Projo Bruins Blog

Madigan played Ross "Mad Dog" Madison, one of several thugs brought in by diabolical Syracuse Bulldogs coach Tim "Dr. Hook" McCracken (he could "carve a man's eye out with the flick of a wrist") for the pivotal Federal League title game with Dunlop's Chiefs.

Madison, you may remember, always had his trusted friend and attorney Sam "Small Print" Lyman at his side. Click here for more on Madison, the legendary Ogie Oglethorpe and other Slapshot characters. Click here to read the Slapshot script.

The role was hardly a stretch for Cornelius Dennis Madigan, who slashed, speared, cross-checked and punched his way through nearly two decades of pro hockey, mostly in the old Western Hockey League. When the villainous "Mad Dog" came to town (that was his nickname long before Slapshot), fans in some cities tossed dog biscuits onto the ice. If you wonder why he was so hated in opposing arenas, check out his penalty minute totals.

Madigan's time in Providence was brief, but he left an impression. Literally.

Reds boss Fernie Flaman, looking to put a tougher team on the ice for the 1964-65 season, brought in Madigan from the Los Angeles Blades and Larry McNabb, another minor league brawler.

Buster Clegg of Barrington, who was public relations director for the Reds at the time, remembers an exhibition game against the Montreal Canadiens at the Rhode Island uditorium in which Madigan flattened future Hall of Famer Henri Richard with a leg heck. Richard was out for two months.

Ten games into the 1964-65 season, however, Madigan was sold to the Portland Buckaroos.

Madigan played for many more years in the Western League and was a perennial all-star. But he was always known first as a brawler. In 1971, he punched out a referee in a playoff game, earning a 30-day suspension.

Incredibly, the NHL St. Louis Blues acquired Madigan near the end of the 1972-73 season after a couple of defenseman went down with injuries. Madigan made his big league debut at age 38 and played 20 regular-season games and 5 playoff games before returning to the minors the next year. He remains the oldest rookie in NHL history. Here Madigan discusses his career and his time in the big leagues.

It's not known whether Madigan brought Sam "Small Print" Lyman with him to St. Louis.