Walter Peter "Babe" Pratt (January 7, 1916 – December 16, 1988) was a Canadian professional

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 ...

defenceman Defence or defense (in American English) in ice hockey is a player position that is primarily responsible for preventing the opposing team from scoring. They are often referred to as defencemen, D, D-men or blueliners (the latter a reference to ...

left winger A midfielder is an outfield position in association football. Midfielders may play an exclusively defensive role, breaking up attacks, and are in that case known as defensive midfielders. As central midfielders often go across boundarie ...

who played for the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

and 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 ...

in the

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 ...

between 1935 and 1947. He is the father of the NHL hockey player, Tracy Pratt. Babe was an important member of two Stanley Cup winning teams, the

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

Rangers and

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which Nuclear weapon, nuclear weapons Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, have been used in combat. Events Below, ...

Maple Leafs. He won the

Hart Trophy The Hart Memorial Trophy, originally known as the Hart Trophy, is an annual award for the most valuable player in the National Hockey League (NHL), voted by the members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association. The original trophy was dona ...

1944 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 2 – WWII: ** Free French General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny is appointed to command French Army B, part of the Sixth United States Army Group in Nor ...

. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966. In January, 1946 Pratt was caught betting on hockey games and was subsequently suspended from the NHL. Pratt admitted to gambling but denied ever placing a bet against his own team. After promising to quit betting he was reinstated to the

. His last NHL season was with the Boston Bruins in 1946–47 and he played in the minors after that. He subsequently worked as an analyst for CBC Television's ''

Hockey Night In Canada CBC Television has aired National Hockey League (NHL) broadcasts under the ''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') brand that is primarily associated with its Saturday night NHL broadcasts throughout its hi ...

'' telecasts from Vancouver in the 1970s and served as a goodwill ambassador of the

Vancouver Canucks The Vancouver Canucks are a professional ice hockey team based in Vancouver. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division (NHL), Pacific Division of the Western Conference (NHL), Western Conference, and ...

. Pratt collapsed and died of a heart attack in the media lounge of the

Pacific Coliseum Pacific Coliseum, known to locals as "The Coliseum" or the "Rink on Renfrew," is an indoor arena located at Hastings Park in Vancouver, British Columbia. Its main use has been for ice hockey and the arena has been the home for several ice hock ...

in Vancouver during the first intermission of a Canucks game on December 16, 1988. The Canucks honored Pratt's memory by stitching "BABE" on their sweaters for the remainder of the hockey season. In 1998, he was ranked number 96 on ''The Hockey News list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

Awards and achievements

MJHL The Manitoba Junior Hockey League (MJHL) is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba and one of nine member leagues of the Canadian Junior Hockey League (CJHL). The MJHL consists of thirteen teams all based ...

Scoring Champion (1935) *Turnbull Cup MJHL Championship (1934) * Stanley Cup championship (

and

) *NHL First All-Star team Defence (

) *

Hart Memorial Trophy The Hart Memorial Trophy, originally known as the Hart Trophy, is an annual award for the most valuable player in the National Hockey League (NHL), voted by the members of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association. The original trophy was dona ...

winner (1944) *NHL second All-Star team Defence (

) *Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966 *Inducted into the

Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum The Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum is a Canadian museum in Winnipeg, Manitoba, dedicated to honoring the history and achievements of sports in Manitoba. The organization began in 1980, and then opened a museum in The Forks in 1993. Afte ...

in 1990 *Selected to

Manitoba , image_map = Manitoba in Canada 2.svg , map_alt = Map showing Manitoba's location in the centre of Southern Canada , Label_map = yes , coordinates = , capital = Winn ...

's All-Century first All-Star team *Honoured Member of the

Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame The Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame and Museum is a hall of fame and museum for ice hockey in Manitoba, located on the main level of the Canada Life Centre in downtown Winnipeg. It was established in 1985, when the first honoured members were named ...

*In 1998, he was ranked number 96 on ''

The Hockey News ''The Hockey News'' (''THN'') is a Canadian-based ice hockey magazine. ''The Hockey News'' was founded in 1947 by Ken McKenzie and Will Cote and has since become the most recognized hockey publication in North America. The magazine has a readers ...

list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players * In the 2009 book ''100 Ranger Greats'', was ranked No. 47 all-time of the 901 New York Rangers who had played during the team's first 82 seasons *Tied for most assists by a defenceman in one game with 6 *Scored the game-winning goal for the Toronto Maple Leafs in the

1945 Stanley Cup Finals The 1945 Stanley Cup Finals was a best-of-seven series between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Maple Leafs won the series four games to three, despite leading 3-0 in a situation similar to 1942. Paths to the Finals Toronto ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Pratt, Babe 1916 births 1988 deaths Boston Bruins players Brandon Wheat Kings players Canadian expatriates in the United States Canadian ice hockey defencemen Cleveland Barons (1937–1973) players Elmwood Millionaires players Hart Memorial Trophy winners Hershey Bears players Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Ice hockey people from Manitoba Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame inductees Kenora Thistles players National Hockey League broadcasters New Westminster Royals (WHL) players New York Rangers players Philadelphia Ramblers players Stanley Cup champions Tacoma Rockets (WHL) players Toronto Maple Leafs players Vancouver Canucks announcers