Boat Hurley

After spending the 1946-1947 season at the junior B level with the Stratford Cullitons ice hockey goalie Harold “Boat” Hurley moved up to the junior A ranks with the Stratford Kroehlers of the Junior Ontario Hockey Association and skated with them for three years. He then began an on-and-off association with the Kitchener-Waterloo Dutchmen that, at first, lasted for three seasons before he was transferred to the Hamilton Tigers for one year. He took the 1954-1955 season off and then returned for 1955-1956 for joint duty with the Dutchmen and the Elmira Polar Kings. He stuck with the Dutchmen until 1960 and joined them when they were asked to represent Canada at the 1960 Winter Olympics. At the tournament he was the backup goaltender, playing in only two matches, and took home a silver medal.

He joined the Galt Terriers upon his return to Canada and, in his first season with the team, won the Allan Cup, given annually to the Canadian senior men’s ice hockey champions. This victory also garnered him an invitation to play with his team at the 1962 World Championships as a representative of Canada. At the tournament he was the only goalie to wear a face mask in the net and he took home another silver medal. He spent the 1962-1963 season with the Kitchener-Waterloo Tigers, in addition to suiting up for one game with the Buffalo Bisons of the American Hockey League. From there he joined the Guelph Regals in 1963 and skated with them until 1968, at which point he transferred to the Oakville Oaks for two years, although he spent some time assisting the Galt Hornets with an Allen Cup victory in 1969. He spent his final two seasons with the Hornets, which had formerly been the Galt Terriers, although he only played one game with them over that time span. The team won an Allan Cup in 1971, although Hurley is not always credited with the victory as he did not suit up for any games that season. In Junior A hockey, Hurley won the Turofsky Trophy, given to the goalie with the lowest goals against average, eight times, and was actually given permanent possession of it, although he donated it to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

He was an accountant by trade and turned down offers to play with the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs because he felt that his job was more secure than professional hockey. After his retirement from that profession, he became a staple at many Galt and Kitchener-Waterloo reunions.