List of Stanley Cup playoffs broadcasters (Original Six era)

The Original Six are the six teams (Boston Bruins, Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens, New York Rangers, and Toronto Maple Leafs) that composed the National Hockey League (NHL) for the 25 seasons between the 1942–43 season and the 1967 NHL Expansion. The name is something of a misnomer, since there were other NHL franchises that ceased operations before 1942, including some that were founded before some of the Original Six. The term dates from the 1967 expansion which added six new franchises; hence the six expansion teams and the "Original Six".

Canadian television coverage edit

In the 1952–53 season, CBC began televising Hockey Night in Canada as a simulcast to the radio calls, joining the games in progress either 30 minutes or 60 minutes after the opening faceoff. Until 1961, the CBC was the only operating television network in Canada. Not only that, it was likely that not all Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens playoff games were televised in the early years, including to their local markets.

Year Round Series Games covered Play-by-play Colour commentator(s)
1953 Semifinals Montreal-Chicago Games 1–2, 5–7 (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
1954 Semifinals Detroit-Toronto in Toronto (joined-in-progress) Foster Hewitt
Montreal-Boston in Montreal (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
1955 Semifinals Detroit-Toronto in Toronto (joined-in-progress) Foster Hewitt
Montreal-Boston in Montreal (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
1956 Semifinals Montreal-New York Rangers Games 1–5 (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
Detroit-Toronto Games 3–5 (joined-in-progress) Foster Hewitt
1957 Semifinals Montreal-New York Rangers Games 1–5 (Games in Montreal joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
1958 Semifinals Montreal-Detroit Games 1–4 (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
New York Rangers-Boston Games 3, 6 (joined-in-progress) Foster Hewitt (Game 3)
Danny Gallivan (Game 6)
1959 Semifinals Montreal-Chicago Games 1–6 (Games 1–5 joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
Boston-Toronto Games 1–7 (joined-in-progress)[1][2][3][4][5] Bill Hewitt Foster Hewitt
1960 Semifinals Montreal-Chicago Games 1–4 (joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan
Toronto-Detroit Games 1–6 (joined-in-progress) Bill Hewitt Foster Hewitt
1961 Semifinals Montreal-Chicago Games 1–6 (Games in Montreal are joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan Keith Dancy (in Montreal)
Toronto-Detroit Games 1–5 (Games in Toronto are joined-in progress) Bill Hewitt Foster Hewitt (in Toronto)
1962 Semifinals Montreal-Chicago Games 1–6 (Games 1–5 joined-in-progress) Danny Gallivan Keith Dancy
Toronto-New York Rangers Games 1–6 (Games 1–5 joined-in-progress) Bill Hewitt Jack Dennett (in New York City)
1963 Semifinals Toronto-Montreal Games 1–5 (joined-in-progress)[6] Bill Hewitt (in Toronto)
Danny Gallivan (in Montreal)
Guest sportswriters (in Toronto)
Keith Dancy (in Montreal)
Chicago-Detroit Game 6 Bill Hewitt
1964 Semifinals Montreal-Toronto Games 1–7 (Games 1–6 joined-in-progress)[7][8] Danny Gallivan (in Montreal)
Bill Hewitt (in Toronto)
Keith Dancy (in Montreal)
Guest sportswriters (in Toronto)
Chicago-Detroit Games 2, 5, 7 (joined-in-progress) Bill Hewitt Guest sportswriters
1965 Semifinals Detroit-Chicago Games 2, 5, 7 (Games 2, 5 joined-in-progress)[9][10][11][12] Bill Hewitt Jim Morrison (Game 7)
Montreal-Toronto Games 1–6 (joined-in progress)[13][14][15] Danny Gallivan (in Montreal)
Bill Hewitt (in Toronto)
Keith Dancy (in Montreal)
Guest sportswriters (in Toronto)
1966 Semifinals Montreal-Toronto Games 1–4[16][17] Danny Gallivan (in Montreal)
Bill Hewitt (in Toronto)
Keith Dancy (in Montreal)
Brian McFarlane (in Toronto)
Chicago-Detroit Games 5–6 Bill Hewitt Brian McFarlane
1967 Semifinals Chicago-Toronto Games 1–6 (Games 1–4, 6 joined-in progress)[18][19] Bill Hewitt Brian McFarlane
Montreal-New York Rangers Games 1–4 Danny Gallivan Dan Kelly (in Montreal)
Dick Irvin Jr. (in New York)

Notes edit

American television coverage edit

There was no American network television coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs until 1965–66 (which also marked the first telecasts of an NHL game in color), the second to last season of the Original Six era. The earliest known American television coverage of any kind occurred in 1956, when Games 3 and 5 of the Montreal-New York Rangers playoff series were televised in the New York area on WPIX 11 at 9 p.m. local time. Bud Palmer worked play-by-play for those games on WPIX while and Jack McCarthy hosted from the studio.

Year Round Series Games covered Network Play-by-play Color commentator(s)
1966 Semifinals Games 2, 5 Chicago-Detroit NBC Win Elliot Bill Mazer
1967 Semifinals Game 5 Chicago-Toronto CBS Jim Gordon Stu Nahan

Notes edit

References edit

External links edit