Johnny Bower

John William Bower (né Kiszkan; November 8, 1924 – December 26, 2017), nicknamed "The China Wall," was a Canadian ice hockey goaltender. Born into a Ukrainian-Canadian family in Prince Albert, Saskatchewan, he was the son of Johnny Kiszkan, a labourer, and his wife, Lizzie. He had one brother and seven sisters. He taught himself the game using a tree branch as a stick and fashioned goalie pads out of old mattresses. Around the age of ten, his parents separated, an uncommon occurrence at the time that created a stigma around the family in their town.

At fifteen, he lied about his age and enlisted in the Canadian Army during World War II. From 1940 to 1943 he was stationed in England as a gunner with the 2nd Canadian Division, and was discharged after developing rheumatoid arthritis in his hands.

Bower won four Stanley Cups during his career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. In 2017 he was named one of the "100 Greatest NHL Players" in history. Apart from hockey, his song "Honky (The Christmas) Goose" reached number 29 on the CHUM Charts in December 1965.