The American Hockey League is honoring four inductees this upcoming week, and one of the four is winger Gerry Ehman, or “Tex” as many in the hockey world call him. He played in a total of 659 AHL games during the span of his career. Ehman passed away in 2006 due to lung cancer.
In Memoriam
During his posthumous Hall of Fame induction, his children talked about how they remember their father.
Our Dad was a man of few words. He could communicate with a look. But he was kind. He was a good person. He had a sense of humour.
Hailing from Cudworth, Saskatoon, Ehman played in nearly 1,100 games combined between the AHL and NHL. He played 11 total seasons and 659 games in the AHL for the St. Louis Flyers, the Springfield Indians, the Hershey Bears, and the Rochester Americans. In the span of his NHL career, he played 429 games for the Boston Bruins, the Detroit Red Wings, the Toronto Maple Leafs, the California/Oakland Seals, the Oakland Seals, and the California Golden Seals. In 1964, Ehman was part of the Toronto Maple Leafs Stanley Cup Playoff run and ultimately ended up with a Stanley Cup on his resume.
A Highlight Reel Career
During Ehman’s career, he received a few honors.
- 1957-1958 AHL First All-Star Team
- 1960-1961 AHL Second All-Star Team
- 1963-1964
- AHL First All-Star Team
- AHL Most Points (JB Sollenberger Trophy)
- NHL All-Star Game
- NHL Stanley Cup Champion with the Toronto Maple Leafs
- 1964-1965
- AHL Calder Cup Champion with the Rochester Americans
- 1965-1966
- AHL Calder Cup Champion with the Rochester Americans
- AHL First All-Star Team
Most people here understand that [Dad’s highlight reel] comes with a lot of grind, a lot of losses, a lot of work. [..] Hockey’s for dreamers, but it’s also for warriors. He started out from humble prairie roots, but his work ethic underpinned my entire life.
Building Blocks
Ehman hung up the skates in 1971 but did not leave the hockey business. He took a different role as a scout, and ended up with the St. Louis Blues before heading off to the expansion team of the New York Islanders. Ehman was with the Islanders to hoist the organisation’s very first Stanley Cup in 1980. He was inducted into the Amerks Hall Of Fame in 1987, and is still fourth all time in franchise scoring.
Gerry was a big part of our history. Honouring him is long overdue. Probably one of the most underrated players of his era.
Jason Karmanos, Rochester Americans GM, on Ehman’s impact on the Amerks
A well-deserved honor for a man who contributed so much to the hockey community and the American Hockey League. Congratulations to Gerry Ehman!
