The United States Coast Guard Cutters were a senior amateur

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 hock ...

team operated by the

United States Coast Guard Yard The United States Coast Guard Yard or just Coast Guard Yard is a United States Coast Guard operated shipyard located on Curtis Bay in northern Anne Arundel County, Maryland, just south of the Baltimore city limits. It is the largest industrial fac ...

Curtis Bay, Baltimore Curtis Bay is a residential / commercial / industrial neighborhood in the southern portion of the City of Baltimore, Maryland, United States. The neighborhood is on steep sloping heights, about four city blocks wide (west to east) and fifteen bloc ...

. The team played in the

Eastern Amateur Hockey League The Eastern Hockey League was a minor professional United States ice hockey league. Eastern Amateur Hockey League (1933–1953) The league was founded in 1933 as the Eastern Amateur Hockey League (EAHL). The league was founded by Tommy Lockhart, ...

for parts of two seasons, using Carlin's Iceland for home games. The Cutters were a separate team from the established

Coast Guard Bears The United States Coast Guard Academy's intercollegiate sports teams are called the Bears. They compete in NCAA Division III as members of the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference. Through the 2016 season, the Bears played football ...

of the

United States Coast Guard Academy The United States Coast Guard Academy (USCGA) is a service academy of the United States Coast Guard in New London, Connecticut. Founded in 1876, it is the smallest of the five U.S. service academies and provides education to future Coast Gu ...

History

The team was founded in 1942 by personnel officer Lieutenant Commander C.R. MacLean, of the Coast Guard in Curtis Bay, and replaced the void in the EAHL when the

Baltimore Orioles The Baltimore Orioles are an American professional baseball team based in Baltimore. The Orioles compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East division. As one of the American L ...

folded. The Cutters were coached by Mel Harwood, a former goaltender for the Orioles, and a former NHL referee known for officiating game four of the

1942 Stanley Cup Finals The 1942 Stanley Cup Finals was a best-of-seven series between the Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings. After losing the first three games, the Maple Leafs won the next four to win the series 4–3, winning their fourth Stanley Cup. It ...

. Players were required to complete daytime military duties, in addition to playing on the team. The team was accompanied by their own version of the

United States Coast Guard Band The United States Coast Guard Band is the premier band representing the United States Coast Guard and the Department of Homeland Security. Established in 1925, the Coast Guard Band is stationed at the U.S. Coast Guard Academy in New London, Co ...

, that played the “ Semper Paratus march," whenever the Cutters scored a goal. In the 1942–43 season, Joe Kucler led the league in goals (40), assists (41), and points (81). The Cutters played the defending

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...

champion

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the East ...

in an exhibition game on January 6, 1943 in Baltimore, losing 8–3. The Cutters finished first place in the EAHL, winning the Walker Cup. In addition to the EAHL title, the Cutters won two championships of the

Amateur Hockey Association of the United States USA Hockey is the national ice hockey organization in the United States. It is recognized by the International Olympic Committee and the United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee as the governing body for organized ice hockey in the United S ...

, in 1943 and 1944. Eleven games into the second season, the Cutters withdrew from league play on November 28, 1943, but still played exhibition games. The Cutters team disbanded early in 1944, when the

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 opposin ...

effort needed reinforcements.

Players

The Cutters team featured eight

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 ...

players. Three Cutters players were inducted into the

Hockey Hall of Fame , logo = Hockey Hall of Fame Logo.svg , logo_upright = 0.5 , image = Hockey Hall of Fame, Toronto.jpg , caption = The Hall's present location on Yonge Street since 1992 , map_type = , former_name = , established = 1943 , location = 30 Y ...

Frank Brimsek Francis Charles "Mr. Zero" Brimsek (September 26, 1913 – November 11, 1998) was an American professional ice hockey goaltender who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins and Chicago Black Hawks. He won ...

Art Coulter Arthur Edmund Coulter (May 31, 1909 – October 14, 2000) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman who played for the New York Rangers and Chicago Black Hawks in the National Hockey League. Coulter, a two time Stanley Cup Champion, help ...

, and

John Mariucci John Mariucci (May 8, 1916 – March 23, 1987) was an American ice hockey player, administrator and coach. Mariucci was born in Eveleth, Minnesota. He attended the University of Minnesota where he played for both the hockey and football teams. H ...

. Five Cutters players were 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 ...

Bob Dill Robert Edward Dill (April 25, 1920 – April 16, 1991) was an American professional ice hockey player. He played 76 games in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers during the 1943–44 and 1944–45 seasons. The rest of his caree ...

Hub Nelson Hubert Milton J. Nelson (August 14, 1907 – May 10, 1981) was a professional ice hockey player. Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, Nelson played professionally in United States Hockey League for the Minneapolis Millers (AHA) and St. Louis Flyer ...

, and

Eddie Olson Edward F. Olson (January 1, 1922 – February 10, 1995) was an American ice hockey player, born in Hancock, Michigan. He was one of nine brothers from the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, all of whom played college, amateur, pro or Olympic hockey. O ...

. ;Other notable players *

Ossie Asmundson Oscar Ingolfur Asmundson (November 17, 1908 – November 2, 1964) was a Canadian ice hockey right winger who played six seasons in the National Hockey League. Asmundson won the Stanley Cup as a member of the New York Rangers] in 1932-33 New Yor ...

* Eddie Barry (ice hockey), Eddie Barry *

Bud Cook Alexander Leone Lally "Bud" Cook (November 20, 1907 – November 13, 1993) was a Canadian ice hockey centre forward who played 50 games over three seasons in the National Hockey League for the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, and St. Louis Eagles. ...

Alex Motter Alexander Everett Motter (June 20, 1913 – October 18, 1996) was a Canadian ice hockey player who played 265 games in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins and Detroit Red Wings between 1934 and 1943. He won the Stanley Cup in 1943 wi ...

Results

Season-by-season results:

References

External links

History of U.S. Coast Guard Academy ice hockey
{{US Coast Guard navbox Defunct ice hockey teams in the United States Eastern Hockey League teams Ice hockey teams in Maryland Ice hockey clubs established in 1942 Military sports clubs in the United States Sports clubs disestablished in 1943 Sports teams in Baltimore United States Coast Guard Academy