1958–59 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationOctober 8, 1958 – April 18, 1959
Number of games70
Number of teams6
TV partner(s)CBC, SRC (Canada)
CBS (United States)
Regular season
Season championMontreal Canadiens
Season MVPAndy Bathgate (Rangers)
Top scorerDickie Moore (Canadiens)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsMontreal Canadiens
  Runners-upToronto Maple Leafs

The 1958–59 NHL season was the 42nd season of the National Hockey League. Six teams each played 70 games. The Montreal Canadiens were the Stanley Cup champions as they beat the Toronto Maple Leafs four games to one in the best-of-seven final series. This marked the fourth consecutive Stanley Cup win for the Canadiens as they became the first team to win four in a row.

League business

The NHL and the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association (CAHA) negotiated a new professional-amateur agreement, since the previous deal had expired in 1955, and the groups had operated on a gentleman's agreement.[1] CAHA secretary George Dudley announced that NHL would pay C$40,000 towards developing amateur players, and the agreement set rules for negotiation lists and reserve lists and an earlier deadline to decide which players might be moved from a junior team to a professional team. The CAHA agreed that amateurs aged 17 and older would use same rules as the professionals except for overtime.[2]

Regular season

The Toronto Maple Leafs, last-place finishers the previous season, brought up Johnny Bower to share goaltending duties with Ed Chadwick and bolstered the defence by adding Carl Brewer and Allan Stanley to aid Tim Horton and Bobby Baun.

Ralph Backstrom and Jean Beliveau each had two goals apiece in a 9–1 Montreal win at the Montreal Forum on October 23. Rudy Pilous, coach of the Black Hawks, was displeased with his team's performance and fined his team $100 for the poor performance.

Beliveau had a hat trick November 29 as Montreal beat Detroit 6–2 at the Forum. Gordie Howe was injured in a collision with Doug Harvey near the end of the first period and was taken to hospital, returning for the third period. The next night, Montreal defeated the Red Wings 7–0 as Jacques Plante got his third shutout of the season.

On January 3, Harvey was back in the Canadiens' lineup and scored two goals in a 5–1 win over the New York Rangers at the Forum. In the last minute of play, Plante got two penalties, one of them a major that sparked the fight. Jimmy Bartlett had skated into Plante, and Plante retaliated by punching Bartlett, provoking a bench-clearing brawl. Referee Dalton McArthur gave Bartlett a double major, one for charging and one for fighting, and a misconduct penalty.

On February 1, the Rangers downed the Red Wings 5–4 at Madison Square Garden. Lou Fontinato became incensed when Gordie Howe struck Eddie Shack with his stick, and challenged the right wing. Howe broke Fontinato's nose in the fight. On February 5, the Rangers beat the Wings 5–0 on Worsley's shutout. Detroit coach Sid Abel, formerly Howe's centerman, fined 14 players $100 each for playing what he described as "the worst game of hockey he had seen in 20 years".

On February 15 at Madison Square Garden, Worsley had Montreal shut out with ten minutes remaining. Then the Canadiens scored 5 goals to win 5–1. Coach Phil Watson ordered every player except Worsley out on the ice for an after-game workout. Watson said Worsley hadn't played so badly. General manager Muzz Patrick said the workout was in lieu of fines.

With five games left in the season, the Rangers had a seven-point lead over Toronto. Then the Rangers went into a tailspin, and the Leafs got hot. The key game was played March 19 between Toronto and the Canadiens. Plante could not play due to a severe case of boils, and so the Canadiens used Claude Pronovost in goal. He let in five goals before coach Toe Blake replaced him in the third period with Claude Cyr; it was Cyr's first and last NHL game. Toronto won 6–3. The Canadiens brought up Charlie Hodge from the Montreal Royals and on March 22, he beat the Rangers 4–2. The Rangers still had a chance to make the playoffs if Detroit beat Toronto. The Leafs won 6–4 and ousted the Rangers from the playoffs.

The Montreal Canadiens again won the regular season standings; their players dominated the All-Star nominations (with six of a possible twelve, the same number as in 1956) and trophies as Jacques Plante won his fourth straight Vezina Trophy, Tom Johnson won the James Norris Memorial Trophy, ending teammate Doug Harvey's four-year monopoly, and Dickie Moore won the Art Ross Trophy, setting a new record for total points in a season: with a 41-goal, 55-assist campaign, Moore broke Howe's league record by a single point.

This season marked the final time until 1967 with an active player who had played for a team not in the Original Six. Former Brooklyn Americans player Ken Mosdell suited up for two postseason games for the Canadiens that year, and retired after Montreal won the Cup.

Final standings

National Hockey League[3]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1Montreal Canadiens70391813258158+10091
2Boston Bruins7032299205215−1073
3Chicago Black Hawks70282913197208−1169
4Toronto Maple Leafs70273211189201−1265
5New York Rangers70263212201217−1664
6Detroit Red Wings7025378167218−5158

Record vs. opponents

1958–59 NHL Records [4]
Team BOS CHI DET MTL NYR TOR
Boston 6–7–18–5–16–6–26–5–36–6–2
Chicago 7–6–16–7–11–8–57–4–37–4–3
Detroit 5–8–17–6–11–9–46–7–16–7–1
Montreal 6–6–28–1–59–1–48–5–18–5–1
New York 5–6–34–7–37–6–15–8–15–5–4
Toronto 6–6–24–7–37–6–15–8–15–5–4

Playoffs

Playoff bracket

Semifinals Stanley Cup Finals
      
1 Montreal 4
3 Chicago 2
1 Montreal 4
4 Toronto 1
2 Boston 3
4 Toronto 4

Semifinals

(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (3) Chicago Black Hawks

Following game six, Ottawa Journal sports editor Bill Westwick quoted league president Clarence Campbell as accusing the referee Red Storey of "freezing" in the final minutes of the near-riotous game.[5] Storey subsequently resigned as a referee. Campbell stated that Westwick took the words out of context, accused him of "breaking confidence" in the article.[5][6] Westwick's fellow newsmen defended his article and did not question its veracity.[7]

March 24 Chicago Black Hawks 2–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Tod Sloan (1) – pp – 16:34 First period 10:46 – Claude Provost (1)
No scoring Second period 04:05 – Henri Richard (1)
19:23 – ppMarcel Bonin (1)
Tod Sloan (2) – 03:26 Third period 02:04 – Marcel Bonin (2)
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Jacques Plante
March 26 Chicago Black Hawks 1–5 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Eric Nesterenko (1) – sh – 14:35 First period 05:56 – Marcel Bonin (3)
12:01 – ppBernie Geoffrion (1)
12:48 – Dickie Moore (1)
No scoring Second period 08:29 – ppJean Beliveau (1)
17:06 – pp – Marcel Bonin (4)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Jacques Plante
March 28 Montreal Canadiens 2–4 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period 11:17 – Al Arbour (1)
13:15 – Lorne Ferguson (1)
Marcel Bonin (5) – 06:30 Second period 16:44 – Ed Litzenberger (1)
Henri Richard (2) – 08:48 Third period 19:54 – Glen Skov (1)
Jacques Plante Goalie stats Glenn Hall
March 31 Montreal Canadiens 1–3 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
Marcel Bonin (6) – pp – 04:33 First period 18:08 – Bobby Hull (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 13:26 – Lorne Ferguson (2)
19:49 – Glen Skov (2)
Jacques Plante Goalie stats Glenn Hall
April 2 Chicago Black Hawks 2–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 01:34 – Andre Pronovost (1)
10:48 – ppMarcel Bonin (7)
14:35 – Claude Provost (2)
16:38 – ppBernie Geoffrion (2)
Tod Sloan (3) – pp – 03:00 Second period No scoring
Eric Nesterenko (2) – 05:11 Third period No scoring
Glenn Hall Goalie stats Jacques Plante
April 4 Montreal Canadiens 5–4 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
Doug Harvey (1) – 02:20 First period 13:05 – ppTed Lindsay (2)
Dickie Moore (2) – pp – 09:09
Claude Provost (3) – sh – 10:22
Second period 05:52 – Ed Litzenberger (2)
Dickie Moore (3) – 13:18
Claude Provost (4) – 18:32
Third period 03:24 – pp – Ed Litzenberger (3)
14:32 – Ted Lindsay (2)
Jacques Plante Goalie stats Glenn Hall
Montreal won series 4–2

(2) Boston Bruins vs. (4) Toronto Maple Leafs

March 24 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–5 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
No scoring First period 07:50 – Jerry Toppazzini (1)
Gerry Ehman (1) – 06:07 Second period 10:53 – Leo Labine (1)
11:53 – Vic Stasiuk (1)
18:45 – shLarry Leach (1)
No scoring Third period 06:18 – Don McKenney (1)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Harry Lumley
March 26 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–4 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Dick Duff (1) – 15:45 First period 10:00 – Fleming MacKell (1)
12:14 – pp – Fleming MacKell (2)
Ron Stewart (1) – 08:09 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 15:59 – Jean-Guy Gendron (1)
19:15 – Leo Labine (2)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Harry Lumley
March 28 Boston Bruins 2–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Vic Stasiuk (2) – pp – 02:43 First period 16:21 – Bob Pulford (1)
Vic Stasiuk (3) – 17:34 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 17:08 – Gerry Ehman (2)
No scoring First overtime period 05:02 – Gerry Ehman (3)
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Johnny Bower
March 31 Boston Bruins 2–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 06:58 – ppGerry Ehman (4)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Jerry Toppazzini (2) – 02:02
Bronco Horvath (1) – 07:20
Third period 02:46 – Brian Cullen (1)
No scoring First overtime period 11:21 – ppFrank Mahovlich (1)
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 2 Toronto Maple Leafs 4–1 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Bert Olmstead (1) – pp – 09:26 First period No scoring
Dick Duff (2) – 06:37 Second period No scoring
Frank Mahovlich (2) – 00:19
Bob Pulford (2) – sh – 09:02
Third period 11:25 – Jerry Toppazzini (3)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Harry Lumley
April 4 Boston Bruins 5–4 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Jerry Toppazzini (4) – pp – 07:28
Don McKenney (2) – 09:34
First period 15:13 – ppBert Olmstead (2)
Johnny Bucyk (1) – 09:57
Johnny Bucyk (2) – 17:19
Second period 03:50 – Frank Mahovlich (3)
Bronco Horvath (2) – 12:56 Third period 02:55 – Gerry Ehman (5)
07:37 – sh – Frank Mahovlich (4)
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 7 Toronto Maple Leafs 3–2 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Larry Regan (1) – pp – 05:33 First period 01:11 – ppVic Stasiuk (4)
No scoring Second period 14:33 – Leo Boivin (1)
Bob Pulford (3) – 08:36
Gerry Ehman (6) – 17:27
Third period No scoring
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Harry Lumley
Toronto won series 4–3

Stanley Cup Finals

April 9 Toronto Maple Leafs 3–5 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Dick Duff (3) – sh – 04:53
Billy Harris (1) – 06:24
First period 00:36 – Henri Richard (3)
15:41 – Ralph Backstrom (1)
Ron Stewart (2) – 18:26 Second period 16:28 – Andre Pronovost (2)
No scoring Third period 11:59 – Marcel Bonin (8)
15:02 – ppDickie Moore (4)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Jacques Plante
April 11 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–3 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 05:12 – ppTom Johnson (1)
Ron Stewart (3) – 11:41 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 05:02 – Claude Provost (5)
18:33 – Claude Provost (6)
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Jacques Plante
April 14 Montreal Canadiens 2–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Marcel Bonin (9) – pp – 17:31 First period 16:29 – Billy Harris (2)
No scoring Second period 17:11 – Bert Olmstead (3)
Dickie Moore (5) – 01:30 Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 10:06 – Dick Duff (4)
Jacques Plante Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 16 Montreal Canadiens 3–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Ab McDonald (1) – 09:54
Ralph Backstrom (2) – 13:01
Bernie Geoffrion (3) – 15:56
Third period 03:45 – Billy Harris (3)
18:36 – Frank Mahovlich (5)
Jacques Plante Goalie stats Johnny Bower
April 18 Toronto Maple Leafs 3–5 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 04:13 – ppRalph Backstrom (3)
13:42 – Bernie Geoffrion (4)
16:26 – Tom Johnson (2)
Bob Pulford (4) – pp – 04:27 Second period 09:55 – Marcel Bonin (10)
19:25 – pp – Bernie Geoffrion (5)
Frank Mahovlich (6) – 12:07
Bert Olmstead (4) – 16:19
Third period No scoring
Johnny Bower Goalie stats Jacques Plante
Montreal won series 4–1

Awards

1958–59 NHL awards
Prince of Wales Trophy:
(Regular season champion)
Montreal Canadiens
Art Ross Trophy:
(Top scorer)
Dickie Moore, Montreal Canadiens
Calder Memorial Trophy:
(Best first-year player)
Ralph Backstrom, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Trophy:
(Most valuable player)
Andy Bathgate, New York Rangers
James Norris Memorial Trophy:
(Best defenceman)
Tom Johnson, Montreal Canadiens
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship)
Alex Delvecchio, Detroit Red Wings
Vezina Trophy:
(Goaltender of team with the best goals-against average)
Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens

All-Star teams

First team  Position  Second team
Jacques Plante, Montreal Canadiens G Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings
Tom Johnson, Montreal Canadiens D Marcel Pronovost, Detroit Red Wings
Bill Gadsby, New York Rangers D Doug Harvey, Montreal Canadiens
Jean Beliveau, Montreal Canadiens C Henri Richard, Montreal Canadiens
Andy Bathgate, New York Rangers RW Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings
Dickie Moore, Montreal Canadiens LW Alex Delvecchio, Detroit Red Wings

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
Dickie MooreMontreal Canadiens7041559661
Jean BeliveauMontreal Canadiens6445469167
Andy BathgateNew York Rangers7040488848
Gordie HoweDetroit Red Wings7032467857
Ed LitzenbergerChicago Black Hawks7033447737
Bernie GeoffrionMontreal Canadiens5922446630
George "Red" SullivanNew York Rangers7021426356
Andy HebentonNew York Rangers703329628
Don McKenneyBoston Bruins7032306220
Tod SloanChicago Black Hawks5927356279

[8]

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Min = 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
Jacques PlanteMontreal Canadiens6740001442.153816139
Johnny BowerToronto Maple Leafs3923401072.74151773
Glenn HallChicago Black Hawks7042002082.972829131
Lorne WorsleyNew York Rangers6740011992.972630112
Ed ChadwickToronto Maple Leafs311860922.97121543
Terry SawchukDetroit Red Wings6740202023.01233685
Don SimmonsBoston Bruins5834801833.16242683

Coaches

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1958–59 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1958–59 (listed with their last team):

Broadcasting

Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and selected Stanley Cup playoff games. Games were not broadcast in their entirety until the 1968–69 season, and were typically joined in progress, while the radio version of HNIC aired games in their entirety.

In the U.S., this was the third season of a four-year deal with CBS to televise Saturday afternoon regular season games. This season, CBS aired games from October to March.

See also

References

  • Coleman, Charles L. (1976), Trail of the Stanley Cup, Vol III, Sherbrooke, Quebec: Progressive Publications
  • 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.
  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, New York: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
  • Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: 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.
  • Duplacey, James (2008), Hockey's Book of Firsts, North Dighton, Massachusetts: JG Press, ISBN 978-1-57215-037-9
  • Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
  • McFarlane, Brian (1969), 50 Years Of Hockey, Winnipeg, MAN: Greywood Publishing, ASIN B000GW45S0
  • McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1.
Notes
  1. Sullivan, Jack (May 21, 1958). "Allan Cup Champions To Defend World Ice Crown". Brandon Daily Sun. Brandon, Manitoba. p. 11.Free access icon
  2. "Pro-Amateur Agreement Reached". Winnipeg Free Press. Winnipeg, Manitoba. January 3, 1959. p. 38.Free access icon
  3. "1958–1959 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
  4. "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Campbell Says". Ottawa Journal. Ottawa, Ontario. United Press International. April 7, 1959. p. 5.Free access icon
  6. Lake, Stuart (August 30, 1973). "After 47 years, Bill Westwick writes his final 30". Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Ontario. p. 27.Free access icon
  7. MacCabe, Eddie (June 21, 1990). "Bill Westwick: Good reporter, good man, good friend". Ottawa Citizen. Ottawa, Ontario. p. 31.Free access icon
  8. Dinger 2011, p. 149.
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