Forward Walter “Wally” Monson began his ice hockey career with the Elmwood Millionaires, a club with which he would win the junior national championship in 1928, in addition to a senior one in 1930. He then joined the Selkirk Fishermen and led the senior league in scoring in 1931, which drew the attention of the organizers of Canada’s ice hockey delegation to the 1932 Winter Olympics. He was drafted and played six games in the tournament, scoring seven goals and taking home a gold medal for his efforts. After winning another national championship with the Fishermen in 1933, he spent two seasons with the St. John Beavers of the Maritime League, and then joined the Pittsburgh Yellow Jackets of the Eastern Amateur Hockey League for 35 games. Although he was placed on the reserve list for the Montreal Maroons, he decided to move to Britain where he played professionally for four seasons with the Harringay Racers, captaining the team in his first and winning a league championship in his second. He was named the team’s assistant coach in 1942 and returned to Canada after World War II to coach for the Manitoba Junior Hockey League, first for the Canadian Ukrainian Athletic Club Blues, then the Winnipeg Monarchs. In his first season with the Monarchs, 1945-1946, the team won the Memorial Cup, given annually to the men’s junior ice hockey champions. He also helped recruit players to the British ice hockey leagues in the post-war era. He was made a member of the British Ice Hockey Hall of Fame in 1955, and later the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame.
Canada