Game 414
Canadiens 5, Maple Leafs 0
Thursday, October 6, 1960
Forum de Montréal, Montréal, Québec
The Montréal Canadiens started out in pursuit of their sixth successive Stanley Cup here tonight with an emphatic 5-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
And judging by their skill, poise and all-around ice deportment in this game, the Canadiens should maintain their National Hockey League championship monopoly, despite some handwringing from their front office.
Henri Richard, who was almost invisible a few times when he stepped up his speed, scored two goals. The others went to Bernie Geoffrion, Marcel Bonin and Bill Hicke.
Hicke is the nominal successor to Maurice Richard on the line with Henri and Dickie Moore. Moore, incidentally, collected three assists.
The Leafs, before a crowd of 13,747, were more outfinessed than outplayed. The Canadiens outmanoeuvred them with pinpoint passing plays that were as precise in their execution as ice-follies routines.
The coup de grace, as far as the Leafs were concerned, was a five minute major penalty to George Armstrong late in the first period for high sticking Phil Goyette. Goyette’s grievous wound, high on his nose, required one stitch to close.
When Armstrong went off, the Leafs were trailing 1-0. The Canadiens scored twice during his penalty, and the Leafs seemed to run out of enthusiasm in the process.
Jacques Plante, the Canadiens’ masked goalie, stopped 19 shots for his second successive shutout over the Leafs. He blanked them in the final game of the Stanley Cup playoffs last spring.
Prior to the game, Canadiens managing director Frank Selke and coach Toe Blake had expressed pious concern about Plante’s play and the complacency of the champions. Doubtless they were relieved by tonight’s efforts.
Leafs goalkeeper Johnny Bower played a magnificent game in defeat. He spent most of the game starting directly at the posteriors of his defencemen, who kept backing in on him.
The Leafs were without left winger Dick Duff, who is a holdout. And Larry Regan, who was supposed to be his replacement, wasn’t here for the game either.
Encouraging for the Leafs was the determined play of their rookies Dave Keon and Bobby Nevin, and centre Billy Harris. Nevin missed scoring a couple of goals by inches.
Geoffrion opened the scoring in the first period, whacking in Marcel Bonin’s goalmouth pass. Then, while Armstrong was off, the Canadiens scored two quickies early in the second period. Bonin scooted in speedily to rap in Don Marshall’s rebound, and Richard did a sweep across the front of the net before tucking the puck in the open side with a backhand caress.
Hicke made it 4-0 six minutes later with a long shot that Bower didn’t see, because large Jean Béliveau was screening him. Richard scored his second goal in the third period, a shot that deflected off Leafs defenceman Tim Horton’s skate and into the net.
Story originally published in The Globe & Mail, October 7, 1960
BOXSCORE
1st Period
MTL GOAL – 01:06 – Geoffrion (Bonin, Béliveau)
TOR PEN – 02:51 – Olmstead, hooking
TOR PEN – 06:59 – Brewer, hooking
MTL PEN – 10:07 – Richard, high sticking
TOR PEN – 19:22 – Armstrong, high sticking major
2nd Period
MTL PP GOAL – 00:15 – Bonin (Marshall, Johnson)
MTL GOAL – 02:01 – Richard (Moore, Harvey)
MTL PEN – 04:32 – Provost, boarding
MTL GOAL – 08:30 – Hicke (Moore, Béliveau)
MTL PEN – 15:54 – Talbot, interference
TOR PEN – 18:52 – Mahovlich, hooking
3rd Period
MTL GOAL – 02:34 – Richard (Moore, Hicke)
MTL PEN – 04:13 – Talbot, holding
TOR PEN – 08:17 – Brewer, tripping
MTL PEN – 15:24 – Harvey, hooking
GOALTENDERS
MTL – Plante (W + SO, 19-19)
TOR – Bower (L, 30-35)
SHOTS ON GOAL
MTL – 10+11+14 = 35
TOR – 9+6+4 = 19
ROSTERS
MTL – Goaltenders: Jacques Plante. Defence: Doug Harvey (C), Tom Johnson, Albert Langlois, Jean-Guy Talbot, Bob Turner. Forwards: Ralph Backstrom, Jean Béliveau, Marcel Bonin, Bernie Geoffrion, Phil Goyette, Bill Hicke, Don Marshall, Dickie Moore, André Pronovost, Claude Provost, Henri Richard.
TOR – Goaltenders: Johnny Bower. Defence: Bobby Baun, Carl Brewer, Larry Hillman, Tim Horton, Red Kelly, Allan Stanley. Forwards: George Armstrong (C), Garry Edmundson, Gerry Ehman, Billy Harris, Dave Keon, Frank Mahovlich, Bob Nevin, Bert Olmstead, Bob Pulford, Ron Stewart.
TEAM RECORDS
MTL – 1-0-0 (1.000)
TOR – 0-1-0 (.000)
ATTENDANCE
13,747
Two Solitudes 