Morris "Maurice, Moe" Roberts (December 13, 1905 – February 7, 1975) was an American
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...
with the
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
,
New York Americans
The New York Americans, colloquially known as the Amerks, were a professional ice hockey team based in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the second to play ...
, and
Chicago Black Hawks
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
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, subdivision_name ...
for periods between 1925 and 1951, spending the rest of his career in different minor leagues. Roberts was the oldest man to play the position of goaltender in
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
history, and in two different stretches of several decades was both the oldest player to play an NHL game and the youngest to play goal in the NHL. Roberts was born in
Waterbury, Connecticut
Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...
, but grew up in
Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville ( ) is a city located directly to the northwest of Boston, and north of Cambridge, in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, the city had a total population of 81,045 people. With an area o ...
.
History
Roberts played a total of ten games in the NHL with the
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
,
New York Americans
The New York Americans, colloquially known as the Amerks, were a professional ice hockey team based in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the second to play ...
, and
Chicago Black Hawks
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
, image_map =
, map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago
, coordinates =
, coordinates_footnotes =
, subdivision_type = Country
, subdivision_name ...
, as well as playing sixteen seasons in the minor leagues, most notably for the
Cleveland Barons The name Cleveland Barons has been used by three professional hockey teams and one junior team.
*Cleveland Barons (NHL), the National Hockey League team that played between 1976 and 1978
*Cleveland Barons (1937–1973), the original American Hockey ...
and the
New Haven Eagles
The New Haven Eagles were a professional ice hockey team that played in New Haven, Connecticut. The Eagles were one of five inaugural franchises in the Canadian American Hockey League, and a founding member of the American Hockey League.
History ...
. His career was interrupted for four seasons after he enlisted in the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...
during
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
. After the war, he played only one more regular season of professional hockey.
Roberts made his NHL debut with the
Boston Bruins
The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making t ...
on
December 8, 1925, substituting for injured regular
Doc Stewart in a 3-2 win against the
Montreal Maroons
The Montreal Maroons (officially the Montreal Professional Hockey Club) were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL). They played in the NHL from 1924 to 1938, winning the Stanley Cup in 1926 and 1935. They were the las ...
. At age 19, he was the youngest goaltender in NHL history, until surpassed by
Harry Lumley nearly twenty years later.
On November 25, 1951, Roberts, then an assistant trainer with the Black Hawks, had to finish the third period for the injured Lumley, at that point the Black Hawks' starter. Although Roberts didn't yield a goal, his Hawks still fell to the
Detroit Red Wings, 5-2. The then 45-year-old Roberts, in his last NHL game, became the oldest player to play in an NHL game; a record he held until broken by
Gordie Howe
Gordon Howe (March 31, 1928 – June 10, 2016) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. From 1946 to 1980, he played 26 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) and six seasons in the World Hockey Association (WHA); his first 25 seaso ...
in 1979, and also passed by
Chris Chelios
Christos Kostas Chelios (born January 25, 1962) is an American former professional ice hockey defenseman. He was one of the longest tenured players in the National Hockey League, and is a three-time Stanley Cup champion—one with the Montreal ...
. He remains the oldest goaltender to play in an NHL game. He also was the final NHL player who was active in the 1920s.
[Goaltending Legends: Maurice "Moe" Roberts](_blank)
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Roberts was inducted into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame
The United States Hockey Hall of Fame was established in 1973 with the goal of preserving the history of ice hockey in the United States while recognizing the extraordinary contributions of select players, coaches, administrators, officials and ...
in 2005.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
See also
* List of oldest National Hockey League players
Below is the List of oldest National Hockey League (NHL) players, with their last year in parentheses. Only hockey players who played at least one game in the regular season or playoffs when they were 40 or older are included on the list.
Oldest ...
References
External links
*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Maurice
1905 births
1975 deaths
American men's ice hockey goaltenders
Boston Athletic Association ice hockey players
Boston Bruins players
Chicago Blackhawks players
Cleveland Barons (1937–1973) players
Cleveland Falcons players
Cleveland Indians (IHL) players
Ice hockey players from Massachusetts
Jewish ice hockey players
New Haven Eagles players
New York Americans players
Philadelphia Arrows players
Pittsburgh Hornets players
Rochester Cardinals players
Sportspeople from Somerville, Massachusetts
Ice hockey people from Middlesex County, Massachusetts
Syracuse Stars (IHL) players
United States Hockey Hall of Fame inductees