Joffre Desilets

This is Joffre Desilets, one of the long forgotten NHL players. He played 192 games in the 1930s with Montreal Canadiens (3 seasons) and Chicago Blackhawks (2 seasons) before beginning a minor league vagabond life through various American cities and leagues. He also played with army teams during 1942 through 1944, though statistical records are very sketchy during his military service. Apparently he was based out in British Columbia, spreading his time in Victoria, Nanaimo, Vancouver and Vernon.

With his name you may think he was a true Flying Frenchman, but he was actually from Capreol, Ontario (20 miles northeast of Sudbury) and played his junior hockey in Stratford, Ontario. He came from a large family and was always happy to point out he had one brother named Romeo and one sister named Juliette. Another brother named Rolland was an international hockey vagabond, settling in South Africa where he helped introduced the game on ice.

"Dizzy," as Joffre was affectionately known, was an inseparable friend of Montreal teammate Polly "Daffy" Drouin. The two were known as "fun-makers." Sometimes their tomfoolery would get them in trouble. Like the night in Chicago in 1938 when Montreal's train took off without them and goaltender Wilf Cude. Those three were still in the train station, hamming it up with locals. They had to run down the tracks chasing the train while one of the staff radioed to stop the train!

In 192 NHL games Desilets scored 37 goals, 45 assists, and 82 points. He added 1 goal in 7 playoff games.