Michael George Karakas (November 13, 1910 – May 2, 1992) was an American professional

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as the goalie) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays in or near t ...

in the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

(NHL). He was the league's first American-born and -trained goaltender and the first player of Greek descent. Karakas played six full seasons and parts of two others with the

Chicago Black Hawks (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and appeared in two Stanley Cup Finals, winning once. In 1938, he led Chicago, who had a .411 winning percentage in the regular season, to a second Stanley Cup, playing with a steel-toed boot on one foot in the last two games of the Finals after he had broken it in the last game of the Semi-finals. Karakas is one of the original members of the

United States Hockey Hall of Fame The United States Hockey Hall of Fame was established in 1973 with the goal of preserving the history of ice hockey in the United States while recognizing the extraordinary contributions of select players, coaches, administrators, officials and ...

Biography

Born in

Aurora An aurora (plural: auroras or aurorae), also commonly known as the polar lights, is a natural light display in Earth's sky, predominantly seen in high-latitude regions (around the Arctic and Antarctic). Auroras display dynamic patterns of bri ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

, to a

Greek American Greek Americans ( el, Ελληνοαμερικανοί ''Ellinoamerikanoí'' ''Ellinoamerikánoi'' ) are Americans of full or partial Greek ancestry. The lowest estimate is that 1.2 million Americans are of Greek descent while the highest e ...

family, he grew up in nearby

Eveleth Eveleth is a city in St. Louis County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 3,718 at the 2010 census. U.S. Highway 53 and State Highway 37 (MN 37) are two of the main routes in Eveleth. Eveleth was the site of the conflict that resu ...

. Growing up, Karakas and

Frank Brimsek Francis Charles "Mr. Zero" Brimsek (September 26, 1913 – November 11, 1998) was an American professional ice hockey goaltender who played ten seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Boston Bruins and Chicago Black Hawks. He won ...

, who also became a goaltender in the NHL, were battery mates for their high school

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding t ...

team, with Karakas catching. Karakas played 8 seasons for the

between 1936 and 1945. In his first season with the Black Hawks, Karakas was awarded the

Calder Memorial Trophy The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League (NHL)." It is named after Frank Calder, the first president of the NHL. Serving as ...

after posting a 1.85 goals-against-average with nine shutouts in 48 games. Karakas was only invited to play for the Black Hawks because their regular goaltender,

Lorne Chabot Laurent Edward Chabot (October 5, 1900 – October 10, 1946) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Chabot played in the National Hockey League from 1926 to 1937. He was a member of two Stanley Cup championship teams, the New York Rangers ...

, was injured. After posting four wins in four games, with three shutouts, the Black Hawks made Karakas their starting goaltender; Chabot was later traded to the

Montreal Maroons The Montreal Maroons (officially the Montreal Professional Hockey Club) were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL). They played in the NHL from 1924 to 1938, winning the Stanley Cup in 1926 and 1935. They were the las ...

. Karakas won the Stanley Cup in the 1937–38 season, playing for the first out of two teams which won the Cup with a losing record. For the 1937-38 Chicago Black Hawks season, their owner, Major

Frederic McLaughlin Maj. Frederic McLaughlin (27 June 1877 – 17 December 1944) was an American businessman and soldier. He was the first owner of the Chicago Black Hawks National Hockey League (NHL) ice hockey team. Born in Chicago, Illinois, McLaughlin inherited ...

, ordered his general manager to "ice ima team of all American players." After losing five of its six first games with an all-American roster, some Canadian players were added; however, the team finished the season with a 14–25–9 record for a .411 winning percentage. In the playoffs, Karakas suffered a broken toe just before the start of the Stanley Cup final against the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

. The Black Hawks were forced to substitute

Alfie Moore Alfred Ernest Moore (December 1, 1904 – June 29, 1979) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. Moore played 16 seasons of professional ice hockey between 1925 and 1942, including 21 games in the National Hockey League with the Chicag ...

for Karakas in the first game. After the first game, Moore was ruled ineligible, and the Black Hawks lost the next game. Karakas returned with a steel-toed boot and won the next two games, leading the Black Hawks to their second Stanley Cup win. Overall in that playoff run, Karakas had a 6–2 record, with two shutouts and a 1.71 goals-against-average. Karakas also surrendered an overtime goal clinching a Stanley Cup by

Toe Blake Toes are the digits (fingers) of the foot of a tetrapod. Animal species such as cats that walk on their toes are described as being ''digitigrade''. Humans, and other animals that walk on the soles of their feet, are described as being ''plant ...

in the

1944 Stanley Cup Finals The 1944 Stanley Cup Finals was a best-of-seven series between the Chicago Black Hawks and the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens won the series 4–0 to win their first Stanley Cup since they defeated Chicago in . Paths to the Finals Chicago defe ...

. After helping Chicago win the Stanley Cup in 1938, Karakas asked the team's owners for a

US$ The United States dollar (symbol: $; code: USD; also abbreviated US$ or U.S. Dollar, to distinguish it from other dollar-denominated currencies; referred to as the dollar, U.S. dollar, American dollar, or colloquially buck) is the official ...

500 raise. The owners refused the raise, and for the next five seasons Karakas played three full seasons in the

American Hockey League The American Hockey League (AHL) is a professional ice hockey league based in the United States and Canada that serves as the primary developmental league for the National Hockey League (NHL). Since the 2010–11 season, every team in the le ...

(AHL), and split two between the AHL and the NHL. Karakas had 28 shutouts in the regular season, and another three in the playoffs in his six seasons in the NHL. In 5 of his 8 seasons in chicago Karakas appeared in all 48 games. in 38-39 he played 17 games with chicago + 5 with montreal. In 1973, Karakas was named as an original member of the

, located in his hometown of Eveleth.

Personal life

Mike's younger brother Tommy played college hockey at

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a state in the Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolitan areas include, Peoria and Rockf ...

, winning a championship in

1943 Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * January 1 – WWII: The Soviet Union announces that 22 German divisions have been encircled at Stalingrad, with 175,000 killed and 137,650 captured. * January 4 ...

Awards and achievements

*Selected to the AHA First All-Star Team in 1935. *

winner in

1936 Events January–February * January 20 – George V of the United Kingdom and the British Dominions and Emperor of India, dies at his Sandringham Estate. The Prince of Wales succeeds to the throne of the United Kingdom as King E ...

. * Stanley Cup champion in 1938. *

Calder Cup The Calder Cup is the trophy awarded annually to the playoff champions of the American Hockey League. It was first presented in 1937 to the Syracuse Stars. The cup is made of sterling silver mounted on a base of Brazilian mahogany. In its cur ...

champion in

1940 A calendar from 1940 according to the Gregorian calendar, factoring in the dates of Easter and related holidays, cannot be used again until the year 5280. Events Below, the events of World War II have the "WWII" prefix. January * Januar ...

. *Selected to the AHL First All-Star Team in 1941. *Selected to the AHL Second All-Star Team in

. *Selected to the

NHL Second All-Star Team The National Hockey League All-Star teams were first named at the end of the 1930–31 NHL season, to honor the best performers over the season at each position. Representatives of the Professional Hockey Writers' Association vote for the all- ...

1945 1945 marked the end of World War II and the fall of Nazi Germany and the Empire of Japan. It is also the only year in which Nuclear weapon, nuclear weapons Atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki, have been used in combat. Events Below, ...

. *Inducted into the

in 1973.

Career statistics

Regular season and playoffs

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Karakas, Mike 1910 births 1992 deaths American men's ice hockey goaltenders American people of Greek descent Calder Trophy winners Chicago Blackhawks players Chicago Shamrocks players Ice hockey players from Minnesota Montreal Canadiens players New Haven Eagles players People from Aurora, Minnesota Providence Reds players St. Louis Flyers (AHA) players Springfield Indians players Sportspeople from Eveleth, Minnesota Stanley Cup champions Tulsa Oilers (AHA) players United States Hockey Hall of Fame inductees