1971–72 Chicago Black Hawks season



The 1971–72 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks' 46th season in the NHL. The Hawks finished 1st in the West Division and lost in the Semi-finals to the New York Rangers 4 games to 0.

Regular Season
Chicago had an excellent start to the season, winning their opening five games, and the team never let up throughout the season, as they had an unbeaten streak of ten games in December to take control of the West Division. The Black Hawks would then finish the season off on a twelve game unbeaten streak to win their third straight divisional title, as they finished the year with a record of 46-17-15, tying the club record with 107 points that was set during the 1970-71 season. The Hawks finished 21 points ahead of the second place Minnesota North Stars.

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Bobby Hull, who scored a team high 50 goals and 93 points, which placed him seventh in NHL scoring. Hull also led the club with a +54 rating.Pit Martin led the club with 51 assists, and finished second in team scoring with 75 points. Dennis Hull had 30 goals and 69 points, while Stan Mikita was just behind him with 26 goals and 65 points. On defense, Pat Stapleton led the club with 41 points, while Bill White and Doug Jarrett had 29 points. Keith Magnuson once again led the team in penalty minutes, as he accumulated 201.

In goal, Tony Esposito led the club with 31 victories and a 1.77 GAA, along with nine shutouts while appearing in 48 games. Backup goaltender Gary Smith was also very good, winning 14 games while having a 2.42 GAA, and five shutouts. They helped the team have an NHL low 166 goals against, and were awarded the Vezina Trophy for their efforts.

Chicago Black Hawks 4, Pittsburgh Penguins 0
The Hawks opened the playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins, who had a record of 26-38-14, earning 66 points, while placing fourth in the West Division. The series opened with two games at Chicago Stadium, and the Black Hawks, who had a record of 28-3-8 at home, continued their dominance, as they defeated the Penguins 3-1 and 3-2 to take a 2-0 series lead. The series moved to the Pittsburgh Civic Arena for the next two games, however, it was the Black Hawks who continued to stay hot, as they shutout the Penguins 2-0 in the third game, and finished off the series sweep with a 6-5 overtime win in the fourth game.

New York Rangers 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0
Chicago's next opponent was the New York Rangers, who had finished the season with a 48-17-13 record, earning 109 points, and a second place finish in the East Division. The Rangers defeated the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Montreal Canadiens in their first playoff series. Since the Black Hawks won their division, they were given home ice advantage in the series. The series opened up with two games at Chicago Stadium, however, it was the Rangers who struck first, defeating the Hawks 3-2, then taking the second game in Chicago by a score of 5-3 to take an early 2-0 series lead. Chicago could not get themselves back in the series, as New York won the third game 3-2, and the Rangers completed the sweep of the Black Hawks with a 6-2 thumping in the fourth game.

Regular Season

 * Scoring Leaders


 * Goaltending

Playoffs

 * Scoring Leaders


 * Goaltending

Awards and Records

 * Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: Chicago Black Hawks
 * Vezina Trophy: Tony Esposito & Gary Smith
 * Bobby Hull, Left Wing, NHL First Team All-Star
 * Tony Esposito, Goalie, NHL First Team All-Star
 * Pat Stapleton, Defense, NHL Second Team All-Star
 * Bill White, Defense, NHL Second Team All-Star

Draft Picks
Chicago's draft picks at the 1971 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.

Video
Nearly 19 minutes of highlights of Game 3 of the Rangers-Black Hawks Semi-finals, April 20, 1972.