THANKSGIVING 1949

 After an early Thanksgiving dinner on October 10, 1949, hockey fans in Toronto made their way down to Maple Leaf Gardens to witness the NHL All-Star Game. The contest featured Toronto's defending Stanley Cup champions going against the NHL All-Stars. The All-Stars emerged victorious by defeating the Leafs 3-1. 

Unlike All-Star Games we have witnessed in the last several decades, the 1949 classic was a defensive battle. Most of the Leafs were criticized for not being at the top of their game, but the exception was goalie Turk Broda. He faced an attack that included Rocket Richard, Roy Conacher, Sid Abel, Gordie Howe, and Ted Lindsay.

But it wasn't the big names that inflicted the damage. After Leafs' defenceman, Bill Barilko, opened the scoring, another defenceman netted the equalizer for the All-Stars. At 18:03 of the opening period, Chicago's Bob Goldman pulled his team even against the home team. 

In the middle frame, Goldham once again inserted himself in the thick of the action. He led a rush up ice and dished the puck off to Boston winger Paul Ronty, "Who deked Broda out of position and flipped the puck into the gaping net."

Ronty's tally turned out to be the winning goal. The All-Stars cushioned their lead when Chicago's Doug Bentley scored the lone goal in the final twenty-minutes of play.

BILL BUREGA 1932-2020

Bill Burega, who played four games (January 14-15-18-19, 1956) with the Toronto Maple Leafs, passed away on August 23, 2020, in Kingston, Ontario. He was born on March 13, 1932.

At the time of his call-up as an emergency replacement for defenceman Jim Morrison, Burega was a member of the WHL Winnipeg Warriors.

Burega's lone point, an assist, came when the Leafs faced New York on January 15. After he took a shot on goal, the rebound was deposited past Rangers' goalie Gump Worsley by Earl Balfour.

During his stint with the Leafs, Burega made a positive impression on Toronto coach King Clancy. "He kept lugging the puck out of his own zone and was hitting hard," said Clancy.

His final NHL game was against the Montreal Canadiens. Dink Carroll, writing in the Gazette, noted of Burega, "His chief distinction last night was that he is the first player in the league to wear a helmet since Johnny Crawford quit playing for the Boston Bruins."

AN HONOUR FOR BILL BARILKO

This gut-wrenching headline informed the public of the missing plane with Bill Barilko and Dr. Henry Hudson onboard. The aircraft crashed on August 26, 1951. Their remains were discovered on June 6, 1962.

Yesterday, on the 69th anniversary of the crash, Barilko's hometown of Timmins, Ontario, honoured their native son with a billboard.

BURSTING THE BUBBLE

With the 2020 National Hockey League playoffs taking place in the bubble cities of Edmonton and Toronto, fans can only take in the action on their tv's or other devices.

As COVID-19 has resulted in empty seats, we turn the page back in time to March 26, 1949, when fans, as shown in the above photo, converged on Maple Leaf Gardens to purchase tickets. As the headline noted, "Hockey fans line up early to get tickets for tonight."

The text below the picture stated, "Eager for tickets to see tonight's third game between Toronto and Boston in the Stanley Cup semi-finals, hockey fans were up bright and early to get in this line-up on the Church St. side of Maple Leaf Gardens. Maple Leafs hold a two game lead over Bruins in the best-of-seven series and Toronto rooters are expecting a thrilling ice duel."

Indeed, the fans were treated to "a thrilling ice duel" as the Leafs and Bruins went into overtime to decide the outcome. Unfortunately for the home team, Boston emerged from extra-time with a 5-4 victory. It turned out to be the Bruins only win in the series.

In the Cup final, the Toronto Maple Leafs swept the Detroit Red Wings to capture their third consecutive Stanley Cup.

REMEMBERING WALLY

Remembering the great Wally Stanowski, who died on this date back in 2015 at the age of 96.

He was an All-Star defenceman and a four-time Stanley Cup champion with the Toronto Maple Leafs. He was a rookie with the Leafs in 1939-40. Also, he played for the New York Rangers.

Wally was an encyclopedia of hockey knowledge and always had an opinion on different aspects of the game. He was the heart and soul of our Original Six Alumni lunches and is missed by our group.

One of my best memories of Wally was interviewing him on a cold February afternoon at his home. Wally talked hockey and only stopped for an occasional puff on his pipe.

Above is a picture of Wally that appeared in the March 27, 1948, edition of the Toronto Daily Star. The caption read: "That's Wally Stanowski piloting the electric razor in the middle panel. He's still the steadiest performer the Leafs have in front of Broda." The reference being to Toronto goalie Turk Broda, who backstopped the Leafs to the 1948 Stanley Cup victory.

EDDIE JOHNSTON'S PLAYOFF STREAK

Eddie Johnston made his NHL debut in goal for the Boston Bruins in 1962-63. At the beginning of the season, Bob Perreault was given the starting job between the pipes by Bruins coach Phil Watson. Perreault, like Johnston, was in his first NHL season. When Boston sputtered out of the gate, they replaced Watson with Bruins' legend Milt Schmidt in November.

By mid-December, Perreault was being hampered by injuries. In one game against the Toronto Maple Leafs, Perreault was sent to the sidelines in the third period after suffering both knee and ankle injury. As a result, the bulk of the goaltending duties were being handled by Johnston.

A rookie at 27, the opportunity to gain confidence came with each game. And Johnston saw a lot of pucks. Asked after a rather busy outing if he was aware he faced 41 shots, Johnston replied, "I handle that many every night I play."

During Johnston's first six years, the Bruins failed to make the playoffs, but they turned it around when Bobby Orr arrived on the scene. Also, Johnston gained a new partner in the crease when Gerry Cheevers joined the Bruins.

Johnston's best performance in the playoffs came in 1972, when he went on a hot streak.

On April 8, 1972, Johnston notched his one and only playoff shutout. It came in game three of the Bruins quarter-final series against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The two clubs split the first two contests in Boston.

At Maple Leaf Gardens, Johnston replaced Cheevers, and earned his first win in the '72 playoffs. In fact, it was his first ever playoff win.

"Johnston shutout [the] Leafs, 2-0, with brilliant goaltending," noted a story on the game. Both Boston goals came on the power play with Mike Walton and Bobby Orr doing the damage.

The next night, Johnston was back to face the Leafs and was peppered with 42 shots on goal. Toronto held a 4-2 lead early in the third period, but goals by Ed Westfall, Phil Esposito, and Ken Hodge gave Boston a 5-4 come from behind win. It was his second win in the '72 playoffs.

After the 5-4 victory, Bruins' forward Wayne Cashman talked about his goalie.

"We got big saves from Eddie. I guess we have such an offensive team nobody notices our goaltending. But through the season I'd think we average 30 shots against, and even when we were down tonight, Eddie kept us in the game."

On the second straight road win, Boston coach, Tom Johnson, said, "When you lose a game like that on your home ice it really flattens you." He added, "And it should lift our guys just as high as it sinks [the] Leafs."

Despite backstopping his team to two decisive wins, the Bruins went with Gerry Cheevers in game 5. Boston eliminated the Leafs with a 3-2 win.

In the semi-finals, Boston and St. Louis played game one on April 18, at Boston Garden. At practice the day before, Johnston was informed by Tom Johnson that he would start in the opener.

The Bruins had little difficulty with the Blues as they handed them a 6-1 loss. It was Johnston's third win in the '72 playoffs.

"They usually check pretty closely," said Johnston in his post-game comments. "I guess they figured they had to open up. Maybe they were trying to steal one in our rink." While Johnston had a relatively easy game, he did have a scare in the middle frame when Bobby Orr toppled Garry Unger and sent him into Johnston's right leg. "It felt like it locked. Just a cramp, but it's okay."

Sticking to his plan to alternate his goalies, Johnson turned to Gerry Cheevers for game two. Once again, Boston hammered St. Louis by a score of 10 to 2, and jetted to St. Louis with a two game advantage.

Little changed for the Blues when they hosted Boston in game three on April 23. The Bruins didn't take their skate off the gas pedal and downed St. Louis 7-3. It was Johnston's fourth win in the '72 playoffs.

As one article noted, "[The] Blues wilted in the face of Boston goaltender Ed Johnston's sharp reflexes and the overwhelming Bruin firepower that produced two goals each by John McKenzie and Mike Walton."

Now in a position to sweep the series, Cheevers and his teammates defeated St. Louis 5-3.

When the Stanley Cup final opened on April 30, Boston held home ice advantage over the New York Rangers. In a closely played contest, the Bruins edged New York 6-5. Although he didn't play, Johnston provided his analysis of the game.

"The best goalkeeping all afternoon came after it was tied  5-5," said Johnston. "Giacomin [New York's goalie] had to be fabulous or we'd have won it about 8-5. And Cheesy stood his ground when Vic Hadfield got in tight and made him shoot wide."

Eddie Johnston got his turn in the crease in game two on May 2. In another closely knit played game, the Bruins emerged with a 2-1 win. It was Johnston's fifth win in the '72 playoffs. New York Rangers forward, Vic Hadfield, heaped praise on Johnston for his work.

"The big man for them was Johnston," Hadfield told the press. "He stole us blind, made two tremendous saves on Jean [Ratelle] in the first period."

In the confines of Madison Square Garden, the Rangers rebounded with a 5-2 victory. Gerry Cheevers was in net for the loss. In the opinion of Johnston, his partner in the goaltending union couldn't be faulted for the defeat.

"Gerry didn't have a chance on those first three power play goals. We gave their point-man, Park [Brad], too much time, allowed them to wind up and fire bombs. Those two that Park scored travelled so fast they smoked. No one stops that kind. Give the Rangers credit for a big game in a must  situation, but we'll stop them on Sunday and finish it off at home."

Eager to see his prediction through, Johnston returned to the cage for game four in New York on May 7. He faced 23 shots in a 3-2 victory. It was Johnston's sixth win in the '72 playoffs. But he knew there was a lot of hockey left for the Rangers to crawl back.

"[The] Rangers are a disciplined team. They'll come out flying in Boston on Tuesday night."

Fully aware of Johnston's streak of six wins in the '72 playoffs, Tom Johnson made the decision to start his hot goalie in game five at home on May 9. It was now up to Johnston to make his prediction whole and help his team win the Stanley Cup in front of the hometown crowd.

Eddie Johnston's streak in the '72 playoffs came to an end when the Rangers outscored Boston 3-2 and extended the Cup final to a sixth game in New York. Johnston reflected on the loss in the Bruins' dressing room.

"I had the winner all the way until it hit Dallas Smith and changed direction," said Johnston of Bobby Rousseau's game-winning tally. "If Dallas hadn't moved into the picture it would have been routine. But that's the way it goes. You have to take the good with the bad."

Not wanting to go to a seventh and deciding game, where anything could happen, the Bruins knew the importance of winning game six in New York. With Gerry Cheevers back in goal, the Boston Bruins captured the Stanley Cup by blanking the Rangers 3-0.

In 7 games, Eddie Johnston posted a 6-1 record and a 1.86 average. His six victorious were the most for the padded warriors chasing the Stanley Cup in 1972.

EDDIE JOHNSTON AGAINST THE LEAFS IN THE QUARTER-FINALS

MAX QUACKENBUSH: 1928-2020

Max Quackenbush, a defenceman who played in the NHL with Boston and Chicago, passed away last month at the age of 91.

At Del La Salle Oaklands High School in Toronto, Quakenbush was a member of the team that won the OHA Junior "B" championship in 1946. While playing at centre, he went on a rampage during the regular season when he scored 18 goals and 13 assists in 8 games.

By the time Quackenbush joined the OHA Junior "A" Windsor Spitfires in 1947-48, he became a defenceman, but this didn't stifle his offensive skills. In 35 games, he put up 30 points, and served as captain of the Spitfires. 

During the season, Quackenbush left the Spitfires and joined the Hettche Spitfires of the International Hockey League. The team was located in Windsor, so geographically, it wasn't a big move. His play didn't suffer with the upgraded level of competition, as Quackenbush and the Hettche Spitfires advanced to the IHL final against the Toledo Mercurys. On March 14, 1948, Toledo defeated the Spitfires by a score of 9-6 and captured the Joe Turner Memorial Trophy. They took the best-of-seven final in five games. 

The next step for Quackenbush was to the United States Hockey League with the Omaha Knights, a farm team of the Detroit Red Wings. In Omaha, Quackenbush continued to work on his game with an eye towards impressing the Red Wings management. In particular, Jack Adams, who was Detroit's GM.

In 1949-50, Detroit assigned Quackenbush to the Indianapolis Capitals of the American Hockey League. This was the perfect situation for Quackenbush to shine. Most of Detroit's hottest prospects performed on this team and displayed their ability to trample over all comers. This was especially evident when the playoffs got underway.

Indianapolis swept through the post-season by winning the Calder Cup in the minimum number of eight games. It was the first time in AHL history that this feat was accomplished. In game four of the final against Cleveland, the Capitals took a 2-0 lead in the second period. The goal was scored by Pat Lundy at the 12:33 mark. The play developed when Quackenbush sent a long pass from deep in his own zone to Lundy at centre ice. Then, Lundy fired a shot, which was screened by Cleveland defender, and his blast found the back of the net.

As Barons coach, Bun Cook, said after the game, "I thought that was the one that beat us ... we had been trying to watch him (Lundy) and stop that."

Unable to fully bounce back from the tally set-up by Quackenbush, Cleveland fell to the Capitals by a score of 3-2.

The following year, Quackenbush returned to Indianapolis, but his stay in the Hoosier State would come to end in December 1950. On December 5, the Boston Bruins obtained Quackenbush in a deal that sent defenceman Steve Kraftcheck the other way. This trade was a loan, with Detroit retaining the rights to Quackenbush. The transaction resulted in Max joining his big brother, Bill, on the Bruins' defence. A future Honoured Member of the Hockey Hall of Fame, Bill Quackenbush, became a Bruin when the Red Wings traded him to Boston on August 16, 1949. 

It was on Bill's recommendation that Detroit signed his younger brother and it wouldn't be a stretch that the elder Quakenbush had some say on Max making his way to Boston. 

In a Boston Globe article, Max Quackenbush talked about playing alongside his sibling on the Bruins' blueline.

"Bill knows all the tricks and habits of the other teams. He coaches me on them both on and off the ice. Don't think it isn't a big help either for a rookie. These fellows up here are smart and they can make an awful fool of you if somebody doesn't help you."

Quackenbush elaborated on the difference between the AHL and NHL.

"In the American League the players scramble all over and you can make mistakes without them being costly. But up here it's all position. The players stay where they are supposed to and if you make one mistake - boom, the puck's in the net."

On New Year's Day 1951, the Bruins were at home in Boston Garden for a holiday tilt against the New York Rangers. Early in the third period, Max Quackenbush scored his first NHL goal, with brother Bill earning the lone assist. His 55-foot shot eluded Rangers' goalie Chuck Rayner. 

Over the course of his National Hockey League career, Quackenbush scored four goals and added seven helpers for 11 points. His playoff action was limited to one series. That came in 1951, when the  Bruins fell to the Leafs in five games of the semi-final.

Prior to the 1951-52 season, Quackenbush found himself on the move when Detroit, who held his rights, shipped him to the Chicago Black Hawks. The Bruins couldn't reach a deal with Detroit for his services. That was followed by him being sent to the AHL St. Louis Flyers. In what can only be described as a blow to his ambition of remaining in the big league, Quackenbush kept a positive attitude. St. Louis was a farm team of the Chicago Black Hawks and Quackenbush got into 14 contests with the Hawks.

Starting in 1952-53, Quackenbush played for the Calgary Stampeders of the Western Hockey League. He remained a Stampeder until his retirement following the 1954-55 campaign. The highlight of his time with Calgary came in May 1954 when they captured the inaugural Edinburgh Cup. The series pitted the WHL champs against their counterparts in the Quebec Hockey League.

In a quiet off-season move in July 1955, the Montreal Canadiens obtained Quackenbush from Calgary. But prior to camp opening in September, Quackenbush told the Habs of his intention to retire.

Maxwell Joseph Quackenbush was born on August 29, 1928, in Toronto, Ontario. He died on April 17, 2020.