George Armstrong, 1930-2021

Yes, that is a color photograph of a Toronto Maple Leafs Captain holding the Stanley Cup. No, it is not photoshopped. Nor is it colorized.

It's been 54 years since the Toronto Maple Leafs have won a Stanley Cup, or even reached the Stanley Cup Finals. Still, as long as some members of their 1960s dynasty were still alive, it still seemed accessible.

But of the 11 members of the Hockey Hall of Fame on that dynasty team, 9 were still alive when the 50th Anniversary celebrations began in the Spring of 2012 -- and the 2 that had died had both died within a few years of that last Cup. Now, only 3 are left.

George Edward Armstrong was born on July 6, 1930 in Skead, Ontario, now a part of Greater Sudbury. His father was a Canadian of Irish descent. His mother was a member of the Ojibwe tribe of indigenous North Americans. Long called "Indians," America now tends to use the term "Native Americans," while Canadians prefer "First Nations."

The Ojibwe are also known as the Chippewa. Albert Bender, a Hall of Fame pitcher for the Philadelphia Athletics early in the 20th Century, was also an Oibwe, and was, like so many other Native Americans, known as "Chief." Allie Reynolds, a Yankee pitcher of the late 1940s and early '50s, was a member of the Creek nation, and was called "Superchief."

George Armstrong would also be called "Chief." And Johnny Bucyk, who would be Captain of the Boston Bruins' Stanley Cup winners of 1970 and 1972, would be nicknamed "Chief" by a Boston cartoonist who thought he looked like a Native, when he was actually of Ukrainian descent.

Also part of Greater Sudbury was Falconbridge, and that's where George Armstrong grew up. His father worked in the nickel mines, and Skead would eventually have its name changed to Nickel Centre. Like so many other kids who seemed destined for the mines, including the Yankees' Mickey Mantle, George turned to sports as a way out. At age 6, he came down with spinal meningitis, which nearly derailed his chance.

But he survived, and played hockey at Sudbury High School, with Miles "Tim" Horton and Mirl "Red" McCarthy, both of whom would eventually become his NHL teammates. In 1947, he signed with the Toronto Maple Leafs, and dropped out of school. He played with their top junior team, the Toronto Marlboros, in 1948-49. (The current Leafs farm team, the Toronto Marlies, is named for them.) He was called up to the Leafs on December 3, 1949, and played in 2 games before being returned to the Marlboros, where he was named their Captain.

Frank "King" Clancy had been a Hall of Fame defenseman for the Leafs. In 1952, he was their assistant general manager. His assessment of Armstrong: "This kid's got everything. He has size, speed, and he can shoot 'em into the net better that any hockey player I've known in a long time. I'll be surprised if he doesn't become a superstar."

*

Clancy would not be surprised. Turning professional, he played for the Leafs' highest minor-league team, the Pittsburgh Hornets of the American Hockey League, and was leading the AHL in scoring in 1951-52 before being called up. His 1st goal for the Leafs was the 1st goal ever scored by an NHL player of Native heritage. He never played in the minors again, although he missed the start of the 1952-53 season and a quarter of the 1956-57 season with injuries.

The Leafs had won 6 Cups in 10 years from 1942 to 1951, but that team had gotten old and been broken up. Now, with the Montreal Canadiens and the Detroit Red Wings dominating the game -- aside from the Leafs' '51 win, those 2 teams would win every Cup from 1950 to 1960 -- the Leafs struggled: They missed the Playoffs completely in 1953, '57 and '58; and lost to the Wings in the Semifinals in 1952, '54, '55 and '56.

In 1958, George "Punch" Imlach, who had won 2 Quebec Senior Hockey League titles with the Quebec Aces, having coached future Canadiens stars Jean Béliveau and Jacques Plante, was named general manager of the Leafs, and installed himself as head coach. He began to build a new team, with veterans Armstrong, Horton, Allan Stanley, Bobby Baun, Dave Keon, and goaltender Johnny Bower.

By now Captain, "Army" took this Leafs team to the Finals in 1959, beating the Boston Bruins in the Semifinals before losing to the Canadiens. In 1960, they beat the Red Wings in the Playoffs, something they hadn't done in 11 years, before losing another Finals to the Canadiens, who completed a run of 5 straight Cups. In 1961, the Canadiens fell into a transition period, but the Leafs couldn't take advantage, losing to the Wings in the Semifinals.

But in 1961-62, it all came together. They picked up Wings defenseman Leonard "Red" Kelly, and moved him to center. And they traded for Eddie Litzenberger, who had Captained the Chicago Blackhawks to the previous season's Cup, beating the Wings in the Finals.

Now, they had Bower in goal; Horton, Baun, Stanley, Carl Brewer, Larry Hillman, and a young man named Al Arbour on defense; Litzenberger, Dick Duff, Bert Olmstead, Brian Conacher, Eddie Shack and Bob Nevin on the wings; and Armstrong, Kelly, Ron Stewart, Dave Keon, Billy Harris, Bob Pulford and Frank Mahovlich as centers. Mahovlich became one of the defining players of his generation, but, with Imlach and Armstrong leading the way, the Leafs became a true team effort.

In 1962, the Leafs finished 2nd overall in the NHL, beat the New York Rangers in the Semifinals, and dethroned the Blackhawks in the Finals, taking their 1st Stanley Cup in 11 years. There were no holdovers from the 1951 Playoffs, but Armstrong and Horton had been there for nearly all of the drought, and appreciated it the most.

In 1963, the Leafs finished 1st overall in the NHL, beat the Canadiens in the Playoffs (something they hadn't done since 1951), and beat the Wings in the Finals. In 1964, they finished 3rd, and again beat the Canadiens in the Semis and the Wings in the Finals, making it 3 straight Cups.

All 3 times, NHL President Clarence Campbell handed the Cup to Armstrong, as Captain. Conn Smythe, involved with the Leafs from 1927 until his death in 1980, called Armstrong "the best Captain, as a Captain, the Leafs have ever had."

As late as 1956, the all-time Stanley Cup count had been Maple Leafs 9, Canadiens 8. After 1960, it was Canadiens 12, Maple Leafs 9. After 1964, it was a 12-12 tie. But the Canadiens won in 1965 and '66, taking the all-time lead. They have never relinquished it. Both times, they beat the Leafs in the Semifinals to get there.

For the 1966-67 season, the Leafs were seen as an aging team whose time had passed. But Imlach stuck by his veterans, and added 2, both members of the Detroit dynasty of the early 1950s: Goaltender Terry Sawhcuk, who began to alternate with Bower; and defenseman Marcel Pronovost. They finished 3rd in the last "Original Six" season, before the "Great Expansion," and eliminated the Blackhawks in 6 games in the Semifinal.

It was Canada's Centennial Year, and the NHL's 2 Canadian-based teams were in the Stanley Cup Final. It also was the 50th NHL Final. Of those 50, the Leafs were now in 22, while the Canadiens were in 23 -- and this would be their 11th Playoff series against each other, all rounds combined. The Habs won Game 1 at the Montreal Forum, 6-2. But the Leafs took Game 2 at the Forum, 3-0.

They won Game 3 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, 3-2, on a goal by Pulford in double overtime. But Bower was injured before Game 4, and Sawchuk was in goal the rest of the way. The Habs took home-ice advantage back with their own 6-2 road victory. The Leafs took it back again in Game 5, 4-1.

That set up Game 6 at Maple Leaf Gardens, on May 2, 1967. The game was scoreless until 6:25 into the 2nd period, when Ron Ellis scored for the Leafs. Jim Pappin added another at the end of the period. Dick Duff, a former Leaf, scored for Montreal early in the 3rd. So the Leafs hung on to a 2-1 lead.

With a minute left, Canadiens coach Hector "Toe" Blake pulled goaltender Lorne "Gump" Worsley for an extra attacker. Imlach, known as "Elmer Fudd," "the Mad Hatter" and "the Old Bald Muledriver" behind his back, pulled a move that fans of American football coach George Allen would have appreciated: He put an "Over-the-Hill Gang" onto the ice. As the first and greatest of all hockey broadcasters, Foster Hewitt, called it over CBC, "Imlach is making his stand with an all-veteran lineup: Stanley, Horton, Kelly, Pulford and Armstrong. Sawchuk, of course, is in goal."

Stanley won the faceoff from Béliveau. He passed to Kelly, who passed to Pulford, who passed to Armstrong. With 47 seconds left in regulation, at the center red line, Armstrong fired at the empty Montreal net. 3-1 Toronto. All over. For the 4th time in 7 years, and the 13th time overall, the Toronto Maple Leafs were World Champions.

As Chris Cuthbert of Canadian network Sportsnet pointed out, Armstrong was the only player to register a point -- a goal or an assist -- in the clinching games of all 4 Cup wins.

*

Remember how Brett Favre kept retiring after every season, and then kept un-retiring? George Armstrong also did this. He probably did it the 1st time as insurance against being made available for the 1967 Expansion Draft. But he kept going, through the 1970-71 season, playing 21 seasons over 4 different decades, finishing his career with 296 goals and 417 assists, totaling 713 points. He added 26 goals and 34 assists in the Playoffs, keeping in mind that there were only 2 possible rounds for most of his career.

He appeared in 7 NHL All-Star Games, although that becomes less impressive when you remember that, from its establishment in 1947 until his last in 1968, it was always the defending Champions against an All-Star Team made up from players from all of the NHL's other teams. But he was chosen for it in 1956, 1957 and 1959, when the Leafs had not yet won the Cup with him on the roster.

In 1970-71, George's last season as an NHL player, London soccer team Arsenal won England's Football League and its in-season tournament, the FA Cup, winning "The Double." They also had a player named George Armstrong, a winger with short legs, big sideburns, and boundless energy, who was every bit as valuable to his team as the Leafs' Chief was to them. He was from County Durham, in the North-East of England. As far as I can tell, the two men were not related, and never met each other. The footballer played from 1961 to 1977, went into coaching, and died in 2000.

By the time George Armstrong the hockey player retired, the Leafs had already broken up their champions, including having let Sawchuk go in the expansion draft. He was taken by the Los Angeles Kings, who hired the newly-retired Kelly to become their 1st head coach. By 1970, Sawchuk was a Ranger, and died in 1970 while still an active player, from liver failure. Horton also became a Ranger, and a Buffalo Sabre, and was still playing at age 44 in 1974, when he was killed in a car crash.

Upon his retirement, the Leafs named Armstrong a scout. In 1972, he was appointed head coach of the Marlboros, and led them to the championship of Canadian junior hockey, the Memorial Cup, in 1973 and 1975. In 1977, Kelly was the Leafs' head coach, but was fired, and Armstrong was offered the post. But the organization, now dominated by team owner Harold Ballard, was in chaos, and he turned the offer down. The resulting bad blood led him to resign as Marlboros coach, and he took a scouting job with the Quebec Nordiques.

It took until 1988 for Armstrong to rejoin the Leaf organization, and was named head coach and assistant general manager. But it didn't work out, as he won only 17 of 47 games, and missed the Playoffs. After the season, he returned to a scout-only role.

George was involved in the Special Olympics, and, as you might guess, charities related to indigenous tribes. He kept his home in Toronto, where he and his wife Betty had 4 children: Sons Brian, Fred and Lorne, and daughter Betty-Ann. His granddaughter, Kalley, captained the women's hockey team at Harvard University. His nephew, Dale McCourt, played 7 seasons in the NHL, the last, 1983-84, with the Leafs.

In 1975, George was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. In 2010, he was named to the Ontario Sports Hall of Fame. In 2013, Sportsnet ranked him 14th on their list of the 30 Greatest Maple Leafs. Of his 1960s teammates, Dave Keon was ranked 1st, Johnny Bower 5th, Frank Mahovlich 6th, Tim Horton 7th, Red Kelly 16th, Allan Stanley 20th, and Ron Ellis 25th. A 2017 team Centennial poll of Leafs fans ranked him 12th.

Bower and Armstrong

In 1998, the Leafs made Number 10 an "Honoured Number," and raised banners honoring him and previous wearer Syl Apps to the rafters at Maple Leaf Gardens. In 2016, as part of the team's 100th Anniversary celebrations, all of their Honoured Numbers were made retired numbers, and the banners showing Armstrong and Apps, Number 10s, were raised to the rafters at Scotiabank Arena.

By then, the celebrations for the 50th Anniversaries of the 1960s Cups were nearing their conclusion. But the Leafs had not been back to the Stanley Cup Finals since. They had only gotten back to the NHL's last 4 teams in 1978, 1993, 1994, 1999 and 2002.

And the players from that team began to fall victim to the ravages of old age. Allan Stanley died in 2013, Marcel Pronovost in 2015, Johnny Bower in 2017, Red Kelly in 2019, and Eddie Shack in 2020.

George Armstrong had been suffering from heart trouble, and it took his life yesterday, January 24, 2021, at the age of 90.

* Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, a Canadiens fan born after Armstrong's retirement, but paying proper tribute: "If you know hockey, you know George Armstrong. He played 21 seasons with the Leafs, won four Stanley Cups, and inspired many as one of the first players of Indigenous descent to play in the NHL. He was a true hockey legend, and he’ll be missed. Rest in peace, Chief."

* Dave Keon: "He will be missed. A great teammate, a great captain, a great teacher. He was a funny guy to be around, the life of the party. He was the last one of us to carry the Cup off the ice and the last to score a goal in a Cup final."

* Doug Gilmour, Leafs Hall-of-Famer: "Thank you George for paving the way and showing what a Captain should be. You were a great man and will never be forgotten. RIP Chief"

* Auston Matthews, current Leafs star: "George was an incredible ambassador for the City of Toronto and the Maple Leafs. He paved the way for the guys like us who are trying to accomplish something big here."

* Nick Foligno, Captain of the Columbus Blue Jackets, son of former Buffalo Sabres All-Star Mike Foligno, Armstrong's fellow Sudbury native, who also played for the Leafs, and had once been traded for Dale McCourt: "My dad often spoke of George Armstrong and what he meant to hockey in #Sudbury. He would talk about how kind and humble he was but when he stepped on the ice he took control and led by example! Thanks for inspiring so many like my Dad, Mr. Armstrong. "

* John Derringer, morning host at CILQ-FM in Toronto, a.k.a. Q107: "George Armstrong displayed as much class and dignity as anyone who ever wore the blue and white or represented the Leafs organization. Head held high. Always. RIP."

With his death, there are now:

* 6 surviving players from the 1962 Stanley Cup Champion Toronto Maple Leafs: Larry Hillman, Frank Mahovlich, Dave Keon, Bobby Baun, Dick Duff and John MacMillan.

* 6 surviving players from the 1963 Stanley Cup Champion Toronto Maple Leafs: The same 6.

* 7 surviving players from the 1964 Stanley Cup Champion Toronto Maple Leafs: Hillman, Mahovlich, Keon, Baun, Duff, Don McKenney and Jim Pappin.

* And 10 surviving players from the 1964 Stanley Cup Champion Toronto Maple Leafs: Hillman, Mahovlich, Keon, Baun, Pappin, Pete Stemkowski, Mike "Shakey" Walton, Brian Conacher, Ron Ellis, and Larry Jeffrey.

"Hockey is a great game, and I love it," George Armstrong said a few years ago. "I am part of a fading generation that you will never have again. Every one of us is one of a kind, that will never be repeated. To all of my friends and acquaintances, thank you for your advice and direction, that helped make me who I am today: A very, very happy person."

And so was every hockey fan who watched him.