TheDevilMadeMe
Registered User
More on Ching Johnson via hfboards poster Canadiens Fan
Seems pinning a forward against the boards was commonplace in the era, rarely called a penalty, and frustrated the hell out of the opposition. And Ching Johnson was the master of this tactic.
Here's a hilarious anecdote about Ching Johnson and Eddie Shore. Seems like Shore was quite the diver (something I think I read before)
Globe and Mail said:A moment later Ching Johnson stopped Bruneteau's drive ... Ching Johnson carried the puck the length of the ice ... Ching Johnson got in to stop Mackie's drive from right wing on a rush with Wally Kilrea.
All teams ... get away with as much interference as possible and, naturally, some of them are more proficent than others. Occasionally erring players are penalized and games are lost during their absence but even under these conditions it has been profitable to adhere to the nuisance. We think that the Ranger defensemen have always been past masters in this art, with good natured Ching Johnson as the ace performer.
Most of this interference occurs near the boards, preferably at the end of the ice surface, and is overlooked ninety percent of the time - at least by the officials. Defensemen will hold or shove attackers into the boards, knowing that as a general rule, the worst they can get out of it is a face-off in their own zone. We remember one night in Madison Square Garden when Johnson held the late Howie Morenz helpless against the side of the rink. The whistle roared to signify a penalty but in that fraction of a second Morenz hit his big tormentor on the top of his nearly bald head. Ching was chased as well as hurt, but he thought that was all right when Morenz received a major. We mention this incident as only one of the many numerous ones in the career of Ching Johnson.
Seems pinning a forward against the boards was commonplace in the era, rarely called a penalty, and frustrated the hell out of the opposition. And Ching Johnson was the master of this tactic.
Here's a hilarious anecdote about Ching Johnson and Eddie Shore. Seems like Shore was quite the diver (something I think I read before)
Globe and Mail said:There is much joy around Madison Square Garden today. Ching Johnson, the great Ranger defenseman, has signed a contract and will chase the puck again while his supporters cheer and his enemies jeer... There is not a better natured hockeyist in existence than the amaible Ching but he has an unusual way of checking which confounds his critics and upsets his opponents. "Elbows" Harry Broadbent never had anything on Johnson the latter being most playful in the art of using his arms to ward off attackers. But "it's all fun" as far as Johnson is concerned and even opposing players are among his most loyal admirers. [Johnson can take the bumps as well as deliver them, and he stepped into many terrific jolts, most of them engineered by the Bruins at Boston, where they would willingly play $10,000 to keep Johnson out of hockey. The latter invariably has selected Eddie Shore as his body-checking victim, and the moans and groans of disapproval in the Hub have been something out of the ordinary. Shore is a great player. He is colorful. In Boston he is an idol and he knows how to play to the gallery. His specialty is falling to the ice, as if in tremendous pain. So Johnson, an obliging sort of player, has helped along the hero act by upsetting Shore at every opportunity. May the good work continue.
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