Sprague Cleghorn
Tough defenceman known for violent play and offensive skill.
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Sprague Cleghorn was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman from Westmount, Quebec, whose career spanned 17 seasons from 1911 to 1929. He played for the Renfrew Creamery Kings and Montreal Wanderers in the National Hockey Association (NHA), and later for the Ottawa Senators, Montreal Canadiens, and Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League (NHL). Cleghorn won the Stanley Cup three times: with the Senators in 1920 and 1921, and with the Canadiens in 1924. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1958.
Playing style
Known as "Peg" and "The Big Train," Cleghorn was a tough, physical defenceman with a reputation for violent play. He was twice charged with assault for on-ice incidents, and there were efforts to have him banned from the NHL. His aggressive style made him an effective defender, but he also used his offensive skills to become one of hockey’s first offensive defencemen. When he retired, his 169 career goals ranked second among defencemen in professional hockey history, behind only Harry Cameron’s 173.
Early playing career
Cleghorn was born in Montreal’s Westmount area in 1890 to William John and Harriet Isabella Cleghorn. He attended Westmount Academy and played junior and amateur hockey for local teams until 1909. In the 1909–10 season, he played center forward for the New York Wanderers of the American Amateur Hockey League, scoring seven goals in eight games.
Scouts from the Renfrew Creamery Kings noticed him, and he signed with the team for the 1910–11 NHA season alongside his brother Odie. That season, he played 12 games, scored five goals, and accumulated 27 penalty minutes. Coach Alf Smith moved him from winger to defence, where his habit of rushing the puck made him an offensive threat.
The Cleghorn brothers joined the Montreal Wanderers in 1911–12 and spent six seasons there. Sprague built a reputation as a fierce competitor with a short temper.
He often carried the puck the length of the ice to create scoring chances: in 1913, he scored five goals in a game against the Toronto Ontarios, and in 1914–15, he led the NHA with 12 assists and added 21 goals. He frequently retaliated violently against opponents he felt were targeting his teammates, especially Odie. In 1912, he struck Newsy Lalonde in the back of the head after Lalonde cross-checked Odie, earning a fine and suspension.
Career statistics and honours
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1908–09 | Montreal Canadian Rubber | MCHL | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1909–10 | New York Wanderers | AAHL | 8 | 7 | 0 | 7 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1910–11 | Renfrew Creamery Kings | NHA | 12 | 5 | 0 | 5 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 18 | 9 | 0 | 9 | 40 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1911–12 | NHA All-Stars | Exh. | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 19 | 12 | 0 | 12 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1912–13 | NHA All-Stars | Exh. | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1913–14 | Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 20 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1914–15 | Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 19 | 21 | 12 | 33 | 51 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 |
| 1915–16 | Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 8 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1916–17 | Montreal Wanderers | NHA | 19 | 16 | 9 | 25 | 62 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1918–19 | Ottawa Senators | 18 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 27 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 9 | |
| 1919–20 | Ottawa Senators | NHL | 21 | 16 | 5 | 21 | 85 | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1919–20 | Ottawa Senators | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | |
| 1920–21 | NHL | 13 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 31 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1920–21 | Ottawa Senators | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 38 |
| 1921–22 | NHL | 24 | 17 | 9 | 26 | 80 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1922–23 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 24 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 34 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 1923–24 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 23 | 8 | 4 | 12 | 45 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1923–24 | Montreal Canadiens | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 1924–25 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 27 | 8 | 10 | 18 | 89 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 |
| 1924–25 | Montreal Canadiens | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| 1925–26 | NHL | 28 | 6 | 5 | 11 | 49 | — | — | — | — | — | |
| 1926–27 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 44 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 84 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 |
| Boston Bruins | NHL | 37 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | |
| 1928–29 | Newark Bulldogs | Can-Am | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — |
| NHA totals | 115 | 84 | 33 | 117 | 265 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | ||
| NHL totals | 259 | 83 | 55 | 138 | 538 | 21 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 26 | ||
| St-Cup totals | — | — | — | — | — | 18 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 46 | ||
Coaching career
| Team | Year | Regular season | Postseason | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | Pts | Division rank | Result | ||
| Montreal Maroons | 1931–32 | 48 | 19 | 22 | 7 | 45 | 3rd in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
Awards and honours
Career
| Award | Year | Ref. |
|---|---|---|
| 1919–20, 1920–21 / 1923–24 |
Tables copied from the source article, totals included as the source gives them: Wikipedia: Sprague Cleghorn (CC BY-SA 4.0). Wide tables scroll sideways.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Sprague Cleghorn (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Statistics, medals and awards: the tables of the source article.
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