Alex Kaleta

Alexander George "Killer" Kaleta (November 29, 1919 – July 9, 1987) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Chicago Black Hawks and New York Rangers between 1941 and 1951 and is best known for his part in originating hockey's hat trick tradition.

Playing career

After playing in the Alberta Senior Hockey League (ASHL), Kaleta joined the NHL with the Chicago Black Hawks in 1941–42. He recorded 28 points in 47 games as a rookie that season. During his tenure with the Black Hawks, he is credited with having begun the tradition of the hat trick during the 1945–46 season, when he entered a shop in Toronto looking for a new hat. Without enough money to buy one, he reached an agreement with shop owner Sammy Taft that if he scored three goals that night in a game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, he would earn a free hat. In fact, that night, on January 26, 1946, he scored four goals against the Leafs. While there are other accounts of the hat trick's origin in hockey, Kaleta's story is the one recognized by the Hockey Hall of Fame. Kaleta went on to complete the season that year with an NHL career-high 46 points.

After four seasons with the Black Hawks, Kaleta joined the New York Rangers in 1948–49. He recorded consecutive 31-point seasons in two seasons with the Rangers before ending his NHL career by joining the Saskatoon Quakers of the minor pro Pacific Coast Hockey League (PCHL) in 1951–52. The next season, the PCHL was absorbed by the Western Hockey League (WHL), where Kaleta played with the Quakers for three more seasons before retiring in 1954–55.

Career statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1937–38 Canmore Britquettes CCJHL 10 10 3 13 20 — — — — — 1937–38 Lethbridge Maple Leafs ASHL 22 20 8 28 8 2 1 1 2 2 1938–39 Calgary Stampeders ASHL 32 15 13 28 39 — — — — — 1939–40 Regina Vic Aces SSHL 32 19 20 39 33 9 4 6 10 10 1940–41 Lethbridge Maple Leafs ASHL 24 20 28 48 22 5 2 4 6 4 1940–41 Lethbridge Maple Leafs Al-Cup — — — — — 10 6 5 11 22 1941–42 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 48 7 21 28 24 3 1 2 3 0 1942–43 Calgary Currie Army CNDHL 24 23 35 58 23 5 4 3 7 6 1942–43 Calgary Currie Army Al-Cup — — — — — 5 2 4 6 0 1943–44 Calgary Currie Army CNDHL 15 8 15 23 24 2 5 1 6 2 1944–45 Calgary Currie Army CNDHL 16 14 12 26 16 3 1 2 3 12 1945–46 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 49 19 27 46 17 4 0 1 1 2 1946–47 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 57 24 20 44 37 — — — — — 1947–48 Chicago Black Hawks NHL 52 10 16 26 40 — — — — — 1948–49 New York Rangers NHL 56 12 19 31 18 — — — — — 1949–50 New York Rangers NHL 67 17 14 31 40 10 0 3 3 0 1950–51 New York Rangers NHL 58 3 4 7 26 — — — — — 1950–51 Hershey Bears AHL 5 0 2 2 6 — — — — — 1951–52 Saskatoon Quakers PCHL 62 38 44 82 23 13 6 13 19 4 1952–53 Saskatoon Quakers WHL 70 26 57 83 6 13 9 14 23 2 1953–54 Saskatoon Quakers WHL 70 19 53 72 52 6 0 5 5 4 1954–55 Saskatoon Quakers WHL 3 2 9 11 10 — — — — — NHL totals 387 92 121 213 202 17 1 6 7 2