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1961–62 NHL season

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1961–62 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationOctober 11, 1961 – April 22, 1962
Number of games70
Number of teams6
TV partner(s)CBC, SRC (Canada)
None (United States)
Regular season
Season championMontreal Canadiens
Season MVPJacques Plante (Canadiens)
Top scorerBobby Hull (Black Hawks)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsToronto Maple Leafs
  Runners-upChicago Black Hawks
NHL seasons

The 1961–62 NHL season was the 45th season of the National Hockey League (NHL). The Toronto Maple Leafs were the Stanley Cup champions as they defeated the Chicago Black Hawks four games to two.

League business

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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

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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.

Teams

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1961-62 National Hockey League
Team City Arena Capacity
Boston Bruins Boston, Massachusetts Boston Garden 13,909
Chicago Black Hawks Chicago, Illinois Chicago Stadium 16,666
Detroit Red Wings Detroit, Michigan Detroit Olympia 15,000
Montreal Canadiens Montreal, Quebec Montreal Forum 15,551
New York Rangers New York, New York Madison Square Garden 15,925
Toronto Maple Leafs Toronto, Ontario Maple Leaf Gardens 13,718

Regular season

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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

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National Hockey League[1]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1 Montreal Canadiens 70 42 14 14 259 166 +93 98
2 Toronto Maple Leafs 70 37 22 11 232 180 +52 85
3 Chicago Black Hawks 70 31 26 13 217 186 +31 75
4 New York Rangers 70 26 32 12 195 207 −12 64
5 Detroit Red Wings 70 23 33 14 184 219 −35 60
6 Boston Bruins 70 15 47 8 177 306 −129 38

Playoffs

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Playoff bracket

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Semifinals Stanley Cup Finals
      
1 Montreal 2
3 Chicago 4
3 Chicago 2
2 Toronto 4
2 Toronto 4
4 New York 2

Semifinals

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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

[edit]
March 27 Chicago Black Hawks 1–2 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Stan Mikita (1) – sh – 18:06 Third period 01:32 – Dickie Moore (1)
05:38 – ppJean Beliveau (1)
Glenn Hall 34 saves / 36 shots Goalie stats Jacques Plante 36 saves / 37 shots
March 29 Chicago Black Hawks 3–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Bobby Hull (1) – pp – 05:26 First period 15:10 – ppDickie Moore (2)
Stan Mikita (2) – 05:15 Second period No scoring
Bobby Hull (2) – 05:15 Third period 11:04 – ppDickie Moore (3)
12:45 – Jean-Guy Talbot (1)
14:05 – Claude Provost (1)
Glenn Hall 23 saves / 27 shots Goalie stats Jacques Plante 28 saves / 31 shots
April 1 Montreal Canadiens 1–4 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period 09:05 – Bronco Horvath (1)
18:06 – Stan Mikita (3)
No scoring Second period 19:17 – ppBill Hay (1)
Red Berenson (1) – 14:27 Third period 02:15 – Kenny Wharram (1)
Jacques Plante 23 saves / 27 shots Goalie stats Glenn Hall 26 saves / 27 shots
April 3 Montreal Canadiens 3–5 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period 01:51 – ppBobby Hull (3)
08:28 – ppBronco Horvath (2)
Jean Beliveau (2) – pp – 03:36
Dickie Moore (4) – 16:04
Second period No scoring
Gilles Tremblay (1) – 08:46 Third period 04:39 – Ab McDonald (1)
05:16 – ppBill Hay (2)
12:56 – pp – Ab McDonald (2)
Jacques Plante 37 saves / 42 shots Goalie stats Glenn Hall 32 saves / 35 shots
April 5 Chicago Black Hawks 4–3 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Bobby Hull (4) – 02:55
Bronco Horvath (3) – 17:27
First period 06:13 – Phil Goyette (1)
13:08 – Claude Provost (2)
Kenny Wharram (2) – 19:14 Second period No scoring
Bill Hay (3) – 01:39 Third period 10:26 – Red Berenson (2)
Glenn Hall 35 saves / 38 shots Goalie stats Jacques Plante 25 saves / 29 shots
April 8 Montreal Canadiens 0–2 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period 04:02 – Ab McDonald (3)
No scoring Second period 13:39 – Kenny Wharram (3)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Jacques Plante 29 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Glenn Hall 41 saves / 41 shots
Chicago won series 4–2


(2) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (4) New York Rangers

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March 27 New York Rangers 2–4 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 06:53 – Dave Keon (1)
Ken Schinkel (1) – 11:56
Earl Ingarfield (1) – 19:25
Second period 00:24 – ppRed Kelly (1)
14:42 – shTim Horton (1)
No scoring Third period 19:19 – enGeorge Armstrong (1)
Gump Worsley 28 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Johnny Bower 26 saves / 28 shots
March 29 New York Rangers 1–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Earl Ingarfield (2) – pp – 12:42 Second period 09:37 – ppGeorge Armstrong (2)
18:08 – Bob Pulford (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Gump Worsley 37 saves / 39 shots Goalie stats Johnny Bower 27 saves / 28 shots
April 1 Toronto Maple Leafs 4–5 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden III Recap  
Tim Horton (2) – pp – 05:59 First period No scoring
George Armstrong (3) – 06:46 Second period 01:25 – Jean-Guy Gendron (1)
07:05 – Johnny Wilson (1)
19:50 – Johnny Wilson (2)
Red Kelly (2) – pp – 04:47
Bob Pulford (2) – 13:43
Third period 05:02 – ppAndy Hebenton (1)
08:17 – Dave Balon (1)
Johnny Bower 26 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Gump Worsley 36 saves / 40 shots
April 3 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–4 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden III Recap  
No scoring First period 00:41 – Rod Gilbert (1)
15:26 – Rod Gilbert (2)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Bob Pulford (3) – sh – 11:59
Bob Nevin (1) – 16:22
Third period 14:03 – Dave Balon (2)
19:30 – enJean-Guy Gendron (2)
Johnny Bower 37 saves / 40 shots Goalie stats Gump Worsley 40 saves / 42 shots
April 5 New York Rangers 2–3 2OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 07:46 – Ron Stewart (1)
Jean-Guy Gendron (3) – 13:42 Second period 12:21 – Frank Mahovlich (1)
Earl Ingarfield (3) – 12:31 Third period No scoring
No scoring Second overtime period 04:23 – Red Kelly (3)
Gump Worsley 56 saves / 59 shots Goalie stats Johnny Bower 39 saves / 41 shots
April 7 New York Rangers 1–7 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Andy Bathgate (1) – 18:21 First period 09:36 – George Armstrong (4)
12:43 – Bob Pulford (4)
17:52 – Dave Keon (2)
No scoring Second period 03:17 – Dick Duff (1)
05:01 – Frank Mahovlich (2)
17:34 – pp – Dick Duff (2)
No scoring Third period 09:53 – pp – Dave Keon (3)
Gump Worsley 33 saves / 40 shots Goalie stats Johnny Bower 32 saves / 33 shots
Toronto won series 4–2


Stanley Cup Finals

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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.


April 10 Chicago Black Hawks 1–4 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Bobby Hull (5) – pp – 03:35 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 01:32 – Dave Keon (4)
13:54 – ppFrank Mahovlich (3)
No scoring Third period 06:03 – George Armstrong (5)
14:32 – Tim Horton (3)
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 12 Chicago Black Hawks 2–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 02:35 – ppBilly Harris (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Stan Mikita (4) – 08:47
Stan Mikita (5) – 18:27
Third period 09:47 – Frank Mahovlich (4)
16:08 – George Armstrong (6)
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 15 Toronto Maple Leafs 0–3 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 04:35 – Stan Mikita (6)
08:33 – ppAb McDonald (4)
No scoring Third period 19:21 – Bronco Horvath (4)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Glenn Hall
April 17 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–4 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
Red Kelly (4) – pp – 18:08 First period 10:35 – Bobby Hull (6)
15:41 – Reg Fleming (1)
No scoring Second period 00:46 – pp – Bobby Hull (7)
07:31 – Reg Fleming (2)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Johnny Bower, Don Simmons Goalie stats Glenn Hall
April 19 Chicago Black Hawks 4–8 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Murray Balfour (1) – 18:05 First period 00:17 – Bob Pulford (5)
17:45 – Bob Pulford (6)
Ab McDonald (5) – 00:59
Ab McDonald (6) – pp – 03:07
Second period 08:31 – Billy Harris (2)
09:50 – ppDave Keon (5)
13:24 – Frank Mahovlich (5)
Bob Turner (1) – sh – 10:31 Third period 04:41 – George Armstrong (7)
06:31 – Frank Mahovlich (6)
13:51 – pp – Bob Pulford (7)
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Don Simmons
April 22 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–1 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Bob Nevin (2) – 10:29
Dick Duff (3) – pp – 14:14
Third period 08:56 – Bobby Hull (8)
Don Simmons Goalie stats Glenn Hall
Toronto won series 4–2


Awards

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1961–62 NHL awards
Prince of Wales Trophy:
(Regular season champion)
Montreal Canadiens
Art Ross Trophy:
(Top scorer)
Bobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks
Calder Memorial Trophy:
(Best first-year player)
Bobby Rousseau, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy:
(Most valuable player)
Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens
James Norris Memorial Trophy:
(Best defenceman)
Doug Harvey, New York Rangers
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship)
Dave Keon, Toronto Maple Leafs
Vezina Trophy:
(Goaltender of team with the best goals-against average)
Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens

All-Star teams

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First Team   Position   Second Team
Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens G Glenn Hall, Chicago Black Hawks
Doug Harvey, New York Rangers D Carl Brewer, Toronto Maple Leafs
Jean-Guy Talbot, Montreal Canadiens D Pierre Pilote, Chicago Black Hawks
Stan Mikita, Chicago Black Hawks C Dave Keon, Toronto Maple Leafs
Andy Bathgate, New York Rangers RW Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings
Bobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks LW Frank Mahovlich, Toronto Maple Leafs

Player statistics

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Scoring leaders

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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

[2]

Leading goaltenders

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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
Jacques Plante Montreal Canadiens 70 4200 166 2.37 42 14 14 4
Johnny Bower Toronto Maple Leafs 59 3540 151 2.56 31 18 10 2
Glenn Hall Chicago Black Hawks 70 4200 185 2.64 31 26 13 9
Hank Bassen Detroit Red Wings 27 1620 75 2.78 9 12 6 3
Lorne Worsley New York Rangers 60 3531 173 2.94 22 27 9 2
Terry Sawchuk Detroit Red Wings 43 2580 141 3.28 14 21 8 5
Don Head Boston Bruins 38 2280 161 4.24 9 26 3 2
Bruce Gamble Boston Bruins 28 1680 121 4.32 6 18 4 1

Coaches

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Debuts

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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):

Last games

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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):

Broadcasting

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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

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References

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  • Coleman, Charles L. (1976), Trail of the Stanley Cup, Vol III, Sherbrooke, Quebec: Progressive Publications
  • 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, New York: 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.
  • Dowbiggin, Bruce (2008), The Meaning Of Puck: How Hockey Explains Modern Canada, Toronto: Key Porter Books, ISBN 978-1-55470-041-7
  • Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
  • Duplacey, James (2008), Hockey's Book of Firsts, North Dighton, Massachusetts: JG Press, ISBN 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. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
  • McFarlane, Brian (1969), 50 Years Of Hockey, Winnipeg, MAN: Greywood Publishing, ASIN B000GW45S0
  • McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1.
Notes
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