This is the story of Steve Saprunoff's Smoke Eater sweater as he told it. Steve was mascot and stick boy for the Trail Smoke Eaters during the 1936-37 season. At the end of the season Mickey Brennan, number 5, gave Steve his sweater. Steve wore it everywhere and only took it off to shower or sleep. In 1938 the Smoke Eaters won the Allan Cup and went to Europe that fall for the World Cup Tournament. They played 63 exhibition games throughout Europe for 2 months, losing one and tying one, before arriving in Switzerland early in 1939 for the main event. During the tournament they scored 47 goals while allowing only 1 to bring home the world title. The only team to score a goal against them was Czechoslovakia, coached by another former Trail Smoke Eater and Father of Czech hockey, Mike Buckna.
     When the war broke out Steve enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. In 1944 on his 18th bombing mission over Berlin his bomber was shot down. He bailed out and was still wearing his Smoke Eater sweater under his flight jacket when he hit the ground and broke a couple of ribs. After 2 days he was captured by the Germans. By this time the Germans were clearly losing the war and captured bomber crews could expect harsh treatment. For the first couple of days in the compound with 30 or 40 POWs he was given nothing to eat nor any treatment for his ribs. On the third or fourth day a German guard came to his cell and told him to take off his flight jacket. When the guard saw his Smoke Eater sweater his demeaner completely changed. He excitedly explained that he was a huge hockey fan and had seen the Smoke Eaters play in Berlin on Christmas Day 1938. He said he loved the way the Canadians played and that Jimmy Morris was his favorite player. A few hours later the guard came back with some bread and sausage that he had smuggled in. This went on for about a week before the POWs were transferred to another facility. Just before he left the guard gave him one last food package to hide under his sweater. When he got on the train, Steve saw some of the guys from his crew. They were starving and Steve was thankful to be able to share some food with them.
     When Steve eventually made it back to Trail he still had the sweater and wore it until it fell apart, then he cut off the crest and gave it to Jimmy Morris, thinking it was a fitting tribute to the German guard. Steve's brother Sammy Saprunoff had played for the Smoke Eaters until he also enlisted in the Royal Canadian Air Force. Sammy became a pilot and was killed in action on the 31st of March 1944.