1953–54 NHL season

National Hockey League season August 2023 1953–54 NHL season National Hockey League Ice hockey October 8, 1953 – April 16, 1954 Regular season 70 6 CBC, SRC (Canada)None (United States) Season champion Detroit Red Wings Al Rollins (Black Hawks) Hart Memorial Trophy Gordie Howe (Red Wings) Art Ross Trophy Stanley Cup 1954 Stanley Cup Finals Detroit Red Wings Montreal Canadiens 1954–55 NHL season 1952–53 NHL season 1954–55 1952–53 NHL The 1953–54 NHL season was the 37th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams played 70 games each. The Detroit Red Wings defeated the Montreal Canadiens in the final to win the team's sixth championship. League business National Hockey League (NHL) team owners gave notice to terminate the professional-amateur agreement with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA). The Canadian Press reported that the decision was to protect investments into amateur teams and to improve the financial return. The NHL proposed a new national junior ice hockey playoff format solely for teams sponsored by the NHL, instead of the existing Memorial Cup championship.NHL, CAHA To Sever Relations Wheatley W. R. June 11, 1953 Winnipeg Free Press Winnipeg, Manitoba 22 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jun-11-1953-2166856/; National Loop Terminates Agreement Wheatley W. R. June 11, 1953 Lethbridge Herald Lethbridge, Alberta 6 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jun-11-1953-2164096/ CAHA president W. B. George predicted that the NHL would not last three years without the CAHA, and stated that it would end the current system which allowed a three-game tryout for an amateur with a professional team.Predicts Short Life For N.H.L. June 11, 1953 Medicine Hat News Medicine Hat, Alberta 5 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jun-11-1953-2164070/ In August 1953, the CAHA and NHL agreed in principle to a proposal that resumed east–west transfers of junior players, and increased the amount of profits to junior teams sponsored by the NHL.NHL, CAHA To Redraft Agreement Lougheed G. W. August 8, 1953 Winnipeg Free Press Winnipeg, Manitoba 24 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-aug-08-1953-2170615/ At the semi-annual meeting, the CAHA agreed to distribute playoffs funds proportional to the profit on a series-by-series basis,New Amateur Financial Set-up Now Arranged January 11, 1954 Winnipeg Tribune Winnipeg, Manitoba 14 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jan-11-1954-2184484/ but rejected the request to resume transfers from west to east.West-East Transfers Banned January 11, 1954 Winnipeg Tribune Winnipeg, Manitoba 14 https://newspaperarchive.com/sports-clipping-jan-11-1954-2170712/ Regular season The New York Rangers decided to drop Gump Worsley and went with Johnny Bower in goal this season. Bower did well, but not well enough to get the Rangers into the playoffs. However, the Rangers managed to come up with a fine rookie in Camille Henry who won the Calder Memorial Trophy. On December 9, the Montreal Canadiens played the Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens and the teams set a record of most penalties in a game. The trouble started when Montreal's Eddie Mazur got into a fight with Toronto's George Armstrong in the first period. Both received game misconduct penalties. Early in the second period, Bud MacPherson broke his stick on the ribs of Toronto's Ron Stewart. He chose not to retaliate until a more opportune time. It came at 18:12 of the third period when Stewart and MacPherson collided again. This time they pushed and shoved and the gloves came off and they began to pummel each other. Tom Johnson came to MacPherson's aid by putting a headlock on Stewart and Stewart threw a punch that landed on Johnson's jaw. Stewart pursued MacPherson again, now that he was in combat with Eric Nesterenko of Toronto and soon the benches emptied and everyone was fighting except Maurice Richard and Tim Horton who merely grabbed each other's sweaters. Referee Frank Udvari handed out 36 penalties, including 15 misconducts for a record 204 minutes in penalties. With almost 2 minutes left in the game, only 8 players from each team excluding the goaltenders Gerry McNeil and Harry Lumley, who did battle in the brawl, were permitted to finish the game. Almost forgotten was that Toronto won the game 3–0. There were persistent rumours that the Chicago Black Hawks would fold due to the poor performance of the team and fans staying away in droves. NHL president Clarence Campbell discussed the problems with Arthur M. Wirtz and it was announced that the rumours were without foundation. Campbell was busy this year imposing fines and suspensions. As a result of pushing referee Frank Udvari into the boards during a November 12 game, Bernie Geoffrion was fined $250. Later, in a December 20 game, he and Ron Murphy engaged in stick swinging which left Murphy with a broken jaw. Both players were suspended. There was trouble brewing for Maurice Richard when he ghosted an article in the Samedi Dimanche newspaper, calling NHL president Clarence Campbell a dictator and took exception to Campbell's suspension of Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion for the stick swinging incident. Richard was required to post a $1000 bond and refrain from any more articles.Dryden 2000 56 This season saw both instances of Gordie Howe accomplishing what is now known as the Gordie Howe hat trick. The first was on October 11, 1953, when he scored a goal, assisted on Red Kelly's goal, and fought the Toronto Maple Leafs' Fernie Flaman. The second was on March 21, 1954, once again versus the Maple Leafs. Howe scored the opening goal, assisted on two Ted Lindsay goals, and fought Ted "Teeder" Kennedy.Going inside the “Gordie Howe Hat Trick” The Detroit Red Wings were first overall in the National Hockey League for the sixth straight season. Final standings Playoffs After losing four straight games to the Montreal Canadiens, Boston Bruins general manager Art Ross, their manager from the day the Bruins came into the NHL, announced his retirement. He had been grooming Lynn Patrick to succeed him and Patrick took over as general manager. Playoff bracket The top four teams in the league qualified for the playoffs. In the semifinals, the first-place team played the third-place team, while the second-place team faced the fourth-place team, with the winners advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals. In both rounds, teams competed in a best-of-seven series (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). Stanley Cup Finals Semifinals 1 Detroit 4 3 Toronto 1 2 Montreal 4 4 Boston 0 1 Detroit 4 2 Montreal 3 Semifinals (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (3) Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto Maple Leafs Detroit Red Wings Maple Leaf Gardens Olympia Stadium March 23 0–5 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-det/1954/03/23/1953030111#game=1953030111,game_state=final No scoring 08:21 – sh – Marty Pavelich (1)15:48 – pp – Ted Lindsay (1) No scoring 06:01 – Tony Leswick (1)17:39 – Gordie Howe (1) No scoring 14:01 – Marty Pavelich (2) Harry Lumley 20 saves / 25 shots Terry Sawchuck 37 saves / 37 shots March 25 3–1 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-det/1954/03/25/1953030112#game=1953030112,game_state=final Sid Smith (1) – 09:16 No scoring Gord Hannigan (1) – 17:41 No scoring Gord Hannigan (2) – pp – 02:16 04:52 – pp – Marcel Pronovost (1) Harry Lumley 27 saves / 28 shots Terry Sawchuck 24 saves / 27 shots March 27 3–1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-tor/1954/03/27/1953030113#game=1953030113,game_state=final 19:11 – George Armstrong (1) Red Kelly (1) – 10:09 No scoring No scoring No scoring Tony Leswick (2) – 00:28Marcel Pronovost (2) – en – 18:38 Harry Lumley 25 saves / 27 shots Terry Sawchuck 28 saves / 29 shots March 30 2–1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-tor/1954/03/30/1953030114#game=1953030114,game_state=final No scoring No scoring 05:09 – Tim Horton (1) Johnny Wilson (1) – 11:26 No scoring Red Kelly (2) – 16:36 Harry Lumley 27 saves / 29 shots Terry Sawchuck 26 saves / 27 shots April 1 3–4 2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-det/1954/04/01/1953030115#game=1953030115,game_state=final Tod Sloan (1) – 16:16 00:09 – Gordie Howe (2)12:54 – Gordie Howe (3)16:35 – Glen Skov (1) Ted Kennedy (1) – 01:33Rudy Migay (1) – 09:11 No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring 01:01 – Ted Lindsay (2) Harry Lumley 46 saves / 50 shots Terry Sawchuck 36 saves / 39 shots Detroit won series 4–1 (2) Montreal Canadiens vs. (4) Boston Bruins Boston Bruins Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden Montreal Forum March 23 0–2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-mtl/1954/03/23/1953030121#game=1953030121,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring 04:25 – Lorne Davis (1) No scoring 13:48 – Bernie Geoffrion (1) Jim Henry 41 saves / 43 shots Jacques Plante 13 saves / 13 shots March 25 1–8 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-mtl/1954/03/25/1953030122#game=1953030122,game_state=final No scoring 00:10 – Dickie Moore (1)05:57 – Bernie Geoffrion (2)06:28 – Bernie Geoffrion (3)16:41 – Lorne Davis (2)18:10 – Dickie Moore (2) Fleming MacKell (1) – 13:02 01:19 – Jean Beliveau (1) No scoring 05:03 – Paul Meger (1)13:38 – pp – Jean Beliveau (2) Jim Henry 22 saves / 30 shots Jacques Plante 28 saves / 29 shots March 28 4–3 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-bos/1954/03/28/1953030123#game=1953030123,game_state=final No scoring No scoring 00:40 – Cal Gardner (1) Butch Bouchard (1) – 00:16Bernie Geoffrion (4) – 02:15Butch Bouchard (2) – 06:53 10:18 – Doug Mohns (1)16:09 – Milt Schmidt (1) Dickie Moore (3) – 18:30 Jim Henry 29 saves / 33 shots Jacques Plante 20 saves / 23 shots March 30 2–0 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-bos/1954/03/30/1953030124#game=1953030124,game_state=final No scoring Floyd Curry (1) – 11:36 No scoring Dickie Moore (4) – pp – 02:06 No scoring No scoring Jim Henry 41 saves / 43 shots Jacques Plante 24 saves / 24 shots Montreal won series 4–0 Stanley Cup Finals 1954 Stanley Cup Finals Montreal Canadiens Detroit Red Wings Montreal Forum Olympia Stadium April 4 1–3 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1954/04/04/1953030211#game=1953030211,game_state=final No scoring 13:44 – pp – Ted Lindsay (3) Bernie Geoffrion (5) – pp – 12:16 No scoring No scoring 01:52 – pp – Dutch Reibel (1)07:13 – sh – Red Kelly (3) Jacques Plante 25 saves / 28 shots Terry Sawchuck 18 saves / 19 shots April 6 3–1 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1954/04/06/1953030212#game=1953030212,game_state=final Dickie Moore (5) – pp – 15:03Maurice Richard (1) – pp – 15:28Maurice Richard (2) – pp – 15:59 No scoring No scoring 06:37 – pp – Alex Delvecchio (1) No scoring No scoring Jacques Plante 25 saves / 26 shots Terry Sawchuck 25 saves / 28 shots April 8 5–2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1954/04/08/1953030213#game=1953030213,game_state=final No scoring Alex Delvecchio (2) – 00:42Ted Lindsay (4) – 17:06 No scoring Johnny Wilson (2) – 04:57 07:19 – sh – Tom Johnson (1)15:02 – Dollard St. Laurent (1) Metro Prystai (1) – pp – 07:59Gordie Howe (4) – 11:32 Jacques Plante 32 saves / 37 shots Terry Sawchuck 23 saves / 25 shots April 10 2–0 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1954/04/10/1953030214#game=1953030214,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring Johnny Wilson (3) – 02:09 No scoring Red Kelly (4) – en – 19:53 Jacques Plante 27 saves / 28 shots Terry Sawchuck 28 saves / 28 shots April 11 1–0 1 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1954/04/11/1953030215#game=1953030215,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring Ken Mosdell (1) – 05:45 No scoring Gerry McNeil 22 saves / 22 shots Terry Sawchuck 21 saves / 22 shots April 13 1–4 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-mtl/1954/04/13/1953030216#game=1953030216,game_state=final No scoring No scoring 12:07 – Bernie Geoffrion (6)13:07 – Floyd Curry (2)14:25 – Floyd Curry (3) No scoring 10:06 – Maurice Richard (3) Metro Prystai (2) – 05:11 Gerry McNeil 33 saves / 34 shots Terry Sawchuck 26 saves / 30 shots April 16 1–2 1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-det/1954/04/16/1953030217#game=1953030217,game_state=final Floyd Curry (4) – 09:17 No scoring No scoring 01:17 – pp – Red Kelly (5) No scoring No scoring No scoring 04:29 – Tony Leswick (3) Gerry McNeil 31 saves / 33 shots Terry Sawchuck 22 saves / 23 shots Detroit won series 4–3 Awards The James Norris Memorial Trophy made its debut this season and its first winner was Red Kelly of the Detroit Red Wings. The Norris Trophy goes to the top defenceman each year and was named in honour of James E. Norris,Dryden 2000 56 owner of the Detroit Red Wings franchise from 1932 until his death in 1952. + Award winnersPrince of Wales Trophy:(Regular season champion) Detroit Red WingsArt Ross Trophy:(Top scorer) Gordie Howe, Detroit Red WingsCalder Memorial Trophy:(Best first-year player) Camille Henry, New York RangersHart Trophy:(Most valuable player) Al Rollins, Chicago Black HawksJames Norris Memorial Trophy:(Best defenceman) Red Kelly, Detroit Red WingsLady Byng Memorial Trophy:(Excellence and sportsmanship) Red Kelly, Detroit Red WingsVezina Trophy:(Goaltender of team with best goals-against record) Harry Lumley, Toronto Maple Leafs + All-Star teams First team   Position   Second teamHarry Lumley, Toronto Maple Leafs GTerry Sawchuk, Detroit Red WingsRed Kelly, Detroit Red Wings DBill Gadsby, Chicago Black HawksDoug Harvey, Montreal Canadiens DTim Horton, Toronto Maple LeafsKen Mosdell, Montreal Canadiens CTed Kennedy, Toronto Maple LeafsGordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings RWMaurice Richard, Montreal CanadiensTed Lindsay, Detroit Red Wings LWEd Sandford, Boston Bruins 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 33 48 81 109 Maurice Richard Montreal Canadiens 70 37 30 67 112 Ted Lindsay Detroit Red Wings 70 26 36 62 110 Bernie Geoffrion Montreal Canadiens 54 29 25 54 87 Bert Olmstead Montreal Canadiens 70 15 37 52 85 Red Kelly Detroit Red Wings 62 16 33 49 18 Earl Reibel Detroit Red Wings 69 15 33 48 18 Ed Sandford Boston Bruins 70 16 31 47 42 Fleming Mackell Boston Bruins 67 15 32 47 60 Ken Mosdell Montreal Canadiens 67 22 24 46 64 Source: NHLDinger 2011 149 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 SOJacques Plante Montreal Canadiens 17 1020 27 1.59 7 5 5 5Harry Lumley Toronto Maple Leafs 69 4140 128 1.86 32 24 13 13Terry Sawchuk Detroit Red Wings 67 4004 129 1.93 35 19 13 12Gerry McNeil Montreal Canadiens 53 3180 114 2.15 28 19 6 6Jim Henry Boston Bruins 70 4200 181 2.59 32 28 10 8Johnny Bower New York Rangers 70 4200 182 2.60 29 31 10 5Al Rollins Chicago Black Hawks 66 3960 213 3.23 12 47 7 5 Coaches Boston Bruins: Lynn Patrick Chicago Black Hawks: Sid Abel Detroit Red Wings: Tommy Ivan Montreal Canadiens: Dick Irvin New York Rangers: Frank Boucher Toronto Maple Leafs: King Clancy Debuts The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1953–54 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): Doug Mohns, Boston Bruins Earl Reibel, Detroit Red Wings Camille Henry, New York Rangers Johnny Bower, New York Rangers Last games The following is a list of players of note who played their last game in the NHL in 1953–54 (listed with their last team): 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 Broadcasting This was the second season of Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television. Coverage this season began to include selected Stanley Cup playoff games. Both regular season and playoff games were not broadcast in their entirety until the 1968–69 season, and were typically joined in progress, while the radio version of HNIC aired games in their entirety. See also 1953–54 NHL transactions List of Stanley Cup champions 7th National Hockey League All-Star Game National Hockey League All-Star Game 1953 in sports 1954 in sports References Coleman Charles L. 1976 Sherbrooke, Quebec Trail of the Stanley Cup, Vol III Progressive Publications Years of glory, 1942–1967: the National Hockey League's official book of the six-team era Diamond, Dan 1994 McClelland and Stewart Toronto, ON 0-7710-2817-2 Total Hockey Diamond, Dan Total Sports 2000 1-892129-85-X Kingston, New York Dinger Ralph 2011 The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012 Dan Diamond & Associates 978-1-894801-22-5 Toronto, ON registration https://archive.org/details/nationalhockeyle0000unse_u6g5 Dryden Steve Century of hockey McClelland & Stewart Ltd. Toronto, ON 2000 0-7710-4179-9 Duplacey James 2008 North Dighton, Massachusetts Hockey's Book of Firsts JG Press 978-1-57215-037-9 Fischler Stan Fischler Shirley Hughes Morgan Romain Joseph Duplacey James 2003 The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League Publications International Inc. 0-7853-9624-1 Lincolnwood, Illinois Fischler 2003 McFarlane Brian 1969 50 Years Of Hockey Winnipeg, MAN Greywood Publishing B000GW45S0 McFarlane Brian The Story of the National Hockey League Pagurian Press New York 1973 0-684-13424-1 registration https://archive.org/details/storyofnationalh0000mcfa Notes External links Hockey Database NHL.com 1953 Category:1953–54 in American ice hockey by league Category:1953–54 in Canadian ice hockey by league