Welcome to the 50's
1949-50
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.
NHL Debuts
NHL retirements