1956 Stanley Cup Final
1956 ice hockey championship series
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
The 1956 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1955–56 season, and the culmination of the 1956 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested between the Montreal Canadiens and the two-time defending champion Detroit Red Wings in the fourth Detroit-Montreal series in the 1950s, the two teams having met in the previous two years as well as in 1952; Detroit won all three. The Canadiens were appearing in their sixth consecutive Finals, the Red Wings their third. The Canadiens avenged their previous three losses to Detroit, as they defeated the Red Wings in five games to win their second Stanley Cup in four years.
Detroit: Olympia Stadium (3, 4)
Detroit: Jimmy Skinner
Detroit: Ted Lindsay
| 1956 Stanley Cup Final | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| Location(s) | Montreal: Montreal Forum (1, 2, 5) Detroit: Olympia Stadium (3, 4) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Coaches | Montreal: Toe Blake Detroit: Jimmy Skinner | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Captains | Montreal: Emile Bouchard Detroit: Ted Lindsay | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Dates | March 31 – April 10, 1956 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Series-winning goal | Maurice Richard (15:08, second) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Hall of Famers | Canadiens: Jean Beliveau (1972) Emile Bouchard (1966) Bernie Geoffrion (1972) Doug Harvey (1973) Tom Johnson (1970) Dickie Moore (1974) Bert Olmstead (1985) Jacques Plante (1978) Henri Richard (1979) Maurice Richard (1961) Red Wings: Johnny Bucyk (1981) Murray Costello (2005, builder) Alex Delvecchio (1977) Glenn Hall (1975) Gordie Howe (1972) Red Kelly (1969) Ted Lindsay (1966) Marcel Pronovost (1978) Norm Ullman (1982) Coaches: Toe Blake (1966, player) | |||||||||||||||||||||
Paths to the Finals
Montreal defeated the New York Rangers 4–1 to reach the final. Detroit defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4–1 to reach the final.
Game summaries
The Canadiens won the series in 5 games to win their eighth Stanley Cup.[1] Jacques Plante held the Red Wings to just 9 goals in the five games. This was the first Final for Henri Richard and former Habs player Toe Blake's first Final as coach.
Game one
| March 31 | Detroit Red Wings | 4–6 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |
The Canadiens, down 4–2 after two periods, scored four unanswered goals, in a 5:29 span, in the third period to win game one 6–4 at the Forum.[2]
| Scoring summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | DET | Alex Delvecchio (5) – pp | Earl Reibel (2) and Gordie Howe (5) | 08:17 | 1–0 DET |
| 2nd | MTL | Jean Beliveau (6) – pp | Bert Olmstead (3) | 03:00 | 1–1 |
| DET | Bill Dineen (1) | Norm Ullman (3) and Johnny Bucyk (1) | 03:45 | 2–1 DET | |
| MTL | Henri Richard (3) | Maurice Richard (8) and Dickie Moore (4) | 06:40 | 2–2 | |
| DET | Ted Lindsay (5) | Gordie Howe (6) | 08:11 | 3–2 DET | |
| DET | Alex Delvecchio (6) – pp | Gordie Howe (7) and Lorne Ferguson (2) | 11:20 | 4–2 DET | |
| 3rd | MTL | Jack LeClair (1) | Floyd Curry (3) and Doug Harvey (4) | 05:20 | 4–3 DET |
| MTL | Bernie Geoffrion (3) | Jean-Guy Talbot (2) | 06:20 | 4–4 | |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau (7) | Bernie Geoffrion (7) and Bert Olmstead (4) | 07:31 | 5–4 MTL | |
| MTL | Claude Provost (3) | Jack LeClair (1) and Floyd Curry (4) | 10:49 | 6–4 MTL | |
| Penalty summary | |||||
| Period | Team | Player | Penalty | Time | PIM |
| 1st | DET | Ted Lindsay | High-sticking | 02:13 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau | High-sticking | 02:13 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Bill Dineen | Roughing | 03:21 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Bob Turner | High-sticking | 03:21 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | High-sticking | 04:44 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Gordie Howe | Hooking | 05:45 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | Hooking | 08:02 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Bill Dineen | Interference | 13:18 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | Hooking | 14:32 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Norm Ullman | Charging | 15:35 | 2:00 | |
| 2nd | DET | Metro Prystai | Kneeing | 01:10 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Tom Johnson | Cross-checking | 11:13 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Bucky Hollingworth | Roughing | 16:29 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Tom Johnson | Roughing | 16:29 | 2:00 | |
| 3rd | None | ||||
| Shots by period | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | |
| Detroit | 10 | 12 | 5 | 27 | |
| Montreal | 8 | 18 | 18 | 44 | |
Game two
| April 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–5 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |
After a tight first period in game two, Montreal took control in the second, with goals from Henri Richard and Bernie Geoffrion, making the score 3–0. Jean Beliveau scored at 02:48 of the second period to make it 4-1, and Maurice Richard added a third-period goal with 39 seconds remaining, taking game two by a score of 5–1, giving Montreal a 2–0 series lead.
| Scoring summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | MTL | Donnie Marshall (1) – sh | Bert Olmstead (5) | 07:23 | 1–0 MTL |
| 2nd | MTL | Henri Richard (4) | Dickie Moore (5) | 11:37 | 2–0 MTL |
| MTL | Bernie Geoffrion (4) | Bert Olmstead (6) and Jean Beliveau (5) | 14:38 | 3–0 MTL | |
| 3rd | DET | Norm Ullman (1) | Gordie Howe (8) and Ted Lindsay (1) | 00:31 | 3–1 MTL |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau (8) | Maurice Richard (9) and Bert Olmstead (7) | 02:48 | 4–1 MTL | |
| MTL | Maurice Richard (4) | Henri Richard (9) and Dickie Moore (6) | 19:21 | 5–1 MTL | |
| Penalty summary | |||||
| Period | Team | Player | Penalty | Time | PIM |
| 1st | DET | Lorne Ferguson | High-sticking | 03:34 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Tom Johnson | Roughing | 03:34 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Floyd Curry | Hooking | 07:02 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Marty Pavelich | Cross-checking | 09:30 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Tom Johnson | Cross-checking | 17:02 | 2:00 | |
| 2nd | DET | Lorne Ferguson | Holding | 02:20 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Dickie Moore | Hooking | 07:24 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Marty Pavelich | Hooking | 08:30 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Norm Ullman | Slashing | 15:52 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Bob Turner | High-sticking | 15:52 | 2:00 | |
| 3rd | DET | Marty Pavelich | High-sticking | 05:29 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Dickie Moore | Charging | 09:29 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | Spearing | 19:52 | 2:00 | |
| Shots by period | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | |
| Detroit | 7 | 5 | 8 | 20 | |
| Montreal | 11 | 13 | 11 | 35 | |
Game three
| April 5 | Montreal Canadiens | 1–3 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap |
In game three, with Detroit having home ice advantage, defeated Montreal by a score of 3-1, with goals from Red Kelly, Ted Lindsay, and Gordie Howe, cutting the Canadiens series lead in half.
| Scoring summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | DET | Red Kelly (2) – pp | Gordie Howe (9) | 14:27 | 1–0 DET |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau (9) | Claude Provost (2) | 19:20 | 1–1 | |
| 2nd | None | ||||
| 3rd | DET | Ted Lindsay (6) | Marty Pavelich (1) and Al Arbour (1) | 11:36 | 2–1 DET |
| DET | Gordie Howe (3) | Ted Lindsay (2) and Alex Delvecchio (3) | 18:12 | 3–1 DET | |
| Penalty summary | |||||
| Period | Team | Player | Penalty | Time | PIM |
| 1st | DET | Lorne Ferguson | Interference | 01:44 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Jack LeClair | Holding | 04:31 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Johnny Bucyk | Tripping | 10:31 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Ted Lindsay | High-sticking | 11:25 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau | High-sticking | 11:25 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Jean-Guy Talbot | Holding | 13:41 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Earl Reibel | Roughing | 19:06 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Bert Olmstead | Roughing | 19:06 | 2:00 | |
| 2nd | DET | Marty Pavelich | Elbowing | 04:43 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | Interference | 06:24 | 2:00 | |
| 3rd | DET | Bob Goldham | Tripping | 04:21 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Bert Olmstead | Roughing | 05:59 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Jack LeClair | Tripping | 13:22 | 2:00 | |
| Shots by period | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | |
| Montreal | 6 | 8 | 7 | 21 | |
| Detroit | 5 | 8 | 12 | 25 | |
Game four
| April 8 | Montreal Canadiens | 3–0 | Detroit Red Wings | Olympia Stadium | Recap |
Jacques Plante recorded a shutout in game four, stopping all 24 shots he faced, while Jean Beliveau scored twice, giving the Canadiens a 3–0 victory and a 3–1 series lead.
| Scoring summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | MTL | Jean Beliveau (10) | Doug Harvey (4) and Bert Olmstead (8) | 15:52 | 1–0 MTL |
| 2nd | MTL | Jean Beliveau (11) | Bernie Geoffrion (8) and Bert Olmstead (9) | 11:39 | 2–0 MTL |
| 3rd | MTL | Floyd Curry (1) | Claude Provost (3) and Ken Mosdell (1) | 11:34 | 3–0 MTL |
| Penalty summary | |||||
| Period | Team | Player | Penalty | Time | PIM |
| 1st | DET | Metro Prystai | Tripping | 00:50 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Bernie Geoffrion | Charging | 01:47 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Floyd Curry | Hooking | 08:57 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Norm Ullman | Roughing | 14:03 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Norm Ullman | Fighting – major | 14:03 | 5:00 | |
| MTL | Henri Richard | Roughing | 14:03 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Henri Richard | Fighting – major | 14:03 | 5:00 | |
| 2nd | DET | Johnny Bucyk | Roughing | 04:04 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Henri Richard | Tripping | 04:12 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Lorne Ferguson | High-sticking | 04:44 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau | High-sticking | 04:44 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Doug Harvey | Kneeing | 06:24 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Dickie Moore | Hooking | 15:47 | 2:00 | |
| 3rd | None | ||||
| Shots by period | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | |
| Montreal | 8 | 11 | 11 | 30 | |
| Detroit | 6 | 9 | 9 | 24 | |
Game five
| April 10 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–3 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap |
In game five, Montreal defeated Detroit by a score of 3–1 in front of their home crowd to win their fifth consecutive Stanley Cup. Jean Beliveau starred with a goal and two assists, supported by goals from Maurice Richard and Bernie Geoffrion, while Jacques Plante made 25 saves.
| Scoring summary | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Period | Team | Goal | Assist(s) | Time | Score |
| 1st | None | ||||
| 2nd | MTL | Jean Beliveau (12) – pp | Floyd Curry (5) and Doug Harvey (5) | 14:16 | 1–0 MTL |
| MTL | Maurice Richard (5) – pp | Bernie Geoffrion (9) and Jean Beliveau (6) | 15:08 | 2–0 MTL | |
| 3rd | MTL | Bernie Geoffrion (5) | Jean Beliveau (7) and Bert Olmstead (10) | 00:13 | 3–0 MTL |
| DET | Alex Delvecchio (7) | Ted Lindsay (3) | 00:35 | 3–1 MTL | |
| Penalty summary | |||||
| Period | Team | Player | Penalty | Time | PIM |
| 1st | DET | Larry Hillman | Elbowing | 02:48 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Claude Provost | Slashing | 06:42 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Henri Richard | Hooking | 09:35 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Gordie Howe | Charging | 10:47 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Doug Harvey | Slashing | 10:47 | 2:00 | |
| 2nd | MTL | Doug Harvey | Holding | 00:42 | 2:00 |
| DET | Ted Lindsay | High-sticking | 06:30 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Jean Beliveau | High-sticking | 06:30 | 2:00 | |
| MTL | Dollard St. Laurent | High-sticking | 09:56 | 2:00 | |
| DET | Marcel Pronovost | Tripping | 13:50 | 2:00 | |
| 3rd | DET | Red Kelly | Tripping | 07:07 | 2:00 |
| MTL | Maurice Richard | Hooking | 12:11 | 2:00 | |
| Shots by period | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | Total | |
| Detroit | 7 | 10 | 9 | 26 | |
| Montreal | 11 | 8 | 11 | 30 | |
Stanley Cup engraving
The 1956 Stanley Cup was presented to Canadiens captain Emile Bouchard by NHL President Clarence Campbell following the Canadiens 3–1 win over the Red Wings in game five.
The following Canadiens players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup
1955–56 Montreal Canadiens
Players
- 4 Jean Beliveau
- 8 Jack LeClair
- 16 Henri Richard
- 18 Ken Mosdell (A)
- 5 Bernie Geoffrion
- 6 Floyd Curry
- 9 Maurice Richard (A)
- 12 Dickie Moore
- 14 Claude Provost
- 15 Bert Olmstead
- 22 Don Marshall
- 2 Doug Harvey (A)
- 3 Emile Bouchard (Captain)
- 10 Tom Johnson
- 17 Jean-Guy Talbot
- 19 Dollard St. Laurent
- 24 Bob Turner
- 1 Jacques Plante
- 1 Charlie Hodge (spare, did not play)
Coaching and administrative staff
- Donat Raymond (President/Owner), Frank Selke (Manager)
- Dalton Coleman (Vice President/Owner), William Northey (Vice Presidents/Owner)
- Ken Reardon (Asst. Manager), Toe Blake (Coach)
- Hector Dubois (Trainer)
- Gaston Bettez (Asst. Trainer)
Stanley Cup engraving
- Emile "Butch" Bouchard was engraved on the Stanley Cup in 1944, 1946 and 1953 as EMILE BOUCHARD. He was then engraved on the Stanley Cup as BUTCH BOUCHARD in 1956.
- Three engraving mistakes were made on the Stanley Cup. Only Gaston Bettez had his name correctly spelled on the replica Stanley Cup created in the 1992–93 season: Bob Turner is listed as Trainer when the Stanley Cup was redone in 1957–58, but he played defence. Hector Dubois and Gaston Bettez were the trainers, but no position was listed. Claude Provost's name was misspelled C. PREVOST with an "E" instead of an "O". Gaston Bettez was spelt wrong as G BETTEX when the Cup was redone in 1957–58 with an "X" instead of "Z". His name was spelled correctly on the original ring as G. BETTEZ.
- Hector "Toe" Blake was the ninth rookie coach to win the Stanley Cup.
- Camile DesRoches and Frank Selke Jr. (Publicity Directors) were left off the Stanley Cup engraving, but included in the team picture.
- The 1956 Montreal Canadiens filled the last spot on the Stanley Cup. (See 1958 Stanley Cup Final change)