John Sherf
Encyclopedia
Calumet, Michigan
Calumet is a village in Calumet Township, Houghton County, in the U.S. state of Michigan's Upper Peninsula, that was once at the center of the mining industry of the Upper Peninsula. Also known as Red Jacket, the village includes the Calumet Downtown Historic District, listed on the National...
– August 19, 1991, Dearborn, Michigan
Dearborn, Michigan
-Economy:Ford Motor Company has its world headquarters in Dearborn. In addition its Dearborn campus contains many research, testing, finance and some production facilities. Ford Land controls the numerous properties owned by Ford including sales and leasing to unrelated businesses such as the...
) was a 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...
player and the first U.S. citizen to have his name engraved on 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...
.
Biography
Sherf was born and spent his childhood years in Calumet, Michigan in the state's Upper Peninsula. He participated in youth ice hockey, which was popular in the cold climate of the area. By the time he graduated from Calumet High SchoolCalumet High School (Michigan)
Calumet High School is located in Calumet, Michigan in Michigan's Keweenaw Peninsula. It is part of the Public Schools of Calumet-Laurium-Keweenaw. The school mascot is the Copper King. The high school is in the same building as Washington Middle School....
his hockey skills were widely recognized. In the working class area where he was raised, he was destined to go to work in the copper mines in the area, continuing his hockey career in the local semi-professional leagues. A local physician took an interest in Sherf and provided him with a scholarship to attend the University of Michigan
University of Michigan
The University of Michigan is a public research university located in Ann Arbor, Michigan in the United States. It is the state's oldest university and the flagship campus of the University of Michigan...
in Ann Arbor.
Sherf attended Michigan from 1932 until 1936, majoring in history and playing hockey on the varsity team during all four years. John played hockey at Calumet High School and for the semi-pro Calumet Black Hawks before enrolling at Michigan. He played center at U of M for three seasons. No records are available for 1933–34. John was the leading scorer in the 1934–35 season with 23 goals and 14 assists in 16 games. In 1935–36, he was the leading scorer of the Western Conference with 33 goals and 10 assists in 17 games. That year, Michigan's opponents scored a combined total of only 30 goals. During his senior year Sherf was elected captain of the hockey team and later selected for the prominent senior men's honorary society, Michigauma. The honorary society was based on local American Indian traditions and each inductee was given an Indian name consistent with his college activities in the induction ceremony. Sherf's Michigauma name was "Flashing Feet Sherf", noting his skill as a hockey player.
Sherf graduated from Michigan with a BA in History in June, 1936. He married Mary Gaecke in Chicago, Illinois in about 1938. They had one son, John Paul Sherf.
Sherf first worked for Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company
Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...
as a summer employee during his college years, working at the 1933 Century of Progress World's Fair in Chicago. He continued his employment with Ford during the off-seasons of his professional hockey career. Following his retirement from professional hockey he returned to Ford to work full-time. During his early years with Ford, he attended Wayne State University
Wayne State University
Wayne State University is a public research university located in Detroit, Michigan, United States, in the city's Midtown Cultural Center Historic District. Founded in 1868, WSU consists of 13 schools and colleges offering more than 400 major subject areas to over 32,000 graduate and...
in Detroit where he earned a Master of Business Administration degree. Sherf finished his career with Ford as a senior executive in the Manufacturing Division.
Sherf served as national President of the University of Michigan M Club (alumni letterwinners) and the Detroit Red Wings Alumni Association. The University of Michigan selected Sherf as a member of their Athletic Hall of Honor in 1981, only the second Michigan hockey player so honored. Sherf was also elected to the Upper Peninsula (Michigan) Hall of Fame. He also served for more than two decades on the board of directors of Presbyterian Villages of Michigan.
Athletic career
Before he was awarded his degree at the annual commencement ceremony, he was signed to a contract by the Detroit Red WingsDetroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played several games at the end of the 1935–36 season with the Red Wings top farm team, the Detroit Olympics
Detroit Olympics
The Detroit Olympics were a minor league hockey team located in Detroit, Michigan that was a member of the Canadian Professional Hockey League 1927-29 and the International-American Hockey League 1929-36. The team played all of their home games at the Detroit Olympia...
. He was also called up to play with the Red Wings during the Stanley Cup playoffs that season. The 1936–37 season was Sherf's most memorable as a professional. He played with the American Hockey League
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...
's Pittsburgh Hornets, after the Detroit Olympics were moved to Pittsburgh and re-named. At the end of the 1936–37 season Sherf was called up by the Red Wings for the playoffs to help defend their Stanley Cup championship. He collected one point in five games as the Red Wings won their second straight Stanley Cup by beating 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...
three games to two. He was the first American citizen to be a member of an NHL playoff championship team, having his name engraved on the Stanley Cup as a member of the champion Detroit Red Wings.
Johnny Sherf continued his professional hockey career until 1944. He was a member of the Detroit Red Wings for his entire career but was often assigned to the top Red Wings farm team, the Pittsburgh Hornets. Sherf gained recognition both with the Red Wings as well as the Hornets. Because of his skating speed, he was often re-called to the Red Wings to participate in the annual NHL skills competitions. During his career he won the competition as the fastest skater in the NHL. He was also selected as a member of the American Hockey League all-star team representing the Pittsburgh Hornets. Sherf is still the seventh leading scorer in the history of the Pittsburgh Hornets, scoring 94 goals and 121 assists in 301 games played. After being called for military service in 1943, he returned to the Red Wings in 1944 before retiring from professional hockey.