Gus Giesebrecht

Who was Gus Giesebrecht?

Roy George "Gus" Giesebrecht was a professional ice hockey centre who played 135 games in the National Hockey League with the Detroit Red Wings. During his career he accumulated 27 goals and 51 assists for a total 78 points. Giesebrecht was widely regarded by fellow players and NHL coaches as one of the most promising rookies in the league at the time. He scored a hat trick in the first period of the first game he saw on-ice action with the Red Wings, and scored the game-winning goal against the Chicago Black Hawks that advanced the Red Wings to the 1941 Stanley Cup Finals.

Despite his early promise, World War II brought Giesebrecht's professional hockey career to an end. He chose to leave the Red Wings, volunteering for the Canadian Army. He was deployed to the European theatre as a corporal in the 2nd Canadian Infantry Division and saw action in France, Belgium, Holland and Germany. Giesebrecht opted not to return to professional hockey at the conclusion of the war, deciding instead to return to his hometown of Petawawa, Ontario, where he ran his family's business until his death in 2006.