ore than a century later, the solemnity of theCALLED BY DEATH
Born in England before his family moved to Canada and settled in Brandon, Man., Hall was known to all as “Bad” Joe Hall. By far the most penalized player of his era, and at 37 the oldest active pro, Hall had been a blood rival of the Canadiens in his years with the Quebec Bulldogs, but was claimed by Montreal when the Bulldogs went on a business hiatus before the NHL’s inaugural season of 1917–18.
The 1919 Stanley Cup is a piece of historic curiosity that has overnight become a cautionary tale that hits as close to home as anything can a century removed. A game couldn’t be played, and a player was struck down in the prime of his life. The comparisons are inevitable: The COVID-19 pandemic has claimed thousands of lives in short weeks. Already this coronavirus has crashed the stock market and drawn whole business sectors to a dead halt.
We can only presume that it was nothing more than coincidence or eerie parallel that an outbreak in the Life Care Center, a home for the elderly in suburban Seattle, has proven to be North America’s first hotspot for COVID-19. Yet just as sports provide a window into the current contagion, so too does the 1919 Stanley Cup Final offer another into the Spanish flu, the first pandemic of the H1N1 virus.
How Spanish flu tracked so was a mystery. No one can say conclusively why it preyed on young adults in particular but one theory has emerged: With most viruses strong immune systems are an asset, but with others the body’s defence systems becomes its worst liability. Thus it might have been that many who died during the pandemic in 1919 died not of the strain of H1N1 itself but rather the overkill of their immune system’s reaction to an attack on the body.
What was, for me, more surprising than hockey’s short shrift looking at those old broadsheets was the coverage of the Spanish flu itself — surprising because there wasn’t any at all. I presumed that the pandemic would have gained blanket coverage. Far from it. The story of Hall being “called” was the only mention of influenza in theCircumstance: The spawning ground of the Spanish flu is unclear other than the fact it didn’t originate in Spain. The timeline is clearer. The U.S.
GareJoyceNHL When things get going again, I personally think Montreal should put Joe Hall's 3 in the rafters. Long overdue IMO.
michaelgrange GareJoyceNHL If it can’t be salvaged? The world will go on. And the Habs will have dodged a bullet.
Canada Latest News, Canada Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Source: nationalpost - 🏆 10. / 80 Read more »
Source: globeandmail - 🏆 5. / 92 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »
Source: nationalpost - 🏆 10. / 80 Read more »
Source: Sportsnet - 🏆 57. / 59 Read more »