1953-54 Parkhurst 59 Chuck Rayner Hockey Card (Front)
1953-54 Parkhurst 59 Chuck Rayner Hockey Card (Back)
1953-54 Parkhurst NHL Checklist
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Card Notes
Starting his 8th season with the New York club, Chuck was out for much of last season with damage to his legs. In 1949-50, he won the Dr. Hart memorial trophy (most valuable player). A big fellow who is tough enough to be a fighter. Chuck is amazingly agile in the net.
En Français
Commençant sa 8ème saison avec le club de New-York, Chuck fut pour une bonne partie de la dernière saison sans jouer à cause de blessures à ses jambes. En 1949-50, il gagna le trophée Dr. Hart (le plus précieux joueur). Un gros gars qui est assez rude pour être un boxeur, Chuck est d’une agilité étonnnante dans le filet.
Details
For Chuck Rayner, the end of the line in the NHL came during the 1952-53 season, never playing in the league in 1953-54. His last game with the New York Rangers was on January 4, 1953 at Madison Square Garden, leading the Blue Shirts to a 5-2 victory over the Boston Bruins. The game featured a shorthanded goal by New York’s Nick Mickoski and the game winner scored by Wally Hergesheimer.
Gump Worsley came in to replace the injured Rayner in 1952-53 and took over the role as number one. In a six team NHL when teams dressed just one goalie, Chuck found himself with a home. He returned to his home Saskatchewan to play with the Saskatoon Quakers in the WHL.
In 1949-50, Rayner was awarded the Hart Trophy as most valuable player, beating out runner-up Ted Kennedy of the Toronto Maple Leafs and third place contender Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens.
That year, he played all but one game for the Rangers, posting a 2.62 goals against average with six shutouts. Although below .500 in the regular season, Chuck helped New York to an opening round upset over the Montreal Canadiens before losing to the Detroit Red Wings in the final. That series went the full seven games with three games needing overtime. Game seven wasn’t decided until nearly halfway through the second extra frame.
His first NHL shutout was with the Brooklyn Americans on January 10, 1942, a 2-0 win over the Montreal Canadiens at the Forum. Norm Larson did all the scoring for the Americans with Harry Watson assisting on both goals. After taking three years off to serve in the Canadian Navy following that year, the Americans were gone and Rayner was signed by the Rangers.
Between 1940-41 and 1952-53, Chuck Rayner played 424 regular season and 18 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Americans and Rangers. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1973 and has a street named after him in his hometown neighbourhood of Sutherland in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan.