Saturday, October 28, 2006

Star of Scotland - Jack Thaler



Jack Thaler was probably the most gifted player in Scotland in the late 1940's. Thaler played junior hockey for the famous Oshawa Generals. But the most productive hockey years were spent playing in Scotland for the Paisley Pirates. At times it seemed he could score at will. His exploits earned him a contract with the Toronto Maple Leafs. The early 1950's were spent in the Maritimes, scoring goals in bunches for the Saint John Beavers.
Retired from General Motors, Thaler resides in his hometown of Oshawa. His grandson, Chris Thaler, played several seasons for Don Cherry's Mississauga Ice Dogs of the Ontario Hockey League.
(Photos: Jack Thaler c. 1950, Chris Thaler of the OHL Ice Dogs)

Tuesday, October 24, 2006

Plenty of Talent for Terry TALENTino


Terry Talentino was born in Sault Ste. Marie and grew up in Timmins - the same hometown of Toronto Maple Leafs great Tim Horton. Talentino played Junior "A" for the Brantford Lions of the OHA. From there it was off to RCAF Service teams before catching what appeared to be his big break - a tryout with the Detroit Red Wings. Any shot of making the Wings was cut short by a broken ankle.
Next Talentino played for the San Francisco Shamrocks of the PCHL. Fifteen years of senior hockey was next on the agenda, playing on various teams throughout Northern Ontario. The North Bay Sports Hall of Fame Inductee retired in 1961 with 260 goals and 480 points, a record that still stands today.
The current North Bay resident worked as Managing Director of the North Bay ice rinks for 23 years. Talentino also spent many years as an executive for the NOHA, OHA and CAHA.

Saturday, October 21, 2006

Frank Gegenheimer- From Colgate to Japan



A quick run through the hockey career of Frank Gegenheimer....
  1. 1942-43 Manual Training High School in Brooklyn, New York. Champions of New York City and an All-City player. Due to the war, Manual dropped hockey the following year. Gegenheimer was slated to be Captain of the 1943-44 season.
  2. 1943 played for the Manhatten Arrows and Brooklyn Arma Torpedoes.
  3. 1944-1946 U.S. Navy
  4. 1946-1950 Colgate University and an undefeated 1946-47 season. 1948 Colgate won the National Championship.
  5. 1950-1956 played fot the New York Mets. Team travelled to Japan two times.
After hockey, Gegenheimer worked as an adjustor and then in management in the insurance field. Now retired in Florida, at last report Gegenheimer enjoys playing golf four times a week

Tuesday, October 17, 2006

2002 Olympic Torchbearer John McBride


In 1959-1960 John McBride served as Captain for the 12-11 Princeton Tigers. While at Princeton, McBride lettered three times. The Leftwinger finished 8th in college scorers in the East. Immediately after a successful college career, McBride joined the U.S. National team for the 1960-61 season. He became the first Illnois native to make the US National team. After a season with the Nats, McBride played senior hockey with the "Old St. Nicks" from New York City. The "Old St. Nicks" even won the Charles Schultz "Snoopy" tournament in Santa Rosa, California.
McBride became very active in junior hockey in Aspen, Colorado where he started the youth program. It was because of his involvement that they selected him to be a torchbearer for the 2002 Salt Lake City Winter Olympics.

Friday, October 13, 2006

Silver Medalist & Coach Len Ceglarski


Most hockey fans know Len Ceglarski as one of the greatest college hockey coaches of all-time. Ceglarski won 673 games coaching at Clarkson and Boston College. The East Walpole native also is the only coach to win 250 games at two different colleges.
Ceglarski played for Boston College , moving to fourth on the all-time scoring list for the Eagles. While at Boston College, Ceglarski also earned three letters in baseball. Ceglarski also played some senior hockey with the Worcester Warriors in the 1950's.
In 1952 Ceglarski won a silver medal at the Olympics held in Oslo, Norway. The 80-year old Ceglarski is a member of the USA Hockey Hall of Fame located in Eveleth, Minnesota.

Monday, October 09, 2006

Leonard Brumm: Carlson Brothers' 1st Pro Coach


Leonard "Okie" Brumm has many accomplishments in the world of hockey. Brumm played at the University of Michigan from 1947-1950 and won a NCAA Championship. From there he played for the Marquette Sentinels of the Northern Michigan- Ontario Hockey League. Then Brumm played several seasons in the USHL He skated for the Waterloo Blackhawks, Des Moines Oak Leafs and Marquette Iron Rangers in the 1960's and 1970's. Brumm was usually filled the role of player-coach for the the teams .
But it gets more interesting. From 1953-1957, the Wisconsin resident was hired to be the first Director of Athletics for the Marquette State Prison. Of course, he started the first ever prison hockey team that went 35-15-8.
It gets better. From 1982-1987, Brumm organized the Kuwait National Ice Hockey League.
During the 1973-74 season as coach of the Marquette Iron Rangers, Brumm gave the Carlson Brothers of 'Slapshot' fame their first professional hockey opportunity.

Thursday, October 05, 2006

Lacrosse Hall of Famer Whitey Frick


William "Whitey" Frick of St. Catharines excelled at lacrosse. He was inducted into the Canadian Lacrosse Hall of Fame in 1999. Frick played forward, defense as well as goal in his career. Frick was the goaltender for the St. Catharines Athletics who won the Minto Cup (Junior Championship) in 1947. Frick would also win the Mann Cup as senior champion of Canada a year earlier. Frick served as a backup goalie for the senior Athletics thus winning the senior championship a year prior to winning the junior title.
Frick also played junior hockey in the mid 1940's with the highly touted St. Catherines Falcons of the Ontario Hockey Association. After his junior stint, Frick ventured to Scotland to play for the Ayr Raiders. According to an Ayr 1948 game program "Whitey introduced hustle and gave us a sample of the form which brought him to the attention of the National Hockey League in Canada."
Frick later spent many years as a referee in the OHA . Today, Frick remains active with the "Old Boys Lacrosse Association"