Had legendary Toronto Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe been able to design the perfect man to personify his franchise in the 1930s and '40s, he could not have improved on Syl Apps.
"Apps had more to do with the image the Leafs in the 1940s as Canada's team - the good guys, the very good guys - than any other player," author Jack Batten wrote in his book "The Leafs in Autumn." "He looked so dashing on the ice, all that speed and skill. And off the ice, he was the last word in pure vessels, a teetotaler, a non-smoker, a Baptist steeped in moral propriety, the model team captain."
For more of Syl Apps's 100 Greatest Players bio, please click here.
Had legendary Toronto Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe been able to design the perfect man to personify his franchise in the 1930s and '40s, he could not have improved on Syl Apps.
"Apps had more to do with the image the Leafs in the 1940s as Canada's team - the good guys, the very good guys - than any other player," author Jack Batten wrote in his book "The Leafs in Autumn." "He looked so dashing on the ice, all that speed and skill. And off the ice, he was the last word in pure vessels, a teetotaler, a non-smoker, a Baptist steeped in moral propriety, the model team captain."
For more of Syl Apps's 100 Greatest Players bio, please click here.
NOTES & TRANSACTIONS
- NHL Second All-Star Team (1938, 1941, 1943)
- NHL First All-Star Team (1939, 1942)
- Played in NHL All-Star Game (1939, 1947)
