Cooney Weiland

Who was Cooney Weiland?

Ralph "Cooney" Weiland was an NHL forward who played for the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators, and Detroit Red Wings.

Weiland began playing junior hockey in Seaforth, where he spent three seasons with his hometown team. In 1923 he moved to Owen Sound, Ontario to attend school, planning a career as a druggist. He joined that city's junior team, the Owen Sound Greys, and led them to the 1924 Memorial Cup as Canadian champions. He was the club's top scorer with 68 goals in 25 games.

After the Greys lost the 1925 OHA final to Toronto Aura Lee, Weiland began a three-year stint with the Minneapolis Millers of the old American Hockey Association. That led to the start of his NHL career with Boston, where he celebrated his rookie campaign in 1928–29 with a Stanley Cup victory over the New York Rangers. It was the first Cup win in Bruins history.

In his second season during 1929–30, he scored 43 goals and 73 points in 44 games aided by a rule change that season only. It shattered the NHL's single-season points record of 51 which had been set two years earlier by Montreal Canadiens legend Howie Morenz.