1971–72 NHL season

National Hockey League season

Sports season

1971–72 NHL season

League| National Hockey League
Sport| Ice hockey
Duration| October 8, 1971 – May 11, 1972
Number of games| 78
Number of teams| 14
TV partner(s)| CBC, CTV, SRC (Canada)
CBS (United States)
Draft
Top draft pick| Guy Lafleur
Picked by| Montreal Canadiens
Regular season
Season champions| Boston Bruins
Season MVP| Bobby Orr (Bruins)
Top scorer| Phil Esposito (Bruins)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVP| Bobby Orr (Bruins)
Stanley Cup
Champions| Boston Bruins
Runners-up| New York Rangers
NHL seasons

← 1970–71

1972–73 →

Dale Rolfe with the New York Rangers in 1971

The 1971–72 NHL season was the 55th season of the National Hockey League. Fourteen teams each played 78 games. The Boston Bruins beat the New York Rangers four games to two for their second Stanley Cup in three seasons in the finals.

## Amateur draft

[edit]

The 1971 NHL amateur draft was held on June 10 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec. Guy Lafleur was selected first overall by the Montreal Canadiens.

## Regular season

[edit]

Among notable first year players this season were Montreal's Guy Lafleur, who despite scoring 29 goals was felt lacking in comparison to newly retired superstar Jean Beliveau by the Canadiens' faithful; Buffalo's Rick Martin, who set a new record for goals by a rookie with 44; Gilles Meloche, goaltender for the California Golden Seals who acquired him from Chicago; and Ken Dryden, the sensational new goalie for the Canadiens, who despite winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP the previous season was awarded the Calder Memorial Trophy as rookie of the year, on the grounds that he had only played six prior regular season games.

43-year-old Gump Worsley, left unprotected (and unclaimed) in the waiver draft by the Minnesota North Stars, 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 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 and 1970 expansions.

Milestones this season included Gerry Cheevers setting an NHL record for the Boston Bruins (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 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 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, 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, 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 topped the West Division.

### Final standings

[edit]

East Division[1]

* v
* t
* e

|  | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts

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1 | Boston Bruins | 78 | 54 | 13 | 11 | 330 | 204 | +126 | 119
2 | New York Rangers | 78 | 48 | 17 | 13 | 317 | 192 | +125 | 109
3 | Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 46 | 16 | 16 | 307 | 205 | +102 | 108
4 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 78 | 33 | 31 | 14 | 209 | 208 | +1 | 80
5 | Detroit Red Wings | 78 | 33 | 35 | 10 | 261 | 262 | −1 | 76
6 | Buffalo Sabres | 78 | 16 | 43 | 19 | 203 | 289 | −86 | 51
7 | Vancouver Canucks | 78 | 20 | 50 | 8 | 203 | 297 | −94 | 48
West Division[1]

* v
* t
* e

|  | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts

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1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 256 | 166 | +90 | 107
2 | Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 212 | 191 | +21 | 86
3 | St. Louis Blues | 78 | 28 | 39 | 11 | 208 | 247 | −39 | 67
4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 220 | 258 | −38 | 66
5 | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 200 | 236 | −36 | 66
6 | California Golden Seals | 78 | 21 | 39 | 18 | 216 | 288 | −72 | 60
7 | Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 20 | 49 | 9 | 206 | 305 | −99 | 49

## Playoffs

[edit]

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 in four straight games.

Boston easily handled the Toronto Maple Leafs 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

[edit]

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 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 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 | | | Semifinals | | | Stanley Cup Finals |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
| E1 | Boston | 4 | | |
| E4 | Toronto | 1 |
| | E1 | Boston | 4 |
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| | | W3 | St. Louis | 0 |
| W2 | Minnesota | 3 |

| W3 | St. Louis | 4 |
| | E1 | Boston | 4 |
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| | | E2 | New York | 2 |
| W1 | Chicago | 4 | |

| W4 | Pittsburgh | 0 |
| | W1 | Chicago | 0 |
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| | | E2 | New York | 4 |
| E2 | New York | 4 |

| E3 | Montreal | 2 |

### Quarterfinals

[edit]

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

[edit]

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.

April 5  | Toronto Maple Leafs  |  | 0–5 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 17:24 – Phil Esposito (1)
19:41 – Phil Esposito (2)
No scoring | Third period | 03:47 – Don Marcotte (1)
15:27 – John McKenzie (1)
15:38 – Fred Stanfield (1)
Jacques Plante 24 saves / 29 shots  | Goalie stats | Gerry Cheevers 27 saves / 27 shots
April 6  | Toronto Maple Leafs |  | 4–3 | OT | Boston Bruins  | Boston Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 07:23 – Fred Stanfield (2)
14:01 – Phil Esposito (3)
Dave Keon (1) – 01:23
Jim McKenny (1) – pp – 03:47  | Second period | 04:27 – Johnny Bucyk (1)
Guy Trottier (1) – 08:42  | Third period | No scoring
Jim Harrison (1) – 02:58  | First overtime period | No scoring
Bernie Parent 37 saves / 40 shots  | Goalie stats | Gerry Cheevers 18 saves / 22 shots
April 8  | Boston Bruins |  | 2–0 |  | Toronto Maple Leafs  | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
Mike Walton (1) – pp – 18:38  | Second period | No scoring
Bobby Orr (1) – pp – 01:24  | Third period | No scoring
Eddie Johnston 30 saves / 30 shots  | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent 33 saves / 35 shots
April 9  | Boston Bruins |  | 5–4 |  | Toronto Maple Leafs  | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap |

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Johnny Bucyk (2) – 16:36  | First period | 17:45 – Dave Keon (2)
No scoring | Second period | 11:11 – pp – Ron Ellis (1)
17:57 – sh – Jim McKenny (2)
Ken Hodge (1) – 01:15
Ed Westfall (1) – sh – 08:03
Phil Esposito (4) – 09:49
Ken Hodge (2) – 16:11  | Third period | 04:50 – Paul Henderson (1)
Eddie Johnston 38 saves / 42 shots  | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent 31 saves / 36 shots
April 11  | Toronto Maple Leafs  |  | 2–3 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Jim McKenny (3) – pp – 11:12  | First period | 15:42 – Fred Stanfield (3)
No scoring | Second period | 05:18 – John McKenzie (2)
Norm Ullman (1) – 06:09  | Third period | 07:38 – Ken Hodge (3)
Bernie Parent 34 saves / 37 shots  | Goalie stats | Gerry Cheevers 26 saves / 28 shots
Boston won series 4–1 |

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

[edit]

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.

April 5  | Montreal Canadiens  |  | 2–3 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Claude Larose (1) – 18:55  | First period | 16:30 – pp – Bill Fairbairn (1)
19:32 – Vic Hadfield (1)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
Frank Mahovlich (1) – 07:48  | Third period | 12:43 – Vic Hadfield (2)
Ken Dryden 34 saves / 37 shots  | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin 17 saves / 19 shots
April 6  | Montreal Canadiens  |  | 2–5 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Guy Lafleur (1) – 06:05  | First period | 07:45 – Dale Rolfe (1)
10:26 – Ron Stewart (1)
Claude Larose (2) – 02:29  | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 00:20 – Bill Fairbairn (2)
15:34 – Walt Tkaczuk (1)
18:57 – Ted Irvine (1)
Ken Dryden 31 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin 26 saves / 28 shots
April 8  | New York Rangers  |  | 1–2 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 07:18 – pp – Frank Mahovlich (2)
18:13 – Marc Tardif (1)
Ron Stewart (2) – 07:21  | Third period | No scoring
Ed Giacomin 24 saves / 26 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 22 saves / 23 shots
April 9  | New York Rangers |  | 6–4 |  | Montreal Canadiens  | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Bill Fairbairn (3) – pp – 04:47
Bobby Rousseau (1) – 07:24
Bobby Rousseau (2) – 13:48
Vic Hadfield (3) – 19:41  | First period | 11:22 – Jacques Lemaire (1)
18:15 – Marc Tardif (2)
No scoring | Second period | 13:21 – Yvan Cournoyer (1)
Pete Stemkowski (1) – 14:55
Ted Irvine (2) – 19:26  | Third period | 05:48 – Terry Harper (1)
Ed Giacomin 29 saves / 33 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 23 saves / 28 shots
April 11  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 2–1 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
Frank Mahovlich (3) – 06:53  | Second period | 04:24 – pp – Vic Hadfield (4)
Jimmy Roberts (1) – 03:12  | Third period | No scoring
Ken Dryden 33 saves / 34 shots  | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin 30 saves / 32 shots
April 13  | New York Rangers |  | 3–2 |  | Montreal Canadiens  | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Bill Fairbairn (4) – 09:31  | First period | 11:32 – Yvan Cournoyer (2)
Bill Fairbairn (5) – 09:33  | Second period | 14:48 – Jacques Lemaire (2)
Walt Tkaczuk (2) – 00:29  | Third period | No scoring
Ed Giacomin 23 saves / 25 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 32 saves / 35 shots
New York won series 4–2 |

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

[edit]

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.

April 5  | Pittsburgh Penguins  |  | 1–3 |  | Chicago Black Hawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Bobby Leiter (1) – 01:25  | First period | 15:09 – Pit Martin (1)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 03:25 – sh – Jim Pappin (1)
16:37 – Pit Martin (2)
Jim Rutherford 35 saves / 38 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 28 saves / 29 shots
April 6  | Pittsburgh Penguins  |  | 2–3 |  | Chicago Black Hawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 00:35 – Pit Martin (3)
05:52 – J.P. Bordeleau (1)
Jean Pronovost (1) – sh – 10:51  | Second period | No scoring
Bobby Leiter (2) – pp – 12:45  | Third period | 11:17 – Chico Maki (1)
Jim Rutherford 32 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 26 saves / 28 shots
April 8  | Chicago Black Hawks |  | 2–0 |  | Pittsburgh Penguins  | Civic Arena | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
J.P. Bordeleau (2) – 05:33  | Second period | No scoring
Stan Mikita (1) – 12:41  | Third period | No scoring
Gary Smith 31 saves / 31 shots  | Goalie stats | Jim Rutherford 38 saves / 40 shots
April 9  | Chicago Black Hawks |  | 6–5 | OT | Pittsburgh Penguins  | Civic Arena | Recap |

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Jim Pappin (2) – 03:08  | First period | No scoring
Bobby Hull (1) – 16:40  | Second period | 09:13 – Ken Schinkel (1)
14:10 – Syl Apps Jr. (1)
17:19 – Ken Schinkel (2)
19:30 – Ron Schock (1)
Bobby Hull (2) – 01:22
Bobby Hull (3) – 11:28
Dennis Hull (1) – 15:38  | Third period | 17:52 – Bobby Leiter (3)
Pit Martin (4) – 00:12  | First overtime period | No scoring
Gerry Desjardins 29 saves / 34 shots  | Goalie stats | Jim Rutherford 26 saves / 32 shots
Chicago won series 4–0 |

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

[edit]

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.

April 5  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 0–3 |  | Minnesota North Stars | Met Center | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 14:25 – Dean Prentice (1)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 04:19 – Dean Prentice (2)
12:01 – Bob Nevin (1)
Jacques Caron 41 saves / 44 shots  | Goalie stats | Gump Worsley 27 saves / 27 shots
April 6  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 5–6 | OT | Minnesota North Stars | Met Center | Recap |

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Frank St. Marseille (1) – pp – 12:14  | First period | 02:51 – pp – Doug Mohns (1)
Frank St. Marseille (2) – 02:00
Frank St. Marseille (3) – 05:38  | Second period | 04:27 – pp – J. P. Parise (1)
07:38 – Danny Grant (1)
Garry Unger (1) – 08:05
Phil Roberto (1) – 10:59  | Third period | 01:45 – Jude Drouin (1)
11:32 – Dean Prentice (3)
No scoring | First overtime period | 01:36 – Bill Goldsworthy (1)
Ernie Wakely 23 saves / 29 shots  | Goalie stats | Cesare Maniago 33 saves / 38 shots
April 8  | Minnesota North Stars  |  | 1–2 |  | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 09:28 – Phil Roberto (2)
No scoring | Second period | 10:07 – pp – Phil Roberto (3)
Jude Drouin (2) – pp – 00:40  | Third period | No scoring
Gump Worsley 33 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Caron 29 saves / 30 shots
April 9  | Minnesota North Stars  |  | 2–3 |  | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Jude Drouin (3) – 10:56  | First period | No scoring
Danny Grant (2) – 00:21  | Second period | 12:12 – Phil Roberto (4)
13:45 – Kevin O'Shea (1)
No scoring | Third period | 11:50 – pp – Barclay Plager (1)
Cesare Maniago 35 saves / 38 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Caron 28 saves / 30 shots
April 11  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 3–4 |  | Minnesota North Stars | Met Center | Recap |

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Gary Sabourin (1) – 16:34
Phil Roberto (5) – pp – 19:59  | First period | 01:42 – Barry Gibbs (1)
17:55 – Tom Reid (1)
Garry Unger (2) – pp – 19:34  | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 02:55 – pp – J. P. Parise (2)
05:45 – Jude Drouin (4)
Jacques Caron 23 saves / 27 shots  | Goalie stats | Gump Worsley 30 saves / 33 shots
April 13  | Minnesota North Stars  |  | 2–4 |  | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Bill Goldsworthy (2) – 04:03  | First period | 03:04 – pp – Phil Roberto (6)
06:21 – Bob Plager (1)
No scoring | Second period | 11:07 – Garry Unger (3)
J. P. Parise (3) – 15:01  | Third period | 16:13 – Jack Egers (1)
Gump Worsley 11 saves / 13 shots
Cesare Maniago 23 saves / 25 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Caron 28 saves / 30 shots
April 16  | St. Louis Blues |  | 2–1 | OT | Minnesota North Stars  | Met Center | Recap |

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Gary Sabourin (2) – 12:04  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 00:15 – Charlie Burns (1)
Kevin O'Shea (2) – 10:07  | First overtime period | No scoring
Jacques Caron 28 saves / 29 shots  | Goalie stats | Cesare Maniago 25 saves / 27 shots
St. Louis won series 4–3 |

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### Semifinals

[edit]

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

[edit]

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.

April 18  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 1–6 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Garry Unger (4) – pp – 03:18  | First period | 04:22 – Fred Stanfield (4)
11:03 – Mike Walton (2)
17:27 – Johnny Bucyk (3)
No scoring | Second period | 10:48 – pp – Fred Stanfield (5)
19:32 – Fred Stanfield (6)
No scoring | Third period | 14:55 – pp – Phil Esposito (5)
Jacques Caron 21 saves / 26 shots
Ernie Wakely 17 saves / 18 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Johnston 25 saves / 26 shots
April 20  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 2–10 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 07:17 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (4)
08:39 – Phil Esposito (6)
09:54 – Ed Westfall (2)
No scoring | Second period | 06:33 – Garnet Bailey (1)
09:27 – pp – John McKenzie (3)
Mike Murphy (1) – 04:37
Phil Roberto (7) – 05:26  | Third period | 03:47 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (5)
10:34 – Mike Walton (3)
14:29 – Don Marcotte (2)
16:07 – Johnny Bucyk (6)
16:47 – Ed Westfall (3)
Jacques Caron 9 saves / 13 shots
Ernie Wakely 12 saves / 18 shots  | Goalie stats | Gerry Cheevers 31 saves / 33 shots
April 23  | Boston Bruins |  | 7–2 |  | St. Louis Blues  | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Ed Westfall (4) – sh – 08:40
John McKenzie (4) – pp – 10:36
Phil Esposito (7) – 19:42  | First period | 02:05 – pp – Mike Murphy (2)
Mike Walton (4) – 02:58
Ken Hodge (4) – 06:28
John McKenzie (5) – pp – 11:12  | Second period | No scoring
Mike Walton (5) – 11:09  | Third period | 18:15 – Gary Sabourin (3)
Eddie Johnston 27 saves / 29 shots  | Goalie stats | Peter McDuffe 31 saves / 38 shots
April 25  | Boston Bruins |  | 5–3 |  | St. Louis Blues  | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Phil Esposito (8) – 01:29
Johnny Bucyk (7) – pp – 09:27  | First period | 18:16 – Terry Crisp (1)
Johnny Bucyk (8) – pp – 04:44
Phil Esposito (9) – pp – 17:53  | Second period | No scoring
Wayne Cashman (1) – 19:22  | Third period | 08:50 – Andre Dupont (1)
15:25 – Chris Evans (1)
Gerry Cheevers 33 saves / 36 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Caron 22 saves / 26 shots
Boston won series 4–0 |

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

[edit]

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.

April 16  | New York Rangers |  | 3–2 |  | Chicago Black Hawks  | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Ted Irvine (3) – 12:51  | First period | No scoring
Brad Park (1) – 16:07
Walt Tkaczuk (3) – 16:42  | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 12:30 – Stan Mikita (2)
14:40 – J. P. Bordeleau (3)
Ed Giacomin 25 saves / 27 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 25 saves / 28 shots
April 18  | New York Rangers |  | 5–3 |  | Chicago Black Hawks  | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Vic Hadfield (5) – 14:38  | First period | 09:46 – Dennis Hull (2)
No scoring | Second period | 14:15 – Stan Mikita (3)
Rod Gilbert (1) – pp – 00:54
Brad Park (2) – 08:15
Rod Gilbert (2) – 12:36
Pete Stemkowski (2) – 19:51  | Third period | 06:17 – pp – Pat Stapleton (1)
Gilles Villemure 32 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 27 saves / 31 shots
April 20  | Chicago Black Hawks  |  | 2–3 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Dennis Hull (3) – 05:12  | First period | 17:31 – Pete Stemkowski (3)
Dennis Hull (4) – pp – 09:49  | Second period | 06:20 – sh – Bruce MacGregor (1)
10:56 – Dale Rolfe (2)
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Gary Smith 36 saves / 39 shots  | Goalie stats | Gilles Villemure 21 saves / 23 shots
April 23  | Chicago Black Hawks  |  | 2–6 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Bobby Hull (4) – sh – 05:37  | First period | 05:49 – pp – Phil Goyette (1)
15:32 – Bobby Rousseau (3)
Pat Stapleton (2) – pp – 12:10  | Second period | 04:37 – pp – Rod Gilbert (3)
16:25 – Vic Hadfield (6)
18:22 – Gene Carr (1)
No scoring | Third period | 03:40 – Bobby Rousseau (4)
Tony Esposito 31 saves / 37 shots  | Goalie stats | Gilles Villemure 23 saves / 25 shots
New York won series 4–0 |

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### Stanley Cup Finals

[edit]

Main article: 1972 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 where they defeated the St. Louis Blues in four games. This was the New York Rangers eighth Finals appearance and first since 1950 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.

April 30  | New York Rangers  |  | 5–6 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Dale Rolfe (3) – 03:52  | First period | 05:07 – Fred Stanfield (7)
15:48 – Ken Hodge (5)
17:29 – sh – Derek Sanderson (1)
18:14 – sh – Ken Hodge (6)
Rod Gilbert (4) – pp – 11:54  | Second period | 10:46 – Ken Hodge (7)
Vic Hadfield (7) – pp – 01:56
Walt Tkaczuk (4) – 07:48
Bruce MacGregor (2) – 09:17  | Third period | 17:44 – Garnet Bailey (2)
Ed Giacomin 22 saves / 28 shots  | Goalie stats | Gerry Cheevers 24 saves / 29 shots
May 2  | New York Rangers  |  | 1–2 |  | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 16:15 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (9)
Rod Gilbert (5) – 07:23  | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 11:53 – pp – Ken Hodge (8)
Gilles Villemure 23 saves / 25 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Johnston 27 saves / 28 shots
May 4  | Boston Bruins  |  | 2–5 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Mike Walton (6) – 14:04  | First period | 01:22 – pp – Brad Park (3)
11:19 – pp – Rod Gilbert (6)
13:00 – pp – Brad Park (4)
Bobby Orr (2) – 01:10  | Second period | 03:46 – Rod Gilbert (7)
19:23 – Pete Stemkowski (4)
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Gerry Cheevers 34 saves / 39 shots  | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin 32 saves / 34 shots
May 7  | Boston Bruins |  | 3–2 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Bobby Orr (3) – 05:26
Bobby Orr (4) – pp – 08:17  | First period | No scoring
Don Marcotte (3) – sh – 16:33  | Second period | 18:38 – Ted Irvine (4)
No scoring | Third period | 18:35 – pp – Rod Seiling (1)
Eddie Johnston 21 saves / 23 shots  | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin 21 saves / 24 shots
May 9  | New York Rangers |  | 3–2 |  | Boston Bruins  | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Dale Rolfe (4) – 13:45  | First period | 03:55 – Wayne Cashman (2)
16:07 – pp – Ken Hodge (9)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
Bobby Rousseau (5) – 02:56
Bobby Rousseau (6) – 12:45  | Third period | No scoring
Gilles Villemure 36 saves / 38 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Johnston 23 saves / 26 shots
May 11  | Boston Bruins |  | 3–0 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Bobby Orr (5) – pp – 11:18  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
Wayne Cashman (3) – pp – 05:10
Wayne Cashman (4) – 18:11  | Third period | No scoring
Gerry Cheevers 33 saves / 33 shots  | Goalie stats | Gilles Villemure 24 saves / 27 shots
Boston won series 4–2 |

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## Awards

[edit]

1972 NHL awards

Prince of Wales Trophy:
(East Division champion, regular season) | Boston Bruins
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl:
(West Division champion, regular season) | Chicago Black Hawks
Art Ross Trophy:
(Top scorer, regular season) | Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy:
(Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication) | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
Calder Memorial Trophy:
(Top first-year player) | Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens
Conn Smythe Trophy:
(Most valuable player, playoffs) | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Hart Memorial Trophy:
(Most valuable player, regular season) | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
James Norris Memorial Trophy:
(Best defenceman) | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship) | Jean Ratelle, New York Rangers
Lester B. Pearson Award:
(Outstanding player, regular season) | Jean Ratelle, New York Rangers
Vezina Trophy:
(Goaltender(s) of team with best goaltending record) | Tony Esposito & Gary Smith, Chicago Black Hawks

### All-Star teams

[edit]

First Team |   Position   | Second Team

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Tony Esposito, Chicago Black Hawks  | G | Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens
Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins  | D | Bill White, Chicago Black Hawks
Brad Park, New York Rangers  | D  | Pat Stapleton, Chicago Black Hawks
Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins  | C | Jean Ratelle, New York Rangers
Rod Gilbert, New York Rangers  | RW | Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens
Bobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks  | LW | Vic Hadfield, New York Rangers

## Player statistics

[edit]

### Scoring leaders

[edit]

Player  | Team  | GP  | G  | A  | Pts  | PIM

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Phil Esposito | Boston Bruins | 76 | 66 | 67 | 133 | 76
Bobby Orr | Boston Bruins | 76 | 37 | 80 | 117 | 106
Jean Ratelle | New York Rangers | 63 | 46 | 63 | 109 | 4
Vic Hadfield | New York Rangers | 78 | 50 | 56 | 106 | 142
Rod Gilbert | New York Rangers | 73 | 43 | 54 | 97 | 64
Frank Mahovlich | Montreal Canadiens | 76 | 43 | 53 | 96 | 36
Bobby Hull | Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 50 | 43 | 93 | 24
Yvan Cournoyer | Montreal Canadiens | 73 | 47 | 36 | 83 | 15
Johnny Bucyk | Boston Bruins | 78 | 32 | 51 | 83 | 4
Bobby Clarke | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 35 | 46 | 81 | 87
Jacques Lemaire | Montreal Canadiens | 77 | 32 | 49 | 81 | 26

Source: NHL.[2]

### Leading goaltenders

[edit]

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

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Tony Esposito | Chicago Black Hawks | 48 | 2780 | 82 | 1.77 | 31 | 10 | 6 | 9
Gilles Villemure | New York Rangers | 37 | 2129 | 74 | 2.09 | 24 | 7 | 4 | 3
Lorne Worsley | Minnesota North Stars | 34 | 1923 | 68 | 2.12 | 16 | 10 | 7 | 2
Ken Dryden | Montreal Canadiens | 64 | 3800 | 142 | 2.24 | 39 | 8 | 15 | 8
Gary Smith | Chicago Black Hawks | 28 | 1540 | 62 | 2.42 | 14 | 5 | 6 | 5
Gerry Cheevers | Boston Bruins | 41 | 2420 | 101 | 2.50 | 27 | 5 | 8 | 2
Jacques Caron | St. Louis Blues | 28 | 1619 | 68 | 2.52 | 14 | 8 | 5 | 1
Bernie Parent | Toronto Maple Leafs | 47 | 2715 | 116 | 2.56 | 17 | 18 | 9 | 3
Jacques Plante | Toronto Maple Leafs | 34 | 1965 | 86 | 2.63 | 16 | 13 | 5 | 2
Cesare Maniago | Minnesota North Stars | 43 | 2539 | 112 | 2.65 | 20 | 17 | 4 | 3

### Other statistics

[edit]

* Plus/Minus leader: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins

## Coaches

[edit]

### East

[edit]

* Boston Bruins: Tom Johnson
* Buffalo Sabres: George "Punch" Imlach and Joe Crozier
* Detroit Red Wings: Johnny Wilson
* Montreal Canadiens: Scotty Bowman
* New York Rangers: Emile Francis
* Toronto Maple Leafs: John McLellan
* Vancouver Canucks: Hal Laycoe

### West

[edit]

* 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

[edit]

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, Buffalo Sabres
* Craig Ramsay, Buffalo Sabres
* Marcel Dionne, Detroit Red Wings
* Billy Smith, Los Angeles Kings
* Guy Lafleur, 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

[edit]

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.

## Broadcasting

[edit]

Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television 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 then signed a new contract to broadcast games.

## See also

[edit]

* List of Stanley Cup champions
* 1971 NHL amateur draft
* 1971–72 NHL transactions
* 25th National Hockey League All-Star Game
* National Hockey League All-Star Game
* Lester Patrick Trophy
* Ice hockey at the 1972 Winter Olympics
* 1971 in sports
* 1972 in sports

## References

[edit]

* 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.
* 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.

Notes

1. ^ a b "1971–1972 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
2. ^ Dinger 2011, p. 150.

## External links

[edit]

* Hockey Database
* NHL.com
* Hickoksports.com

* v
* t
* e

1971–72 NHL season

East|

* Boston
* Buffalo
* Detroit
* Montreal
* New York
* Toronto
* Vancouver

West|

* California
* Chicago
* Los Angeles
* Minnesota
* Philadelphia
* Pittsburgh
* St. Louis

See also|

* Amateur draft
* Intra-league draft
* All-Star Game
* Stanley Cup Final
* Blues–Flyers brawl

* v
* t
* e

NHL seasons

1910s|

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1920s|

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1930s|

|  1930–31 |  1931–32 |  1932–33 |  1933–34 |  1934–35 |  1935–36 |  1936–37 |  1937–38 |  1938–39 |  1939–40

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1940s|

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1950s|

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1960s|

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1970s|

|  1970–71 |  1971–72 |  1972–73 |  1973–74 |  1974–75 |  1975–76 |  1976–77 |  1977–78 |  1978–79 |  1979–80

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1980s|

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1990s|

|  1990–91 |  1991–92 |  1992–93 |  1993–94 |  1994–95 |  1995–96 |  1996–97 |  1997–98 |  1998–99 |  1999–00

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2000s|

|  2000–01 |  2001–02 |  2002–03 |  2003–04 |  ~~2004–05~~ |  2005–06 |  2006–07 |  2007–08 |  2008–09 |  2009–10

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2010s|

|  2010–11 |  2011–12 |  2012–13 |  2013–14 |  2014–15 |  2015–16 |  2016–17 |  2017–18 |  2018–19 |  2019–20

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2020s|

|  2020–21 |  2021–22 |  2022–23 |  2023–24 |  2024–25 |  2025–26 |  |  |  |

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The 2004–05 season was not played due to a lockout.
*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[GP]: Games played
*[W]: Wins
*[L]: Losses
*[T]: Ties
*[GF]: Goals for
*[GA]: Goals against
*[DIFF]: Goal Differential
*[Pts]: Points