Skip to main content

Henri Richard: Game Winner Against The Maple Leafs in the 1959-60 Playoffs

In 1959-60, the Montreal Canadiens swept their way through the playoffs to capture their fifth consecutive Stanley Cup championship. In game three of the final series against the Toronto Maple Leafs, both Richard brothers factored into the Habs win. But, it was the Pocket Rocket that picked up the Gordie Howe Hat Trick.

Not known to be as vicious as his brother Maurice, Henri Richard only picked up two minor penalties through the 1959-60 playoffs, to go with the fighting major that he picked up in game three of the final. One of those minors came in the third period of this game. His 12 points over eight games would have put him in the running for the Conn Smythe Trophy if the award had existed at the time.

The Game

On April 12, 1960, the Montreal Canadiens met the Toronto Maple Leafs at Maple Leaf Gardens for game three of the final series. The Habs took the first two games in Montreal by scores of 4-2 and 2-1. The outcome was never really in question with the Canadiens jumping out to a 3-0 lead midway through the game and holding a 5-1 lead before the Leafs scored with just 13 seconds left in the match.

The teams would meet at the Gardens two nights later with Montreal coming out on top 4-0 to capture the championship. Henri scored the third goal of the game, assisted by his brother and Dickie Moore. Jean Beliveau scored the first and last goals of the game.

The Assist

At 10:07 of the third period, Maurice Richard scored his only goal of the playoffs. It turned out to be the last goal over his legendary career. Assisting on the goal were brother Henri and Dickie Moore. The goal put Montreal up 5-1 and was one of six shots that the Rocket put on Toronto goalie Johnny Bower.

The Goal

Henri Richard scored his second goal of the playoffs at 15:27 of the second period to make it 3-0. The goal would become the game winner after Toronto was able to put two behind Jacques Plante. The goal was unassisted.

The Fight

You have to hand it to the Pocket Rocket, he went up against a tough customer. At 16:19 of the second period, Henri dropped the gloves with Bob Baun with both receiving five for fighting. The fight occurred as Johnny Wilson scored the first goal of the game for Toronto, assisted by Billy Harris and Carl Brewer. 

About Henri Richard

The Pocket Rocket played 1,258 regular season and 180 playoff games in the National Hockey League between 1955-56 and 1974-75, all with the Montreal Canadiens. His eleven Stanley Cup rings are the most by any NHL player. Richard's number 16 was retired by the Habs in 1975 and he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1979.

Henri Richard 1958-59 Parkhurst Hockey Card [YouTube Shorts]



Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Rick Middleton: Perennial Lady Byng Candidate Starts 1980-81 With A Gordie Howe Hat Trick

Rick Middleton was the Lady Byng Trophy winner in 1981-82 and finished second to Mike Bossy of the New York Islanders for the following two campaigns. Over the 1980-81 season, Rick sat just 16 minutes in penalties while playing in all 80 regular season games for the Boston Bruins. He finished third in voting for the Lady Byng, behind Rick Kehoe and Wayne Gretzky . Yet, in the first game of the season for the Bruins, Middleton dropped the gloves. Not unheard of, Rick also put up a Gordie Howe Hat Trick at the start of the 1978-79 campaign. On October 9, 1980, he did it again. The Game It was the first game of the 1980-81 NHL season for both Boston and the New York Rangers. The Bruins played host at the Boston Garden and, early on, it looked like they were going to be nice to their guests. The Rangers jumped out to a 2-0 lead early in the first period with goals by Mike Allison (2:44) and Walt Tkaczuk (3:18).  However, that early shock lit a fire under the Bruins and the team came ...
Post a Comment
Read more

Rick Vaive: Gordie Howe Hat Trick Against the Quebec Nordiques (December 6, 1980)

1980-81 was Rick Vaive's first full season with the Toronto Maple Leafs after coming over in a February 18, 1980 trade midway through the 1979-80 season. That was the trade that sent Dave "Tiger" Williams and Jerry Butler to the Vancouver Canucks while Bill Derlago came east along with Vaive. On December 6, 1980, the Buds were hosting the Quebec Nordiques at Maple Leaf Gardens. This was the first of a home-and-home on back to back nights. Interestingly, the following game also featured a Gordie Howe Hat Trick. The Leafs handled the woeful Nordiques handily in a 5-2 win with Darryl Sittler picking up a pair of goals. The Goal Rick Vaive scored his eleventh goal of the season at 17:44 of the second period, assisted by Borje Salming . It was the fourth goal of the game for Toronto and made the score 4-1. 27 seconds later, Jacques Richard would get one back for Quebec with assists going to Dale Hunter and Michel Goulet. The Assist At 3:27 of the second period, Robert Pica...
Post a Comment
Read more