They were the Punch Line, a term used to define the end point of a joke, but frankly they were no joke and as serious as a heart attack to the rest of the league. Made of of Elmer Lach, Toe Blake and Maurice Richard, they were the impossible line to defend against. In the mid 40's the Canadians were about to go on a legendary run.
Because of his flashiness and skill most eye's focused on Maurice Richard, the rocket. But Blake was really the lines driver.
They were first bought together in the 1942-43 season when Dick Irvin realized that the mercurial and emotional Richard needed a stabilizing force on the ice and Elmer Lach a hardnosed and skilled center who was even keeled was a good match, Toe Blake fell into the other spot and the line clicked.
The thing though was that this team was incredibly deep anyways, and the Punch Line made the team more frightening. The Canadians had a stellar defense and were backed by rookie Bill Durnan in net. By the half way point of the season they were 20-2-3 and 13 points ahead of the second place Leafs.
Montreal finished the season with 5 wins and went into the playoffs on a high. In their first round matchup against the Leafs they were shocked in game 1 when the Leafs beat them 3-1 but that only served as a wake up call. The Rocket scored all 5 Montreal goals in game 2 and beat the Leafs in 5 games destroying the Leafs 11-0 to move onto the finals.
In the finals they faced the Black Hawks and destroyed them in 4 games with Richard leading the way.
Things would be no different next season.
Trivia
The Modern age of hockey begins as the NHL adds the center ice red line to speed up the game and reduce offsides.
The delayed penalty is introduced.
While many teams were weakened by the war effort the Canadians were strengthened as their players didn't rush to join the war effort.
The Habs are dominant, they finish with a 38-5-7 and score the most goals with 234 goals and allow the least with 109.
In his first full NHL season Maurice Richard scores 32 goals.
The Rangers finish in last place with a 6-39-5 record.
Rangers coach Frank Boucher attempts a comeback due to the Rangers thin roster, he plays 15 games and puts up 14 points at 42.
The Rangers feature rookie goalie Tubby McAuley he allows 5.20 gaa and loses 39 games.
The Rangers lend Phil Watson to the Habs for the whole season.
On Jan 23 the Wings wreck the Rangers 15-0 setting a NHL record for most lopsided win.
On Feb 1 Detroit's Syd Howe scores 6 goals against the Rangers in a 12-2 beating. Its the first 6 goal game in 23 years.
Boston's Herb Cain wins the scoring title with 82 points a NHL record and a 46 point improvement on last season.
Doug Bentley leads the league with 38 goals for the Hawks.
Toronto's Babe Pratt sets a new standard for defensemen with 17 goals and 57 points.
Mike McMAhon of Montreal a tiny 5'8 defensemen leads the league in penalty minutes with 99.
Bill Durnan a 28 year old rookie goalie leads the league with a 2.18 gaa.
The Habs swamp the Leafs in 5 games in their opening round series.
The Hawks upset the powerhouse Wings in 5 games.
The finals are never in question as the Habs won their first cup in 13 years in a 4 game laughter.
Toronto's Babe Pratt wins the Hart Trophy.
Chicago's Clint Smith wins his second straight Lady Byng.
Montreal rookie Bill Durnan wins the Vezina.
Gus Bodnar of the Leafs wins the Calder.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
The Following 3 Users Say Thank You to CaptainCrunch For This Useful Post:
He had a hockey rink named after him where I played most of my games growing up, but Frank McCool was not your typical goalie. Tall and Lanky in the day of pudgy goalies, he was also a high strung individual that lived with a chronic case of ulcers so bad that he had to drink milk between periods when he wasn't throwing up.
McCool was probably never going to get a full time opportunity in the NHL, except starter Turk Broda went to serve in the war. McCool was average in 1944-45 posting a 3.22 gaa and winning the Calder Trophy, but nobody thought that he was anything but a weak point in Toronto's lineup when they hit the playoffs.
In the opening round the Leafs took on the Canadians who had finished with a 38-8-4 record and featured the Punch Line, and the brilliant Bill Durnan in goal. But things shifted and "Ulcers" would become a legend. He lead the Leafs in an upset of the Canadians in 6 games, and McCool outside of a 10-3 blowout in game 5 was brilliant.
The Leaf's then took on the Red Wings who had finished 15 points ahead of Toronto in the finals. Again nobody thought that McCool would be able to carry the Leafs to the cup. However ulcers and nerves aside, McCool shut out the Wings in the first 3 games of the series. However the Wings bounced back to tie the series at 3 games a piece.
During Game 7 McCool's ulcers got so bad that he had to leave the ice for an antacid, but he returned and battled in the 3rd period as the Leafs were hanging onto a 2-1 lead. McCool was again brilliant and the Leafs scored a late goal to salt away the cup.
For McCool, he played 22 games in the next season before retiring due to his ulcers.
Trivia
Maurice Richard scores at a goal per game rate.
Richard sets a NHL record on Dec 28th when he scored 8 points in a game including 5 goals against the Red Wings.
On Jan 21, the Bruins score four goals in a minute and 20 seconds in a 14-3 blowout of the Rangers.
Montreal finishes first and 13 points ahead of the second place Wings.
Ted Lindsay makes his debut with the Red Wings.
Elmer Lach of the Canadians sets an NHL record with 54 assists.
Rocket Richard has the first 50 goal season in NHL history scoring 50 in 50.
Ranger's goalie Tubby McAuley improves on his 6.20 gaa by reducing it to a 4.95 gaa, sadly its his last year in the NHL.
Bill Durnan of Montreal leads the league with a 2.42 gaa.
Pat Egan now with Boston takes the penalty crown with 86 minutes.
Detroit defenseman Flash Hollett scores 20 goals and 41 points.
The Leafs upset the Canadians in 6 games in their semi final.
Detroit beats Boston in 7 games in the other semifinal.
The Leafs upset the Wings in 7 games to win their 4th cup.
Elmer Lach of the Habs wins the Hart Trophy.
Bill Durnan wins the Vezina Trophy.
Frank McCool wins the Calder Trophy.
Chicago's Bill Mosienko wins the Lady Byng.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
World War 2 ended during the summer of 1945 and life was going to get back to normal. Training camps across the league opened with heightened optimism as teams welcomed back their returning players.
The Ranger's had been the most devastated posting three last place seasons in a row and they had lost the most players of all the teams in the league, so its not an exaggeration that they were looking forward to gaining their stars back.
However, it didn't take long for the teams and especially the Rangers to realize that 3 years away from the league was too long. Coach Frank Boucher of the Rangers lamented that "When we went to Camp, we had 6 of the Soldiers back, Alfie Pike, Neil and Mac Colville, Alex Shibicky and the two Patricks Muzz and Lynn. But it soon because apparent that most of them could not regain their skills that had made the Rangers soar".
Frank Brimsek returned to Boston but he wasn't the same goalie anymore, the same could be said for Bobby Bauur and Woody Dumart of the Kraut line, however Milt Schmidt picked up where he had left off. Turk Broda of Toronto returned to late in the year to help the Leafs.
The Canadians picked up where they left off and were still stinging from last years upset. The league as a whole was unhappy that most of the Habs hadn't gone to war. Boston's Art Ross snorted and called them a war time club, he was wrong as the Habs finished first and destroyed everyone in their path on the way to the cup.
But there was reason for optimism even though the returning players struggled. The League had survived the depression and a world war, the fans were flooding to the arenas, and young stars were entering the league.
Trivia
Philadelphia, LA and San Francisco all apply for expansion franchises.
The Philadelphia Arena Company of the AHL sues the league seeking a injunction prohibiting the operation of an NHL team.
The Hall of Fame with no building names 14 inductees, among them Hobey Baker, Chuck Gardiner, George Vezina, Howie Morenz, Art Ross, Frank McGee and Lord Stanley of Preston.
Art Ross steps down as the coach of the Bruins and is replaced by Dit Clapper.
Hart Trophy winner Babe Pratt of the Leafs is suspended for 9 games for betting on hockey games.
The Habs take the regular season title with a 28-17-5 record.
Chicago's Pony line of Max and Doug Bentley and Bill Mosienko help the Hawks lead the league in goals with 200.
Gaye Stewart leads the league in goals with 37.
Maurice Richard only scores 27 goals after scoring 50 last year.
Bill Durnan who unveiled a new set of gloves that allowed him to catch with both hands. He leads the league with a 2.37 gaa.
Black Jack Stewart of the Wings leads the league in PIM with 73.
One year after winning the Cup the Leafs finish in 5th place and out of the playoffs.
He Habs blow out the Hawks in their opening round series in 4 games outscoring the Hawks 26-7.
The Bruins take care of the Wings in 5 games.
The Canadians beat the Bruins in 4 games to win their 6th cup.
Max Bentley wins the Hart Trophy.
Tooe Black wins the Lady Byng.
Bill Durnan wins his third straight Vezina.
Rangers center Edgar Laprade wins the Calder.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
The Following User Says Thank You to CaptainCrunch For This Useful Post:
After scoring 50 goals in 50 games, Maurice Richard dropped suddenly the next year to score 27, but he was still one of the most feared scorers in the NHL.
The challenge though for him was that the NHL was finally returning to normalcy after a world war where teams had trouble filling out lineup cards and the great depression where teams struggled to survive.
Richard was unique for his age. He was a pure shooter he had a wicked wrist shot and a even more devestating backhand shot. He could score from anywhere on the ice. He was unafraid to skate to the net and challenge the toughest NHL defensemen. He was intense and frightening to play against.
In 1946-57 he rebounded to score 45 goal, teams tried different ways to try to shut him down including physical and psychological abuse because they knew he was short tempered.
But Richard was also a deceptively good fighter, he'd knocked out Rangers defenseman Bob Gill who was a tough golden gloves boxer twice in a game.
But Richards frustration came from his feeling that the referees weren't willing to call penalties against his assailants. His frustration and temper were about to hurt his own team.
The Canadians finished first again with a 34-16-10 record and stomped on the Bruins in the first round. The Habs moved on to face the Leafs in the finals, and the Leafs employed a strategy that could generously be called "Lets mug him" as Bill Ezinicki and Vic Lynn were assigned to shadow re mug the Rocket.
In game 2, Richard finally had enough in game two he exploded and vicioualy attacked Lynn and Ezincki leaving them bloody on the ice after vicious stick assaults.
Basically Richard's actions left NHL President Clarence Campbell with no choice but to suspend Richard for game 3 and fine him $250 dollars. ($3500 today). In 1947 this was a pretty stiff for the times.
The Canadians were shocked and it effected them deeply, they lost game 3, Richard game back in game 4 and basically pouted and was passive. He exploded for 2 goals in game 5, but the Leaf's shut him down in game 6 to take the cup.
Universally Richards temper was blamed for the Habs failure to win the cup. And it wouldn't be the last time Richard exploded, this incident was foreshadowing.
Trivia
The NHL adopts hand signals on penalty calls.
The NHL mandates that linemen from neutral cities be hired for games.
Red Dutton steps down as NHL president and doesn't return to an NHL rink until 1980. Clarence Campbell takes over as NHL President.
Montreal general manager Tommy Gorman retires and his replaced by Frank Selke.
The NHL announces that it will pay a $1000.00 cash prize to every trophy winner and member of the all star team. ($13,950 today)
The NHL schedule goes from 50 to 60 games.
The Canadians win their 4th straight NHL regular season title.
Chicago's Max Bentley wins the scoring title with 29 goals and 72 points, edging out Maurice by 1 point.
Richard leads the league with 45 goals.
The Red Wings debut a rookie from Saskatchewan by the name of Gordie Howe.
Toronto winger Don Metz knocks out Canadians Elmer Lach who suffers a fractured skull which ends his season.
Montreal's Bill Durnan leads the league in GAA at 2.30 for the 4th year in a row.
Toronto's Howie Meeker sets a NHL rookie record with 5 goals in a game against the Hawks on Jan 8th.
Detroit's Billy Taylor sets an NHL record with 7 assists on March 16th against Chicago.
Toronto beats the Wings in 5 games to advance to the finals.
Montreal beats Boston in double overtime in game 5 to head to the finals.
Montreal beats the Leaf's 6-0 in game one of the finals. Bill Durnan blurts to a reporter asking how the "Leafs had even made the playoffs" This went directly to the Leaf's dressing room and they won 4 out of the last 5 games of the series to win their 6th cup.
Maurice Richard wins his first and only Hart Trophy.
Bill Durnan wins his 4th straight Vezina.
Bobby Bauer of the Bruins takes his third Lady Byng Trophy.
Howie Meeker beats out Jimmy Conacher and Gordie Howe of the Wings to win the Calder. This will be the only NHL trophy that Howe doesn't win.
The World Hockey Championships resume for the first time in 8 years. Czechoslovakia wins over the favoured Canadians.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
The Following User Says Thank You to CaptainCrunch For This Useful Post:
The hockey world consensus was that last years Stanley Cup champion Leaf's were a fortunate fluke, they had upset the Canadians thanks to what amounted to assault of Maurice Richard, who was suspended and neutralized by the NHL. Conn Smyth was well aware of that criticism and to an extent felt the same way. So he decided to make major changes to the Leafs to make them deeper and stronger.
I mean he still had to deal with that Canadians team.
so he went to work, and decided that though the Leafs had two strong centers in Sly Apps and Ted Kennedy, teams are built up the middle. So he rolled the dice and traded an entire line, the Flying Forts line of Bud Poile , Gaye Stewart, and Gus Bondnar all young players that represented the Leafs future, and a very good defenseman in Bob Goldham, and Ernie Dickens who was a hero in the 1942 Cup to the Black Hawks for last years scoring Champion Max Bentley and minor leaguer Cy Thomas in the biggest trade in NHL history.
This meant that the Leafs would have the league scoring champion as their third line center.
At the same time, you had a team with a mobile and vicious defense featuring Bill Barilko, Garth Boesch, Gus Morrison, Jim Thomson and Wally Stanowski and Turk Broda in net. Up front the Leafs featured Howie Meeker, Bill Ezinski, and more. Even years later this is arguably one of the best Leaf teams of all time.
Max Bentley was a great player in Chicago, but he played his best hockey as a Leaf, on a line with Meeker, and Vic Lynn. On top of that Bill Barilko a 19 year old rookie that was called up from the Hollywood Wolves of the Pacific Coast League stepped onto the blueline and added a vicious, high energy mean checking defenseman.
The Leafs flew into the playoffs dominating the league in the regular season. They wrecked the Bruins in round 1 4 games to 1, then made the finals a laugher as they rolled over the Wings in 4 easy game. The Leafs had won their second cup and were ready to challenge for dynasty status.
Trivia
The league introduces penalties and penalty shots and major penalties to stop stick throwing.
Ken Dryden was born on Aug 8, 1947 in Hamilton, On.
Art Ross donates a trophy to the league in his name. It will be awarded to the NHL scoring leader.
The first annual All-Star game is played as the world champion leafs were edged out by the NHL All Stars 4-3.
In a move that they will immediately regret the Leafs trade center Buddy O'Connor to the Rangers.
Buddy O'Connor is teamed up Phill Watson and Bryan Hextall and the line scores 115 points for the Rangers.
In Jan, Toe Blake of Montreal breaks his ankle and it ends his career.
The Habs see the debut of defenseman Doug Harvey.
The Habs will miss the playoffs for the first time in 8 years.
Detroit's Terrible Ted Lindsay scores a league high 33 goals as the Wings put Lindsay on a line with Gordie Howe and Sid Abel which is infamously named the Production Line.
Rangers Billy Taylor is suspended for life for betting on games, Don Gallinger of the Buins a former team mate of Taylor is also suspended for life for gambling. Both players are reinstated in 1970.
Elmer Lach taakes the leagues scoring title with 61 points and wins the first Art Ross trophy.
Toronto finishes first with a 32-13-13 record.
Buddy O'Connor finishes with 34 assists and 60 points.
Maurice Richard drops from 45 goals to 28 goals.
The Leafs trounce the Buins in the first round of the playoffs in 5 games.
The Wings need 6 games to beat the Rangers in their semi finals.
In the finals the Leafs wreck the Wings in a laugher equivalent to Ivan Drago fighting a 10 year old boy. They win game 1 5-3, game 2 4-2, game 3 2-0 and game 4 7-2.
Rangers center Buddy O'Connor becomes the first NHL player to take home both the Hart Trophy and the Lady Byng.
Turk Broda takes his second straight Vezina.
Detroits Jim McFadden takes home the Calder.
Dit Clapper, Auriel Joliat, Frank Nighbor, Lester Patrick, Eddie Shore, Cyclone Tylor and Frank Calder are enshrined in the Hall of Fame.
Bobby Orr is born on March 20, 2948 in Parry Sound, On.
The first Olympics in 12 years are held and Canada sends the Royal Canadian Air Force team to St. Moritz. The team goes 7-0-1 and scores 69 goals and allows 5 goals, on the way to the Gold.
The first NCAA Div 1 tournament is held and Michagan beats Dartmouth 8-4 in the finals.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
The Following 4 Users Say Thank You to CaptainCrunch For This Useful Post:
My father remembered the Bentley trade vividly – could tell me all about each of the players involved.
Chicago gave up the best player in the deal by far, but it was a trade they needed to make.
This was the heyday of the sponsorship system, when NHL clubs controlled whole junior teams and every 16-year-old who was any good was already in an NHL system. Montreal sponsored most teams in Quebec, Toronto had the lion's share of teams in Ontario, and the American clubs had to share the leftovers.
The Black Hawks (as they were then officially known) had one of the weaker farm systems, so they really needed a big infusion of youth just to keep going. They didn't want to trade the top scorer in the league, but they had so many holes to fill that there was really no other way.
Technically, an NHL club could only sponsor two junior teams. But the club's minor-league affiliates could each sponsor two more teams, and Junior A teams could sponsor Junior B teams, and it added up to a crazy pyramid of absolute control. Historical Hockey Stats and Trivia gives an example from a later era:
Quote:
Take the Montreal Canadiens as an example. In the 1965-66 season they sponsored the Montreal Junior Canadiens and Peterborough TPT Petes of the OHA Jr. A league. The Canadiens also had affiliation agreements with the AHL's Cleveland Barons, Providence Reds and Quebec Aces, and the WHL's Seattle Totems and CPHL's Houston Apollos. The Barons sponsored Jr. A teams in Kirkland and Verdun, the Reds sponsored its own pair of Jr. A teams, the Aces sponsored the Regina Pats, the Totems sponsored another pair of Junior teams, and the Apollos sponsored a couple Junior B teams. Several of these Junior A and B teams in turn sponsored other Junior B, Juvenile and Midget clubs. All in all the Montreal Canadiens had 21 Junior A, Junior B, Juvenile and Midget clubs under its control. The Canadiens could place up to 18 players from each of its sponsored clubs on a list of sponsored players, a list of players which no other professional team in North America (since the NHL exercised control over the other leagues) could touch. In effect the Canadiens could direct the careers of over 300 young players.
__________________
WARNING: The preceding message may not have been processed in a sarcasm-free facility.
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to Jay Random For This Useful Post:
The Leafs were on the road to a dynasty, having won 2 cups in a row, and were still regarded as a league power. Being one of the more physical teams in the league the Leafs were embroiled in a blood feud with the Habs. Determined to win a 3rd cup Conn Smythe laid down the infamous golden rule to the players "If you can't beat 'em in an alley, you can't beat 'em on the ice".
As a result hostilities exploded between the Leafs and Habs and the Leafs and the Red Wings.
On New Years eve Habs defenseman Kenny Reardon used his stick like a machate against Leafs forward Cal Gardiner who retaliated and the bout cost each player $250.00 and a one game suspension.
Reardon did an interview afterwards in which he vowed to see that Gardiner got a mouth full of stitches no matter how long it takes. Clarence Campbell issued a $1000 bond warning to Reardon.
The Red Wings also hated the Leafs stemming from their last 2 finals losses. Leafs Bill Ezinicki and Ted Lindsay fought nearly every time on the ice together. Meanwhile Detroit goalie Harry Lumley and Toronto goalie Turk Broda engaged in a post game bout.
The Habs were also feuding violently with the Wings. Maurice Richard seemed to be the target of the Red Wings players. Gordie Howe tried to murder the rocket at every turn. But it was about to get worse.
The Wings finished first in the league and faced off against the Canadians in the semi finals. The Wings struck the first blow when defenseman "Black" Jack Stewart broke Elmer Lach's jaw with a nasty bodycheck. causing Canadians coach Dick Irwin to exclaim "Elmer doesn't carry the buck with his teeth, but that's where they're hitting him". His complaints went nowhere and the Wings beat the Canadians in a grueling 7 game series. In the finals we got the third Wings Leafs finals in the last 3 years. With Bill Ezinicki and heavy hitter Bill Barilko leading the way the Leafs beat down the Wings in a sweep to win their 3rd straight cup and become the NHL's first dynasty.
Trivia
Sly Apps the Leaf's Captain and Nick Metz of the Leaf's both retired.
Conn Smythe of the Leafs sends coach Hap Day to Montreal to buy Maurice Richard. Hap comes home empty handed.
The Red Wings lead by the Production line finish first in the NHL with a 34-19-7 record.
Montreal goalie Bill Durnan leads the league with a 2.10 gaa and 10 shutouts.
The Hawks finish out of the playoffs for the 5th year in a row.
Sid Abel of Detroit scores the most goals in the league with 28.
Toronto's Wild Bill Ezinicki leads the league in penalty minutes with 143
Buddy O'connor last years surprise Hart and Lady Byng winner notches just 35 points for the Rangers.
The Leafs beat the Bruins 4-1 in their semi finals.
Detroit and Montreal face off in a nasty semi final that goes 7 games, with Detroit winning game 7 3-1.
The Leafs face the Wings in the finals, and the Leafs walk away with their 3rd straight cup after sweeping the Wings.
Sid Abel of the Wings wins his only Hart Trophy.
Bill Durnan wins his 5th Vezina trophy.
Detroit defenseman Bill Quackenbush wins the Lady Byng.
The Ranger's Finnish rookie Pentti Lund wins the Calder trophy.
Boston College wins the NCAA championship beating Dartmouth in the finals.
__________________
My name is Ozymandias, King of Kings;
Look on my Works, ye Mighty, and despair!
The Following 2 Users Say Thank You to CaptainCrunch For This Useful Post:
The Leafs had won 3 cups in a row and established the first dynasty in the NHL. However heading into the next season Hap Day and Conn Smyth saw two things that worried them. One the Red Wings with the Production line were a very real threat. The second thing was they felt Complacency was a real threat. They felt the team was getting fat physically and mentally.
And they were right, early on the Leafs played like a fat team, and finally at the end of November Smyth totally snapped. He became to target players in his own version of the Battle of the Bulge. But he went hard after his goalie Walter "Turk" Broda. Smyth demanded that his players lose weight, and specifically targeted his pudgy goalie who was playing at nearly 200 pounds. to enforce his point Smyth called up goalie Gil Mayer from Pittsburgh because he knew that Broda would be insulted, except for WW2 Turk had never missed a game in 12 seasons. Broda was given 7 days to drop 7 pounds or else.
After 1 day of starvation and sweat, Turk lost 4 pounds, but he couldn't drop any more weight. Smyth collectively punished the team demoting 5 players to Cleveland and picked up goalie Al Rollins to challenge Broda. Turk bought in a weight loss guru who promptly said that the way to lose weight was willpower and to stop stuffing your piehole with more then you need, so Broda ate him with a nice Chianti. Or did he? On the Saturday of the weigh in, the Leafs one by one stepped on the scale and most of then came in under the limit. Broda was last and stepped on the scale and the needle quivered and came to a rest just under 90 pounds. Broda had made the weight, and nobody was happier then Smyth who thought of the goalie like a son.
Broda went out that night and shut out the Rangers and went on to have his best season in years posting a 2.45 gaa.
However, while they won the Battle of the Bulge the dynasty came to an end as the Leafs lost to the Wings in 7 games in the first round of the playoffs despite Broda posting a 1.43 gaa. The next NHL dynasty was on the horizon.
As for Al Rollins Turk took him out to dinner 1 night and he was never seen again.
Actually he went on to a 430 game NHL career that also included a stink puck stopping for the Calgary Stampeders of the WHL in 1957.
Trivia
Rule change, goalies will no longer have to face a penalty shot if they take a major penalty.
The NHL paints the ice white to make it easier to see the puck.
The NHL expands to a 70 game season.
Bobby Clarke is born in Flin Fon Manitoba on August 13th, he promptly elbows his doctor in the face on the way out.
Detroit goes 37-19-14 finishing 11 point ahead of the second place Canadians.
The Red Wings lead the league with 229 goals, the Production line finishes 1st, 2nd and third in league scoring.
Ted Lindsay wins his first and only scoring title putting up 78 points.
Sid Abel is second with 69 points.
Gordie Howe finishes 3rd with 68 points.
Maurice Richard leads the league with 43 points.
Bill Durnan leads all goalies with a 2.35 gaa.
The Wings and Leafs meeting in the first round of the playoffs. In game 1 Gordie Howe misses a check and crashes into the boards and fracture his skull. He was rushed to the hospital for emergency surgery to relieve the pressure in his brain and barely survives.
The Leafs bow out to the Wings in 7 games ending their dynasty.
The rangers ride the brilliant goaltending of Chuck Rayner to upset the Canadians in 5 games.
The Wings manage to beat the Rangers despite Chuck Rayner's goaltending display in 7 games. Gordie Howe leaves the hospital to celebrate the Wings 4th Stanley Cup with his team mates on the ice.
Chuck Rayner of the Rangers wins the Hart Trophy.
Edgar Laprade of the Rangers wins the Lady Byng Trophy.
Bill Durnan wins his 6th Vezina in 7 years, and announces his retirement due to frayed nerves.
Boston goalie Jack Gelineau wins the Calder Trophy. He's out of the NHL a year later.
Coloradeo College wins the NCAA title by whooping up on Boston University 11-3 in the fianls.
The first intraleague draft takes place on April 30th. Clubs are allowed to protect 30 players with the remaining players available for $25,000.00 each.
The first intraleague draft takes place on April 30th. Clubs are allowed to protect 30 players with the remaining players available for $25,000.00 each.
I know this is, or at least was, alleged in the NHL Official Guide and Record Book, but it never actually happened. It had been proposed at board meetings in 1950, but they didn't actually formalize the intraleague draft until 1952.
The NHL to this point had become a 2 team league. Conn Smythe's powerful and nasty Leafs and the Red Wings lead by the Production line of Howe, Lindsay and Abel.
It was almost a given that the Wings and Leafs would meet in the finals again. The Wings had set a NHL record becoming the first team to finish with 100 points (44-13-13) Smythe's Leafs had finished 6 points behind.
However anyone that follows hockey knows that foregone conclusions rarely come through, and Toronto and Montreal ended up hooking up in a historic final.
Toronto made their way to the finals by dusting off the Boston Bruins. Meanwhile the Montreal Canadians who had finished 36 points behind the Wings pulled off one of the greatest upsets in NHL history. The Habs were lead by Maurice "Rocket" Richard that scored two ot winners including 1 in quadruple overtime in game 1.
It looked like the Habs would need luck and a miracle to upset the Leafs, but Toronto had all the luck in the world in the finals.
Game 1 went to overtime knotted at 2, but the Leafs ended it on a Sid Smith goal in the first ot.
Game 2 went to Overtime and the Habs tied the series when Richard beat Turk Broda at the 2:55 mark of the first overtime.
Stunningly game 3 went to Overtime as well but a controversial decision by Leaf's coach Joe Primeau had benched Turk Broda in favour of Al Rollins paid off as Rollins made multiple 5 bell saves in the first few minutes of OT allowing Leafs's Tod Sloan to score the winner at the 4:47 mark.
This was the first time in history that 4 straight playoff games had gone to overtime, but that record wasn't safe.
In game 4 the game went to overtime again and Toronto's Harry Watson scored at 5:15 of the extra session.
It looked like it was impossible that this series would go to 5 straight OT games. But Max Bentley set up Tod Sloan with the game tying goal with 32 seconds left in the game and the two teams went to their 5th overtime game. As with the other games in the series, this one ended quickly as Leaf's defenseman Bill Barilko scored at 2:53 to give the Leafs the Cup.
Tragically Bill Barilko and his dentist went on a fishing trip in Northern Quebec on Aug 26, 1951 and was never seen again. The Leafs would not win the cup again until his body was found in 1962.
Trivia
The NHL rules that each team must provide an emergency goalie of every game for use by either team.
The Hall of fame inducts 9 new members including Newsy Lalonde and Joe Malone.
Detroit and Chicago complete a massive trade with Detroit sending goalie Harry Lunley, Al Dwsbury, Don Morrison and Pete Badando to Chicago for Haye Steward, Metro Prystai and Jim Henry.
Jim Henry doesn't play a single game for Detroit as 21 year old rookie sensation Terry Sawchuk takes over the Detroit net.
Al Rollins usurps Turk Broda as Toronto's starting goalie.
Gerry McNeil takes over the starting job in Montreal after the retirement of Bill Durnan.
NHL President Clarence Campbell fines Maurice Richard $500.00 for attacking referee Hugh McLean in a New York hotel lobby.
Gordie Howe fully recovered from his terrifying skull fracture leads the league in goals with 43, assists with 43 and sets a points record with 83.
Rookie Terry Sawchuk leads the league with a stingy 1.77 gaa.
Ted Lindsay is fined $300 and suspended for 3 games after a stick fight with Boston's Bill Ezinicki.
Red Kelly of the Red Wings leads all blueliners with 54 points.
Game 2 of the Leafs Bruins semifinals is suspended because of Toronto's curfew and the game is declared a tie. But the Leafs reel off 4 straight games to put the Bruins away.
Montreal upsets Detroit in 6 games in the other semi final.
Toronto wins the Stanely Cup beating the Habs in 5 games as all games in the finals go to overtime.
Boston's Milt Schmidt wins the Hart Trophy.
Detroits Red Kelly wins the first of his 4 Lady Byng Trophies.
Toronto goalie Al Rollins wins the Vezina.
Terry Sawchuk of the Wings wins the Calder.
Michigan wins its second straight NCAA championship blowing out Brown 7-1 in the finals
Jean Béliveau played two games for the Habs in 1950-51, and scored two points. Then he had to be sent down because he was still an amateur and the Canadiens did not have him under contract.
In 1952-53, the Habs called on Béliveau again. He played three games this time, and scored five goals. Again they had to send him down, much against their wishes.
There's a story behind this, and it grows out of that sponsorship system I mentioned earlier.
In those days, when an NHL team could control hundreds of young players through a complex web of sponsored clubs, the instrument of control was called the ‘C’ form. Every time a kid showed unusual talent, an NHL scout was all over him (and his parents or legal guardians) to sign this form. The ‘C’ form gave the NHL club an ironclad option to sign the player after a certain date and at a set salary.
Arthur Béliveau would not sign a ‘C’ form for his son. He knew what a fleeting and uncertain thing a hockey career is, and did not want young Jean (15 at the time) to be forced to commit to it. The most he would do was to sign a ‘B’ form, which gave the Habs rights to the player if he turned pro.
Time went by. Apart from his two brief callups, young Jean was a star attraction for the Quebec Aces of the Quebec Senior Hockey League. The QSHL paid its players, but for technical reasons it was still counted as an amateur league. That meant Béliveau still had amateur status and his ‘B’ form did not require him to report to the Habs. He liked it that way, and preferred to stay in the QSHL.
In 1953, Frank Selke, the GM of the Canadiens, decided he had had enough. He got his bosses at the Canadian Arena Company (which owned the Canadiens at that time) to do the one thing that would absolutely compel Béliveau to turn pro.
They bought the QSHL.
All of it.
The entire league.
And when they had bought it, they officially turned it into a professional league. Now Béliveau was a professional player, whether he liked it or not, and he had to report to the Habs.
This time he stayed with the Habs for 18 years, during which he played 1,125 games, scored 507 goals and 1,219 points, and won the Stanley Cup ten times (plus seven in management). I'm sure the Montreal Canadiens and their owners thought he was worth the trouble they took to get him.
__________________
WARNING: The preceding message may not have been processed in a sarcasm-free facility.
Last edited by Jay Random; 03-22-2024 at 03:00 PM.
The Following User Says Thank You to Jay Random For This Useful Post:
This time he stayed with the Habs for 18 years, during which he played 1,125 games, scored 507 goals and 1,219 points, and won the Stanley Cup eleven times. I'm sure the Montreal Canadiens and their owners thought he was worth the trouble they took to get him.
Beliveau "only" won 10 cups. Henri Richard is the one with 11.
