Shore, "Eddie" (Edward W.)
Hockey
b. Nov. 25, 1902, St. Qu-Appelle-Cupar, SAS
d. March 16, 1985
Hammy Moore, the long-time trainer for the Boston Bruins, summed up Shore: "He was the only player I ever saw who had the whole arena standing every time he rushed down the ice. You see, when Shore carried the puck you were always sure something would happen. He would either end up bashing somebody, get into a fight or score a goal."
A defenseman, Shore joined the Bruins in 1929 and the team all of a sudden had fans. They came to watch Shore, both for his brilliant offensive rushes and his tough, often brutal defensive style.
In 1933, Shore was checked hard into the boards by King Clancy of the Toronto Maple Leafs. After picking himself up, he skated up to Toronto's Ace Bailey from behind, evidently thinking he was the culprit. Shore charged into Bailey, flipping him into the air. Bailey landed on his head, suffered a skull fracture, and nearly died.
The NHL suspended Shore for the attack, in part to protect him from retaliation by other players or fans, but the suspension was soon lifted. Two months later, an all-star game was played to raise money for Bailey's hospital bills. Before the game, Shore and Bailey met on the ice and embraced one another.
Shore took a devil-may-care attitude about violence in hockey, even when it was directed at him. He once lay unconscious for fourteen minutes after the entire Montreal Maroon team ganged up on him. He had three broken teeth, two black eyes, a broken nose, and several gashes on his face. After he regained consciousness, he shrugged and told his teammates, "This is all part of hockey," and he played in the next game.
After his retirement, he told an interviewer, "The accent is on speed now. I guess it's better for the fans, but I liked it better in the old days. Then it was pretty much a fifty-fifty proposition. You socked the other guy and other guy socked you."
Shore played with the Bruins through 1938/39, then bought a minor-league team, the Springfield, MA, Indians. He retired to become Springfield's player-coach after spending the 1939/40 season with Boston and the New York Americans.
He won the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable player in 1933, 1935, 1936, and 1938. Only Wayne Gretzky and Gordie Howe won it more than four times. In 553 regular season games, Shore scored 284 points on 105 goals and 179 assists. He added 6 goals and 13 assists for 19 points in 55 playoff games.