1941–42 NHL season

(Redirected from 1942 Stanley Cup playoffs)

The 1941–42 NHL season was the 25th season of the National Hockey League. Seven teams played 48 games each. The Toronto Maple Leafs would win the Stanley Cup defeating the Detroit Red Wings winning four straight after losing the first three in a best-of-seven series, a feat only repeated to date three times in NHL history (1975, 2010, 2014) and once in Major League Baseball (2004). However the '41–42 Leafs were the only ones to achieve the feat in a championship final series.

1941–42 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationNovember 1, 1941 – April 18, 1942
Number of games48
Number of teams7
Regular season
Season championNew York Rangers
Season MVPTommy Anderson (Americans)
Top scorerBryan Hextall (Rangers)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsToronto Maple Leafs
  Runners-upDetroit Red Wings
NHL seasons

League business edit

This season was the last season for the Brooklyn Americans who had changed their name from the New York Americans in an attempt to build a civic relationship with those from the Flatbush area of New York.

Due to World War II travel restrictions on adults, the NHL demanded more junior-aged players who were free of the travel restrictions.[1] NHL president Frank Calder reported there was a general agreement with the amateur leagues that a junior-aged player should be able to determine his own financial future due to the war.[2]

Regular season edit

The Americans started the season without Harvey "Busher" Jackson who refused to sign. He was then sold to Boston. But the Amerks had two positive notes: two defencemen, Tommy Anderson and Pat Egan, were now All-Star calibre. That did not prevent them from finishing last, though. On December 9, 1941, the Chicago Black Hawks-Boston Bruins game would be delayed for over a half-hour as United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared that the United States was at war.[3]

Frank Patrick suffered a heart attack and had to sell his interest in the Montreal Canadiens, and the Habs almost had to move to Cleveland. But Tommy Gorman kept the team alive. They added Emile "Butch" Bouchard to start his great career on defence and another very good player, Buddy O'Connor, at centre. Montreal had goaltending problems as Bert Gardiner slumped, and rookie Paul Bibeault replaced him. He showed flashes of brilliance, but his inexperience showed. Joe Benoit starred with 20 goals, the first Canadien to do that since 1938–39, when Toe Blake did it.

The New York Rangers had a new goaltender as Sugar Jim Henry replaced the retired Dave Kerr. Henry was one of the reasons the Rangers finished first, something they would not again do for the next 50 years.

Final standings edit

National Hockey League
GP W L T Pts GF GA
New York Rangers 48 29 17 2 60 177 143
Toronto Maple Leafs 48 27 18 3 57 158 136
Boston Bruins 48 25 17 6 56 160 118
Chicago Black Hawks 48 22 23 3 47 145 155
Detroit Red Wings 48 19 25 4 42 140 147
Montreal Canadiens 48 18 27 3 39 134 173
Brooklyn Americans 48 16 29 3 35 133 175

[4]

Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
       Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Playoffs edit

Playoff bracket edit

QuarterfinalsSemifinalsStanley Cup Finals
1New York2
2Toronto4
2Toronto4
3Boston2
5Detroit3
4Chicago1
3Boston0
5Detroit2
5Detroit2
6Montreal1

Quarterfinals edit

(3) Boston Bruins vs. (4) Chicago Black Hawks edit

March 22 Boston Bruins 2–1 OT Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
Roy Conacher (1) – 11:08 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 18:50 – Max Bentley (1)
Des Smith (1) – 06:51 First overtime period No scoring
Frank Brimsek Goalie stats Sam LoPresti
March 24 Chicago Black Hawks 4–0 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Bill Mosienko (1) – 03:57
Alex Kaleta (1) – 10:19
Bill Carse (1) – 10:30
Second period No scoring
George Allen (1) – 06:27 Third period No scoring
Sam LoPresti Goalie stats Frank Brimsek
March 26 Chicago Black Hawks 2–3 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
No scoring First period 18:01 – Gordie Bruce (1)
Max Bentley (2) – 07:09
Bill Mosienko (2) – pp – 15:26
Second period 00:48 – Gordie Bruce (2)
08:15 – Jack McGill (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Sam LoPresti Goalie stats Frank Brimsek
Boston won series 2–1


(5) Detroit Red Wings vs. (6) Montreal Canadiens edit

March 22 Montreal Canadiens 1–2 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period 11:32 – Don Grosso (1)
Terry Reardon (1) – 09:57 Second period 02:35 – Don Grosso (2)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Paul Bibeault Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
March 24 Detroit Red Wings 0–5 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 12:03 – ppJim Haggarty (1)
No scoring Second period 10:26 – Terry Reardon (2)
17:20 – Butch Bouchard (1)
No scoring Third period 15:41 – Joe Benoit (1)
16:17 – Gerry Heffernan (1)
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Paul Bibeault
March 26 Montreal Canadiens 2–6 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Jim Haggarty (2) – 01:26 Second period 04:21 – Mud Bruneteau (1)
19:37 – Sid Abel (1)
Gerry Heffernan (2) – 19:49 Third period 07:30 – Joe Carveth (1)
11:40 – Mud Bruneteau (2)
13:02 – Carl Liscombe (1)
19:33 – Carl Liscombe (2)
Paul Bibeault Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
Detroit won series 2–1


Semifinals edit

(1) New York Rangers vs. (2) Toronto Maple Leafs edit

March 21 New York Rangers 1–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Babe Pratt (1) – 02:26 First period 04:15 – Gordie Drillon (1)
05:33 – Nick Metz (1)
No scoring Second period 14:14 – Syl Apps (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Jim Henry Goalie stats Turk Broda
March 22 Toronto Maple Leafs 4–2 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden III Recap  
John McCreedy (1) – 11:41
Gordie Drillon (2) – 19:32
First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
John McCreedy (2) – 04:49
Billy Taylor (1) – 06:15
Third period 01:31 – ppMac Colville (1)
02:22 – pp – Mac Colville (2)
Turk Broda Goalie stats Jim Henry
March 24 Toronto Maple Leafs 0–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden III Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 02:50 – ppAlex Shibicky (1)
06:10 – Alan Kuntz (1)
No scoring Third period 10:49 – Mac Colville (3)
Turk Broda Goalie stats Jim Henry
March 28 New York Rangers 1–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Bryan Hextall (1) – 17:32 Third period 09:09 – Syl Apps (2)
13:08 – Sweeney Schriner (1)
Jim Henry Goalie stats Turk Broda
March 29 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden III Recap  
No scoring First period 02:01 – Alex Shibicky (2)
16:07 – Alex Shibicky (3)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Pete Langelle (1) – 18:05 Third period 15:56 – Lynn Patrick (1)
Turk Broda Goalie stats Jim Henry
March 31 New York Rangers 2–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 11:41 – John McCreedy (3)
No scoring Second period 00:50 – Pete Langelle (2)
Phil Watson (1) – 10:31
Alf Pike (1) – pp – 12:18
Third period 19:55 – Nick Metz (2)
Jim Henry Goalie stats Turk Broda
Toronto won series 4–2


(3) Boston Bruins vs. (5) Detroit Red Wings edit

March 29 Detroit Red Wings 6–4 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Mud Bruneteau (3) – 00:19
Eddie Wares (1) – 03:25
Carl Liscombe (3) – 10:49
First period 16:24 – Roy Conacher (2)
Don Grosso (3) – 01:00
Carl Liscombe (4) – 09:20
Second period 05:39 – Jack McGill (2)
Sid Abel (2) – 09:00 Third period 09:15 – Jack McGill (3)
16:04 – Jack McGill (4)
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Frank Brimsek
March 31 Boston Bruins 1–3 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
Herb Cain (1) – 08:32 First period 03:50 – Joe Carveth (2)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 09:46 – Joe Carveth (3)
19:54 – Don Grosso (4)
Frank Brimsek Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
Detroit won series 2–0


Stanley Cup Finals edit


April 4 Detroit Red Wings 3–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Don Grosso (5) – 01:38
Sid Abel (3) – 12:30
First period 06:36 – John McCreedy (4)
12:59 – Sweeney Schriner (2)
Don Grosso (6) – 14:11 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Turk Broda
April 7 Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Don Grosso (7) – 11:48
Mud Bruneteau (4) – 14:17
First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 11:13 – Sweeney Schriner (3)
Don Grosso (8) – 04:15
Gerry Brown (1) – pp – 10:08
Third period 13:40 – Wally Stanowski (1)
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Turk Broda
April 9 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–5 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
Lorne Carr (1) – 15:36
Lorne Carr (2) – 16:06
First period 18:20 – Gerry Brown (2)
18:40 – Joe Carveth (4)
No scoring Second period 13:12 – Pat McReavy (1)
15:11 – Syd Howe (1)
No scoring Third period 07:11 – Eddie Bush (1)
Turk Broda Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
April 12 Toronto Maple Leafs 4–3 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Bob Davidson (1) – 13:54
Lorne Carr (3) – 15:20
Second period 01:32 – Mud Bruneteau (5)
09:08 – Sid Abel (4)
Syl Apps (3) – 06:15
Nick Metz (3) – 12:45
Third period 04:18 – Carl Liscombe (5)
Turk Broda Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
April 14 Detroit Red Wings 3–9 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 09:29 – ppNick Metz (4)
15:14 – ppWally Stanowski (2)
No scoring Second period 01:59 – Bob Goldham (1)
04:11 – Sweeney Schriner (4)
14:11 – Don Metz (1)
14:28 – Syl Apps (4)
16:44 – sh – Don Metz (2)
Syd Howe (2) – 03:08
Alex Motter (1) – 14:03
Carl Liscombe (6) – pp – 15:45
Third period 05:36 – Don Metz (3)
09:25 – Syl Apps (5)
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Turk Broda
April 16 Toronto Maple Leafs 3–0 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Don Metz (4) – 00:14 Second period No scoring
Bob Goldham (2) – 13:32
Billy Taylor (2) – 14:04
Third period No scoring
Turk Broda Goalie stats Johnny Mowers
April 18 Detroit Red Wings 1–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Syd Howe (3) – 01:45 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 07:47 – Sweeney Schriner (5)
09:48 – Pete Langelle (3)
16:17 – Sweeney Schriner (6)
Johnny Mowers Goalie stats Turk Broda
Toronto won series 4–3


Awards edit

Award winners
Calder Trophy:
(Best first-year player)
Grant Warwick, New York Rangers
Hart Trophy:
(Most valuable player)
Tommy Anderson, Brooklyn Americans
Lady Byng Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship)
Syl Apps, Toronto Maple Leafs
O'Brien Cup:
(Stanley Cup runner-up)
Detroit Red Wings
Prince of Wales Trophy:
(Regular season champion)
New York Rangers
Vezina Trophy:
(Fewest goals allowed)
Frank Brimsek, Boston Bruins
All-Star teams
First team   Position   Second team
Frank Brimsek, Boston Bruins G Turk Broda, Toronto Maple Leafs
Earl Seibert, Chicago Black Hawks D Pat Egan, Brooklyn Americans
Tommy Anderson, Brooklyn Americans D Bucko McDonald, Toronto Maple Leafs
Syl Apps, Toronto Maple Leafs C Phil Watson, New York Rangers
Bryan Hextall, New York Rangers RW Gordie Drillon, Toronto Maple Leafs
Lynn Patrick, New York Rangers LW Sid Abel, Detroit Red Wings
Frank Boucher, New York Rangers Coach Paul Thompson, Chicago Black Hawks

Player statistics edit

Scoring leaders edit

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

PLAYER TEAM GP G A PTS PIM
Bryan Hextall New York Rangers 48 24 32 56 30
Lynn Patrick New York Rangers 47 32 22 54 18
Don Grosso Detroit Red Wings 45 23 30 53 13
Phil Watson New York Rangers 48 15 37 52 58
Sid Abel Detroit Red Wings 48 18 31 49 45
Toe Blake Montreal Canadiens 48 17 28 45 29
Bill Thoms Chicago Black Hawks 47 15 30 45 8
Gordie Drillon Toronto Maple Leafs 48 23 18 41 6
Syl Apps Toronto Maple Leafs 38 18 23 41 0
Tommy Anderson Brooklyn Americans 48 12 29 41 64

Source: NHL[5]

Leading goaltenders edit

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 Min GA GAA W L T SO
Frank Brimsek Boston Bruins 47 2930 115 2.35 24 17 6 3
Turk Broda Toronto Maple Leafs 48 2960 136 2.76 27 18 3 6
Jim Henry New York Rangers 48 2960 143 2.90 29 17 2 1
Johnny Mowers Detroit Red Wings 47 2880 144 3.00 19 25 3 5
Sam LoPresti Chicago Black Hawks 47 2860 152 3.19 21 23 3 3
Paul Bibeault Montreal Canadiens 38 2380 131 3.30 17 19 2 1
Chuck Rayner Brooklyn Americans 36 2380 129 3.47 13 21 2 1
Earl Robertson Brooklyn Americans 12 750 46 3.68 3 8 1 0
Bert Gardiner Montreal Canadiens 10 620 42 4.06 1 8 1 0

Coaches edit

Debuts edit

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1941–42 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

Last games edit

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1941–42 (listed with their last team):

See also edit

References edit

  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
  • Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
  • Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
  • 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. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
  • McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1.
Notes
  1. ^ "Amateurs Receive $17,000". Winnipeg Tribune. Winnipeg, Manitoba. April 20, 1942. p. 15. 
  2. ^ "Young Players For N.H.L. Clubs?". Winnipeg Tribune. Winnipeg, Manitoba. August 22, 1942. p. 19. 
  3. ^ Hockey's Book of Firsts, p.71, James Duplacey, JG Press, ISBN 978-1-57215-037-9
  4. ^ Standings: NHL Public Relations Department (2008). Dave McCarthy; et al. (eds.). THE NATIONAL HOCKEY LEAGUE Official Guide & Record Book/2009. National Hockey League. p. 148. ISBN 978-1-894801-14-0.
  5. ^ Dinger 2011, p. 148.

External links edit