#4326053 - 01/05/17 01:33 AM
The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
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Joined: Jan 2003
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462cid
Senior Member
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Senior Member
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USA
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In 1940, Milt Schmidt, Woodrow "Woody" Dumart, and Bobby Bauer finished the regular NHL season 1-2-3 in scoring.
They were remarkable in many ways. They were a "Line": a Centerman and two Wings that took regular shifts playing together as a unit. They grew up together and were best friends in Kitchener Ontario, in their childhood. They lived together when playing for the Boston Bruins. They won two Stanley Cups playing together. They were all of German descent. When WWII was in earnest, they all went to war together, serving Canada in the RCAF, in a bomber squadron.
In their last game before going off to war, the Bruins beat their arch-rivals, Montreal Canadiens, 8-1. The rivalry between Boston and Montreal was intense and the NHL of the time could be savage. After the game, the Canadiens players hoisted the Kraut Line to their shoulders, and took them off the ice in salute and in triumph. All three survived the war, and played pro hockey together again.
Today the last surviving member of the Kraut Line has passed. Milt Schmidt- who earned two Cup rings as a Bruins player and two as Bruins Management- left us today at 98 years old. Here in Boston he was an icon. To his countrymen he was a hero. To hockey fans he is a legend. To Boston Bruins fans he will always be Mr. Bruin, and they can still gaze at his retired number 15 hanging from the Garden rafters.
I hope somewhere, Milt Woody and Bobby are finally back out on the pond or the bay, just kids having fun again.
What kind of car is that? What does it matter? When I drive it, I'm Steve McQueen
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#4326063 - 01/05/17 01:56 AM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: May 2012
Posts: 3,178
Linebacker
LB
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LB
Senior Member
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YYZ
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Great story and sendoff 462cid! Now we need a script and a director for this movie. Epic.
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#4326103 - 01/05/17 07:57 AM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Apr 2015
Posts: 436
rezerekted
Member
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Member
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Canada
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I used to live in Kitchener Ontario as a kid and went to watch the Kitchener Rangers play a few times. Saw Walter Tkaczuk play for the Kitchener Rangers. http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/pdisplay.php?pid=5415The story I heard is that it was renamed Kitchener from Berlin as punishment for the war and not to show they were patriotic. There were/are lots of German people living in that area and the farm we lived on was owned by German Mennonites.
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#4326155 - 01/05/17 12:04 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: Linebacker]
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Joined: Apr 2001
Posts: 121,468
PanzerMeyer
Pro-Consul of Florida
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Pro-Consul of Florida
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Miami, FL USA
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Now we need a script and a director for this movie. Epic. The movie would do well in Canadian movie theaters and that's about it.
“Whoever fights monsters should see to it that in the process he does not become a monster. And if you gaze long enough into an abyss, the abyss will gaze back into you.”
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#4326171 - 01/05/17 01:47 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Dec 2000
Posts: 13,225
No105_Archie
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Veteran
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N. Atlantic east of Canada
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The story I heard is that it was renamed Kitchener from Berlin as punishment for the war and not to show they were patriotic. The city renamed itself in 1916; so there was no punishment involved. You have to remember that in 1916 Canada was a Dominion of the British Empire and all Canadians were still technically British citizens. British patriotism was quite intense and Field Marshall Kitchener was a hero.
Archie Smythe
carpe diem
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#4326244 - 01/05/17 06:51 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: PanzerMeyer]
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Joined: Aug 2000
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Hunedog
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Member
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Vancouver BC Canada
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Now we need a script and a director for this movie. Epic. The movie would do well in Canadian movie theatres and that's about it. Wasn't my cup of tea, but I'll bet that would have been said about the Mighty Ducks Movie of 1992 which all things considered did fairly well. 10 million to make grossing just over Fifty million in the USA alone. Not saying anyone is right or wrong because IMHO art whether it be a painting, a song a movie etc is a purely subjective opinion.
"It's not about the money Son, It's about rules. You see without rules we all might as well live in trees and fling our crap at each other." Red Foreman on That 70's Show
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#4326294 - 01/05/17 09:42 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,588
462cid
Senior Member
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Senior Member
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,588
USA
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Here's a really short clip of the film of the Krauts being carried off the ice. I was surprised to find anything on it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFv-i4V1a7gThere is in my opinion (and I'm from Boston!) a very good film from 2005 called 'The Rocket', about Maurice 'Rocket' Richard, man for which the NHL trophy for most goals scored in a season is named. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460505/It is a pro-French-Canadian film for sure, highlighting the prejudice a Qubcois like Richard encountered. But it is also a cool hockey flick. Then-current NHL players like Pascal Dupuis (who portrayed Milt Schmidt), Stphane Quintal, and Vincent Lecavalier (who played Jean Beliveau) are in the film. They skated and played the old-fashioned way for the film.
What kind of car is that? What does it matter? When I drive it, I'm Steve McQueen
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#4326316 - 01/05/17 11:42 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Mar 2001
Posts: 17,301
Nixer
Scaliwag and Survivor
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Scaliwag and Survivor
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Living with the Trees
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Great stuff. I started skating when I was 4 I think. Grew up outside of Boston, had a pond in the back yard and dad was a hardcore hockey and Bruins fan. I probably went to my first bruins game in the garden at age 6 or so. Hockey was really the only sport I ever excelled at, especially for my age group. I "think" I was playing in adult/older kids pick up and semi-league games by the time I was 9 or 10. Got to play in a couple of college scrimmages also, Holy Cross and Boston College I think before I was 12. I do remember being told I could skate backwards faster than most people could skate period. In the winter all I did was skate and shoot goals for hours and hours. My dad had built a couple of regulation nets and had me shooting thru rings in the corners. Coulda been a contender...... Packed up and moved to Florida at age 12 and hockey was history. I do remember my dad seriously not wanting to take the job because of my hockey. I blew it off and said lets go when he asked me. Great stories guys, thanks.
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#4326410 - 01/06/17 02:29 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 10,113
KraziKanuK
Veteran
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Veteran
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Ottawa Canada
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Nixer, NASA in the late '50s tried to recruit Dad and one of the perks to get him to go was a hockey rink. We didn't go. Us kids were disappointed.
The little community I grew up in had a hockey league. It was an outdoor rink so some years the schedule was short. There was 5 games per night Mon to Fri beginning at 6 o'clock. If it snowed we shoveled the ice. The penalty box was the snow bank - no one wanted to sit in the box as there was no protection from the wind unlike the players bench. There was a hut heated with a potbelly stove where we would put on our skates. There was many a night I walked home with semi frozen feet.
There was 12 players per team and every one got about equal ice time.
There was only 16 squadrons of RAF fighters that used 100 octane during the BoB. The Fw190A could not fly with the outer cannon removed. There was no Fw190A-8s flying with the JGs in 1945.
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#4326421 - 01/06/17 02:57 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Jan 2001
Posts: 10,113
KraziKanuK
Veteran
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Veteran
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Ottawa Canada
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This rink is almost 5 miles long. It would take you forever PM to skate it.
There was only 16 squadrons of RAF fighters that used 100 octane during the BoB. The Fw190A could not fly with the outer cannon removed. There was no Fw190A-8s flying with the JGs in 1945.
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#4326527 - 01/06/17 11:52 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Aug 2014
Posts: 107
FourSpeed
Member
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Member
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Phoenix, AZ
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Here's a really short clip of the film of the Krauts being carried off the ice. I was surprised to find anything on it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rFv-i4V1a7gThere is in my opinion (and I'm from Boston!) a very good film from 2005 called 'The Rocket', about Maurice 'Rocket' Richard, man for which the NHL trophy for most goals scored in a season is named. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0460505/It is a pro-French-Canadian film for sure, highlighting the prejudice a Qubcois like Richard encountered. But it is also a cool hockey flick. Then-current NHL players like Pascal Dupuis (who portrayed Milt Schmidt), Stphane Quintal, and Vincent Lecavalier (who played Jean Beliveau) are in the film. They skated and played the old-fashioned way for the film. It's a great movie. It's portrays an amazing time period revolving around some of the greatest players to play the game. It does tend to focus in on the Anglo / Franco difficulties, but I thought it did so in an interesting, and I think, fairly accurate way. If you're a Habs fan at all, I'd consider it a "must have". Great stuff. I started skating when I was 4 I think. Grew up outside of Boston, had a pond in the back yard and dad was a hardcore hockey and Bruins fan. I probably went to my first bruins game in the garden at age 6 or so. Hockey was really the only sport I ever excelled at, especially for my age group. I "think" I was playing in adult/older kids pick up and semi-league games by the time I was 9 or 10. Got to play in a couple of college scrimmages also, Holy Cross and Boston College I think before I was 12. I do remember being told I could skate backwards faster than most people could skate period. In the winter all I did was skate and shoot goals for hours and hours. My dad had built a couple of regulation nets and had me shooting thru rings in the corners. Coulda been a contender...... biggrin Packed up and moved to Florida at age 12 and hockey was history. I do remember my dad seriously not wanting to take the job because of my hockey. I blew it off and said lets go when he asked me. Great stories guys, thanks. Read more: http://simhq.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/4326312#ixzz4V1ogXCgm Follow us: @SimHQ on Twitter | SimHQ on Facebook It's a shame you had that opportunity pass you by, Nixer. It's also interesting to consider how times change. These days there are couple of NHL teams in Florida, and heck a kid from the desert here in AZ becomes the #1 overall NHL draft pick... ...and speaking of the AZ desert, I'm actually going ice skating here in Phoenix, in a couple of hours... ( although these days I just hope I don't break a hip or have a heart attack ... a far cry from my playing days). Cheers, 4 <S!>
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#4326609 - 01/07/17 03:21 PM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: 462cid]
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Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 2,588
462cid
Senior Member
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Senior Member
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Posts: 2,588
USA
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Well, don't forget that let's say, in Montreal, right now, the arena that the Canadiens play in is not 32* F in the stands.
What kind of car is that? What does it matter? When I drive it, I'm Steve McQueen
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#4326807 - 01/08/17 05:18 AM
Re: The Kitchener Kids, famed Kraut Line of the NHL
[Re: No105_Archie]
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Joined: Apr 2015
Posts: 436
rezerekted
Member
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Member
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Canada
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The story I heard is that it was renamed Kitchener from Berlin as punishment for the war and not to show they were patriotic. The city renamed itself in 1916; so there was no punishment involved. You have to remember that in 1916 Canada was a Dominion of the British Empire and all Canadians were still technically British citizens. British patriotism was quite intense and Field Marshall Kitchener was a hero. It was due to anti-German sentiment and not because they were patriotic. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kitchener,_Ontario On 9 June 1912, Berlin was officially designated a city.[17] Anti-German sentiment during World War I led to the abandonment of much of this heritage. For example, churches switched to English-language services. In 1916, following much debate and controversy, the name of the city was changed to Kitchener; named after the late British Field Marshal The 1st Earl Kitchener.[17] After the war, local historians and civic groups promoted a new heritage that emphasized the county's Pennsylvania Dutch roots. Illustrated souvenir books, a popular novel, and site markers celebrated this simplified, nationalistic version of the founding.[18] https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Berlin_to_Kitchener_name_changeThrough the latter half of the 19th century and into the first decade of the 20th, the City of Berlin, Ontario, Canada, was a bustling industrial centre celebrating its German heritage. However, when World War I started, that heritage became the focus of considerable enmity from non-German residents within the city and throughout Waterloo County. OK, "punishment" was a bad word to use but so is due to "patriotism". On that farm we lived on we had a pond so we had our own ice rink in the winter.
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