MADAME PRESIDENT

MARGUERITE NORRIS AND THE METRO PRYSTAI TRADE

The appointment of Kim Ng as the GM of the baseball Florida Marlins, made me think of Marguerite Norris. Back in 1952, after the passing of her father, Detroit Red Wings' owner, James Norris, she was named president of the club. She is pictured below with Wings' GM, Jack Adams.

To think that Miss Norris was just a figure-head when it came to making decisions on the hockey front, would be a huge mistake. For the most part, she let Adams conduct his duties with no interference, but that wasn't the case when Detroit forward, Metro Prystai, was traded to the Chicago Black Hawks on November 9, 1954. 

The transaction was carried out strictly by Norris and her brother, Bruce Norris. They were co-owners of the Red Wings. At the time, the Black Hawks were owned by their brother, James D. Norris, and held the distinction of being perennial cellar-dwellers in the NHL standings. Their continual failure to make the Stanley Cup playoffs and overall play, resulted in a dip in attendance and the impact empty seats had on the bottom-line. 

League-wide, the other NHL team's reached a consensus to assist Chicago by sending them players to help the on ice product. The decision for Detroit to participate in the aid package was solely made by Miss Norris and Bruce Norris. Also, it was their call to ship Metro Prystai to Chicago.

As Marshall Dann wrote in the Detroit Free Press, "Adams, who built up the Red Wings for 28 years and authored all previous trades, was told of this one only after it had been completed." 

By all accounts, Adams was against the deal and bit his tongue to avoid a rift with the Norris family.  

Speaking to the press, Norris revealed that consideration was also given to helping the Boston Bruins. Norris claimed the motion to supplement their rivals became a focus so "we might not have the responsibility of facing an eventual collapse of the league or drop to four teams."

At first, a "pool plan,"where the top team's provided a pool of players for Chicago and Boston to choose from, was discussed, but it didn't fly with the Red Wings. 

"We did not believe in the pool plan," Norris told Dann. "After five hours of arguing, my brother Bruce and I agreed to the compromise." 

The "compromise" involved Detroit sending Prystai to Chicago, Montreal sending Paul Masnick to Chicago, and the Toronto Maple Leafs sending Leo Boivin to Boston. These transactions all took place on November 9, 1954. Later, on December 10, 1954, the Canadiens increased their contribution when they sent Ed Litzenberger to the Black Hawks. Litzenberger went on to win the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie in 1955. 

There was little doubt Metro Prystai was the most talented of this group. Prystai, who was traded to Detroit from Chicago in the summer of 1950, was popular with his Red Wings' teammates and helped them capture the Stanley Cup in 1952 and 1954. 

You didn't need to be a hockey wizard to know this was a bad trade for Detroit. The loss of Prystai weakened the on-ice product and it reeked of nepotism. It was perceived as the Norris family going overboard to rescue one of their own. Why Prystai instead of someone else? Why weren't the other's offering front-liners to Chicago and Boston?

As expected, there was speculation the player's on Detroit's roster were not happy with losing Prystai. It irked them that Detroit gave up so much and were losing a major contributor. In return for Prystai, the Wings received Lorne Davis. The fact Prystai learnt of his departure through the press, didn't help the situation. And Marshall Dann didn't hold back any punches when he unleashed the following in the Free Press:

The whole affair was handled in such a fashion that it seemingly couldn't help but shake the confidence of the players in an organization they built into hockey's most dominant club. Not to mention the irritation or downright disgust for Detroit fans.

In reaction to losing their teammate, the Red Wing players held a closed meeting in their locker room at the Olympia. Also, Bruce Norris addressed the team. "We are not breaking faith with you players or the Detroit fans," said Norris. "It was a decision based on the welfare of the league and that means the welfare of you players, too." 

The behind-the-scenes reaction in the Detroit Red Wings' dressing room to the trade is explored in my book on Bob Goldham, who was part of the 1950 deal that sent him and Prystai, and several other players, to the Motor City.

"The one thing about the early part of the schedule that stands out was a near player strike by the Red Wings," noted Goldham of the 1954-55 season. "There was a move to strengthen the Black Hawks and some of the stronger teams were contributing players. The Red Wings sent Metro Prystai and because he was so popular with his teammates, they truly threatened to strike. Adams somehow got word of this, and as he wasn't talking to our captain, Ted Lindsay, he called me into his office and promised he would get Metro back the next year if we would carry on. Needless to say, he was good for his word, but it did cause a lot of bad feelings with some of the player's and our management."

On October 24, 1955, Adams fulfilled his promise to Goldham and his mates, when he reacquired Metro Prystai from the Black Hawks in exchange to Ed Sandford. 

Adams' insistence that his club move to get Prystai back had a ripple affect within the organization. A newspaper report indicated, "Some insiders claim that when Jack Adams insisted on bringing back Metro Prystai to the Red Wings, he brought about the top-level shift which saw Prexy Marguerite Norris change jobs with Bruce, her brother."

That news came after Miss Norris resigned as president of the Detroit Red Wings on October 27, 1955. In the shuffle, Marguerite became vice president and joined the board of directors. Bruce Norris moved up the organizational chart and replaced his sister as president. 

It wouldn't be a stretch to say that Marguerite Norris lost a power struggle with Jack Adams. One can only imagine how hard Adams fought to get Prystai back in the fold. For her part, Norris took a stand, but probably realized that losing Adams' skill and talent would harm the team. 

Madame President took one for the team, while her brother, Bruce, came out unscathed.