Preseason Game 10
Canadiens 6, Maple Leafs 4
Friday, October 1, 1976
Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto, Ontario
The big difference in last night’s National Hockey League exhibition game at Maple Leaf Gardens, in which the Montréal Canadiens defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 6-4, was the attendance of 14,006.
Normally when the Leafs play at home the announced attendance is 16,485, which means every seat has been sold, though not necessarily occupied.
Last night, every seat was on sale to the general public for the first time in many years.
The win is the seventh against two losses for Montréal in the preseason schedule, while the Leafs have five wins, three losses and a tie.
Bob Gainey scored Montréal’s first two goals in the opening period and, although the Leafs tied it and even took a brief lead, the Canadiens did not seem to be in serious trouble at any stage.
Pete Mahovlich, who was booed every time he got his stick on the puck, which was fairly often, also scored two for Montréal, with Jacques Lemaire and Jim Roberts getting the others.
For the Leafs, Errol Thompson scored two, and Don Ashby and Pat Boutette got the others.
Wayne Thomas played all the way in the Leaf net, while Michel Larocque replaced David Elenbaas in the Montréal net midway in the second period.
Montréal outshot the Leafs 32-29.
Story originally published in The Globe & Mail, October 2, 1976
Two Solitudes 