1966–67 NHL season
The 1966–67 NHL season was the 50th season of the National Hockey League. This was the last season of only six teams in the NHL, as six more teams were added for the 1967–68 season. This season saw the debut of one of the greatest players in hockey history, defenceman Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins. The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens four games to two in the 1967 Stanley Cup Finals to win their thirteenth Stanley Cup in franchise history; to date this was the Leafs' last Stanley Cup victory.
| 1966–67 NHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 19, 1966 – May 2, 1967 |
| Number of games | 70 |
| Number of teams | 6 |
| TV partner(s) | CBC, CTV, SRC (Canada) CBS, RKO General (United States) |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Barry Gibbs |
| Picked by | Boston Bruins |
| Regular season | |
| Season champion | Chicago Black Hawks |
| Season MVP | Stan Mikita (Black Hawks) |
| Top scorer | Stan Mikita (Black Hawks) |
| Playoffs | |
| Playoffs MVP | Dave Keon (Maple Leafs) |
| Stanley Cup | |
| Champions | Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Runners-up | Montreal Canadiens |
League business
President David Molson of the Canadian Arena Company announced that the Montreal Forum would undergo major alterations in a $5 million work program commencing in April 1968.
NHL president Clarence Campbell and Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) president Fred Page announced a new five-year professional-agreement effective on July 1, 1967. The direct sponsorship of junior ice hockey teams by the NHL was to be phased out in the upcoming year, and no new sponsored players could be registered or be required to sign a contract restricting movement between teams.[1] The agreement eliminated the A, B and C forms, which had angered the parents of amateur players and were the source of legal action threats when the professional team refused to release a player.[2] Page succeeded in getting junior-aged players to be eligible for the NHL Amateur Draft once they graduate from junior hockey, or to be signed as a free agent in the year the player reaches his 20th birthday. The NHL agreed to pay development fees to the CAHA for the drafted players, and it allowed the CAHA to distribute the fees. The new agreement came at a time that also leveled the playing field for new NHL clubs in the 1967 NHL expansion.[1]
Regular season
Bobby Orr made his NHL debut on October 19, with an assist in a 6–2 win over Detroit.
On November 9, poor Ed Giacomin was subjected to one of the cruelest displays of fan abuse when the Boston Bruins came back to tie the Rangers 3-3. The fans pelted him with garbage and booed him viciously. From there, however, the Rangers began to win and the fans began to cheer for him. At one point, the Rangers were in first place, but slumped later and finished fourth.
Terry Sawchuk got his 99th shutout when Toronto blanked Detroit 4–0 on February 25. He got his 100th career shutout on March 4, when Toronto defeated Chicago 4–0.
Bobby Hull scored his 50th goal of the season when Chicago lost to Toronto 9–5 on March 18 at Maple Leaf Gardens. Another superlative for the Black Hawks was Stan Mikita, who tied the league scoring record with 97 points in claiming the Art Ross Trophy for the third time. Mikita was also awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy as most valuable player.
The Chicago Black Hawks, who had won three Stanley Cups, finished first overall in the standings for the first time in their history, a full seventeen points ahead of the Montreal Canadiens and nineteen ahead of the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Boston Bruins missed the playoffs, their last time before their record 29-season playoff streak.
Final standings
| Pos | Team | Pld | W | L | T | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 41 | 17 | 12 | 264 | 170 | +94 | 94 |
| 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 32 | 25 | 13 | 202 | 188 | +14 | 77 |
| 3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 32 | 27 | 11 | 204 | 211 | −7 | 75 |
| 4 | New York Rangers | 70 | 30 | 28 | 12 | 188 | 189 | −1 | 72 |
| 5 | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 27 | 39 | 4 | 212 | 241 | −29 | 58 |
| 6 | Boston Bruins | 70 | 17 | 43 | 10 | 182 | 253 | −71 | 44 |
Playoffs
Playoff bracket
| Semifinals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||
| 1 | Chicago | 2 | |||||||
| 3 | Toronto | 4 | |||||||
| 3 | Toronto | 4 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 2 | |||||||
| 2 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||
| 4 | New York | 0 | |||||||
(1) Chicago Black Hawks vs. (3) Toronto Maple Leafs
Despite Chicago's impressive regular season marks, it was the third seed Toronto Maple Leafs who beat the Black Hawks in the first round of the playoffs.
| April 6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–5 | Chicago Black Hawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| Frank Mahovlich (1) – pp – 07:12 | First period | 05:21 – pp – Kenny Wharram (1) 11:49 – Pierre Pilote (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 01:57 – pp – Bobby Hull (1) 13:44 – Stan Mikita (1) | ||||||
| Jim Pappin (1) – pp – 19:52 | Third period | 09:41 – Lou Angotti (1) | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Denis DeJordy | ||||||
| April 9 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3–1 | Chicago Black Hawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| Pete Stemkowski (1) – 08:07 Dave Keon (1) – sh – 18:33 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| George Armstrong (1) – pp – 08:24 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 08:45 – Stan Mikita (2) | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck | Goalie stats | Denis DeJordy | ||||||
| April 11 | Chicago Black Hawks | 1–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 11:10 – Ron Ellis (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 10:22 – pp – Frank Mahovlich (2) 19:15 – Jim Pappin (2) | ||||||
| Bobby Hull (2) – pp – 16:30 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Glenn Hall | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| April 13 | Chicago Black Hawks | 4–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Kenny Wharram (2) – 00:09 Pierre Pilote (2) – 08:32 |
First period | 03:42 – Dave Keon (2) 10:14 – pp – Tim Horton (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mike Walton (1) – 17:37 | Third period | 02:31 – Eric Nesterenko (1) 08:42 – Bobby Hull (3) | ||||||
| Glenn Hall Denis DeJordy |
Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| April 15 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4–2 | Chicago Black Hawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| Mike Walton (2) – pp – 06:16 Frank Mahovlich (3) – pp – 14:14 |
First period | 09:31 – Lou Angotti (2) 11:01 – Bobby Hull (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Pete Stemkowski (2) – 02:11 Jim Pappin (3) – 17:14 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck Johnny Bower |
Goalie stats | Denis DeJordy | ||||||
| April 18 | Chicago Black Hawks | 1–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Pat Stapleton (1) – sh – 14:38 | First period | 05:06 – Brian Conacher (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 04:47 – Brian Conacher (2) 13:06 – Pete Stemkowski (3) | ||||||
| Glenn Hall | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuck | ||||||
| Toronto won series 4–2 | |
(2) Montreal Canadiens vs. (4) New York Rangers
Montreal swept the Rangers in four games.
| April 6 | New York Rangers | 4–6 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bernie Geoffrion (1) – pp – 03:46 Rod Gilbert (1) – pp – 16:06 |
Second period | 09:34 – Ralph Backstrom (1) | ||||||
| Rod Gilbert (2) – pp – 01:49 Vic Hadfield (1) – 05:18 |
Third period | 09:12 – Claude Provost (1) 09:34 – J.C. Tremblay (1) 11:03 – John Ferguson (1) 14:55 – Ralph Backstrom (2) 18:07 – Jean Beliveau (1) | ||||||
| Ed Giacomin | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| April 8 | New York Rangers | 1–3 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 08:55 – pp – Dick Duff (1) | ||||||
| Bernie Geoffrion (2) – pp – 12:03 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 07:46 – pp – John Ferguson (2) 13:25 – Ralph Backstrom (3) | ||||||
| Ed Giacomin | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| April 11 | Montreal Canadiens | 3–2 | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden III | Recap | |||
| Claude Larose (1) – 00:13 Jean Beliveau (2) – 03:09 |
First period | 15:51 – pp – Jim Neilson (1) | ||||||
| Bobby Rousseau (1) – pp – 02:05 | Second period | 04:34 – Earl Ingarfield (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rogie Vachon | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin | ||||||
| April 13 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–1 | OT | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden III | Recap | ||
| J.C. Tremblay (2) – 10:46 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 17:56 – pp – Phil Goyette (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| John Ferguson (3) – 06:28 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rogie Vachon | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin | ||||||
| Montreal won series 4–0 | |
Stanley Cup Finals
| April 20 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–6 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Larry Hillman (1) – 06:40 | First period | 06:25 – pp – Yvan Cournoyer (1) 11:19 – Henri Richard (1) | ||||||
| Jim Pappin (4) – pp – 12:59 | Second period | 05:03 – pp – Yvan Cournoyer (2) 06:36 – Jean Beliveau (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 04:53 – Henri Richard (2) 08:21 – Henri Richard (3) | ||||||
| Terry Sawchuck Johnny Bower |
Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| April 22 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3–0 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Pete Stemkowski (4) – pp – 12:14 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mike Walton (3) – pp – 09:12 Tim Horton (2) – 16:57 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Johnny Bower | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| April 25 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–3 | 2OT | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | ||
| Jean Beliveau (4) – pp – 02:27 | First period | 08:39 – pp – Pete Stemkowski (5) | ||||||
| John Ferguson (4) – 19:10 | Second period | 10:34 – Jim Pappin (5) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second overtime period | 08:26 – Bob Pulford (1) | ||||||
| Rogie Vachon | Goalie stats | Johnny Bower | ||||||
| April 27 | Montreal Canadiens | 6–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Ralph Backstrom (4) – 12:25 Jean Beliveau (5) – pp – 13:08 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Henri Richard (4) – 02:26 Jean Beliveau (6) – 13:41 Ralph Backstrom (5) – 15:58 |
Second period | 02:09 – pp – Mike Walton (4) 12:16 – Tim Horton (3) | ||||||
| Jimmy Roberts (1) – 15:17 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rogie Vachon | Goalie stats | Johnny Bower | ||||||
| April 29 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Jim Pappin (6) – pp – 15:06 | First period | 06:03 – Leon Rochefort (1) | ||||||
| Brian Conacher (3) – 03:07 Marcel Pronovost (1) – sh – 12:02 Dave Keon (3) – 19:27 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Johnny Bower | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon Gump Worsley | ||||||
| May 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 1–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 06:25 – Ron Ellis (2) 19:24 – Jim Pappin (7) | ||||||
| Dick Duff (2) – 05:28 | Third period | 19:13 – George Armstrong (2) | ||||||
| Gump Worsley | Goalie stats | Terry Sawchuk | ||||||
| Toronto won series 4–2 | |
Awards
| 1966–1967 NHL awards | |
|---|---|
| Prince of Wales Trophy: (Regular season champion) | Chicago Black Hawks |
| Art Ross Trophy: (Top scorer) | Stan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Calder Memorial Trophy: (Best first-year player) | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
| Conn Smythe Trophy: (Most valuable player, playoffs) | Dave Keon, Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Hart Trophy: (Most valuable player, season) | Stan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks |
| James Norris Memorial Trophy: (Best defenceman) | Harry Howell, New York Rangers |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: (Excellence and sportsmanship) | Stan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Vezina Trophy: (Goaltender(s) of team with the best goals-against average) | Glenn Hall & Denis DeJordy, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Lester Patrick Trophy: (Outstanding service to U.S. hockey) | Gordon Howe, Charles F. Adams, James E. Norris |
All-Star teams
| Ed Giacomin, New York Rangers | G | Glenn Hall, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Pierre Pilote, Chicago Black Hawks | D | Tim Horton, Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Harry Howell, New York Rangers | D | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
| Stan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks | C | Norm Ullman, Detroit Red Wings |
| Kenny Wharram, Chicago Black Hawks | RW | Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings |
| Bobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks | LW | Don Marshall, New York Rangers |
Player statistics
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Stan Mikita | Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 35 | 62 | 97 | 12 |
| Bobby Hull | Chicago Black Hawks | 66 | 52 | 28 | 80 | 52 |
| Norm Ullman | Detroit Red Wings | 68 | 26 | 44 | 70 | 26 |
| Ken Wharram | Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 31 | 34 | 65 | 21 |
| Gordie Howe | Detroit Red Wings | 69 | 25 | 40 | 65 | 53 |
| Bobby Rousseau | Montreal Canadiens | 68 | 19 | 44 | 63 | 58 |
| Phil Esposito | Chicago Black Hawks | 69 | 21 | 40 | 61 | 40 |
| Phil Goyette | New York Rangers | 70 | 12 | 49 | 61 | 6 |
| Doug Mohns | Chicago Black Hawks | 61 | 25 | 35 | 60 | 58 |
| Henri Richard | Montreal Canadiens | 65 | 21 | 34 | 55 | 28 |
| Alex Delvecchio | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 17 | 38 | 55 | 10 |
Source: NHL.[4]
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Glenn Hall | Chicago Black Hawks | 32 | 1664 | 66 | 2.38 | 19 | 5 | 5 | 2 |
| Denis DeJordy | Chicago Black Hawks | 44 | 2536 | 104 | 2.46 | 22 | 12 | 7 | 4 |
| Charlie Hodge | Montreal Canadiens | 37 | 2055 | 88 | 2.60 | 11 | 15 | 7 | 3 |
| Ed Giacomin | New York Rangers | 68 | 3981 | 173 | 2.61 | 30 | 27 | 11 | 9 |
| Johnny Bower | Toronto Maple Leafs | 27 | 1431 | 63 | 2.64 | 12 | 9 | 3 | 2 |
| Terry Sawchuk | Toronto Maple Leafs | 28 | 1409 | 66 | 2.81 | 15 | 5 | 4 | 2 |
| Roger Crozier | Detroit Red Wings | 58 | 3256 | 182 | 3.35 | 22 | 29 | 4 | 4 |
| Eddie Johnston | Boston Bruins | 34 | 1880 | 116 | 3.70 | 8 | 21 | 2 | 0 |
Coaches
- Boston Bruins: Harry Sinden
- Chicago Black Hawks: Billy Reay
- Detroit Red Wings: Sid Abel
- Montreal Canadiens: Toe Blake
- New York Rangers: Emile Francis
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Punch Imlach
Debuts
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1966–67 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
- Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
- Glen Sather, Boston Bruins
- Ed Van Impe, Chicago Black Hawks
- Carol Vadnais, Montreal Canadiens
- Serge Savard, Montreal Canadiens
- Rogie Vachon, Montreal Canadiens
Last games
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1966–67 (listed with their last team):
Broadcasting
Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and Stanley Cup playoff games. HNIC also produced Wednesday night regular season game telecasts for CTV. Games were typically not broadcast in their entirety until the 1968–69 season, and were typically joined in progress.
This was the first season under a new U.S. rights agreement with CBS. Due to prior programming commitments for this season only, CBS sub-licensed its Sunday afternoon regular season games to RKO General. CBS still aired selected playoff games.
See also
References
- 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. Kingston, NY: 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.
- Notes
- "Sweeping Changes In Pro-Am Hockey Pact". Winnipeg Free Press. Winnipeg, Manitoba. August 19, 1966. p. 22.
- Gross, George (August 30, 1966). "CAHA Becomes Bonus Baby Sitter". Brandon Sun. Brandon, Manitoba. p. 8.
- "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- Dinger 2011, p. 150.
External links
- Hockey Database
- NHL.com
- NHL (2004). NHL Guide & Record Book 2005. NHL.