Dave Ritchie (ice hockey)

Playing career

Ritchie began his amateur career with Montreal Westmount and later joined the Grand-Mère Hockey Club in the Interprovincial Amateur Hockey Union. Grand-Mère was one of the top amateur sides in the early to mid-1910s, and Ritchie was a key player. In 1913–14, the team played for the Allan Cup against the Regina Victorias, losing the final series 5 goals to 10 (4-6, 1-4). He turned professional in 1914, signing as a free agent with the Quebec Bulldogs of the National Hockey Association. Over three years with Quebec, he recorded 43 points in 56 games, with a career-high 17 goals in 1916–17, finishing seventh in league scoring. After the NHA dissolved and the Bulldogs suspended operations, Ritchie was selected by the Montreal Wanderers in the NHL Dispersal Draft. He scored the first goal in NHL history in the league's first game on December 19, 1917, between the Wanderers and the Toronto Arenas. On January 2, 1918, the Montreal Arena burned down, and the Wanderers withdrew from the league. Ritchie was then claimed by the Ottawa Senators, playing the remainder of the season with them. In the middle of the 1918–19 NHL season, he signed with the Toronto Arenas on January 17, 1919, and played in four of the club's remaining ten games. Before the 1919–20 season, he was transferred to the Quebec Bulldogs, who had resumed operations in the NHL. He played in all but one of the team's 24 games that season, scoring six goals. After the Bulldogs moved to Hamilton and became the Tigers, Ritchie was traded to the Montreal Canadiens. He played only six games in 1920–21 and quit to become a referee. He returned to the Canadiens in 1924 and played seven games over the next two seasons. Ritchie died in Montreal in 1973. He played for every team that played in the NHL from 1917 to 1920 and was the last active member of the Quebec Bulldogs.