Babe Pratt Information & Babe Pratt Links at HealthHaven.com

Born	January 7, 1916,; Stony Mountain, MB, CAN
Died	December 16, 1988 (aged 72),; Vancouver, BC, CAN
Height; Weight	6 ft 2 in (1.88 m); 190 lb (86 kg; 13 st 8 lb)
Position	Defence/left wing
Shot	Left
Pro clubs	New York Rangers; Toronto Maple Leafs; Boston Bruins
Pro career	1935 – 1952
	Hall of Fame, 1966

Walter "Babe" Pratt (January 7, 1916 in Stony Mountain, Manitoba - December 16, 1988) was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman/left winger who played for the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins in the National Hockey League.

Babe was an important member of two Stanley Cup winning teams, the 1940 Rangers and 1945 Maple Leafs. He won the Hart Memorial Trophy in 1944. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966.

In January, 1946 Pratt was caught betting on hockey games and was subsequently suspended from the NHL. Pratt admitted to gambling but denied ever placing a bet against his own team. After promising to quit betting he was reinstated to the Toronto Maple Leafs. His last NHL season was with the Boston Bruins in 1946–47 and he played in the minors after that.

He subsequently worked as an analyst for CBC Television's Hockey Night In Canada telecasts from Vancouver in the 1970s and served as a goodwill ambassador of the Vancouver Canucks. Pratt collapsed and died of a heart attack in the media lounge of the Pacific Coliseum in Vancouver during the first intermission of a Canucks game on December 16, 1988. The Canucks honored Pratt's memory by stitching "BABE" on their sweaters for the remainder of the hockey season.

Despite the brevity of his career, the time passed since it ended, and a reputation for rough play, in 1998, he was ranked number 96 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players.

[edit] Awards and achievements

MJHL Scoring Champion (1934 and 1935)
Turnbull Cup MJHL Championship (1934)
Stanley Cup championship (1940 and 1945)
NHL First All-Star Team Defence (1944)
Hart Memorial Trophy winner (1944)
NHL Second All-Star Team Defence (1945)
Inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966
Inducted into the Manitoba Sports Hall of Fame and Museum in 1990
Selected to Manitoba's All-Century First All-Star Team
“Honoured Member” of the Manitoba Hockey Hall of Fame
In 1998, he was ranked number 96 on The Hockey News' list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players
Ranked No. 47 on the all-time list of New York Rangers in the book 100 Ranger Greats (John Wiley & Sons, 2009).

[edit] Career statistics

			Regular season					Playoffs
Season	Team	League	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
1935–36	New York Rangers	NHL	17	1	1	2	16	—	—	—	—	—
1935–36	Philadelphia Ramblers	CAHL	28	7	8	15	48	—	—	—	—	—
1936–37	New York Rangers	NHL	47	8	7	15	23	9	3	1	4	11
1937–38	New York Rangers	NHL	47	5	14	19	56	2	0	0	0	2
1938–39	New York Rangers	NHL	48	2	19	21	20	7	1	2	3	9
1939–40	New York Rangers	NHL	48	4	13	17	61	12	3	1	4	18
1940–41	New York Rangers	NHL	47	3	17	20	52	3	1	1	2	6
1941–42	New York Rangers	NHL	47	4	24	28	65	6	1	3	4	34
1942–43	New York Rangers	NHL	4	0	2	2	6	—	—	—	—	—
1942–43	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	40	12	25	37	44	6	1	2	3	8
1943–44	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	50	17	40	57	30	5	0	3	3	4
1944–45	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	50	18	23	41	39	13	2	4	6	8
1945–46	Toronto Maple Leafs	NHL	41	5	20	25	36	—	—	—	—	—
1946–47	Hershey Bears	AHL	21	5	10	15	23	—	—	—	—	—
1946–47	Boston Bruins	NHL	31	4	4	8	25	—	—	—	—	—
1947–48	Cleveland-Hershey	AHL	52	3	18	21	47	—	—	—	—	—
1947–48	Hershey Bears	AHL	—	—	—	—	—	2	0	0	0	0
1948–49	New Westminster Royals	PCHL	63	18	48	66	64	12	1	8	9	10
1949–50	New Westminster Royals	PCHL	59	8	29	37	56	18	2	6	8	22
1950–51	New Westminster Royals	PCHL	65	8	15	23	54	7	0	0	0	4
1951–52	Tacoma Rockets	PCHL	63	7	31	38	20	5	0	1	1	0
NHL totals			517	83	209	292	473	63	12	17	29	100

[edit] External links

Preceded by Bill Cowley	Winner of the Hart Trophy 1944	Succeeded by Elmer Lach