Joseph Jean Étienne Stanislas Cattarinich (November 13, 1881 – December 7, 1938), was a Canadian professional

Ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

player, and co-owner of

horse racing Horse racing is an equestrian performance activity, typically involving two or more horses ridden by jockeys (or sometimes driven without riders) over a set distance for competition. It is one of the most ancient of all sports, as its bas ...

tracks in Canada and the United States as well as a co-owner of the

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...

of the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

Biography

Joseph Cattarinich's father was a Croatian sailor. Cattarinich was originally spelt Katarinic, and other immediate surnames in the family tree included Bradicic and Nikolic. He went to sea with fellow Croats Zaninovich, Soussich and Lukinovilch. He visited

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and

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n islands with them and others.

Sports career

Cattarinich grew up in

Quebec City Quebec City is the capital city of the Provinces and territories of Canada, Canadian province of Quebec. As of July 2021, the city had a population of 549,459, and the Census Metropolitan Area (including surrounding communities) had a populati ...

and played

ice hockey Ice hockey (or simply hockey in North America) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an Ice rink, ice skating rink with Ice hockey rink, lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. Tw ...

and

lacrosse Lacrosse is a contact team sport played with a lacrosse stick and a lacrosse ball. It is the oldest organized sport in North America, with its origins with the indigenous people of North America as early as the 12th century. The game w ...

as a young man. Later, he lived in Levis near Quebec City. He is best known as the first

goaltender In ice hockey, the goaltender (commonly referred to as goalie or netminder) is the player responsible for preventing the hockey puck from entering their own team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring. The goaltender mostly plays ...

of the professional

, then known as 'Les Canadiens', playing for the team during the inaugural

1910 Events January * January 6 – Abé people in the French West Africa colony of Côte d'Ivoire rise against the colonial administration; the rebellion is brutally suppressed by the military. * January 8 – By the Treaty of Punakha, t ...

National Hockey Association The National Hockey Association (NHA), initially the National Hockey Association of Canada Limited, was a professional ice hockey organization with teams in Ontario and Quebec, Canada. It is the direct predecessor of today's National Hockey Leagu ...

(NHA) season. He retired after

Georges Vézina Joseph Georges Gonzague Vézina (; ; , 1887 – , 1926) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played seven seasons in the National Hockey Association (NHA) and nine in the National Hockey League (NHL), all with the Montreal C ...

shut out Cattarinich's club in a game with Vézina's amateur

Chicoutimi Chicoutimi ( , ) is the most populous borough (arrondissement) of the city of Saguenay in Quebec, Canada. It is situated at the confluence of the Saguenay and Chicoutimi rivers. During the 20th century, it became the main administrative and ...

team (the Canadiens had been on a pre-season barnstorming tour to promote the upcoming season of the NHA. He was so impressed, that he recommended the Canadiens sign Vézina, and voluntarily stepped down from his place on the team. In those days ice hockey teams carried only one goaltender, as a rule.

Business career

With longtime business partner

Leo Dandurand Leo is the Latin word for lion. It most often refers to: * Leo (constellation), a constellation of stars in the night sky * Leo (astrology), an astrological sign of the zodiac * Leo (given name), a given name in several languages, usually mas ...

, Cattarinich became prominent in the Montreal

tobacco Tobacco is the common name of several plants in the genus '' Nicotiana'' of the family Solanaceae, and the general term for any product prepared from the cured leaves of these plants. More than 70 species of tobacco are known, but the ...

wholesaling business, but it was their popularization of the

Parimutuel betting Parimutuel betting, or pool betting, is a betting system in which all bets of a particular type are placed together in a pool; taxes and the ''house-take'', or ''vigorish'', are deducted, and payoff odds are calculated by sharing the pool among a ...

system at local tracks that provided their greatest commercial success. With the re-introduction of race track betting in the United States after

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, the pair, known popularly as "Catta-Léo", extended their activities to racetracks in

Chicago Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...

Jefferson Parish, Louisiana Jefferson Parish () is a List of parishes in Louisiana, parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 440,781. Its parish seat is Gretna, Louisiana, Gretna, its largest community is ...

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

, and others in

St. Louis St. Louis ( , sometimes referred to as St. Louis City, Saint Louis or STL) is an independent city in the U.S. state of Missouri. It lies near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a populatio ...

and further afield. In 1921, along with Dandurand and

Louis Letourneau Hilarion Adolphe "Louis" Letourneau (1868 – April 29, 1952) was an ice hockey team owner of the Montreal Canadiens hockey team. Following the death of George Kennedy, (Montreal Canadiens owner), in October 1921, Letourneau: Leo Dandurand and ...

, Cattarinich purchased the

of the

from the estate of

George Kennedy George Harris Kennedy Jr. (February 18, 1925 – February 28, 2016) was an American actor who appeared in more than 100 film and television productions. He played "Dragline" in ''Cool Hand Luke'' (1967), winning the Academy Award for Best Supp ...

for $11,000. Although Dandurand was the active partner during their tenure (Cattarinich was known as "The Silent One" and Letourneau sold his stake in 1930), the Canadiens won three

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

s with players such as

Howie Morenz Howard William Morenz (September 21, 1902 – March 8, 1937) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. Beginning in 1923, he played centre for three National Hockey League (NHL) teams: the Montreal Canadiens (in two stints), the Chicago Bla ...

Aurel Joliat Aurel may refer to: Places * Aurel, Drôme, France * Aurel, Vaucluse, France Other uses * Aurel (given name) * Aurel Awards, a Slovak music award * AuRel, a dragon in E. E. Knight's ''Age of Fire Age of Fire is a series of fantasy/Adventure ...

, and

Georges Vezina Georges may refer to: Places *Georges River, New South Wales, Australia * Georges Quay (Dublin) *Georges Township, Fayette County, Pennsylvania Other uses * Georges (name) * ''Georges'' (novel), a novel by Alexandre Dumas * "Georges" (song), a 19 ...

. After a series of losses (amounting to $40,000 for the 1934–35 season alone), Cattarinich and Dandurand sold the club to a syndicate comprising J. Ernest Savard, Maurice Forget, and Louis Gélinas in 1935 for $165,000. In 1932, Cattarinich, Dandurand, and Letourneau purchased Blue Bonnets Raceway. A shareholder with Robert S. Eddy, Jr. and others in

Arlington Park Arlington Park (formerly known as Arlington International Racecourse) is a former horse race track in the Chicago suburb of Arlington Heights, Illinois. Once called the ''Arlington Park Jockey Club'', it was located adjacent to the Illinois Rou ...

racetrack in Chicago and Jefferson Park Racetrack in

Jefferson Parish Jefferson Parish () is a parish in the U.S. state of Louisiana. As of the 2020 census, the population was 440,781. Its parish seat is Gretna, its largest community is Metairie, and its largest incorporated city is Kenner. Jefferson Parish i ...

, Louisiana, in 1934 their group purchased the

Fair Grounds Race Course Fair Grounds Race Course, often known as New Orleans Fair Grounds, is a thoroughbred racetrack and racino in New Orleans, New Orleans, Louisiana. It is operated by Churchill Downs Louisiana Horseracing Company, LLC. The ''Carrollton Race Cours ...

from prominent horseman Edward R. Bradley. Cattarinich and Dandurand continued their betting business throughout the challenging economic environment of the

Great Depression The Great Depression was a severe global economic downturn from 1929 to 1939. The period was characterized by high rates of unemployment and poverty, drastic reductions in industrial production and international trade, and widespread bank and ...

in the 1930s. Despite several attempts, they did not succeed in acquiring another

NHL The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...

club. While recovering from an eye operation, he suffered a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when Ischemia, blood flow decreases or stops in one of the coronary arteries of the heart, causing infarction (tissue death) to the heart muscle. The most common symptom ...

and died on December 7, 1938, in

. Catarinich is buried in

Notre-Dame-des-Neiges Cemetery Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery (, ) is a rural cemetery located in the borough of Côte-des-Neiges-Notre-Dame-de-Grâce, Montreal, Quebec, Canada, which was founded in 1854. The entrance and the grounds run along a part of Côte-des-Neiges Road ...

Montreal, Quebec Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...

. He is a member of the

Hockey Hall of Fame The Hockey Hall of Fame () is a museum and hall of fame located in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Dedicated to the history of ice hockey, it holds exhibits about players, teams, National Hockey League (NHL) records, memorabilia and National Hockey Le ...

, inducted in 1977 as a builder.''Hockey Hall of Fame'' Joseph Cattarinich

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cattarinich, Joseph 1881 births 1938 deaths Canadian ice hockey coaches Canadian ice hockey goaltenders Canadian people of Croatian descent Hockey Hall of Fame inductees Ice hockey people from Quebec City Montreal Canadiens (NHA) players Montreal Canadiens coaches Montreal Canadiens executives National Hockey League executives National Hockey League owners Burials at Notre Dame des Neiges Cemetery Ice hockey people from Lévis, Quebec Stanley Cup champions 20th-century Canadian sportsmen