Gordie Howe may be Mr. Hockey, but Glenn Hall lays claim to the title of Mr. Goalie, a title that is not easily earned by the early goaltenders. Hall's most noteworthy record is his 502 consecutive games which he tallied while playing for the Detroit Red Wings and Chicago Blackhawks. His streak began at the beginning of the 1955-56 season with Detroit and finished with Chicago on November 8th, 1962. In an era where most goalies chose not to wear masks and didn't have the training techniques of today's goalies, this truly may be a record that is never broken. In several books, Hall's streak was said to have ended on November 8th, 1963. This cannot be true as he finished the 1961-62 season with a full 70 games. Whatever the date, he definitely finished 502 consecutive games, and ironically the streak was brought to an end with a strained back which suffered while putting on his pads.

Glenn was born in Humboldt, Saskatchewan where at an early age he set sight on the NHL. As fate would have it, one of Hall's junior team mates had been invited to try out for the Red Wings and gave Hall an extra form and the rest, as they say, "is history".

Hall's junior career was with the Windsor Spitfires of the OHL, followed by a year in the AHL with the Indianapolis Capitals. In 1952 Hall moved to the Edmonton Flyers of the WHL. While with the Flyers he was called up for 6 games for the Red Wings, and posted a 4-1-1 record. Glenn spent the next 2 seasons with Edmonton and came up with Detroit for only 2 games.

While in the minors Glenn perfected his new style of goaltending…the Butterfly. Being the first to use the new style, many of his critics referred to him as "flopping" around the net. But by developing this style, Hall commented that this avoided having to do the splits, which would aggravate his groin. Plus, by doing the splits, it often left gaping holes in protecting the net, which the butterfly style didn't.

Hall finally broke into the Detroit Red Wing line up in 1955-56 when the Red Wings traded away Terry Sawchuk to the Boston Bruins. In his first season he led the league in games played (70), minutes played (4200), and shutouts (12). In his second season he again led the league in games (70), and minutes (4200) played, but also led the league in wins with 38.

Wing's manager Jack Adams was angry with Ted Lindsay who was trying to start a players union and traded Lindsay and Hall to Chicago for Johnny Wilson, Forbes Kennedy, Bill Preston and Hank Bassen in 1957.

Hall spent the next 10 seasons with the Blackhawks where he led the league for 5 seasons in games and minutes played. He also led the league for two seasons for most wins, and 4 times for most shutouts.
With Hall between the pipes, Chicago won the Stanley Cup in 1961, the first time since 1938. In 1966-67 Hall split the goal tending duties with Dennis Dejordy and the two won the Vezina Trophy that same year.

In the first expansion draft, Hall was claimed by the St. Louis Blues. By this time, age and the new idea of platooning goalies cut Hall's games played averages way down. He still managed 8 shutouts in 1968-69 to lead the league. While with St. Louis, another goaltending great, Jacques Plante joined the Blues. During his tenure with St. Louis, Hall finally wore a mask for the first time on November 13, 1968. He had refused to wear a mask previously because it interfered with his vision.

Strange as it sounds, Hall had a problem with nerves, and prior to nearly every game, he would vomit, leading one of his team mates to remark, "his bucket should be in the Hall of Fame". Another quirk of Glenn's was his intense dislike of exhibition games. He felt they were a waste of time and he would often not play in them. He would often remain at his home near Edmonton, Alberta long after he was to report to training camp, stating that he had to "paint the barn".

Despite his quirks, Glenn still garnered his fair share of awards and recognition. He was voted to the NHL Second All Star Team 4 times, won the Calder Cup in 1956, was voted to the NHL First All Star team 6 times, won the Vezina Trophy 3 times, the Conn Smythe Trophy and played in 13 All Star Games.

While attending the 1968 All Star Game, it was becoming apparent that Hall was not enjoying hockey in the same way he once did. He commented, "I don't like it, but it's a marvellous sport. I like the people, the talk and even the dinners. I love everything about hockey except the games".

Following his retirement from active play in 1971, Glenn worked with St. Louis and Calgary as their goalie consultant. Upon finishing his career, Hall was third on the most games played by a goalie, with 906, still holds the record for the most consecutive games played, 502, and is third on the most shutouts list with 84. Hall was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1975.