George Armstrong and Syl Apps to be added to Legends Row

We often joke about putting up statues for anybody who does remotely good in the Leafs organization, but at the end of the day, this is a 98 year old organization with a lot of awesome history, particularly in it’s former half. This is one of the reasons I really love the Legend’s Row idea that the Leafs started working on last season, and tonight, they announced the upcoming additions of two more Toronto greats.

To be honest, while he wasn’t who I was hoping for tonight, I’m actually a bit surprised that Armstrong wasn’t part of the first wave. He leads the team in games played, dressing for 1188 regular season matchups and 110 games in the playoffs. His 713 points put him near the top of the team’s all-time rankings, and he’s the only member of the Maple Leafs to play for the team in four different decades (debuting in 1949 and retiring in 1971). Armstrong was a long-time captain of the team, most notably captaining the 1967 roster, the last to win the Stanley Cup in this city.

Today, Armstrong still works for the Leafs as a scout.

Apps shares a lot of things in common with Armstrong. They both wore #10, they both wore the C in Toronto, they spent their entire careers here, won Stanley Cups, and were beloved by the fans. With that said, Apps was perhaps more talented, scoring 432 points in 423 games, an impressive feat in the 30’s and 40’s. Apps was a multi-sport athlete, originally scouted by Conn Smythe while playing University Football. He retired at 33 years old to pursue a career in marketing for Simpsons, a department store that eventually merged into the Bay. 

Apps died in 1998 of a Heart Attack. If alive today, he would have turned 100 last month. He was represented today by his son, Syl Apps Jr; himself a well-respected member of the hockey community.

The two were greeted by a crowd of beloved Leafs alumni and Garry Valk. No dates have been given yet for the completion and installations of their statues.