1971–72 NHL Season
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The 1971–72 NHL season was the 55th
season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's axial tilt, tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperat ...
of the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; , ''LNH'') is a professional ice hockey league in North America composed of 32 teams25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. The NHL is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Cana ...
. Fourteen teams each played 78 games. The
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...
beat the
New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in New York City. The Rangers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The team plays ...
four games to two for their second
Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...
in three seasons in the finals.


Amateur draft

The 1971 NHL amateur draft was held on June 10 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in
Montreal Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
,
Quebec Quebec is Canada's List of Canadian provinces and territories by area, largest province by area. Located in Central Canada, the province shares borders with the provinces of Ontario to the west, Newfoundland and Labrador to the northeast, ...
.
Guy Lafleur Guy Damien Lafleur (September 20, 1951 – April 22, 2022), nicknamed "the Flower" and "Le Démon Blond", was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was the first player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to score 50 goals in six c ...
was selected first overall by the
Montreal Canadiens The Montreal Canadiens (), officially ' ( Canadian Hockey Club) and colloquially known as the Habs, are a professional ice hockey team based in Montreal. The Canadiens compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic D ...
.


Regular season

Among notable first year players this season were Montreal's
Guy Lafleur Guy Damien Lafleur (September 20, 1951 – April 22, 2022), nicknamed "the Flower" and "Le Démon Blond", was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was the first player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to score 50 goals in six c ...
, who despite scoring 29 goals was felt lacking in comparison to newly retired superstar
Jean Beliveau Jean may refer to: People * Jean (female given name) * Jean (male given name) * Jean (surname) Fictional characters * Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character * Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations * Jea ...
by the Canadiens' faithful; Buffalo's
Rick Martin Richard Lionel Martin (; ; July 26, 1951March 13, 2011) was a Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres and Los Angeles Kings for 11 seasons between 1971 and 1982. He featured in the 1975 Stanley ...
, who set a new record for goals by a rookie with 44; Gilles Meloche, goaltender for the
California Golden Seals The California Golden Seals were a professional ice hockey club that competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1967–68 NHL season, 1967 to 1975–76 NHL season, 1976. Based in Oakland, California, they played their home games at the Oa ...
who acquired him from Chicago; and Ken Dryden, the sensational new goalie for the Canadiens, who despite winning the
Conn Smythe Trophy The Conn Smythe Trophy () is awarded annually to the most valuable player (MVP) of his team during the National Hockey League's (NHL) Stanley Cup playoffs. It is named after Conn Smythe, the longtime owner, general manager, and head coach of the ...
as playoff MVP the previous season was awarded the
Calder Memorial Trophy The Calder Memorial Trophy is an annual award given "to the player selected as the most proficient in his first year of competition in the National Hockey League (NHL)." It is named after Frank Calder, the first president of the NHL. Serving ...
as rookie of the year, on the grounds that he had only played six prior regular season games. 43-year-old
Gump Worsley Lorne John "Gump" Worsley (May 14, 1929 – January 26, 2007) was a Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. Born and raised in Montreal, Quebec, 'Gump' was given his nickname because friends thought he looked like a comic-strip character An ...
, left unprotected (and unclaimed) in the waiver draft by the
Minnesota North Stars The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, and the team's colors for ...
, led the league with a 2.12 goals against average. Less fortunately, Philadelphia goaltender Bruce Gamble suffered a heart attack during a 3–1 win in Vancouver in February and was forced to retire from hockey. In what was widely seen as a preemptive move to help forestall the incipient
World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association () was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972–73 WHA season, 1972 to 1978–79 WHA season, 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (N ...
, the NHL announced that Atlanta and Long Island had been granted expansion franchises to begin play in the 1972–73 season. The bids had been hastily put together in comparison with the
1967 Events January * January 1 – Canada begins a year-long celebration of the 100th anniversary of Canadian Confederation, Confederation, featuring the Expo 67 World's Fair. * January 6 – Vietnam War: United States Marine Corps and Army of ...
and
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
expansions. Milestones this season included Gerry Cheevers setting an NHL record for the
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...
(which has yet to be surpassed) with 33 straight undefeated games. On February 12, it was Gordie Howe Day in Detroit as his famous #9 was retired. On March 25,
Bobby Hull Robert Marvin Hull (January 3, 1939 – January 30, 2023) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. His blond hair, skating speed, end-to-end rushes, and ability to shoot t ...
scored his 600th NHL goal in a 5–5 tie with Boston at the Boston Garden. An exciting scoring race in which Ranger Jean Ratelle had been leading Bruin
Phil Esposito Philip Anthony Esposito ( , ; born February 20, 1942) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, coach and executive, and current broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Lightning. A member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, he played 18 seasons in ...
was shortcircuited when Ratelle broke his ankle in a game against California, putting him out for over a month of play. Ratelle still ended up third in scoring behind Esposito and Bruin
Bobby Orr Robert Gordon Orr (born March 20, 1948) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey player, widely acknowledged as one of the greatest players of all time. Orr used his skating speed, scoring, and play-making abilities to revolutionize the ...
, while his teammates Vic Hadfield and Rod Gilbert – all three linemates on the renowned GAG line—finished fourth and fifth. A resurgent Frank Mahovlich, rejuvenated by a trade to Montreal, finished sixth, while
Bobby Hull Robert Marvin Hull (January 3, 1939 – January 30, 2023) was a Canadian professional ice hockey player who is widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time. His blond hair, skating speed, end-to-end rushes, and ability to shoot t ...
, in his final year in Chicago, finished seventh in points and second to Esposito in goals. Although they had fallen somewhat from their overwhelming offensive dominance from the previous season, once again the Boston Bruins had the best record in the league, while the
Chicago Black Hawks Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
topped the West Division.


Final standings


Playoffs

Despite injuries to several key players, notably leading scorer Jean Ratelle, the New York Rangers beat the defending champions Montreal Canadiens in the first round of the playoffs, with strong play from unheralded players such as Walt Tkaczuk. The Rangers went on the sweep the Chicago Black Hawks in four straight games during the semi-final. Chicago had beaten the
Pittsburgh Penguins The Pittsburgh Penguins (colloquially known as the Pens) are a professional ice hockey team based in Pittsburgh. The Penguins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), E ...
in four straight games. Boston easily handled the
Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. The Maple Leafs compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the A ...
in five games, facing a St. Louis Blues team that had eked out a hard-fought seven-game victory against the North Stars in the quarter-final. The powerful Bruins set a record for the most goals in a four-game series by pounding the Blues 28–8 over a four-game sweep.


Playoff bracket

For decades, the NHL had used first round playoff formats where first-place teams played third-place teams, and second-place teams played fourth-place teams. In response to the prior year when the
Minnesota North Stars The Minnesota North Stars were a professional ice hockey team in the National Hockey League (NHL) for 26 seasons, from 1967 to 1993. The North Stars played their home games at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota, and the team's colors for ...
appeared to intentionally lose games to finish fourth in the West instead of third and avoid a tougher match-up with first-place Chicago, and also the
Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division (NHL), Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference (NHL), Eastern Conference. The t ...
were "rewarded" for finishing first in the East with a tough series against eventual Stanley Cup Champion Montreal, the first round match-ups were changed so that the first-place team in each division played the fourth-place team, and the other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. The inter-divisional semifinals were thus modified accordingly, with winner of each #1 vs. #4 series now playing the winner of the #2 vs. #3 series in the other division. The winners of the semifinals then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals. Teams remained competing in a best-of-seven series in each round (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series).


Quarterfinals


(E1) Boston Bruins vs. (E4) Toronto Maple Leafs

The Boston Bruins finished first in the league with 119 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs finished fourth in the East Division with 80 points. This was the twelfth playoff series between these two teams with Toronto winning eight of the eleven previous series. They last met in the 1969 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which Boston won in four games. Boston won this year's six-game regular season series earning nine of twelve points.


(E2) New York Rangers vs. (E3) Montreal Canadiens

The New York Rangers finished second in the East Division with 109 points. The Montreal Canadiens finished third with 108 points. This was the tenth playoff series between these two teams with Montreal winning five of the nine previous series. They last met in the 1969 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which Montreal won in four games. New York won this year's six-game regular season series earning eight of twelve points.


(W1) Chicago Black Hawks vs. (W4) Pittsburgh Penguins

The Chicago Black Hawks finished first in the West Division with 107 points. The Pittsburgh Penguins finished fourth in the West Division with 66 points (winning the tiebreaker with Philadelphia in head-to-head season series 3–2–1). This was the first playoff series between these two teams. Chicago won this year's six-game regular season series earning eleven of twelve points.


(W2) Minnesota North Stars vs. (W3) St. Louis Blues

The Minnesota North Stars finished second in the West Division with 86 points. The St. Louis Blues finished third with 67 points. This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams with St. Louis winning two of the three previous series. They last met in the previous year's Quarterfinals which the North Stars won in six games. Minnesota won four of the six games in this year's regular season series. Kevin O'Shea's series-winning goal in overtime of Game 7 was the first time in Stanley Cup Playoff history that the road team won Game 7 in overtime.


Semifinals


(E1) Boston Bruins vs. (W3) St. Louis Blues

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams. Their only previous series came in the 1970 Stanley Cup Finals which Boston won in four games. Boston won this year's six-game regular season series earning nine of twelve points.


(W1) Chicago Black Hawks vs. (E2) New York Rangers

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams with Chicago winning all three previous series. They last met in the previous year's Semifinals which the Black Hawks won in seven games. New York won this year's six-game regular season series earning seven of twelve points.


Stanley Cup Finals

This was the eighth series between these two teams with Boston winning five of the seven previous series. They last met in the 1970 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which the Bruins won in six games. The Bruins made their twelfth appearance in the Finals; they most recently made the Finals in
1970 Events January * January 1 – Unix time epoch reached at 00:00:00 UTC. * January 5 – The 7.1 1970 Tonghai earthquake, Tonghai earthquake shakes Tonghai County, Yunnan province, China, with a maximum Mercalli intensity scale, Mercalli ...
where they defeated the St. Louis Blues in four games. This was the New York Rangers eighth Finals appearance and first since
1950 Events January * January 1 – The International Police Association (IPA) – the largest police organization in the world – is formed. * January 5 – 1950 Sverdlovsk plane crash, Sverdlovsk plane crash: ''Aeroflot'' Lisunov Li-2 ...
where they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in seven games. Boston won five of the six games in this year's regular season series.


Awards


All-Star teams


Player statistics


Scoring leaders

Source: NHL.


Leading goaltenders

''Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts''


Other statistics

* Plus/Minus leader: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins


Coaches


East

*Boston Bruins: Tom Johnson *Buffalo Sabres: George "Punch" Imlach and Joe Crozier *Detroit Red Wings: Johnny Wilson *Montreal Canadiens:
Scotty Bowman William Scott Bowman (born September 18, 1933) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey head coach. He holds the record for most wins in National Hockey League (NHL) history, with 1,244 wins in the regular season and 223 in the Stanley Cup ...
*New York Rangers: Emile Francis *Toronto Maple Leafs: John McLellan *Vancouver Canucks: Hal Laycoe


West

*California Golden Seals: Vic Stasiuk *Chicago Black Hawks: Billy Reay *Los Angeles Kings: Fred Glover *Minnesota North Stars: Jack Gordon *Philadelphia Flyers: Fred Shero *Pittsburgh Penguins: Red Kelly *St. Louis Blues: Sid Abel, Bill McCreary Sr. and Al Arbour


Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1971–72 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): * Terry O'Reilly, Boston Bruins *
Rick Martin Richard Lionel Martin (; ; July 26, 1951March 13, 2011) was a Canadian professional ice hockey winger who played in the NHL with the Buffalo Sabres and Los Angeles Kings for 11 seasons between 1971 and 1982. He featured in the 1975 Stanley ...
, Buffalo Sabres * Craig Ramsay, Buffalo Sabres *
Marcel Dionne Marcel Elphège Dionne (born August 3, 1951) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey centre (ice hockey), centre. He played 18 seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings and New York Rangers be ...
, Detroit Red Wings * Billy Smith, Los Angeles Kings *
Guy Lafleur Guy Damien Lafleur (September 20, 1951 – April 22, 2022), nicknamed "the Flower" and "Le Démon Blond", was a Canadian professional ice hockey player. He was the first player in National Hockey League (NHL) history to score 50 goals in six c ...
, Montreal Canadiens * Bill Clement, Philadelphia Flyers * Dave Schultz, Philadelphia Flyers * Mike Murphy, St. Louis Blues * Wayne Stephenson, St. Louis Blues * Rick Kehoe, Toronto Maple Leafs * Jocelyn Guevremont, Vancouver Canucks * Dennis Kearns, Vancouver Canucks


Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1971–72 listed with their last team: * John McKenzie, Boston Bruins * Ted Green, Boston Bruins * Dick Duff, Buffalo Sabres * Eric Nesterenko, Chicago Black Hawks * Ab McDonald, Detroit Red Wings * Bob Pulford, Los Angeles Kings * J.C. Tremblay, Montreal Canadiens * Phil Goyette, New York Rangers * Val Fonteyne, Pittsburgh Penguins * Bill Hicke, Pittsburgh Penguins * Brit Selby, St. Louis Blues * Don Marshall, Toronto Maple Leafs * Rosaire Paiement, Vancouver Canucks ''NOTE: McKenzie, Green, Tremblay, Fonteyne, Selby, Nesterenko, McDonald, Hicke and Paiement would continue their careers in the
World Hockey Association The World Hockey Association () was a professional ice hockey major league that operated in North America from 1972–73 WHA season, 1972 to 1978–79 WHA season, 1979. It was the first major league to compete with the National Hockey League (N ...
.''


Broadcasting

''
Hockey Night in Canada ''Hockey Night in Canada'' (often abbreviated ''Hockey Night'' or ''HNiC'') is a long-running program of broadcast ice hockey play-by-play coverage in Canada. With roots in pioneering hockey coverage on private radio stations as early as 1923, ...
'' on
CBC Television CBC Television (also known as CBC TV, or simply CBC) is a Television in Canada, Canadian English-language terrestrial television, broadcast television network owned by the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the national public broadcasting, p ...
televised Saturday night regular season games. ''HNIC'' also produced Wednesday night regular season game telecasts for CTV. Due to a National Association of Broadcast Employees and Technicians strike that affected the CBC, this season's Stanley Cup playoff games aired instead on CTV. This was the sixth and final season under the U.S. rights agreement with CBS, airing Sunday afternoon regular season and playoff games. CBS also televised Game 6 of the 1972 Stanley Cup Finals on a Thursday night.
NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the NBC Entertainment division of NBCUniversal, a subsidiary of Comcast. It is one of NBCUniversal's ...
then signed a new contract to broadcast games.


See also

*
List of Stanley Cup champions The Stanley Cup is a trophy awarded annually to the Season structure of the NHL, playoff champion club of the National Hockey League (NHL). It was donated by the Governor General of Canada Frederick Stanley, 16th Earl of Derby, Lord Stanley of Pr ...
* 1971 NHL amateur draft * 1971–72 NHL transactions * 25th National Hockey League All-Star Game *
National Hockey League All-Star Game The National Hockey League All-Star Game () is an exhibition ice hockey tournament that is traditionally held during the regular season of the National Hockey League (NHL), with many of the League's star players playing against each other. The ga ...
*
Lester Patrick Trophy The Lester Patrick Trophy has been presented by the National Hockey League and USA Hockey since 1966 to honor a recipient's contribution to ice hockey in the United States. It is considered a non-NHL trophy because it may be awarded to players, ...
* Ice hockey at the 1972 Winter Olympics * 1971 in sports * 1972 in sports


References

* * * * ;Notes


External links


Hockey DatabaseNHL.comHickoksports.com
{{DEFAULTSORT:NHL, 1971-72 1971–72 in Canadian ice hockey by league 1971–72 in American ice hockey by league