1958–59 Chicago Black Hawks season



The 1958–59 Chicago Black Hawks season was the team's 33rd season in the NHL. The Hawks qualified for the playoffs for only the second time in the past thirteen seasons, finishing 3rd in the league. They lost in the Semi-finals to the Montreal Canadiens 4 games to 2.

Off-season
It was a quiet off-season for the Black Hawks, who made no major moves. The team named Ed Litzenberger the new team captain, as the spot had been left vacant for the 1957–58 season.

Regular Season
Chicago would get off to a good start, going unbeaten in their first four games, before going on a six game winless streak to drop them under .500. The Black Hawks would hover around the .500 mark all season long, and as a result, the team set a club record with 28 victories, and tied the club record by earning 69 points, as the Black Hawks qualified for the post-season for the first time since 1952–53. Chicago finished in third place, which was their highest finish in the standings since finishing third in the 1945–46 season.

Offensively, Chicago was led by Ed Litzenberger, who led the club with 33 goals and 77 points. His 77 points tied a club record originally set by Max Bentley in 1943–44. Tod Sloan finished with 27 goals and 62 points, while Ted Lindsay rebounded from a poor 1957–58 season by scoring 22 goals and 58 points, while leading the NHL with 181 penalty minutes. Bobby Hull had a solid season, scoring 18 goals and 50 points. On the blueline, Pierre Pilote led the way, scoring 7 goals and 37 points, while Moose Vasko chipped in with 6 goals and 10 assists for 16 points.

In goal, Glenn Hall had all the playing time for the second straight season, as he won a club record 28 games and posted a 2.97 GAA, along with a shutout.

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 2
Chicago would face the Montreal Canadiens in the best of seven NHL Semi-final. The Canadiens finished the year on top of the NHL standings with 91 points, and had won the Stanley Cup three years in a row. The series opened at the Montreal Forum, and the Canadiens took control of the series, winning the opening two games by scores of 4–2 and 5–1 to take the 2–0 series lead. The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games, and the Black Hawks responded, winning their first playoff games since 1953, as they defeated Montreal 4–2 and 3–2 to even the series up at two games a piece. The series returned to Montreal for the fifth game, and the heavily favored Canadiens put the Black Hawks on the brink of elimination with a 4–2 win to take a 3–2 series lead. Montreal ended the series in the sixth game in Chicago, hanging on for a 5–4 victory to win the series.

Awards and Records

 * The Black Hawks did not win any awards this season.

Farm Teams

 * Buffalo Bisons, American Hockey League
 * St. Catharines TeePees, Ontario Hockey Association

1959 Boston Bruins–New York Rangers European tour
In 1959, the Boston Bruins and the New York Rangers went on a 23 game tour of Europe, visiting England, Switzerland, France, Belgium, West Germany and Austria. The Rangers line-up was supplemented by Bobby Hull, Ed Litzenberger, Eric Nesterenko and Pierre Pilote of the Chicago Black Hawks while Andy Bathgate of the Rangers didn't participate as his wife had given birth just before the tour.

It was the first time NHL teams played in Europe since the 1938 Detroit Red Wings–Montreal Canadiens European tour, a nine-game affair in Paris and London that the Canadiens won, 5-3-1.

During the tour, the teams experimented with an orange puck, designed by Clair Kenney. The players didn't like it and complained it looked like a blur on the ice.

Bobby Hull credits the series for his later success as he was allowed to play a freewheeling style instead of a checking role, which he had during his first two years with Chicago. The Rangers won the series with a record of 11–9–3.