1961–62 NHL season

National Hockey League season August 2023 1961–62 NHL season National Hockey League Ice hockey October 11, 1961 – April 22, 1962 Regular season 70 6 CBC, SRC (Canada)None (United States) Season champion Montreal Canadiens Jacques Plante (Canadiens) Hart Memorial Trophy Bobby Hull (Black Hawks) Art Ross Trophy Stanley Cup 1962 Stanley Cup Finals Toronto Maple Leafs Chicago Black Hawks 1962–63 NHL season 1960–61 NHL season 1962–63 1960–61 NHL The 1961–62 NHL season was the 45th season of the National Hockey League (NHL). Six teams played 70 games each. The Toronto Maple Leafs were the Stanley Cup champions as they defeated the Chicago Black Hawks four games to two. 2 League business At a meeting of the owners and governors, Conn Smythe resigned as Toronto's governor, to be replaced by his son, Stafford Smythe. Thereupon, Conn Smythe was appointed honorary governor. Pre-season A big trade took place between the Montreal Canadiens and the New York Rangers with Doug Harvey and Albert Langlois going to the Rangers for Lou Fontinato. Harvey was named player-coach of the Rangers. In an exhibition game in Trail, British Columbia, Jean Beliveau tore knee ligaments and would be unavailable for some time. This followed a knee injury to Dickie Moore. Several holdouts on the Stanley Cup champion Chicago Black Hawks were reported. Stan Mikita, Reg Fleming and Dollard St. Laurent refused to sign their contracts, but they eventually came to terms. Regular season Glenn Hall received one of the greatest standing ovations in NHL history just before the NHL All-star game began. He had difficulty suppressing his emotions at the tremendous welcome he received. The All-stars defeated the Black Hawks 3–1. Doug Harvey scored a goal in his debut as player-coach of the Rangers when they trounced the Boston Bruins 6–2 right at Boston Garden. The Rangers downed the Bruins again at Madison Square Garden 6–3 as Andy Bathgate had the hat trick and Camille Henry had two goals. Montreal downed the Rangers 3–1 in their home opener as Henri Richard led the way with two goals playing with Beliveau and Moore, two cripples who were not expected to play. Doug Harvey was given an ovation by the crowd as he skated out in a Ranger uniform. The new defence pair of Al MacNeil and Lou Fontinato turned in a good game. Earl Ingarfield Sr. had a hat-trick on November 19 as the Rangers beat the Maple Leafs 5–3. The Broadway Blueshirts were showing some power, and three nights later, Doug Harvey picked up three assists and Gump Worsley picked up a shutout as the Rangers blanked the Red Wings 4–0. The win put the Rangers into first place and the following night they beat the Bruins 4–3 as Harvey scored the winner. Ab McDonald had the hat trick December 6, as Chicago drubbed the Rangers 8–3 right at Madison Square Garden. Bill Hay had four assists for the Black Hawks. Toronto took over first place January 10 when they beat the Bruins 7–5. Frank Mahovlich scored two goals on his 24th birthday and Dave Keon also had two goals. Glenn Hall played his 500th consecutive game January 17, but was beaten 7–3 by Montreal. In a losing cause, Bobby Hull scored two goals, including his 20th of the season. Glenn Hall received a car from James D. Norris, president of the Black Hawks. Percy LeSueur, famous Ottawa goaltender in the old NHA, died on January 28, 1962, at age 79. Bobby Hull scored four goals February 1 as the Black Hawks defeated Detroit 7–4. The Rangers defeated the Red Wings 3–2 at home March 14, but the two highlights were Gordie Howe's 500th goal on Gump Worsley and a penalty shot for the Rangers Andy Bathgate. Howe took a pass from Alex Delvecchio and made a nice move to get by Doug Harvey. Howe switched to a left-handed shot and beat Worsley with a backhander for the 500th goal. Midway through the third period, Dean Prentice had a breakaway and was skating toward the Detroit goal, when Hank Bassen, the Detroit goalkeeper, slid his stick to break up the play. Referee Eddie Powers awarded a penalty shot, but somehow forgot that the rules had been changed that season to read that the offended player must take the shot, not one of his teammates, and Powers permitted Andy Bathgate to take the shot. Bathgate gave Bassen some of his slick dekes and Bassen flopped on his face, allowing Bathgate to fire the puck into the open net for the winning goal. From there, the Rangers held on and made the playoffs for the first time since 1958. Bobby Hull joined the 50 goal club when he scored his 50th goal at about the five-minute mark of the first period as the Chicago Black Hawks beat the New York Rangers 4–1 at Madison Square Garden in the final game of the season. Hall and Jacques Plante of the Canadiens played every minute of every game in goal; other than Eddie Johnston of the Bruins two seasons later in 1964, they were the last major professional goaltenders to do so. The first 43 seasons saw only one 50 goal scorer, Maurice "Rocket" Richard. Then last season, 1960–61, Bernie Geoffrion scored 50. This season saw another 50 goal scorer in Bobby Hull of the Chicago Black Hawks. From this point onwards until the new century, far more seasons than not would see at least one player score fifty in a season. 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 Montreal 2 3 Chicago 4 2 Toronto 4 4 New York 2 3 Chicago 2 2 Toronto 4 Semifinals The Black Hawks returned to the Finals, by defeating the first-place Canadiens four games to two in the semifinal. In the other, the second-place Maple Leafs defeated the Rangers, also in six games to advance to the Finals. (1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (3) Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Black Hawks Montreal Canadiens Chicago Stadium Montreal Forum March 27 1–2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-mtl/1962/03/27/1961030111#game=1961030111,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring Stan Mikita (1) – sh – 18:06 01:32 – Dickie Moore (1)05:38 – pp – Jean Beliveau (1) Glenn Hall 34 saves / 36 shots Jacques Plante 36 saves / 37 shots March 29 3–4 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-mtl/1962/03/29/1961030112#game=1961030112,game_state=final Bobby Hull (1) – pp – 05:26 15:10 – pp – Dickie Moore (2) Stan Mikita (2) – 05:15 No scoring Bobby Hull (2) – 05:15 11:04 – pp – Dickie Moore (3)12:45 – Jean-Guy Talbot (1)14:05 – Claude Provost (1) Glenn Hall 23 saves / 27 shots Jacques Plante 28 saves / 31 shots April 1 1–4 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-chi/1962/04/01/1961030113#game=1961030113,game_state=final 09:05 – Bronco Horvath (1)18:06 – Stan Mikita (3) No scoring 19:17 – pp – Bill Hay (1) No scoring 02:15 – Kenny Wharram (1) Red Berenson (1) – 14:27 Glenn Hall 26 saves / 27 shots Jacques Plante 23 saves / 27 shots April 3 3–5 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-chi/1962/04/03/1961030114#game=1961030114,game_state=final 01:51 – pp – Bobby Hull (3)08:28 – pp – Bronco Horvath (2) No scoring No scoring Jean Beliveau (2) – pp – 03:36Dickie Moore (4) – 16:04 04:39 – Ab McDonald (1)05:16 – pp – Bill Hay (2)12:56 – pp – Ab McDonald (2) Gilles Tremblay (1) – 08:46 Glenn Hall 32 saves / 35 shots Jacques Plante 37 saves / 42 shots April 5 4–3 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-mtl/1962/04/05/1961030115#game=1961030115,game_state=final Bobby Hull (4) – 02:55Bronco Horvath (3) – 17:27 06:13 – Phil Goyette (1)13:08 – Claude Provost (2) Kenny Wharram (2) – 19:14 No scoring Bill Hay (3) – 01:39 10:26 – Red Berenson (2) Glenn Hall 35 saves / 38 shots Jacques Plante 25 saves / 29 shots April 8 0–2 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/mtl-vs-chi/1962/04/08/1961030116#game=1961030116,game_state=final 04:02 – Ab McDonald (3) No scoring 13:39 – Kenny Wharram (3) No scoring No scoring No scoring Glenn Hall 41 saves / 41 shots Jacques Plante 29 saves / 31 shots Chicago won series 4–2 (2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (4) New York Rangers New York Rangers Toronto Maple Leafs Madison Square Garden III Maple Leaf Gardens March 27 2–4 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-tor/1962/03/27/1961030121#game=1961030121,game_state=final No scoring 06:53 – Dave Keon (1) Ken Schinkel (1) – 11:56Earl Ingarfield (1) – 19:25 00:24 – pp – Red Kelly (1)14:42 – sh – Tim Horton (1) No scoring 19:19 – en – George Armstrong (1) Gump Worsley 27 saves / 30 shots Johnny Bower 26 saves / 28 shots March 29 1–2 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-tor/1962/03/29/1961030122#game=1961030122,game_state=final No scoring No scoring Earl Ingarfield (2) – pp – 12:42 09:37 – pp – George Armstrong (2)18:08 – Bob Pulford (1) No scoring No scoring Gump Worsley 37 saves / 39 shots Johnny Bower 27 saves / 28 shots April 1 4–5 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-nyr/1962/04/01/1961030123#game=1961030123,game_state=final No scoring Tim Horton (2) – pp – 05:59 01:25 – Jean-Guy Gendron (1)07:05 – Johnny Wilson (1)19:50 – Johnny Wilson (2) George Armstrong (3) – 06:46 05:02 – pp – Andy Hebenton (1)08:17 – Dave Balon (1) Red Kelly (2) – pp – 04:47Bob Pulford (2) – 13:43 Gump Worsley 36 saves / 40 shots Johnny Bower 26 saves / 31 shots April 3 2–4 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-nyr/1962/04/03/1961030124#game=1961030124,game_state=final 00:41 – Rod Gilbert (1)15:26 – Rod Gilbert (2) No scoring No scoring No scoring 14:03 – Dave Balon (2)19:30 – en – Jean-Guy Gendron (2) Bob Pulford (3) – sh – 11:59Bob Nevin (1) – 16:22 Gump Worsley 40 saves / 42 shots Johnny Bower 36 saves / 39 shots April 5 2–3 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-tor/1962/04/05/1961030125#game=1961030125,game_state=final No scoring 07:46 – Ron Stewart (1) Jean-Guy Gendron (3) – 13:42 12:21 – Frank Mahovlich (1) Earl Ingarfield (3) – 12:31 No scoring No scoring 04:23 – Red Kelly (3) Gump Worsley 56 saves / 59 shots Johnny Bower 39 saves / 41 shots April 7 1–7 1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/nyr-vs-tor/1962/04/07/1961030126#game=1961030126,game_state=final Andy Bathgate (1) – 18:21 09:36 – George Armstrong (4)12:43 – Bob Pulford (4)17:52 – Dave Keon (2) No scoring 03:17 – Dick Duff (1)05:01 – Frank Mahovlich (2)17:34 – pp – Dick Duff (2) No scoring 09:53 – pp – Dave Keon (3) Gump Worsley 33 saves / 40 shots Johnny Bower 32 saves / 33 shots Toronto won series 4–2 2 Stanley Cup Finals 1962 Stanley Cup Finals In the Finals, the Maple Leafs defeated the defending champions in six games. It was the first of three consecutive Stanley Cup wins by the Maple Leafs. Chicago Black Hawks Toronto Maple Leafs Chicago Stadium Maple Leaf Gardens April 10 1–4 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-tor/1962/04/10/1961030211#game=1961030211,game_state=final Bobby Hull (5) – pp – 03:35 No scoring No scoring 01:32 – Dave Keon (4)13:54 – pp – Frank Mahovlich (3) No scoring 06:03 – George Armstrong (5)14:32 – Tim Horton (3) Glenn Hall 33 saves / 37 shots Johnny Bower 25 saves / 26 shots April 12 2–3 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-tor/1962/04/12/1961030212#game=1961030212,game_state=final No scoring 02:35 – pp – Billy Harris (1) No scoring No scoring Stan Mikita (4) – 08:47Stan Mikita (5) – 18:27 09:47 – Frank Mahovlich (4)16:08 – George Armstrong (6) Glenn Hall 31 saves / 34 shots Johnny Bower 29 saves / 31 shots April 15 0–3 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-chi/1962/04/15/1961030213#game=1961030213,game_state=final No scoring No scoring 04:35 – Stan Mikita (6)08:33 – pp – Ab McDonald (4) No scoring 19:21 – en – Bronco Horvath (4) No scoring Glenn Hall 19 saves / 19 shots Johnny Bower 33 saves / 35 shots April 17 1–4 1 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-chi/1962/04/17/1961030214#game=1961030214,game_state=final 10:35 – Bobby Hull (6)15:41 – Reg Fleming (1) Red Kelly (4) – pp – 18:08 00:46 – pp – Bobby Hull (7)07:31 – Reg Fleming (2) No scoring No scoring No scoring Glenn Hall 30 saves / 31 shots Johnny Bower 11 saves / 12 shotsDon Simmons 18 saves / 21 shots April 19 4–8 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/chi-vs-tor/1962/04/19/1961030215#game=1961030215,game_state=final Murray Balfour (1) – 18:05 00:17 – Bob Pulford (5)17:45 – Bob Pulford (6) Ab McDonald (5) – 00:59Ab McDonald (6) – pp – 03:07 08:31 – Billy Harris (2)09:50 – pp – Dave Keon (5)13:24 – Frank Mahovlich (5) Bob Turner (1) – sh – 10:31 04:41 – George Armstrong (7)06:31 – Frank Mahovlich (6)13:51 – pp – Bob Pulford (7) Glenn Hall 36 saves / 44 shots Don Simmons 26 saves / 30 shots April 22 2–1 2 www.nhl.com/gamecenter/tor-vs-chi/1962/04/22/1961030216#game=1961030216,game_state=final No scoring No scoring No scoring No scoring 08:56 – Bobby Hull (8) Bob Nevin (2) – 10:29Dick Duff (3) – pp – 14:14 Glenn Hall 35 saves / 37 shots Don Simmons 20 saves / 21 shots Toronto won series 4–2 Awards 1961–62 NHL awardsPrince of Wales Trophy:(Regular season champion) Montreal CanadiensArt Ross Trophy:(Top scorer) Bobby Hull, Chicago Black HawksCalder Memorial Trophy:(Best first-year player) Bobby Rousseau, Montreal CanadiensHart Memorial Trophy:(Most valuable player) Jacques Plante, Montreal CanadiensJames Norris Memorial Trophy:(Best defenceman) Doug Harvey, New York RangersLady Byng Memorial Trophy:(Excellence and sportsmanship) Dave Keon, Toronto Maple LeafsVezina Trophy:(Goaltender of team with the best goals-against average) Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens All-Star teams First Team   Position   Second TeamJacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens GGlenn Hall, Chicago Black HawksDoug Harvey, New York Rangers DCarl Brewer, Toronto Maple LeafsJean-Guy Talbot, Montreal Canadiens DPierre Pilote, Chicago Black HawksStan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks CDave Keon, Toronto Maple LeafsAndy Bathgate, New York Rangers RWGordie Howe, Detroit Red WingsBobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks LWFrank Mahovlich, 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 Bobby Hull Chicago Black Hawks 70 50 34 84 35 Andy Bathgate New York Rangers 70 28 56 84 44 Gordie Howe Detroit Red Wings 70 33 44 77 54 Stan Mikita Chicago Black Hawks 70 25 52 77 97 Frank Mahovlich Toronto Maple Leafs 70 33 38 71 87 Alex Delvecchio Detroit Red Wings 70 26 43 69 18 Ralph Backstrom Montreal Canadiens 66 27 38 65 29 Norm Ullman Detroit Red Wings 70 26 38 64 54 Bill Hay Chicago Back Hawks 60 11 52 63 34 Claude Provost Montreal Canadiens 70 33 29 62 22 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 70 4200 166 2.37 42 14 14 4Johnny Bower Toronto Maple Leafs 59 3540 151 2.56 31 18 10 2Glenn Hall Chicago Black Hawks 70 4200 185 2.64 31 26 13 9Hank Bassen Detroit Red Wings 27 1620 75 2.78 9 12 6 3Lorne Worsley New York Rangers 60 3531 173 2.94 22 27 9 2Terry Sawchuk Detroit Red Wings 43 2580 141 3.28 14 21 8 5Don Head Boston Bruins 38 2280 161 4.24 9 26 3 2Bruce Gamble Boston Bruins 28 1680 121 4.32 6 18 4 1 Coaches Boston Bruins: Phil Watson Chicago Black Hawks: Rudy Pilous Detroit Red Wings: Sid Abel Montreal Canadiens: Toe Blake New York Rangers: Doug Harvey Toronto Maple Leafs: Punch Imlach Debuts The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1961–62 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): Ed Westfall, Boston Bruins Pat Stapleton, Boston Bruins Pit Martin, Detroit Red Wings Red Berenson, Montreal Canadiens Vic Hadfield, New York Rangers Gerry Cheevers, Toronto Maple Leafs Last games The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1961–62 (listed with their last team): Dollard St. Laurent, Chicago Black Hawks Leo Labine, Detroit Red Wings Marcel Bonin, Montreal Canadiens Johnny Wilson, New York Rangers Bert Olmstead, Toronto Maple Leafs Broadcasting Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and 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. This was the second consecutive season that the NHL did not have an American national broadcaster until the 1965–66 season. See also 1961–62 NHL transactions List of Stanley Cup champions National Hockey League All-Star Game 1961 in sports 1962 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 Dowbiggin Bruce 2008 The Meaning Of Puck: How Hockey Explains Modern Canada Toronto Key Porter Books 978-1-55470-041-7 registration https://archive.org/details/meaningofpuckhow0000dowb 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 1961 Category:1961–62 in American ice hockey by league Category:1961–62 in Canadian ice hockey by league