Robert Benson (ice hockey)
Robert John "Bobby" Benson (May 18, 1894 – September 7, 1965) was an Icelandic-Canadian ice hockey player. A defenceman, he started his career with the Winnipeg Falcons of the Manitoba Hockey League in 1913, remaining with them until 1920, though missed two seasons of play from 1917 to 1919 while serving in the First World War. With the Falcons he played at the 1920 Summer Olympics and won the first gold medal in Olympic ice hockey. He later played in the Western Canada Hockey League from 1921 to 1926, as well as 8 games with the Boston Bruins of the National Hockey League during the 1924–25 season. Benson continued playing in other minor leagues until retiring in 1931.
| Robert Benson | |||
|---|---|---|---|
 Robert Benson at the 1920 Olympics | |||
| Born |
May 18, 1894 Davidson, Saskatchewan, Canada | ||
| Died |
September 7, 1965 (aged 71) Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada | ||
| Height | 5 ft 6 in (168 cm) | ||
| Weight | 135 lb (61 kg; 9 st 9 lb) | ||
| Position | Defence | ||
| Shot | Left | ||
| Played for | Calgary Tigers | ||
| National team |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small} Canada | ||
| Playing career | 1910–1926 | ||
| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's ice hockey
Competitor for | ||
.svg.png.webp){kind=icon} | 1920 Antwerp | Team competition |
.svg.png.webp){kind=small}
Early life
Benson was born in Davidson, Saskatchewan, to Icelandic immigrants Benedikt Jóhannesson and Rósa Guðmundsdóttir.[1][2]
He was the younger brother of ice hockey player Connie Benson.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | ||
| 1912–13 | Winnipeg Strathconas | WSrHL | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1913–14 | Winnipeg Falcons | MHL | 12 | 2 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1914–15 | Winnipeg Falcons | MHL | 8 | 3 | 0 | 3 | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 1915–16 | Winnipeg Falcons | MHL | 7 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1916–17 | Winnipeg 223rd Battalion | MHL | 8 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1919–20 | Winnipeg Falcons | MHL | 9 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1919–20 | Winnipeg Falcons | Al-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 6 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 13 | ||
| 1920–21 | Saskatoon Crescents | SSHL | 16 | 12 | 1 | 13 | 39 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 | ||
| 1921–22 | Saskatoon Crescents | WCHL | 23 | 9 | 4 | 13 | 21 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1922–23 | Calgary Tigers | WCHL | 27 | 7 | 1 | 8 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1923–24 | Calgary Tigers | WCHL | 26 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
| 1923–24 | Calgary Tigers | West-P | — | — | — | — | — | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | ||
| 1923–24 | Calgary Tigers | St-Cup | — | — | — | — | — | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1924–25 | Calgary Tigers | WCHL | 9 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1924–25 | Boston Bruins | NHL | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1925–26 | Saskatoon Crescents | WHL | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1925–26 | Edmonton Eskimos | WHL | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1926–27 | Moose Jaw Warriors | PHL | 32 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1927–28 | Winnipeg Maroons | AHA | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1927–28 | Minneapolis Millers | AHA | 21 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 36 | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 23 | ||
| 1928–29 | Minneapolis Millers | AHA | 40 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 92 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1929–30 | Seattle Eskimos | PCHL | 36 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 82 | — | — | — | — | — | ||
| 1930–31 | Seattle Eskimos | PCHL | 33 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 76 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | ||
| WCHL/WHL totals | 109 | 21 | 11 | 32 | 71 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 | ||||
| NHL totals | 8 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | ||||
Awards and achievements
- Allan Cup Championship (1920)
- Olympic Gold Medalist (1920)
References
- Memorable Manitobans: Robert John "Bobby" Benson (1894-1965)
- "Winnipeg Falcons - W.W. I Military Biographies". winnipegfalcons.com. Retrieved 2 February 2020.
External links
- Biographical information and career statistics from NHL.com, or Eliteprospects.com, or Eurohockey.com, or Hockey-Reference.com, or Legends of Hockey, or The Internet Hockey Database
- Robert Benson at Find a Grave
- Falcons