Game 204
Maple Leafs 4, Canadiens 1
Thursday, November 2, 1944
Forum de Montréal, Montréal, Québec
The Toronto Maple Leafs, who pinned the only home ice defeat of the season on the Canadiens last spring, gave the Canucks their first whipping of the young National Hockey League season tonight by a 4-1 count.
A capacity crowd of more than 12,000 saw a game that was a slugging match all the way, with both teams tearing into each other throughout the game, and with the penalty parade reaching such proportions in the third period that the teams were seldom both at full strength.
Davidson went off for holding, but Richard followed him almost immediately to keep the sides even. Everybody got back to full strength just as the siren went.
The Canucks pulled up from behind once in the game, when a second period goal offset Toronto’s early lead, but they never had no answer to the Toronto rush when the Bodnar-Schriner-Carr trio started to click in earnest in the third.
The Canadiens drew down most of the penalties, and three of the Leaf goals came when the champions were shorthanded.
Nick Metz opened the scoring in the first period with a solo effort midway through the frame, when he picked up a loose puck directly in front of the Canadien net after a Toronto ganging attack. The Canadiens tied it up in the second, with Toe Blake clicking on an identical play.
The penalty parade started in full swing late in the second, and it continued through the third to such an extent that the game, which had started at a terrific clip, slowed down to a walk because of the whistle blowing in the third.
Sweeney Schriner shot the Leafs into the lead in the first minute of the third, and Gus Bodnar added another at the three minute mark. Bodnar’s goal, coming just after the Canadiens had regained full strength, was the only one the Leafs collected while the Canadiens had a full team on the ice.
Lorne Carr wound up the scoring for the night midway through the third. Frankie McCool was a busy man in the Toronto nets after that, but he had the answer to every shot the Canadiens threw at him.
Story originally published in The Globe & Mail, November 3, 1944
BOXSCORE
1st Period
MTL PEN – 02:06 – Lach
MTL PEN – 08:44 – Lach
TOR PP GOAL – 10:40 – Metz
TOR PEN – 16:19 – Morris
2nd Period
MTL PEN – 04:05 – Chamberlain
MTL GOAL – 12:24 – Blake
MTL PEN – 18:01 – Lach
MTL PEN – 18:24 – Chamberlain
MTL PEN – 18:47 – Getliffe
TOR PEN – 18:47 – Metz
3rd Period
TOR GOAL – 00:46 – Schriner (Carr)
TOR GOAL – 03:27 – Bodnar (Schriner, Backor)
MTL PEN – 04:08 – Lamoureux, major + game misconduct
TOR PEN – 04:08 – Ezinicki, major
MTL PEN – 05:45 – Lach
MTL PEN – 08:00 – Getliffe, minor + game misconduct
MTL PEN – 08:14 – Bouchard
TOR PEN – 08:14 – Davidson
TOR PP GOAL – 09:45 – Carr (Schriner)
TOR PEN – 16:32 – Davidson
MTL PEN – 17:16 – Richard
GOALTENDERS
TOR – McCool (W)
MTL – Durnan (L)
ROSTERS
TOR – Goaltenders: Frank McCool. Defence: Pete Backor, Reg Hamilton, Moe Morris, Babe Pratt. Forwards: Gus Bodnar, Lorne Carr, Bob Davidson (C), Bill Ezinicki, Mel Hill, Ted Kennedy, Nick Metz, Tom O’Neill, Sweeney Schriner.
MTL – Goaltenders: Bill Durnan. Defence: Butch Bouchard, Frank Eddolls, Glen Harmon. Forwards: Toe Blake (C), Murph Chamberlain, Bob Fillion, Fern Gauthier, Ray Getliffe, Dutch Hiller, Elmer Lach, Leo Lamoureux, Buddy O’Connor, Maurice Richard.
TEAM RECORDS
TOR – 3-0-0 (1.000)
MTL – 1-1-0 (.500)
Two Solitudes 