1956–57 NHL season

National Hockey League season August 2023 January 2021 1956–57 NHL season National Hockey League Ice hockey October 11, 1956 – April 16, 1957 Regular season 70 6 CBC, SRC (Canada)CBS (United States) Season champion Detroit Red Wings Gordie Howe (Red Wings) Hart Memorial Trophy Gordie Howe (Red Wings) Art Ross Trophy Stanley Cup 1957 Stanley Cup Finals Montreal Canadiens Boston Bruins 1957–58 NHL season 1955–56 NHL season 1957–58 1955–56 NHL The 1956–57 NHL season was the 40th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams played 70 games each. The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive season, defeating the Boston Bruins four games to one in the best-of-seven final series. The final game was won with a clutch goal from Montreal defenceman Tom Johnson that clinched the Stanley Cup championship for the Canadiens 3–2. Regular season On October 1, it was announced that Dick Irvin had resigned as coach of the Chicago Black Hawks due to ill health. He was suffering from bone cancer and had been ill for two years and had been hospitalized in Montreal. Irvin had been several days late to training camp. General manager Tommy Ivan took over as coach. Later in the season, it was reported that Irvin had undergone minor surgery for anemia at Ross Memorial Hospital. Irvin died on May 15, 1957. Ted Lindsay, the star left winger of the Detroit Red Wings, became the fourth player to score 300 career goals on November 18, when he picked up two goals in an 8–3 pasting of the Montreal Canadiens. The other players to reach this prestigious mark were Nels Stewart, Maurice Richard, and Gordie Howe (who played opposite Lindsay for most of the latter's career). On January 5, the Black Hawks and New York Rangers played an afternoon game at Madison Square Garden where the Rangers beat the Black Hawks 4–1. This game was broadcast on the Columbia Broadcast System network (CBS). Glen Skov spoiled Lorne "Gump" Worsley's would-be shutout with a goal in the third period. Montreal beat Toronto 2–1 at the Forum in Montreal on January 10 and moved into first place. The game was hard-fought and referee Frank Udvari found it necessary to rule with an iron hand that angered the fans. Fans thought he was calling chippy penalties against the Habs and deliberately failing to call hooking and holding penalties by the Maple Leafs. The blow-off came in the last two minutes of the game. Maurice Richard received a high-sticking penalty. At 18:14, knowing his Maple Leafs were in danger, Toronto coach Howie Meeker pulled goaltender Ed Chadwick for six attackers. Dick Duff scored the tying goal, and Richard went berserk and commenced a heated argument with Udvari, banging his stick on the ice. He might have attacked Udvari if his teammates had not restrained him. Fans threw programmes, paper cups, hats and other debris and the game was held up. When it did resume, Bernie "Boom Boom" Geoffrion set up Donnie Marshall for the winning goal with a mere six seconds left to play. Although the fans were pleased with the outcome, an angry hum commenced as the players and officials left the ice. Udvari had to be escorted to his dressing room by police and ushers. A large part of the crowd now directed its attention to NHL President Clarence Campbell seated in his box seat and he became the target of jeers and threats. The situation began to show some of the aspects of the Richard Riot of two years previous when Richard had been suspended for an attack on an official. It was at least 30 minutes before Campbell was able to leave under police protection. Terry Sawchuk had been playing well and was a candidate for the Hart Trophy, when he came down with mononucleosis. He came back too soon and by January 16, he announced his retirement from hockey, a temporary one as he would be back in Detroit next season. Glenn Hall was not as good as the previous season, but led the Detroit Red Wings to first place. Hall had played only two games prior to 1955–56, but had shown such promise Sawchuk was sent off. Rule changes At the start of this season, the NHL changed the way power plays work. Prior to this season, a team could score as many goals as they were able to in a two-minute power play with the penalized player remaining in the penalty box. The NHL changed it so that when a goal is scored on a two-minute power play, the power play is finished. The reason for this was because the Montreal Canadiens were so dominant on the power play, that the NHL needed a way of ensuring parity. The previous season saw the Canadiens score 26% of all the league's power-play goals. Oddly enough, the number of power-play goals league-wide actually increased from 251 to 265 after the rule changed. Montreal, though, scored 10 fewer power-play goals.Stubbs Dave 2020-06-06 Canadiens felt 1956 rule change doused their potent power play NHL.com https://www.nhl.com/news/montreal-felt-1956-rule-change-hurt-power-play-317110878 2024-06-28 www.nhl.com enAnderson Dave Dave Anderson (sportswriter) 2007-06-04 Canadiens of the 1950s Are Still the Kings of the Cup https://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/04/sports/hockey/04anderson.html 2024-06-28 The New York Times en-US 0362-4331 Final standings Playoffs 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 1 3 Boston 4 2 Montreal 4 4 New York 1 3 Boston 1 2 Montreal 4 Semifinals (1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (3) Boston Bruins Boston Bruins Detroit Red Wings Boston Garden Olympia Stadium March 26 3–1 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-det/1957/03/26/1956030111#game=1956030111,game_state=final Jack Caffery (1) – 18:42 00:50 – Ted Lindsay (1) Doug Mohns (1) – pp – 00:38 No scoring Real Chevrefils (1) – 00:49 No scoring Don Simmons 20 saves / 21 shots Glenn Hall 26 saves / 29 shots March 28 2–7 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-det/1957/03/28/1956030112#game=1956030112,game_state=final No scoring 06:57 – Red Kelly (1)11:32 – Gordie Howe (1)13:14 – sh – Metro Prystai (1) No scoring 03:50 – pp – Alex Delvecchio (1)10:27 – pp – Billy Dea (1) Fleming MacKell (1) – 01:59Leo Boivin (1) – 17:52 00:33 – pp – Lorne Ferguson (1)03:39 – Norm Ullman (1) Don Simmons 25 saves / 32 shots Glenn Hall 30 saves / 32 shots March 31 3–4 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-bos/1957/03/31/1956030113#game=1956030113,game_state=final 08:11 – Vic Stasiuk (1)12:00 – Leo Boivin (2) Alex Delvecchio (2) – pp – 15:16 18:26 – Leo Labine (1) No scoring 13:28 – Cal Gardner (1) Gordie Howe (2) – 01:32Billy Dea (2) – 03:11 Don Simmons 24 saves / 27 shots Glenn Hall 22 saves / 26 shots April 2 0–2 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/det-vs-bos/1957/04/02/1956030114#game=1956030114,game_state=final 06:00 – Real Chevrefils (2) No scoring No scoring No scoring 05:43 – Vic Stasiuk (2) No scoring Don Simmons 20 saves / 20 shots Glenn Hall 25 saves / 27 shots April 4 4–3 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-det/1957/04/04/1956030115#game=1956030115,game_state=final No scoring 09:52 – Alex Delvecchio (3) Buddy Boone (1) – 12:10 No scoring Leo Labine (2) – 06:18Doug Mohns (2) – 10:21Cal Gardner (2) – 15:16 00:36 – Ted Lindsay (2)17:59 – Metro Prystai (2) Don Simmons 23 saves / 26 shots Glenn Hall 11 saves / 15 shots Boston won series 4–1 (2) Montreal Canadiens vs. (4) New York Rangers New York Rangers Montreal Canadiens Madison Square Garden III Montreal Forum March 26 4–1 2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-nyr/1957/03/26/1956030121#game=1956030121,game_state=final 17:01 – Camille Henry (1) Bernie Geoffrion (1) – 15:07 No scoring No scoring No scoring Maurice Richard (1) – pp – 07:02Bernie Geoffrion (2) – en – 19:21Jean Beliveau (1) – 19:30 Gump Worsley 24 saves / 27 shots Jacques Plante 25 saves / 26 shots March 28 3–4 2 1 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-nyr/1957/03/28/1956030122#game=1956030122,game_state=final No scoring No scoring 01:35 – pp – Camille Henry (2)04:32 – Dave Creighton (1) Henri Richard (1) – 02:12Maurice Richard (2) – 14:11 04:58 – pp – Bill Gadsby (1) Bernie Geoffrion (3) – pp – 14:58 13:38 – Andy Hebenton (1) No scoring Gump Worsley 44 saves / 47 shots Jacques Plante 34 saves / 38 shots March 30 3–8 1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-mtl/1957/03/30/1956030123#game=1956030123,game_state=final Andy Bathgate (1) – 18:59 07:27 – pp – Maurice Richard (3)14:56 – Jean Beliveau (2) Dave Creighton (2) – 10:51Andy Bathgate (2) – 15:31 00:42 – Bernie Geoffrion (4)14:23 – Bernie Geoffrion (5)15:04 – Dickie Moore (1) No scoring 10:55 – Jean Beliveau (3)14:20 – Bernie Geoffrion (6)19:14 – Dickie Moore (2) Gump Worsley 38 saves / 46 shots Jacques Plante 19 saves / 22 shots April 2 1–3 1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-mtl/1957/04/02/1956030124#game=1956030124,game_state=final Andy Hebenton (2) – 06:42 No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring 09:22 – Bernie Geoffrion (7)11:28 – Henri Richard (2)13:08 – Phil Goyette (1) Gump Worsley 37 saves / 40 shots Jacques Plante 30 saves / 31 shots April 4 3–4 1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-mtl/1957/04/04/1956030125#game=1956030125,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring 16:41 – pp – Jean Beliveau (4)17:53 – sh – Floyd Curry (1)19:40 – Jean Beliveau Parker MacDonald (1) – 05:28Red Sullivan (1) – 12:21Harry Howell (1) No scoring No scoring 01:11 – Maurice Richard (4) Gump Worsley 32 saves / 36 shots Jacques Plante 18 saves / 21 shots Montreal won series 4–1 Stanley Cup Finals 1957 Stanley Cup Finals Boston Bruins Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden Montreal Forum April 6 1–5 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-mtl/1957/04/06/1956030211#game=1956030211,game_state=final No scoring No scoring Fleming MacKell (2) – pp – 07:27 10:39 – Maurice Richard (5)13:29 – pp – Maurice Richard (6)15:35 – pp – Bernie Geoffrion (8)17:00 – Maurice Richard (7) No scoring 18:17 – Maurice Richard (8) Don Simmons 34 saves / 39 shots Jacques Plante 22 saves / 23 shots April 9 0–1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-mtl/1957/04/09/1956030212#game=1956030212,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring 02:27 – Jean Beliveau (6) No scoring No scoring Don Simmons 22 saves / 23 shots Jacques Plante 24 saves / 24 shots April 11 4–2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-bos/1957/04/11/1956030213#game=1956030213,game_state=final No scoring Bernie Geoffrion (9) – 01:30Floyd Curry (2) – 14:39Bernie Geoffrion (10) – pp – 19:54 06:16 – Don McKenney (1) No scoring 19:16 – Fleming MacKell (3) Phil Goyette (2) – 07:31 Don Simmons 21 saves / 25 shots Jacques Plante 25 saves / 27 shots April 14 0–2 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-bos/1957/04/14/1956030214#game=1956030214,game_state=final 02:56 – pp – Fleming MacKell (4) No scoring No scoring No scoring 19:40 – en – Fleming MacKell (5) No scoring Don Simmons 21 saves / 21 shots Jacques Plante 27 saves / 28 shots April 16 1–5 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/bos-vs-mtl/1957/04/16/1956030215#game=1956030215,game_state=final No scoring 18:11 – Andre Pronovost (1) No scoring 00:14 – pp – Dickie Moore (3)15:12 – Bernie Geoffrion (11) Leo Labine (3) – 13:43 17:39 – Donnie Marshall (1)18:31 – Floyd Curry (3) Don Simmons 29 saves / 34 shots Jacques Plante 27 saves / 28 shots Montreal won series 4–1 Awards + 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) Larry Regan, Boston BruinsHart Trophy:(Most valuable player) Gordie Howe, Detroit Red WingsJames Norris Memorial Trophy:(Best defenceman) Doug Harvey, Montreal CanadiensLady Byng Memorial Trophy:(Excellence and sportsmanship) Andy Hebenton, New York RangersVezina Trophy:(Goaltender of team with the best goals-against average) Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens All-Star teams First team   Position   Second teamGlenn Hall, Detroit Red Wings GJacques Plante, Montreal CanadiensDoug Harvey, Montreal Canadiens DFern Flaman, Boston BruinsRed Kelly, Detroit Red Wings DBill Gadsby, New York RangersJean Beliveau, Montreal Canadiens CEd Litzenberger, Chicago Black HawksGordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings RWMaurice Richard, Montreal CanadiensTed Lindsay, Detroit Red Wings LWReal Chevrefils, 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 44 45 89 72 Ted Lindsay Detroit Red Wings 70 30 55 85 103 Jean Beliveau Montreal Canadiens 69 33 51 84 105 Andy Bathgate New York Rangers 70 27 50 77 60 Ed Litzenberger Chicago Black Hawks 70 32 32 64 48 Maurice Richard Montreal Canadiens 63 33 29 62 74 Don McKenney Boston Bruins 69 21 39 60 31 Dickie Moore Montreal Canadiens 70 29 29 58 56 Henri Richard Montreal Canadiens 63 18 36 54 71 Norm Ullman Detroit Red Wings 64 16 36 52 47 Dinger 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 61 3660 122 2.00 31 18 12 9Glenn Hall Detroit Red Wings 70 4200 156 2.23 38 20 12 4Terry Sawchuk Boston Bruins 34 2040 81 2.38 18 10 6 2Don Simmons Boston Bruins 26 1560 63 2.42 13 9 4 4Ed Chadwick Toronto Maple Leafs 70 4200 186 2.66 21 34 15 5Al Rollins Chicago Black Hawks 70 4080 222 3.17 16 39 15 3Lorne Worsley New York Rangers 68 4080 217 3.24 26 28 14 3 Coaches Boston Bruins: Milt Schmidt Chicago Black Hawks: Tommy Ivan Detroit Red Wings: Jimmy Skinner Montreal Canadiens: Toe Blake New York Rangers: Phil Watson Toronto Maple Leafs: Howie Meeker Debuts The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1956–57 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): Larry Regan, Boston Bruins Moose Vasko, Chicago Black Hawks Ralph Backstrom, Montreal Canadiens Phil Goyette, Montreal Canadiens Frank Mahovlich, Toronto Maple Leafs Bob Pulford, Toronto Maple Leafs Bob Baun, Toronto Maple Leafs Last games The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1956–57 (listed with their last team): Cal Gardner, Boston Bruins Harry Watson, Chicago Black Hawks Marty Pavelich, Detroit Red Wings Gerry McNeil, Montreal Canadiens Ted Kennedy, Toronto Maple Leafs Broadcasting Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and selected Stanley Cup playoff games. 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. In the U.S., CBS signed a four-year deal to televise Saturday afternoon games from January to March. See also 1956–57 NHL transactions 1956 NHL Intra-League Draft List of Stanley Cup champions National Hockey League All-Star Game 1956 in sports 1957 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 1956 Category:1956–57 in American ice hockey by league Category:1956–57 in Canadian ice hockey by league