1950-51 NHL season
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The 1950-51 NHL season was the 34th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams each played 70 games. The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens four games to one for the Stanley Cup to win their fifth Cup in seven years.
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[edit] Regular season
The biggest trade in NHL history took place in July of 1950 with Sugar Jim Henry, Gaye Stewart, Bob Goldham, and Metro Prystai of Chicago going to Detroit for Harry Lumley, Black Jack Stewart, Al Dewsbury, Don Morrison, and Pete Babando, an exchange of nine players altogether.
Joe Primeau was named coach of the Toronto Maple Leafs with Hap Day kicked upstairs to assistant general manager. Toronto came flying out of the gate, undefeated in 11 games. Al Rollins had a great year, finishing with a 1.75 goals against average in 40 games. The Leafs had hoped to have Rollins share the Vezina Trophy with Turk Broda, but the league decided Rollins alone would be the recipient. The Leafs' .679 win percentage remains their all time best for a season, despite the fact that they were second in the league standings behind Detroit.
With the New York Rangers slumping this season, they hired a hypnotist, Dr. David Tracy, to help relax the team. The treatment remained in doubt and the Rangers lost to Boston November 12th. Asked why the treatment didn't work, Dr. Tracy said that he should have worked with the goaltender (Chuck Rayner) as he wasn't relaxed enough.
Montreal fans were excited when it was reported that two junior stars, Jean Beliveau and Bernie Geoffrion, would be given a trial in a December 16th game with the Rangers. The Canadiens played a 1-1 tie before 14,158 fans. Geoffrion scored the Canadiens goal in his debut.
Chicago was in third place at mid-season when bad luck struck. Their captain, Black Jack Stewart, ruptured a disc in his back and had to undergo surgery. He was finished for the season and his career was in jeopardy. Aggravating things were injuries to Gus Bodnar and Bill Gadsby. The Black Hawks won only two games in the second half and finished last.
In March, Rocket Richard ran into trouble in a game with Detroit. Richard was tripped and rose with a cut between the eyes. No penalty was called and Richard commenced an argument with referee Hugh McLean. He continued his argument too long and was given a misconduct penalty. Richard then skated to the penalty box and found Leo Reise of Detroit there to welcome him with derisive remarks which infuriated Richard, who then punched Reise, and when linesman Jim Primeau rushed to intervene, Richard took a poke at him and Richard was given a game misconduct. The Canadiens took a train to New York for a game against the Rangers, and the next morning, Richard encountered referee McLean and linesman Primeau in the lobby of the Picadilly Hotel. No punches were thrown, but Richard grabbed McLean by the tie and then Primeau intervened. Considerable profanity filled the air, but cooler heads separated the trio before fists could fly. NHL President Clarence Campbell took a dim view of the matter and fined the Rocket $500 for conduct prejudicial to the welfare of hockey.
The Detroit Red Wings got hot in the second half, overtaking Toronto and finished in first place again, becoming the first team with more than 100 points. Gordie Howe led the NHL in goals, assists, and points while goaltender Terry Sawchuk won the Calder Trophy as the league's best rookie. Sawchuk set a record for most wins by a goalie, as he was in net for all of Detroit's 44 victories.
[edit] Final standings
| National Hockey League | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 44 | 13 | 13 | 101 | 236 | 139 | 566 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 41 | 16 | 13 | 95 | 212 | 138 | 823 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 25 | 30 | 15 | 65 | 173 | 184 | 835 |
| Boston Bruins | 70 | 22 | 30 | 18 | 62 | 178 | 197 | 656 |
| New York Rangers | 70 | 20 | 29 | 21 | 61 | 169 | 201 | 774 |
| Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 13 | 47 | 10 | 36 | 171 | 280 | 615 |
[edit] Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordie Howe | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 43 | 43 | 86 |
| Maurice Richard | Montreal Canadiens | 65 | 42 | 24 | 66 |
| Max Bentley | Toronto Maple Leafs | 67 | 21 | 41 | 62 |
| Sid Abel | Detroit Red Wings | 69 | 23 | 38 | 61 |
| Milt Schmidt | Boston Bruins | 62 | 22 | 39 | 61 |
| Ted Kennedy | Toronto Maple Leafs | 63 | 18 | 43 | 61 |
| Ted Lindsay | Detroit Red Wings | 67 | 24 | 35 | 59 |
[edit] Leading Goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; MIN = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; SO = Shut outs; AVG = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | MINS | GA | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Rollins | Toronto Maple Leafs | 40 | 2373 | 70 | 5 | 1.77 |
| Terry Sawchuck | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 4200 | 139 | 11 | 1.99 |
[edit] Stanley Cup Playoffs
All dates in 1951
The second seed Toronto Maple Leafs eliminated the fourth seed Boston Bruins in five games, and the third seed Montreal Canadiens upset first overall Detroit Red Wings in six, setting up a Leafs Canadiens Stanley Cup final series.
[edit] Playoff bracket
| Semifinals | Finals | |||||||
| 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | ||||||
| 3 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | ||||||
| 3 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | ||||||
| 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | ||||||
| 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | ||||||
| 4 | Boston Bruins | 1 | ||||||
[edit] Semi-finals
Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 28 | Boston Bruins | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0 | |
| March 31 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1 | OT1 |
| April 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 0 | |
| April 3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 1 | |
| April 7 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | |
| April 8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 6 | Boston Bruins | 0 |
- 1 Note: March 31st game called after one overtime due to curfew
Toronto wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1
Montreal Canadiens vs. Detroit Red Wings
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 27 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | 4 OT |
| March 29 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 0 | 3 OT |
| March 31 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 0 | |
| April 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 4 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | |
| April 5 | Montreal Canadiens | 5 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | |
| April 7 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 |
Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 2
[edit] Stanley Cup finals
The 1951 finals were notable in that they set the NHL record (which still stands) for the most overtime games in a single series, and is the only finals series to date where every single game went into overtime. Bill Barilko scored the Cup winning goal at 2:53 of overtime in Game 5. It was the last goal Barilko would ever score as he was killed in a plane crash in northern Ontario later that summer. His remains were not discovered until 1962. Coincidentally, 1962 was also the next time the Leafs would hoist Lord Stanley's mug.
Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 11 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Smith |
| April 14 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | OT-M. Richard |
| April 17 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2 | OT-Kennedy |
| April 19 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Watson |
| April 21 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Barilko (2:53) |
Toronto wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1
[edit] Playoff scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maurice Richard | Montreal Canadiens | 11 | 9 | 4 | 13 |
| Max Bentley | Toronto Maple Leafs | 11 | 2 | 11 | 13 |
| Sid Smith | Toronto Maple Leafs | 11 | 7 | 3 | 10 |
[edit] NHL Awards
[edit] See also
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- 4th National Hockey League All-Star Game
- National Hockey League All-Star Game
- 1950 in sports
- 1951 in sports
[edit] References
| NHL seasons |
|---|
|
1946-47 | 1947-48 | 1948-49 | 1949-50 | 1950-51 | 1951-52 | 1952-53 | 1953-54 | 1954-55 |
