Born in Fort William, Ontario, in June 1923, James Gaye Stewart played for the Port Arthur Bruins of the Thunder Bay Junior A Hockey League as a 16-year-old. Over the next two seasons, Stewart worked his way up the ranks of Ontario hockey, playing in the Ontario Hockey Association and the American Hockey League before getting his first taste of the NHL.
But his first kick at the can didn’t come during the regular season. In fact, Stewart was called up to the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1942 during the Stanley Cup Final and helped the team win the Stanley Cup. As for his regular season debut, it came the following season, on route to a Calder Trophy winning performance in 1942-43 for the Maple Leafs – a season for that wouldn’t soon be forgotten.
Gaye Stewart’s Calder Run
On Oct. 31, 1942, Stewart finally made his NHL regular season debut. It was a 7-2 win over the New York Rangers and a game in which Stewart would score two goals and add an assist for a three-point opening game.
He followed that up with a performance that included 22 penalty minutes, before going on a goal streak that lasted five games. Stewart scored six goals over that span. The Maple Leafs would go on to a 22-18-8 record with Stewart contributing 24 goals and 47 points in 48 games in his rookie season.
He added another two points in four games in the playoffs, however the Maple Leafs didn’t make it past Detroit Red Wings in the first round. But Stewart’s rookie season was impressive nonetheless.
In fact, having won the Stanley Cup the previous season with just one NHL game under his belt, Stewart became the first player in NHL history to win the Cup prior to winning the Calder Trophy as the league’s rookie of the year.
Stewart’s near point-per-game season, not only earned him the top rookie award, the 19-year-old at the time also topped Montreal’s Glen Harmon and Maurice ‘The Rocket’ Richard for the Calder. Even though Richard’s season was littered with injuries. Regardless, Stewart’s win was just the beginning of a strong career.
Gaye Stewart’s Illustrious Career
Stewart’s rookie campaign also saw him voted second in Hart Trophy voting and third in the Lady Byng. But Stewart’s career didn’t end with that. In fact, he would go on to play in 502 career regular season games, tallying 185 goals and 344 points over parts of nine seasons with the Maple Leafs, Chicago Black Hawks, New York Rangers, Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens.
Related: Revisiting Calder Trophy Seasons – Grant Warwick’s 1941-42 Season
Five times over his career, he played in the postseason and added two goals and 11 points in 27 games with the Maple Leafs, Red Wings and Canadiens. Along with his Stanley Cup in 1941-42, Stewart was also a part of the Cup-winning Maple Leafs in 1946-47.
Over a nine-year career, Stewart hit the 20-goal mark six times, including a career-high 37 goals at the age of 22, following a two-year hiatus in which he served in World War II. Upon his return, his 37 goals led the way in the NHL in 1945-46 and – until Auston Matthews led the NHL in goals in 2020-21 – it was the last time a Maple Leafs player had led the league.
Gaye Stewart A Hockey Hall of Fame Snub?
Despite the nearly 40-goal season and the 500-plus games played during the mid-40s, Stewart has never been inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Even with his Calder Trophy win, having led the league in goals during one of his nine seasons and helping the Maple Leafs to two Stanley Cups, Stewart simply never made the cut.
Related: Revisiting Calder Trophy Seasons – Johnny Quilty’s 1940-41 Season
A four-time NHL all-star, Stewart was recognized as one of the top-100 Maple Leafs of all-time – at number 67 – and was eventually inducted into the Northwestern Ontario Sports Hall of Fame in 1983. However, that remains a long way from being inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Stewart passed away in November 2010 at the age of 87. Regardless of his induction status, the former Maple Leafs forward’s success will remain in the franchise’s record books.
