1953-54
The two best teams in the NHL were the Canadians and the Red Wings, it was getting to be old hat. the Red Wings were cruising towards their 6th straight first place finish, but the Habs were right behind them. Most fans felt in their bones that they were looking at a Red Wings vs Habs Stanley Cup matchup.
The Habs were on the verge of greatness, Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion had won the Calder Trophy two years ago, and he had gained his name through the mastery of the newest fan in the NHL which was the slap shot. Rookie Jean Beliveau had joined the team after a long contract negotiation. Dickie Moore was becoming the best Left Winger in the NHL, and Maurice Richard had never looked better.
Bealiveau was a different type of player, he looked effortless when he was going full speed, but unlike his linemates Moore and Richard, Bealiveau was a gentleman and because of that he became the target of every player in the NHL to the point that he missed 26 games of his rookie season due to injury.
Of course the Red Wings were still the most stacked team in the NHL. Red Kelly became the first defenseman to win the Norris Trophy, and he also took home the Lady Byng. Gordie Howe was still a beast in his prime leading the NHL in scoring for the fourth straight year, so its no surprise that the Wings won the regular season title again with 88 points 7 points clear of the second place Canadians.
As expected there was a Habs-Wings final. The Wings beat the Leafs in 5 games, while the Habs turfed the Bruins in 4 games leading to Boston's only ever GM Art Ross to retire so Lynn Patrick could take his place.
In the finals Montreal's coach Dick Irwin decided to go with young goalie Jacques Plante, but the move backfired as the Wings roared out to a 3-1 lead. Irwin made a goalie switch starting Gerry McNeil and the Habs roared back to tie the series at 3 games a apiece on the back of a 1-0 and a 4-1 win.
Game 7 was a barn burner between two evenly matched team and the game went into overtime tied at 1 apiece.
Remember the old saying you have to be good to be lucky and lucky to be good. We know the Red Wings were good, but in overtime they got lucky. Tony Leswick entered the Habs zone and released a long slow and fluttering shot that should have been easy for McNeil to catch, but Doug Harvey who was also a top baseball player decided to reach out and deflect the puck into the corner. Harvey only got a piece of the puck, and it took a sharp right turn off of his glove and past McNeil at 4:29 of the first overtime. A fluke goal had given the Wings their 3rd Stanley Cup in 5 years.
…[*] Detroits Red Kelly wins his third Lady Byng trophy and takes home the first Norris Trophy.[*] Toronto Goalie Harry Lumley wins the Vezina trophy[*] Emile "The Eel" Henry scores 24 goals and wins the Calder Trophy.[*] Rennsselaer Politechnic Institute wins the NCAA championship beating Minnesota 5-4 in overtime.[*] The Soviet Union wins its first World Championship.[/LIST]
Debut
Last Game
- Woody Dumart, Boston Bruins
- George Gee, Chicago Black Hawks
- Jack Gelineau, Chicago Black Hawks
- Sid Abel, Chicago Black Hawks
- Jim McFadden, Chicago Black Hawks
- Elmer Lach, Montreal Canadiens
- Gaye Stewart, Montreal Canadiens
- Doug Bentley, New York Rangers
- Max Bentley, New York Rangers
- Leo Reise, New York Rangers
- Howie Meeker, Toronto Maple Leafs