1954-55 Parkhurst 65 Johnny Bower Hockey Card (Front)
1954-55 Parkhurst 65 Johnny Bower Hockey Card (Back)
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Card Notes
Johnny is noted for his courage under fire. He never lets up and his steady play in the nets was largely responsible for the Rangers making a race for the playoffs last year. His goals against average of 2.60 is the lowest for a Ranger goaltender since 1940-41 when Davey Kerr chalked up the same mark. Bower was a contender for both the Hart Trophy and Rookie award last season. He was a restaurant manager last summer at a resort near Prince Albert.
En Français
Johnny est grandement responsable de la hâte des Rangers pour les seconds matchs de l’année dernière. Parmi les gardiens de buts des Rangers, il tient la plus basse moyenne de 2.60 de contre-buts depuis 1940-41 alors que Davey Kerr faisait la même moyenne. Bower luttait pour le trophé Hart et les honneurs de la Recrue la saison dernière. L’été dernier il était gérant d’un restaurant à un endroit de villégiature près de Prince Albert.
Details
Johnny Bower played all 70 games for the New York Rangers in 1953-54, his first season in the NHL after eight years in the American Hockey League with the Cleveland Barons. With Johnny in net, the Blue Shirts had an 18 point improvement over 1952-53 and went from dead last in the league to six points out of a playoff spot.
Those 53-54 Rangers finished the regular season with their highest winning percentage since 1940-41. The back of this 1954-55 Parkhurst hockey card contains an ERROR regarding Dave Kerr’s performance that year. His actual goals against average was 2.49 and not 2.60 as the info snippet suggests.
Despite Bower’s outstanding rookie season, the Rangers opted to go with Gump Worsley as their number one goalie in 1954-55. Johnny would play just seven more games for New York over the next three years, mostly relegated to the AHL until the Toronto Maple Leafs picked him up for the 1958-59 campaign.
Between 1953-54 and 1969-70, Johnny Bower appeared in 552 regular season and 74 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Rangers and Maple Leafs. His jersey number 1 is retired by the Toronto Maple Leafs and Johnny was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976.