Ed Sandford

Ed Sandford
Sandford at St. Michaels, c. 1947
Born (1928-08-20)August 20, 1928
New Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Died October 25, 2023(2023-10-25) (aged 95)
Winchester, Massachusetts, U.S.
Height 6 ft 1 in (185 cm)
Weight 180 lb (82 kg; 12 st 12 lb)
Position Left wing
Shot Right
Played for Boston Bruins
Chicago Black Hawks
Detroit Red Wings
Playing career 1946–1956

Edward Michael Sandford (August 20, 1928 – October 25, 2023) was a Canadian professional ice hockey forward. He played most of his professional career for the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League.

Playing career

Sandford played junior hockey with the St. Michael's Majors and led the team to the Memorial Cup playoffs in 1945-46 and 1946-77. In the latter season, Sandford led the Ontario Hockey Association with 67 points in 27 games, and scored 24 points in nine OHA playoff games and 28 points in ten Memorial Cup games, en route to St. Michael's third Memorial Cup title. He was awarded the Red Tilson Trophy as the OHA's most valuable player.

Sandford was signed by the Boston Bruins in 1947. He appeared in the NHL All-Star Game in five consecutive seasons from 1951 to 1955. In 1952-53 he led all scorers in the playoffs with eight goals and eleven points. His best season was 1953-54, when he scored 16 goals and 31 assists for 47 points and finished in the top ten in league scoring. The next season, he succeeded the retiring Milt Schmidt as Bruins' captain.

After eight seasons with the Bruins, Sandford was traded in 1955 in a nine-player deal — the largest in NHL history to that date — to the Detroit Red Wings. After four games for Detroit, the Wings dealt him to the Chicago Black Hawks, where he finished the season before retiring. He scored 106 goals and 145 assists for 251 points in 503 games and served 355 minutes in penalties.

Retirement

For many years after his playing days, Sandford served in various off-ice capacities for the Bruins, as a goal judge, official scorer, and supervisor of off-ice officials. He became a curling enthusiast[1] and was a member of the Bruins' first alumni team.[2] In 2001, the Society for International Hockey Research, in collaboration with the Hockey Hall of Fame and The Hockey News, selected a list of retroactive Conn Smythe Trophy winners for the NHL playoff MVP before the trophy was officially presented in 1965, and selected Sandford for the 1953 playoffs.

Sandford died on October 25, 2023, at the age of 95.[3][4][5]

Career statistics

    Regular season   Playoffs
Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
1943–44 St. Michael's Buzzers Big-10 Jr. B 3 1 0 1 0 — — — — —
1944–45 St. Michael's Buzzers Big-10 Jr. B 11 12 11 23 9 11 10 14 24 8
1945–46 Toronto St. Michael's Majors OHA-Jr. 26 10 9 19 28 11 5 5 10 12
1946–47 Toronto St. Michael's Majors OHA-Jr. 27 30 37 67 38 9 12 12 24 31
1946–47 Toronto St. Michael's Majors M-Cup — — — — — 10 11 17 28 26
1947–48 Boston Bruins NHL 59 10 15 25 25 5 1 0 1 0
1948–49 Boston Bruins NHL 56 16 20 36 57 5 1 3 4 2
1949–50 Boston Bruins NHL 19 1 4 5 6 — — — — —
1950–51 Boston Bruins NHL 51 10 13 23 33 6 0 1 1 4
1951–52 Boston Bruins NHL 65 13 12 25 54 7 2 2 4 0
1952–53 Boston Olympics EAHL 2 1 0 1 0 — — — — —
1952–53 Boston Bruins NHL 61 14 21 35 44 11 8 3 11 11
1953–54 Boston Bruins NHL 70 16 31 47 42 3 0 1 1 4
1954–55 Boston Bruins NHL 60 14 20 34 38 5 1 1 2 6
1955–56 Detroit Red Wings NHL 4 0 0 0 0 — — — — —
1955–56 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 57 12 9 21 56 — — — — —
NHL totals 502 106 145 251 355 42 13 11 24 27

References

  1. ^ "Post-Olympic curling boom in full effect - Winter Olympics- nbcsports.msnbc.com". October 15, 2008. Archived from the original on 2008-10-15.
  2. ^ http://www.thecrimson.com/article.aspx?ref=354382 [bare URL]
  3. ^ Bruins Oldest Living Captain Ed Sandford Passes Away At 95
  4. ^ "Bruins notes: James van Riemsdyk has been a bargain so far". Boston Herald. 26 October 2023. Retrieved 26 October 2023.
  5. ^ "Edward Sandford Obituary". Legacy. Retrieved 27 October 2023.
Preceded by Boston Bruins captain
1954–55 		Succeeded by