THE DUKE OF HOCKEY

 

On April 9, 2021, the world mourned the death of Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh, at Windsor Castle in England.

In October 1951, on an official visit to Canada, Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip, attended hockey games in Toronto and Montreal.

Their first hockey stop was in Toronto, where they watched an exhibition contest between the Maple Leafs and Chicago Black Hawks at Maple Leaf Gardens.

In a 2012 interview with the late Danny Lewicki, we discussed the Royal visit to the Gardens on October 13. "Of course, it was an exciting day for us, just to think she would be there," said the former Leaf forward. "It was a very memorable afternoon, no doubt about it."

After the exhibition, Conn Smythe, who sat with the Royal couple (Seats in box 50 were replaced with comfortable chairs and the box was decorated with a Union Jack), talked about their reaction to the tilt between the Leafs and Hawks. "They both enjoyed the game tremendously. That was apparent in the way Prince Philip roared with laughter at the upsetting bodychecks and the way the eyes of Princess Elizabeth glowed as the players shot by her at full speed."

As for the game in Montreal on October 29, 1951, the Canadiens-Rangers game was part of the regular season schedule for 1951-52. 

Montreal sportswriter, Dink Carroll of The Gazette, wrote, "Prince Philip appeared to enjoy the bodychecking. He burst into laughter when Eddie Pullman of the Rangers, after losing his stick, stepped into Ross Lowe and spilled him to the ice. He laughed again when big Butch Bouchard slammed Eddie Slowinski into the boards."

The Habs defeated the Rangers 6-1. The photo below shows Prince Philip and Princess Elizabeth taking in the action at The Forum.

The two games in Canada impressed Prince Philip so much, that he donated the Edinburgh Trophy to Canadian hockey in March 1954. It was to be presented to the winner of the Quebec Hockey League vs. Western Hockey League final. 

Canadian Press reported, "The trophy is a silver figure of a hockey player mounted on top of a silver globe with a map of North America raised on it. The globe is attached to a round, black ebony base bearing the Dominion coat of arms. On the opposite side of the base is an oblong plaque for inscription to be decided later on. Smaller plaques set around the base will carry names of the winning teams and the year they won it."

The first team to capture the Edinburgh Trophy were the Calgary Stampeders in 1954. They defeated the Quebec Aces, who represented the QHL. The above photo shows the presentation to the victors.

In the final competition for the Edinburgh Trophy, in 1957, the Quebec Aces faced the Brandon Regals. In game 6, Bob Beckett scored the game-winning goal to give his team the championship.