April 14, 1948: Syl Apps Goes Out a Winner

Syl Apps (left) and Teeder Kennedy

April 14, 1948: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Detroit Red Wings, 7-2 at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit, and complete a 4-game sweep of the Stanley Cup Finals. It is their 2nd straight Cup, their 3rd in the last 4 seasons, and their 4th in the last 7.

It was also the 1st time the Cup was awarded in its current "barrel" shape, instead of the "cigar" or "elephant leg" shape it had had since 1932.

Apps with the previous version

The team had 5 players who would be elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame: Goaltender Walter "Turk" Broda; left wing Harry Watson; and centers Max Bentley, Ted "Teeder" Kennedy and Syl Apps. Right wing Howie Meeker can't be included: Although a good player, he was elected to the Hall as a broadcaster.

Unlike longtime U.S. Senator Edward M. Kennedy, and several other Edwards who have been nicknamed "Ted" or "Teddy," Teeder's birth name really was "Theodore." A boy he'd played street hockey with couldn't pronounce "Theodore," and it came out "Teeder." He would succeed Apps as team Captain.

Syl Apps -- Charles Joseph Sylvanus Apps -- had been the Captain of the Leafs for the 1942 and 1947 Cup wins, and was again in 1948. He had been in the Canadian Army during World War II, and it was Bob Davidson who had captained the Leafs to the 1945 Cup.

Tired of getting lowballed in salary by Leafs general manager Conn Smythe, Apps had wanted to retire after the 1947 Cup. But he wanted to reach 200 career goals, a total which, at that point, very few players had reached. He got there on the final weekend of the 1947-48 regular season. He accepted a job with Simpson's department store, and another as Ontario Athletic Commissioner.

In spite of their salary disputes, and the fact that he was only 33 years old when he retired, Smythe called Apps the greatest player in Leafs history. Jack Adams, longtime head coach and GM of the Red Wings, called Apps the greatest center he had ever seen. Ted Lindsay of the Wings called him the greatest center he'd ever played against. And Boston Bruins center Milt Schmidt called him the greatest player he'd ever played against.

In 1961, Apps was elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame. From 1963 to 1975, Apps served in the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario, as a member of the Progressive Conservative Party. In 1975, he was elected to Canada's Sports Hall of Fame. In 1977, he was made a Member of the Order of Canada.

He died in 1998. That year, The Hockey News ranked him 33rd on their list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players; and the Leafs made the Number 10 an "Honoured Number," with both Apps and George Armstrong honored for wearing it. In 2016, as part of the team's Centennial celebrations, it was retired for both Apps and Armstrong. In 2017, Apps was named one of the NHL's 100th Anniversary 100 Greatest Players.

His son, Syl Apps Jr. -- Sylvanus Marshall Apps -- was a center who played in the NHL from 1970 to 1980, mostly for the Pittsburgh Penguins. His son, Syl Apps III -- Sylvanus Marshall Apps III -- played hockey at Princeton University, but couldn't get from the minor leagues to the NHL. Syl Jr.'s daughter, Gillian Apps, won Gold Medals with Canada in the Winter Olympics in 2006, 2010 and 2014. Another daughter of Syl Jr., Amy Apps, played for Canada's national women's soccer team. Another grandchild of Syl Sr., Darren Barber, competed for Canada in rowing, winning a Gold Medal at the 1992 Olympics.

Apparently, for any number of sports, there's an Apps for that.

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April 14, 1948 was a Tuesday. Opening Day of the baseball season was 6 days away. Football was out of season. The Finals of the Basketball Association of America, the league that would become the NBA in 1949, were underway, and tied at 1 game apiece. The Baltimore Bullets went on to beat the defending Champions, the Philadelphia Warriors, in 6 games.