Tom L. Paton born 1854 - died February 10, 1909 was a Canadian ice hockey player of the pre-NHL era of the sport. He played the position of Goaltender for the Montreal HC (Montreal AAA) and was a member of the first Stanley cup winning team in 1893.[1]
Tom was a pioneer goaltender in organized hockey. Tom's hockey career can be traced back to the early Montreal Carnivals prior to the formation of the AHAC in 1885.[2] He would be a founding member of the Montreal Amateur Athletic Association hockey team (Montreal HC). His career would be marked by dominance. Throughout every season he played between 1888 and 1893 for the Montreal AAA, his team would win the AHAC championship.[3] Tom is most notable to be the first goaltender in Stanley Cup history to be awarded the trophy. Ultimate Hockey considers his performance in 1890,1891 and 1893 to be worthy of winning the equivalent to the Vezina trophy that the NHL awards today for top goal tender.[4] He was regarded in many history texts as being undefeated in 1890 and 1891.[1] In 1892 despite a poor regular season effort Paton and the Montreal AAA defeated the Ottawa HC in the final game of the season to win the 1892 AHAC season championship by a score of 1 to 0. Paton would be go on to be awarded the Stanley Cup and retire at the end of the 1893 AHAC season. He is also the first goalie to retire from Stanley Cup hockey competition as a current champion. Throughout all his pioneering efforts and success in early hockey he is not a member of the Hockey Hall of Fame. His 1885 Montreal Carnival championship medal recently sold for over $14 000 (CAD) in a 2009 auction.[5]
| Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Season | Team | League | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | ||
| 1885 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 2? | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1887 | Montreal HC | AHAC | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1888 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 7 | 6 | 1 | 7 | 1.00 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1889 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 4 | 3 | 1 | 6 | 1.5 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1890 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 7 | 7 | 0 | 13 | 1.90 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1891 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 6 | 6 | 0 | 6 | 1.00 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1892 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 3 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 2.30 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
| 1893 | Montreal HC | AHAC | 8 | 7 | 1 | 18 | 2.30 | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- | ||
Notes: