#131 SKATING THE OPPORTUNITY--Part 2
JACK KEATING—PART 2
Playing semi-pro hockey in England in the mid-1930s was the beginning of Jack’s professional hockey career. Those two seasons overseas
gave him more than ice time: they gave him confidence, resilience, and realization
that he could succeed at the professional level. When he returned to North America
in 1938, he did so not as a hopeful prospect, but as a seasoned player shaped
by experience.
British league play was closely watched by NHL clubs,
particularly for those Canadian players who had gone overseas during the
mid-1930s; returning professionals were then “picked up” through informal
agreements rather than public signings. In Jack’s case, his experience in
England positioned him as a seasoned, adaptable player who could step
immediately onto North American ice.
He was absorbed into the Detroit Red Wings orbit—assigned to
its affiliated American Hockey League club, the Pittsburgh Hornets, while
remaining under the broader control of the Red Wings.
PITTSBURGH: Farm teams today are owned or tightly controlled by a parent club; in the late 1930s farm teams were usually independently owned, were their own professional club but affiliated with a NHL team which had first call on players. This was a weird arrangement. So, contractually, Jack was on a Detroit-controlled contract and the Red Wings had final say where he played; but practically he played regular games for Pittsburgh, later Indianapolis. He practised, travelled and was paid as if he belonged to that club. But one phone call could send him to Detroit overnight. Pittsburgh dressed him, promoted him locally and fans saw him as their player; Detroit saw him as their asset whom they could recall, or loan elsewhere.
Interestingly, in the 1938 preseason, Detroit and Pittsburgh
played exhibition games against each other. This was Jack’s debut in North
American pro hockey. Exhibition games allowed teams to test their lineups, gave
scouts a chance to watch the fringe players, who to recall, who needed more
seasoning. These exhibition games would have mattered a lot to Jack. Play well
and he stayed on Detroit’s radar.
Jack played only one season for the Pittsburgh Hornets, but
in those 50 games, he netted 19 goals.
Local sports reporters liked his style. “Keating came out of a scrimmage in Pittsburgh territory and, leaving the Ramblers down the ice, skated in on [the goalie] and beat him with a high shot that slid off [the goalie’s] shoulder and into the net. (Dec 4 1938) “Most fair-haired of the new Hornets at this time is Jack Keating, red-headed winger. Keating barged into the scoring picture against Springfied and rang up four goals, half of the Hornets’ point total for the night." (Nov 1938) One of the early games he played for the Hornets was against the Providence Reds. Jack wore #10. #10 on the opposing team was also a Jack Keating, no relation.
That year, he had a one-game call-up to the Detroit Red Wings; he scored a goal in this NHL debut.
INDIANAPOLIS: The next season, Detroit moved Keating from the Pittsburgh Hornets to the Indianapolis Capitals. Indianapolis had emerged as the club’s primary development affiliate, a place where Detroit kept players they thought had NHL-ready refinement. This transfer, therefore, suggests that Keating was viewed as a player worth continued investment and closer evaluation. Indianapolis meant more ice time, greater visibility to Detroit management and easier call-up logistics to Detroit. In the late 1930s and early 1940s, the Detroit Red Wings, with disciplined defense, reliable scoring and strong goaltending, was one of the NHL’s strongest and most stable teams. The club’s depth and organizational strength meant that roster places were highly competitive, and young or developing players were usually given only brief opportunities at the NHL level. Against this backdrop, even a short call-up to the Red Wings represented a significant professional achievement. In the 1939-40 season, Jack played eleven NHL games for Detroit; he netted two goals.
Jack Keating spent the core of his North American professional career with the Indianapolis Capitals beginning in the 1939–40 season and continuing through 1943, with a brief return following the Second World War. In his first year with the club (1939–40), he appeared in 32 regular-season games, establishing himself within the Capitals’ lineup. During the 1940–41 and 1941–42 seasons, Keating was a regular fixture, playing 53 and 55 games respectively and contributing steady offensive production, including 21 goals in 1940–41 and 19 goals in 1941–42. His 1941–42 season was particularly notable: in addition to his regular-season output, he was playoff high scorer when he notched 9 goals and 9 assists in 10 playoff games-- a significant role in Indianapolis’s Calder Cup championship. Keating was later described as a “fixture with the Indianapolis Capitals almost from the day professional ice hockey began”.
ARMY: Keating’s 1942–43 season was cut short after just seven games (in which he nonetheless produced 4 goals and 4 assists) On October 27, 1942 Jack enlisted in the US Army. For many hockey players of his generation, enlistment during the Second World War felt like a natural extension of the values they had learned in the game itself. Hockey demanded toughness, discipline, teamwork, and the willingness to put the group ahead of the individual—qualities that translated easily into military service. Players were keenly aware of their public visibility and the example they set, and many chose to enlist voluntarily rather than wait to be drafted. For Jack, whose professional career was already well established but still unfolding, enlistment offered a way to step forward with purpose at a moment when hockey, like so much else, had been overtaken by the demands of war.
Jack was assigned as an instructor with the United States
Army Air Forces Training Corps. This was a logical extension of both
his background and the Army’s wartime needs. As a physically fit, disciplined
professional athlete accustomed to structured training and team leadership, Jack
was well suited for instructional duties. In this role, he likely worked with
aviation trainees on physical conditioning, drill and discipline, and the
development of coordination, endurance, and teamwork—skills essential for
aircrew and ground-support personnel alike. Instructors were responsible not
only for teaching procedures but also for maintaining morale, enforcing
standards, and preparing large numbers of recruits for the demands of military
aviation.
Although U.S. citizenship was not required for military service, Jack Keating applied for US citizenship on March 19, 1943, a step many foreign-born servicemen took during the war. By that time, Keating had spent much of his adult life playing professional hockey in the United States and considered it as home. Wartime service often prompted men in his position to formalize their ties to the country they were serving, and the Army actively supported naturalization for those in uniform. Keating’s decision appears to have been both practical and deeply personal, reflecting his commitment to the United States and his intention to build his future there once the war—and his interrupted hockey career—came to an end.
Jack served three years as an army Air Corps physical education instructor. He was preparing to go overseas, --even had his luggage aboard ship—when the war ended.
POST WAR HOCKEY: After the war, there was an increased number
of people living in Southern California (there to support the war industries and
military bases). They had relocated from the northeast U.S., where hockey was
very popular; these transplants created a demand for ice hockey
entertainment. The Pacific Coast Hockey League was re-established and it expanded south to take advantage of the growing economic and hockey fan base
in California. Combined with the availability of larger ice rinks like the Pan
Pacific (in Los Angeles) and the Cow Palace (in South San Francisco), ice
hockey games could be offered to spectators in larger numbers and at more
convenient hours.
The Hollywood Wolves were a professional team in the PCHL during the mid-1940s. The team was known for rosters that mixed experienced former AHL and NHL-adjacent players with younger talent seeking opportunity, and favouring a fast, offensive style suited to the local market. For Jack, joining the Wolves after leaving the Army was a natural step for it allowed him to resume playing immediately without the physical and logistical grind of the eastern leagues. (He also did play 14 games that year with his old Indianapolis team.) Jack’s time in Hollywood was not a final destination but a bridge—an opportunity to test his post-war form and extend his career—leading naturally to his later move to the Los Angeles Monarchs.
It was with the Los Angeles Monarchs, where he enjoyed the most productive scoring stretch of his post-war career in the Pacific Coast Hockey League. The Monarchs were competitive during their years in the PCHL. As they played the majority of their games within their region, travel strains were lessened and this helped keep the team better rested for play. (Games results do reveal how travel affected the team, with most of its biggest losses coming on the road.) The Monarchs won the President’s Cup for the league championship on April 5, 1947. (Their pennants were supposedly presented by some “topflight” movie stars.) During the 1946–47 season, Keating appeared in 55 games for the Monarchs and scored 36 goals, followed by 31 goals in 45 games during the 1947–48 season. These totals placed him among the club’s most reliable offensive contributors and demonstrated that, despite the interruption of military service, he remained an effective and dangerous scorer. Playing in a league that emphasized speed and attacking play, Keating drew on his long professional experience to contribute both production and leadership. Jack was made team captain.
RETIREMENT: In the late 1940s, the Los Angeles College of
Optometry offered a three-year professional program, designed especially for returning WWII veterans. Keating retired
from hockey in 1948 and enrolled in the Los Angeles College of Optometry. Like many returning veterans, he likely pursued his education with
the support of the GI Bill, a federal program that provided tuition assistance
and living support to former servicemen seeking education and vocational
training after the Second World War. Keating’s
decision to train as an optometrist reflects a thoughtful and deliberate
transition from professional hockey to a stable civilian profession. He graduated as a Doctor of Optometry in 1951, completing a careful transition
into post-athletic life. It appears that Jack may have been combining his
studies with some part-time coaching at the University of California. Coaching
positions were often seasonal and informal and the pay was very modest.
Jack’s life was full . At 9 a.m., November 28, 1946, he married Blanche Kernal in Lourdes Catholic Church, Indianapolis. Blanche was a graduate of Perdue University and Northern Illinois School of Optometry.
The couple would reside in California where two sons and a daughter were born.
After Jack graduated in 1951, the family moved back to Indianapolis. It is most likely that Jack practised optometry alongside his wife in his father-in-law’s office.
Sadly, Jack Keating died just a few months later, on December
18, 1951. He was just 35 years old.
Blanche never remarried. She raised their three children while practising optometry with her father, uncle, brother and two cousins. She became a strong advocate for cancer research.
Blanche died Sept 21, 1988, aged 72, and is buried alongside Jack in Calvary Cemetery, Indianapolis.
Such an interesting, but far too short life he led.
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