Etched in Time

     What are the most coveted sports trophies in the world? The Olympic gold medal, soccer’s World Cup, and the Masters’ green jacket, among others. For North American team sports, the Stanley Cup is tops. The World Series, the Super Bowl, and the NBA Finals—as compelling as they are—don’t offer a trophy to compare with the Cup, which is truly sacred among hockey people.
     One of the Stanley Cup's unique features is that the names of players, coaches, and officials of the winning team are engraved on the trophy. The names will remain there long after the people they represent are gone. The 2010 Blackhawks will soon have their names etched in time, joining their forebears of 1934, 1938, and 1961.
     In 1934, Chuck Gardiner became the first and last goaltender to captain a Stanley Cup championship club. A rules change in 1948 prohibited goalies from serving as captains.
     In 1938, four names were included in the original engraving (players Paul Goodman, Virgil Johnson, and Alfie Moore, and trainer Eddie Froelich), but disappeared when the Cup was refurbished in the late 1950s.
     Seven Blackhawk names are on the Cup twice, from the 1934 and 1938 championships—players Johnny Gottselig, Roger Jenkins, Mush March, Doc Romnes, Paul Thompson, and Louis Trudel, and owner Major Frederic McLaughlin. Gottselig narrowly missed getting his name on the Cup a third time. As the Hawks’ publicity director in 1961, he was included in the official team photo but left off the Cup.
     Also in 1961, two players who had not played a single game for the Hawks got their names on the Cup. Thanks to the durability of starting goalie Glenn Hall, rookie backups Denis DeJordy and Allan “Roy” Edwards never saw action during the regular season or the playoffs. DeJordy made his debut for the Hawks the following season, but Edwards didn’t appear in an NHL game until 1967 (with Detroit).
     Following is a list of the names on the Stanley Cup from the Hawks’ three previous championships. (Player names, aside from the captain, are listed alphabetically, not in the order in which they appear on the Cup.)

1934

Chuck Gardiner (Captain)

Clarence “Taffy” Abel

Lionel Conacher

Tom Cook

Art Coulter

Rosario Couture

Leroy Goldsworthy

Johnny Gottselig

Roger Jenkins

Bill Kendall

Jack Leswick

Harold “Mush” March

Don McFadyen

Elwyn “Doc” Romnes

John Sheppard

Joe Starke

Paul Thompson

Louis Trudel

Tommy Gorman (Manager/Coach)

Frederic McLaughlin (President/Owner)

Eddie Froelich (Trainer)

1938

Johnny Gottselig (Captain)

Carol “Cully” Dahlstrom

Roger Jenkins

Mike Karakas

Bill MacKenzie

Harold “Mush” March

Pete Palangio

Elwyn “Doc” Romnes

Jack Shill

Earl Seibert

Paul Thompson

Louis Trudel

Carl Voss

Art Wiebe

Bill Stewart (Manager/Coach)

Frederic McLaughlin (President/Owner)

Bill Tobin (Vice President)

Thorne Donnelley (Secretary/Treasurer)

1961

Ed Litzenberger (Captain)

Ron Murphy (Alternate Captain)

Pierre Pilote (Alternate Captain)

Al Arbour

Earl Balfour

Murray Balfour

Denis DeJordy

Allan “Roy” Edwards

Jack Evans

Reggie Fleming

Glenn Hall

Bill Hay

Wayne Hicks

Wayne Hillman

Bobby Hull

Ronald “Chico” Maki

Alvin “Ab” McDonald

Stan Mikita

Eric Nesterenko

Dollard St. Laurent

Tod Sloan

Elmer “Moose” Vasko

Ken Wharram

Rudy Pilous (Coach)

Arthur Wirtz, Sr. (President)

Arthur Wirtz, Jr. (Vice President)

James D. Norris, Jr. (Chairman)

Tommy Ivan (General Manager)

Nick Garen (Trainer)

Walter Humeniuk (Trainer)

Below: a photo of the 1961 Blackhawks' names as they appear on the Stanley Cup.