Sid Abel
Encyclopedia
Sidney Gerald Abel was a Canadian
professional hockey
player and later coach in the National Hockey League
. His playing career spanned from the 1938–39 season until the 1953–54 season, playing for both the Detroit Red Wings
and Chicago Black Hawks
and was a member of three winning Stanley Cup
s in 1943
, 1950, and 1952 with the Detroit Red Wings
.
Abel's son Gerry
also briefly played in the NHL, and his grandson Brent Johnson
is a goaltender
with the Pittsburgh Penguins
.
, "Old Bootnose", as he was known, was the third member of the Red Wings' celebrated "Production line
" along with Hockey Hall of Fame
teammates Gordie Howe
and Ted Lindsay
. Abel won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP in 1949. Abel was traded from the Red Wings to the Black Hawks in 1952–53, and served as a player-coach for the next two seasons. He returned to the Red Wings in 1957–58 and served as Detroit's coach through the 1969–70 season. Though his #12 was honored by the Wings, Abel wore 4, 7, 9, 12, 14, 19 and 20 throughout his career.
on Red Wings radio and television broadcasts.
Sid Abel was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame
in 1969. In 1998, he was ranked number 85 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
professional 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...
player and later coach 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...
. His playing career spanned from the 1938–39 season until the 1953–54 season, playing for both the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
and Chicago Black Hawks
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...
and was a member of three winning Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
s in 1943
1942–43 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:...
, 1950, and 1952 with the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
.
Abel's son Gerry
Gerry Abel
Gerald Scott Abel is a retired American professional ice hockey left winger. He is the son of Hockey Hall of Fame member Sid Abel.-Playing career:...
also briefly played in the NHL, and his grandson Brent Johnson
Brent Johnson
Brent Johnson is an American professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Pittsburgh Penguins of the National Hockey League .- Playing career :...
is a 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...
with the Pittsburgh Penguins
Pittsburgh Penguins
The Pittsburgh Penguins are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The franchise was founded in 1967 as one of the first expansion teams during the league's original...
.
Playing career
Born in Melville, SaskatchewanMelville, Saskatchewan
Melville is a small Canadian city located in the east-central portion of Saskatchewan. It was declared a city by the province in 1960. The city is north east of the provincial capital of Regina and south west of Yorkton. According to The World Gazetteer, it has a 2004 population of approximately...
, "Old Bootnose", as he was known, was the third member of the Red Wings' celebrated "Production line
Production line (hockey)
The Production Line was a nickname for one of the most famous scoring lines in the NHL's history. The line consisted of Gordie Howe, Sid Abel and Ted Lindsay, all members of the Detroit Red Wings....
" along with Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
teammates Gordie Howe
Gordie Howe
Gordon "Gordie" Howe, OC is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player who played for the Detroit Red Wings and Hartford Whalers of the National Hockey League , and the Houston Aeros and New England Whalers in the World Hockey Association . Howe is often referred to as Mr...
and Ted Lindsay
Ted Lindsay
Robert Blake Theodore Lindsay is a former professional ice hockey player, a forward for the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Black Hawks of the National Hockey League . He scored over 800 points in his Hockey Hall of Fame career, won the Art Ross Trophy in 1950, and won the Stanley Cup four times...
. Abel won the Hart Trophy as NHL MVP in 1949. Abel was traded from the Red Wings to the Black Hawks in 1952–53, and served as a player-coach for the next two seasons. He returned to the Red Wings in 1957–58 and served as Detroit's coach through the 1969–70 season. Though his #12 was honored by the Wings, Abel wore 4, 7, 9, 12, 14, 19 and 20 throughout his career.
Post-playing career
In the 1970s and 1980s, Abel worked as a color commentatorColor commentator
A color commentator is a sports commentator who assists the play-by-play announcer, often by filling in any time when play is not in progress. The color analyst and main commentator will often exchange comments freely throughout the broadcast, when the play-by-play announcer is not describing the...
on Red Wings radio and television broadcasts.
Sid Abel was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame
Hockey Hall of Fame
The Hockey Hall of Fame is located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it is both a museum and a hall of fame. It holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League records, memorabilia and NHL trophies, including the Stanley Cup...
in 1969. In 1998, he was ranked number 85 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.
Awards and achievements
- 1941-42 - NHL Second Team All-Star - Left Wing
- 1942–43 - Stanley Cup Champion - Detroit Red Wings
- 1948–49 - NHL First Team All-Star - Centre
- 1948–49 - Hart Memorial TrophyHart Memorial TrophyThe Hart Memorial Trophy, originally known as the Hart Trophy, the "oldest and most prestigious individual award in hockey", is awarded annually to the "player adjudged most valuable to his team" in the National Hockey League . The Hart Memorial Trophy has been awarded 86 times to 53 different...
- 1949-50 - NHL First Team All-Star - Centre
- 1949–50 - Stanley Cup Champion - Detroit Red Wings
- 1950-51 - NHL Second Team All-Star - Centre
- 1951–52 - Stanley Cup Champion - Detroit Red Wings
Career statistics
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 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 | G Goal (ice hockey) In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to... |
A Assist (ice hockey) In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal... |
Pts Point (ice hockey) Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one... |
PIM Penalty (ice hockey) A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,... |
GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1938–39 | Pittsburgh Hornets | IAHL | 41 | 21 | 24 | 45 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1938–39 | Detroit Red Wings Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York... |
NHL | 15 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1939–40 | Indianapolis Capitals Indianapolis Capitals The Indianapolis Capitals was an American Hockey League professional ice hockey team based in Indianapolis, Indiana from 1939–1952. The Capitals were a farm team for the Detroit Red Wings. Indianapolis won the Calder Cup in 1942 and 1950... |
IAHL | 21 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1939–40 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 21 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 21 | ||
| 1940–41 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 47 | 11 | 22 | 33 | 29 | 9 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | ||
| 1941–42 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 48 | 18 | 31 | 49 | 45 | 12 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 8 | ||
| 1942–43 1942–43 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:... * |
Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 49 | 18 | 24 | 42 | 33 | 10 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 4 | ||
| 1944–45 | Lachine Rapides | QPHL | 2 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1945–46 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1946–47 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 60 | 19 | 29 | 48 | 29 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | ||
| 1947–48 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 60 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 69 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 16 | ||
| 1948–49 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 60 | 28 | 26 | 54 | 49 | 11 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 6 | ||
| 1949–50* | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 | 34 | 35 | 69 | 46 | 14 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 6 | ||
| 1950–51 | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 69 | 23 | 38 | 61 | 30 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 0 | ||
| 1951–52* | Detroit Red Wings | NHL | 62 | 17 | 36 | 53 | 32 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 12 | ||
| 1952–53 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 39 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1953–54 | Chicago Black Hawks | NHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| NHL totals | 612 | 189 | 283 | 472 | 376 | 94 | 28 | 30 | 58 | 79 | ||||
- *Name was engraved on the Stanley Cup.
Coaching statistics
Season Team Lge Type GP W L T OTL Pct Result
1952-53 Chicago Black Hawks NHL Head Coach 70 27 28 15 0 0.493 Lost in round 1
1953-54 Chicago Black Hawks NHL Head Coach 70 12 51 7 0 0.221 Out of Playoffs
1957-58 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 33 16 12 5 0 0.561 Lost in round 1
1958-59 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 25 37 8 0 0.414 Out of Playoffs
1959-60 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 26 29 15 0 0.479 Lost in round 1
1960-61 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 25 29 16 0 0.471 Lost in Finals
1961-62 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 23 33 14 0 0.429 Out of Playoffs
1962-63 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 32 25 13 0 0.550 Lost in Finals
1963-64 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 30 29 11 0 0.507 Lost in Finals
1964-65 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 40 23 7 0 0.621 Lost in round 1
1965-66 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 31 27 12 0 0.529 Lost in Finals
1966-67 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 70 27 39 4 0 0.414 Out of Playoffs
1967-68 Detroit Red Wings NHL Head Coach 74 27 35 12 0 0.446 Out of Playoffs
1971-72 St. Louis Blues NHL Head Coach 11 3 7 1 0 0.318
1975-76 Kansas City Scouts NHL Head Coach 3 0 3 0 0 0.000 Out of Playoffs
See also
- List of famous ice hockey linemates
- List of members of the Hockey Hall of Fame
- Notable families in the NHL
- Production line (hockey)Production line (hockey)The Production Line was a nickname for one of the most famous scoring lines in the NHL's history. The line consisted of Gordie Howe, Sid Abel and Ted Lindsay, all members of the Detroit Red Wings....
- Captain (ice hockey)Captain (ice hockey)In ice hockey, each team can designate an official captain for each game. The player serving as captain during the game wears a "C" on his or her jersey...