1943–44 NHL season

1943–44 NHL season
League	National Hockey League
Sport	Ice hockey
Duration	October 30, 1943 – April 13, 1944
Number of games	50
Number of teams	6
Regular season
Season champion	Montreal Canadiens
Season MVP	Babe Pratt (Maple Leafs)
Top scorer	Herb Cain (Bruins)
Stanley Cup
Champions	Montreal Canadiens
Runners-up	Chicago Black Hawks

The 1943–44 NHL season was the 27th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams played 50 games each. The Montreal Canadiens were the top team of the regular season and followed it up with the team's fifth Stanley Cup championship.

League business

In memory of Frank Calder, the former NHL President who died in 1943, the league's Board of Governors donated the Calder Memorial Trophy to be awarded to the NHL's top rookie.

Rule changes

For the start of this season, the NHL added the centre red line, which allowed players to pass the puck out of their defensive zone into their half of the neutral zone. This was done in an effort to increase the speed of the game by reducing off-side calls. "This rule is considered to mark the beginning of the modern era in the NHL," according to the NHL's Guide and Record Book. In 2005, 62 years later, the two-line pass would be legalized for similar reasons.

Regular season

The Montreal Canadiens had turned the corner and now Tommy Gorman and Dick Irvin had a team to make the fans happy. Bill Durnan solved the goaltending woes, but not before Gorman had all kinds of problems signing him. Durnan knew his worth, and wanted a handsome sum. Just before the first game, Gorman agreed to his contract demands. He was worth every penny, as he ran away with the Vezina Trophy and the Canadiens lost only five games all year, finishing first by a wide margin. The new and more familiar "Punch line" of Elmer Lach, Toe Blake, and Maurice Richard dominated the offence and Richard had 32 goals. He replaced Joe Benoit, who did his duty to his country by joining the armed forces. Richard, in fact, was dubbed by teammate Ray Getliffe the nickname that would be his legend "The Rocket".

When Paul Bibeault came back from the Army, he found his job lost to the best goaltender in the NHL, Bill Durnan. Montreal agreed to loan him to Toronto, where he played very well, leading the Leafs to third place and leading the NHL with five shutouts. Gus Bodnar, a crack centre, was the top rookie, and for the first time, a team produced Calder Memorial Trophy winners in consecutive years. In fact, Bodnar scored the fastest goal by a rookie in his very first game. It took him only 15 seconds to score on Ken McAuley, Ranger goaltender, in a 5–2 win over the war-weakened Rangers.

The Rangers had plunged to last place the previous year and Lester Patrick was so discouraged that he wanted to suspend operations for the year. This year the Rangers lost Clint Smith, Lynn Patrick, Phil Watson, and Alf Pike. The most unbelievably inept team iced for the Rangers this year. Things were so desperate that coach Frank Boucher had to come out of retirement to play some. But the Rangers set a modern-day record of 6.20 goals against, giving up 310 goals in 50 games. One night when Lester Patrick went behind the bench to coach the team with Frank Boucher attending a brother's funeral, the Rangers were demolished 15–0 by Detroit as the Red Wings set a modern-day record of most goals by a team in a single game. It was a horrifying experience for Patrick. Only a week later Syd Howe set a modern-day record of 6 goals in a game in a 12–2 conquest of the hapless Rangers. The Rangers won only 6 games all year and finished a distant last, 26 points behind fifth-place Boston.

Chicago started with sub-par goaltending, but then president and general manager Bill Tobin decided to bring back Mike Karakas, who had been demoted to the minors in 1939–40 for his lackluster play. Karakas was just what the Black Hawks needed, as he played well and recorded three shutouts and got the team into the playoffs.

In Boston, the Bruins lost star forward Bill Cowley to injury after the first 36 games. At that point in the season Cowley was on pace to set a new standard in scoring for the NHL. After the first 36 games he had scored 30 goals – 41 assists – 71 points before going down to injury. However, the scoring title would still eventually end up in Boston as linemate Herb Cain picked up the slack, scoring 82 points over the course of the 50-game schedule and setting a new record for points in the regular season.

Final standings

National Hockey League

		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	DIFF	Pts
1	Montreal Canadiens	50	38	5	7	234	109	+125	83
2	Detroit Red Wings	50	26	18	6	214	177	+37	58
3	Toronto Maple Leafs	50	23	23	4	214	174	+40	50
4	Chicago Black Hawks	50	22	23	5	178	187	−9	49
5	Boston Bruins	50	19	26	5	223	268	−45	43
6	New York Rangers	50	6	39	5	162	310	−148	17

Playoffs

Playoff bracket

	Semifinals					Finals
	1	Montreal	4
	3	Toronto	1
						1	Montreal	4
						4	Chicago	0
	2	Detroit	1
	4	Chicago	4

Semifinals

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (3) Toronto Maple Leafs

The Montreal Canadiens finished first in the league with 83 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs finished third in the league with 50 points. This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams with the teams splitting the two previous series. They last met in the 1925 NHL Championship where Montreal won a two-game total goals series 5–2. Montreal won this year's ten game regular season series earning fifteen of twenty points. Maurice "Rocket" Richard was named first, second, and third Star of the game after scoring all 5 Montreal goals in game two, the first player to have this honour.

March 21	Toronto Maple Leafs		3–1		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
Moe Morris (1) – pp – 06:07 George Boothman (1) – pp – 18:35		First period			No scoring
Jackie Hamilton (1) – 12:24		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			02:49 – sh – Toe Blake (1)
Paul Bibeault		Goalie stats			Bill Durnan

March 23	Toronto Maple Leafs		1–5		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Reg Hamilton (1) – pp – 08:30		Second period			01:48 – Maurice Richard (1) 02:03 – Maurice Richard (2) 16:46 – Maurice Richard (3)
No scoring		Third period			01:00 – pp – Maurice Richard (4) 08:51 – Maurice Richard (5)
Paul Bibeault		Goalie stats			Bill Durnan

March 25	Montreal Canadiens		2–1		Toronto Maple Leafs	Maple Leaf Gardens	Recap
Glen Harmon (1) – 09:57		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			08:06 – George Boothman (2)
Ray Getliffe (1) – 09:43		Third period			No scoring
Bill Durnan		Goalie stats			Paul Bibeault

March 28	Montreal Canadiens		4–1		Toronto Maple Leafs	Maple Leaf Gardens	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Gerry Heffernan (1) – 15:55 Toe Blake (2) – 18:45		Second period			No scoring
Murph Chamberlain (1) – pp – 12:57 Murph Chamberlain (2) – 19:48		Third period			09:53 – pp – Ted Kennedy (1)
Bill Durnan		Goalie stats			Paul Bibeault

March 30	Toronto Maple Leafs		0–11		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period			16:02 – Ray Getliffe (2) 17:39 – Phil Watson (1)
No scoring		Second period			00:27 – Maurice Richard (6) 10:33 – sh – Murph Chamberlain (3)
No scoring		Third period			02:27 – Butch Bouchard (1) 07:58 – Toe Blake (3) 08:37 – Toe Blake (4) 09:17 – Maurice Richard (7) 10:33 – Ray Getliffe (3) 11:34 – Buddy O'Connor (1) 15:41 – pp – Murph Chamberlain (4)
Paul Bibeault		Goalie stats			Bill Durnan

Montreal won series 4–1

(2) Detroit Red Wings vs. (4) Chicago Black Hawks

The Detroit Red Wings finished second in the league with 58 points. The Chicago Black Hawks finished fourth with 49 points. This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams with the teams splitting the two previous series. They last met in the 1941 Stanley Cup Semifinals where Detroit won in two games. The teams split this year's ten-game regular season series.

March 21	Chicago Black Hawks		2–1		Detroit Red Wings	Olympia Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			12:18 – pp – Syd Howe (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Bill Mosienko (1) – 07:12 Doug Bentley (1) – 07:56		Third period			No scoring
Mike Karakas		Goalie stats			Connie Dion

March 23	Chicago Black Hawks		1–4		Detroit Red Wings	Olympia Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			03:00 – Joe Carveth (1) 19:10 – pp – Syd Howe (2)
George Allen (1) – 11:18 Mud Bruneteau (1) – 16:06		Third period			00:21 – Don Grosso (1)
Mike Karakas		Goalie stats			Connie Dion

March 26	Detroit Red Wings		0–2		Chicago Black Hawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			11:06 – Joe Cooper (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			11:30 – Clint Smith (1)
Connie Dion		Goalie stats			Mike Karakas

March 28	Detroit Red Wings		1–7		Chicago Black Hawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
Carl Liscombe (1) – 06:00		First period			04:44 – Doug Bentley (2) 11:09 – pp – Bill Mosienko (2) 16:54 – Clint Smith (2)
No scoring		Second period			01:42 – Clint Smith (3) 15:30 – Doug Bentley (3) 19:18 – Doug Bentley (4)
No scoring		Third period			19:57 – Fido Purpur (1)
Connie Dion		Goalie stats			Mike Karakas

March 30	Chicago Black Hawks		5–2		Detroit Red Wings	Olympia Stadium	Recap
Doug Bentley (5) – pp – 18:23		First period			06:59 – Bill Quackenbush (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Johnny Gottselig (1) – 03:37 Doug Bentley (6) – 08:10 Doug Bentley (7) – 12:30 George Allen (2) – 18:56		Third period			08:40 – Joe Carveth (2)
Mike Karakas		Goalie stats			Connie Dion

Chicago won series 4–1

Stanley Cup Finals

Main article: 1944 Stanley Cup Finals

This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams with Chicago winning three of the five previous series. They last met in the 1941 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals where Chicago won in three games. Montreal won this year's ten game regular season series earning eighteen of twenty points.

April 4	Chicago Black Hawks		1–5		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period			08:37 – Phil Watson (2)
Clint Smith (4) – pp – 10:11		Second period			06:35 – pp – Toe Blake (5) 10:58 – Ray Getliffe (4)
No scoring		Third period			04:47 – Murph Chamberlain (5) 18:07 – Ray Getliffe (5)
Mike Karakas		Goalie stats			Bill Durnan

April 6	Montreal Canadiens		3–1		Chicago Black Hawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Maurice Richard (8) – 13:00		Second period			No scoring
Maurice Richard (9) – 12:16 Maurice Richard (10) – 15:33		Third period			19:59 – John Harms (1)
Bill Durnan		Goalie stats			Mike Karakas

April 9	Montreal Canadiens		3–2		Chicago Black Hawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			05:14 – George Allen (3)
Toe Blake (6) – 02:02		Second period			No scoring
Mike McMahon (1) – 05:47 Phil Watson (3) – 06:42		Third period			04:19 – John Harms (2)
Bill Durnan		Goalie stats			Mike Karakas

April 13	Chicago Black Hawks		4–5	OT	Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
George Allen (4) – 05:12		First period			08:48 – Elmer Lach (1)
John Harms (3) – pp – 07:30 George Allen (5) – pp – 09:12 Doug Bentley (8) – 10:09		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			10:02 – Elmer Lach (2) 16:05 – Maurice Richard (11) 17:20 – Maurice Richard (12)
No scoring		First overtime period			09:12 – Toe Blake (7)
Mike Karakas		Goalie stats			Bill Durnan

Montreal won series 4–0

Awards

Award winners

O'Brien Cup: (Stanley Cup runner-up)	Chicago Black Hawks
Prince of Wales Trophy: (Regular season champion)	Montreal Canadiens
Calder Memorial Trophy: (Best first-year player)	Gus Bodnar, Toronto Maple Leafs
Hart Trophy: (Most valuable player)	Babe Pratt, Toronto Maple Leafs
Lady Byng Trophy: (Excellence and sportsmanship)	Clint Smith, Chicago Black Hawks
Vezina Trophy: (Fewest goals allowed)	Bill Durnan, Montreal Canadiens

All-Star teams

First team	Position	Second team
Bill Durnan, Montreal Canadiens	G	Paul Bibeault, Toronto Maple Leafs
Earl Seibert, Chicago Black Hawks	D	Emile "Butch" Bouchard, Montreal Canadiens
Babe Pratt, Toronto Maple Leafs	D	Dit Clapper, Boston Bruins
Bill Cowley, Boston Bruins	C	Elmer Lach, Montreal Canadiens
Lorne Carr, Toronto Maple Leafs	RW	Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens
Doug Bentley, Chicago Black Hawks	LW	Herb Cain, Boston Bruins
Dick Irvin, Montreal Canadiens	Coach	Hap Day, 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
Herb Cain	Boston Bruins	48	36	46	82	4
Doug Bentley	Chicago Black Hawks	50	38	39	77	22
Lorne Carr	Toronto Maple Leafs	50	36	38	74	9
Carl Liscombe	Detroit Red Wings	50	36	37	73	17
Elmer Lach	Montreal Canadiens	48	24	48	72	23
Clint Smith	Chicago Black Hawks	50	23	49	72	4
Bill Cowley	Boston Bruins	36	30	41	71	12
Bill Mosienko	Chicago Black Hawks	50	32	38	70	10
Art Jackson	Boston Bruins	49	28	41	69	8
Gus Bodnar	Toronto Maple Leafs	50	22	40	62	18

Source: NHL

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Mins – Minutes Played; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts

Player	Team	GP	Mins	GA	GAA	W	L	T	SO
Bill Durnan	Montreal Canadiens	50	3000	109	2.18	32	5	7	2
Paul Bibeault	Toronto Maple Leafs	29	1740	87	3.00	13	14	2	5
Mike Karakas	Chicago Black Hawks	26	1560	79	3.04	12	9	5	3
Connie Dion	Detroit Red Wings	26	1560	80	3.08	17	7	2	1
Jimmy Franks	Detroit Red Wings	17	1020	69	4.06	6	8	3	1
Benny Grant	Toronto Maple Leafs	20	1200	83	4.15	9	9	2	0
Hec Highton	Chicago Black Hawks	24	1440	108	4.50	10	14	0	0
Bert Gardiner	Boston Bruins	46	2460	212	5.17	17	19	5	1
Ken McAuley	New York Rangers	50	2980	310	6.24	6	39	5	0

Coaches

• Boston Bruins: Art Ross
• Chicago Black Hawks: Paul Thompson
• Detroit Red Wings: Jack Adams
• Montreal Canadiens: Dick Irvin
• New York Rangers: Frank Boucher
• Toronto Maple Leafs: Hap Day

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1943–44 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

• Harry Lumley, Detroit Red Wings
• Bill Durnan, Montreal Canadiens
• Don Raleigh, New York Rangers
• Gus Bodnar, Toronto Maple Leafs

Last games

The following is a list of players of note who played their last game in the NHL in 1943–44 (listed with their last team):

• Buzz Boll, Boston Bruins
• Busher Jackson, Boston Bruins
• Frank Boucher, New York Rangers

See also

• List of Stanley Cup champions
• 1943 in sports
• 1944 in sports

References

• 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. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)
• Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
• Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: ref duplicates default (link)
• Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
• McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York, NY: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1. {{cite book}}: Invalid |ref=harv (help)

Notes

External links

• Hockey Database
• NHL.com