New York Americans facts for kids

Quick facts for kids New York Americans
Founded	1925
History	New York Americans 1925–1941 Brooklyn Americans 1941–1942
Home arena	Madison Square Garden
City	New York City, New York
Colors	Red, white and blue

The New York Americans, often called the Amerks, was a professional ice hockey team. They played in New York City from 1925 to 1942. They were one of the first teams from the United States to join the National Hockey League (NHL).

The Amerks never won the Stanley Cup, which is the NHL's championship trophy. However, they did make it to the semifinals twice. They were the first NHL team in New York City. But a year later, in 1926, another team called the New York Rangers started playing in the same arena. The Rangers quickly became more popular.

In their last season (1941–42), the team was known as the Brooklyn Americans. They stopped playing in 1942 because of World War II and money problems. When the Amerks left, the NHL entered its "Original Six" era, with only six teams, which lasted until 1967. The Amerks' team was officially removed from the league in 1946.

Their total record in the regular season was 255 wins, 402 losses, and 127 ties.

Team History: How the Amerks Started

Joining the NHL

Tom Duggan helped create the team.

In 1923, a Canadian sports promoter named Thomas Duggan wanted to bring NHL teams to the United States. He helped create the Boston Bruins in 1924. Then, he worked with Tex Rickard to bring a team to Madison Square Garden in New York.

In April 1925, Duggan and Bill Dwyer, a well-known businessman in New York City, were given the right to start a team there. Around the same time, the Hamilton Tigers, a strong team from the season before, had been suspended. Dwyer bought the rights to all the Tigers' players for $75,000. He gave the players much higher salaries.

Just before the season began, Dwyer announced the team would be called the New York Americans. Their first jerseys looked like the American flag, with stars and stripes. The Americans joined the NHL in the 1925–26 season, along with the Pittsburgh Pirates. They were the second and third American teams in the league.

Playing in the NHL

The 1925–26 New York Americans team.

The Americans played their first home game at Madison Square Garden. They lost 3–1 to the Montreal Canadiens in front of 17,000 fans. The team didn't win much in their first season, finishing fifth. But many people came to watch them play. Because the Amerks were so popular, the Garden's owners decided to get their own team, the New York Rangers, for the next season. The Amerks had to agree to this because of their agreement with the Garden.

The next season, the Americans continued to struggle. They were placed in the "Canadian Division," even though they were in New York. This meant they had to travel a lot to play teams in Canada. Meanwhile, the Rangers won their division title. The season after that, the Rangers won the Stanley Cup in only their second year! This made the Americans New York City's "second team" for a long time.

In the 1928–29 season, the Amerks signed a great goalie named Roy Worters. He helped the team finish second in their division and make the playoffs for the first time. Worters had a very low goals against average (GAA) and won the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's most valuable player. In the playoffs, they played the Rangers. The Amerks couldn't score against the Rangers, and the Rangers won the series in overtime in the second game.

The next season, the Americans didn't do as well. Worters had a tougher year. But he bounced back the season after that, helping the team have a winning record. However, they still missed the playoffs.

The New York Americans logo from 1926–1938.

In the 1931–32 season, something interesting happened. In a game against the Boston Bruins, the Americans iced the puck 61 times. At that time, there was no rule against icing (shooting the puck from your end zone all the way down the ice). The Bruins were so annoyed that in their next game, they iced the puck 87 times! These games helped lead to the NHL creating a rule against icing a few years later.

The team also faced money problems. After the 1933–34 season, the Amerks tried to join with another struggling team, but the NHL said no. In the 1935–36 season, the team's owner, Bill Dwyer, decided to sell the team. The Amerks made the playoffs that year under player-coach Red Dutton, but no one bought the team. Dwyer then left the team, and the league took over. Dwyer sued the NHL, but they reached an agreement. However, Dwyer couldn't pay his debts, so the NHL took full control. Even with Dutton as coach and general manager, the team finished last. But Sweeney Schriner was a bright spot, leading the league in scoring.

The league asked Dutton to run the team for the 1937–38 season. The Americans signed experienced players like Ching Johnson and Hap Day, and goalie Earl Robertson. These new players helped the team make the playoffs. They beat the Rangers but then lost to the Chicago Blackhawks.

A New York Americans jersey on display.

The Americans made the playoffs again in 1938–39 and 1939–40, but lost in the first round both times. When Canada entered World War II in 1939, some Canadian players left to serve in the military. Even more players left in 1940–41. With fewer good players and still facing old debts, the Amerks had their worst season, missing the playoffs. It was clear the team was in trouble.

"Brooklyn" Americans: The Final Season

For the 1941–42 NHL season, Red Dutton changed the team's name to the Brooklyn Americans. He wanted to move the team to Brooklyn, but there was no suitable arena there. So, they kept playing their home games in Manhattan at Madison Square Garden, even though they practiced in Brooklyn. They barely made it through the season, finishing last again.

After that season, the Amerks stopped playing because of the war. In 1945, a group wanted to build a new arena in Brooklyn. But in 1946, the NHL decided not to bring the Amerks back and officially ended the team. Even though Dutton wanted the Amerks to return after World War II, NHL records say the team "retired" from the league in 1942.

Team Legacy

The NHL did not add any new teams beyond its "Original Six" until the 1967–68 season. Red Dutton believed the owners of Madison Square Garden (who also owned the Rangers) pushed the NHL not to bring the Americans back. Dutton was so upset that he supposedly said the Rangers would never win another Stanley Cup in his lifetime. This "curse" seemed to come true; the Rangers didn't win the Cup again until 1994, seven years after Dutton's death.

The last player who played for the New York Americans was Pat Egan, who retired from major hockey in 1951. The last player who played for the Brooklyn Americans was Ken Mosdell, who retired in 1959.

The 1926–27 Americans team was the first professional sports team to have players' surnames on the back of their jerseys, along with their numbers.

New York City didn't have a second NHL team again until the New York Islanders started playing in nearby Uniondale, on Long Island, for the 1972–73 season. The Islanders later played in Brooklyn for a few years, unlike the Americans who only changed their name but not their home arena.

Season-by-season Record

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Team Personnel

Hall of Famers

Many great players and builders from the New York Americans are in the Hockey Hall of Fame:

• Billy Burch
• Charlie Conacher
• Lionel Conacher
• Red Dutton
• Busher Jackson
• Ching Johnson
• Harry Oliver
• Chuck Rayner
• Sweeney Schriner
• Eddie Shore
• Bullet Joe Simpson
• Hooley Smith
• Nels Stewart
• Roy Worters

Team Captains

The players who led the team as captain were:

• Billy Burch, 1925–1932
• Red Dutton, 1932–1936
• Sweeney Schriner, 1936–1939
• Charlie Conacher, 1939–1941
• Tommy Anderson, 1941–1942

Coaches

Here are the head coaches for the New York Americans:

• Tommy Gorman, 1925–1926, 1928–1929
• Newsy Lalonde, 1926–1927
• Shorty Green, 1927–1928
• Lionel Conacher, 1929–1930
• Eddie Gerard, 1930–1932
• Bullet Joe Simpson, 1932–1935
• Rosie Helmer, 1935–1936
• Red Dutton, 1935–1940
• Art Chapman, 1940–1942

Broadcasters

The Americans' radio broadcasts were similar to the New York Rangers'. They used the same radio stations and announcers, but only for home games. Jack Filman was the main radio announcer for the Americans for much of their history.

A few Americans and Rangers games were shown on experimental TV stations in 1940-41 and 1941-42. Public television broadcasting then stopped until 1945-46.

See also

• List of New York Americans players
• List of NHL seasons
• List of NHL players
• List of defunct NHL teams
• Curse of 1940