Historical Hockey Memorabilia Auction Fall 2020
This lot is closed for bidding. Bidding ended on 10/21/2020
Earning his menacing sobriquet during the 1939 Stanley Cup semifinals, Mel “Sudden Death” Hill would produce royally for the Boston Bruins throughout the series, netting the overtime winners in Games 1 and 2, while also securing the series victory, AGAIN scoring the sudden death winner in Game 7! This allowed the Beantowners to advance to the finals on route to capturing just their second Stanley Cup championship in franchise history. Hill would go on to win an additional pair of championships, again with the Bruins in 1941, and with the Toronto Maple Leafs, in 1945. Originally obtained from the estate of the overtime maestro and produced sometime later, these 10K diamond rings were presented by the Maple Leafs and/or Leafs Alumni for the 1945 Stanley Cup championship, and they match the examples awarded by the club during the 1940s, minus the hole visible on the reverse bezel for diamond placement, with this specimen void of the opening. We should also note that according to our research, no rings were presented by the Leafs to the players for their 1945 title during that season. Size 9 ½ with an approx weight of 14 grams, a blue enamel horse shoe with “Maple Leafs World Champions” sits over the tableau, with a large diamond centered over a raised gold maple leaf. The left shank has “Mel Hill" engraved, while the right has “1944-45”, with the inner band stamped "10K FR".
Worn proudly, the ring exhibits wear from use, with small scratches littering the band throughout, along with some minor edge dings. Extremely rare, this championship specimen presented for the Leafs fifth Stanley Cup in franchise history oozes considerable significance.
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