Al Suomi Albert William Suomi ( born October 29 , 1913 , died September 23 , 2014 ) is a former NHL player , who played with the Chicago Black Hawks for the 1936 – 37 NHL season . Although he did not aspire to play at a professional level , Suomi nevertheless spent his young life playing hockey and was eventually scouted while playing with friends . Suomi began his career playing for the Chicago Baby Ruth team in 1934 , a marketing ploy started by the company that produced the candy of the same name . In 1936 , he joined a minor league team in Detroit , Michigan and , based on his experiences with the Chicago Baby Ruth team , was deemed too professional to be eligible for the 1936 United States Olympic ice hockey team . Suomi ' s sole season with the National Hockey League came as a result of another marketing ploy , this time on the part of the Chicago Black Hawks . Having benched all of his Canadian players , the manager declared his intent to field a team composed entirely of American players . Suomi was selected from among a pool of novice players to join the team but , after five games , the gimmick was disbanded and replaced with professionals . Retiring from hockey in 1940 , he took on a series of small jobs before opening his own hardware store in Chicago . As of 2007 , Suomi was the last surviving member of the 1936 – 37 all - American Chicago Black Hawks team and , following the 2010 death of Louis Holmes , the oldest living former NHL player . Early life . Suomi was born to a working - class family in Eveleth , Minnesota on October 29 , 1913 . Although he never had any serious aspirations to play professional ice hockey , he nevertheless began practicing at local rinks at an early age , focusing on his talents as a left winger . As a teenager , he played at both the high school and college level . His brother , John Suomi , played minor league hockey in Virginia . In 1934 , during the Great Depression , he and two of his friends were approached by scout Jack Manley , who offered them a chance to play professional hockey in Chicago . With only one hour to catch the bus to Minneapolis , Minnesota , Suomi decided that he had nothing to lose and took his belongings in a cardboard box with him to the bus station . Hockey career . For the 1934 – 35 season , Suomi was a member of the Chicago Baby Ruth team of the United States Amateur Hockey Association league , participating in two playoff games and scoring a total of two goals . The team was designed as a marketing gimmick for the Curtis Candy Company , and played before all of the Chicago Black Hawk games in order to increase their attendance . While Suomi made the team , his two friends were rejected and they returned to Minnesota . For the next season , from 1935 – 36 , he was called to Michigan and joined the Detroit Tool Shop of the Michigan - Ontario Hockey League . He was offered an opportunity to tried out for the 1936 Olympic ice hockey team for the United States , but his past association led him to be rejected for being too professional . He played 17 regular season games for the Detroit Tool Shop , scoring eight goals and five assists for a total of 13 points . During the regular season , he had six penalty minutes . In addition , he played in four playoff games , scoring one assist . In 1936 Suomi , along with other MOHL players , took jobs in Denver , Colorado . Unlike the others , however , he received an invitation to try out for the Chicago Black Hawks , which he accepted even amongst threats of a lawsuit from his employer . In another marketing ploy , Black Hawk owner Frederick McLaughlin had benched all the Canadian players on his team and declared his intentions to field a team that consisted entirely of individuals born in the United States . The 1936 - 1937 was Suomi ' s sole season with the National Hockey League . He played five games with the Black Hawks , but scored no points , and , after four wins and one loss , Suomi and the other Americans were disbanded and replaced with the professionals . Suomi spent the remainder of the 1936 – 37 season with the Michigan - Ontario Hockey League ' s Detroit Pontiacs . Over the span of 20 games , he scored only two points , but spent 14 minutes in the penalty box . In a 2002 interview , however , he denied having ever played for the team . His last season in hockey was with the Chicago Hornets of an Arena Hockey League . Later life . After the ArHL folded in 1940 , Suomi began refereeing , but soon gave it up . He then worked as welder and electrician and was not called to serve in World War II . He later founded " Al ' s Hardware " , eventually to be run by his children , in Countryside , Illinois . As of 2007 , he was the last surviving member of the team . Following the death of Louis Holmes in March 2010 , he became the oldest living former NHL player . Al passed away on September 23 , 2014 ] in La Grange Highlands , IL .