1966 Stanley Cup Final

1966 ice hockey championship series August 2023 Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens 1966 3 2 5 2 2 4 1 2 1 5 2* 3* 2 4 * – Denotes overtime period(s) April 24 – May 5, 1966 Montreal: Montreal Forum (1, 2, 5) Detroit: Olympia Stadium (3, 4, 6) 1 Roger Crozier (Red Wings) Henri Richard (2:20, OT) Montreal: Toe BlakeDetroit: Sid Abel Montreal: Jean BeliveauDetroit: Alex Delvecchio Canadiens:Jean Beliveau (1972)Yvan Cournoyer (1982)Dick Duff (2006)Jacques Laperriere (1987; did not play)Henri Richard (1979)Gump Worsley (1980)Red Wings:Andy Bathgate (1978)Leo Boivin (1986)Alex Delvecchio (1977)Bill Gadsby (1970)Gordie Howe (1972)Norm Ullman (1982)Coaches:Sid Abel (1969, player)Toe Blake (1966, player) Officials:Josh Ashley (1981)Neil Armstrong (1991)John D'Amico (1993)Matt Pavelich (1987)Frank Udvari (1973) The 1966 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1965–66 season, and the culmination of the 1966 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Detroit Red Wings and the defending champion Montreal Canadiens. This was the fifth Detroit–Montreal series; they previously met in 1952, 1954, 1955, and 1956, with the Red Wings winning the former three and the Canadiens winning the latter. The Canadiens defeated the Red Wings in six games to win the Stanley Cup for the seventh time in eleven years. This was the last Cup Final appearance for the Red Wings until 1995. As of , this is the last time a team won the Stanley Cup after losing first two games at home.McLaren Ian 2016-06-03 5 teams that won the Stanley Cup after losing first 2 theScore https://www.thescore.com/nhl/news/1037744/5-teams-that-won-the-stanley-cup-after-losing-first-2-games-of-final 2026-10-13 www.thescore.com enGretz Adam 2012-06-03 After losing first two at home, history is not on the Devils side https://www.cbssports.com/nhl/news/after-losing-first-two-at-home-history-is-not-on-the-devils-side/ 2026-10-13 CBS Sports en Paths to the Final Montreal defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4–0 to advance to the Final, and Detroit defeated the Chicago Black Hawks 4–2. Game summaries The Montreal Canadiens were the defending champions in their twenty-second Stanley Cup Finals, after winning their thirteenth championship the previous year with a seven-game victory over the Chicago Black Hawks. This was the Detroit Red Wings' eighteenth Stanley Cup Finals, having won seven championships previously. Their most recent Finals came in 1964, when they lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in seven games. This was the eleventh playoff series between these two teams, with Detroit winning seven of their ten previous series. Their most recent series had come in the 1958 semifinals, where Montreal won in a four-game sweep. Montreal won eighteen of twenty-eight points in this year's regular season series. Detroit would not return to the Stanley Cup Finals again until 1995. Toe Blake had coached the Canadiens to seven Cups in eleven years. Game one Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Olympia Stadium April 24 1 3–2 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1966/04/24/1965030211#game=1965030211,game_state=final In game one, Roger Crozier made 33 saves in net for Detroit, and Paul Henderson scored the game winning goal early in the third period to win the game 3–2, giving the Red Wings a 1–0 series lead. Scoring summary Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score 1st DET Floyd Smith (3) Andy Bathgate (1) 13:25 1–0 DET 2nd MTL Ralph Backstrom (2) J. C. Tremblay (5) 04:23 1–1 DET Bill Gadsby (1) Ab McDonald (3) 05:14 2–1 DET 3rd MTL Paul Henderson (3) Bert Marshall (2) 02:14 3–1 DET DET Terry Harper (2) Bobby Rousseau (3) 02:36 3–2 DET Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st DET Bill Gadsby Interference 00:35 2:00 MTL Ted Harris Interference 09:10 2:00 DET Andy Bathgate Hooking 09:26 2:00 2nd None 3rd None Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total Detroit 9 10 16 35 Montreal 10 11 14 35 Game two Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum April 26 1 5–2 1 https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1966/04/26/1965030212 In game two, Detroit defeated Montreal by a score of 5–2, to take a 2–0 series lead back home. Scoring summary Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score 1st MTL J. C. Tremblay (2) – pp Jean Beliveau (4) and Yvan Cournoyer (3) 06:55 1–0 MTL DET Andy Bathgate (6) – pp Dean Prentice (5) and Norm Ullman (8) 18:39 1–1 2nd None 3rd DET Bruce MacGregor (1) Paul Henderson (1) and Norm Ullman (9) 01:51 2–1 DET DET Ab McDonald (1) Bill Gadsby (3) and Floyd Smith (2) 02:45 3–1 DET MTL Yvan Cournoyer (1) Terry Harper (2) and Noel Price (1) 12:00 3–2 DET DET Floyd Smith (4) Andy Bathgate (2) 12:28 4–2 DET DET Dean Prentice (5) Alex Delvecchio (9) 16:25 5–2 DET Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st MTL Dick Duff Cross-checking 03:01 2:00 DET Andy Bathgate Elbowing 05:30 2:00 DET Paul Henderson Tripping 10:18 2:00 MTL Bobby Rousseau Hooking 14:11 2:00 MTL John Ferguson Interference 17:06 2:00 2nd DET Leo Boivin Slashing 03:01 2:00 MTL Jean-Guy Talbot Boarding 05:22 2:00 DET Bruce MacGregor Tripping 08:55 2:00 DET Bryan Watson Cross-checking 10:26 2:00 MTL Henri Richard Roughing 10:26 2:00 DET Bryan Watson Hooking 12:50 2:00 MTL Terry Harper High-sticking 17:09 2:00 3rd MTL Jean-Guy Talbot Slashing 03:49 2:00 DET Norm Ullman Cross-checking 17:24 2:00 MTL John Ferguson Cross-checking 17:24 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total Detroit 14 7 13 34 Montreal 7 6 12 25 Game three Montreal Canadiens Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia April 28 1 4–2 1 https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1966/04/26/1965030212 Gilles Tremblay scored twice for the Canadiens in a 4–2 over the Red Wings in game three to cut the series lead in half. Scoring summary Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score 1st DET Norm Ullman (3) Unassisted 04:20 1–0 DET MTL Dave Balon (1) Terry Harper (3) and Henri Richard (1) 15:40 1–1 MTL Jean Beliveau (3) Unassisted 19:12 2–1 MTL 2nd None 3rd MTL Gilles Tremblay (3) Jean Beliveau (5) 01:45 3–1 MTL MTL Gilles Tremblay (4) – pp J. C. Tremblay (6) and Bobby Rousseau (4) 03:21 4–1 MTL DET Gordie Howe (4) Alex Delvecchio (10) and Bert Marshall (3) 19:59 4–2 MTL Penalty summary 1st MTL Ralph Backstrom Elbowing 08:38 2:00 2nd MTL Leon Rochefort High-sticking 02:46 2:00 DET Gordie Howe High-sticking 05:20 2:00 DET Dean Prentice Tripping 11:31 2:00 DET Bryan Watson Charging 18:23 2:00 MTL Dave Balon Misconduct 18:23 10:00 3rd DET Bert Marshall Holding 03:03 2:00 DET Norm Ullman High-sticking 10:14 2:00 MTL Dave Balon Tripping 10:14 2:00 MTL Jean-Guy Talbot Interference 13:24 2:00 DET Bench (served by Ab McDonald) Too many men on the ice 16:50 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total Montreal 9 9 13 31 Detroit 9 15 7 31 Game four Montreal Canadiens Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia May 1 1 2–1 1 https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1966/05/01/1965030214/summary Roger Crozier was injured in the opening five minutes and forty-eight seconds into game four and had to be replaced by backup Hank Bassen. After a scoreless first, Norm Ullman opened the scoring for the Red Wings, and Jean Beliveau tied the game with nine seconds remaining in the second period. Ralph Backstrom scored the game winning goal in the third, and Gump Worsley made a total of 22 saves to give the Canadiens a 2–1 victory to tie the series. Scoring summaryPeriodTeamGoalAssist(s)TimeScore1stNone 2nd DET Norm Ullman (4) Brad MacGregor (4) and Paul Henderson (2) 11:24 1–0 DET MTL Jean Beliveau (4) – pp Dick Duff (3) and J. C. Tremblay (7) 19:51 1–1 3rd MTL Ralph Backstrom (3) Dick Duff (4) and Jim Roberts (1) 13:37 2–1 MTL Penalty summary 1st DET Parker MacDonald Tripping 04:25 2:00 DET Norm Ullman Cross-checking 10:15 2:00 MTL John Ferguson High-sticking 13:21 2:00 DET Gordie Howe Elbowing 14:52 2:00 2nd DET Bryan Watson Charging 07:44 2:00 MTL Terry Harper Tripping 12:11 2:00 DET Gordie Howe Interference 18:23 2:00 3rd MTL John Ferguson Holding 04:33 2:00 DET Gary Bergman Roughing 16:36 2:00 MTL Claude Provost Elbowing 16:36 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total Montreal 12 13 8 33 Detroit 5 9 9 23 Game five Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum May 3 1 1–5 2 https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1966/05/03/1965030215 In game five, Montreal defeated Detroit by a score of 5–1 on their home ice, giving them a 3–2 series lead, needing just one more victory to clinch the series and win the Stanley Cup. Scoring summary Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score 1st MTL Claude Provost (2) Ralph Backstrom (3) and J. C. Tremblay (8) 01:06 1–0 MTL MTL Yvan Cournoyer (2) – pp J. C. Tremblay (9) and Gilles Tremblay (4) 19:21 2–0 MTL 2nd MTL Dave Balon (2) Henri Richard (2) and Leon Rochefort (1) 01:05 3–0 MTL MTL Bobby Rousseau (4) Dick Duff (5) and Ralph Backstrom (4) 11:22 4–0 MTL DET Norm Ullman (5) Paul Henderson (3) and Andy Bathgate (3) 14:22 4–1 MTL 3rd MTL Dick Duff (2) Henri Richard (3) 05:31 5–1 MTL Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st MTL Jean-Guy Talbot Hooking 05:51 2:00 DET Paul Henderson Interference 18:07 2:00 2nd DET Gary Bergman Elbowing 02:44 2:00 DET Bob Wall Tripping 05:03 2:00 MTL Bobby Rousseau Hooking 06:25 2:00 MTL Dave Balon Holding 12:21 2:00 DET Bert Marshall Holding 16:42 2:00 3rd DET Bert Marshall Holding 07:49 2:00 MTL Leon Rochefort Slashing 13:17 2:00 DET Leo Boivin Slashing 17:12 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total Detroit 8 5 8 21 Montreal 13 15 5 33 Game six Montreal Canadiens Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia May 5 1 3–2 1 1 https://www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1966/05/05/1965030216 Henri Richard, a member of all seven championship teams, would score his first goal of the playoffs in game six to win the series in overtime. Two minutes into the extra period, Richard broke in on Red Wing goalie Roger Crozier, lost his footing on the newly resurfaced ice as he cut across the goalmouth, and sprawled into Crozier. The puck went in, and even though Crozier and the Wings protested that Richard had pushed the puck in with his hand, the goal stood. His brilliant play in goal, even in defeat, earned Crozier the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs, becoming the first player to win the award as a member of the losing team. Scoring summary Period Team Goal Assist(s) Time Score 1st MTL Jean Beliveau (5) Gilles Tremblay (3) and Claude Provost (3) 09:08 1–0 MTL 2nd MTL Leon Rochefort (1) Henri Richard (4) and Dave Balon (2) 10:11 2–0 MTL DET Norm Ullman (6) Alex Delvecchio (11) and Gordie Howe (6) 11:55 2–1 MTL 3rd DET Floyd Smith (5) Gary Bergman (3) and Ab McDonald (4) 10:30 2–2 OT MTL Henri Richard (1) Dave Balon (3) and Jean-Guy Talbot (2) 02:20 3–2 MTL Penalty summary 1st DET Bryan Watson Hooking 11:15 2:00 MTL Dave Balon Slashing 15:04 2:00 2nd DET Leo Boivin Charging 00:23 2:00 DET Bert Marshall Holding 07:13 2:00 MTL Ted Harris Interference 10:42 2:00 MTL Jim Roberts Misconduct 11:55 10:00 DET Bryan Watson Hooking 12:18 2:00 DET Ab McDonald Tripping 16:42 2:00 3rd None OT None Shots by period Team 1 2 3 OT Total Montreal 5 6 9 2 22 Detroit 10 9 10 1 30 Stanley Cup engraving The 1966 Stanley Cup was presented to Canadiens captain Jean Beliveau by NHL President Clarence Campbell following the Canadiens 3–2 win over the Red Wings in game six. The following Canadiens players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup 1965–66 Montreal Canadiens *1 Charlie Hodge 30 Lorne Gump Worsley *2 Jacques Laperriere 3 Jean-Claude J. C. Tremblay 10 Edward Ted Harris 17 Jean-Guy Talbot (A) 19 Terry Harper 23 Noel Price *4 Jean Beliveau (Captain) 6 Ralph Backstrom 16 Henri Richard (A) 18 Leon Rochefort *8 Dick Duff 12 Yvan Cournoyer 11 Claude Larose 14 Claude Provost 15 Bobby Rousseau 20 David Balon 21 Gilles Tremblay 22 John Ferguson Sr. 26 Jim Roberts Hartland Molson (Chairman/owner), J. David Molson (President) Sam Pollock (Vice President/Manager), Hector Toe Blake (Coach) Andy Galley (Trainer), Larry Albut (Asst. Trainer) Stanley Cup engravings Montreal Canadiens name was misspelt MONTREAL CANADIENE. This mistake was later corrected on the Replica Cup created in 1992–93. Broadcasting In 1966, NBC became the firstStanley Cup Hockey Playoffs on Today Hartford Courant 3G April 10, 1966 television network in the United States to air a national broadcast of a Stanley Cup Playoff game. The network provided coverage of four Sunday afternoon playoff gamesNBC May Televise Stanley Cup Play Associated Press Hartford Courant 6C February 27, 1966NHL Near Deal for TV of Cup Games February 27, 1966 Chicago Tribune C1 during the 1965 postseason.NBC Makes Plans to TV Stanley Cup Playoffs Los Angeles Times B6 February 28, 1966 On April 10Let's Ear It for Transistor Man Don Page Los Angeles Times D2 April 9, 1966 and April 17,More Than Feelings Hurting—As Black Hawks Limp Back Home Associated Press Hartford Courant 20 April 16, 1966 NBC aired semifinal games between the Chicago Black Hawks and the Detroit Red Wings. On April 24,TV News Notes Chicago Tribune IND_A17 April 24, 1966 and May 1,NBC to Carry Stanley Cup Games on TV Chicago Tribune C1 March 29, 1966 NBC aired Games 1 and 4Abel's 'switcheroo' works Bob Gates The Christian Science Monitor 7 April 29, 1966 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Montreal Canadiens and the Detroit Red Wings. Win Elliot served as the play-by-play man while Bill Mazer served as the color commentator for the games.TV SPORTS Hockey Gets Network – for a Day Stan Issacs Newsday 137 January 19, 1990 NBC's coverage of the 1966 Stanley Cup Final marked the first time that hockey games were broadcast on network television in color.Black Hawks in Colorful Color Ted Damata Chicago Tribune C1 April 10, 1966 The CBC would follow suit the following year. NBC's Stanley Cup coverage preempted a sports anthology series called NBC Sports in Action, hosted by Jim Simpson and Bill Cullen, who were between-periods co-hosts for the Stanley Cup broadcasts. Aftermath The next season, the Red Wings finished a distant fifth, 24 points out of the playoffs, marking the beginning of a 20 year slump known as the "Dead Wings" era. The Red Wings only made the playoffs four times in the next 20 years between 1967 and 1986, and would not return to the Stanley Cup Final again until 1995, where they were swept by the New Jersey Devils. The Canadiens would return to the Stanley Cup Final the next season, but lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in six games. However, the Canadiens would eventually become a dynasty, winning the Stanley Cup in 1968, 1969, 1971, 1973, 1976, 1977, 1978, and 1979. See also 1965–66 NHL season Notes References http://www.nhl.com/info/all-time-nhl-playoff-results https://web.archive.org/web/20170724171920/https://www.nhl.com/info/all-time-nhl-playoff-results dead July 24, 2017 All-Time NHL Results Diamond, Dan Total Stanley Cup 2000 NHL Podnieks, Andrew Hockey Hall of Fame 2004 Lord Stanley's Cup Triumph Books 978-1-55168-261-7 Montreal Canadiens1965 Montreal CanadiensStanley Cup champions 1966 Toronto Maple Leafs1967 Stanley Cup Category:Stanley Cup Finals Category:Detroit Red Wings games Category:Montreal Canadiens games Category:Ice hockey competitions in Montreal Category:Ice hockey competitions in Detroit Category:1966 in Detroit Stanley Cup Stanley Cup Final Stanley Cup Final Stanley Cup Final Stanley Cup Final Category:1966 in Montreal