Game 080
Maple Leafs 4, Canadiens 3
Thursday, February 2, 1928
Forum de Montréal, Montréal, Québec
The Canadiens lost their third straight game at home tonight when the Toronto Leafs scored a 4 to 3 victory over the Red Shirts. It was a hectic struggle, with the Canadiens making a last period rally which just fell short of tying the score. The Leafs held a 4 to 1 advantage at the conclusion of the second session, having controlled the play for the two periods, and having scored two goals in each frame.
The result, combined with Ottawa’s victory over the Montréal Maroons at Ottawa, sent the Toronto team into third place in the standing of the Canadian section.
The Leafs started without the services of Art Duncan, one of the regular defencemen, who was injured at Ottawa Tuesday night, and in the latter part of the third period lost “Happy” Day, the other regular member of the rearguard, who had to retire with a cut tendon. Day will probably be lost to the Leafs for some time. With a patched defence, Toronto put up stubborn resistance and managed to hold tenaciously to their advantage, although many were the close calls given Roach.
Keeling, Bailey, Carson and Day scored for Toronto, while Gaudreault, Joliat and Hart counted for the Habitants.
Leduc got a major penalty in the final frame for cracking Bailey over the head during a melee around the Toronto net. Bailey was the Toronto “bad man,” with six minors to his credit.
The Leafs got the first break when Keeling shot from the blue line. He followed in and snared his own rebound to shoot past Hainsworth for the first counter of the game.
Bailey and Joliat followed one another to the penalty bench on three occasions during the first period. With less than two minutes to go in the period, Bailey sniped another past Hainsworth, making it 2 to 0 in favour of the Leafs.
Two minutes after the start of the middle period, the Leafs made it 3 to 0. A perfect combination play, Cox to Carson, allowed the later to split the Canucks’ defence and send a bullet-like drive into the corner of the net.
Joliat and Rodden followed one another to the penalty bench for minor offences soon after. Mantha was injured when spilled while going through the defence, and “Hap” Day drew a penalty for upsetting the big Canuck defenceman. Just after the return of the Leafs to full strength, Lowrey gave Day a pass in front of the net, and the Leafs captain made the score 4 to 0.
After much trying, the Canadiens finally got a goal, Gaudreault taking a pass from Pit Lépine right in front of the net to slip the disc past Roach.
The Leafs were put at an immediate disadvantage in the third period, when Bailey went off for holding Joliat when the latter was in on top of Roach. The Canucks redoubled their efforts with the advantage of an extra man, but they could not fathom the stubborn defence put up by the Leafs. Immediately after Bailey’s return, however, Joliat got the Canadiens’ second goal. It was rather a fluke counter, with the Canadiens’ left winger knocking the disc from behind the net, from where it hit Roach’s skate and bounded into the goal.
The Frenchmen worked hard in an effort to get a couple more goals to tie the count. Leduc and Bailey clashed, and the former hit the Toronto man over the head. Leduc got a major and Bailey a minor. Just as Bailey returned, Lépine and Hart waltzed through the Toronto defence, and Hart put the Canucks within striking distance. The Leafs protested the goal, claiming that the officials had blown a whistle just before the shot, but their protest bore no fruit, and the goal was allowed.
With but five men to Toronto’s six, the Habitants kept on forcing the play, and Roach was one busy man. Morenz drew a minor, and while he was off, the Canucks’ attack eased off. On their star centre’s return, however, the Canadiens opened up again.
The Leafs, who were without the services of “Happy” Day, who was injured shortly after Joliat scored the Canadiens’ second goal, grimly held on to their slim margin. In the last minute, they drove the puck the length of the ice conditionally. Bailey went off for his sixth penalty of the game, and the Red Shirts swarmed around Roach, who was saved by the final bell.
Story originally published in The Globe, February 3, 1928
BOXSCORE
1st Period
TOR GOAL – 02:42 – Keeling
TOR GOAL – 17:10 – Bailey (Cox)
TOR PENS – Bailey (3), Day, Herbert
MTL PENS – Joliat (2)
2nd Period
TOR GOAL – 02:45 – Carson (Cox)
TOR GOAL – 11:22 – Day (Lowrey)
MTL GOAL – 16:17 – Gaudreault (Lépine)
TOR PENS – Day, Rodden
MTL PENS – Joliat, Langlois
3rd Period
MTL GOAL – 04:35 – Joliat (Leduc)
MTL GOAL – 08:37 – Hart
TOR PENS – Bailey (3)
MTL PENS – Leduc (major), Gagné, Morenz
GOALTENDERS
TOR – Roach (W)
MTL – Hainsworth (L)
ROSTERS
TOR – Goaltenders: John Ross Roach. Defence: Hap Day (C), Beattie Ramsay. Forwards: Ace Bailey, Bill Carson, Danny Cox, Jimmy Herbert, Butch Keeling, Gerry Lowrey, Eddie Rodden.
MTL – Goaltenders: George Hainsworth. Defence: Herb Gardiner, Albert Leduc, Sylvio Mantha (C). Forwards: Art Gagné, Leo Gaudreault, Gizzy Hart, Aurèle Joliat, Charlie Langlois, Wildor Larochelle, Pit Lépine, Howie Morenz.
TEAM RECORDS
TOR – 13-11-3 (.537)
MTL – 18-5-4 (.741)
Two Solitudes 