Joe Malone

Maurice Joseph Malone (February 28, 1890 – May 15, 1969) was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre. He played in the National Hockey Association (NHA) and National Hockey League (NHL) for the Quebec Bulldogs, Montreal Canadiens, and Hamilton Tigers from 1910 to 1924. Known for his scoring feats and clean play, Malone led the NHL in goals and points in 1918 and 1920. He is the only player in the history of the NHL to score seven goals in a single game, accomplishing the feat in 1920. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1950.

For other people named Joseph Malone, see Joseph Malone (disambiguation).
Joe Malone
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1950
Malone with the Hamilton Tigers in 1920
Born (1890-02-28)February 28, 1890
Sillery, Quebec, Canada
Died May 15, 1969(1969-05-15) (aged 79)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height 5 ft 10 in (178 cm)
Weight 150 lb (68 kg; 10 st 10 lb)
Position Centre
Shot Left
Played for Quebec Bulldogs
Waterloo Colts
Montreal Canadiens
Hamilton Tigers
Playing career 1910–1924

Personal life

Malone, the second of eleven children, was born in Sillery, a town outside of Quebec City, on February 28, 1890. His father, Maurice Joseph Malone, was of Irish descent and also related to the Gignac family, of Quebecois origin. His mother was Marie-Louise Rochon, who was Quebecois herself. Maurice Joseph worked in the lumber industry, as did his father and grandfather.[1] Malone played hockey from an early age: he was noted in local newspapers as early as 1904 for his exploits, with one report calling him "a rising star".[1]

Playing career

1908–1917
Malone (front row, middle) with the 1913 Stanley Cup champion Quebec Bulldogs

As a junior Malone played with the Quebec Crescents and in 1909, at the age of 19, he joined the Quebec Bulldogs of the Eastern Canada Hockey Association, making his senior debut on January 2, 1909.[2] He finished tied for first on the team in scoring with 8 goals in 12 games.[3]

The next season, in 1910, a new league, the National Hockey Association (NHA) was formed, but did not allow Quebec to join.[4] Malone and several other Quebec players instead signed with the Waterloo Colts in the Ontario Professional Hockey League.[5] With Waterloo Malone played eleven games and scored nine goals.[6] The Quebec club was reformed in 1911 and joined the NHA, so Malone returned to the team, where he scored 9 goals in 13 games.[7][8] He centred linemates such as Eddie Oatman and Jack Marks, he scored 21 goals in 18 games in the 1911–12 season as Quebec finished first in the league, and consequently won the Stanley Cup.[9] Quebec again won the Cup in 1913 as Malone recorded 43 goals in 20 games – including a career-best nine goals in a Cup match against Sydney.[10] His brother Jeff Malone also played for Quebec in 1913 when they won the Stanley Cup.[11] Malone finished fourth in the NHA during the 1913–14 season, with 24 goals in 17 games.[12] He missed some games in the 1914–15 season due to spraining an ankle during a game in January 1915, which kept him out until mid-February; in the 12 games he played he had 16 goals.[13] Malone returned to form for 1915–16 when he finished second in goal scoring with 26 goals in 24 games.[14]

In 1916–17, Malone scored 41 goals in 19 games in the NHA, finishing tied for the scoring lead with Frank Nighbor of the Ottawa Senators.[15] Malone was in the scoring lead until the final game of the season, when he played Nighbor and the Senators. Ottawa had two players cover Malone the entire game, while Nighbor was able to score 5 goals and finish tied.[16]

1917–1924

When the NHL was founded in 1917, Quebec did not operate a team its first season, and the team's players were sold to the other teams for $700 each; Malone was claimed by the Montreal Canadiens.[17] Playing on what was one of the most powerful forward lines of all time with Newsy Lalonde and Didier Pitre, Malone shifted to left wing to accommodate Lalonde. Malone scored one of the first goals in NHL history, on the league's opening night of December 19, 1917; he finished the game with five goals.[18][19] He had two other games with five goals during the season, and finished with 44 goals in 20 games, leading the league. Malone established a league record for goals in a season that lasted until 1945; his goals-per-game average has not been surpassed.[20] Malone scored at least one goal (and a total of 35 goals) in his first 14 NHL games to set the record for the longest goal-scoring streak to begin an NHL career.[21]

The following season Malone suffered an injured arm and missed most of the regular season, although he scored five goals in five games in the league final series against the Ottawa Senators; the lingering injury held him out of the ill-fated Cup finals against the Seattle Metropolitans which was cancelled after five games due to the Spanish flu pandemic.[22]

Quebec revived its franchise in 1919 and Malone rejoined the club, once more leading the league in scoring with 39 goals, and setting a single game goal-scoring mark which still stands of seven against Toronto on January 31, 1920. He score six goals in a second game that season on March 10, 1920 against the Senators.[23] However, the team was very weak on the ice, and finished the season with 4 wins and 20 losses, last in the league.[24]

The team was relocated to Hamilton for the 1921 season. Malone did not initially join the team, instead staying in Quebec to attend to his business interests.[25] He joined the team in January 1921, having missed the first four games of the season.[26] He finished fourth in league scoring with 28 goals. He finished fourth in scoring the following season, as well. For 1921–22 he served as a player-coach and manager for the Tigers.[27]

Malone decided to not return to Hamilton for the 1922–23 season.[28] He was traded back to the Canadiens on January 3, 1923, in exchange for Edmond Bouchard.[29] He scored only a single goal that season while generally playing as a substitute. He played nine games without scoring the next season, playing his last game on January 23 against his former team in Hamilton, before retiring. The Canadiens did not include his name on the Cup in 1924, because he did not play in the playoffs. However, he is credited by the NHL as winning his third Stanley Cup that season.

Playing style
Malone with the Quebec Bulldogs, circa 1910–11.

Malone spent the majority of his playing career as a centre forward, and he had a particular penchant for finding open space on the ice for his goal scoring. Malone earned his famous nickname, "Phantom Joe", both for his dark eyes and from his ability to find openings offensively and weave his way to the net in an almost invisible fashion. In an era known for its violence and physicality, Malone was regarded more as a finesse player, with another nickname of his being "Gentleman Joe".[30] Contrary to many other players of his era, such as his Quebec teammate Joe Hall (with the nickname "Bad Joe") and his Montreal teammate Newsy Lalonde, Malone also did not have a reputation as a particularly rough player, but rather as one of the cleanest players in the game.[31] He was also considered a great stickhandler. During his time with the Montreal Canadiens in the NHL Malone was also successful in holding down the left wing position, playing alongside centre forward Newsy Lalonde.

"This fellow Malone, he is not the fastest but he is the smoothest forward in the league. He is absolutely reliable around a net. He is a great stickhandler, and a player who never gets flurried no matter how hard the going is. What Eddie Collins is to baseball, Malone is to hockey."

– Veteran ice hockey fan voicing his opinion on Joe Malone in the December 30, 1919 issue of the Ottawa Journal.[31]

Malone was not considered to be one of the fastest players in the game, but rather a smooth player who knew exactly how to position himself around the opposing goal cage. The December 30, 1919 issue of the Ottawa Journal reproduced a conversation between three hockey fans, where a veteran spectator of 25 years, who had seen all the great players in the game, gave echo to this sentiment and compared Malone's abilities to those of baseball second baseman Eddie Collins, an opinion the newspaper itself agreed with.[31]

Legacy
Malone statue at ExpoCité in Quebec City.

Malone finished his career with 343 goals and 32 assists over 15 professional seasons. His 179 goals in the NHA were the most in the league's history.[16] The 44 goals he scored in the 1917–18 season were an NHL record until Maurice Richard broke it in 1944–45, while Malone's 49 points in 1919–20 was the most until Howie Morenz had 59 in 1927–28. He is also the only player in NHL history to score 6 goals in a game more than once.[23]

He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1950, and is also a member of Canada's Sports Hall of Fame.[32] In 1998, he was ranked number 39 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. The list was announced 74 years after his last game and 91 years after his professional debut, making him the earliest player on the list.[33]

He was a second cousin of Sarsfield and Foster Malone, who played briefly in the NHA. His nephew, Cliff Malone, briefly played in the NHL, as well.

Malone died of a heart attack on May 15, 1969, in Montreal, Quebec.[1]

A statue by artist Frédéric Laforge of Malone with a bulldog, entitled Hommage à Joe Malone, was inaugurated on June 10, 2021, and is located at Place Jean-Béliveau at the ExpoCité in Quebec City. The statue pays homage to Malone's nickname, "Phantom Joe."[34]

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs
Regular season Playoffs
Season Team League GPGAPtsPIM GPGAPtsPIM
1907–08 Quebec Crescents QAHA ————— —————
1908–09 Quebec Bulldogs ECHA 1280817 —————
1909–10 Quebec Bulldogs CHA 25053 —————
1909–10 Waterloo Colts OPHL 121001016 —————
1910–11 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 139093 —————
1911–12 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 18210210 —————
1911–12 NHA All-Stars Exhib 20000 —————
1911–12 Quebec Bulldogs St-Cup ————— 25050
1912–13 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 204304334 —————
1912–13 Quebec Bulldogs St-Cup ————— 19090
1913–14 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 172442820 —————
1914–15 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 121652121 —————
1915–16 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 2425103521 —————
1916–17 Quebec Bulldogs NHA 194184915 —————
1917–18 Montreal Canadiens NHL 204444830 21013
1918–19 Montreal Canadiens NHL 87293 55273
1919–20 Quebec Athletics NHL 2439104912 —————
1920–21 Hamilton Tigers NHL 20289376 —————
1921–22 Hamilton Tigers NHL 24247314 —————
1922–23 Montreal Canadiens NHL 201012 20000
1923–24 Montreal Canadiens NHL 100000 —————
NHA totals 12317927206114 —————
NHL totals 1261433217557 96286
St-Cup totals ————— 3140140

NHL records
  • Most goals in one game (7), January 31, 1920 at Quebec.
  • Most games played with 5 goals or more: 5
  • Highest goals-per-game average, one season: 2.20 with Montreal, 1917–18 season (44 goals in 20 games)
  • Fastest player in NHL history to score 100 goals: 62 games
  • Most consecutive three-or-more goal games: 3 (1917–18 and again later in that season), tied with Mike Bossy (1980–81)
  • Longest consecutive goal-scoring streak from start of NHL career: 14 games (1917–18)

See also

References

Notes
  1. Assists were not officially counted for most of Malone's career. See Diamond 2002, p. 610.

Citations
  1. Durand 2012, p. 136
  2. Coleman 1964, p. 167
  3. Durand 2012, p. 154
  4. Fitsell 1987, p. 138
  5. Durand 2012, pp. 73–74
  6. Coleman 1964, p. 195
  7. Durand 2012, p. 76
  8. Coleman 1964, p. 210
  9. Wesley & Wesley 2005, p. 27
  10. Cameron 2018, p. 121
  11. Durand 2012, p. 156
  12. Coleman 1964, p. 256
  13. Coleman 1964, pp. 271–274
  14. Coleman 1964, p. 293
  15. Coleman 1964, p. 316
  16. Fitsell 1987, p. 140
  17. McKinley 2000, p. 98
  18. Holzman & Nieforth 2002, p. 165
  19. Duff 2017, p. 132
  20. Duff 2017, p. 103
  21. Associated Press 2006
  22. Jenish 1992, p. 94
  23. Cameron 2018, p. 120
  24. Durand 2012, p. 133
  25. Wesley & Wesley 2005, pp. 13–14
  26. Wesley & Wesley 2005, p. 37
  27. Wesley & Wesley 2005, pp. 44–45
  28. Wesley & Wesley 2005, p. 52
  29. Wesley & Wesley 2005, pp. 54–55
  30. McKinley 2000, p. 84
  31. Ottawa Journal 1919, p. 17.
  32. Joe Malone Biography.
  33. Dryden 1997, p. 160
  34. Hommage à Joe Malone.
  35. Diamond 2002, p. 757

References
  • Malkin first in 89 years to score in first 6 NHL games, ESPN, Associated Press, November 1, 2006, retrieved February 6, 2022
  • Cameron, Steve, ed. (2018), Hockey Hall of Fame Book of Players (Third ed.), Buffalo, New York: Firefly Books, ISBN 978-0-228-10137-6
  • Coleman, Charles L. (1964), The Trail of the Stanley Cup, Volume 1: 1893–1926 inc., Dubuque, Iowa: Kendall/Hunt Publishing, OCLC 957132
  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2002), Total Hockey: The Official Encyclopedia of the National Hockey League (Second ed.), New York: Total Sports Publishing, ISBN 1-892129-85-X
  • Durand, Marc (2012), La Coupe à Québec: Les Bulldogs et la naissance du hockey à Québec [The Cup in Quebec: The Bulldogs and the birth of hockey in Quebec] (in French), Quebec City: Éditions Sylvain Harvey, ISBN 978-2-923794-48-8
  • Dryden, Steve, ed. (1997), The Top 100 NHL Players of All Time, Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, ISBN 0-7710-4176-4
  • Duff, Bob (2017), The First Season: 1917–18 and the Birth of the NHL, Windsor, Ontario: Biblioasis, ISBN 978-1-771961-84-4
  • Fitsell, J.W (1987), Hockey's Captains, Colonels & Kings, Erin, Ontario: The Boston Mills Press, ISBN 0-919-783-68-6
  • Holzman, Morey; Nieforth, Joseph (2002), Deceptions and Doublecross: How the NHL Conquered Hockey, Toronto: Dundurn Press, ISBN 1-55002-413-2
  • Hommage à Joe Malone, Commission de la capitale nationale du Québec, retrieved March 18, 2022
  • Jenish, D'Arcy (1992), The Stanley Cup: A Hundred Years of Hockey at its Best, Toronto, Ontario: McClelland & Stewart Inc., ISBN 0-7710-4406-2
  • Joe Malone Biography, Hockey Hall of Fame, retrieved March 18, 2022
  • McKinley, Michael (2009), Hockey: A People's History, Toronto: McClelland & Stewart, ISBN 978-0-7710-5771-7
  • McKinley, Michael (2000), Putting a Roof on Winter: Hockey's Rise from Sport to Spectacle, Vancouver: Greystone Books, ISBN 1-55054-798-4
  • "Sport Flashes", Ottawa Journal, Ottawa, December 12, 1934, retrieved March 18, 2022
  • Wesley, Sam; Wesley, David (2005), Hamilton's Hockey Tigers, Toronto: James Lorimer & Company, ISBN 978-1-55028-887-2
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