Johnny Bower

Lore & Background

Bower taught himself to play hockey using a branch as a stick and made goalie pads out of old mattresses. He lied about his age to enlist in the Canadian Army during World War II at age 15. He legally changed his surname from Kiszkan during his first year of professional hockey; various stories exist about the reason, including that it was to avoid discrimination or because sportswriters misspelled his name.

Reader's Guide

Bower won four Stanley Cups (1962, 1963, 1964, 1967) with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He won the Vezina Trophy in 1961 and shared it in 1965. He was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976. He remains the AHL career leader in wins with 359.

Did You Know?

• Bower's song "Honky (The Christmas) Goose" reached #31 on the CHUM Charts in December 1965.
• He became the oldest goaltender to play in a Stanley Cup playoff game on April 6, 1969, at age 44 years, 4 months, 29 days.
• After a city park near his house was renamed in his honour, he would routinely clean litter there and feed the birds.
• He was inducted into the AHL Hall of Fame as a member of its inaugural class in 2006.