Known as “Mr. Goalie,” Hall played in an era when goaltenders competed without masks, long before facial protection became standard. Despite the risks, he established himself as one of the finest netminders of his generation, a career that spanned from the Original Six period into the NHL’s expansion era.
The Chicago Blackhawks confirmed through a spokesperson that the team was informed of Hall’s death by his family. A league historian who has been in contact with Hall’s son, Pat, said Hall died Wednesday at a hospital in Stony Plain, Alberta.
Hall led the Blackhawks to a Stanley Cup championship in 1961 and later won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the playoffs in 1968 while playing for the St. Louis Blues. That season, St. Louis reached the Stanley Cup Final before losing to Montreal. Hall became just the second of six players in history to win the Conn Smythe while playing for a team that did not win the Cup.
His streak of more than 500 consecutive games in goal is widely considered one of the most unbreakable records in professional sports, especially given how the position has evolved over time. The next-longest streak belongs to Alec Connell, who started 257 straight games between 1924 and 1930. Including postseason play, Hall started 552 consecutive games.
“Glenn was sturdy, dependable and a spectacular talent in net,” NHL commissioner Gary Bettman said. “That record, set from 1955-56 to 1962-63, still stands, probably always will, and is almost unfathomable — especially when you consider he did it all without a mask.”
Hall won the Calder Trophy as rookie of the year in 1956 while playing for the Detroit Red Wings. After two seasons, he was traded to Chicago along with legendary forward Ted Lindsay.
He earned two of his three Vezina Trophy awards as the league’s top goaltender with the Blackhawks in 1963 and 1967. When the NHL expanded from six teams to 12, the Blues selected Hall in the expansion draft. He helped St. Louis reach the Stanley Cup Final in each of the franchise’s first three seasons and captured another Vezina Trophy at age 37.
Hall was in goal during one of hockey’s most iconic moments — Bobby Orr’s overtime goal that won the Stanley Cup for the Boston Bruins in 1970, immortalized by Orr’s airborne celebration. Hall played one additional season with St. Louis before retiring in 1971.
“His influence extended far beyond the crease,” Blues chairman Tom Stillman said. “From the very beginning, he brought credibility, excellence, and heart to a new team and a new NHL market.”
A native of Humboldt, Saskatchewan, Hall was a seven-time first-team NHL All-Star. He finished his career with 407 wins and 84 shutouts across 906 regular-season games. He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1975, and the Blackhawks retired his No. 1 jersey in 1988.
Hall was also named one of the top 100 players in the NHL’s first 100 years.
Blackhawks chairman and CEO Danny Wirtz described Hall as an innovator and “one of the greatest and most influential goaltenders in the history of our sport and a cornerstone of our franchise.”
“We are grateful for his extraordinary contributions to hockey and to our club, and we will honor his memory today and always,” Wirtz said.
Before Wednesday night’s game against St. Louis, the Blackhawks honored Hall and former coach and general manager Bob Pulford, who died Monday, with a moment of silence. A tribute video highlighting Hall’s career was shown on the center-ice videoboard, and the arena lights were dimmed, leaving only a spotlight on Hall’s No. 1 banner hanging in the rafters at the United Center.
Fellow Hall of Famer Martin Brodeur, the NHL’s all-time leader in wins and games played, shared a photo from the last time he saw Hall along with a tribute on social media.
“Glenn Hall was a legend, and I was a big fan of his,” Brodeur wrote. “He set the standard for every goaltender who followed. His toughness and consistency defined what it meant to play.”
