1959–60 Montreal Canadiens season



The 1959–60 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 51st season of play. The Canadiens finished 1st in the league and defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4 games to 0 in the 1960 Stanley Cup Finals to win the Stanley Cup for the 12th time in team history and fifth year in a row.

Regular Season
The use of the goalie mask was Plante's most enduring contribution to the game, however, occurred as a result of an incident on November 1, 1959. He was hit in the face by a shot from New York Rangers player Andy Bathgate, needing to go to the dressing room for stitches. When he returned, he was wearing the crude home-made goalie mask that he'd been using in practices. His coach, Toe Blake, was livid, but he had no other goalie to call upon, and Plante refused to return to the goal unless he kept the mask. Blake agreed on the condition that Plante discard the mask when the cut healed. Only Camille Henry beat him in that game, which the Canadiens won 3–1. In the ensuing days Plante refused to discard the mask, and as the Canadiens continued to win, Blake became less obstinate. The unbeaten streak stretched to 18 games. Plante didn't wear the mask, at Blake's request, against Detroit on March 8, 1960. The Canadiens lost 3–0, and the mask returned for good the next night. Plante subsequently designed his own mask and masks for other goalies. Although Plante was not the first NHL goalie known to wear a facemask (Montreal Maroons goaltender Clint Benedict had done so thirty years before), Plante introduced the mask as everyday equipment, which continues to this day.

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0
The Canadiens placed first in the standings and met the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. The Canadiens would sweep the Hawks 4–0 to move on to the finals against Toronto.

Montreal Canadiens 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 0
Montreal swept the Maple Leafs, outscoring them 15–5, en route to being the first team since the 1951–52 Detroit Red Wings to go without a loss in the playoffs.

After the series Rocket Richard retired. He went out with style, finishing with his 34th finals goal in game three.

Regular Season

 * Scoring
 * Goaltending

Playoffs

 * Scoring
 * Goaltending

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes; PPG=Power-play goals; SHG=Short-handed goals; GWG=Game-winning goals

MIN=Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; SO = Shutouts

Awards and Records

 * Prince of Wales Trophy: Montreal Canadiens
 * James Norris Memorial Trophy: Doug Harvey
 * Vezina Trophy: Jacques Plante
 * Jean Beliveau, Centre, NHL First Team All-Star
 * Doug Harvey, Defense, NHL First Team All-Star
 * Bernie Geoffrion, Right Wing, NHL Second Team All-Star
 * Jacques Plante, Goaltender, NHL Second Team All-Star

Minor Pro

 * Hull-Ottawa Canadiens, Eastern Professional Hockey League
 * Montreal Royals, Eastern Professional Hockey League
 * Spokane Spokes, Western Hockey League

Junior A

 * Brockville Canadiens
 * Fort William Canadiens
 * Peterborough Petes
 * Regina Pats

Roster
Jacques Plante, Charlie Hodge, Doug Harvey, Tom Johnson, Bob Turner, Jean-Guy Talbot, Albert Langlois, Ralph Backstrom, Jean Beliveau, Marcel Bonin, Bernie Geoffrion, Phil Goyette, Bill Hicke, Don Marshall, Ab McDonald, Dickie Moore, Andre Pronovost, Claude Provost, Henri Richard, Maurice Richard (captain), Frank Selke (manager), Toe Blake (coach), Hector Dubois, Larry Aubut (trainers).

Video
Colour highlights and interviews from the 1960 Stanley Cup Finals.