The youngest of 10 children, including two brothers who played in the NHL, Roy Conacher still was able to create his own Hockey Hall of Fame identity in the League.

Conacher was 22 years old when he made his NHL debut with the Boston Bruins on Nov. 3, 1938 and scored his first goal in his sixth game. He finished with 26 to make him the first rookie to lead the NHL in goals, a feat one other player in NHL history has accomplished (Teemu Selanne, 76 in 1992-93). He finished second to teammate Frank Brimsek in voting for the Calder Trophy given to the top rookie in the NHL.

Conacher had 11 points (six goals, five assists) in the 1939 Stanley Cup Playoffs. He capped the Bruins' run with the winning goal in each of the final three games, including the Cup-clinching goal in a 3-1 victory against the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 5 of the Final.

He scored 24 goals in 1940-41 and 1941-42, tying for second each season. In 1941, he had six points (one goal, five assists) in 11 games to help the Bruins win the Stanley Cup again.

Conacher paused his NHL career in 1942 when he volunteered for the Royal Canadian Air Force. He returned to the Bruins for four games late in the 1945-46 season.

In August 1946, he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings and showed he still had his scoring touch, tying Bobby Bauer for second in the NHL with 30 goals including four against the Chicago Black Hawks on March 16, 1947. Teammate Billy Taylor Sr. had four of his seven assists on Conacher's goals. The seven assists set an NHL record that would be tied three times by Wayne Gretzky (1980, 1985 and 1986).

Conacher's contract was sold to Chicago in 1947. His brother, Charlie Conacher, was named coach during the season, and it was Charlie's decision to put Roy on a line with Bill Mosienko and Doug Bentley that produced Roy's best season in 1948-49, when he led the NHL with 68 points (26 goals, 42 assists), two more than Bentley. He was named to the First NHL All-Star Team and finished third in voting for the Hart Trophy given to the most valuable player in the NHL.

Conacher was sixth in the NHL with 56 points (25 goals, 31 assists) in 1949-50 and fifth with 26 goals in 1950-51. He retired after playing 12 games in 1951-52 with 427 points (226 goals, 201 assists) in 490 NHL games. At the time of his retirement, his 226 goals were 11th in NHL history and two ahead of Charlie.

Roy Conacher was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1998.

NOTES & TRANSACTIONS

• NHL First All-Star Team (1949)
• Played in NHL All-Star Game (1949)
• Traded to Detroit by Boston for Joe Carveth, August, 1946.
• Traded to NY Rangers by Detroit for Eddie Slowinski and future considerations, October 22, 1947.
• Traded to Chicago by Detroit for cash, November 1, 1947.