A great playoff run to getting run out of town is wild. However, early leagues need owners like Calvin who has money and isn't shy on using it, so perhaps it's actually a blessing in disguise for the league in this era. I feel bad for Quebec though, I hope they get a new team soon. 

The yellow socks are definitely something though.

1937 MHL Offseason: On the ice

Notable Retirements:
(note: because of the deletion of the original file, some statistics and dates may be wrong or incomplete)

Daniel Vanderbeken - W (CHI 1920-38)
One of the legends of the MHL’s first era. Vanderbeken is the last player from the league’s inaugural season to retire, and was twice the league’s leading goalscorer, in 1926 and 1927. He captained the Wildcats to their 2 Abbott Cups, and had one of the most feared shots in the league for his tenure. His 309 goals rank 2nd all-time, and his 466 points, at least for the time being, are the most in league history. He will absolutely be one of the league’s first inner circle hall of fame members when it gets built.

Robert Smith - C (OTT 19??-32, NYB 1933-38)
Smith was never the guy when he played, but he was always a consistent point producer. Helping Ottawa win their Abbott Cup in 1931, he made a big move to join the Blue Birds after the Lumberjacks folded, and was one of their best offensive weapons for the rest of his career. Smith finishes his career with 192 goals and 290 points in 559 career games, a solid resume.

Transactions:

Boston:

Ins:
Jean Rheault - W (Rookie)
Lucien Bernard - G (Rookie)

Outs:
Jeff Apps - C (FA)
Ivan Davison - W (FA)
John Wilson - D (FA)
David Gagnon - G (MTB)

Re-Signings:
Joseph Levesque - D
Christopher Russell - C
Basket Parker - D

Boston lost 3 longtime pieces of their roster in the offseason, with Jeff Apps, Ivan Davison, and John Wilson being 3 of the most synonymous names with the franchise. Davison is their all-time leader in GP and goals, while Apps has the hold on the all-time points mark. Wilson didn’t score much, but was always a dependable defenseman. Joseph Levesque is their future on defense, and he was signed to a big deal. Rookie winger Jean Rheault has lots of promise too.

Ins:
James Whaley - C (Trade - NYB)
Simeon Edwards - D (Trade - NYB)
Christopher Rice - W (CHI)
Richard Scott - W (Rookie)
Ronald Wiebe - G (MTG)
Frank MacNeil - D (MTB)
Frank MacMillan - W (Rookie)

Outs:
Michael Ferre - W (Trade - NYB)
Earl Cyr - G (Trade - NYB)
Marcus Hall - D (MTG)

Re-Signings:
George Patchian - D
Wallace Harper - C
Anthony Sapnick - C
Michael Clarke - C

Brooklyn had one of the busier offseasons in the league, trading away star winger Michael Ferre and backup goalie Earl Cyr for elite centre James Whaley, young defenseman Simeon Edwards, the rights to rookie Frank MacMillan, and cash. Most analysts agreed that the Kings won this trade, so the reigning champs are looking even better this year. They also had key re-signings with George Patchian, one of the top defensemen in the league, and Wallace Harper and Anthony Sapnick, who were big parts of their Abbott Cup run.

Ins:
Herbert Schmidt - W (NYB)
Charles Wayne - D (WSH)
John Mateas - C (Rookie)
Louis Ville-Monarque W (Rookie)

Outs:
Daniel Vanderbeken - W (Retired)
Christopher Rice - W (BRK)
David Jones - C (WSH)
Neil McInnis - D (NYB)

Re-Signings:
Marcel Girard - W
Daniel Dyck - W
Roderick Racine - W
Alexander Walters - D
Gerald Quizzetre - C

Chicago’s big offseason news was the retirement of Vanderbeken, an MHL legend. It’s a new era in Chicago now, as they added some youth. Their biggest acquisition was Herbert Schmidt, a German-born winger who had impressive rookie numbers for New York in 1936-37. Their two re-signings secure their future, as Daniel Dyck has been touted to have sky-high potential, and scored 26 goals last season.

Ins:
Bradford Russell - W (TOR)
Adam Wilkinson - D (TOR)
Jeff Dezouvre - W (MTG)
Louis Pierre - G (Rookie)
Stephen Wagner - W (Rookie)
Raymond Tittensor - C (Rookie)
Bon Ouellet - W (Rookie)

Outs:
Steven Davis - W (NYB)
Clarence Labelle - D (Retired)
Simon Comeau - W (FA)
Thyge Hedeland - G (WSH)
Barry Mayne - D (FA)

Re-Signings:
Bentley Doull - W
Michael Fraser - C

Detroit had lots of turnaround this offseason. Steven Davis, one of their most dependable forwards, left for New York, and longtime defenseman Clarence Labelle retired. Despite that, they made some big gains with veteran winger Bradford Russell joining, solid blueliner Adam Wilkinson getting signed, as well as 4 rookies. Their two re-signings are most the stars, but solid secondary scorers that will be key parts of a season the Guardians will look to build off of.

Ins:
Jon Young - D (TOR)
Nesbitt Tacocat - C (Rookie)
David Gagnon - G (BOS)

Outs:
François Longpre - W (TOR)
Dim Meredith - D (FA)
Frank MacNeil - D (BRK)
Earl Cyr - W (FA)
Martin Mitchell - G (FA)

Re-Signings:
Michael Rourke - C
Michael Francis - C
William MacKay - D

Montreal didn’t have a super busy offseason, with their biggest acquisition being Jon Young, who is a middling defenseman now but has big potential. The re-signing of Michael Rourke was good too, as they locked down their offensive anchor for the next few years. All other moves were pretty minor. Not a big offseason for a team that collapsed last year, which doesn’t seem to bode well.

Ins:
Marcus Hall - D (BRK)
Gilbert Markle - G (Rookie)
Richard Carter - W (Rookie)

Outs:
Kenneth Lalonde - W (FA)
Jeff Dezouvre - W (DET)
Ronald Wiebe - G (BRK)
Tom Ash - D (PHI)
Corey Gravel - D (FA)

Re-Signings:
William Smith - C

The Greys’ biggest move was re-signing William Smith, one of the league’s best players. This should ensure that he will stay in Montreal for the remainder of his prime years. None of their new players will be instant helpers, but the future potential is very high. Longtime Grey Kenneth Lalonde did not renew his contract, so he will most likely retire if no new offers are made. Lalonde is a Greys legend, and will be missed.

Ins:
John Gilchrist - G (WSH)
Martin Rousseau - W (Rookie)
Robert Stratford - C (Rookie)
Anthony Gordon - W (Rookie)
Michael Cote - W (Rookie)

Outs:
James Urban - W (FA)
Harold Sutton - W (FA)
Oswald Williams - D (WSH)
Keith Powell - G (FA)

Re-Signings:
Lennie Triplett - C
Wystan Zenn - W
Mark Adams - W

The Scouts brought in John Gilchrist to be backup to Mike Whitlow, giving them a very experienced goaltending room. As well, the signings of Martin Rousseau and Robert Stratford give them promising rookie players for the future. Their three re-signings should all continue being key contributors offensively.

Ins:
Michael Ferre - W (Trade - BRK)
Steven Davis - W (DET)
Neil McInnis - D (CHI)
Earl Cyr - G (Trade - BRK)
Perry Johnson - W (Rookie)
Edward Bryner - W (Rookie)
Peter Perderko - C (Rookie)

Outs:
James Whaley - C (Trade - BRK)
Simeon Edwards - D (Trade - BRK)
Marcel Lavallee - D (TOR)
Robert Smith - W (Retired)
Joseph Kimmins - W (FA)
George Green - W (Retired)
Herbert Schmidt - W (CHI)

Re-Signings:
None

The Blue Birds had a busy offseason, with the big move being the acquisition of W Michael Ferre and G Earl Cyr from crosstown rivals Brooklyn in exchange for James Whaley, Simeon Edwards, the rights to rookie Frank MacMillan, and cash. Most reporters agreed the Birds sent a lot, though Ferre is a great player. Steven Davis is an underrated pickup as well, he did well with the Guardians in their playoff push. Time will tell to see if this offseason turned out to be good or bad, but the Birds are a team that rarely makes changes, so they’re finally breaking free of that.

Ins:
Tom Ash - D (MTG)

Outs:
Ronald Chabot - D (FA)

Re-Signings:
Wayne Robinson - D
Lionel Hansen - W
James Cash - D
Joe Hart - D

The Minutemen, having come off of a first-place finish, made minimal changes. They signed no rookies, and their only new player is defenseman Tom Ash, who will play on the bottom pairing. He’s not at the same level as Raymond Chabot, but he is younger and will grow along with the rest of the core. As for their young players, the big ones were all locked up. Philly was scary last year, and they’re not even close to their ceiling yet. They’ll be a team to look out for over the next few years.

Ins:
Henri Fortier - W (Rookie)

Outs:
Alexander Brissett - W (FA)
Bob Johnston - D (FA)

Re-Signings:
Stephane Crevier - C
Calvin Thomas - W

While their off-ice offseason was plenty busy, the Blues didn’t do too much in terms of players. They signed one rookie who won’t be an instant contributor, and neither player lost to FA will be too much of a loss. Their two re-signings were big pieces last year, and will continue to be dependable over the course of their contracts.

Ins:
Marcel Lavallee - D (NYB)
Oliver Morgan - W (Rookie)
François Longpre - W (MTB)
Wilfrid Sylvester - D (Rookie)
Russell Marge - G (Rookie)

Outs:
Bradford Russell - W (DET)
Adam Wilkinson - D (DET)
Melvin Stjelylai - W (FA)
Jon Young - D (MTB)
Gerald Lindham - G (FA)

Re-Signings:
Ajax Sorensen - W
Justin Turgeon - D
Claude Brown - C

Toronto made some notable moves in the offseason, with the departure of players such as Bradford Russell and Adam Wilkinson. Marcel Lavallee will have a big role on the blueline, and they hope that rookie Oliver Morgan can take on a big role right away. Ajax Sorensen was re-upped, and Claude Brown will continue on as a veteran presence.

Ins:
Oswald Williams - D (NAS)
Thyge Hedeland - G (DET)
David Jones - C (CHI)
Warren Miller - W (Rookie)
Jean St. Laurent - C (Rookie)
Tony Branghi - G (Rookie)

Outs:
John Gilchrist - G (NAS)
Joshua Lee - D (Retired)
Charles Wayne - D (CHI)
Caleb Ross - G (FA)
Lucien Bernard - G (BOS)

Re-Signings:
Nicholas Johnson - D
Robert Colquhoun - C
George White - D

In Washington, it was a complete clean house in goal, with both John Gilchrist and Caleb Ross being let go. With slim pickings for goalie options available, the Bats settled on former Detroit backup Thyge Hedeland as their new #1. Hedeland is 34, and will look to be a stop-gap until they find a true new goalie of the future.

(sigh)… someday the Bats will make the playoffs.

1937-38 MHL Season: Second Half

The second half of the 1937-38 saw tons of movement, tons of new scoring records for both team and league, and as always, some tight playoff races. Some surprises kept surprising, while other expected things happened.

Finishing first in the West and #1 overall for the first time since 1929 were the Toronto Lakers. Gregory Bekkering made history late in the year by overtaking Dan Vanderbeken to become the MHL’s new all-time point leader at 29 years old. Patrick Stone also exploded offensively, finishing 2nd in points with the 2nd-highest all-time point total. With Ajax Sorensen also leading the league in goals, it’s easy to see why the Lakers did so well, not to mention being the only team above 0.500 on the road. Toronto finished at 36-24-2, with a first-round bye.

Finishing second and making the Abbott Cup playoffs for the second straight year are the Detroit Guardians. Detroit was close to getting that first seed, but they cooled off near the end of the year. Their 3.74 goals per game was highest in the league, and their point differential was also atop the MHL. Guy Topolinski was 1st or 2nd in the 3 major goalie categories, as he enjoyed a great year as well. Detroit is now looking to get that first playoff round victory. They finished at 34-27-1, 1 point up on 3rd.

Finishing third, a great bounceback after their horrendous 1936-37 season, were the Chicago Wildcats. They showed that the year prior was a fluke, and that they’re back in business. They had the best divisional win percentage of any team, which could give them some hope for a good playoff run. Gerald Quizzetre came out of nowhere to set a team points record, with his 66 being one of the most surprising statlines of the year. Claude Kepkay led the league in wins, and will look to get some more in the postseason. Chicago finished at 33-27-2.

Finishing fourth are the Washington Bats, who still had their best year as a team. They were still below 0.500, but even a minor improvement defensively would see them become a playoff team. Martin Valley at age 24 is already the league’s premier offensive playmaker. His 57 assists and 82 points this year are both league records, beating the previous ones by 12 and 20 respectively. The Bats have a genuine superstar on their hands. With their blueline all being young and with plenty of room to improve, they’ll be in the postseason in no time. Washington finished at 30-32, 8 points out.

Finishing fifth are the Philadelphia Minutemen, who definitely won the title of most disappointing team. Their defense continued to be league-best, the only team that allowed under 3 goals per game. Unfortunately, the offense didn’t do any better, and that’s why they won’t be in the postseason again. They did however have the emergency of Anthony Evans, who had a point on 36% of their goals, and finished 3rd in the league in points. Philadelphia finished at 27-33-2.

Finishing last in the West are the Rochester Blues, who took the last overall spot as well. The cross-border relocation was clearly tough on the team, as they didn’t have the same magic they did the previous year. Not much went right, although they did win 6 of their last 10 games. Their lone individual bright spot was Calvin Thomas, who finished 2nd in goals with 34. This year was already expected to be an adjustment one for the Blues, but they will be expected to do better next year. Rochester finished at 22-37-3.

It had been 11 years since the Blue Birds won a division title, but they managed to do just that this season. It wasn’t the strongest division title season, as they wouldn’t have even made the postseason in the West, and their goal differential was negative, but what matters is that they have the tiebreaker and first-round bye. New York’s best player was Moses Addison, who finished 2nd in GAA and 1st in SV% at age 39. The Birds will enjoy their bye, as they finish at 32-27-3, ahead on a head to head tiebreaker.

Finishing second are the Boston Harpers, who had an impressive turnaround. Although they didn’t get the tiebreaker over the Blue Birds, they are just glad to be back in the postseason. The Harpers enjoyed great offensive years from John Buck, William Robinson, and rookie Jean Rheault. Robinson and Rheault finished in the top 5 in goals, while Buck had the second-most assists in the league. Analysts aren’t sure what to make of the Harpers, but they’ll have a big advantage being at home in the first round. Boston finished at 33-28-1.

Finishing third are the Brooklyn Kings, who will be back in the postseason to defend their crown. While they are the only team without a top 5 player in any category, offseason trade acquisition James Whaley set a franchise record in points, with 63. There wasn’t much else to their season, Their road record was terrible but did well enough at home to counterbalance it. They’ve got the experience of last year to help them in round 1, but that’s anything from guaranteed. Brooklyn finished even, at 31-31.

Finishing fourth are the Montreal Greys, who had a disappointing season after making the Abbott Cup Final one year ago. While they were only 2 points out of a playoff spot, their goal differential of -32 was second to only Rochester for futility. A big part of their misfortune was injuries, with William Smith only playing 8 games due to a torn ACL, and only 1 defenseman played 60 games. This should be a fluke season, but it’s on them to make that narrative. Montreal finished at 28-30-4.

Finishing 5th are Montreal’s francophone team, the Barons. Like the Greys, it was disappointing as they wanted to make the postseason, but their offense was league-worst. In a year where most teams were breaking franchise records, no Barons player came close to breaking anything. The Barons are hoping for improvement from their young players, because otherwise their rabid fanbase may be forcing management out of town. The Barons finished at 29-33.

Finishing at the bottom of the division were the Nassau Scouts. It was odd to see on newspaper standings that the best team in the East had a negative goal differential, and the worst team had a positive one. Sports can be like that sometimes. The Scouts had impeccable defense, and their offense wasn’t even that bad, but it wasn’t clutch. They lost lots of close games that could have bettered their record or given them a better shot at the postseason, but sometimes it goes like that. Nassau finished at 27-33-2.



Season Leaders:


Playoff Predictions:

W2 - Detroit Guardians vs W3 - Chicago Wildcats
Previous Meeting: None
Result: N/A
Series Record: N/A

It’s a battle of the Great Lakes for the Western First Round, with a relatively new playoff team up against a two-time champion. most analysts have Chicago as the favourite feel heading into this matchup, especially since Detroit hosted this round last year and fell to Quebec.

The season series was dead even at 4 wins apiece. However, Detroit scored 32 goals in those games to Chicago’s 24. Chicago has the overall experience and winning history in this, but Detroit does have home ice, and they had the best home record in the league, at 21-9-1. On the other hand, Chicago are one of two teams to be at or above 0.500 on the road, so they have some more things on their side. This can genuinely go either way.

My pick: Detroit gets their first playoff win in their second attempt, winning 4-2.

E2 - Boston Harpers vs E3 - Brooklyn Kings
Previous Meeting: 1928 Semi-Final
Result: Brooklyn 2-0 Boston
Series Record: Brooklyn 1-0 Boston

It’s a classic NYC team vs Boston team matchup in the East, and it’s two teams that haven’t met in the postseason in 10 years. Not as much bad blood as other combinations, but they definitely aren’t fans of each other in this matchup.

Brooklyn won 5 of the 8 matchups in the season series, outsourcing the Harpers 31-28. What Brooklyn doesn’t have on their side is being on the road. The Kings won only 11 of their games on the road, last among playoff teams. Boston’s home record isn’t as mind-blowing as other teams, but they’re still really good at Storrow Arena. Ultimately, Brooklyn should be favoured after all this, solely because they’re the reigning champs.

My pick: You know how I said Brooklyn is favoured? Ignore that, Boston will take it 3-1.

Don't forget to vote for the 1938 MHL MVP/Hackatt Trophy Winner!

Way to go Blue Birds! Who cares about a positive goal differential, I'm hoping that first-round bye will get the team going to an Abbott Cup.