1972–73 NHL season

National Hockey League season

Sports season

1972–73 NHL season

League| National Hockey League
Sport| Ice hockey
Duration| October 7, 1972 – May 10, 1973
Number of games| 78
Number of teams| 16
TV partner(s)| CBC, CTV, SRC (Canada)
NBC (United States)
Draft
Top draft pick| Billy Harris
Picked by| New York Islanders
Regular season
Season champions| Montreal Canadiens
Season MVP| Bobby Clarke (Flyers)
Top scorer| Phil Esposito (Bruins)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVP| Yvan Cournoyer (Canadiens)
Stanley Cup
Champions| Montreal Canadiens
Runners-up| Chicago Black Hawks
NHL seasons

← 1971–72

1973–74 →

The 1972–73 NHL season was the 56th season of the National Hockey League. Sixteen teams each played 78 games. Two new teams, the New York Islanders and the Atlanta Flames, made their debuts. The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup by beating the Chicago Black Hawks four games to two in the Stanley Cup Finals.

## Pre-season

[edit]

Prior to the start of the season, the 1972 Summit Series took place. It was the first ever meeting between Soviet Union and NHL calibre Canadian ice hockey players. Canada expected to easily beat the Soviets, but were shocked to find themselves with a losing record of one win, two losses, and a tie after four games in Canada. In game four, which Canada lost 5–3, Vancouver fans echoed the rest of Canada's thoughts of Team Canada's poor performance by booing them off the ice. The final four games were played in the Soviet Union. Canada lost game five, but won the last three for a final record of four wins, three losses, and a tie.

For the first time since the collapse of the Western Hockey League in 1926, the National Hockey League had serious competition. A new professional hockey league, the World Hockey Association, made its season debut with 12 new teams, half of which were based in cities with existing NHL teams. Unlike the Western Hockey League, though, the new World Hockey Association would not challenge for the Stanley Cup. In response to the new league, the NHL hastily added two new teams in an unplanned expansion, the New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames, in an attempt to exclude the WHA from newly constructed arenas in those markets. The 1972 NHL expansion draft was held on June 6 to fill the rosters of the two new teams.

In February 1972, the Miami Screaming Eagles of the WHA signed Bernie Parent to a contract,[1] and when Bobby Hull was signed on June 27, 1972, to play with the Winnipeg Jets, the Chicago Black Hawks sued, claiming a violation of the reserve clause in NHL contracts. Others soon followed Hull to the WHA, including, J. C. Tremblay, Ted Green, Gerry Cheevers and Johnny McKenzie. In the expansion draft, the New York Islanders and Atlanta Flames made their picks and eleven Islander players skipped off to the WHA. The California Golden Seals, chafing under the unorthodox ownership of the unpopular Charlie Finley, were also a victim of the WHA, losing eight key players.

The 1972 NHL amateur draft was held on June 8 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec. Billy Harris was selected first overall by the Islanders.

## Arena changes

[edit]

* The expansion Atlanta Flames moved into the Omni Coliseum.
* The expansion New York Islanders moved into Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum in Uniondale, New York.

## Regular season

[edit]

The Montreal Canadiens took over first place in the East Division and the league from the Boston Bruins while for the third consecutive season the Chicago Black Hawks dominated the West Division.

### Final standings

[edit]

East Division[2]

* v
* t
* e

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

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1 | Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 52 | 10 | 16 | 329 | 184 | +145 | 120
2 | Boston Bruins | 78 | 51 | 22 | 5 | 330 | 235 | +95 | 107
3 | New York Rangers | 78 | 47 | 23 | 8 | 297 | 208 | +89 | 102
4 | Buffalo Sabres | 78 | 37 | 27 | 14 | 257 | 219 | +38 | 88
5 | Detroit Red Wings | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 265 | 243 | +22 | 86
6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 78 | 27 | 41 | 10 | 247 | 279 | −32 | 64
7 | Vancouver Canucks | 78 | 22 | 47 | 9 | 233 | 339 | −106 | 53
8 | New York Islanders | 78 | 12 | 60 | 6 | 170 | 347 | −177 | 30
West Division[2]

* v
* t
* e

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

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1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 42 | 27 | 9 | 284 | 225 | +59 | 93
2 | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 296 | 256 | +40 | 85
3 | Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 254 | 230 | +24 | 85
4 | St. Louis Blues | 78 | 32 | 34 | 12 | 233 | 251 | −18 | 76
5 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 32 | 37 | 9 | 257 | 265 | −8 | 73
6 | Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 31 | 36 | 11 | 232 | 245 | −13 | 73
7 | Atlanta Flames | 78 | 25 | 38 | 15 | 191 | 239 | −48 | 65
8 | California Golden Seals | 78 | 16 | 46 | 16 | 213 | 323 | −110 | 48

## Playoffs

[edit]

No teams in the playoffs swept their opponents, the last time this would happen until 1991, and no playoff series went to a decisive game, the last time this has happened to date. In addition, the Chicago Black Hawks reached the Stanley Cup Finals without a captain, the last time this would happen until 2014.

### Playoff bracket

[edit]

The top four teams in each division qualified for the playoffs. In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series).

In the quarterfinals, the fourth seeded team in each division played against the division winner from their division. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. The semifinals were then inter-divisional matchups, with winner of each #1 vs. #4 series 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.

| Quarterfinals | | | Semifinals | | | Stanley Cup Finals |

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|  |  |  | | |  |  |  | | |  |  |  |
| E1 | Montreal | 4 | | |
| E4 | Buffalo | 2 |
| | E1 | Montreal | 4 |
|  |
| | | W2 | Philadelphia | 1 |
| W2 | Philadelphia | 4 |

| W3 | Minnesota | 2 |
| | E1 | Montreal | 4 |
|  |
| | | W1 | Chicago | 2 |
| W1 | Chicago | 4 | |

| W4 | St. Louis | 1 |
| | W1 | Chicago | 4 |
|  |
| | | E3 | NY Rangers | 1 |
| E2 | Boston | 1 |

| E3 | NY Rangers | 4 |

### Quarterfinals

[edit]

#### (E1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (E4) Buffalo Sabres

[edit]

The Montreal Canadiens finished first in the league with 120 points. The Buffalo Sabres finished fourth with 88 points. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. This was the Buffalo Sabres' first playoff appearance in their third season since entering the league in the 1970–71 NHL season. Montreal won the five-game regular season series earning six of ten points.

April 4  | Buffalo Sabres  |  | 1–2 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
Craig Ramsay (1) – 03:13  | Second period | 17:01 – Jacques Lemaire (1)
No scoring | Third period | 04:27 – pp – Yvan Cournoyer (1)
Dave Dryden 34 saves / 36 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 31 saves / 32 shots
April 5  | Buffalo Sabres  |  | 3–7 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Gilbert Perreault (1) – 01:06
Richard Martin (1) – pp – 16:48  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 04:48 – Serge Savard (1)
06:07 – Yvan Cournoyer (2)
10:39 – Marc Tardif (1)
16:21 – pp – Guy Lapointe (1)
17:29 – Jacques Lemaire (2)
Jim Schoenfeld (1) – 17:45  | Third period | 03:10 – Yvan Cournoyer (3)
15:31 – Yvan Cournoyer (4)
Dave Dryden 28 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 20 saves / 23 shots
April 7  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 5–2 |  | Buffalo Sabres  | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap |

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Guy Lafleur (1) – pp – 16:56  | First period | No scoring
Peter Mahovlich (1) – pp – 08:44
Murray Wilson (1) – 09:00  | Second period | 01:13 – Larry Mickey (1)
Frank Mahovlich (1) – 12:15
Henri Richard (1) – en – 19:12  | Third period | 00:54 – pp – Rene Robert (1)
Ken Dryden 42 saves / 44 shots  | Goalie stats | Roger Crozier 22 saves / 26 shots
April 8  | Montreal Canadiens  |  | 1–5 |  | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap |

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Yvan Cournoyer (5) – 18:37  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 11:13 – Jim Schoenfeld (2)
14:29 – pp – Gilbert Perreault (2)
No scoring | Third period | 01:28 – Rene Robert (2)
19:19 – Don Luce (1)
19:41 – Gilbert Perreault (3)
Ken Dryden 45 saves / 50 shots  | Goalie stats | Roger Crozier 23 saves / 24 shots
April 10  | Buffalo Sabres |  | 3–2 | OT | Montreal Canadiens  | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 16:22 – Frank Mahovlich (2)
Richard Martin (2) – 12:03
Rene Robert (3) – 13:11  | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 12:46 – Guy Lapointe (2)
Rene Robert (4) – 09:18  | First overtime period | No scoring
Roger Crozier 38 saves / 40 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 31 saves / 34 shots
April 12  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 4–2 |  | Buffalo Sabres  | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap |

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Serge Savard (2) – 01:32
Murray Wilson (2) – 07:33
Guy Lafleur (2) – 08:53
Guy Lapointe (3) – 16:03  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 11:41 – Rene Robert (5)
19:48 – pp – Richard Martin (3)
Ken Dryden 42 saves / 44 shots  | Goalie stats | Roger Crozier 20 saves / 24 shots
Montreal won series 4–2 |

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#### (E2) Boston Bruins vs. (E3) New York Rangers

[edit]

The Boston Bruins finished second in the East Division with 107 points. The New York Rangers finished third in the East Division with 102 points. This was the ninth playoff meeting between these two teams with Boston winning six of the eight previous series. They last met in the previous year's Stanley Cup Finals which Boston won in six games. The teams split this year's six-game regular season series.

April 4  | New York Rangers |  | 6–2 |  | Boston Bruins  | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Brad Park (1) – pp – 15:59  | First period | 14:21 – Doug Roberts (1)
Bruce MacGregor (1) – 07:25
Brad Park (2) – 08:53
Walt Tkaczuk (1) – 11:48
Walt Tkaczuk (2) – 15:55  | Second period | No scoring
03:11 – Pete Stemkowski (1)  | Third period | Derek Sanderson (1) – 11:17
Eddie Giacomin 22 saves / 24 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Plante 25 saves / 31 shots
April 5  | New York Rangers |  | 4–2 |  | Boston Bruins  | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Steve Vickers (1) – 13:20  | First period | 07:55 – Wayne Cashman (1)
Ted Irvine (1) – pp – 09:47
Pete Stemkowski (2) – pp – 13:29  | Second period | 16:34 – Doug Roberts (2)
Walt Tkaczuk (3) – pp – 05:37  | Third period | No scoring
Eddie Giacomin 18 saves / 20 shots
Gilles Villemure 10 saves / 10 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Plante 28 saves / 32 shots
April 7  | Boston Bruins |  | 4–2 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Gregg Sheppard (1) – sh – 06:53  | First period | 18:35 – Pete Stemkowski (3)
Fred Stanfield (1) – 03:13  | Second period | No scoring
Gregg Sheppard (2) – 10:39
Mike Walton (1) – en – 19:08  | Third period | 06:12 – Jean Ratelle (1)
Eddie Johnston 35 saves / 37 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Giacomin 23 saves / 26 shots
April 8  | Boston Bruins  |  | 0–4 |  | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 02:35 – Rod Gilbert (1)
16:30 – Pete Stemkowski (4)
No scoring | Second period | 11:22 – Bobby Rousseau (1)
19:15 – Steve Vickers (2)
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Eddie Johnston 21 saves / 25 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Giacomin 33 saves / 33 shots
April 10  | New York Rangers |  | 6–3 |  | Boston Bruins  | Boston Garden | Recap |

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Steve Vickers (3) – 00:38
Steve Vickers (4) – 14:34
Bruce MacGregor (2) – 16:33  | First period | 01:54 – Bobby Orr (1)
12:45 – pp – Ken Hodge (1)
Walt Tkaczuk (4) – 18:59  | Second period | No scoring
Rod Gilbert (2) – 04:10
Steve Vickers (5) – 17:51  | Third period | 07:10 – Don Marcotte (1)
Eddie Giacomin 28 saves / 31 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Johnston 22 saves / 25 shots
Ross Brooks 8 saves / 11 shots
New York won series 4–1 |

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#### (W1) Chicago Black Hawks vs. (W4) St. Louis Blues

[edit]

The Chicago Black Hawks finished first in the West Division with 93 points. The St. Louis Blues finished fourth in the West Division with 76 points. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. The teams split this year's six-game regular season series.

April 4  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 1–7 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 15:02 – Dick Redmond (1)
15:20 – Dick Redmond (2)
No scoring | Second period | 02:13 – Dick Redmond (3)
09:38 – Jim Pappin (1)
10:32 – Pit Martin (1)
Phil Roberto (1) – 19:07  | Third period | 12:33 – pp – Pit Martin (2)
16:24 – pp – Pit Martin (3)
Wayne Stephenson 32 saves / 39 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 28 saves / 29 shots
April 5  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 0–1 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 14:06 – Lou Angotti (1)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Jacques Caron 25 saves / 26 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 29 saves / 29 shots
April 7  | Chicago Blackhawks |  | 5–2 |  | St. Louis Blues  | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Dennis Hull (1) – pp – 02:29
Ralph Backstrom (1) – 11:26
Jim Pappin (2) – 13:51  | First period | 05:52 – pp – Ab DeMarco Jr. (1)
10:26 – Pierre Plante (1)
Ralph Backstrom (2) – 03:10  | Second period | No scoring
Jim Pappin (3) – pp – 07:31  | Third period | No scoring
Tony Esposito 28 saves / 30 shots  | Goalie stats | Jacques Caron 35 saves / 40 shots
April 8  | Chicago Blackhawks  |  | 3–5 |  | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap |

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Ralph Backstrom (3) – 06:33
Cliff Koroll (1) – 11:11  | First period | 16:48 – Pierre Plante (2)
No scoring | Second period | 14:03 – Phil Roberto (2)
15:31 – Fran Huck (1)
18:29 – Gary Sabourin (1)
Chico Maki (1) – 14:21  | Third period | 16:56 – Garry Unger (1)
Gary Smith 34 saves / 39 shots  | Goalie stats | Wayne Stephenson 37 saves / 40 shots
April 10  | St. Louis Blues  |  | 1–6 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 01:14 – Jim Pappin (4)
14:52 – Stan Mikita (1)
Fran Huck (2) – pp – 04:20  | Second period | 00:30 – Cliff Koroll (2)
11:37 – Chico Maki (2)
No scoring | Third period | 15:32 – sh – Ralph Backstrom (4)
17:41 – Lou Angotti (2)
Wayne Stephenson 17 saves / 21 shots
Jacques Caron 9 saves / 11 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 12 saves / 13 shots
Chicago won series 4–1 |

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#### (W2) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (W3) Minnesota North Stars

[edit]

The Philadelphia Flyers and Minnesota North Stars finished tied for second in the West Division each with 85 points (Philadelphia won the tiebreaker in season series 3–2). This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Philadelphia won three of the five games in this year's regular season series.

April 4  | Minnesota North Stars |  | 3–0 |  | Philadelphia Flyers  | The Spectrum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
Dennis Hextall (1) – 09:21
Dennis O'Brien (1) – 19:45  | Second period | No scoring
Jude Drouin (1) – 09:17  | Third period | No scoring
Cesare Maniago 33 saves / 33 shots  | Goalie stats | Doug Favell 25 saves / 28 shots
April 5  | Minnesota North Stars  |  | 1–4 |  | Philadelphia Flyers | The Spectrum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 05:48 – Don Saleski (1)
No scoring | Second period | 01:08 – sh – Bill Flett (1)
08:37 – Bill Barber (1)
18:46 – Terry Crisp (1)
Dean Prentice (1) – pp – 04:14  | Third period | No scoring
Gilles Gilbert 36 saves / 40 shots  | Goalie stats | Doug Favell 31 saves / 32 shots
April 7  | Philadelphia Flyers  |  | 0–5 |  | Minnesota North Stars | Met Center | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 09:35 – Dennis Hextall (2)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
No scoring | Third period | 00:54 – pp – Barry Gibbs (1)
09:36 – Lou Nanne (1)
09:54 – Danny Grant (1)
15:27 – Danny Grant (2)
Doug Favell 27 saves / 31 shots
Michel Belhumeur 8 saves / 9 shots  | Goalie stats | Cesare Maniago 33 saves / 33 shots
April 8  | Philadelphia Flyers |  | 3–0 |  | Minnesota North Stars  | Met Center | Recap |

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Bobby Clarke (1) – pp – 18:57  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
Bill Barber (2) – 14:16
Ross Lonsberry (1) – 16:00  | Third period | No scoring
Doug Favell 31 saves / 31 shots  | Goalie stats | Cesare Maniago 29 saves / 32 shots
April 10  | Minnesota North Stars  |  | 2–3 | OT | Philadelphia Flyers | The Spectrum | Recap |

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Danny Grant (3) – 10:48  | First period | 11:24 – pp – Rick MacLeish (1)
No scoring | Second period | 02:17 – pp – Rick MacLeish (2)
Bill Goldsworthy (1) – 13:00  | Third period | No scoring
No scoring | First overtime period | 08:35 – Gary Dornhoefer (1)
Cesare Maniago 24 saves / 27 shots  | Goalie stats | Doug Favell 30 saves / 32 shots
April 12  | Philadelphia Flyers |  | 4–1 |  | Minnesota North Stars  | Met Center | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 13:40 – pp – Bill Goldsworthy (2)
Terry Crisp (2) – pp – 04:10
Ross Lonsberry (2) – 16:42
Dave Schultz (1) – 18:01  | Second period | No scoring
Ross Lonsberry (3) – en – 19:48  | Third period | No scoring
Doug Favell 37 saves / 38 shots  | Goalie stats | Cesare Maniago 19 saves / 22 shots
Philadelphia won series 4–2 |

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### Semifinals

[edit]

#### (E1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (W3) Philadelphia Flyers

[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. The teams split this year's five-game regular season series.

April 14  | Philadelphia Flyers |  | 5–4 | OT | Montreal Canadiens  | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Bill Barber (3) – 14:20  | First period | 04:48 – Yvan Cournoyer (6)
Simon Nolet (1) – 03:16  | Second period | 17:28 – pp – Guy Lapointe (4)
Simon Nolet (2) – 10:18
Gary Dornhoefer (2) – 12:04  | Third period | 08:58 – Guy Lapointe (5)
15:25 – Jacques Lemaire (3)
Rick MacLeish (3) – 02:56  | First overtime period | No scoring
Doug Favell 41 saves / 45 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 32 saves / 37 shots
April 17  | Philadelphia Flyers  |  | 3–4 | OT | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Andre Dupont (1) – 05:50
Gary Dornhoefer (3) – pp – 08:12  | First period | 19:13 – pp – Guy Lafleur (3)
Bill Flett (2) – 00:36  | Second period | 00:25 – Henri Richard (2)
No scoring | Third period | 11:50 – Yvan Cournoyer (7)
No scoring | First overtime period | 06:45 – Larry Robinson (1)
Doug Favell 32 saves / 36 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 36 saves / 39 shots
April 19  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 2–1 |  | Philadelphia Flyers  | The Spectrum | Recap |

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Rejean Houle (1) – 06:34
Henri Richard (3) – 18:19  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 10:09 – Terry Crisp (3)
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Ken Dryden 25 saves / 26 shots  | Goalie stats | Doug Favell 24 saves / 26 shots
April 22  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 4–1 |  | Philadelphia Flyers  | The Spectrum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 04:08 – pp – Bobby Clarke (2)
Rejean Houle (2) – 07:38
Marc Tardif (2) – pp – 14:07
Yvan Cournoyer (8) – pp – 16:01  | Second period | No scoring
Frank Mahovlich (3) – en – 19:27  | Third period | No scoring
Ken Dryden 31 saves / 32 shots  | Goalie stats | Doug Favell 23 saves / 26 shots
April 24  | Philadelphia Flyers  |  | 3–5 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Ross Lonsberry (4) – 08:57  | First period | 15:29 – Marc Tardif (3)
Simon Nolet (3) – 06:18  | Second period | 00:23 – pp – Jacques Lemaire (4)
Bill Flett (3) – 05:30  | Third period | 05:44 – Frank Mahovlich (4)
12:07 – Henri Richard (4)
13:42 – Yvan Cournoyer (9)
Doug Favell 29 saves / 34 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 17 saves / 20 shots
Montreal won series 4–1 |

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#### (W1) Chicago Black Hawks vs. (E3) New York Rangers

[edit]

This was the fifth playoff meeting between these two teams with Chicago winning three of the four previous series. They last met in the previous year's Stanley Cup Semifinals which New York won in a four-game sweep. The teams split this year's five-game regular season series.

April 12  | New York Rangers |  | 4–1 |  | Chicago Blackhawks  | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Bobby Rousseau (2) – 14:09  | First period | 12:37 – Pit Martin (4)
No scoring | Second period | No scoring
Vic Hadfield (1) – 04:04
Walt Tkaczuk (5) – 17:45
Walt Tkaczuk (6) – en – 19:35  | Third period | No scoring
Eddie Giacomin 21 saves / 22 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 21 saves / 24 shots
April 15  | New York Rangers  |  | 4–5 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Rod Gilbert (3) – 18:54  | First period | 05:32 – Pat Stapleton (1)
07:55 – pp – Pat Stapleton (2)
11:20 – Dennis Hull (2)
Jean Ratelle (2) – pp – 05:31
Bill Fairbairn (1) – 08:22
Rod Gilbert (4) – 17:26  | Second period | 12:02 – pp – Dennis Hull (3)
14:40 – Dick Redmond (4)
No scoring | Third period | No scoring
Eddie Giacomin 5 saves / 8 shots
Gilles Villemure 19 saves / 21 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 28 saves / 32 shots
April 17  | Chicago Blackhawks |  | 2–1 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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Jim Pappin (5) – 08:20  | First period | No scoring
No scoring | Second period | 14:51 – Walt Tkaczuk (7)
Stan Mikita (2) – 06:16  | Third period | No scoring
Tony Esposito 37 saves / 38 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Giacomin 26 saves / 28 shots
April 19  | Chicago Blackhawks |  | 3–1 |  | New York Rangers  | Madison Square Garden | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | No scoring
Dennis Hull (4) – pp – 11:20  | Second period | No scoring
Pit Martin (5) – 14:11
Dennis Hull (5) – 16:56  | Third period | 02:16 – Vic Hadfield (2)
Tony Esposito 38 saves / 39 shots  | Goalie stats | Eddie Giacomin 18 saves / 21 shots
April 24  | New York Rangers  |  | 1–4 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 19:20 – pp – Stan Mikita (3)
Rod Gilbert (5) – 19:19  | Second period | 14:07 – Dennis Hull (6)
No scoring | Third period | 04:47 – Stan Mikita
08:15 – Cliff Koroll (3)
Eddie Giacomin 21 saves / 25 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 28 saves / 29 shots
Chicago won series 4–1 |

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### Stanley Cup Finals

[edit]

Main article: 1973 Stanley Cup Finals

It was the 16th playoff meeting between these two teams. Montreal lead 10–5 in their previous meetings. This was a rematch of the 1971 Stanley Cup Finals, which Montreal won in seven games. Chicago won three of the five games in this year's regular season series.

April 29  | Chicago Blackhawks  |  | 3–8 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Pit Martin (6) – 00:35
Ralph Backstrom (5) – 01:02
Pit Martin (7) – 12:07  | First period | 02:28 – Jacques Laperriere (1)
08:07 – Marc Tardif (7)
No scoring | Second period | 03:01 – Chuck Lefley (1)
16:23 – pp – Jacques Lemaire (5)
No scoring | Third period | 08:38 – pp – Jacques Lemaire (6)
12:36 – sh – Peter Mahovlich (2)
13:34 – Frank Mahovlich (5)
14:35 – Chuck Lefley (2)
Tony Esposito 25 saves / 33 shots
Gary Smith 5 saves / 5 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 27 saves / 30 shots
May 1  | Chicago Blackhawks  |  | 1–4 |  | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 05:36 – Pierre Bouchard (1)
Cliff Koroll (4) – 07:28  | Second period | 12:08 – Yvan Cournoyer (10)
No scoring | Third period | 05:01 – pp – Yvan Cournoyer (11)
19:26 – en – Frank Mahovlich (6)
Tony Esposito 26 saves / 29 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 18 saves / 19 shots
May 3  | Montreal Canadiens  |  | 4–7 |  | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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No scoring | First period | 01:59 – pp – Dennis Hull (7)
11:44 – pp – J.P. Bordeleau (1)
13:20 – sh – Bill White (1)
14:20 – sh – Stan Mikita (5)
Frank Mahovlich (7) – 10:25  | Second period | 02:08 – pp – John Marks (1)
Yvan Cournoyer (12) – 01:20
Guy Lapointe (6) – 07:15
Jacques Lemaire (7) – 08:01  | Third period | 19:29 – en – Dennis Hull (8)
19:49 – en – Jim Pappin (6)
Ken Dryden 30 saves / 35 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 29 saves / 33 shots
May 6  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 4–0 |  | Chicago Blackhawks  | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Marc Tardif (5) – 01:08  | First period | No scoring
Yvan Cournoyer (13) – 14:13
Chuck Lefley (3) – 15:43  | Second period | No scoring
Claude Larose (1) – 03:45  | Third period | No scoring
Ken Dryden 19 saves / 19 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 26 saves / 30 shots
May 8  | Chicago Blackhawks |  | 8–7 |  | Montreal Canadiens  | Montreal Forum | Recap |

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Dennis Hull (9) – 09:34
Stan Mikita (6) – 11:24  | First period | 02:47 – Frank Mahovlich (8)
14:52 – pp – Peter Mahovlich (3)
Dave Kryskow (1) – 03:10
Stan Mikita (7) – 06:21
Jim Pappin (7) – 11:24
Len Frig (1) – pp – 16:21
Jim Pappin (8) – 19:03  | Second period | 00:37 – Claude Larose (2)
04:23 – Claude Larose (3)
07:09 – Yvan Cournoyer (14)
Lou Angotti (3) – 04:06  | Third period | 01:15 – Serge Savard (3)
11:43 – Henri Richard (5)
Tony Esposito 24 saves / 31 shots  | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden 21 saves / 29 shots
May 10  | Montreal Canadiens |  | 6–4 |  | Chicago Blackhawks  | Chicago Stadium | Recap |

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Henri Richard (6) – 19:48  | First period | 10:35 – Pit Martin (8)
11:31 – pp – Pit Martin (9)
Peter Mahovlich (4) – 05:05
Rejean Houle (3) – 06:37
Frank Mahovlich (9) – pp – 10:54  | Second period | 08:32 – Dave Kryskow (2)
17:05 – pp – Pit Martin (10)
Yvan Cournoyer (15) – 08:13
Marc Tardif (6) – pp – 12:42  | Third period | No scoring
Ken Dryden 23 saves / 27 shots  | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito 27 saves / 33 shots
Montreal won series 4–2 |

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## Awards

[edit]

1973 NHL awards

Prince of Wales Trophy:
(East Division champion, regular season) | Montreal Canadiens
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) | Lowell MacDonald, Pittsburgh Penguins
Calder Memorial Trophy:
(Top first-year player) | Steve Vickers, New York Rangers
Conn Smythe Trophy:
(Most valuable player, playoffs) | Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy:
(Most valuable player, regular season) | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
James Norris Memorial Trophy:
(Best defenceman) | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship) | Gilbert Perreault, Buffalo Sabres
Lester B. Pearson Award:
(Outstanding player, regular season) | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
Vezina Trophy:
(Goaltender(s) of team with best goaltending record) | Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens

### All-Star teams

[edit]

First team |   Position   | Second team

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Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens  | G | Tony Esposito, Chicago Black Hawks
Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins  | D | Brad Park, New York Rangers
Guy Lapointe, Montreal Canadiens  | D  | Bill White, Chicago Black Hawks
Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins  | C | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
Mickey Redmond, Detroit Red Wings  | RW | Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens
Frank Mahovlich, Montreal Canadiens  | LW | Dennis Hull, Chicago Black Hawks

## Player statistics

[edit]

### Scoring leaders

[edit]

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

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Phil Esposito | Boston Bruins | 78 | 55 | 75 | 130 | 87
Bobby Clarke | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 37 | 67 | 104 | 80
Bobby Orr | Boston Bruins | 63 | 29 | 72 | 101 | 99
Rick MacLeish | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 50 | 50 | 100 | 69
Jacques Lemaire | Montreal Canadiens | 77 | 44 | 51 | 95 | 16
Jean Ratelle | New York Rangers | 78 | 41 | 53 | 94 | 12
Mickey Redmond | Detroit Red Wings | 76 | 52 | 41 | 93 | 24
Johnny Bucyk | Boston Bruins | 78 | 40 | 53 | 93 | 12
Frank Mahovlich | Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 38 | 55 | 93 | 51
Jim Pappin | Chicago Black Hawks | 76 | 41 | 51 | 92 | 82

Source: NHL.[3]

### 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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Ken Dryden | Montreal Canadiens | 54 | 3165 | 119 | 2.26 | 33 | 7 | 13 | 6
Gilles Villemure | New York Rangers | 34 | 2040 | 78 | 2.29 | 20 | 12 | 2 | 3
Tony Esposito | Chicago Black Hawks | 56 | 3340 | 140 | 2.51 | 32 | 17 | 7 | 4
Roy Edwards | Detroit Red Wings | 52 | 3012 | 132 | 2.63 | 27 | 17 | 7 | 6
Dave Dryden | Buffalo Sabres | 37 | 2018 | 89 | 2.65 | 14 | 13 | 7 | 3
Roger Crozier | Buffalo Sabres | 49 | 2633 | 121 | 2.76 | 23 | 13 | 7 | 3
Doug Favell | Philadelphia Flyers | 44 | 2419 | 114 | 2.83 | 20 | 15 | 4 | 3
Rogie Vachon | Los Angeles Kings | 53 | 3120 | 148 | 2.85 | 22 | 20 | 10 | 4
Cesare Maniago | Minnesota North Stars | 47 | 2736 | 132 | 2.89 | 21 | 18 | 6 | 5
Jim Rutherford | Pittsburgh Penguins | 49 | 2660 | 129 | 2.91 | 20 | 22 | 5 | 3

### Other statistics

[edit]

* Plus-minus leader: Jacques Laperriere, Montreal Canadiens

## Coaches

[edit]

### East

[edit]

* Boston Bruins: Tom Johnson and Bep Guidolin
* Buffalo Sabres: Joe Crozier
* Detroit Red Wings: Johnny Wilson
* Montreal Canadiens: Scotty Bowman
* New York Islanders: Phil Goyette and Earl Ingarfield
* New York Rangers: Emile Francis
* Toronto Maple Leafs: John McLellan
* Vancouver Canucks: Vic Stasiuk

### West

[edit]

* Atlanta Flames: Bernie Geoffrion
* California Golden Seals: Garry Young and Fred Glover
* Chicago Black Hawks: Billy Reay
* Los Angeles Kings: Bob Pulford
* Minnesota North Stars: Jack Gordon
* Philadelphia Flyers: Fred Shero
* Pittsburgh Penguins: Red Kelly
* St. Louis Blues: Al Arbour and Jean-Guy Talbot

## Debuts

[edit]

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1972–73 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

* Dan Bouchard, Atlanta Flames
* Jacques Richard, Atlanta Flames
* Jim Schoenfeld, Buffalo Sabres
* Phil Russell, Chicago Black Hawks
* Robbie Ftorek, Detroit Red Wings
* Steve Shutt, Montreal Canadiens
* Larry Robinson, Montreal Canadiens
* Bob Nystrom, New York Islanders
* Billy Harris, New York Islanders
* Steve Vickers, New York Rangers
* Bill Barber, Philadelphia Flyers
* Jimmy Watson, Philadelphia Flyers
* Tom Bladon, Philadelphia Flyers
* Denis Herron, Pittsburgh Penguins
* Connie Madigan, St. Louis Blues
* Don Lever, Vancouver Canucks

## Last games

[edit]

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1972–73 (listed with their last team):

* Jacques Plante, Boston Bruins
* Pat Stapleton, Chicago Black Hawks
* Ralph Backstrom, Chicago Black Hawks
* Harry Howell, Los Angeles Kings
* Ron Stewart, New York Islanders
* Ken Schinkel, Pittsburgh Penguins
* Connie Madigan, St. Louis BLues
* Bob Baun, Toronto Maple Leafs
* Dave Balon, Vancouver Canucks

NOTE: Plante, Stapleton, Backstrom, Howell and Balon would finish their major professional careers in the World Hockey Association.

## Broadcasting

[edit]

Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and Stanley Cup playoff games. HNIC also produced Wednesday night regular season game telecasts for CTV.

This was the first season under the U.S. rights agreement with NBC, airing weekend afternoon regular season games and playoff games.

## See also

[edit]

* List of Stanley Cup champions
* 1972 NHL amateur draft
* 1972 NHL expansion draft
* 1972–73 NHL transactions
* 26th National Hockey League All-Star Game
* National Hockey League All-Star Game
* 1972 Summit Series
* World Hockey Association
* List of WHA seasons
* Lester Patrick Trophy
* 1972 in sports
* 1973 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. ^ Dunell, Milt (February 22, 1972). "Hockey's first 'Super Series' will be played in the courtrooms". Montreal Gazette. p. 31. Retrieved October 29, 2013.
2. ^ a b "1972–1973 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
3. ^ Dinger 2011, p. 150.

## External links

[edit]

* Hockey Database
* NHL.com

* v
* t
* e

1972–73 NHL season

East|

* Boston
* Buffalo
* Detroit
* Montreal
* NY Islanders
* NY Rangers
* Toronto
* Vancouver

West|

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

See also|

* Amateur draft
* Expansion draft
* Intra-league draft
* Summit Series
* All-Star Game
* Stanley Cup Finals

* v
* t
* e

NHL seasons

1910s|

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1920s|

|  1920–21 |  1921–22 |  1922–23 |  1923–24 |  1924–25 |  1925–26 |  1926–27 |  1927–28 |  1928–29 |  1929–30

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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|

|  1940–41 |  1941–42 |  1942–43 |  1943–44 |  1944–45 |  1945–46 |  1946–47 |  1947–48 |  1948–49 |  1949–50

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1950s|

|  1950–51 |  1951–52 |  1952–53 |  1953–54 |  1954–55 |  1955–56 |  1956–57 |  1957–58 |  1958–59 |  1959–60

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1960s|

|  1960–61 |  1961–62 |  1962–63 |  1963–64 |  1964–65 |  1965–66 |  1966–67 |  1967–68 |  1968–69 |  1969–70

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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|

|  1980–81 |  1981–82 |  1982–83 |  1983–84 |  1984–85 |  1985–86 |  1986–87 |  1987–88 |  1988–89 |  1989–90

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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