Sid Abel

Sidney Gerald "Sid" Abel (February 22, 1918 – February 8, 2000) was a Canadian Hall of Fame hockey player, coach and general manager in the National Hockey League, most notably for the Detroit Red Wings, and was a member of three Stanley Cup-winning teams in 1943, 1950, and 1952. On January 1, 2017, in a ceremony prior to the Centennial Classic, Abel was part of the first group of players to be named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.

Born in Melville, Saskatchewan, "Old Bootnose", as he was known, Abel was demobilized late in the 1946 season, regaining his team captaincy, just in time for the playoffs.

In 1947, Abel and Ted Lindsay were teamed up with rookie right winger Gordie Howe as a forward line by Red Wings' coach Jack Adams. While Abel's effectiveness late that season and in the playoffs was limited by an attack of pleurisy, the line paid immediate dividends, turning Lindsay into a star and leading the team to a playoff berth. The following season, Lindsay, Abel and Howe finished 1-3-4 in team scoring, while leading the Red Wings to the Stanley Cup Finals.

By the 1949 season, the newly dubbed "Production Line" led the Wings to the first of seven consecutive regular season first-place finishes, an unsurpassed NHL record, hampered only by serious injuries that cost Howe and Lindsay much of the season. Abel was tied with Lindsay for third in NHL scoring while leading the league in goals and recording career highs in goals and assists, and was awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's Most Valuable Player, as well as being named to the First All-Star Team.

The next three seasons saw Abel lead the Production Line to surpass any other forward line in points, and in 1950 season Lindsay, Abel and Howe finished 1-2-3 in league scoring, equaling the feat of the famed "Kraut Line" of the Boston Bruins from 1939-40. Abel repeated his First All-Star Team honor in 1950 en route to playing for his second Stanley Cup champion, and was named Second Team All-Star in 1951.

Abel was traded from the Red Wings to the Black Hawks for cash in 1952, and was named coach of the team. He served as player-coach for the next two seasons, and was the last full-time player-head coach in NHL history.

Though his #12 was honored by the Wings, Abel wore 4, 7, 9, 12, 14, 19 and 20 throughout his career.

Abel returned to the Red Wings in 1957–58 and served as Detroit's coach through the 1969–70 season.

In the 1970s and 1980s, Abel worked as a color commentator on Red Wings radio and television broadcasts.

Sid Abel was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1969. In 1998, he was ranked number 85 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.

Abel's #12 banner hanging in Joe Louis Arena.

Abel's older brother, George was a Canadian Olympic ice hockey player. In Olympic competition at Oslo, Norway, he scored the winning goal in the final game, securing the only Canadian gold medal of the Olympics. Sid's son Gerry also briefly played in the NHL, and his grandson Brent Johnson is a goaltender who last played for the Pittsburgh Penguins.

• 2-time NHL First Team All-Star (1949, 1950)
• 2-time NHL Second Team All-Star (1942, 1951)
• 3-time Stanley Cup champion (1943, 1950, 1952)
• 1-time Hart Memorial Trophy (1949)
• Detroit Red Wings #12 retired on April 29, 1995
• In January, 2017, Abel was part of the first group of players to be named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.

• "100 Greatest NHL Players". NHL.com. January 1, 2017. Retrieved January 1, 2017.