Howie Morenz

Howard William Morenz (June 21, 1902 – March 8, 1937) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played centre for three National Hockey League (NHL) teams: the Montreal Canadiens (in two stints), the Chicago Black Hawks, and the New York Rangers. Before joining the NHL, Morenz was a very good player in the junior Ontario Hockey Association, where his team played for the Memorial Cup, the championship for junior ice hockey in Canada. In the NHL, he was one of the best players in the league and set several league scoring records. A strong skater, Morenz was called the "Stratford Streak" and "Mitchell Meteor" because he was very fast.

Howie Morenz
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1945
An ice hockey player leans forward with his stick. He has a round face with one eyebrow raised and a bare head with a receding hairline. He wears skates, gauntlets, and a sweater with a stylized "C" around a smaller "H".
Morenz c. 1936–37
Born (1902-09-21)September 21, 1902
Mitchell, Ontario, Canada
Died March 8, 1937(1937-03-08) (aged 34)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height 5 ft 9 in (1.75 m)
Weight 165 lb (75 kg; 11 st 11 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for Montreal Canadiens
Chicago Black Hawks
New York Rangers
Playing career 1923–1937

Considered one of the first stars of the NHL, Morenz played 14 seasons in the league. He was a member of a team that won the Stanley Cup three times, all of them being the Canadiens. During his NHL career he was in the top 10 leading scorers ten times. For seven seasons in a row Morenz led the Canadiens in both goals scored and points. Three times in he was named the most valuable player of the league, and he led the league once in goals scored and twice in points scored. He was named to the NHL All-Star Team three times.

Morenz died from problems with a broken leg, an injury he suffered in a game. After his death, the Canadiens stopped using his jersey number, the first time the team had done so for any player. When the Hockey Hall of Fame opened in 1945, Morenz was one of the first 12 people to be added. In 1950, the Canadian Press named him the best ice hockey player of the first half of the 20th century.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1919–20 Stratford Midgets OHA-Jr. 5 14 4 18 7 14 12 26
1920–21 Stratford Midgets OHA-Jr. 8 19 12 31 13 38 18 56
1921–22 Stratford Midgets OHA-Jr. 4 17 6 23 10 5 17 4 21
1921–22 Stratford Indians OHA-Sr. 4 10 3 13 2 8 15 8 23 21
1922–23 Stratford Indians OHA-Sr. 10 15 13 28 19 10 28 7 35 36
1923–24 Montreal Canadiens NHL 24 13 3 16 20 6 7 3 10 10
1924–25 Montreal Canadiens NHL 30 28 11 39 46 6 7 1 8 8
1925–26 Montreal Canadiens NHL 31 23 3 26 39
1926–27 Montreal Canadiens NHL 44 25 7 32 49 4 1 0 1 4
1927–28 Montreal Canadiens NHL 43 33 18 51 66 2 0 0 0 12
1928–29 Montreal Canadiens NHL 42 17 10 27 47 3 0 0 0 6
1929–30 Montreal Canadiens NHL 44 40 10 50 72 6 3 0 3 10
1930–31 Montreal Canadiens NHL 39 28 23 51 49 10 1 4 5 10
1931–32 Montreal Canadiens NHL 48 24 25 49 46 4 1 0 1 4
1932–33 Montreal Canadiens NHL 46 14 21 35 32 2 0 3 3 2
1933–34 Montreal Canadiens NHL 39 8 13 21 21 2 1 1 2 0
1934–35 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 48 8 26 34 21 2 0 0 0 0
1935–36 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 23 4 11 15 20
1935–36 New York Rangers NHL 19 2 4 6 6
1936–37 Montreal Canadiens NHL 30 4 16 20 12
NHL totals 550 271 201 472 546 47 21 12 33 66
  • All statistics are taken from NHL.com.[1]

Awards

NHL

Award Year(s)
Art Ross Trophy 1928, 1931
Hart Memorial Trophy 1928, 1931, 1932
First All-Star Team Centre 1931, 1932
Second All-Star Team Centre 1933

Howie Morenz Media

Notes

  1. Howie Morenz's NHL Profile, NHL.com, 2009, retrieved 2009-01-05

Other websites