1950–51 NHL season
The 1950–51 NHL season was the 34th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams each played 70 games. The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens four games to one for the Stanley Cup to win their fifth Cup in seven years.
Regular season
Final standings
| National Hockey League | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 44 | 13 | 13 | 101 | 236 | 139 | 566 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 70 | 41 | 16 | 13 | 95 | 212 | 138 | 823 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 25 | 30 | 15 | 65 | 173 | 184 | 835 |
| Boston Bruins | 70 | 22 | 30 | 18 | 62 | 178 | 197 | 656 |
| New York Rangers | 70 | 20 | 29 | 21 | 61 | 169 | 201 | 774 |
| Chicago Black Hawks | 70 | 13 | 47 | 10 | 36 | 171 | 280 | 615 |
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gordie Howe | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 43 | 43 | 86 |
| Maurice Richard | Montreal Canadiens | 65 | 42 | 24 | 66 |
| Max Bentley | Toronto Maple Leafs | 67 | 21 | 41 | 62 |
| Sid Abel | Detroit Red Wings | 69 | 23 | 38 | 61 |
| Milt Schmidt | Boston Bruins | 62 | 22 | 39 | 61 |
| Ted Kennedy | Toronto Maple Leafs | 63 | 18 | 43 | 61 |
| Ted Lindsay | Detroit Red Wings | 67 | 24 | 35 | 59 |
Leading Goaltenders
Note: GP = Games played; MIN = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; SO = Shut outs; AVG = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | MINS | GA | SO | AVG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Al Rollins | Toronto Maple Leafs | 40 | 2373 | 70 | 5 | 1.77 |
| Terry Sawchuck | Detroit Red Wings | 70 | 4200 | 139 | 11 | 1.99 |
Stanley Cup Playoffs
All dates in 1951
The second ranked Toronto Maple Leafs eliminated the fourth ranked Boston Bruins in five games, and the third ranked Montreal Canadiens upset first overall Detroit Red Wings in six, setting up a Leafs – Canadiens Stanley Cup final series, won by the Leafs 4–1.
Playoff bracket
| Semifinals | Finals | ||||||||
| 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | |||||||
| 3 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | |||||||
| 3 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | |||||||
| 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | |||||||
| 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | |||||||
| 4 | Boston Bruins | 1 | |||||||
Semi-finals
Boston Bruins vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 28 | Boston Bruins | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0 | |
| March 31 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1 | OT1 |
| April 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 0 | |
| April 3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 1 | |
| April 7 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | |
| April 8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 6 | Boston Bruins | 0 |
- 1 Note: March 31st game called after one overtime due to curfew
Toronto wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1
Montreal Canadiens vs. Detroit Red Wings
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 27 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | 4 OT |
| March 29 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 0 | 3 OT |
| March 31 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 0 | |
| April 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 4 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | |
| April 5 | Montreal Canadiens | 5 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | |
| April 7 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 |
Montreal wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 2
Finals
- see 1951 Stanley Cup Finals
Montreal Canadiens vs. Toronto Maple Leafs
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 11 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Smith |
| April 14 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | OT-M. Richard |
| April 17 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2 | OT-Kennedy |
| April 19 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Watson |
| April 21 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | OT-Barilko (2:53) |
Toronto wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1
Playoff scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Maurice Richard | Montreal Canadiens | 11 | 9 | 4 | 13 |
| Max Bentley | Toronto Maple Leafs | 11 | 2 | 11 | 13 |
| Sid Smith | Toronto Maple Leafs | 11 | 7 | 3 | 10 |
NHL Awards
All-Star teams
| First Team | Position | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| Terry Sawchuk, Detroit Red Wings | G | Chuck Rayner, New York Rangers |
| Red Kelly, Detroit Red Wings | D | Jimmy Thomson, Toronto Maple Leafs |
| Bill Quackenbush, Boston Bruins | D | Leo Reise, Detroit Red Wings |
| Milt Schmidt, Boston Bruins | C | Ted Kennedy, Toronto Maple Leafs
|
| Gordie Howe, Detroit Red Wings | RW | Maurice Richard, Montreal Canadiens |
| Ted Lindsay, Detroit Red Wings | LW | Sid Smith, Toronto Maple Leafs |
First games
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1950–51 (listed with their first team, stars(*) mark start in playoffs):
- Alex Delvecchio, Detroit Red Wings
- Bernie Geoffrion, Montreal Canadiens
- Jean Beliveau, Montreal Canadiens
- Dollard St. Laurent, Montreal Canadiens
- Danny Lewicki, Toronto Maple Leafs
Last games
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1950–51 (listed with their last team):
- Joe Carveth, Detroit Red Wings
- Glen Harmon, Montreal Canadiens
- Wally Stanowski, New York Rangers
- Pat Egan, New York Rangers
- Buddy O'Connor, New York Rangers
- Bill Barilko, Toronto Maple Leafs