1946–47 NHL season
Toronto Maple Leafs win sixth Stanley Cup.
The 1946–47 NHL season was the 30th season of the National Hockey League, with six teams playing 60 games each. The Toronto Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup Finals against the Montreal Canadiens, capturing their sixth championship.
Quick Facts
- League
- National Hockey League
- Sport
- Ice hockey
- Duration
- October 16, 1946 – April 19, 1947
- Top scorer
- Max Bentley (Black Hawks)
- Finals
- Stanley Cup
Facts from the source article.
League business
In May 1946, the NHL sought to renegotiate the professional-amateur agreement with the Canadian Amateur Hockey Association. The NHL proposed a flat payment of C$20,000 to cover all amateur players signed to professional contracts, while the CAHA requested $2,000 for any player remaining in the NHL for more than a year. The flat rate was later accepted with the stipulation that a junior-aged player could sign a contract at age 16 but not play professionally until age 18.
Tommy Gorman, associated with the NHL since its inception in 1917, retired in July 1946 as general manager of the Montreal Canadiens, leaving behind seven Stanley Cup champions. Frank Selke, released from the Toronto Maple Leafs, took over as general manager and would build a dynasty in the late 1950s. The Canadiens were in financial trouble despite their winning team, and Selke turned things around by buying talent and selling some players to teams that needed them.
In December 1946, Selke proposed that professional teams sponsor junior ice hockey teams under CAHA jurisdiction, spreading out talent and providing a farm system. Red Dutton resigned as NHL president, and Clarence Campbell, whom Frank Calder had been grooming as successor, took over. Campbell hired Ken McKenzie as the league's first publicity director in September 1946; McKenzie later founded The Hockey News and the annual NHL Guide. Lorne Chabot, a goalkeeper who won two Stanley Cups, a Vezina Trophy and a first all-star selection, died October 10, five days after his 46th birthday, from kidney disease and severe arthritis.
Regular season
The 1946–47 NHL season saw the Detroit Red Wings lose Syd Howe to retirement, but a new Howe emerged: rookie Gordie Howe. In one of his early scraps, he handled Montreal's Rocket Richard. Sid Abel then taunted Richard, who retaliated by breaking Abel's nose in three places. The Chicago Black Hawks bought goaltender Paul Bibeault from Montreal, a move they soon regretted.
He struggled badly, including an 11–0 loss to Toronto. Team president Bill Tobin eventually replaced him with 20-year-old Emile Francis, who debuted on February 9, 1947, in a 6–4 win over Boston. That season, Maple Leaf Gardens became the first NHL rink to install Plexiglas in the end zones. A major brawl erupted on March 16, 1947, between the New York Rangers and Montreal Canadiens after Cal Gardner lifted Kenny Reardon's stick into his own mouth, sparking a fight involving both teams and fans.
That same night, Detroit's Billy Taylor set an NHL record with seven assists in a 10–6 shootout win over Chicago. Bill Durnan won his fourth consecutive Vezina Trophy, breaking George Hainsworth's record, and Montreal finished first overall. Max Bentley edged Rocket Richard by one point for the scoring title. On February 12, 1947, Dit Clapper played his final game for the Boston Bruins and was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, the only active player ever to receive that honor. The New York Rangers became the first NHL team to have their home games televised.
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