Frank Nighbor
Encyclopedia
Julius Francis "Pembroke Peach" Nighbor (January 26, 1893 in Pembroke, Ontario
– April 13, 1966 in Pembroke, Ontario
) was a Canadian professional
ice hockey
forward
who played for the Ottawa Senators
of the National Hockey League
(NHL) and National Hockey Association
(NHA) and Toronto Maple Leafs
of the NHL, Toronto Blueshirts
of the NHA and Vancouver Millionaires
of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association
(PCHA). An excellent defensive forward, his poke check, backchecking and bodychecking abilities thwarted enemy forwards' scoring attempts. For his somewhat high penalty totals, he was a clean player and one of the last 60 minute hockey players. For his contributions on the ice, Nighbor was the first player ever to be awarded the Hart Trophy and the first to be awarded the Lady Byng Trophy.
of the Northern Ontario Hockey League in 1911. Fellow Pembroke native Harry Cameron
was invited to play for Port Arthur but refused to go without Nighbor. The club agreed to bring Nighbor along, but they left him on the bench until injuries gave him an opportunity to play. He made the most of his opportunity by registering six goals in his first appearance.
In 1912, he joined the new Toronto Blueshirts
of the NHA where he scored 25 goals in 18 games. He only played the one season in Toronto, jumping to Vancouver of the PCHA the following season for two seasons, and was an important member of the Millionaires team which won the Stanley Cup
over the Ottawa Senators in 1915.
He returned east after the Stanley Cup series and joined the Senators, whom he would play for until 1930, an important part of the dynasty of the 1920s winning 4 more cups in 1920, 1921, 1923, and 1927. He had his best season in 1916–17, scoring 41 goals in 19 games, finishing tied for the league lead with Joe Malone. In 1919–20 he would score 26 goals and 15 assists in just 23 games, then had a further 6 goals in 5 playoff games and led the Senators to their first Cup in the NHL. Frank would win the Stanley Cup
again with Ottawa
in 1921 1923 and 1927. As a member of the Senators, Frank was the first recipient of the Hart Trophy, as well as the first recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy.
In 1929–30, Frank would be traded to Toronto, as part of the fire sale of the failing Senators for Danny Cox
and cash. He played 22 games for the Maple Leafs and retired in the off-season.
at the age of 73.
Nighbor was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame
in 1947. He has also been inducted into the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame. In 1998 he was ranked number 100 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. In March 2010, at a Quebec auction, an American collector paid $33,000 USD to secure Frank Nighbor's game-worn Ottawa Senators sweater from the 1926–27 season. A street in Ottawa's Kanata neighbourhood is named in memory of Nighbor - "Frank Nighbor Place."
Pembroke, Ontario
Pembroke is a city in the province of Ontario, Canada, at the confluence of the Muskrat River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley...
– April 13, 1966 in Pembroke, Ontario
Pembroke, Ontario
Pembroke is a city in the province of Ontario, Canada, at the confluence of the Muskrat River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley...
) was a Canadian professional
Professional
A professional is a person who is paid to undertake a specialised set of tasks and to complete them for a fee. The traditional professions were doctors, lawyers, clergymen, and commissioned military officers. Today, the term is applied to estate agents, surveyors , environmental scientists,...
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...
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...
who played for the Ottawa Senators
Ottawa Senators (original)
The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...
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...
(NHL) and National Hockey Association
National Hockey Association
The National Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor organization to today's National Hockey League...
(NHA) and Toronto Maple Leafs
Toronto Maple Leafs
The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League...
of the NHL, Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
of the NHA and Vancouver Millionaires
Vancouver Millionaires
The Vancouver Millionaires were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the Western Canada Hockey League between 1911 and 1926...
of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association
Pacific Coast Hockey Association
The Pacific Coast Hockey Association was a professional men's ice hockey league in western Canada and the western United States, which operated from 1911 to 1924 when it then merged with the Western Canada Hockey League...
(PCHA). An excellent defensive forward, his poke check, backchecking and bodychecking abilities thwarted enemy forwards' scoring attempts. For his somewhat high penalty totals, he was a clean player and one of the last 60 minute hockey players. For his contributions on the ice, Nighbor was the first player ever to be awarded the Hart Trophy and the first to be awarded the Lady Byng Trophy.
Playing career
Frank first played professional for the Port Arthur BearcatsPort Arthur Bearcats
The Port Arthur Bearcats were an amateur men's senior ice hockey team based in Port Arthur, Ontario . Port Arthur were champions Canadian Amateur Hockey Association four times, and were chosen once to represent Canada as the Canada national men's ice hockey team at international competitions...
of the Northern Ontario Hockey League in 1911. Fellow Pembroke native Harry Cameron
Harry Cameron
Harold Hugh "Cammie" Cameron was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played professionally for the Toronto Blueshirts, Toronto Arenas, Ottawa Senators, Toronto St. Pats and Montreal Canadiens. Cameron won three Stanley Cups in his career...
was invited to play for Port Arthur but refused to go without Nighbor. The club agreed to bring Nighbor along, but they left him on the bench until injuries gave him an opportunity to play. He made the most of his opportunity by registering six goals in his first appearance.
In 1912, he joined the new Toronto Blueshirts
Toronto Blueshirts
The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
of the NHA where he scored 25 goals in 18 games. He only played the one season in Toronto, jumping to Vancouver of the PCHA the following season for two seasons, and was an important member of the Millionaires team which won 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...
over the Ottawa Senators in 1915.
He returned east after the Stanley Cup series and joined the Senators, whom he would play for until 1930, an important part of the dynasty of the 1920s winning 4 more cups in 1920, 1921, 1923, and 1927. He had his best season in 1916–17, scoring 41 goals in 19 games, finishing tied for the league lead with Joe Malone. In 1919–20 he would score 26 goals and 15 assists in just 23 games, then had a further 6 goals in 5 playoff games and led the Senators to their first Cup in the NHL. Frank would win 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...
again with Ottawa
Ottawa
Ottawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
in 1921 1923 and 1927. As a member of the Senators, Frank was the first recipient of the Hart Trophy, as well as the first recipient of the Lady Byng Trophy.
In 1929–30, Frank would be traded to Toronto, as part of the fire sale of the failing Senators for Danny Cox
Danny Cox (ice hockey)
Daniel Smith "Silent Danny" Cox was a professional ice hockey forward who played 321 games in the National Hockey League. He played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Ottawa Senators, Detroit Falcons, and New York Rangers.- External links :...
and cash. He played 22 games for the Maple Leafs and retired in the off-season.
Playing style
Frank was considered a master of the "sweep check," (today called the "poke check"), taking the puck off the opponent's stick. He was skilled and crafty with the puck and a good scorer. He impressed with his sportsmanship, inspiring Lady Byng to donate the Lady Byng Trophy in his honour to the "player adjudged to have exhibited the best type of sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct combined with a high standard of playing ability." and she presented it personally to him.Post-playing career
Frank coached for the Buffalo Bisons and London Tecumsehs of the International League and the New York Rovers of the East Coast Hockey League. He would later turn to an insurance business he was a partner in and run it until he became ill. Nighbor died of cancer on April 13, 1966 in Pembroke, OntarioPembroke, Ontario
Pembroke is a city in the province of Ontario, Canada, at the confluence of the Muskrat River and the Ottawa River in the Ottawa Valley...
at the age of 73.
Nighbor was inducted into 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 1947. He has also been inducted into the Canada Sports Hall of Fame and the Ottawa Sports Hall of Fame. In 1998 he was ranked number 100 on The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. In March 2010, at a Quebec auction, an American collector paid $33,000 USD to secure Frank Nighbor's game-worn Ottawa Senators sweater from the 1926–27 season. A street in Ottawa's Kanata neighbourhood is named in memory of Nighbor - "Frank Nighbor Place."
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 | ||
| 1912–13 | Toronto Blueshirts Toronto Blueshirts The Toronto Hockey Club, known as the Torontos and the Toronto Blue Shirts were a professional National Hockey Association team that played in Toronto, Ontario, Canada... |
NHA National Hockey Association The National Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor organization to today's National Hockey League... |
19 | 25 | 0 | 25 | 9 | - | - | - | - | |||
| 1913–14 1913–14 PCHA season The 1913–14 PCHA season was the third season of the professional men's ice hockey Pacific Coast Hockey Association league. Season play ran from December 5, 1913 until February 24, 1914. Like the previous two seasons, teams were to play a 16 game schedule, but one game was cancelled. The Victoria... |
Vancouver Millionaires Vancouver Millionaires The Vancouver Millionaires were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the Western Canada Hockey League between 1911 and 1926... |
PCHA | 11 | 10 | 5 | 15 | 6 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1914–15 1914–15 PCHA season The 1914–15 PCHA season was the fourth season of the professional men's ice hockey Pacific Coast Hockey Association league. Season play ran from December 8, 1914 until March 9, 1915. The schedule was made for each team to play 18 games, but like the previous three seasons, one game was cancelled.... |
Vancouver Millionaires Vancouver Millionaires The Vancouver Millionaires were a professional ice hockey team that competed in the Pacific Coast Hockey Association and the Western Canada Hockey League between 1911 and 1926... |
PCHA Pacific Coast Hockey Association The Pacific Coast Hockey Association was a professional men's ice hockey league in western Canada and the western United States, which operated from 1911 to 1924 when it then merged with the Western Canada Hockey League... |
17 | 23 | 7 | 30 | 12 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1914–15 | Vancouver Millionaires | Stanley Cup | - | - | - | - | - | 3 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 6 | ||
| 1915–16 | Ottawa Senators Ottawa Senators (original) The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934... |
NHA National Hockey Association The National Hockey Association was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor organization to today's National Hockey League... |
23 | 19 | 5 | 24 | 26 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1916–17 | Ottawa Senators | NHA | 19 | 41 | 10 | 51 | 24 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 6 | ||
| 1917–18 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 9 | 11 | 0 | 11 | 3 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1918–19 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 18 | 18 | 4 | 22 | 27 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | ||
| 1919–20 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 23 | 26 | 7 | 33 | 18 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1919–20 1920 Stanley Cup Finals -See also:* 1919–20 NHL season* 1919–20 PCHA season* List of Stanley Cup champions... |
Ottawa Senators | Stanley Cup | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 2 | ||
| 1920–21 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 24 | 18 | 3 | 21 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 4 | ||
| 1920–21 1921 Stanley Cup Finals -See also:* 1920–21 NHL season* 1920–21 PCHA season... |
Ottawa Senators | Stanley Cup | - | - | - | - | - | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1921–22 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 20 | 8 | 8 | 16 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 4 | ||
| 1922–23 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 22 | 11 | 5 | 16 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1922–23 1923 Stanley Cup Finals -References:* Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame . Lord Stanley's Cup. Bolton, Ont.: Fenn Pub. pp 12, 50. ISBN 978-1-55168-261-7-See also:* 1922–23 NHL season* 1922–23 Ottawa Senators season* 1922–23 PCHA season* List of Stanley Cup champions... |
Ottawa Senators | Stanley Cup | - | - | - | - | - | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 10 | ||
| 1923–24 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 20 | 10 | 3 | 13 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1924–25 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 26 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 18 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1925–26 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 35 | 12 | 13 | 25 | 40 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1926–27 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 38 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 26 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | ||
| 1927–28 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 42 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 46 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1928–29 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 30 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 22 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1929–30 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| 1929–30 | Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League... |
NHL | 22 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | - | - | - | - | - | ||
| NHL totals | 348 | 136 | 60 | 196 | 242 | - | - | - | - | - | ||||