John Robert "Chick" Webster (November 3, 1920 – January 18, 2018) was a 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 hock ...

player who played 14 games 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 ...

. Prior to this, he was a soldier in

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

Biography

Born in

Toronto Toronto ( ; or ) is the capital city of the Canadian province of Ontario. With a recorded population of 2,794,356 in 2021, it is the most populous city in Canada and the fourth most populous city in North America. The city is the ancho ...

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

, Webster played with the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home ...

during the 1949-50 season. His brother, Don Webster, also played briefly in the NHL, appearing in 27 games for 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 ...

. During

, he was a forward observer and gunner for the 13th Field Regiment of the

3rd Canadian Division The 3rd Canadian Division is a formation of the Canadian Army responsible for the command and mobilization of all army units in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and British Columbia, as well as all units extending westwards from th ...

. He served in Germany, Holland, England, France and the North Sea. Webster lived in

Richmond Hill, Ontario Richmond Hill (Canada 2021 Census, 2021 population: 202,022) is a city in south-central Regional Municipality of York, York Region, Ontario, Canada. Part of the Greater Toronto Area, it is the York Region's third most populous municipality and th ...

, during his time with the Stouffville Clippers in 1960s, and afterward lived in Mattawa, Ontario. After

Milt Schmidt Milt is the seminal fluid of fish, mollusks, and certain other water-dwelling animals which reproduce by spraying this fluid, which contains the sperm, onto roe (fish eggs). It can also refer to the sperm sacs or testes that contain the semen. ...

's death in January 2017, he became the oldest living former NHL player.Milt Schmidt was a gentleman off the ice, relentless on it
/ref> His wife, Leona, died in 2009 of Alzheimer's disease. He died at home in Mattawa on January 18, 2018, at the age of 97. His nickname, Chick, was given to him in his playing days for his love for chewing

Chiclets Chiclets is an American brand of candy-coated chewing gum manufactured by Mondelez International. The brand was introduced in 1900 by the American Chicle Company, a company founded by Thomas Adams. History The Chiclets name is derived from the ...

gum.

Career statistics

References

External links

* 1920 births 2018 deaths Baltimore Clippers (1945–49) players Baltimore Orioles (ice hockey) players Canadian Army personnel of World War II Canadian Army soldiers Canadian expatriate ice hockey players in the United States Canadian ice hockey centres Ice hockey people from Ontario Military personnel from Toronto New York Rangers players New York Rovers players Royal Regiment of Canadian Artillery personnel Sportspeople from Toronto {{Canada-icehockey-centre-1920s-stub