Samuel Leo LoPresti (January 30, 1917 – December 11, 1984) was an American

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two o ...

goaltender. He played several

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

and professional seasons between 1937 and 1951, including two seasons in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey sports league, league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranke ...

(NHL) for the

Chicago Black Hawks (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

. He was named an American Hockey Association (AHA) all-star in 1939–40 and the most valuable player of the

United States Hockey League The United States Hockey League (USHL) is the top junior ice hockey league sanctioned by USA Hockey. The league consists of 16 active teams located in the midwestern United States, for players between the ages of 16 and 21. The USHL is strictl ...

in 1949–50. He is best known for his performance with the Black Hawks on March 4, 1941, when he set an NHL record by facing 83 shots in a regulation game against 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 (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The ...

. He 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 1973. LoPresti left the NHL during the

Second World War 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 World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...

to join 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 ...

where he served on board the SS ''Roger B. Taney.'' The ship was torpedoed during a crossing of the Atlantic Ocean and sunk in 1943; LoPresti was one of 29 sailors who survived 42 days lost at sea in a single lifeboat before being rescued off the coast of

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. LoPresti was credited with saving the lives of his shipmates by killing a

dolphin A dolphin is an aquatic mammal within the infraorder Cetacea. Dolphin species belong to the families Delphinidae (the oceanic dolphins), Platanistidae (the Indian river dolphins), Iniidae (the New World river dolphins), Pontoporiidae (t ...

with a

sheath knife A sheath knife is a fixed-bladed knife that fits in a sheath of leather or other material such as nylon or kevlar. The sheath is used to protect the knife and as a carrier. Most importantly, the sheath protects the person carrying the knife (e.g. ...

, providing nearly the only food they had during their ordeal.

Early life

LoPresti was born January 30, 1917, in Elcor, Minnesota, though he grew up in the nearby community of

Eveleth Eveleth is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,718 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 53 and State Highway 37 (MN 37) are two of the main routes in Eveleth. Eveleth was the site of the conflict that resu ...

. He played football as a youth, playing at

tackle Tackle may refer to: * In football: ** Tackle (football move), a play in various forms of football ** Tackle (gridiron football position), a position in American football and Canadian football ** Dump tackle, a forceful move in rugby of picking ...

and fullback. He had never worn a pair of ice skates until the

ninth grade Ninth grade, freshman year, or grade 9 is the ninth year of school education in some school systems. Ninth grade is often the first school year of high school in the United States, or the last year of middle/junior high school. In some countrie ...

. However, inspired by local players

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 ...

and

Mike Karakas Michael George Karakas (November 13, 1910 – May 2, 1992) was an American professional ice hockey goaltender in the National Hockey League (NHL). He was the league's first American-born and -trained goaltender and the first player of Gre ...

, he took up the position of

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 ...

and was his high school team's starter by his final year of high school. He played for local junior colleges where he was scouted by the American Hockey Association (AHA)'s

St. Paul Saints The St. Paul Saints are a Minor League Baseball team of the International League and the Triple-A affiliate of the Minnesota Twins. They are located in Saint Paul, Minnesota, and have played their home games at CHS Field since 2015. They pre ...

Playing career

In his first season with the Saints, 1937–38, LoPresti appeared in 48 games, posting a 10–38–2 win-loss-tie record and a 3.62

goals against average Goals against average (GAA) also known as "average goals against" or "AGA" is a statistic used in field hockey, ice hockey, lacrosse, soccer, and water polo that is the mean of goals allowed per game by a goaltender or goalkeeper (depending on ...

(GAA). He improved to 23–21–2 the following season. In his third season in St. Paul, LoPresti was named to the league's second all-star team after recording 29 wins and 4

shutout In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usuall ...

s. The Saints won the AHA championship, defeating the

Omaha Knights The Omaha Knights was the name of three minor league professional ice hockey teams from 1959 to 1965 and from 1966 to 1975, based in Omaha, Nebraska, at the Ak-Sar-Ben Arena. The Knights were founded in 1959 as members of the International Hoc ...

in four games, LoPresti posted a 6–1 record and 1.29 GAA during the playoffs. During that season, he was discovered by Bill Tobin and

Paul Thompson Paul Thompson may refer to: Education *Paul Thompson (professor) (born 1951), British management professor at the University of Strathclyde *Paul B. Thompson (philosopher) (born 1951), American philosopher at Michigan State University * Paul H. Th ...

, president and coach of the NHL's

, during an exhibition game between the two teams. He was signed by Chicago, and began the season with the AHA's

Kansas City Americans Kansas () is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its capital is Topeka, and its largest city is Wichita. Kansas is a landlocked state bordered by Nebraska to the north; Missouri to the east; Oklahoma to the south; and Colorado to the ...

. LoPresti was recalled to Chicago when goaltender

Paul Goodman Paul Goodman (1911–1972) was an American writer and public intellectual best known for his 1960s works of social criticism. Goodman was prolific across numerous literary genres and non-fiction topics, including the arts, civil rights, dece ...

retired. He made his NHL debut on January 5, 1941, and went unbeaten in his first four starts. He appeared in 27 games with Chicago, finishing with a record of 9–15–3. He made NHL history on March 4 in a game against the

. He faced a league record 83 shots in a regulation, 60 minute game. It took Boston 42 shots to beat LoPresti for their first goal, and kept the Black Hawks close in what was ultimately a 3–2 Boston victory. As Chicago's top goaltender in the

1941–42 NHL season The 1941–42 NHL season was the 25th season of the National Hockey League. Seven teams played 48 games each. The Toronto Maple Leafs would win the Stanley Cup defeating the Detroit Red Wings winning four straight after losing the first three in ...

, LoPresti won 21 games against 23 losses. He was his team's star in the Black Hawks' 1942 Stanley Cup playoff series against the Bruins. He recorded one playoff shutout to go with three in the regular season, but Chicago was eliminated by Boston. He then left the NHL to join the

during the

, theorizing that "it was safer to face Nazi U-boats in the North Atlantic than vulcanized rubber in North America."

Military service

LoPresti joined the Navy's armed guard service and served aboard the SS ''Roger B. Taney'' as a

gunner's mate The United States Navy and United States Coast Guard occupational rating of gunner's mate (GM) is a designation given by the Bureau of Naval Personnel (BUPERS) to enlisted sailors who either satisfactorily complete initial Gunner's Mate "A" scho ...

, assigned to duty protecting ships as they crossed the Atlantic Ocean. The ship was torpedoed and sunk during an Atlantic crossing in February 1943. Listed as

missing in action Missing in action (MIA) is a casualty classification assigned to combatants, military chaplains, combat medics, and prisoners of war who are reported missing during wartime or ceasefire. They may have been killed, wounded, captured, e ...

, LoPresti was thought to be the first casualty among American professional athletes in the conflict. As the ''Roger B. Taney'' sank, LoPresti and the other Naval Armed Guards abandoned the ship on rafts, which were picked up the next morning by the lifeboats. He was one of 26 men who took refuge in the number 4 lifeboat with minimal water or food supplies. The lifeboat traveled towards the South American coast in a voyage of 42 days, traveling nearly southwest, before they were found and rescued off the coast of

. They had collected rain water when they could, at times drinking only per day, and had only a small amount of biscuits and bakers chocolate for food. LoPresti was credited with saving the men's lives by catching the only real food they had during their entire ordeal after noticing

s swimming around their boat on one occasion. According to another sailor, LoPresti improvised a weapon by lashing a

to a

boat hook A boat hook is part of boating equipment. Its most common use is as a docking and undocking aid. It may be similar to a pike pole, however it commonly has a blunt tip, for pushing during undocking, with a hook for docking. In addition, it may have ...

. He plunged into the ocean, catching a dolphin. They hauled it into the boat, drank its blood, and cooked the meat in a metal bucket with rags and kerosene.

Later career and personal life

LoPresti returned to hockey following his ordeal, but never played in the NHL again. He played two seasons in California with the

San Diego Skyhawks The San Diego Skyhawks were a professional ice hockey team in San Diego, California. They were a member of the Pacific Coast Hockey League from 1948 to 1950. They played their home games in the Glacier Gardens. They won the 1948-1949 President's ...

before returning to his Minnesota home to play several seasons of

senior hockey Senior hockey refers to amateur or semi-professional ice hockey competition. There are no age restrictions for Senior players, who typically consist of those whose Junior eligibility has expired. Senior hockey leagues operate under the jurisd ...

in Duluth and Eveleth. He was named the most valuable player of the North America Hockey League in 1949–50 as a member of the Eveleth Rangers, and retired from hockey in 1951. He was a charter member of the

, inducted in 1973. LoPresti married his wife Carol in 1941, and operated a tavern in Eveleth following his playing career. His son

Pete Pete or Petes or ''variation'', may refer to: People * Pete (given name) * Pete (nickname) * Pete (surname) Fictional characters * Pete (Disney), a cartoon character in the ''Mickey Mouse'' universe * Pete the Pup (a.k.a. 'Petey'), a charact ...

was also an NHL player. Pete was also a goaltender, making him and Sam the first father-son goaltenders in NHL history.

Death

LoPresti died of a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which m ...

at his home in Eveleth, Minnesota on December 11, 1984.'Former Hawk, LoPresti, dies,' Kenosha News, December 12, 1984, pg. 20

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

*Career statistics:

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Lopresti, Sam 1917 births 1940s missing person cases 1984 deaths 20th-century American businesspeople American men's ice hockey goaltenders Businesspeople from Minnesota Chicago Blackhawks players Eveleth Rangers players Formerly missing people Ice hockey players from Minnesota Kansas City Americans players Military personnel from Minnesota Missing in action of World War II Shipwreck survivors Sportspeople from Eveleth, Minnesota People from St. Louis County, Minnesota St. Paul Saints (AHA) players United States Hockey Hall of Fame inductees United States Navy personnel of World War II United States Navy sailors