Herb Drury

Herbert Joseph Drury (March 2, 1896 July 30, 1965) was a Canadian-born American ice hockey defenseman who played six seasons in the National Hockey League for the Pittsburgh Pirates and Philadelphia Quakers. Internationally he played for the American national team at the 1920 Summer Olympics and 1924 Winter Olympics, winning a silver medal both times.[1]

Herb Drury
Herb Drury with the 1920 USA Men's Olympic ice hockey team
Born (1896-03-02)March 2, 1896
Midland, Ontario, Canada
Died July 30, 1965(1965-07-30) (aged 69)
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, USA
Height 5 ft 7 in (170 cm)
Weight 165 lb (75 kg; 11 st 11 lb)
Position Defense
Shot Right
Played for Pittsburgh Pirates
Philadelphia Quakers
Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets (USAHA)
National team  United States
Playing career 1916–1918
19201931
Medal record
Men's ice hockey
Representing the  United States
Olympic Games
Silver medal – second place 1920 Antwerp Team competition
Silver medal – second place 1924 Chamonix Team competition

Playing career

Drury was Canadian, he was born in Midland, Ontario in 1895. He came to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1916 to play for the Pittsburgh Athletic Association hockey team (which later became the Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets of the United States Amateur Hockey Association) at the Duquesne Gardens.[2][3] From 1918 to 1919 he was called to military service for World War I and did not resume his hockey career until 1920. That season, he represented the United States, as a naturalized citizen on the U.S. Olympic hockey team for the 1920 Summer Olympics. The 1920 Olympic Games, in Antwerp, Belgium, was the debut of hockey to the Olympics, which was added to the existing summer sports. Although the U.S. lost to Canada's Winnipeg Falcons in the finals, Drury returned to the Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets as a silver medalist.

In 1924, Drury once again saw Olympic action as a member of the U.S. Olympic team that played in the first Winter Games at Chamonix, France. As part of the opening ceremonies, Drury carried the U.S. flag for his adopted country.[3] During the games, Drury recorded an astounding 22 goals along with 3 assists, for a total of 25 points in the tournament. After defeating team Sweden 20–0, the U.S. settled for the silver medal following a 6–1 defeat to Canada. Drury scored the lone American goal during the gold medal game.[4]

In October 1925 when Drury became the fifth former Yellow Jackets player sign with the National Hockey League's Pittsburgh Pirates.[5] He played with the Pirates during all of the franchise's five seasons. In 1930, Drury relocated with the team to Philadelphia, where they were known as the Quakers. The Quakers franchise later suspended operations after the 1930–31 NHL season and later folded.

Post-career

Following his retirement from professional hockey Drury became a steamfitter in Pittsburgh and lived there until his death. Drury died on July 30, 1965,[6] aged 70, from undisclosed causes and was interred at Calvary Cemetery, Pittsburgh. In 2010, Herb Drury joined his late brother, University of Southern California football legend Morley Drury, as an inductee of the Midland (Ontario) Sports Hall of Fame, in the Athlete category.[7] Drury's 1924 silver medal and scrapbook documenting his career, are currently on display at the Heinz History Center.[3]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1914–15 Midland Seniors OHA Sr 1202
1915–16 Port Colborne Seniors OHA Sr 10000
1916–17 St. Paul Saints Exhib
1916–17 Pittsburgh AA Exhib 60116
1917–18 Pittsburgh AA USNHL[8] 1210010
1919–20 Pittsburgh AA[9] Exhib
1921–22 Pittsburgh Stars USAHA
1922–23 Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets USAHA 20505
1923–24 Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets USAHA 2202 13505
1924–25 Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets USAHA 33707 8404
1925–26 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 3362840 21010
1926–27 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 4251648
1927–28 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 44641044 20110
1928–29 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 4354949
1929–30 Pittsburgh Pirates NHL 2720212
1930–31 Philadelphia Quakers NHL 2402210
NHL totals 213241337203 41120

International

Year Team Event GPGAPtsPIM
1920 United States OLY 36060
1924 United States OLY 5223250
Senior totals 8283310

References

  1. "Herb Drury". Olympedia. Retrieved 21 August 2021.
  2. "Herb Drury Career Stats". NHL. Retrieved November 21, 2021.
  3. Smith, Bradley (January 20, 2011). "Let's Learn From the Past: Herb Drury". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
  4. "Legends of Hockey -- NHL Player Search -- Player -- Herb Drury". HHOF.com. Archived from the original on July 29, 2017. Retrieved June 9, 2022.
  5. "Herb Drury Joins Pro Hockey Team". Berkeley Daily Gazette. October 24, 1925. p. 12.
  6. "Former Local Hockey Star Herb Drury Dies". Pittsburgh Post-Gazette. July 31, 1965. p. 13.
  7. "Midland Sports Hall of Fame" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on December 30, 2013. Retrieved April 30, 2012.
  8. "Local Hockey Season Was a Big Success". The Pittsburg Press. April 7, 1918. Sports sec., p. 6 via Newspapers.com.
  9. "Drury Leads Hockey Mates in Scoring". The Pittsburgh Press. December 16, 1919. p. 24 via Google News Archive.
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