Alfred Pike
Encyclopedia
Alfred George "The Embalmer" Pike (September 15, 1917 – March 1, 2009) was a Canadian
professional ice hockey
player who spent all six National Hockey League
seasons with the New York Rangers
. Born in Winnipeg
, Manitoba
, he was a product of the hockey school there that was operated by Lester Patrick
, the Rangers' coach
and general manager
. A license
d mortician
in the offseason, Pike's nickname
was The Embalmer
. He also served as coach at various levels of the sport.
with the Winnipeg Monarchs of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL)
. In 1936–37, his second campaign with the team, he centered
the top forward
line as the Monarchs captured both the league title and Memorial Cup
.
After immediately signing a contract
with Patrick's franchise
in 1937, he spent two years with the New York Rovers, the Rangers' minor league affiliate
in the Eastern Amateur Hockey League
that shared Madison Square Garden III
with the parent club. He was the team captain when the Rovers won the EAHL crown in 1938–39. He also made two appearances with the Philadelphia Ramblers
of the International-American Hockey League (IAHL)
that same season.
As a rookie
with the Rangers in 1939–40, he was the center on the third forward line with Dutch Hiller
and Clint Smith
. Pike contributed two key goal
s in the 1940 Stanley Cup Finals
. He scored the winner in overtime
of Game 1, and tallied again midway through the third period of Game 6 to tie the match at 2–2 and eventually extend it beyond regulation. Bryan Hextall
's goal in the extra period clinched the Stanley Cup
Championship for the Rangers.
His most productive season was in 1941–42 with 27 points (8 goals, 19 assist
s). He was converted into a defenseman
the following year. His hockey career was put on hold between 1943 and 1945 when he was stationed with the Royal Canadian Air Force
in his hometown during World War II
. He played two more seasons with the Rangers, the final one as a left winger
in 1946–47, becoming one of the very few individuals in professional hockey history to play three different positions. His final NHL totals were 119 points (42 goals, 77 assists) in 234 games.
He appeared in a handful of matches with the Winnipeg Nationals in 1948 and 1949 before ending his playing career.
, the Rangers' Ontario Hockey Association (OHA)
Junior A farm club. The highlight of his five years with Guelph was in 1952 when the team, which featured Andy Bathgate
and Harry Howell, won both the league championship and Memorial Cup. His next stop was the Winnipeg Warriors from 1954 to 1959, collecting a Western Hockey League (WHL)
title in 1956.
He returned to the Rangers as its coach eighteen games into the 1959–60 NHL season. His personality was a direct contrast from that of the man he replaced, the temperamental Phil Watson
(Muzz Patrick
served as the interim for two matches). After compiling a 36–66–21 record in two years without a postseason appearance, Pike was replaced by Doug Harvey in 1961.
Before his retirement
in 1970, he returned to the WHL to coach three different franchises: the Calgary Stampeders (1961–62 to 1962–63), Los Angeles Blades
(1963–64 to 1964–65) and Phoenix Roadrunners
(1967–68 to 1969–70).
Pike died at age 91 on March 1, 2009 in Calgary, Alberta
.
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 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...
player who spent all six 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...
seasons with the New York Rangers
New York Rangers
The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the borough of Manhattan in New York, New York, USA. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . Playing their home games at Madison Square Garden, the Rangers are one of the...
. Born in Winnipeg
Winnipeg
Winnipeg is the capital and largest city of Manitoba, Canada, and is the primary municipality of the Winnipeg Capital Region, with more than half of Manitoba's population. It is located near the longitudinal centre of North America, at the confluence of the Red and Assiniboine Rivers .The name...
, Manitoba
Manitoba
Manitoba is a Canadian prairie province with an area of . The province has over 110,000 lakes and has a largely continental climate because of its flat topography. Agriculture, mostly concentrated in the fertile southern and western parts of the province, is vital to the province's economy; other...
, he was a product of the hockey school there that was operated by Lester Patrick
Lester Patrick
Curtis Lester "The Silver Fox" Patrick born in Drummondville, Quebec, Canada, was a professional ice hockey player and coach associated with the Victoria Aristocrats/Cougars of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association , and the New York Rangers of the National Hockey League...
, the Rangers' coach
Coach (ice hockey)
Coach in ice hockey is the person responsible for directing the team during games and practices, prepares strategy and decides which players will participate in games....
and general manager
General manager
General manager is a descriptive term for certain executives in a business operation. It is also a formal title held by some business executives, most commonly in the hospitality industry.-Generic usage:...
. A license
License
The verb license or grant licence means to give permission. The noun license or licence refers to that permission as well as to the document recording that permission.A license may be granted by a party to another party as an element of an agreement...
d mortician
Funeral director
A funeral director , also known as a mortician or undertaker, is a professional involved in the business of funeral rites. These tasks often entail the embalming and burial or cremation of the dead, as well as the planning and arrangement of the actual funeral ceremony...
in the offseason, Pike's nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
was The Embalmer
Embalming
Embalming, in most modern cultures, is the art and science of temporarily preserving human remains to forestall decomposition and to make them suitable for public display at a funeral. The three goals of embalming are thus sanitization, presentation and preservation of a corpse to achieve this...
. He also served as coach at various levels of the sport.
Playing career
He played two years of junior hockeyJunior ice hockey
Junior hockey is a catch-all term used to describe various levels of ice hockey competition for players generally between 16 and 20 years of age...
with the Winnipeg Monarchs of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL)
Manitoba Junior Hockey League
The Manitoba Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba. The MJHL is one of eleven Junior 'A' Hockey Leagues in Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League ....
. In 1936–37, his second campaign with the team, he centered
Centre (ice hockey)
The centre in ice hockey is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is the middle of the ice, away from the side boards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and are expected to cover more ice surface than any other player...
the top forward
Forward (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, a forward is a player position on the ice whose primary responsibility is to score goals. Generally, the forwards try to stay in three different lanes, also known as thirds, of the ice going from goal to goal. It is not mandatory however, to stay in a lane. Staying in a lane aids in...
line as the Monarchs captured both the league title and Memorial Cup
Memorial Cup
The Memorial Cup is a junior ice hockey club championship trophy awarded annually to the Canadian Hockey League champion. It is awarded following a four-team, round robin tournament between a host team and the champions of the CHL's three member leagues: the Ontario Hockey League , Quebec Major...
.
After immediately signing a contract
Contract
A contract is an agreement entered into by two parties or more with the intention of creating a legal obligation, which may have elements in writing. Contracts can be made orally. The remedy for breach of contract can be "damages" or compensation of money. In equity, the remedy can be specific...
with Patrick's franchise
Professional sports league organization
Professional sports leagues are organized in numerous ways. The two most significant types are a European model, characterised by a tiered structure using promotion and relegation to determine participation in a hierarchy of leagues or divisions and a North American model characterized by its use...
in 1937, he spent two years with the New York Rovers, the Rangers' minor league affiliate
Farm team
In sports, a farm team, farm system, feeder team or nursery club, is generally a team or club whose role is to provide experience and training for young players, with an agreement that any successful players can move on to a higher level at a given point...
in the Eastern Amateur Hockey League
Eastern Hockey League
-Eastern Amateur Hockey League :The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League . The league was founded by Thomas Lockhart, who served as its commissioner from 1933 to 1972...
that shared Madison Square Garden III
Madison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
with the parent club. He was the team captain when the Rovers won the EAHL crown in 1938–39. He also made two appearances with the Philadelphia Ramblers
Philadelphia Ramblers
The Philadelphia Ramblers were a minor professional ice hockey team based in the Philadelphia Arena in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The Ramblers played for six seasons during the infancy of the American Hockey League from 1935 to 1941.-History:...
of the International-American Hockey League (IAHL)
American Hockey League
The American Hockey League is a 30-team professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental circuit for the National Hockey League...
that same season.
As a rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
with the Rangers in 1939–40, he was the center on the third forward line with Dutch Hiller
Wilbert Hiller
Wilbert Carl "Dutch, Wib" Hiller was a professional ice hockey player in the NHL.-Awards and achievements:*1940 Stanley Cup Championship *1946 Stanley Cup Championship...
and Clint Smith
Clint Smith
Clinton James "Snuffy" Smith was a Canadian professional ice hockey centre and head coach best known for his time spent in the National Hockey League as a player with the New York Rangers and the Chicago Black Hawks...
. Pike contributed two key goal
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...
s in the 1940 Stanley Cup Finals
1940 Stanley Cup Finals
The 1940 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven series between the New York Rangers and the Toronto Maple Leafs. New York would win the series 4–2 to win their third Stanley Cup. The Rangers would not win another for 54 years.-Paths to the Final:...
. He scored the winner in overtime
Overtime (sports)
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw. In most sports, this extra period is only played if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination...
of Game 1, and tallied again midway through the third period of Game 6 to tie the match at 2–2 and eventually extend it beyond regulation. Bryan Hextall
Bryan Hextall
Bryan Aldwyn Hextall was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward who played for the New York Rangers in the National Hockey League . Considered one of the top wingers of the 1940s, he led the NHL in goal scoring twice and in points once...
's goal in the extra period clinched the 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...
Championship for the Rangers.
His most productive season was in 1941–42 with 27 points (8 goals, 19 assist
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...
s). He was converted into a defenseman
Defenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
the following year. His hockey career was put on hold between 1943 and 1945 when he was stationed with the Royal Canadian Air Force
Royal Canadian Air Force
The history of the Royal Canadian Air Force begins in 1920, when the air force was created as the Canadian Air Force . In 1924 the CAF was renamed the Royal Canadian Air Force and granted royal sanction by King George V. The RCAF existed as an independent service until 1968...
in his hometown during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. He played two more seasons with the Rangers, the final one as a left winger
Winger (ice hockey)
Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...
in 1946–47, becoming one of the very few individuals in professional hockey history to play three different positions. His final NHL totals were 119 points (42 goals, 77 assists) in 234 games.
He appeared in a handful of matches with the Winnipeg Nationals in 1948 and 1949 before ending his playing career.
Coaching career
Pike's first coaching job began in 1949–50 with the Guelph Biltmore Mad HattersGuelph Biltmore Mad Hatters
The Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters were a junior ice hockey team in the Ontario Hockey Association from 1940 to 1942, and 1947 to 1960. The team was often known as the "Biltmores" and sponsored by the Guelph Biltmore Hat Company, and played home games at the Guelph Memorial Gardens.- History :The...
, the Rangers' Ontario Hockey Association (OHA)
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...
Junior A farm club. The highlight of his five years with Guelph was in 1952 when the team, which featured Andy Bathgate
Andy Bathgate
Andrew James Bathgate is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey centre who played 17 seasons in the National Hockey League for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins.-Playing career:...
and Harry Howell, won both the league championship and Memorial Cup. His next stop was the Winnipeg Warriors from 1954 to 1959, collecting a Western Hockey League (WHL)
Western Hockey League (minor pro)
The Western Hockey League was a minor pro ice hockey league that operated from 1952 to 1974. Managed for most of its history by Hockey Hall of Fame member Al Leader, it was created out of the merger of the Pacific Coast Hockey League and the Western Canada Senior Hockey League...
title in 1956.
He returned to the Rangers as its coach eighteen games into the 1959–60 NHL season. His personality was a direct contrast from that of the man he replaced, the temperamental Phil Watson
Phil Watson
Henri Phillip Watson was a professional ice hockey player and coach in the NHL.-Coaching career:Soon after retiring as a player Phil Watson became a coach...
(Muzz Patrick
Muzz Patrick
Frederick Murray "Muzz" Patrick was a former NHL player.Patrick was born in Victoria, British Columbia. In his youth, Muzz Patrick was one of Canada's most versatile athletes, excelling in track, basketball, football, cycling, boxing and hockey. In the ring, he was a Canadian amateur light...
served as the interim for two matches). After compiling a 36–66–21 record in two years without a postseason appearance, Pike was replaced by Doug Harvey in 1961.
Before his retirement
Retirement
Retirement is the point where a person stops employment completely. A person may also semi-retire by reducing work hours.Many people choose to retire when they are eligible for private or public pension benefits, although some are forced to retire when physical conditions don't allow the person to...
in 1970, he returned to the WHL to coach three different franchises: the Calgary Stampeders (1961–62 to 1962–63), Los Angeles Blades
Los Angeles Blades
The Los Angeles Blades were a professional inline hockey team based in Los Angeles, California. The Blades played in Roller Hockey International from 1993-1997 and played their home games at the Great Western Forum....
(1963–64 to 1964–65) and Phoenix Roadrunners
Phoenix Roadrunners (WHA)
The Phoenix Roadrunners were a team in the now defunct World Hockey Association from 1974 to 1977. They played at Arizona Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Phoenix, Arizona...
(1967–68 to 1969–70).
Pike died at age 91 on March 1, 2009 in Calgary, Alberta
Calgary
Calgary is a city in the Province of Alberta, Canada. It is located in the south of the province, in an area of foothills and prairie, approximately east of the front ranges of the Canadian Rockies...
.
Awards and achievements
- 1937 Turnbull Cup Championship (MJHL) – Winnipeg Monarchs (player)
- 1937 Memorial Cup Championship – Winnipeg Monarchs (player)
- 1939 Eastern Amateur Hockey League Champions – New York Rovers (player)
- 1940 Stanley Cup Championship – New York Rangers (player)
- 1952 J. Ross Robertson CupJ. Ross Robertson CupThe J. Ross Robertson Cup is an ice hockey trophy awarded annually to the winner of the Ontario Hockey League playoff championship. It was presented by and named for John Ross Robertson, the president of the Ontario Hockey Association who served from 1899 to 1905.Originally it was awarded to the...
Championship (OHA) – Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters (coach) - 1952 Memorial Cup Championship – Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters (coach)
- 1956 Lester Patrick CupLester Patrick CupThe Lester Patrick Cup was the championship trophy of the Pacific Coast Hockey League and the Western Hockey League from 1949 to 1974. Originally known as the President's Cup, the trophy was renamed in 1960 to honor pacific coast hockey pioneer and legend Lester Patrick following his death on June...
Championship (WHL) – Winnipeg WarriorsWinnipeg Warriors (minor pro)The Winnipeg Warriors were a minor league hockey team that played in the Western Hockey League from 1955 to 1961. Owned by Winnipeg's prominent Perrin family, the Warriors represented the return of professional hockey to Winnipeg after a 27 year absence. In 1955, the Warriors Club was the first...
(coach) - 1956 Edinburgh Trophy Championship – Winnipeg Warriors (coach)
- Honoured Member of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of FameManitoba Hockey Hall of FameThe Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum was established in 1985 when the first honoured members were named and plaques were erected in their honour. The first group of inductees was large in order to recognize the accomplishments of Manitoba players, coaches, builders and teams at the...
- Ranked No. 69 on the all-time list of New York Rangers in the book 100 Ranger Greats (John Wiley & SonsJohn Wiley & SonsJohn Wiley & Sons, Inc., also referred to as Wiley, is a global publishing company that specializes in academic publishing and markets its products to professionals and consumers, students and instructors in higher education, and researchers and practitioners in scientific, technical, medical, and...
, 2009).