The Lethbridge Maple Leafs were, at times, a senior, intermediate, and

junior ice hockey Junior ice hockey is amateur-level ice hockey for 16 to 20 year-old players. National Junior teams compete annually for the IIHF World Junior Championship. The United States men's national junior ice hockey team are the defending champions from ...

team in

Lethbridge, Alberta Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 106,550 in the 2023 Alberta municipal censuses, 2023 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

. They are best known for winning the 1951 World Ice Hockey Championships. The Maple Leafs were a men's

senior ice hockey Senior hockey refers to amateur or semi-professional ice hockey competition. There are no age restrictions for Senior players, who typically consist of those whose junior ice hockey, Junior eligibility has expired. Senior hockey leagues operate un ...

team from

Lethbridge Lethbridge ( ) is a city in the province of Alberta, Canada. With a population of 106,550 in the 2023 Alberta municipal censuses, 2023 municipal census, Lethbridge became the fourth Alberta city to surpass 100,000 people. The nearby Canadian ...

Alberta Alberta is a Provinces and territories of Canada, province in Canada. It is a part of Western Canada and is one of the three Canadian Prairies, prairie provinces. Alberta is bordered by British Columbia to its west, Saskatchewan to its east, t ...

formed in 1936, playing in the Alberta Senior Hockey League. After

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, the Maple Leafs played in the Western Canada Senior Hockey League. In 1950, they captured the Western Canadian Championship. The Maple Leafs were selected to represent Canada at the 1951 World Championships in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. Coached by Dick Gray, the Maple Leafs won the

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have b ...

, beforehand they had been months long on a

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an tour that included the first Sir Winston Churchill Cup Competition, in which the Leafs won the gold medal. During their European tour, they played 62 games winning 51, tying 4, and losing 7 of them. The team's tour was overseen by Frank Sargent, a past-president of the

Canadian Amateur Hockey Association The Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA; ) was the national governing body of amateur ice hockey in Canada from 1914 until 1994, when it merged with Hockey Canada. Its jurisdiction included senior ice hockey leagues and the Allan Cup, ...

. He stated the Lethbridge Maple Leafs were the best goodwill ambassadors the Canada could have had, describing them as gentlemanly and well-behaved. The 1951 Lethbridge Maple Leafs team was inducted to the

Alberta Sports Hall of Fame The Alberta Sports Hall of Fame is a hall of fame and museum in Red Deer, Alberta, Canada, dedicated to the preservation and history of sports within the province. It was created in 1957 by the Alberta Amateur Athletic Union (AAAU). The museum w ...

in 1974.

Senior team

West Kootenay League (1937-38)

1937-38: 2nd in East, lost semi-final

Alberta Senior Hockey League (1938-42)

1938-39: 1st, won final, lost West Semi-Final 1939-40: 2nd, lost semi-final 1940-41: 1st, won final, lost West Final 1941-42: 2nd, won final, lost West Semi-Final

Western Canada Senior Hockey League (1946-49)

1946-47: 3rd, lost final 1947-48: 4th, lost semi-final 1948-49: 4th, lost semi-final

Intermediate team

The Maple Leafs won the provincial titles in 1936-37 and 1949–50, In both these years they won the Western Canada title as well. Their 1949-50 title led to them being chosen as

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

's representative in the 1951 World Ice Hockey Championships. Prior to that competition they went on a European tour. They then won the World Championship. The team continued to compete into the late 1950s.

1951 World Championship roster

* Ken Branch * Bill Chandler * Dinny Flanagan * Bill Flick * Bill Gibson * Dick Gray (Coach) * Mallie Hughes * Bert Knibbs * Jim Malacko * Robert McGregor *

Don McLean Donald McLean III (born October 2, 1945) is an American singer-songwriter and guitarist. Known as the "American Troubadour" or "King of the Trail", he is best known for his 1971 hit "American Pie (song), American Pie", an eight-and-a-half-minut ...

* Nap Milroy * Hector Negrello * Stan Obodiac * Walter Rimstad * Mickey Roth * Lou Siray * Carl Sorokoski * Jack Sumner * Don Vogan * Tom Wood

NHL alumni

Thirteen alumni of the Lethbridge Maple Leafs also played in 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 ...

.legendsofhockey alumni search
/ref> * Viv Allen * Garth Boesch * Jack Evans * Joe Fisher *

Bing Juckes Winston Bryan "Bing" Juckes (born June 14, 1926 – December 31, 1990) was a Canadian ice hockey player. He played 16 games in the National Hockey League with the New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based i ...

* Alex Kaleta * Bob Kirkpatrick * Odie Lowe *

Jake Milford John Calverley "Jake" Milford (July 29, 1914 – December 24, 1984) was a general manager in the National Hockey League. In the early sixties, Milford built the Brandon Wheat Kings of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League into a powerhouse winning ...

* Tony Savage * Sweeney Schriner * Peter Slobodian * Ken Stewart

References

{{Reflist Alberta Senior Hockey League * Defunct ice hockey teams in Canada Ice hockey teams in Alberta Senior ice hockey teams Sport in Lethbridge Ice hockey teams representing Canada internationally 1936 establishments in Alberta Ice hockey clubs established in 1936