Haldor Halderson

Haldor Halderson (Halldór Halldórsson; January 7, 1898 – August 1, 1965) was an Icelandic-Canadian ice hockey player who competed in the 1920 Summer Olympics.

Halderson was the right wing for the Winnipeg Falcons, the Canadian team which won the Olympic gold medal in 1920. Slim then joined the Victoria Aristocrats/Victoria Cougars and helped them win the Stanley Cup in 1925. On both occasions he was a teammate of fellow Icelandic-Canadian ice hockey star Frank Fredrickson, making them the first players to win an Olympic gold medal and a Stanley Cup.

Playing career Halderson was born as Halldór Halldórsson in Winnipeg, Manitoba, to Icelandic immigrants Halldór Kristinn Halldórsson and Jórunn Kristolína Jónsdóttir.

Halderson never played organized junior or intermediate ice hockey in his hometown of Winnipeg, but sprang into fame overnight when he joined the senior ranks of the Winnipeg Ypres team of the Manitoba Hockey Association's military league in 1917–18. Halderson was nicknamed "Slim" due to his lanky frame during his first years in senior amateur and professional hockey. At the start of the 1921–22 season, Halderson's first in the PCHA with the Victoria Aristocrats, he weighed in at only 166 pounds on a 6 feet 2 inches frame. As his playing career went along he put on more weight.

During the 1920–21 season, Canadian Amateur Hockey Association president H. J. Sterling hired a detective who discovered that Halderson and teammate Robert Benson received C$6,500 to play amateur hockey. The Amateur Athletic Union of Canada voided Halderson's registration card and he was suspended from the 1921 Allan Cup playoffs, although the Saskatchewan Amateur Hockey Association allowed him and his Saskatoon team to continue in the league playoffs.

Halderson scored the first goal in the history of the Detroit Cougars (modern day Detroit Red Wings) franchise on November 20, 1926.

Statistics Regular season and playoffs Regular seasonPlayoffs Season Team League GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM 1917–18 Winnipeg Ypres MHL 7 5 6 11 4 — — — — — 1917–18 Winnipeg Ypres Al-Cup — — — — — 4 4 3 7 4 1918–19 Winnipeg Monarchs MHL 9 3 5 8 4 — — — — — 1919–20 Winnipeg Falcons MHL 9 10 11 21 10 — — — — — 1919–20 Winnipeg Falcons Al-Cup — — — — — 6 4 6 10 6 1920–21 Saskatoon Crescents SSHL 16 12 3 15 38 4 8 0 8 9 1921–22 Victoria Aristocrats PCHA 23 7 3 10 13 — — — — — 1922–23 Victoria Cougars PCHA 29 10 5 15 26 2 0 0 0 0 1923–24 Victoria Cougars PCHA 30 6 2 8 50 — — — — — 1924–25 Victoria Cougars WCHL 28 3 6 9 71 4 1 0 1 12 1924–25 Victoria Cougars St-Cup — — — — — 4 2 1 3 8 1925–26 Victoria Cougars WHL 23 3 1 4 51 3 1 0 1 10 1925–26 Victoria Cougars St-Cup — — — — — 4 1 0 1 8 1926–27 Detroit Cougars NHL 19 2 0 2 29 — — — — — 1926–27 Toronto St. Pats/Maple Leafs NHL 25 1 2 3 36 — — — — — 1927–28 Quebec Castors Can-Am 40 13 5 18 71 6 1 1 2 14 1928–29 Newark Bulldogs Can-Am 40 6 3 9 107 — — — — — 1929–30 Kansas City Pla-Mors AHA 48 8 7 15 76 5 0 0 0 8 1930–31 Kansas City Pla-Mors AHA 47 5 7 12 77 8 1 1 2 10 1931–32 Kansas City Pla-Mors AHA 46 9 3 12 69 4 2 0 2 0 1932–33 Kansas City Pla-Mors AHA 26 1 4 5 30 — — — — — 1932–33 Duluth Hornets / Wichita Blue Jays AHA 24 7 2 9 40 — — — — — 1933–34 Tulsa Oilers AHA 48 9 12 21 66 4 0 2 2 4 1934–35 Tulsa Oilers AHA 48 6 13 19 65 5 1 2 3 2 1935–36 Tulsa Oilers AHA 48 6 14 20 25 3 0 0 0 4 1936–37 Wichita Skyhawks AHA 48 5 4 9 30 — — — — — AHA totals 383 56 66 122 478 29 4 5 9 28 PCHA/WCHL totals 133 29 17 46 211 9 2 0 2 31 NHL totals 44 3 2 5 65 — — — — —

International Year Team Event GP G A Pts PIM 1920 Canada OLY 3 9 0 9 — Senior totals 3 9 0 9 —

Awards and achievements Allan Cup Championship – 1920 Olympic Gold Metalist – 1920 PCHA First All-Star Team – 1923 PCHA Second All-Star Team – 1922 Stanley Cup Championship – 1925 AHA First All-Star Team – 1930, 1936, and 1937 Member of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame