Riley Hern

William Milton "Riley" Hern (December 5, 1878 – June 24, 1929) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He was the first professional goaltender to play on a Stanley Cup-winning team.[1]

Riley Hern
Hockey Hall of Fame, 1963
Hern in 1910
Born (1878-12-05)December 5, 1878
St. Marys, Ontario, Canada
Died June 24, 1929(1929-06-24) (aged 50)
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Height 5 ft 9 in (175 cm)
Weight 170 lb (77 kg; 12 st 2 lb)
Position Goaltender
Caught Left
Played for Pittsburgh Keystones (WPHL)
Portage Lakes (IPHL)
Montreal Wanderers (ECAHA/NHA)
Playing career 1898–1911

Hern began playing ice hockey at an early age, playing for school teams in St. Marys and Stratford, playing both as a goaltender and a forward.[2] Hern played for Stratford Legionnaires from 1898 to 1901.[3]

He began his professional career with the Pittsburgh Keystones of the Western Pennsylvania Hockey League (WPHL) during the 1901–02 season. In his first season, Hern led the league in victories, with nine in 14 games. Hern, as a result, was named to the WPHL All-Star Team. However, in the next season, he led the league in losses, losing 10 out of 11 games. In the 1904–05 season, Hern played with the Portage Lakes Hockey Club of the International Professional Hockey League (IPHL). He played, in total, three seasons with Portage Lakes.[4]

In the 1906–07 season, Hern joined the Montreal Wanderers of the Eastern Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (ECAHA). Hern posted a 10–0 regular season record in his first season with the Wanderers.[3] The Wanderers won the Stanley Cup four times, three straight seasons, from 1906 to 1908, and in 1910. The Wanderers also successfully defended the Cup in six out of seven challenges in that time span. The only challenge they lost was against the Kenora Thistles in January 1907; the Wanderers reclaimed the Cup in their own successful challenge two months later.

Hern retired from playing professional ice hockey in 1911, at the age of 30. Hern went on to become a successful businessman, owning a haberdashery in Montreal. He was involved in organizing various ice hockey leagues and printing schedules.[5] Hern also served as an NHL referee and a goal judge.[2][5]

Hern died at Ross Memorial Pavilion of a heart ailment that had been ailing him for six weeks on June 24, 1929. He was inducted posthumously into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1963.[6]

Hern's grandson is Allan F. Nicholls, who played the role of Charlestown Chiefs captain Johnny Upton in the 1977 film Slap Shot.

Riley Hern is regarded by some as being among the best goaltenders of all time, coming in at 25th overall according to veteran hockey writers Kevin Allen and Bob Duff in their 2002 book Without Fear: Hockey's 50 Greatest Goaltenders.

Career statistics

Regular season
Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA
1901–02 Pittsburgh Keystones WPHL 19 14 5 0 780 40 2 3.08
1902–03 Pittsburgh Keystones WPHL 12 1 10 0 460 61 0 7.96
1903–04 Portage Lakes Exhib. 14 13 1 0 840 21 4 1.50
1903–04 Portage Lakes W-S 2 2 0 0 120 6 0 3.00
1904–05 Portage Lakes IPHL 24 15 7 2 1374 81 2 3.54
1905–06 Portage Lakes IPHL 20 15 5 0 1215 70 1 3.46
1906–07 Montreal Wanderers ECAHA 10 10 0 0 610 39 0 3.84
1907–08 Montreal Wanderers ECAHA 10 8 2 0 610 52 0 5.11
1908–09 Montreal Wanderers ECHA 12 9 3 0 728 61 0 5.03
1909–10 Montreal Wanderers NHA 13 12 1 0 780 47 1 3.62
1910–11 Montreal Wanderers NHA 16 7 9 0 973 88 0 5.43
ECAHA/ECHA totals 32 27 5 0 1948 152 0 4.68
NHA totals 29 19 10 0 1753 135 1 4.62

Playoffs
Season Team League GP W L T MIN GA SO GAA
1901–02 Pittsburgh Keystones WPHL 1 1 0 0 40 1 1 1.50
1906–07 Montreal Wanderers St-Cup 6 3 3 0 360 25 0 4.17
1907–08 Montreal Wanderers St-Cup 5 5 0 0 300 16 0 3.20
1908–09 Montreal Wanderers St-Cup 2 1 1 0 120 10 0 5.00
1909–10 Montreal Wanderers St-Cup 1 1 0 0 60 3 0 3.00
St-Cup totals 14 10 4 0 840 54 0 3.86
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References
  • Hockey Hall of Fame (2003). Honoured Members: Hockey Hall of Fame. Bolton, Ontario: Fenn Publishing. ISBN 1-55168-239-7.CS1 maint: ref=harv (link)
  1. Kevin Allen and Bob Duff (2002). Without Fear: Hockey's 50 greatest goaltenders. Chicago: Triumph Books. p. 107. ISBN 1-57243-484-8.
  2. "Riley Hern — Biography". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2008-07-24.
  3. Kevin Allen and Bob Duff (2002). Without Fear: Hockey's 50 greatest goaltenders. Chicago: Triumph Books. p. 108. ISBN 1-57243-484-8.
  4. "Riley Hern — Career statistics". Hockey Hall of Fame. Retrieved 2008-07-24.
  5. Kevin Allen and Bob Duff (2002). Without Fear: Hockey's 50 greatest goaltenders. Chicago: Triumph Books. p. 109. ISBN 1-57243-484-8.
  6. Hockey Hall of Fame 2003, p. 56.
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