The NHL has always had a long list of brothers playing. Sometimes as teammates, sometimes as rivals. Current Blackhawks Marian Hossa, Jonathan Toews and Brent Seabrook all have brothers playing elsewhere. The Hawks have also had brothers as teammates, like the Hulls or Sutters.

But the Bentleys, Max and Doug over there on your left, were also linemates. In fact, the "Pony Line" of the Bentleys and Bill Mosienko were one of the truly great lines not only in Blackhawk History, but in NHL history as well.

The Bentleys grew up on a farm in Delisle, Saskatchewan. At one point, the Drumheller Miners in the Alberta Senior Hockey League had 5 Bentleys playing for them at the same time. Max and Doug, though, were something special.

Max was a magician with the puck, comparable to a Wayne Gretzky or Denis Savard for being a small (5'8, 155) player who would weave in & out of traffic while stickhandling - and the curved stick was still 20 years away. In fact, his skill earned him the nickname "Dipsy-Doodle Dandy from Delisle".

Doug was an elite scorer, and one of the best two-way forwards to ever play the game. He was able to use his exceptional speed for backchecking.

Max and Doug got a tryout with the Boston Bruins in 1938, and they were turned away for being too small. On their way back West, they swung through Montreal for a tryout with the Habs. There, Max was told he had a heart condition, and should not play hockey any more.

So Max went home, and Doug went to the Blackhawks. Max was miserable working on the farm while Doug was spending the 1939-40 season in the NHL. Finally, at the urging of friends and family, Max went to Chicago. Due to his lack of size, and the fact that he always looked like he was running a quart low on blood, the Hawks sent him to Kansas City for seasoning. That seasoning lasted 5 games, in which Max got 5 goals and 5 assists.

Max and Doug were immediately placed on the same line, and skated with Mush March. That year (1940-41), they had some success, with Doug getting 28 points in 47 games, and Max notching 17P in 37G.

The following year, the Bentleys took off. Bill Thoms was added to their line, and they started scoring. One night in December 1941, the Hawks crushed the Habs 9-2, and Doug got the hat trick with Max assisting on all three goals. Another night, in January '43, the Hawks beat the Rangers 10-1, with Doug (2G 4A), Max (4G 3A) and Thoms (5A) leading the way. Imagine what that night could have done for someone's fantasy team.

Having two elite players like this on the Hawks was exciting for fans. Doug led the league in scoring once (1942-43) and had 3 First Team All-Star selections to go along with 1 Second Team. Max led the league in scoring twice (1945-46 and 1946-47), had one each First Team and Second Team All-Star selections. He also won the Lady Byng in 1942-43 and the Hart Trophy in 1945-46. Once Bill Mosienko joined the team, they formed the "Pony Line", named for their small stature and large speed.

You would think that with this type of talent the Hawks would have been playoff mainstays. However, the Hawks were plagued with cheap ownership, even back then. In fact, Conn Smythe once said about Hawks' owner Bill Tobin, ""Tobin is so cheap that he wouldn't pay 10 cents to see the Statue of Liberty take a swan dive into New York Harbor." So, these great players never got close to the Cup in Chicago.

Shortly after the 1947-48 season started, Max was traded to Toronto for 6 players. The 6 players did nothing to help the Hawks, while Max got his name on the Stanley Cup 3 of the next 4 years.

They played together for 5 seasons. Max and his bad heart served in the Canadian military for two seasons(1943-44 and 1944-45) and for the 1944-45 season, when the Canadian Government wouldn't allow Doug to cross the border into the United States. Doug spent the season in Canada, playing for the Laura Tigers back home in Saskatchewan. Also, during the 1942-43 season, their older brother Reg joined them on the Hawks (and on their line) for 11 games.

Once Max got dealt, they didn't play together until the 1953-54 season, when they were reunited for one year on the New York Rangers.

Max was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1966, and passed away in 1984. Doug was inducted in 1964 and passed away in 1972.