Jack Gelineau
Encyclopedia
John Edward "Jack" Gelineau (November 11, 1924 in Toronto
, Ontario
– November 12, 1998) was a professional ice hockey
goaltender
, principally for the Boston Bruins
of the National Hockey League
.
for gallantry after surviving a 1944 plane crash and rescuing an injured crewman from the burning plane that was loaded with ammunition. After the war, Gelineau played in net with the Montreal Jr. Royals in 1944–45. In 1945-46, Gelineau entered McGill University
and graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce in 1949.
He starred in goal at McGill for four seasons, racking up a 40–16–1 overall record with a 3.14 goals against average
. He also played intermediate basketball
, football
and varsity baseball
which resulted in a tryout with the Boston Red Sox
. The last McGill goalie to be named team captain, Gelineau backstopped the Redmen to the 1946 Queen's Cup championship. He was the first recipient of the Forbes Trophy as McGill's male athlete of the year in 1948.
That spring, he was called up to the Boston Bruins
in the National Hockey League
, becoming the first goalie in 30 years to play in the NHL while still attending university (two decades later, Ken Dryden
duplicated this feat while studying law at McGill and playing for the Montreal Canadiens
). He won the Calder Memorial Trophy
as the NHL's top rookie in 1949-50
, but was unable to capitalize on his early potential. Despite his successful debut, he was unable to get a raise out of Bruins owner Weston Adams
. He spent the next three season with the Quebec Aces
in the Quebec Senior Hockey League
including two appearances with the Chicago Black Hawks in 1953-54
. Gelineau retired in 1955.
Jack Gelineau is buried at the Last Post Fund National Field of Honour in Pointe-Claire, Quebec
.
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Ontario
Ontario
Ontario is a province of Canada, located in east-central Canada. It is Canada's most populous province and second largest in total area. It is home to the nation's most populous city, Toronto, and the nation's capital, Ottawa....
– November 12, 1998) was a professional ice hockey
Ice hockey
Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...
goaltender
Goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender is the player who defends his team's goal net by stopping shots of the puck from entering his team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring...
, principally for the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
of the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
.
Playing career
During the war, Gelineau played for the Montreal and Toronto RCAF hockey team. He was awarded the British Empire MedalBritish Empire Medal
The Medal of the Order of the British Empire for Meritorious Service, usually known as the British Empire Medal , is a British medal awarded for meritorious civil or military service worthy of recognition by the Crown...
for gallantry after surviving a 1944 plane crash and rescuing an injured crewman from the burning plane that was loaded with ammunition. After the war, Gelineau played in net with the Montreal Jr. Royals in 1944–45. In 1945-46, Gelineau entered McGill University
McGill University
Mohammed Fathy is a public research university located in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The university bears the name of James McGill, a prominent Montreal merchant from Glasgow, Scotland, whose bequest formed the beginning of the university...
and graduated with a Bachelor of Commerce in 1949.
He starred in goal at McGill for four seasons, racking up a 40–16–1 overall record with a 3.14 goals against average
Goals against average
Goals Against Average is a statistic used in ice hockey, water polo, lacrosse, and soccer that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender....
. He also played intermediate basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
, football
Canadian football
Canadian football is a form of gridiron football played exclusively in Canada in which two teams of 12 players each compete for territorial control of a field of play long and wide attempting to advance a pointed prolate spheroid ball into the opposing team's scoring area...
and varsity baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
which resulted in a tryout with the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
. The last McGill goalie to be named team captain, Gelineau backstopped the Redmen to the 1946 Queen's Cup championship. He was the first recipient of the Forbes Trophy as McGill's male athlete of the year in 1948.
That spring, he was called up to the Boston Bruins
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...
in the National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
, becoming the first goalie in 30 years to play in the NHL while still attending university (two decades later, Ken Dryden
Ken Dryden
Kenneth Wayne Dryden, PC, is a Canadian politician, lawyer, businessman, author, and former NHL goaltender. Dryden is married with two children and four grandchildren and is a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame...
duplicated this feat while studying law at McGill and playing for the Montreal Canadiens
Montreal Canadiens
The Montreal Canadiens are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The club is officially known as ...
). He won the Calder Memorial Trophy
Calder Memorial Trophy
The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League." The Rookie of the Year trophy has been awarded 79 times since its creation for the 1936–37 NHL season...
as the NHL's top rookie in 1949-50
1949-50 NHL season
-NHL awards:This was the last season that the O'Brien Cup was awarded to the Stanley Cup runner up - in this season, the New York Rangers - as it went into retirement for the second and final time at season's end...
, but was unable to capitalize on his early potential. Despite his successful debut, he was unable to get a raise out of Bruins owner Weston Adams
Weston Adams
Weston W. Adams was the director of the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League and son of fellow Hall-of-Famer Charles Adams....
. He spent the next three season with the Quebec Aces
Quebec Aces
The Quebec Aces, also known in French as Les As de Québec, were an amateur and later a professional men's ice hockey team from Quebec City, Quebec. The Aces were founded in 1928, and played until 1971. The team played home games at the Quebec Coliseum from 1930 to 1971.The Aces were Allan Cup...
in the Quebec Senior Hockey League
Quebec Senior Hockey League
The Quebec Senior Hockey League was an ice hockey league that operated between 1941 and 1959 in Québec, Canada. From 1941, it operated on an amateur basis, before becoming the semi-professional Quebec Hockey League in 1953...
including two appearances with the Chicago Black Hawks in 1953-54
1953-54 NHL season
-NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes-Leading goaltenders:...
. Gelineau retired in 1955.
Jack Gelineau is buried at the Last Post Fund National Field of Honour in Pointe-Claire, Quebec
Quebec
Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....
.
Awards and achievements
- Queen's Cup champion in 1946.
- McGillMcGillMcGill may refer to:People:* McGill , a common surname of Scottish and Irish origin and list of for individuals with the surname McGill* McGill family , a prominent early Americo-Liberian family...
's Male Athlete of the Year in 1948. - Calder Memorial TrophyCalder Memorial TrophyThe Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League." The Rookie of the Year trophy has been awarded 79 times since its creation for the 1936–37 NHL season...
winner in 19501949-50 NHL season-NHL awards:This was the last season that the O'Brien Cup was awarded to the Stanley Cup runner up - in this season, the New York Rangers - as it went into retirement for the second and final time at season's end...
.
Regular season
| Season Season (sports) In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an... |
Team | League | GP | W | L | T | MIN | GA | SO | GAA Goals against average Goals Against Average is a statistic used in ice hockey, water polo, lacrosse, and soccer that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender.... |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943-44 | Toronto Young Rangers Toronto Young Rangers The Toronto Young Rangers were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association from the league's early days until 1948. They played at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto... |
OHA-Jr. Ontario Hockey Association The Ontario Hockey Association is the governing body for the majority of Junior and Senior level ice hockey teams in the Province of Ontario. The OHA is sanctioned by the Ontario Hockey Federation along with the Northern Ontario Hockey Association. Other Ontario sanctioning bodies along with the... |
11 | 1 | 9 | 1 | 680 | 58 | 1 | 5.12 |
| 1943-44 | Toronto Cil | TMHL | 4 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 240 | 22 | 0 | 5.50 |
| 1943-44 | Toronto RCAF | TNDHL | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 420 | 21 | 1 | 3.00 |
| 1944-45 | Montreal RCAF | MCHL | 8 | — | — | — | 480 | 24 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1944-45 | Montreal Jr. Royals | QJHL | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 300 | 19 | 3 | 3.80 |
| 1945-46 | McGill Redmen McGill Redmen The McGill Redmen CIS football team is one of the oldest in all of Canada, having begun organized competition in 1898. The team has appeared in three Vanier Cup national championships, in 1969, 1973 and 1987, with the Redmen finally winning the title in the 1987 game... |
MCHL | 15 | 13 | 2 | 0 | 900 | 52 | 1 | 3.47 |
| 1946-47 | McGill Redmen | MCHL | 16 | 10 | 5 | 1 | 960 | 45 | 1 | 2.81 |
| 1947-48 | McGill Redmen | MCHL | 20 | 14 | 6 | 0 | 1200 | 62 | 1 | 3.10 |
| 1948-49 | McGill Redmen | MCHL | 6 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 360 | 20 | 0 | 3.33 |
| 1948-49 1948-49 NHL season -NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes-Leading goaltenders:... |
Boston Bruins Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the... |
NHL National Hockey League The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States... |
4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 240 | 12 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1949-50 1949-50 NHL season -NHL awards:This was the last season that the O'Brien Cup was awarded to the Stanley Cup runner up - in this season, the New York Rangers - as it went into retirement for the second and final time at season's end... |
Boston Bruins | NHL | 67 | 22 | 30 | 15 | 4020 | 220 | 3 | 3.28 |
| 1950-51 1950-51 NHL season -NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points-Leading goaltenders:Note: GP = Games played; Min - Minutes Played; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts-Debuts:The following is a list... |
Boston Bruins | NHL | 70 | 22 | 30 | 18 | 4200 | 197 | 4 | 2.81 |
| 1951-52 | Quebec Aces Quebec Aces The Quebec Aces, also known in French as Les As de Québec, were an amateur and later a professional men's ice hockey team from Quebec City, Quebec. The Aces were founded in 1928, and played until 1971. The team played home games at the Quebec Coliseum from 1930 to 1971.The Aces were Allan Cup... |
QSHL Quebec Senior Hockey League The Quebec Senior Hockey League was an ice hockey league that operated between 1941 and 1959 in Québec, Canada. From 1941, it operated on an amateur basis, before becoming the semi-professional Quebec Hockey League in 1953... |
12 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 740 | 42 | 0 | 3.41 |
| 1952-53 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 21 | 8 | 9 | 4 | 1300 | 59 | 1 | 2.72 |
| 1953-54 | Quebec Aces | QHL | 57 | 24 | 27 | 6 | 3466 | 158 | 5 | 2.74 |
| 1953-54 1953-54 NHL season -NHL awards:-All-Star teams:-Scoring leaders:Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes-Leading goaltenders:... |
Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 120 | 18 | 0 | 9.00 |
| 1954-55 | Quebec Aces | QHL | 11 | 4 | 7 | 0 | 640 | 38 | 1 | 3.56 |
| NHL totals | 143 | 46 | 64 | 33 | 8580 | 447 | 7 | 3.13 | ||
Playoffs
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | MIN | GA | SO | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1943-44 | Toronto RCAF | TNDHL | 1 | 0 | 1 | 60 | 3 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1944-45 | Montreal RCAF | MCHL | 5 | — | — | 300 | 28 | 0 | 5.60 |
| 1944-45 | Montreal Jr. Royals | QJHL | 9 | 2 | 7 | 528 | 43 | 0 | 4.96 |
| 1950-51 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 4 | 1 | 2 | 260 | 7 | 1 | 1.62 |
| 1951-52 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 12 | 8 | 4 | 739 | 28 | 1 | 2.27 |
| 1952-53 | Quebec Aces | QSHL | 21 | 13 | 8 | 1303 | 51 | 1 | 2.35 |
| 1953-54 | Quebec Aces | QHL | 14 | — | — | 840 | 26 | 4 | 1.86 |
| 1953-54 | Quebec Aces | Ed-Cup | 3 | 1 | 2 | 179 | 14 | 0 | 4.69 |
| 1954-55 | Quebec Aces | QHL | 4 | 1 | 3 | 240 | 14 | 0 | 3.50 |
| NHL totals | 4 | 1 | 2 | 260 | 7 | 1 | 1.62 | ||