Jack Stewart (ice hockey)

Stewart played junior hockey with the Portage Terriers of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League in 1935–36 and 1936–37, where he was discovered by a Winnipeg businessman who suggested that James Norris, owner of the Detroit Red Wings, sign him. He was sent to play his first season of professional hockey for the team's minor league affiliate, the Pittsburgh Hornets of the International-American Hockey League (IAHL). He recorded one assist in 48 games in the 1937–38 season. Partway through his second season with the Hornets, the Red Wings recalled Stewart as part of a bid to shake up their team which had been struggling. He appeared in 32 games in his NHL rookie season of 1938–39, and immediately established himself as a physical presence. In his fifth season, 1942–43, Stewart was named to the NHL first All-Star team on defence and helped lead the Red Wings to the NHL regular season title. Stewart scored one goal, added two assists and had 35 penalty minutes in ten playoff games. Upon his return to the NHL, Stewart was paired up with Bill Quackenbush on the Red Wings defence. Following the championship, the Red Wings dealt Stewart to the Chicago Black Hawks as part of a nine-player trade that was, at the time, the largest in NHL history. Stewart, Harry Lumley, Al Dewsbury, Pete Babando and Don Morrison were sent to Chicago in exchange for Metro Prystai, Bob Goldham, Gaye Stewart and Jim Henry. Doctors diagnosed his injury as a ruptured disc and urged him to retire. He was told following the injury that he was lucky he could still walk without a cane and not to risk further damage on the ice. Instead, Stewart had the disc removed and after completing what Black Hawks' team doctors described as a "most remarkable" recovery, he opted to continue his career and signed with Chicago for the 1951–52 season. Early in the season, Stewart suffered a minor skull fracture after colliding with teammate Clare Martin, an injury that forced him out of the lineup for several weeks. Stewart spent two weeks in hospital, after which he announced his retirement, but he again shocked observers by returning to the ice. However, by mid February 1952, his injuries led Stewart to ask the Black Hawks for his release so that he could seek a minor league coaching position. ==Coaching career==

Stewart was considered as coach of the New Westminster Royals of the Pacific Coast Hockey League, but chose to take the reins of the senior A Chatham Maroons in the Ontario Hockey Association. a job that went instead to Rudy Pilous. Stewart moved into the professional ranks in 1961, taking over as the coach of Chicago's Eastern Professional Hockey League affiliate, the Sault Thunderbirds. One year later, Stewart moved to the Pittsburgh Hornets, an American Hockey League affiliate of the Detroit Red Wings. After winning only 16 games in 1962–63, Stewart retired after he was dismissed by the Hornets. ==Playing style==

During his career, Stewart was regarded as one of the hardest bodycheckers in the National Hockey League. Regarded as a good skater, he was able to clear the puck out of his zone and rarely turned it over to the other team. A charter member of the Detroit Red Wings Hall of Fame in 1944, Stewart was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1964. He was named to the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame's First All-Century Team in 2000. ==Personal life==

Stewart was born May 6, 1917, in Pilot Mound, Manitoba, where he learned to play hockey on the community's outdoor rinks. In the off-seasons, he returned to his family farm, work which was said to have given him the strength he displayed in the NHL. Stewart was actively involved in the sport from the time he retired as a player. He worked as a race timer and held various judging roles during the summers. == Career statistics ==

Regular season and playoffs ==Awards and honours==