GAYE STEWART

THE LAST LEAF BEFORE MATTHEWS TO LEAD THE NHL IN GOALS SCORED

As the 2020-21 National Hockey League season comes to a close this afternoon (Yes, in the midst of the playoffs, which are already underway), with Calgary hosting Vancouver, Auston Matthews of the Toronto Maple Leafs can officially being crowned the winner of the Rocket Richard Trophy. The award is given each year to the player leading the NHL in goals scored. Matthews scored 41 goals in 52 games.

Prior to Matthews, the last Maple Leaf to lead the league in goals scored was Gaye Stewart, who was named the winner of the Calder Trophy as the NHL's top rookie in 1943. 

After the 1942-43 season, Stewart joined the Canadian Navy. In his final year of service in 1945, Stewart was stationed at the Cornwallis base in Nova Scotia. At Cornwallis, he skated for the navy hockey team.

One of his teammates on Cornwallis Navy, was fellow Toronto Maple Leaf defenceman, Bob Goldham. Both Stewart and Goldham, helped the Leafs capture the Stanley Cup in 1942. 

Stewart, who stood at 5'11" and weighed 175 pounds, skated on the left wing for the Maple Leafs. 

In my book-Bob Goldham: Outside the Goal Crease-the scene is set for their return to the Maple Leafs from Cornwallis for the 1945-46 NHL season, the year Stewart became the last Leaf to lead the league in goals scored.

" ... Gaye Stewart became the discharge officer at Cornwallis, and all discharge notices came through his office," Goldham noted. Following a 14-day leave, Goldham ventured back to the base. "I had to go back to Cornwallis and bug Gaye for about another month before my papers came through."

Goldham's last day of service was on September 13, 1945. "At least I had a week or so before reporting to Leaf training camp at Owen Sound, Ontario," Goldham remembered. "Poor old Gaye Stewart turned up there in his navy uniform as he hadn't time to buy civilian clothes. I guess he was worried he wasn't going to get out in time, but he eventually made it."

The Toronto Maple Leafs opened their 1945-46 regular season  on October 27, 1945, at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. They tied the Boston Bruins 1-1, with Bob Davidson getting the lone Toronto tally.

During the month of November, Stewart failed to score in only two games of their 12 scheduled games. On November 3, he went scoreless against the New York Rangers in a 4-1 loss at MLG. On November 14, he was shutout by Montreal. Overall, he produced 13 goals in 12 games. This included a 4 goal performance against the Detroit Red Wings at home on November 17. 

Although the Leafs lost the game 6-5, Stewart was praised in the press for his work:

Stewart was flying all night. If he had worn roller skates, he could have used the back boards to telling effect, swooping down from above on goalkeeper Harry Lumley, as it were. The Fort William flash scored once in the second period and three times in the third. He has now scored 10 times in 10 games. His second goal was a beauty. Taking a rink-wide pass from Mel Hill, Stewart swept in from the left, made Lumley move, then shot.

In a newspaper article on November 20, Stewart told the reporter, "I don't know how I get 'em. Maybe I get more chances than the other fellows." Obviously, Stewart wasn't about to blow his own horn, but his response didn't stop his questioner from providing his readers an explanation of Stewart's scoring exploits. "To observers, he scores goals because he fast, because he fights his way in around the nets and because he's always trying to blast the puck home."

On December 1, Stewart began the month with a goal against the Chicago Black Hawks at the Gardens. In a games played-goals scored ratio, it was his lest productive month. In 12 games, he connected for 6 goals. In this stretch, Stewart recorded one multi-goal game. On December 22, he scored two goals against the New York Rangers.

As the calendar turned to 1946, Stewart and the Maple Leafs had 8 scheduled contests in January. The games were equally split between home and away. In his first 3 outings, Stewart was kept at bay twice by Chicago and once by Montreal. In the remaining 5 games, he scored against Detroit, New York, twice against the Red Wing, was blanked by Boston, and ended the month with a goal in a 6-5 victory over the Black Hawks.

Come February, Stewart had potted 24 goals in 33 games. With 20 goals being the benchmark for elite scorers, Stewart had exceeded expectations, and was ready to add to his total. In a period of 9 games, he hit the twine on 6 occasions. On February 23, Stewart notched his second hat trick of the season in a 7-2 victory over Boston. 

In the final month of the schedule, Stewart finished strong. Between March 2 and March 17, the final game for the Leafs, he hit the mark in 7 of 8 games. Stewart left the best for last, as he ended the year with his third three-goal game on Saint Patrick's Day 1946. 

When the book was closed on the 1945-46 campaign, it showed Gaye Stewart scored 37 goals in 50 games  and lead the NHL in goals scored. On home ice at Maple Leaf Gardens, he netted 21 goals. On the road, he scored 16 goals. A breakdown reveals Stewart scored 1 goal against Montreal, 7 against Boston, New York and Chicago, and his biggest victim was Detroit with 15 goals.

Seventy-five years later, Gaye Stewart's accomplishment as the last Leaf to hold the title for leading the NHL in goals scored, is passed to Auston Matthews.