Born in Scotland at the turn of the century, defenseman Duncan “Dunc” Munro had a remarkable career in ice hockey. His family moved to Toronto when he was a youngster and he first played in the junior-level of the Ontario Hockey Association with the University of Toronto from 1918 through 1920, at which point he joined the senior-level Toronto Granites. After taking the Allan Cup in 1922 and 1923, the team was invited to represent Canada at the 1924 Winter Olympics, and Munro was named captain. In five games he scored sixteen goals, helping the Canadians take the gold medal at the hockey tournament that year. At the time, it was also common for players to referee Olympic matches and Munro was chosen to officiate at the Belgium-United States game.
Upon his return to Canada, he was signed by the Montreal Maroons for a sum that was rumored to have made him the wealthiest professional ice hockey player of his time and he was named team captain. At the conclusion of only their second season, Munro led the team to a Stanley Cup victory in 1926, and they reached the finals again in 1928, losing to the New York Rangers. He was considered the linchpin of the team and, indeed, when he suffered a heart attack after only one game the following season, then later contracted pneumonia in the hospital, the team’s standings in the league suffered. The following year, he was named team coach and manager and stayed with the Maroons until quitting four games into the 1930-1931 season. He played for the Montreal Canadiens for the 1931-1932 season, but retired from play at the end of 1932 to focus on coaching. Over the next two and a half decades, he suffered several heart attacks, causing his health to decline severely, and died in 1958, at the age of 56.