Certain qualities are essential to a champion, no matter the field of endeavour, among them skill, smarts, toughness and dedication. By any yardstick, Hector “Toe” Blake made the grade in the hockey world.

While he is remembered for his many years of service with the Habs, Blake broke into the NHL with Montreal’s other NHL team at the time, the Maroons. He suited up for all of nine games, eight in the regular season and another in the playoffs, leaving absolutely no individual mark on the permanent record. No goals, assists, or even penalty minutes.

There is a mention on the Stanley Cup however since the Maroons, paced by Baldy Northcott’s four playoff goals, took home the silverware in the spring of 1935. Assigned to the minors for the next season, he picked up 23 points for the Providence Reds of the Canadian-American League before the Habs acquired him in a midseason deal that saw Lorne Chabot go the other way.

Called up immediately to the big club, Blake saw action in 11 games, Blake scored his first NHL goal and added a couple assists. He also managed to spend 28 minutes in the penalty box in his limited time in a Montreal uniform, good for third on the team that year.

In 1936-37 Blake made a spot for himself on the roster, picking up a respectable 22 points. He followed his first full campaign with a better one the next year, upping his production to 33 points and was named to the second All-Star team.

In 1938-39 Blake established himself as a star, breaking the 20-goal barrier for the first time with 24 and added 23 assists, ending the schedule atop the NHL scoring list. At season’s end he was awarded the Hart Trophy as the leagues MVP and winning first All-Star honours.

The gritty left wing who stretched 165 pounds over his lanky 5-foot-10-inch frame was a lot tougher than he appeared at first glance. He could do just about anything that needed to be done on the ice, be it with the gloves on or off.

His focus was victory and he was willing to go to any length to achieve it, something that endeared him to his coaches. In 1940, when Dick Irvin took over the reins, Blake was named team captain. He would serve for the next eight years, never a motivation problem.

Matched with younger linemates named Lach and Richard to begin the 1943-44 season, the Punch Line became the most potent offensive force in hockey. While Richard got the spotlight his linemates quietly reaped the benefits of their collective efforts. Blake enjoyed five straight 20-goal seasons and pumped up the performance when the snows began melting and things got serious.

The Habs went all the way in 1944, ending what was, until recently, the longest Stanley Cup drought in club history. The veteran who now had a second nickname, The Old Lamplighter led the way, doing more than his fair share he scored 7 times, second only to a kid they were calling The Rocket, who picked up a dozen goals that spring. Lach and Blake each managed to pick up eleven assists.

The Punch Line finished one, two, three both on the Habs and in the NHL the next season as the team ended the schedule with a 13-point lead over second place Detroit only to fall to Toronto in the opening round of the postseason.

Back on top the next season, Montreal won another Stanley Cup in the spring of 1946. Toe Blake led the team in regular season scoring and finished third in the NHL for a second straight year. Once again Blake scored playoff seven goals, tying Maurice Richard. The robust winger also took home the Lady Byng Trophy, usually awarded to much meeker men.

The punch Line, Blake’s captaincy, and his career as an NHL player came to an abrupt end on January 10th, 1948 when the 35-year old broke his leg in a game against the New York Rangers.

He returned to the ice as a player/coach in the minor leagues before moving behind the bench for good. Eight years after he left the NHL, he was back, hired to replace Dick Irvin in the aftermath of the Richard riot.

Blake brought to this task the same tools he brought when he broke in as a player - skill, smarts, toughness and dedication. As he had in his playing days, he used them well.