Game 478
Canadiens 2, Maple Leafs 1
Wednesday, January 20, 1965
Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario
The Montréal Canadiens scored both their goals during a second period slump last night, and that was all they needed for a 2-1 victory over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Leafs lost while dominating play in the middle 20 minutes. They fired 12 shots on the Montréal goal while restricting the Canadiens to four. The Leafs drew 12 blanks, but the Habs had a 50 percent shooting average.
Ex-Leaf Dick Duff’s fifth goal of the season was the winner. A sharp pass from Bobby Rousseau banked off Duff’s skate into a wide open side of the Toronto net at the 7:50 mark.
It came a little more than three minutes after Claude Larose converted a goalmouth scramble into the opening score.
Johnny Bower fell while blocking the first try by Larose. Red Kelly came in from the side to check the Montréaler, the puck plopped into the air and slowly, tantalizingly, cleared Bower’s body and dropped into the net.
Jim Pappin’s ninth goal of the season cost Gump Worsley a shutout. Bobby Baun’s slapshot from the right point ticked off Dave Keon, then bounced off Pappin without losing steam. Worsley had no chance as the deflection caught the far corner.
A crowd of 14,357 watched a fast paced game in which play ranged rapidly from end to end. There was a slight letdown in the final period as fatigue overtook both sides.
Although Worsley was named as the game’s top star, Bower might have earned the rating. The Toronto veteran had to foil four breakaway efforts by the Canadiens, including two in the last 90 seconds.
Baun broke his stick on a slapshot from the point to set Claude Provost loose on the first of these late breaks, but Bower got his skate to the close-in shot. Seconds later Carl Brewer committed himself from the other point and Ralph Backstrom bore in alone.
Backstrom went right in, actually deked Bower to one side, then couldn’t control the puck as he skated past the goal.
Worsley had his fortunate moments too, shortly after the opening goal by Larose. On a three-man break, Dave Keon set up Dick Moore, who made a good close-in play by flipping over a falling Worsley. But Gump’s legs flew up and the puck deflected off one skate, right over the goal..
There was some hard hitting, with Baun and Tim Horton leading in that department, but there was little evidence of choppiness. Hooking, holding and interference abounded, and referee Vern Buffey selected three victims from each team for his report card.
The first penalty went to Jacques Laperrière for high sticking Pete Stemkowski. When the Montréal defence star offered some comment, Buffey tacked on a misconduct penalty as well.
NOTES: Moore replaced Don McKenney in the Toronto lineup after missing one game with a knee injury, but for the last half of the game, Eddie Shack replaced him at left wing on a line with Dave Keon and Tim Horton…Dave Balon’s ankle stopped an Al Stanley slapshot from six feet and he was hobbling around after the game…Backstrom’s slapshot from centre ice early in the first period smashed the blade of Bower’s goalstick in half. Johnny had to play with a broken stick for almost a minute until an offside gave him a chance to get a new stick…The Canadiens drew the only two penalties of the first period and the Leafs couldn’t assemble anything worthwhile during the four minutes they enjoyed an edge.
Story originally published in The Globe & Mail, January 21, 1965
BOXSCORE
1st Period
MTL PEN – 13:30 – Laperrière, cross checking + misconduct
MTL PEN – 16:16 – Ferguson, hooking
2nd Period
MTL GOAL – 04:26 – Larose (Backstrom, Ferguson)
MTL GOAL – 07:50 – Duff (Rousseau)
TOR PEN – 09:50 – Mahovlich, holding
TOR GOAL – 12:17 – Pappin (Baun, Keon)
3rd Period
TOR PEN – 13:12 – Mahovlich, tripping
MTL PEN – 16:16 – Ferguson, slashing
TOR PEN – 16:16 – Ellis, slashing
GOALTENDERS
MTL – Worsley (W, 30-31)
TOR – Bower (L, 22-24)
SHOTS ON GOAL
MTL – 11+4+9 = 24
TOR – 11+12+8 = 31
ROSTERS
MTL – Goaltenders: Gump Worsley. Defence: Terry Harper, Ted Harris, Jacques Laperrière, Jim Roberts, Jean-Guy Talbot, J.C. Tremblay. Forwards: Ralph Backstrom, Dave Balon, Yvan Cournoyer, Dick Duff, John Ferguson, Claude Larose, Claude Provost, Henri Richard, Léon Rochefort, Bobby Rousseau.
TOR – Goaltenders: Johnny Bower. Defence: Bobby Baun, Carl Brewer, Kent Douglas, Tim Horton, Red Kelly, Allan Stanley. Forwards: Ron Ellis, Dave Keon, Frank Mahovlich, Dickie Moore, Jim Pappin, Bob Pulford, Eddie Shack, Pete Stemkowski, Ron Stewart.
TEAM RECORDS
MTL – 22-11-7 (.638)
TOR – 18-15-10 (.535)
ATTENDANCE
14,357
Two Solitudes 