John Oswald "Jake" Sheppard (July 23, 1903 – August 28, 1969) was a Canadian

Canada

Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...

 professional ice hockey

Ice hockey

Ice hockey, often referred to as hockey, is a team sport played on ice, in which skaters use wooden or composite sticks to shoot a hard rubber puck into their opponent's net. The game is played between two teams of six players each. Five members of each team skate up and down the ice trying to take...

 forward

Forward (ice hockey)

In ice hockey, a forward is a player position on the ice whose primary responsibility is to score goals. Generally, the forwards try to stay in three different lanes, also known as thirds, of the ice going from goal to goal. It is not mandatory however, to stay in a lane. Staying in a lane aids in...

 who played nine seasons in the National Hockey League

National Hockey League

The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...

 with the Detroit Cougars

Detroit Red Wings

The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...

, New York Americans

New York Americans

The New York Americans were a professional ice hockey team based in New York, New York from 1925 to 1942. They were the third expansion team in the history of the National Hockey League and the second to play in the United States. The team never won the Stanley Cup, but reached the semifinals...

, Boston Bruins

Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. They are members of the Northeast Division of the Eastern Conference of the National Hockey League . The team has been in existence since 1924, and is the league's third-oldest team and its oldest in the...

 and Chicago Black Hawks

Chicago Blackhawks

The Chicago Blackhawks are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . They have won four Stanley Cup championships since their founding in 1926, most recently coming in 2009-10...

 from 1926–27 to 1933–34.

Born in Montreal

Montreal

Montreal is a city in Canada. It is the largest city in the province of Quebec, the second-largest city in Canada and the seventh largest in North America...

, Quebec

Quebec

Quebec or is a province in east-central Canada. It is the only Canadian province with a predominantly French-speaking population and the only one whose sole official language is French at the provincial level....

, Canada, Sheppard began his career with the Selkirk Jr. Fisherman of the Manitoba Junior Hockey League

Manitoba Junior Hockey League

The Manitoba Junior Hockey League is a Junior 'A' ice hockey league operating in the Canadian province of Manitoba. The MJHL is one of eleven Junior 'A' Hockey Leagues in Canada and is a member of the Canadian Junior Hockey League ....

 and Edmonton Eskimos

Edmonton Eskimos (hockey)

The Edmonton Eskimos were a Canadian amateur and later professional men's ice hockey team that existed from 1905 to 1927. The Eskimos challenged three times for the Stanley Cup, losing each time; in 1908 versus the Montreal Wanderers, in 1910 versus the Ottawa Senators, and Ottawa again in 1923...

 of the Western Canada Hockey League

Western Canada Hockey League

The Western Canada Hockey League , founded in 1921, was a major professional ice hockey league originally based in the prairies of Canada. It was renamed the Western Hockey League in 1925 and disbanded in 1926.-History:...

. He joined the Detroit Cougars in the team's inaugural season of 1926–27, in which he played 43 games and led the team in goals

Goal (ice hockey)

In ice hockey, a goal is scored when the puck completely crosses the goal line between the two goal posts and below the goal crossbar. A goal awards one point to the team attacking the goal scored upon, regardless of which team the player who actually deflected the puck into the goal belongs to...

 (13), assists

Assist (ice hockey)

In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...

 (8), points

Point (ice hockey)

Point in ice hockey has three official meanings:* A point is awarded to a player for each goal scored or assist earned. The total number of goals plus assists equals total points. In some European leagues, a goal counts as two points, and an assist counts as one...

 (21), and penalty minutes

Penalty (ice hockey)

A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...

 (60). On November 22, 1927, Sheppard scored the first goal at the new Detroit Olympia

Detroit Olympia

Olympia Stadium, better known as the Detroit Olympia and nicknamed The Old Red Barn, stood at 5920 Grand River Avenue in Detroit, Michigan from 1927 until 1987. It was best known as the home of the Detroit Red Wings hockey team of the National Hockey League from its opening until...

 against Ottawa Senators'

Ottawa Senators (original)

The Ottawa Senators were an amateur, and later, professional, ice hockey team based in Ottawa, Canada which existed from 1883 to 1954. The club was the first hockey club in Ontario, a founding member of the National Hockey League and played in the NHL from 1917 until 1934...

 goaltender

Goaltender

In ice hockey, the goaltender is the player who defends his team's goal net by stopping shots of the puck from entering his team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring...

 Alex Connell

Alex Connell

Alec Connell was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender who played for the Ottawa Senators, Detroit Falcons, New York Americans and Montreal Maroons teams in the National Hockey League...

.

Sheppard was traded to the New York Americans, where he played five seasons and posted career highs in goals (17 in 1932–33) and points (29 in 1929–30). He also played for the Bronx Tigers

Bronx Tigers

The Bronx Tigers were a minor professional ice hockey team that played in the Canadian American Hockey League in 1931-32. They were also an amateur team that played in the Eastern Hockey League in 1933-34 and 1937-38. They played out of the borough of Bronx in New York City, New York.-CAHL:In...

 of the Canadian-American Hockey League

Canadian-American Hockey League

The Canadian-American Hockey League, popularly known as the Can-Am League, was a professional ice hockey league that operated from 1926 to 1936. It was a direct ancestor of the American Hockey League....

 in 1931–32. Before his final NHL season in 1933–34, Sheppard was traded from the Americans to the Bruins, who released him after four games. He signed with the Black Hawks and helped the team win the Stanley Cup

Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...

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