Bill Mosienko

William Mosienko (November 2, 1921 – July 9, 1994) was a Canadian professional ice hockey right winger who played 14 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Black Hawks from 1942 to 1955.

He is best noted for recording the fastest hat trick in NHL history.

Mosienko was born on November 2, 1921, in Winnipeg, Manitoba.

He was one of 13 children, having eight brothers and four sisters.

His parents, Daniel and Natalia, were Ukrainian immigrants who came from Ekaterinoslav (modern Dnipro, Ukraine).

In Canada Daniel worked as a boilermaker with the Canadian Pacific Railway.

Mosienko grew up in Winnipeg's north end.

He developed a passion for hockey and began playing at the age of 10 with the Tobans and later Sherburn athletic clubs.

At 17, he sought to try out with the St. James Canadians junior team in 1939 and after being told he was too young, instead joined the Winnipeg Monarchs.

He played the 1939–40 season with them and scored 21 goals in 24 games.

Though still eligible for junior hockey, Mosienko left the team as they did not cover the cost of transportation for him within Winnipeg, later noting that as he was from a poor family he needed that money to help him out.

Chicago Black Hawks player Joe Cooper discovered Mosienko playing on outdoor rinks in Winnipeg and recommended that Hawks management sign him.

He had also been signed by the New York Rangers, but as Chicago submitted their claim first, they retained Mosienko's rights.

Mosienko signed with Chicago at the age of 18 and was assigned to their minor league team, the Providence Reds of the American Hockey League.

He played 36 games with Providence during the 1940–41 season, scoring 33 points, before being reassigned to the Kansas City Americans of the American Hockey Association, whom Chicago had just purchased as an additional minor-league affiliate.

He finished the AHA season with 4 points in 7 games.

The Black Hawks first recalled Mosienko in 1942, replacing players who had left to fight World War II.

He scored his first two NHL goals on February 9, 1942, 21 seconds apart.

An ankle injury kept him out for several weeks, and he finished the season with 14 points in 12 NHL games.

Mosineko returned to Winnipeg for the summer of 1942 and worked in a defence plant.

He tried to enlist in the military but was refused for medical reasons, likely related to his small size.

He was also unable to cross into the United States as a result of travel restrictions and played the 1942–43 season primarily with the Quebec Aces of the Quebec Senior Hockey League, appearing in 8 games for them and scoring 5 points.

He appeared in two games when the Hawks traveled to Toronto.

He finally established himself as an NHL regular in 1943–44 and scored a career high 70 points.

Mosienko and his linemates Clint Smith and Doug Bentley combined to score 219 points, at that time an NHL record.

In 1944–45, Mosienko finished sixth in league scoring with 54 points and did not record a single penalty minute throughout the course of the season.

He was awarded the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy as the NHL's most gentlemanly player and named a second-team All-Star.

He was also voted the most popular player on the team by its fans.

The following season, Chicago coach Johnny Gottselig paired Mosienko with the Bentley brothers: Max and Doug.

The trio formed what came to be known as the "Pony Line" due to their speed and small size and emerged as one of the top scoring trios in the NHL.

In the NHL, Mosienko won the Lady Byng Memorial Trophy in 1945 as the most gentlemanly player in the league, played in five All-Star Games and was twice named to the second All-Star team.

Max Bentley led the league in scoring in 1945–46, and despite missing time with a knee injury, Mosienko finished sixth.

He was again named a second-team All-Star.

He played in the first National Hockey League All-Star Game prior to the start of the 1947–48 season, during which he suffered a broken leg and was initially feared lost for the year.

In a 1952 game against the New York Rangers, Mosienko scored three goals in 21 seconds.

He left the league in 1955 to help bring professional hockey to his hometown of Winnipeg.

He helped create the Winnipeg Warriors of the Western Hockey League and was a three-time All-Star in his four years of play in the league.

He won the league championship in 1956.

Mosienko was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1965 and into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1980.

His 70 points set a team rookie record that stood for 37 years until broken by Denis Savard in 1980–81.