1938–39 Pittsburgh Panthers men's ice hockey season

The 1938–39 Pittsburgh men's ice hockey season was the 9th season of play for the program.

1938–39 Pittsburgh Panthers
men's ice hockey season
Conference3rd Penn-Ohio League
Home iceDuquesne Gardens
Record
Overall14–8–3
Conference12–4–2
Home4–2–1
Road4–2–0
Neutral6–4–2
Coaches and captains
Head coachJohn McSorley
Captain(s)Bob Schooley
Pittsburgh Panthers men's ice hockey seasons
« 1937–38  

Season

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Pitt's second season in the Penn-Ohio League went eerily similar to its first. The team played well in the regular season, finishing third in the conference and second in the Pittsburgh division. They were dominant against most of their conference opponents, going undefeated versus five of seven teams, however, the two top clubs presented a difficult challenge for the Panthers. Pitt managed to earn a tie in one game against defending league champion, John Carroll, but dropped the other. Duquesne proved to be a tougher nut to crack; the Panthers won once in four games against the Dukes, however, it was the only loss that Duquesne suffered in the regular season.[1] The fourth of those matches ended in a forfeit for Pitt when coach John McSorley removed his team from the ice in protest over the referee allowing a controversial goal that tied the match.[2]

After the regular season, Athletic Director James Hagan was willing to concede the playoff match to Duquesne, however, both the League and the Dukes insisted that Pitt compete as outlined in conference rules.[3] The First match continued the series of close games between the two with Pitt dropping the game 2–3. A loss in the second game would have ended their season but Bud Ellis played a tremendous game in goal, allowing just a single goal. Duquesne's netminder was equal to the task and both teams played long into the night. After 5 overtime periods and 115 minutes of ice time, the game was called a draw when the Duquesne Gardens refused to allow the match to continue. The extended game appeared to sap the power from Duquesne and they only managed one goal in each of the next two matches. Pitt, on the other hand, found its second wind and scored just enough to win both matches and upset the heavily favored Dukes.[4] Unfortunately for Pitt, the long series left them precious little time to rest before the Championship series with John Carroll and the Blue Streaks took full advantage. John Carroll won a pair of 3–2 games to repeat as league champions and Pitt had to accept being runners-up once more.[3]

Roster

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No. S/P/C Player Class Pos Height Weight DoB Hometown Previous team
Irv Artz
Taylor Brittain Senior
Lenny Broido Senior
Chuck Connick Senior
Pat Cusick
Burgin Digby
Edwin Ellis Senior G
Dick Friday
Walter Lovett
Bob Lowe
Bill Schildecker
Bob Schooley (C) Senior
Clyde Shiring
Vic Williams

[3]

Standings

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Conference Overall
GP W L T PTS GF GA GP W L T GF GA
East
Duquesne 18 17 1 0 34 68 12 22 18 3 1 74 20
Pittsburgh ~ 18 12 4 2 26 43 18 25 14 8 3 55 41
Carnegie Tech
West
John Carroll †~*
Western Reserve
Baldwin Wallace
Case
Fenn
indicates division regular season champion
~ indicates division tournament champion
* indicates conference tournament champion

Schedule and results

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Date Opponent Site Result Record
Regular Season
December 3 vs. Duquesne Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W 2–1 
January 2 Yale* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania L 0–11 
January 19 vs. Duquesne Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania L 0–3 
February 14 vs. Duquesne Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania L 2–3 
March 7 vs. Duquesne Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania L 2–3 forfeit
? Baldwin Wallace Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? at Baldwin Wallace Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio W ? 
? vs. Carnegie Tech Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? vs. Carnegie Tech Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? vs. Carnegie Tech Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? vs. Carnegie Tech Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania T ? 
? Case Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? at Case Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio W ? 
? Fenn Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? at Fenn Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio W ? 
? John Carroll Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania T 2–2 
? at John Carroll Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio L 1–3 
? Western Reserve Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania W ? 
? at Western Reserve Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio W ? 
Penn-Ohio League Playoffs
March 22 vs. Duquesne* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Eastern Division Game 1) L 2–3  12–6–2
March ? vs. Duquesne* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Eastern Division Game 2) T 1–1 5OT 12–6–3
March ? vs. Duquesne* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Eastern Division Game 3) W 3–1  13–6–3
April ? vs. Duquesne* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Eastern Division Game 4) W 2–1  14–6–3
Pittsburgh Won Series 2–1–1
April ? John Carroll* Duquesne GardensPittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Championship Game 1) L 2–3  14–7–3
April ? at John Carroll* Cleveland ArenaCleveland, Ohio (Championship Game 2) L 2–3  14–8–3
Pittsburgh Lost Series 0–2
*Non-conference game.

Note: the score and date of most games are missing, however, the outcomes and overall record are available in the university yearbook.[3]

References

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  1. ^ "Icers Merit Title, Lose in Playoffs". The Duquesne Duke. April 5, 1939. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  2. ^ "Icers Score 3-2 Forfeit Win Over Panthers". The Duquesne Duke. March 9, 1939. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  3. ^ a b c d "The 1939 Owl". University of Pittsburgh. Retrieved July 22, 2024.
  4. ^ "Icers Merit Title, Lose in Playoffs". The Duquesne Duke. April 5, 1939. Retrieved March 11, 2021.