BOB "BOOMER" BAUN

Many remember defenceman Bobby Baun for his overtime goal in game 6 of the 1964 Stanley Cup final against the Detroit Red Wings. Earlier in the game, Baun suffered an injury that he described in his autobiography as a "broken small bone on the outside of my leg, just above the ankle."

After receiving medical attention, Baun returned to the Olympia ice to score the biggest goal of his National Hockey League career.

But for many who played against Baun, it was his crushing hip checks and physical play that they remember. Teamed with partner Carl Brewer on the Leafs' blueline, Baun wrote how the two worked together:

We defencemen relied on our wingers to watch their checks. And if I missed the man I was trying to hit, I expected my defence partner to provide some backup. Carl and I had it worked out pretty well: one of us would stay a little in front of the other. I played on the right side, so if the puck carrier was coming down Carl's wing, I'd be about six feet to his right, and a little bit behind him. If the puck carrier was on my wing, Carl would move a bit to the left, and back me up. If the puck was coming down the middle, I moved forward and took him out, either straight up and down, or sometimes with my hip, like a cross-body block in football. With any luck, that would send the puck carrier airborne.

Here are some newspaper photos from the 1970-71 season that show Baun lowering the boom as only he could.