1925–26 New York Americans season

The 1925–26 New York Americans season was the 1st season of the New York Americans ice hockey team of the National Hockey League. Despite having the roster of the previous season's top club, the Hamilton Tigers, the club finished in 5th place and did not qualify for the playoffs.
==Off-season==
Bill Dwyer became a hockey team owner by purchasing the suspended Hamilton Tigers franchise and the rights to its players for $80,000. Dwyer got Tommy Gorman to be general manager and coach from the Ottawa Senators, where he had been part-owner. Dwyer was convinced to buy the team by Bill MacBeth, an old friend and writer for the New York Herald-Tribune. MacBeth was convinced that the sport was a cinch to be successful in New York.Frayne, p. 58
The negotiations with Percy Thompson for the Hamilton players started in July and broke off in September after it was found out that Mickey Roach had retired and Billy Burch was under contract to coach in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Gorman purchased Joe Simpson, Crutchy Morrison and Roy Rickey for $10,000 from the Edmonton Eskimos. Edmonton offered to sell the remaining players of the Eskimos, including Duke Keats and George Hainsworth for $45,000, but Gorman's counter-offer of $25,000 was rejected. When it became clear that the NHL was going to take back the Hamilton franchise, Thompson settled with Gorman for $75,000 on September 26, at the NHL meetings in New York.Holzman, pp. 263-264 Burch would eventually sign with the Americans for the then-huge salary of $25,000 for three seasons.Holzman, p. 264
The players still had to pay their $200 fines before being allowed to play. Calder added the condition that each player had to write a letter of apology. Some of the first letters of apology were not acceptable to Calder and he demanded and got the players to rewrite the letters. $300 of each player's salary was held back until the end of the season to ensure they would play every game.Holzman, pp. 264-265
On December 4, seventeen days before the first home game of the season, Dwyer would be arrested for bootlegging. Dwyer would slip into the background and Thomas Duggan of Montreal was named chairman of the board, John Hammond of the Madison Square Garden was named club president and the club was promoted as "Tex Rickard's Americans", Tex Rickard being the owner of Madison Square Gardens.
==Regular Season==
The former Hamilton players moved to New York and most moved into Bill Dwyer's headquarters, the Forrest Hotel, on 49th street, a half-block from the Gardens. The Hotel was also the home of several gangsters such as Legs Diamond, Dutch Schultz and Owney Madden, and writer Damon Runyan.Frayne, pp.57-58 and the liquor and lifestyle would interfere with the team's on-ice play. Players would miss games due to drunkenness, although publicly the missed games would be attributed to injury.Frayne, p. 60 The Americans, although having the roster of the previous season's top team, would finish in last place. The highlight of the season was a four-game winning streak in February, three of the four games played on the road.
Goalie Joe Ironstone played in his first (of two) NHL games, a 6-1 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates on February 6, 1926 and allowed 3 goals in 40 minutes.
René Boileau, a native of Pointe Claire, Quebec, played his only 7 games in the NHL for the Americans in 1926. Tommy Duggan signed Boileau as a publicity stunt under the pseudonym "Rainy Drinkwater" and announced that the French-Canadian player was instead from the Caughnawaga Indian Reservation, and the first Native American to play in the NHL. John "Crutchy" Morrison and Bob Hall also played their only NHL season for the 1925-26 Americans.
===Final Standings===
===Game Log===
Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results 	Regular Season Results
No. 	R 	Date 	Score 	Opponent 	Record
1 	W 	December 2, 1925 	2–1 OT 	@ Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	1–0–0
2 	L 	December 5, 1925 	3–5 	@ Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26)	1–1–0
3 	W 	December 8, 1925 	6–2 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	2–1–0
4 	L 	December 10, 1925 	0–3 	@ Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	2–2–0
5 	L 	December 15, 1925 	1–3 	Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	2–3–0
6 	L 	December 18, 1925 	2–3 	@ Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	2–4–0
7 	L 	December 19, 1925 	1–4 	Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	2–5–0
8 	W 	December 22, 1925 	3–2 	@ Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	3–5–0
9 	W 	December 26, 1925 	3–1 	Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	4–5–0
10 	W 	December 30, 1925 	2–1 OT 	Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26) 	5–5–0
11 	L 	January 2, 1926 	2–3 OT 	@ Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	5–6–0
12 	T 	January 7, 1926 	2–2 OT 	Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	5–6–1
13 	W 	January 9, 1926 	2–1 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	6–6–1
14 	L 	January 11, 1926 	0–1 OT 	Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	6–7–1
15 	L 	January 13, 1926 	1–2 	Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	6–8–1
16 	L 	January 15, 1926 	3–4 	@ Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26)	6–9–1
17 	L 	January 19, 1926 	0–4 	Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	6–10–1
18 	L 	January 21, 1926 	2–3 	@ Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	6–11–1
19 	T 	January 23, 1926 	2–2 OT 	Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	6–11–2
20 	T 	January 25, 1926 	1–1 OT 	Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	6–11–3
21 	L 	January 30, 1926 	0–1 	Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	6–12–3
22 	T 	February 3, 1926 	1–1 OT 	Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26) 	6–12–4
23 	L 	February 6, 1926 	1–6 	Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	6–13–4
24 	L 	February 9, 1926 	0–4 	@ Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	6–14–4
25 	L 	February 13, 1926 	1–2 	@ Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	6–15–4
26 	L 	February 16, 1926 	2–3 	Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26) 	6–16–4
27 	L 	February 18, 1926 	3–7 	Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	6–17–4
28 	W 	February 19, 1926 	3–2 	@ Pittsburgh Pirates (1925–26) 	7–17–4
29 	W 	February 24, 1926 	6–1 	Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	8–17–4
30 	W 	February 27, 1926 	1–0 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1925–26) 	9–17–4
31 	W 	March 2, 1926 	3–1 	@ Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	10–17–4
32 	L 	March 4, 1926 	0–1 	Ottawa Senators (1925–26) 	10–18–4
33 	L 	March 6, 1926 	2–4 	@ Toronto St. Patricks (1925–26)	10–19–4
34 	W 	March 9, 1926 	1–0 	@ Boston Bruins (1925–26) 	11–19–4
35 	L 	March 11, 1926 	1–5 	@ Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	11–20–4
36 	W 	March 17, 1926 	5–3 	Montreal Maroons (1925–26) 	12–20–4
==Playoffs==
*The Americans did not qualify for the post season.
==Player Stats==
===Regular Season===
;Scoring
# 	Player 	GP	G 	A	Pts	PIM
5 	Billy Burch 	36	22	3	25 	33
8 	Red Green 	35	13	4	17 	42
3 	Charlie Langlois 	36	9 	1	10 	76
6 	Shorty Green 	32	6 	4	10 	40
7 	Alex McKinnon 	35	5 	3	8 	34
2 	Ken Randall 	34	4 	2	6 	94
10	Edmond Bouchard 	30	3 	1	4 	10
4 	Joe Simpson 	32	2 	2	4 	2
9 	Mickey Roach 	25	3 	0	3 	4
12	Earl Campbell 	29	1 	0	1 	6
11	René Boileau 	7 	0 	0	0 	0
15	Bob Hall 	8 	0 	0	0 	0
11	John "Crutchy" Morrison	18	0 	0	0 	0
14	Billy Cameron 	21	0 	0	0 	0
12	Joe Ironstone 	1 	0 	0	0 	0
1 	Jake Forbes 	36	0 	0	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player 	MIN 	GP	W 	L 	T	GA	GAA 	SA	SV	SV%	SO
Jake Forbes 	2240	36	12	20	4	86	2.30	 	 	 	2
Joe Ironstone	40 	1 	0 	0 	0	3 	4.50	 	 	 	0
Team: 	2280	36	12	20	4	89	2.34	 	 	 	2
==Awards and Records==
*The Americans did not win any awards this season.
==Transactions==
*Loan Jesse Spring to the Pittsburgh Pirates for Joe Miller on November 25, 1925.
*Trade Odie Cleghorn to Pittsburgh for the rights to Joe Miller on January 23, 1926.
==Trivia==
*No Americans recorded a hat trick this season.
==Gallery==
15Dec1925-Burch_Morenz_MSG_opening_faceoff.jpg|Faceoff between Billy Burch and Howie Morenz on MSG opening night, December 15, 1925.
15Dec1925-Short_scores_on_Rheaume_w_Green.jpg|Shorty Green scores the first goal at MSG on Herb Rhéaume.
==Video==
Video of a Montreal Canadiens practice from early November 1925 which segues into the Habs playing the Americans in the first game at Madison Square Garden on December 15, 1925.
Montreal Canadiens 1924-25 1925-26
==See Also==
*1925–26 NHL season
==References==
* 
* 
category:New York Americans seasons
Category:1925 in hockey
Category:1926 in hockey