1951–52 NHL season
The 1951–52 NHL season was the 35th season of the National Hockey League. The Detroit Red Wings won the Stanley Cup by sweeping the Montreal Canadiens four games to none.
| 1951–52 NHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 11, 1951 – April 15, 1952 |
| Number of games | 70 |
| Number of teams | 6 |
| Regular season | |
| Season champion | Detroit Red Wings |
| Season MVP | Gordie Howe (Red Wings) |
| Top scorer | Gordie Howe (Red Wings) |
| Stanley Cup | |
| Champions | Detroit Red Wings |
| Runners-up | Montreal Canadiens |
League business
A long standing feud between Boston president Weston Adams and general manager Art Ross ended on October 12, 1951, when Adams sold his stock in Boston Garden to Walter Brown.
The Chicago Black Hawks, who had made the mammoth nine player deal the previous season, now decided to make the largest cash deal for players to this time by paying $75,000 for Jim McFadden, George Gee, Jimmy Peters, Clare Martin, Clare Raglan and Max McNab.
The NHL and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) agreed to a January 15 deadline for professional teams to call up players from the CAHA's Major Series of senior ice hockey. The agreement gave the NHL a source of emergency replacement players, and prevented teams in Canada from losing players during the Alexander Cup playoffs.[1]
Rule changes
The league mandated that home teams would now wear a basic white uniform, while road teams will wear coloured uniforms. Before then, teams would often play with colored jerseys against each other, and with Television being in black white at the time, this helped viewers at home identify the two teams clearly.
The goal crease is enlarged from 3 ft × 7 ft (0.91 m × 2.13 m) to 4 ft × 8 ft (1.2 m × 2.4 m). The faceoff circles are expanded from a 10-foot (3.0 m) radius to a 15-foot (4.6 m) radius.[2]
Regular season
Conn Smythe offered $10,000 for anyone who found Bill Barilko, missing since August 26. Barilko and Dr. Henry Hudson had left Rupert House on James Bay in the doctor's light plane for Timmins, Ontario, after a weekend fishing trip and had not been found.
For the fourth straight season, the Detroit Red Wings finished first overall in the National Hockey League.
Highlights
On November 25 in Chicago, Chicago goalie Harry Lumley hurt a knee. At age 46, trainer Moe Roberts, who played his first game in the NHL for Boston in 1925–26, played the third period in goal for Chicago and did not yield a goal.[3] Roberts would stand as the oldest person to ever play an NHL game until Gordie Howe returned to the NHL at age 51 in 1979.[4]
Chicago was not drawing well and so they decided to experiment with afternoon games. It worked, as the largest crowd of the season, 13,600 fans, showed up for a January 20 game in which Chicago lost to Toronto 3–1.
Elmer Lach night was held March 8 at the Forum in Montreal as the Canadiens tied Chicago 4–4. 14,452 fans were on hand to see Lach presented with a car, rowboat, TV set, deep-freeze chest, bedroom and dining room suites, a refrigerator and many other articles.
On the last night of the season, March 23, 1952, with nothing at stake at Madison Square Garden, 3,254 fans saw Chicago's Bill Mosienko score the fastest hat trick in NHL history, 3 goals in 21 seconds. Lorne Anderson was the goaltender who gave up the goals to Chicago. Gus Bodnar also set a record with the fastest three assists in NHL history as he assisted on all three goals Mosienko scored. Chicago beat the New York Rangers 7–6.[3]
Final standings
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 44 | 14 | 12 | 215 | 133 | +82 | 100 |
| 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 34 | 26 | 10 | 195 | 164 | +31 | 78 |
| 3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 29 | 25 | 16 | 168 | 157 | +11 | 74 |
| 4 | Boston Bruins | 70 | 25 | 29 | 16 | 162 | 176 | −14 | 66 |
| 5 | New York Rangers | 70 | 23 | 34 | 13 | 192 | 219 | −27 | 59 |
| 6 | Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 17 | 44 | 9 | 158 | 241 | −83 | 43 |
Playoffs
Detroit finished 8–0, sweeping the defending Stanley Cup champions Toronto (the first time in NHL history the cup champs were swept in the first round) and Montreal, the first time a team had gone undefeated in the playoffs since the 1934–35 Montreal Maroons. The Wings scored 24 goals in the playoffs, compared to a combined five goals for their opponents. Detroit goaltender Terry Sawchuk never allowed a goal on home ice during the playoffs.[3]
Playoff bracket
| Semifinals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||
| 1 | Detroit | 4 | |||||||
| 3 | Toronto | 0 | |||||||
| 1 | Detroit | 4 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 0 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||
| 4 | Boston | 3 | |||||||
(1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (3) Toronto Maple Leafs
| March 25 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0–3 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 13:35 – Red Kelly (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 02:59 – pp – Sid Abel (1) 14:21 – Johnny Wilson (1) | ||||||
| Al Rollins | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| March 27 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0–1 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 15:33 – pp – Johnny Wilson (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Al Rollins | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| March 29 | Detroit Red Wings | 6–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Marty Pavelich (1) – 10:56 Ted Lindsay (1) – pp – 16:57 |
First period | 11:16 – Joe Klukay (1) | ||||||
| Johnny Wilson (3) – 02:10 Leo Reise Jr. (1) – 05:22 |
Second period | 12:20 – Max Bentley (1) | ||||||
| Johnny Wilson (4) – 00:48 Benny Woit (1) – 08:47 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Al Rollins | ||||||
| April 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 3–1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Ted Lindsay (2) – pp – 04:35 Tony Leswick (1) – pp – 09:32 |
First period | 02:56 – Harry Watson (1) | ||||||
| Sid Abel (2) – 04:52 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Al Rollins | ||||||
| Detroit won series 4–0 | |
(2) Montreal Canadiens vs. (4) Boston Bruins
| March 25 | Boston Bruins | 1–5 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 05:45 – Maurice Richard (1) | ||||||
| Pentti Lund (1) – 06:27 | Second period | 00:30 – Dickie Moore (1) 14:16 – Maurice Richard (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 03:09 – Billy Reay (1) 19:24 – Floyd Curry (1) | ||||||
| Jim Henry | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| March 27 | Boston Bruins | 0–4 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 04:01 – Ken Mosdell (1) 09:49 – pp – Bernie Geoffrion (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 13:39 – Bernie Geoffrion (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 17:14 – Bernie Geoffrion (3) | ||||||
| Jim Henry | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| March 30 | Montreal Canadiens | 1–4 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 02:05 – Hal Laycoe (1) 02:38 – Dave Creighton (1) 03:07 – Ed Sandford (1) | ||||||
| Floyd Curry (2) – 15:24 | Third period | 06:14 – Fleming MacKell (1) | ||||||
| Gerry McNeil | Goalie stats | Jim Henry | ||||||
| April 1 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–3 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 09:53 – Real Chevrefils (1) | ||||||
| Floyd Curry (3) – pp – 19:46 | Second period | 06:55 – Milt Schmidt (1) | ||||||
| Floyd Curry (4) – 06:48 | Third period | 14:37 – Fleming MacKell (2) | ||||||
| Gerry McNeil | Goalie stats | Jim Henry | ||||||
| April 3 | Boston Bruins | 1–0 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Jack McIntyre (1) – 03:30 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Jim Henry | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| April 6 | Montreal Canadiens | 3–2 | 2OT | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 02:53 – Milt Schmidt (2) 11:44 – Dave Creighton (2) | ||||||
| Eddie Mazur (1) – 04:53 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Maurice Richard (3) – 11:05 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Paul Masnick (1) – 07:49 | Second overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gerry McNeil | Goalie stats | Jim Henry | ||||||
| April 8 | Boston Bruins | 1–3 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Ed Sandford (2) – 12:25 | First period | 04:25 – Eddie Mazur (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 16:19 – Maurice Richard (4) 19:26 – Billy Reay (2) | ||||||
| Jim Henry | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| Montreal won series 4–3 | |
Stanley Cup Finals
| April 10 | Detroit Red Wings | 3–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Tony Leswick (2) – 03:27 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Tony Leswick (3) – 07:59 Ted Lindsay (3) – 19:44 |
Third period | 11:01 – Tom Johnson (1) | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| April 12 | Detroit Red Wings | 2–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Marty Pavelich (2) – 16:09 | First period | 18:37 – pp – Elmer Lach (1) | ||||||
| Ted Lindsay (4) – pp – 00:43 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Gerry McNeil | ||||||
| April 13 | Montreal Canadiens | 0–3 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 04:31 – pp – Gordie Howe (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 09:13 – Ted Lindsay (5) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 06:54 – Gordie Howe (2) | ||||||
| Gerry McNeil | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| April 15 | Montreal Canadiens | 0–3 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 06:50 – pp – Metro Prystai (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 19:39 – Glen Skov (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 07:35 – Metro Prystai (2) | ||||||
| Gerry McNeil | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| Detroit won series 4–0 | |
Awards
| Prince of Wales Trophy: (Regular season champion) | Detroit Red Wings |
| Art Ross Trophy: (Top scorer) | Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings |
| Calder Memorial Trophy: (Best first-year player) | Bernie Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens |
| Hart Trophy: (Most valuable player) | Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: (Excellence and sportsmanship) | Sid Smith, Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Vezina Trophy: (Goaltender of team with best goals-against average) | Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings |
| First team | Position | Second team |
|---|---|---|
| Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings | G | Jim Henry, Boston Bruins |
| Red Kelly, Detroit Red Wings | D | Hy Buller, New York Rangers |
| Doug Harvey, Montreal Canadiens | D | Jimmy Thomson, Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Elmer Lach, Montreal Canadiens | C | Milt Schmidt, Boston Bruins |
| Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings | RW | Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens |
| Ted Lindsay, Detroit Red Wings | LW | Sid Smith, Toronto Maple Leafs |
Player statistics
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | PTS | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordie Howe | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 47 | 39 | 86 | 78 |
| Ted Lindsay | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 30 | 39 | 69 | 123 |
| Elmer Lach | Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 15 | 50 | 65 | 36 |
| Don Raleigh | New York Rangers | 70 | 19 | 42 | 61 | 14 |
| Sid Smith | Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 27 | 30 | 57 | 6 |
| Bernie Geoffrion | Montreal Canadiens | 67 | 30 | 24 | 54 | 66 |
| Bill Mosienko | Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 31 | 22 | 53 | 10 |
| Sid Abel | Detroit Red Wings | 62 | 17 | 36 | 53 | 32 |
| Ted Kennedy | Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 19 | 33 | 52 | 33 |
| Milt Schmidt | Boston Bruins | 69 | 21 | 29 | 50 | 57 |
Source: NHL[7]
Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts
| Player | Team | GP | MIN | GA | GAA | W | L | T | SO |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Terry Sawchuk | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 4200 | 133 | 1.90 | 44 | 14 | 12 | 12 |
| Al Rollins | Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 4170 | 154 | 2.22 | 29 | 24 | 16 | 5 |
| Gerry McNeil | Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 4200 | 164 | 2.34 | 34 | 26 | 10 | 5 |
| Jim Henry | Boston Bruins | 70 | 4200 | 176 | 2.51 | 25 | 29 | 16 | 7 |
| Chuck Rayner | New York Rangers | 53 | 3180 | 159 | 3.00 | 18 | 25 | 10 | 2 |
| Emile Francis | New York Rangers | 14 | 840 | 42 | 3.00 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 0 |
Source: NHL[8]
Coaches
- Boston Bruins: Lynn Patrick
- Chicago Black Hawks: Ebbie Goodfellow
- Detroit Red Wings: Tommy Ivan
- Montreal Canadiens: Dick Irvin
- New York Rangers: Bill Cook
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Joe Primeau
Debuts
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1951–52 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
- Leo Labine, Boston Bruins
- Real Chevrefils, Boston Bruins
- Kenny Wharram, Chicago Black Hawks
- Don Marshall, Montreal Canadiens
- Dickie Moore, Montreal Canadiens
- Wally Hergesheimer, New York Rangers
- Eric Nesterenko, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Leo Boivin, Toronto Maple Leafs
Last games
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1951–52 (listed with their last team):
- Bobby Bauer, Boston Bruins
- Roy Conacher, Chicago Black Hawks
- Jack Stewart, Chicago Black Hawks
- Bep Guidolin, Chicago Black Hawks
- Turk Broda, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Bill Juzda, Toronto Maple Leafs
See also
References
- "Puck Chiefs Come To An Agreement". Winnipeg Free Press. Winnipeg, Manitoba. May 27, 1952. p. 16.
- Fischler et al. 2003, p. 202.
- Dryden 2000, p. 54.
- Goaltending Legends: Maurice "Moe" Roberts
- "1951–1952 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
- "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- Dinger 2011, p. 148.
- "1951–1952 – Regular Season – Goalie – Skater Season Stats Leaders – Points – NHL.com – Stats". nhl.com. Retrieved January 16, 2012.
Sources
- Diamond, Dan, ed. (1994). Years of glory, 1942–1967: the National Hockey League's official book of the six-team era. Toronto, ON: McClelland and Stewart. ISBN 0-7710-2817-2.
- Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
- Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
- Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
- Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
- McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York, NY: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1.