UKE LINE 60 years later

Guest columnist discusses contribution of Ukrainian-Canadian hockey players in the NHL over the years, including Lethbridge’s Vic Stasiuk

The passing of the legendary Milt Schmidt on Jan. 4 brought to light one of the several famous ethnic lines in the history of the National Hockey League.

Schmidt, a Hall of Fame centre who was the oldest living NHL veteran at 98, was the centre of the famed “Kraut Line” along with Woody Dumart and Bobby Bauer, three childhood friends of German descent from Kitchener, Ont., who played together in juniors, then in the minors, and finally as the top line for the Bruins.

In the 1970s, the ethnic line that terrorized the NHL from 1972-1979 was the “French Connection Line” of the newly franchised Buffalo Sabres, named after the popular 1971 movie starring Gene Hackman, which consisted of Gilbert Perrault, Rene Robert and Rick Martin. All three were Frenchspeaking and from Quebec. One ethnic line that should not be forgotten is the colourful “Uke Line” of the Boston Bruins from 1957-1961.

The Uke Line was comprised of three Ukrainian-Canadians, Edmonton native Johnny Bucyk, born to Ukrainian immigrant parents; Lethbridge native Vic Stasiuk was from a Ukrainian family; and Ontario native Bronco Horvath was born to ethnic Hungarian parents from Ukraine.

The magic of the Uke Line was noticed when the three players first played on the same line for a season in 195455 for the Edmonton Flyers of the Western Hockey League. Boston Bruins GM Lynn Patrick saw the Uke Line in action for Edmonton, and in 1957 traded goaltending legend Terry Sawchuk to Detroit for the young Bucyk, promptly reuniting him on a line with Horvath and Stasiuk. As is legend, the three bachelors shared a rented house together in Arlington, Massachusetts where they further cemented their bond.

While the four seasons that the Uke Line played together gained interest from fans around the league, the line was more than solid for the Bruins. In 1957-58 they became the first line in NHL history in which all three players scored at least 20 goals in a season. In 1959, Horvath scored 39 goals and 41 assists for 80 points, just one point behind Bobby Hull who won the Art Ross Trophy as the NHL’s leading scorer, in addition to setting a league record with points in 22 consecutive games. In 1960, Stasiuk scored a career-high 68 points.

When the line was disbanded in 1961 when Stasiuk was traded back to Detroit, the Bruins would miss the playoffs for the next five seasons.

The careers of Bucyk, Horvath and Stasiuk all represent pure dedication to pro hockey. At the time of his retirement after 23 NHL seasons, 21 of which were with the Bruins, Bucyk ranked fourth on the NHL career points list as well as third on the number of NHL games played. Furthermore, at age 36 Bucyk was both the fifth NHL player to have a 50-goal season and the fifth player to score 100 points in season.

Stasiuk would go on to coach the Philadelphia Flyers, the California Golden Seals and the Vancouver Canucks.

Horvath had the distinction of playing for five of the Original Six NHL teams (New York, Chicago, Boston, Montreal, Toronto) in addition to having been the property of Detroit. In a playing career that spanned 23 seasons, in 1963 he started playing for the Rochester Americans of the AHL, leading the team to a record four consecutive appearances in the Calder Cup. Though once a force in the NHL, he was proud to play for Rochester and ended his playing career after seven seasons there.

In his 1990 book “Beyond the Uke Line: Ukrainians in the National Hockey League,” George Tatomyr not only assesses the Uke Line in terms of its historical importance, but also recognizes that many other Ukrainian-Canadians have made significant, if not colourful contributions to the NHL. Among the players profiled are Dave Andreychuk, Dale Hawerchuk, Mike Bossy, Bernie Federko, Turk Broda, Terry Sawchuk, Eric Nesterenko, Orest Kindrachuk, Tom Lysiak, Cliff Korol, Gene Achtymichuk, Dennis Sobchuk, the Babych brothers (Wayne and Dave) and many others.

Some other Ukrainian-Canadians described in detail in the book are colourful players better known for their physical play and showmanship, such as Dave Semenko, Dave Hoyda, Dennis Polonich, Ed “Boxcar” Hospodar and Eddie Shack. Ironically, Dennis Maruk, once a 60-goal scorer with the Washington Capitals, played on a line with Dave Hrechkosy in 1975-76 for the California Golden Seals; both players joked that all they needed was a third Ukrainian-Canadian on their line to create a 1970s version of The Uke Line.

Observers on both sides of the political turmoil in the Ukraine might be wise to look to the legacy of the Uke Line to see what Ukrainians can accomplish when put together with a stated purpose. With an estimated 1.3 million Canadians of full or partial Ukrainian descent, Canada ranks third among countries with the highest Ukrainian population in back of Ukraine and Russia. Ukrainian-Canadians rooted for the Uke Line regardless of team allegiance. As 2017 represents the 60th anniversary of the Uke Line playing for the Boston Bruins, this flamboyant ethnic line should be not be forgotten, nor should the achievements of many other Ukrainian-Canadians in the NHL.

John Horan is a public relations strategist with Cranbrook Strategies in Avon, Connecticut