Calder Trophy Seasons Revisited: Gus Bodnar’s 1943-44 Season – Hockey Writers – Toronto Maple Leafs

Perhaps one of the most surprising facts about the NHL’s Calder Trophy for the league’s top rookie happened after the 1943-44 season. For the second straight season, following Gaye Stewart’s Calder-worthy season in 1942-43, the Fort William, Ontario native took home honors as the league’s top rookie.

Born in Fort William, Gus Bodnar began his hockey career with the Fort William Rangers of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League, playing three seasons and competing in two Memorial Cups. It was after leading the TBJHL in points in the 1942-43 season that he was drafted into the NHL by the Toronto Maple Leafs, a move that would lead to a career spanning more than a decade with some hardware to show for Bodnar.

More remarkable than being the second consecutive form of Fort William to win the Calder Trophy, Bodnar began his career in the NHL with a record-setting minute – to be broken. With that, here’s a look back at Bodnar’s rookie season.

Gus Bodnar’s Record-Setting Start in His NHL Career

Bodnar began the 1943-44 season with the Maple Leafs against the New York Rangers in Toronto on October 30, 1943. It took the 20-year-old just 15 seconds to score his first NHL goal, setting a league record that has never been touched.

Bodnar’s first playoff game ended with the rookie scoring two goals and one assist, helping the Maple Leafs to a 5-2 victory. Since then, the young man forward has not stopped. He finished the season with 13 multi-point games, including five with four or more points and a three-game streak during the season in which he had 10 points.

He finished the season with 22 goals and 62 points in 50 games, finishing 10th in the NHL in scoring and second on the Maple Leafs behind only Lorne Carr’s 74 points. He edged Montreal’s Bill Durnan in Calder Trophy voting, even with Durnan’s 38-5-7 record. Bodnar was hit in the 1944 playoffs in five games as the Canadiens eliminated the Maple Leafs.

But that didn’t stop Bodnar from collecting top rookie hardware that season.

Gus Bodnar’s Success Continued Beyond His Rookie Season

Bodnar played four seasons with the Maple Leafs with 48 goals and 154 points in 187 regular season games. His tenure with the Maple Leafs included two Stanley Cups, in 1944-45 and again in 1946-47. On November 2, 1947, Bodnar was traded to the Chicago Black Hawks for seven seasons.

He regained his scoring touch in Chicago, reaching the All-Star Game in 1951. But on February 16, 1954, the Black Hawks traded Bodnar to the Boston Bruins where he ended his NHL career one season later. He played his final game in the 1954–55 season, finishing with 142 points and 397 points in 667 regular season games over 12 seasons.

He had seven points in 32 playoff games, but two Stanley Cups to show for it.

Bodnar’s Legacy Not About Calder Trophy Win

Along with his hardware, Bodnar’s name is etched in the NHL record books just above his first career goal. On March 23, 1952, with the Black Hawks, Bodnar recorded another record for the fastest three assists in NHL history, recording three assists in 21 seconds. The record came with three goals by teammate Bill Mosienko, who also set the record at the time for the fastest hat trick in NHL history – again, 21 seconds.

It’s also worth noting that until Mitch Marner broke the rookie assists record in 2017 with 42 assists, Bodnar held that record with 40 assists back in 1943-44.

After retiring, Bodnar continued to coach in the Bruins system before jumping to the Toronto Marlboros and other leagues such as the WHL (Salt Lake Golden Eagles) and the OHA (Oshawa Generals). He won a Memorial Trophy as head coach with the Marlboros in 1966-67 and in 1971-72 was named OHA Coach of the Year with the Generals.

He was inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1983 and the Oshawa Sports Hall of Fame in 1995. Although his name may not have been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, Bodnar made it to the Calder Trophy and posted two NHL records in his career.