Joe Nolan (ice hockey)
Encyclopedia
Joe Nolan was a ice hockey
defenceman whose career spanned six seasons across two leagues.
. On November 7, 1955, Nolan was signed by the Clinton Comets after defenceman Jim Johnson was waived from the team. Nolan would finish the season leading the league in penalty minute
s with 352 PIMs. Nolan's 352 PIMs were a league record and also marked the first time that a player accumulated over 300 penalty minutes in a season.
On December 12, 1956, Nolan was released from the Clinton Comets. At the time, Nolan led the league in penalty minutes. Upon his release, Nolan was signed by the Johnstown Jets
.
two decades later in a minor role for the movie Slap Shot
.
Nolan would assume the role of Clarence "Screaming Buffalo" Swamptown, a player who Chiefs players thought "was suspended forever" until he was introduced at the Federal League championship game. In the DVD commentary of Slap Shot, the Hanson Brothers mention that Nolan had also been banned from the Eastern Hockey League, but they do not explain why.
Upon retiring from the EHL, Nolan returned to Clinton, New York
to reside, but eventually came back to the Eastern Hockey League as a linesman who was respected by players Clinton would continue to reside there until his passing in the early 90s.
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...
defenceman whose career spanned six seasons across two leagues.
Playing career
Nolan would start the 1955-56 season as a member of the Clinton CometsClinton Comets
The Clinton Comets were an American ice hockey team in Clinton, New York.Founded in 1927–28 as the Clinton Hockey Club and nicknamed the Comets in 1949, the team played primarily at the Clinton Arena from 1949 until 1973...
. On November 7, 1955, Nolan was signed by the Clinton Comets after defenceman Jim Johnson was waived from the team. Nolan would finish the season leading the league in penalty minute
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,...
s with 352 PIMs. Nolan's 352 PIMs were a league record and also marked the first time that a player accumulated over 300 penalty minutes in a season.
On December 12, 1956, Nolan was released from the Clinton Comets. At the time, Nolan led the league in penalty minutes. Upon his release, Nolan was signed by the Johnstown Jets
Johnstown Jets
The Johnstown Jets were a professional ice hockey team from Johnstown, Pennsylvania. The Jets were founded in the Eastern Amateur Hockey League for the 1950–51 season, playing at the newly constructed Cambria County War Memorial Arena...
.
Acting career
Nolan would retire from hockey in 1956, but would return to Johnstown, PennsylvaniaJohnstown, Pennsylvania
Johnstown is a city in Cambria County, Pennsylvania, United States, west-southwest of Altoona, Pennsylvania and east of Pittsburgh. The population was 20,978 at the 2010 census. It is the principal city of the Johnstown, Pennsylvania, Metropolitan Statistical Area, which includes Cambria County...
two decades later in a minor role for the movie Slap Shot
Slap Shot (film)
Slap Shot is a 1977 film comedy starring Paul Newman and Michael Ontkean directed by George Roy Hill. It depicts a minor league hockey team that resorts to violent play to gain popularity in a declining factory town.- Plot :...
.
Nolan would assume the role of Clarence "Screaming Buffalo" Swamptown, a player who Chiefs players thought "was suspended forever" until he was introduced at the Federal League championship game. In the DVD commentary of Slap Shot, the Hanson Brothers mention that Nolan had also been banned from the Eastern Hockey League, but they do not explain why.
Personal
Nolan was a full blood Obijwa Indian.Upon retiring from the EHL, Nolan returned to Clinton, New York
Clinton, Oneida County, New York
Clinton is a village in Oneida County, New York, United States. The population was 1,952 at the 2000 census. It was named for George Clinton, a royal governor of the colony of New York....
to reside, but eventually came back to the Eastern Hockey League as a linesman who was respected by players Clinton would continue to reside there until his passing in the early 90s.