Albert Pudas

Who was Albert Pudas?

Juho Albert Pudas was a Finnish-Canadian hockey player and coach. He was the first Finnish-born hockey player in the National Hockey League and possibly in North America. Following his hockey career Pudas was active in the capacity of referee.

Pudas moved to Canada at the age of 18 months. He began his hockey career in Port Arthur, Ontario with the Pascoes, Ports, and later, the Port Arthur Bearcats. On October 28, 1926, Pudas accepted a contract offer from the Toronto St. Pats, the Toronto Maple Leafs minor-league affiliate, along with fellow Bearcats Bill Brydge, Danny Cox and Lorne Chabot. Pudas was recalled December 29, 1926, by the Maple Leafs to play a pair of games against Boston and Montreal. These games made Pudas officially the first Finnish-born player to play in the NHL.

In 1936, Pudas coached the Port Arthur Bearcats who represented Canada in the Winter Olympics in Garmisch-Partenkirchen in Bavaria, Germany. Canada won a silver medal with Pudas as coach.