for Sweeney Schriner. He played two years with the Americans and then three more with Boston - even spending some time on the Bruins blue line - before retiring in 1944.
Cliff Thompson played parts of two seasons with the Boston Bruins in the 40s. He was a clever offensive player with a hard shot who could also play a physical role in his own end. The native of Winchester, Massachusetts excelled for three years on the EHL's Boston Olympics before playing three games for the Bruins in 1941-42. In 1948-49 he was summoned to the Bruins for ten games which would end his NHL career with a single assist and no goals.
Billy Boucher was a dangerous scorer who spent the bulk of his career in the 1920s with the Montreal Canadiens. At his peak he topped the 15-goal mark four straight years and led the NHL in penalty minutes in 1923 and 1925. By the late 1920s, the goals stopped going in and Boucher's ice time began to decrease. He was traded to the Boston Bruins in January 1927 and dressed for the last 14 games of the regular season before helping the club reach the Stanley Cup finals. Boucher spent his last NHL season with the New York Americans in 1927-28.
Charlie Cahill was the first native of my little province, Prince Edward Island, to appear in the NHL. His career lasted just 31 games in 1925-26 and one more game the following year with Boston and produced a single assist as his only scoring point.
Billy Coutu began his ten-year NHL career in 1917-18 with the advent of the new league, playing for the Montreal Canadiens. He played another two years in Montreal before he headed west to join the Hamilton Tigers. In 24 games, he scored eight goals and four assists while picking up 74 minutes in penalties. Despite that successful individual season, Coutu returned to the Montreal Canadiens the following year, playing in 23 games and scoring four goals and seven points. Coutu remained in Montreal for five seasons during his second tour of duty with the club, scoring a total of 17 goals and 29 points. His final year was in 1926-27, when he played in 41 games for the Boston Bruins, scoring two points.
Frank Fredrickson followed up a brilliant amateur career with an impressive tenure as a professional. Along the way, the Winnipeg native won an Olympic gold medal and a Stanley Cup and played his way into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Fans of the NHL had a chance to enjoy Fredrickson's talents after the Detroit Cougars purchased his rights in 1926. Partway through his first NHL season he was traded to Boston, where he excelled with 14 goals in 28 matches. Fredrickson later played with the Pittsburgh Pirates and Detroit Falcons before bringing his NHL career to a close in 1931.
Harry Meeking signed with the NHL's Toronto Arenas in 1917-18, the club which would eventually evolve into the Toronto Maple Leafs. In 21 games in the newly formed league, Meeking scored ten goals and 19 points. Meeking had the honor of being on the first-ever Stanley Cup championship winning team in the NHL, when the Arenas defeated the Vancouver Millionaires in the finals three games to two. In 1918-19 Meeking played in 14 games with the Arenas, scoring seven goals and ten points. In 64 NHL games, Meeking scored 18 goals and 30 points.
Thanks to John Lehman and Len Ryan for their continuing patronage.
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