1939 Stanley Cup playoffs

This is the 1939 Stanley Cup playoffs.

Standings
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Stanley Cup Playoffs

 * see 1939 Stanley Cup Finals

Boston Bruins 4, New York Rangers 3
This series is best remembered for Mel Hill scoring three OT goals, still an NHL record for OT goals in a series. Game 4 was one of the most violent in NHL history with six major penalties, stick swinging and a battered and concussed Eddie Shore insisting on playing and returning to game action with a broken nose.

Game 1 opened at Madison Square Garden in New York. A clean, hard-checking game in which goalies Dave Kerr and Frank Brimsek dominated, the Rangers Alex Shibicky broke the ice late in the second period. Bill Cowley was hurt but continued to play and Bobby Bauer scored but the goal was disallowed. Cowley tied the game up at 4:40 of the third, on a great deflection of a Dit Clapper shot to send the game in overtime. In the third OT, Cowley drifted into the left corner by the Rangers net and zipped a pass out front to Mel Hill who whacked it in for a 2-1 win for the Bruins.

Game 2 moved to the Boston Garden, where another clean, hard-fought game ensued. The Rangers received bad news that their goalie Dave Kerr was out for the series with a separated shoulder. Bert Gardiner manned the net for the Rangers. The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead on late first period goals by Conacher and Cowley. Shibicky cut the lead to 2-1 in the second before Dutch Hiller tied it up with less than four minutes left in the game. Hill scored his second overtime goal at the 8:24 mark of the first OT, on a drop pass by Cowley. Hill's 40 foot shot beat Gardiner and the Bruins were up in the series 2-0.

Game 3 in Boston saw the Rangers keep Cowley's line off the scoresheet but the Bruins depth was too much. Gord Pettinger scored in the first and the first playoff goal for Milt Schmidt early in the second had the Bruins up 2-0. Babe Pratt cut the lead to 2-1 in the second before Schmidt got his second of the game halfway through the third. Cowley potted a goal two minutes later as the Bruins cruised to a 4-1 win and a 3-0 series lead.

Game 4 at MSG saw the Rangers facing elimination which looked likely after Milt Schmidt scored his 3rd goal of the playoffs less than a minute into the game. Mac Colville tied it up at 8:58 but the game got progressively chippy. Phil Watson when charging after Jack Portland behind the Bruins net, resulting in some high sticking. Bryan Hextall jumped Portland from behind resulting in Eddie Shore wading in after Hextall. Rangers defensemen Muzz Patrick went after Shore and a brawl ensued. Patrick, who'd been a Canadian boxing champion and outweighed Shore by 30 pounds, broke Shore's nose during a fight with him. Shore left the game for repairs but came back in the second period and played with plaster over his broken nose. The Rangers Dutch Hiller, Babe Pratt, Patrick and Watson received major penalties as did the Bruins Jack Crawford, Gord Pettinger, Shore and Portland. Referee Mickey Ion handled out 60 minutes in penalties during the game. Having served his penalty time, in the second period, Muzz Patrick scored a Shorthanded goal at the 10:02 mark which proved to be the game winner. The series shifted back to Boston with the Bruins leading 3-1.

Game 5 was in Boston and was a much cleaner affair than Game 4. Art Coulter put the Rangers up 1-0 in the first but a little over a minute later, Bobby Bauer scored his first playoff goal to knot the score. The score stayed 1-1 through regulation, requiring the third overtime game of the series. The Rangers Clint Smith was the hero, beating Brimsek with a long shot at the 17:19 mark of the first OT. The Rangers were back in the series, trailing 3-2.

Game 6 was in New York and saw no goals in the first period. The Bruins took the lead on Mel Hill's 3rd of the playoffs before Phil Watson tied it up in the second. Bruins penalties in the third would be costly as Bill Carse and Alex Shibicky capitalized to lead the Rangers to a 3-1 win and tie the series.

Game 7 in Boston was a tense affair with the Bruins close to becoming the first team to blow a 3-0 series lead. After a scoreless first, Ray Getliffe put the Bruins up only to see the Rangers Muzz Patrick tie it up less than two minutes later. The third period solved nothing and the series headed into its fourth overtime game. Bobby Bauer came close to ending the series in the 1st OT with a backhander that beat Gardiner but hit the post. In the 3rd OT, Mel Hill and Muzz Patrick took matching minor penalties at the 5:00 mark. Exiting the box, Hill rushed into the Rangers zone. Conacher took a heavy shot on Gardiner who steered it behind the net. Cowley beat the Rangers' defensemen to the puck, slid it out front to Hill who potted the series winner. "Sudden Death" Hill was born with all three of his record goals assisted by Bill Cowley.