IMAGE INFORMATION
EditAugustus Solberg "Gus" Marker - Born August 1, 1905 in Wetaskiwin, Alberta – Died October 7, 1997 in Kingston, Ontario was a Canadian ice Hockey right winger.
Marker did not play any organized Hockey until 14 years old, and at the age of 15, he joined the Wetaskiwin Crystals Senior Hockey Team where he played until approximately 1925. After the team folded, Marker spent the 1926 season playing in Camrose, Alberta before joining the Edmonton Senior Hockey League / ESHL Edmonton Elks for the 1927 season. Marker would later say "Hockey came real natural-like to me"
Marker turned pro with the Tulsa Oilers of the American Hockey Association / AHL in 1928, scoring 10 goals and 5 assists his first season and would play in Tulsa for four seasons from 1928 to 1932.
Marker joined the Detroit Red Wings for part of the 1932-33 season, and jumped between the Red Wings and their International Hockey League / IHL affiliate the Detroit Olympics for two seasons. Marker helped the Red Wings reach the 1934 Stanley Cup final against the Chicago Black Hawks.
Marker was traded to Montreal Maroons by Detroit for Wally Kilrea, September 23, 1934 and, playing on a high-flying line with Bob Gracie and Herb Cain, would win the 1935 Stanley Cup championship, scoring 1 goal and 1 assist in 7 playoff games. His was the last goal of the championship series. In both 1935-36 and 1936-37 seasons, the Maroons advanced to the playoffs and in 1935-36 semi-final series - one of the most evenly matched of all time - the first game of the Maroons against the Red Wings on March 24 set a record for the longest game in Stanley Cup playoff history. The game began at 8:30 p.m. at the Forum in Montreal, and ended at 2:25 a.m. when the Red Wings defeated the Maroons 1-0 in the sixth overtime period.
Marker played four seasons in all for the Maroons.
Marker was then traded to Toronto Maple Leafs by the Maroons for $4,000, November 3, 1938, and he starred on a line with Billy Taylor and Red Heron for three seasons.
The Maple Leafs loaned Marker, Red Heron and Nick Knott to the Brooklyn Americans in October 1941, receiving Lorne Carr as compensation. The loan became permanent, although the Americans folded after the 1941-42 season. Marker also played 16 games that season for the American Hockey League / AHL Springfield Indians.
Marker played in 368 games in the NHL between 1932 and 1942, and scored 69 goals and 76 assists.
In 1943, Marker played for the Kingston Frontenacs of the Ontario Veterans Hockey League but retired after only four games. Gus did return to Hockey a couple of years later (1945-1946) and coached the Tulsa Oilers of the USHL for one year.
His love of Hockey never left him and he was a key member of the group which established the Kingston Hockey Hall of Fame.
Each year the outstanding Amateur athlete in Kingston is awarded the “Gus Marker Award”. Gus was as successful in life as he was in Hockey, a multi-millionaire when he died and one of Kingston’s most distinguished and respected citizens.
August ’Gus’ Solberg Marker was inducted into the Wetaskiwin and County Sports Hall of Fame in 2012.