Note 2012: Back by popular demand from the EOTP archives

There is a popular myth, longstanding in fact, and surely perpetrated by decades of Maple Leafs frustration that the Montreal Canadiens superiority from the early 1950's to the late 1970's was due to the simple notion that they had territorial rights to the province of Quebec's two greatest hockey talents annually.

The myth has gained ground on the factual truth in many minds based on the coincidental perceived removal of such rights and the Habs descent down to normalness since the heyday of the dynasty years.

But the myth, hockey fans, is complete bunk!

The small sliver of truth and fact behind the one time territorial Habs clause fails to back up the claims of those who have cried, "No Fair," like whining children for years.

I first remember reading about this when I was all of seven years old.

The myth was cemented into young impressionable minds in hockey rinks and schoolyards Canada wide by Maple Leafs fans needing a convenient excuse in explaining their own clubs' decline.

I grew up with kids who believed it then. I know some of them as adults who still believe it today.

The twisted yarn is so maligned, it even now includes the drafting of Guy Lafleur first overall in 1971, as well as others, as part of its Leaf derived legend.

If the myth were true, the Canadiens would have also snapped up Jean Ratelle, Rod Gilbert, and Gil Perreault among others. The possibilities are endless - they would have likely never lost a game, nevermind the Stanley Cup.

Looking back on it all now, on how the mistruth spread, it's become clearer as to why it would permeate logic, given the finger pointing nature of Leafs fans, who have consistantly failed to look in their backyard to explain their failings and past inferiorities.

It's almost as if they agreed in unison that the myth would be their battlecry, their common shield of armour in the face of defeat. One day, somewhere in time, a little light went off in someone's head. I can almost see it now.

"Well no wonder the cheaters won all them damn Cups, the Kweebeckers got the two best Frenchman every year..."

I've long known the truth is othewise, and have long sought out a source that would explain it best, with insightful completeness and perspective.

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Editor's Note: This article is from the EOTP archives, written before the site was added to the SB Nation network by site founder Robert Lefebvre. With news of Jean Beliveau suffering a stroke, I thought it would be good to bring up this celebration of the man's public life as the great statesman of Le Club de Hockey Canadien. Our thoughts are with Jean and his family in this trying time. - Bruce Peter

The Montreal Gazette's Pat Hickey was quoting former colleague Michael Farber, who once observed that "nobody understands ceremony better than the British royal family, the Catholic church and the Montreal Canadiens."

Last night at the Bell Centre, the team honoured the legendary Jean Beliveau with a charity dinner that raised more than $1 million for six children's hospitals across Quebec.

The dinner brought together a star-studded guest list from the worlds of sports, politics and business. A performance by Cirque du Soleil added to the evening's excitement.

But it was Beliveau who stood above the crowd with his regal presence. There have been Canadiens stars like Rocket Richard or Guy Lafleur who have evoked more passion than Beliveau, and there have been players who have scored more goals and more points or won more Stanley Cups.

There has never been a player who demonstrated more class.

I was fortunate enough to watch Beliveau play his last few seasons in Montreal. I have vivid memories of the 1971 Stanley Cup and a hat trick that produced his 500th goal against the Minnesota North Stars. My father would tell me stories about The Rocket and Le Gros Bill, tales that wrapped me in the passion of the sport and the team.

I remember him telling me that Beliveau was retiring. I couldn't understand why - he was still one of the better players around.

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With this year's NHL All-Star Game held in Ottawa. We thought we'd dig into the archoves and pull up Robert and Francis' look back at one of the Ottawa area's greatest Habs legends.

Aurele Joliat joined the Canadiens in 1922, stayed on scene for sixteen seasons, scored 270 career goals, won a Hart Trophy and three Stanley Cups. He departed from the game, owning several Canadiens team records.

Incredibly, the player who hailed from the New Edinburgh borough of Ottawa, came within a few hundred bucks of becoming an Ottawa Senator one year before his acquisition by the Canadiens!

More on that in a bit.

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It appears as though the Montreal Canadiens have already begun making inquiries as to a potential successor for General Manager Pierre Gauthier.

Over the New Year's weekend, I came upon a pair of acquaintances who both mentioned that current Maple Leafs assistant GM Claude Loiselle had been contacted recently by the Montreal organization. I'll be honest, I do hear all kinds of nonsense about the team from fans, rumours often so ridiculous they have absolutely no foundation.

This rumor is a bit different. I've long known that Loiselle has relations living near and in my Cornwall hometown. The two people who mentioned his name over the past few days however, are not related to each other, nor do they know each other personally. One apparently has heard word that it was the parents of the assistant GM who let the rumor slip, while the other has said the former NHL player's wife confided to a friend that the Canadiens had called.

Admittedly, this is nothing much to go on of course. Rumours of this sort fly all the time and little comes of them. I just figured I'd throw this out there, strictly because of how it came to me, and see if there are the usual denials that follow and what type of sentiment Loiselle's name brings.

As for a comment concerning Loiselle's potential appointment, I'd have say first that it flies completely under the radar of names currently being mentioned as replacements for Gauthier. My opinion would be that the Canadiens' fix needs an experienced man, and not the star GM prospect that Loiselle appears to be. Another point of view that has merit is that the Canadien's situation requires fresh eyes.

For more on Loiselle's career, here are two links that I found informative. National Post, Wiki

In other news, the current GM has done a smart and rare in season move, signing defenseman Josh Gorges to a six year contract extension. Story here.

In Day 3 of the Eyes On A Dynasty series, we turn back time to a day likely recounted to our generation by our parents or grandparents. What a momentous occasion it must have been for hockey fans in Canada, being finally able to view games on network television starting in October 1952. Akin to a revolution of the mind, the moving pictures helped connect images for many, brought forth by years of listening to games on radio, reading accounts in newspapers and collecting hockey cards, piecing together how their heroes played the game without ever having seen them. The hockey fan, thanks to television, could now put it all together.

The CBC's first ever hockey telecast in Canada was not a Canadiens or Maple Leafs game, and it came in the spring of 1952. The occasion was the Memorial Cup final, a 10-2 win by the Guelph Biltmore Mad Hatters over the Regina Pats. Unbeknownst to many fans of the game, the very first televised hockey games began south of the border from New York's Madison Square Garden twelve years earlier. On February 25, 1940, the soon to be Cup champion Rangers hosted the Canadiens, then bottom feeders in a seven team NHL. The station broadcasting to a tiny handful of television receivers was W2XBS in New York. The Rangers won that game, 6 to 2.

Of course, hockey fans in Canada in 1940 were still dreaming of the day games would be televised. For most north of the 49th parallel, this occurred on October 11, 1952.

The first National network telecast occured on January 11, 1958, and not the January 23 date that splashed across the screen in the clip you are about to see. Montreal defeated the Rangers on that night by a 9-3 score. 

In terms of Montreal Canadiens history, the beginning of the television era coincided with the club's most celebrated era. Hockey fans in Canada were being born Canadiens fan. There were a number of perfect storms.

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This is an unconfirmed rumour at this point in time, but it appears as though Canadiens' waiver pickup Blair Betts has failed his physical and could be returned to the Philadelphia Flyers. "The possibility of this is currently being studied by the team and they are awaiting confirmation from the NHL," according to Marc-Antoine Godin of La Presse and TVA Sports commentator Jérémie Rainville. Amanda Stein of TSN 990 Sports in Montreal has stated that Betts is actually on a plane and Philly bound. The CBA ruling on such scenarios states:

13.20 (a) The Club acquiring a Player by Waiver claim shall take an Assignment of the Player's SPC. Nevertheless, if the Commissioner determines that a Player acquired by Waiver claim is not physically fit at the time the claim is made, the Club making the claim may refuse to take an Assignment of such Player's SPC and the request for Waivers shall be canceled.

UPDATE: Broad Street Hockey is now reported that the NHL have confirmed Betts' return to Philly.

Editor's Update: In honour of one of the greatest members of the Montreal Canadiens, Eyes on the Prize brings back Robert Lefebvre's 2010 birthday tribute featuring a collection of links pertaining to "Le Gros Bill." We've added Francis Bouchard's post on his 500th goal to make it an even 80!

Happy Birthday Mr. Beliveau, and to Mr. Gerald Lefebvre who will be sharing the day with his son, Robert.

 Today, August 31, 2010, Canadiens legend Jean Beliveau turns 80 in Earth years, but he is a man whose life is as timeless as his legend is eternal.

In Act One of Beliveau's time, he was a graceful and skilled hockey player, a dazzling talent who helped the Canadiens to ten Stanley Cups. He was an exemplary leader on the ice and a role model beyond its bounds. His career in hockey could be said to have been unparalleled.

In Act Two of Jean's time, he parlayed all that the game of hockey did to benefit him, and gracefully and generously used it to the benefit of others through endless acts of charity though his foundation's name and via others. You could look him up under the word "integrity".

As a present to Beliveau fans, especially the younger ones who may not have had the chance to see him play or learn much about him, below are 80 links to explore Le Gros Bill's life and times.

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While the Vancouver Canucks' pursuit of their first Stanley Cup continues, hockey fans might not know that the city of Vancouver once hosted a Cup champion back in 1915.

Back in the formative days of professional hockey, the Vancouver Millionaires, founded by brothers Frank and Lester Patrick and their father Joe, became a hockey powerhouse.

The story of the Patrick family's building of the game of hockey in Western Canada is hockey history at it's most brilliant and breathtaking, and their stamp on the game is immeasurable to this day.

Above: Lester Patrick, Frank Patrick, Lloyd Cook

Lester Patrick had been a great rover and defenceman who first came to prominance in 1900 when he played for McGill University. In 1904, he was the star for the Brandon team in the Northwestern and Manitoba Hockey Leagues and became the first defenceman known to score a goal. With Lester, Brandon challenged the Ottawa Senators for the Stanley Cup in that season, but were beaten badly in the series. Lester Patrick would have more success with the famed Montreal Wanderers in the 1906 and 1907 seasons. Scoring 41 goals as a rushing defenceman in just 28 scheduled games while serving as captain of the Redbands, Patrick led them to the Stanley Cup in both seasons. He was then signed as a high priced free agent by Renfrew in the NHA's first year of operation.

The Vancouver Millionaires franchise had it's origins in Renfrew, Ontario in 1909, on a team then known as the Creamery Kings of the National Hockey Association. The Ambrose O'Brien owned club were nicknamed the Millionaires after it began paying salaries between $3,500 and $5,200 to stars such as the Patrick brothers, Fred "Cyclone" Taylor and Newsy Lalonde.

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While the Vancouver Canucks' pursuit of their first Stanley Cup continues, hockey fans might not know that the city of Vancouver once hosted a Cup champion back in 1915.

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By now you have probably heard something about this and if you haven't, get ready to hear more. Too much even!

As the story goes, a Habs fan named Robert, sitting near Blackhawks backup Marty Turco during the game in Montreal last night had been egging him on with bets that the Canadiens would win. After Mike Cammalleri made it a 1-0 game, the fan handed Turco a fiver with the words "Habs Rule" on it. According to the conversation linked here from the Team 990, the bet doubled, then tripled, and when the money was returned to the fan after the Subban goal, the goalie scrawled his name onto the bill, making it read "Turco Rules."

In the photo's above, you can see Turco accept the bet on the right. On the left is the returned bill.

It'll be interesting to see if the NHL disciplinarians crackdown on Turco for this little bet.

Maybe there will be a twitter comment or an e-mail leak from Colin Campbell's office saying "Bah! I had five on the Hawks too! And I'd have won if it hadn't been for the Jonathan Toews' call on that little fake artist P.K. Subban!"

No word yet on whether the Montreal Police are investigating, but expect Air Canada to revoke Turco's FF miles.

The pics are taken from Tumbler. More from Puck Daddy.

It is a little known fact, a part of local lore in my hometown that the great Maurice "Rocket" Richard scored his first ever goal in a Canadiens uniform during an exhibition game against Boston at the Cornwall Community Arena in October of 1942. Soon, the old dilapitated arena will be greeted by a wrecking ball, wiping out one of the city most notorious landmarks and a building that housed hundreds of great hockey memories for every Cornwallite.

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It is a little known fact, a part of local lore in my hometown that the great Maurice "Rocket" Richard scored his first ever goal in a Canadiens uniform during an exhibition game against Boston at the Cornwall Community Arena in October of 1942. Soon, the old dilapitated arena will be greeted by a wrecking ball, wiping out one of the city most notorious landmarks and a building that housed hundreds of great hockey memories for every Cornwallite.

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Statisticians, team historians and journalist were sent scrambling Sunday evening, searching for the last time a Canadien rookie defensemen notched a hat trick. Alas, it was found that P.K. Subban had turned a unique trick in the hundred plus year's of Canadien's history by becoming the first rookie rearguard to ever net three goals in a game.

Imagine that - it had never been done in the long, storied history of the Habs!

Research shows that only eleven "defensemen" in Canadiens history have combined to post 15 regular season hat tricks in 100 seasons. Subban joins Sheldon Souray, Vladimir Malakhov, Lyle Odelein, Larry Robinson, Guy Lapointe, Sprague Cleghorn, Harry Cameron (2), Bert Corbeau (3), Joe Hall and Howard McNamara on the list of blueliners with three goal games to their credit.

Subban's achievement Sunday serves as just one of many feats that foreshadow what will surely be an illustrious NHL career. Many great things are predicted for P.K.'s future, but does he have a shot at breaking the Canadiens record for goals in one game by a defenseman somewhere down the line?

The record for goals in one game by a Canadiens defenseman is thought to be four, shared by Hall of Famers Sprague Cleghorn and Harry Cameron. But the actual team and NHL record should come attached with asterisk.

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Statisticians, team historians and journalist were sent scrambling Sunday evening, searching for the last time a Canadien rookie defensemen notched a hat trick. Alas, it was found that P.K. Subban had turned a unique trick in the hundred plus year's of Canadien's history by becoming the first rookie rearguard to ever net three goals in a game.

Imagine that - it had never been done in the long, storied history of the Habs!

Research shows that only eleven "defensemen" in Canadiens history have combined to post 15 regular season hat tricks in 100 seasons. Subban joins Sheldon Souray, Vladimir Malakhov, Lyle Odelein, Larry Robinson, Guy Lapointe, Sprague Cleghorn, Harry Cameron (2), Bert Corbeau (3), Joe Hall and Howard McNamara on the list of blueliners with three goal games to their credit.

Subban's achievement Sunday serves as just one of many feats that foreshadow what will surely be an illustrious NHL career. Many great things are predicted for P.K.'s future, but does he have a shot at breaking the Canadiens record for goals in one game by a defenseman somewhere down the line?

The record for goals in one game by a Canadiens defenseman is thought to be four, shared by Hall of Famers Sprague Cleghorn and Harry Cameron. But the actual team and NHL record should come attached with asterisk.

Continue reading this post »

You almost have to credit Gary Bettman and his cronies for the marvelous spin doctoring they have been working since last Tuesday's incident between Zdeno Chara and Max Pacioretty. Who knows if they have placed a gag order on common sence, but in the past five days it is as if the mandate has been to work every angle in removing blame, accountability and responsibility from Chara's actions.

Pathetic, in a word, if you ask me.

If this is how they plan to go about solving the issue of out of control head shots, well the view of utopia is a dark one from a head implanted in the sand.

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Repercussions, reactions and tremors continue in wake of NHL Senior VP of Hockey Operations Mike Murphy decision not to suspend Boston's Zdeno Chara for his hit on the Canadiens' Max Pacioretty. Thus far, there has been shock and dismay in reaction from many quarters. Writers and fans in both NHL cities are baffled and stunned. Air Canada is threatening to pull its advertising. There has also been a reaction directed at the NHL from question period in the Canadian House of Commons and calls to Montreal Police to file complaints over the incident in order to launch an investigation.

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Chara's Intent To Injure Pacioretty Clearly Evident in Photo

In a photo published in today's Journal de Montreal newspaper, the intent of Zdeno Chara to injure Max Pacioretty is clearly displayed by the position of both the defenseman's arms against the Canadiens forward as the check is made.

In the photo, Chara's right arm holds his stick parallel to the top of the boards. His left arm and glove, removed from the top of his stick, after the shoving crosscheck motion, pushes the side of Pacioretty's face into the turnbuckle, which is bent upon impact.

As intent to injure in this instance will be the case in point in determining what type of suspension Chara receives, the photo from Le Journal is quite incriminating, damning.

From the photo, intent is obvious.

Using his large body and stick, Chara rubs out Paciorettty, giving him nowhere to move to escape the hit, while his left hand and extended arm (notice a good six inches of exposed flesh)then clearly guides his head to the vulverable positioning of the glass.

Some opinions expressed so far have claimed that the position of the turnbuckle caused the injury, and that had the hit occurred on the opposite side of the rink Pacioretty would not have been carried off on a stretcher.

Making a solid case in Chara's defense cannot be done by bringing up irrelevant, hypothetical scenarios. Sorry Bob McKenzie, but that's hogwash.

It is not about where the hit didn't occur, it is about where it in fact did occur. It has everything to do with why the hit occurred where it did.

It completely defies logic to suggest that had the glass partition not been there, there would be no injury to speak of. If one wishes to make points based on such hypothetical thinking, it would be no stretch of contrary imagination to say that had the play occurred on the opposite side, Chara does not hit Pacioretty at all, due to there being no partition there to rub him into.

There is much other evidence to consider that spell out Chara' intentions to get a piece of Pacioretty, and some of that intent can be seen in the Bruin's players recent actions when coming in contact with the Montreal forward.

There's no need to rehash all details involving the post-goal love tap from Pacioretty that initiated the feud between the players. Everyone has seen those clips numerous times. Following the winning Pacioretty goal in the January 8 game, Chara received a ten minute misconduct for his actions at 3:43 of the overtime period, wherein he swung punches several times at Canadiens players, namely Pacioretty, Scott Gomez and Hal Gill. Each Chara punch was thrown with his gloves still on his fists.

On February 9, in the infamous Beatdown in Beantown game, there erupts a scrum behind the Canadiens' goal at one point in which Pacioretty is involved, having just slipped a headlock from another Bruins player. As the two are tangling, Chara enters the fray and throws two shots at Pacioretty's head, while the Canadien's arms are held by the other Bruin. Again, Chara kept his gloves on, the virtual third man in the fight.

What is in some manners, very much circumstancial evidence to this case, are the numerous stick whacks administered by Chara to Pacioretty over the past two games. Falling under the heading of simple "hockey plays", the stick slashes to the back of the leg, etc, will have no bearing on proving Chara's intent whatsoever, no matter with what ferocity they were delivered.

Chara's hearing will begin today at noon with calls from the NHL's Mike Murphy to all the parties involved. On the Bruin's side of things, one can assume that the case to be made for Chara will involve stating that there was no intent to injure, that Chara is not that type of player, and that he does not own a previous history of incidents that would otherwise work against him.

However, the photo evidence is there to demonstate intent without much doubt. The actions of Chara since January 8 show in part what type of player he is. Furthermore, incidents unproperly punished since should, but likely will not, constitute a previous case scenario.

Where the rendering of judgement will become especially interesting is when considering what type of hit the NHL qualifies the incident.

As Pacioretty on the play, no longer had possession of the puck and was about to outdistance Chara by the boards, will the check be looked at as a blindsided hit to the head?

Likely not, as Pacioretty was completely aware of Chara's presence. What he was less aware of, in this case, was the turnbuckle. The partition, it could be said, due to Chara moving in on him, is what Pacioretty was blindsided. He cannot be looking both ways at once.

The parameters of such a take differ from the usual "headshot" cases of late, in that the impact was not brought about by Chara's shoulders or body, but by a long outstretched arm guiding Pacioretty's head to the partition.

Now it's time to see what the long arm of the NHL law will do.

My guess would be at least five game.

Here is a closeup of the photo. A good read from Tony Massaroti (what an awesone name, BTW!) of the Boston Globe.

About a week before my 31st birthday on June 14, 1993, a friend of mine gave me a colouring booklet featuring some NHL stars of the time. Included were Patrick Roy, Doug Gilmour and Pavel Bure among others. A couple of days prior to the Canadiens winning their most recent Stanley Cup (sounds better put that way, doesn't it?) I had the idea to colour in the Gretzky pic you see here in Habs colours. If I recall correctly, Montreal were leading the Kings in the final two games to one at the time.

It's just totally weird that I should find this lost coloured drawing of mine - now, of all times. I hadn't seen in well over ten years. I pulled an old hockey book last night - Quest For The Stanley Cup - and there it was, sitting inside the pages!

Weird, and coincidental, because Wayne Gretzky turned 50 this week, Kevin did a post here a few days back on Stan Lee's Guardian's superheroes, and now P.K. Subban flips everybody out by wearing a Hurricanes jersey at the All-Star Game.

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About a week before my 31st birthday on June 14, 1993, a friend of mine gave me a colouring booklet featuring some NHL stars of the time. Included were Patrick Roy, Doug Gilmour and Pavel Bure among others. A couple of days prior to the Canadiens winning their most recent Stanley Cup (sounds better put that way, doesn't it?) I had the idea to colour in the Gretzky pic you see here in Habs colours. If I recall correctly, Montreal were leading the Kings in the final two games to one at the time.

It's just totally weird that I should find this lost coloured drawing of mine - now, of all times. I hadn't seen in well over ten years. I pulled an old hockey book last night - Quest For The Stanley Cup - and there it was, sitting inside the pages!

Weird, and coincidental, because Wayne Gretzky turned 50 this week, Kevin did a post here a few days back on Stan Lee's Guardian's superheroes, and now P.K. Subban flips everybody out by wearing a Hurricanes jersey at the All-Star Game.

Continue reading this post »

I haven't played a game of hockey in a good 17 years, and at that, were talking nothing more than glorified beer league back then. I figured I'd never again indulge in playing my favorite sport, as it was a concussion suffered during my final game when I was 31 that put me out for good. It's the only brain I have right? Good to keep most parts of it working at least some of the time!

Strangely enough, it took an offer from MLX Skates to get me back into a game. About a month ago, the skate company contacted me concerning a promo I could do for them that involved giving their state of the art skates a spin on the ice.

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Hi folks! This is a rare venture for me back onto the blog. I kind of figured, knowing myself, that at some point or another I would be compelled to add my voice to something that was happening. On this Gomez subject, noting Boyle and Berkshire's works of late, I couldn't just add my two cents in as simple comments. This post began that way, then exploded into larger thoughts. - Robert L

I've been watching the Scott Gomez concerns unfold from the sidelines, reading a wide variety of accounts that attempt to understand and underline the negative and positive issues in his game. A few of these takes have practically sought to absolve Gomez, for all the wrong reasons in my opinion, and for that reason I could no longer sit idly by without comment.

What follows may come across as being a critical analysis or rant of the player's style, but it is only meant as an assessment of the situation. All told, Gomez's dilema is really just the story of a player who has long had success come to him by playing a certain way and that style has now hit a wall. This is an attempt to understand why, and look and potential fixes.

Off the very top, there will be no discussion of benching him, reducing his ice time, or sitting him out. Gomez is a good and talented player, and these are simply not options. There is an old adage that says when going through hell, one must keep on going. It is the only way through. There will also be no mention of salary other than noting it here. No one is wishing for Scott to play up to it, we just want that 70 point pace center back on his game.

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Hi folks! This is a rare venture for me back onto the blog. I kind of figured, knowing myself, that at some point or another I would be compelled to add my voice to something that was happening. On this Gomez subject, noting Boyle and Berkshire's works of late, I couldn't just add my two cents in as simple comments. This post began that way, then exploded into larger thoughts. - Robert L

I've been watching the Scott Gomez concerns unfold from the sidelines, reading a wide variety of accounts that attempt to understand and underline the negative and positive issues in his game. A few of these takes have practically sought to absolve Gomez, for all the wrong reasons in my opinion, and for that reason I could no longer sit idly by without comment.

What follows may come across as being a critical analysis or rant of the player's style, but it is only meant as an assessment of the situation. All told, Gomez's dilema is really just the story of a player who has long had success come to him by playing a certain way and that style has now hit a wall. This is an attempt to understand why, and look and potential fixes.

Off the very top, there will be no discussion of benching him, reducing his ice time, or sitting him out. Gomez is a good and talented player, and these are simply not options. There is an old adage that says when going through hell, one must keep on going. It is the only way through. There will also be no mention of salary other than noting it here. No one is wishing for Scott to play up to it, we just want that 70 point pace center back on his game.

Continue reading this post »

It’s very fitting that the Montreal Canadiens visit the Boston Bruins on this Veterans Day in America or Remembrance Day in Canada. These two teams demonstrated solidarity in different ways towards the battle for liberty during World World War II.

One of the prime examples of this was caught on film, after a February 10^th 1942 game between these two teams in Boston Garden. It was the final game for Boston’s famous Kraut Line of Milt Schmidt, Bobby Bauer and Woody Dumart before the reported to duty for the Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) in Ottawa.

During the war, hockey players in the 21 to 25 age group were as subject as any other young Canadian men to be called up by the army. Many enlisted voluntarily. Other hockey players had joined the armed forces before them but the simultaneous enlistment of the Kraut line members, three star players from the defending Stanley Cup champions, was big news.

In the Krauts’ farewell, the line went on a last scoring spree, collecting 10 points in a crushing 8-1 defeat of the Habs. But it is the scene that occurred after the final whistle in this game that is most memorable.

The short clip below from February 10 shows Bruins John Crawford presenting gifts to the Krauts, then you see Dumart (14) and Schmidt (15) being carried onto the shoulders of both Bruins and Canadiens players while the Boston Garden crowd gives them a standing ovation. On-ice rivalry was put aside as the Canadiens joined the Bruins in supporting these young men, who were going to serve their country. On the clip, Schmidt, now 92, mentions that he was deeply touched by the gesture.

"The attitude, feelings of the Montreal Canadiens had, for the Krauts that night, they were fantastic. What more could you ask for. And that’s one of the things that I can remember clearly as if it was yesterday."

Habs players identifiable by numbers are: Cliff Goupille (2), Toe Blake (6), Leo Lamoureux (8), Charlie Sands (9), Murph Chamberlain (12), Terry Reardon (14) and Buddy O’Connor (21). One player carrying Dumart, whose number is not visible, is thought to be Joe Benoît (5).

Schmidt, Bauer and Dumart trained for the RCAF in Ottawa, and bolstered their hockey team so much that it won the Allan Cup that season, as the top amateur team in Canada. They were later posted for overseas service.

Other NHL players including many in that February 10th game were probably thinking they might be the next to join the armed forces, since many were expected to be called at the time. That, of course, would happen. Other Bruins players enlisted, including All-Star goalie Frank Brimsek, an American, who joined the US army in 1943.

As for the Canadiens, eight players from the 1941-42 season, including six who played in that February 10^th game, joined the armed forces in the following months or year. Pete Morin, Ken Reardon and John Quilty enlisted at season’s end. Three others - Cliff Goupille, Tony Demers, and Terry Reardon (Ken’s older brother) - joined early in the 1942-43 season, and were followed at that season’s end by Joe Benoît, John Portland and Gordie Drillon.

As fate would have it, young Canadiens players Maurice Richard and Elmer Lach failed their army physical examinations because of their injury history. Along with Toe Blake, they would form the famous Punch Line in 1943-44 and lead the Canadiens to a Stanley Cup win that year and again after the war, in 1946.

In all, over 100 NHL regulars or prospects from all of the NHL teams were called up or enlisted voluntarily in the Canadian or US Armed Forces during the Second World War.

A list of NHL players in the armed forces as of early November 1942

Of course, everybody probably had in mind that the players who joined could face the dangers of war. Some would be injured and others would make the ultimate sacrifice. Just days prior to that February 10^th game in Boston, a young Detroit Red Wings goaltender named Joe Turner had played his first and only game in the NHL. In January 1945, he would be the second man to have played in the NHL to be killed during the war, just a few months after Red Garrett, who played 23 games for the New York Rangers in the 1942-43 season.

While many NHL players were in the armed forces, a great number of those who remained worked in various war factories in the off-season and during the season. During the Canadiens Stanley Cup winning season of 1943-44, the team held it’s practices in the evenings so that the players could work at their wartime day jobs.

A newspaper article from April 1942

In 1942, there was talk of the NHL suspending operations for the duration. Canadian and American governments agreed with NHL president Frank Calder that hockey should continue, as other pro sports, to help sustain the population’s morale.

On top of losing a good number of players to the armed forces, team managers also had to deal with travel restrictions imposed on others in the 21-25 age group. They showed some solidarity be loaning each other players during the war years.

Since he could not rejoin his Stanley Cup champion teammates in Boston, because of this travel restriction, Terry Reardon was loaned from the Bruins to the Canadiens, prior to the 1941-42 season, in exchange for Paul Gauthier. The Kraut line farewell was actually Reardon’s first game in the United States that season for the Canadiens. Murph Chamberlain was loaned from the Canadiens to the Bruins for the 1942-43 season. As well, with the emergence of Bill Durnan in 1943, the Habs loaned goalie Paul Bibeault to the Maple Leafs to replace Turk Broda, who had joined the armed forces. One year later, Bibeault was loaned to the Bruins who had lost Brimsek.

Meanwhile, NHL teams such as the Canadiens and Bruins contributed to the war effort was by participating in various fundraising events for different causes.

In February 1942, the Canadiens presented their second annual sports festival with proceeds going to the Victory Loan program. The event included hockey games between the Canadiens and the best amateurs (2-1 win by the Canadiens), and between the former Canadiens and Maroons (won 5-3 by the Maroons). Later that year, Canadiens players bought for over $ 10 000 worth of war bonds for that same Victory Loan Program.

Maurice Richard’s very first game with the Canadiens was a pre-season exhibition benefit game held October 9^th 1942 against a newly-formed army team which included Ken Reardon and other enlisted NHL players, such as the Rangers line formed of the Coulville brothers and Alex Shibicky and their goaltender Jim Henry. It was the first of three closely contested benefit games (two Canadiens win and a tie) between these two teams that month. Ken Reardon’s army team, the Ottawa Commandos, won the Allan Cup in 1943. One year later, he would join the war overseas and be decorated for actions of courage during battle.

An ad for the October 9th 1942 pre-season benefit game, Maurice Richard's first game with the Canadiens

That October, the Canadiens and Bruins were to play a series of exhibition games in California with proceeds going to the American war effort. Tommy Gorman and Art Ross had agreed to it but transportation problems forced the tour to be postponed to the spring.

Finally, the Canadiens went alone to the west coast in April, after being eliminated by the Bruins in the Stanley Cup semi-finals. In a tour that was dubbed by the Los Angeles Times as the fabled Les Canadiens Southern California invasion, the Habs won two games against a San Diego team and a four out of seven series (four games to one) against the Victoria B.C. Navy team. The two opponents had their line-ups bolstered by NHL players such as the three Bentley brothers from the Chicago Black Hawks and Turk Broda of the Leafs. Maurice Richard didn’t play because he was sidelined since suffering a broken ankle in a game against the Bruins on December 27.

Prior to that, on December 12 1942, the Bruins and the Canadiens played a rare afternoon game in Boston where all proceeds, over 6 200 $, went to the American Red Cross. Even the players and reporters paid their admission. A 3-2 Boston win, the game was the first one in which the Canadiens had a full line-up in the U.S. and that included players who had passport problems, such as Émile Bouchard, Elmer Lach, Terry Reardon and Maurice Richard, who scored one of the Habs goals.

But for Terry Reardon, it was his farewell game for the duration as he set to join the army. It was also his last game for the Canadiens, as with the war and his loan over, he would be rejoining the Bruins along with the Kraut line members and Frank Brimsek for the 1945-46 season. Meanwhile, Ken Reardon, Joe Benoit and John Quilty are three that would play again for the Habs after the war, their service to their country rendered, as so many others, that we remember and honor on this day.

A 1944 photo

Read also:

Schmidt's finest assist was to the war effort by The Boston Globe

Examining A Wartime Habs Myth On Remembrance Day by Robert Lefebvre

War and Hockey History by Joe Pelletier

Top ten hockey war veterans by the Hockey News

SIHR (Society for International Hockey Research) list of hockey players who served.

Robert L note: As most of you may know, I have somewhat retired from daily Habs blogging, but I hope to pop in here on occassion when opportunity and subject matter conspire to get those juices flowing. I'm pleasantly surprised to be endorsing a product today, not something I'm usually apt to do, but I believe this is something of interest that will benefit the hockey playing members of the EOTP readership.

I was recently contacted by the staff at MLX Skates to help spread the word on a revolutionary new type of hockey skate, one that was created and developed from an Olympic speed skaters point of view.

Several NHL players are just beginning to be turned on to the brand, which offer a very personalized fit. By the sounds of it, MLX has smartly sought to combine the right elements from the speed skating sport and the game of hockey to come up with a skate and boot that offers comfort, agility and better speed. A bonus of the MLX skate is that each pair can be personally customized to suit each player's needs.

From the MLX site:

The problem with typical ice hockey skates is that blade holders are not easily adjustable. They're riveted into a "one size fits all" position that is nowhere near optimal for the way you skate. Everybody has different techniques and body designs that require unique treatment for optimal performance. Whether you're bow-legged, push more forward, or lean backwards on your skates, you need to position your blade so that it matches your unique style of skating.

The product is endorsed by none other than Mario Lemieux, who has this to say after testing them out:

I remember putting on my MLX skates for the first time. I was excited for the opportunity to try a product based on what speed skaters - the fastest skaters on ice - have learned over the past 30 years. My first time on the skates, I was struck by the ease of manoeverability and control. Even though I am no longer playing, I could tell that my balance, agility and speed were all improved by the MLX skate. The speed of the game increases every year. Having the right equipement gives a player that needed edge.

Now I'm no Mario - like who is? - but I will be getting a chance to try out the MLX skates in the very near future. Once I have taken them for a spin, I'll be posting a review and telling you all about the experience.

After the jump, you can check out of a few of these clips I've selected from the dozens of videos for MLX Skates currently posted on You Tube.

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