1932 Stanley Cup

Lore & Background

Game two was moved from New York to Boston due to a scheduling conflict at Madison Square Garden. It remains the only neutral site Stanley Cup Finals game to be played in the United States and the first neutral site Stanley Cup Finals game contested by two NHL teams. New York defeated the defending champion Canadiens in a best-of-five 3–1 to advance. The Leafs played two total-goals series: 6–2 against the 1931 finalists Chicago, and 4–3 against the Maroons. Toronto's 'Kid Line' of Jackson, Conacher and Primeau, in their first Finals, combined for eight goals. Toronto's coach Dick Irvin made his second straight Finals appearance, having coached for Chicago in 1931.

In Their Own Story

The air inside Maple Leaf Gardens hung thick with coal smoke and electric tension on April 13, 1932. As the final buzzer cut through the roar of Game 3 against New York, the crowd didn't just cheer—they erupted in a primal scream that seemed to rattle the arena's very foundations. Hap Day, battered and breathing hard, raised his stick high as Ace Bailey skated over, eyes locked on the silver chalice being lowered from the rafters. In that suspended second, 'St. Patricks' faded into a distant memory; the Maple Leafs had officially arrived.

Reader's Guide

The 1932 Stanley Cup was presented to Maple Leafs captain Hap Day by NHL President Frank Calder following the Maple Leafs 6–4 win over the Rangers in game three. The following Maple Leafs players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup: 1931–32 Toronto Maple Leafs. Conn Smythe's son Stafford Smythe is the youngest person to be engraved on the Stanley Cup, engraved in 1932 at age 11. His name was engraved sideways on the original ring and correctly on the newer version. Conn Smythe was engraved twice, once as manager and once as managing director; his name was included only once on the newer version. Smythe wanted to include 17 investors and playoff scores; to have room, five players' names were engraved by last names only: Darragh, Finnigan, Gracie, Miller, Robertson. When the cup was redesigned during the 1957–58 season, the playoff scores, 17 investors, and those five last-name-only players were removed. Those five players played every playoff game and qualified to be on the cup; there was more than enough room to include them.

Did You Know?

• Game two was the only neutral site Stanley Cup Finals game played in the United States.
• Stafford Smythe, at age 11, is the youngest person engraved on the Stanley Cup.
• Conn Smythe was engraved twice on the original cup, once as manager and once as managing director.