Fog Blog Hockey Blog:

TORONTO MAPLE LEAFS GREAT JOHNNY BOWER DIED JUST AFTER CHRISTMAS AT THE AGE OF 93.....SUCH A GREAT LOSS FOR CANADIAN HOCKEY AND THE LEAFS!........Bower spent the equivalent of a full career in the minors before becoming a full-time NHL goaltender at age 34. Before retiring at 45, the "China Wall" (a nickname that had as much to do with his advanced age as it did his goaltending) won 250 games, including 37 by shutout, and had a 2.51 goals-against average."[He's] the greatest athlete in the world," his coach, Punch Imlach, once said of Bower. "By wanting to be the best so badly, he overrode the aging process."