Like a broken record, “Where would this guy’s career have gone if the NHL wasn’t limited to six teams?”
Charlie Hodge was a goaltender in the National Hockey League over three decades. He has his name on the Stanley Cup six times, though he only got on the ice during one of those playoff seasons. Hodge was an outright winner of the Vezina Trophy one season and shared it as a backup in another.
It was not a Hockey Hall of Fame career but that unanswerable question is always there. How would the career of Charlie Hodge have been rewritten if the NHL did not basically employ just six goaltenders over much of his career?
Junior Career
Hockey Card Collection
Minor Pro Career
NHL Career
Rookie Card
Career Stats
Charlie Hodge – Junior
From 1949-50 to 1952-53, Hodge played in the QJHL for the Montreal Junior Canadiens. In 1951-52 he was a First Team All-Star goalie on the Sam Pollock coached Junior Habs. That year, Montreal won the league championship with a victory over the Quebec Citadelles in the finals. They then lost in the Memorial Cup eastern finals to the Guelph Biltmores. Joining Charlie on that team were Scotty Bowman and Don Marshall.
Charlie Hodge Collection
In his final year in the QJHL, Hodge was again the First Team All-Star goalie. Again coached by Sam Pollock, Charlie had future Montreal stars Henri Richard, Claude Provost and Phil Goyette in front of him.
It was an odd season to say the least. The QAHA as a whole was suspended from the Memorial Cup playoffs. The QJHL responded by extended each playoff series to a best of nine to fill the gap. However, in the finals, the rematch series between the Junior Canadiens and Citadelles went just three games. With Quebec up 2-1, the Citadelles refused to continue the series. Montreal was given the championship.
Charlie Hodge – Minor Pro
Hodge’s rookie pro season was outstanding. In 1953-54, he played in 62 regular season games for the Cincinnati Mohawks of the IHL. He recorded ten shutouts and had a 2.35 goals against average. The Mohawks finished first overall in the nine team IHL, 16 points up on the second place team.
In the Turner Cup playoffs, Charlie played in all of Cincinnati’s eleven games as the team won the championship with a victory over the storied Johnstown Jets in the finals. Despite his numbers, Hodge was relegated to the Second All-Star Team. He also appeared in three games in the American Hockey League with the Buffalo Bisons.
The following year, he once again had a Second All-Star Team worth performance. This time, it was with the Montreal Royals in the QHL. The Royals lost in the finals to the Shawinigan Falls Cataracts but Hodge was absent. Charlie realized his dream of playing for the Montreal Canadiens that year, appearing in 14 regular season NHL games and four more in the Stanley Cup playoffs. He also played five games in the AHL with the Providence Reds.
Living out of his suitcase, it was off to Seattle, Washington for the 1955-56 season. Charlie played all 70 regular season games for the Seattle Americans in the WHL. The Billy Reay coached team did not qualify for the post season. Others of note on the team were Guyle Fielder and Val Fonteyne.
For 1956-57, Hodge followed Billy Reay back east. He played 41 games for Reay with the Rochester Americans in the AHL. Although Charlie played the majority of regular season games for the Amerks, it was Bob Perreault that appeared in all ten playoff games as Rochester lost in the Calder Cup finals to the Cleveland Barons. Charlie also played 14 games in the QHL with the Shawinigan Falls Cataractes.
His last major full-time stint in the minors came over a two year stretch with the Quebec Aces of the AHL. In 1961-62, he appeared in 65 games and in 1962-63 he played 67 games. Quebec was left out of the post season in both campaigns.
Charlie Hodge – NHL
Hodge’s first NHL action came in 1954-55 when a Jacques Plante injury paved the way for 14 games in the regular season and four games in the playoffs. His last games in the NHL would come in 1970-71 with the expansion Vancouver Canucks. Along the way, he also played for the Oakland Seals.
His greatest season came in 1963-64. Playing 62 games while Gump Worsley made it into just eight, Charlie posted eight shutouts and a 2.26 GAA. The Habs finished first overall but lost in the opening round to the Toronto Maple Leafs. Hodge played all seven games in that tight series. He was named to the Second All-Star Team with Glenn Hall of the Chicago Blackhawks and his slightly inferior numbers going to the First Team. Charlie also played ten games in the AHL with the Aces in that busy season.
The following year, Hodge was still in the number one role with Worsley playing backup. Charlie played in 53 regular season games with three shutouts and a 2.60 GAA. Worsley appeared in 19 games but took the reigns in the playoffs. Hodge played five games in the post season while Gump played eight. The Habs won the championship, beating the Chicago Blackhawks in the finals. Again, Hodge was a Second Team All-Star goalie, playing second fiddle to Detroit’s Roger Crozier.
The tide turned in 1965-66 with Worsley taking on the number one role and Hodge relegated to the pines. He appeared in 26 games with a single shutout and a 2.58 GAA. He shared the Vezina with Gump and got his name on the Stanley Cup. However, Charlie did not play a single game in the playoffs. The Canadiens beat the Detroit Red Wings for the Cup.
Along with those two consecutive championships, Charlie has his name on the trophy for 1955-56, 1956-57, 1958-59 and 1959-60. At the time, NHL teams dressed just one goalie. Hodge was technically the backup but was with a minor league team somewhere.
At the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft, the Oakland Seals took Charlie as their first pick, sixth overall. In that first year for Oakland, 1967-68, Hodge played 58 games and recorded a decent three shutouts and 2.86 GAA with Gary Smith as his backup.
Hodge remained with the Seals for two more years but Smith took over the number one job. In both 1968-69 and 1969-70, Charlie appeared in just 14 games each.
Then came another NHL Expansion Draft. This time it was 1970 and the Vancouver Canucks and Buffalo Sabres were trying to put together a roster. Hodge was taken by the Canucks 39th overall. In 1970-71, he split time evenly with Dunc Wilson, appearing in 35 games. He retired after that season.
Hodge tried his hand as a head coach. In 1971-72, he took over midseason with the Vancouver Nats of the WCHL. He was replaced midseason the following year and never got behind the bench again. He has been an NHL amateur scout since 1979-80 with the Winnipeg Jets, Pittsburgh Penguins and Tampa Bay Lightning.
Charlie Hodge – Rookie Card
The official Charlie Hodge rookie card is an ‘in action’ card from the 1955-56 Parkhurst set. Number 69 is titled ‘Hugh Beats Hodge’ and shows Hugh Bolton of the Toronto Maple Leafs putting one past Hodge of the Canadiens.
The first hockey card with just Charlie on it came as number 17 in the 1957-58 Parkhurst set. Of course, there were no hockey card sets produced for the 1956-57 season.
Charlie Hodge Career Stats
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | A | PIM | SO | GAA |
| 1953-54 | Cincinnati Mohawks | IHL | 62 | 0 | 4 | 10 | 2.34 |
| 1953-54 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 3 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1954-55 | Providence Reds | AHL | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3.60 |
| 1954-55 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.27 |
| 1954-55 | Montreal Royals | QHL | 35 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 3.23 |
| 1955-56 | Seattle Americans | WHL | 70 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1956-57 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 41 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3.22 |
| 1956-57 | Shawinigan Falls Cataracts | QHL | 14 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1957-58 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 12 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.58 |
| 1957-58 | Montreal Royals | QHL | 48 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1958-59 | Rochester Americans | AHL | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1958-59 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1958-59 | Montreal Royals | QHL | 24 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1959-60 | Hull-Ottawa Canadiens | EPHL | 0 | 0 | 2 | ||
| 1959-60 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.00 |
| 1959-60 | Montreal Royals | EPHL | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1960-61 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 30 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 2.47 |
| 1960-61 | Montreal Royals | EPHL | 22 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1961-62 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 65 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 1962-63 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 67 | 0 | 6 | ||
| 1963-64 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 62 | 0 | 2 | 8 | 2.26 |
| 1963-64 | Quebec Aces | AHL | 10 | 0 | 0 | ||
| 1964-65 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 53 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2.60 |
| 1965-66 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 26 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2.58 |
| 1966-67 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 37 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 2.60 |
| 1967-68 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 58 | 0 | 4 | 3 | 2.86 |
| 1968-69 | Vancouver Canucks | WHL | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2.54 |
| 1968-69 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.69 |
| 1969-70 | Oakland Seals | NHL | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.49 |
| 1970-71 | Vancouver Canucks | NHL | 35 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3.42 |