Cecil Mordecai Hart (November 28, 1883 – July 16, 1940) was a head coach and general manager of the Montreal Canadiens in the National Hockey League.
Biography
Cecil Hart was Jewish, a direct descendant of Aaron Hart who was Canada's first Jewish settler,[1] and was born in Bedford, Quebec.
During the early 1910s Hart was a player and manager with the Montreal Stars of the Montreal City Hockey League, where he was a teammate of future NHL referee Cooper Smeaton.
Hart helped lead the Montreal Canadiens to three Stanley Cups, in 1924, 1930, and 1931. He was fired after a dispute with Canadiens' owner Léo Dandurand after leading the Canadiens to first place in the 1931–32 season, but after Dandurand and Joseph Cattarinich sold the Canadiens to Ernest Savard and Maurice Forget of the Canadian Arena Company, the Canadiens hit bottom in 1935–36.
To rebuild the team, they rehired Hart in 1936–37, but Hart would only come back if Howie Morenz did. A deal was arranged and with Morenz back, and despite the death of Morenz during the season, Hart managed to lead the Canadiens to first place. After that, the team eroded as age caught up with some key players. When the Canadiens were reclining near the cellar in 1938–39, Cecil resigned as coach and manager.[2] Only eighteen other people have won multiple Stanley Cups besides Hart as a head coach, although he is not currently inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame despite being eligible. [3]
Hart later became vice president and treasurer of the Quebec, Ontario and Vermont Baseball League also before his untimely death.
Hart died after a lengthy illness in July 1940. Hart's father, David Hart, donated the Hart Memorial Trophy in 1923. Hart was inducted into the International Jewish Sports Hall of Fame in 1992.
NHL coaching record
| Team | Year | Regular season | Post season | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| G | W | L | T | Pts | Division rank | Result | ||
| Montreal Maroons | 1924–25 | 19 | 8 | 9 | 2 | 18 | (Fired) | |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1926–27 | 44 | 28 | 14 | 2 | 58 | 2nd in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1927–28 | 44 | 26 | 11 | 7 | 59 | 1st in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1928–29 | 44 | 22 | 7 | 15 | 59 | 1st in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1929–30 | 44 | 21 | 14 | 9 | 51 | 2nd in Canadian | Won Stanley Cup |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1930–31 | 44 | 26 | 10 | 8 | 60 | 1st in Canadian | Won Stanley Cup |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1931–32 | 48 | 25 | 16 | 7 | 57 | 1st in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1936–37 | 48 | 24 | 18 | 6 | 54 | 1st in Canadian | Lost in semi-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1937–38 | 48 | 18 | 17 | 13 | 49 | 3rd in Canadian | Lost in quarter-finals |
| Montreal Canadiens | 1938–39 | 30 | 6 | 18 | 6 | (18) | 6th in NHL | (Fired) |
| NHL Total | 413 | 204 | 134 | 73 | ||||
References
- ^ "Jews In Sports". jewsinsports.org. Archived from the original on 2016-03-04. Retrieved 2018-01-16.
- ^ "Cecil Hart - Bio, pictures, stats and more - Historical Website of the Montreal Canadiens". canadiens.com. Archived from the original on 2017-09-09. Retrieved 2013-02-04.
- ^ "NHL Coach Register".
This page was last edited on 12 December 2023, at 10:32