Chicago Black Hawks Were Out of Options And Turned To Alfie Moore

Published on May 25th, 2025 5:35 pm EST
Written By: Dave Manuel


Alfie Moore had just finished another season of hockey with the Pittsburgh Hornets of the IAHL.

It was April 5th, 1938, and Moore was sitting in a Toronto bar, enjoying his ice-cold beer. Later that night, the Toronto Maple Leafs and Chicago Black Hawks were set to kick off the first game of the Stanley Cup Finals at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Moore, who was enjoying the start of his off-season after another year of bouncing up and down from the minor leagues to the NHL, was planning on having some cold bars while listening to the game on the radio.

A few hours before Game 1 of the Stanley Cup Finals was set to get underway, the door of the tavern that Alfie Moore was drinking at flew open.

A member of the Chicago Black Hawks organization had finally found Alfie Moore after hours of searching. This was before the days of cell phones and text messages and social media - people were hard to find.

The Black Hawks staffer had an impossible proposal - did Alfie Moore want to play for the Black Hawks later that night?

Moore was a goaltender and asked - you mean, suit up as the back-up goaltender?

No, the staffer responded. You'll be starting.

An "emergency contract" was signed on the spot and Alfie Moore was rushed to the rink. He had no pads. He was dressed casually. None of that mattered.

The starting goaltender for the Black Hawks, Mike Karakas, had broken his toe in the semi-finals. The back-up goaltender was slated to be Paul Goodman, but his train from Winnipeg was delayed by snow.

There was no third option - the Black Hawks needed Moore to play that night.

The Black Hawks had some goalie equipment and before he knew what had happened, Alfie Moore was out on the ice, beer still on his breath.

Things got off to the worst possible start for Moore, as he let in the very first shot that he faced.

After that, Moore calmed down and was a brick wall, stopping the next 25 shots that he faced.

The Black Hawks would win the game by a score of 3-1.

The Maple Leafs were livid, and the owner of the team complained to the league.

The league president said that Alfie Moore was ineligible for the rest of the Finals, but that the Game 1 result would stand.

This worked out fine for the Black Hawks, as Paul Goodman returned in Game 2.

The Black Hawks would go on to win the Stanley Cup, though Moore was never officially credited, as his name wasn't engraved on the Stanley Cup.

The Black Hawks were certainly appreciative, however, as they gave Moore $300 and a gold watch for his efforts.

Alfie Moore would play professional hockey for four more seasons before deciding to retire.

In total, Moore played just 21 games in the NHL, though can lay claim to one of the most unique stories in the history of the league.