1936-37 NHL season

The 1936-37 NHL season was the 20th season of the National Hockey League. Eight teams each played 48 games. The Detroit Red Wings were the Stanley Cup winners as they beat the New York Rangers three games to two in the final series.

League Business

Frank Calder had been naming the top rookies commencing with 1932-33. This year, he commenced buying a trophy for the top rookie and Syl Apps was this year's winner.

The Great Depression had been taking its toll on the NHL. At the beginning of the decade, there were ten teams. Since then, two teams folded and it looked like the New York Americans were to become the third team. The NHL, however, was not about to let that happen. So, instead of letting the team fold because of money and ownership problems, the league assumed control of the team for the 1936-37 season. It was then that owner Bill Dwyer sued. A settlement then allowed for Dwyer to own the team, run by the NHL, and that Dwyer would be given a chance to pay back his debts.

The Montreal Maroons, short of money, had to sell their star and team captain Hooley Smith to the Boston Bruins. It was hoped that Carl Voss of the Eagles would fill in adequately for him, but he came down with influenza and never was much help. But Bob Gracie started scoring and the Maroons almost nipped the Canadiens for first place in the Canadian Division.

Pre-season

Training camps were held in the following locations:

• Boston Bruins - Boston
• Chicago Black Hawks - Hibbing, Minnesota
• Detroit Red Wings - Detroit
• Montreal Canadiens - Montreal
• Montreal Maroons - Montreal
• New York Americans - Oshawa, Ontario
• New York Rangers - Winnipeg, Manitoba
• Toronto Maple Leafs - Galt & Preston, Ontario

Regular Season

Highlights

Lorne Carr scores the winner, November 15, 1936.

The New York Americans had started in first place, but then their players came down with influenza and the team sagged. Scorer Nels Stewart was acquired from the Boston Bruins and despite scoring a point a game, the Americans continued to slide and won only once in December. Disaster struck during the 7-1 loss on January 5, 1937 to the New York Rangers when goalie Roy Worters suffered a hernia and had to retire. Alfie Moore and Lorne Chabot were not adequate replacements and the Amerks finished last in the Canadian Division.

Example of the Maple Leafs defensive style, December 22, 1936.

On November 17, 1936, Art Ross sent an open letter to the NHL's general managers encouraging them to play "open hockey" with an emphasis on speed and clean play. He offered to pay $1000 to any team if the Bruins didn't play this style against them as long they agreed to the same penalty. Ross rival Conn Smythe refused the open hockey challenge and after the December 22 game against the Toronto Maple Leafs was marred by boring defensive hockey, in retaliation, Ross promised "if they want defensive hockey, we'll give them an overdose of it." Good to his word, the Bruins surrounded their own net and barely attacked during the December 26 re-match in Toronto and won 2-1. Habs coach Cecil Hart was a convert to "open hockey" and praised Boston's play as a "thrill a second" and "the league's greatest road attraction." He advocated the Bruins transfer to the Canadian Division and said they'd save hockey in Montreal.

The Montreal Canadiens had hit the bottom in 1935-36, and Babe Siebert was obtained to shore up the defence. But the most loved of all movements was buying Howie Morenz back from the Rangers. The Canadiens went from last to first in the Canadian Division. Morenz was just hitting his stride in January of 1937, when tragedy struck. On one of his hurtling rushes, he was being checked by Earl Seibert of Chicago when his left skate got caught in the dasher of the end boards, and Morenz suffered a badly fractured leg. After suffering a nervous breakdown worrying about if he'd be able to come back, more bad luck occurred. On March 8, 1937, X-rays revealed that Howie had blood clots in his healing leg. An operation was scheduled for the next day, but when Howie ate a light supper and told the nurse he wanted to rest, in falling asleep his pallor suddenly changed and the nurse knew something was wrong. A blood clot had stopped his heart, and attempts to revive Howie failed. News of Morenz's death shocked the hockey world, and thousands filed past his bier, many in tears, to pay their last respects to the man who made the NHL a truly major league.

Detroit, led by Vezina Trophy winning Normie Smith, finished first in the American Division. The NHL lost greats in one way or the other this year. Boston's Eddie Shore suffered a broken back, and Toronto favourite King Clancy retired. But Toronto's biggest loss occurred when Charlie Conacher injured his wrist. He was never the same again.

Clem Loughlin, Mike Karakas, Ernest Klingbeil, Bun LaPrairie, Milton Brink, Al Suomi and Paul Schaefer before the last game of the season, March 21, 1937.

With five games left to play and his team hopelessly in last place, Chicago owner Frederic McLaughlin decided to try an experiment dear to his heart. He dreamed of the day that an all-American team might be able to compete at NHL calibre. He already had Mike Karakas in goal, but added Ernest Klingbeil and Paul Schaefer on defence, and Milton Brink, a fast skating center, between Al Suomi and Bun LaPrairie. The first test came on March 11 when the Boston Bruins beat the Black Hawks 6-2. None of the new players scored, but Klingbeil and Schaefer were on defence for all Boston goals. This brought complaints from Jack Adams, Lester Patrick and Art Ross who stated that such experiments should not be conducted when the other clubs were battling for playoff spots. But McLaughlin's kids didn't look bad when the Toronto Maple Leafs were lucky to win 3-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens. Klingbeil was the star of the game with a goal. The rookies checked tenaciously and at times were impressive on the attack. 9,600 fans applauded their effort. Then the Black Hawks beat the New York Rangers 3-2 with the Yanks still in the lineup. Lester Patrick had nothing to say except that the attendance had dropped. The experiment was about finished when the New York Americans walloped the Hawks 9-4, as Sweeney Schriner and Nels Stewart each had hat tricks. In a losing cause, Paul Thompson had a hat trick for Chicago.

Final Standings

Canadian Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Montreal Canadiens	48	24	18	6	115	111	54
Montreal Maroons	48	22	17	9	126	110	53
Toronto Maple Leafs	48	22	21	5	119	115	49
New York Americans	48	15	29	4	122	161	34

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

American Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PTS
Detroit Red Wings	48	25	14	9	128	102	59
Boston Bruins	48	23	18	7	120	110	53
New York Rangers	48	19	20	9	117	106	47
Chicago Black Hawks	48	14	27	7	99	131	35

Scoring Leaders

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

PLAYER	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
Sweeney Schriner	New York Americans	48	21	25	46	17
Syl Apps	Toronto Maple Leafs	48	16	29	45	10
Marty Barry	Detroit Red Wings	48	17	27	44	6
Larry Aurie	Detroit Red Wings	45	23	20	43	20
Busher Jackson	Toronto Maple Leafs	46	21	19	40	12
Johnny Gagnon	Montreal Canadiens	48	20	16	36	38
Bob Gracie	Montreal Maroons	47	11	25	36	18
Nels Stewart	Boston Bruins/New York Americans	43	23	12	35	37
Paul Thompson	Chicago Black Hawks	47	17	18	35	28
Bill Cowley	Boston Bruins	46	13	22	35	4

Leading Goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Mins – Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts

Player	Team	GP	Mins	GA	W	L	T	SO	GAA
Normie Smith	Detroit Red Wings	48	2980	102	25	14	9	6	2.05
Dave Kerr	New York Rangers	48	3030	106	19	20	9	4	2.10
Wilf Cude	Montreal Canadiens	44	2730	99	22	17	5	5	2.18
Bill Beveridge	Montreal Maroons	21	1290	47	12	6	3	1	2.19
Alec Connell	Montreal Maroons	27	1710	63	10	11	6	2	2.21
Tiny Thompson	Boston Bruins	48	2970	110	23	18	7	6	2.22
Turk Broda	Toronto Maple Leafs	45	2780	106	22	19	4	3	2.29
Mike Karakas	Chicago Black Hawks	48	2978	131	14	27	7	5	2.64
Roy Worters	New York Americans	23	1430	69	6	14	3	2	2.90
Alfie Moore	New York Americans	18	1100	64	7	11	0	1	3.49
Lorne Chabot	New York Americans	6	370	25	2	3	1	1	4.05

Stanley Cup Playoffs

see: 1937 Stanley Cup Finals

Playoff Bracket

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Finals

C1

Montreal Canadiens

2

A1

Detroit Red Wings

3

A1

Detroit Red Wings

3

A2

New York Rangers

2

C2

Toronto Maple Leafs

1

A2

New York Rangers

2

A3

Montreal Maroons

0

A2

New York Rangers

2

C3

Montreal Maroons

2

A3

Boston Bruins

1

Montreal Maroons 2, Boston Bruins 1

Carl Voss scores, Game 1 of the 1937 Quarter-finals, March 23, 1937.

The last playoff series win for the Montreal Maroons saw them defeat the Boston Bruins 2-1 in a best of three first round series. The Bruins were without all-star defenseman Eddie Shore who was sidelined with a cracked vertebrae as well as Bun Cook and Sylvio Mantha.

Game 1 at Montreal was dominated by the Maroons who went ahead 2-0 on goals by Carl Voss and Baldy Northcott before Jack Beattie cut the lead to 2-1. Late third period goals by Herb Cain and Bob Gracie sealed a 4-1 victory. Dit Clapper received a major penalty for fighting Dave Trottier after the latter butt-ended him in the head. After referee Clarence Campbell insulted Clapper, he punched Campbell.

Tiny Thompson stops Lionel Conacher's penalty shot, Game 2 of the 1937 Quarter-finals, March 26, 1937.

Game 2 at Boston saw the Maroons without first-liner Dave Trottier, whose eye was swollen shut after his fight with Dit Clapper in Game 1. Clapper was fined $100 but not suspended for any games. Lionel Conacher took a minor penalty in the first period after a viscous cross-check in which he broke Leroy Goldsworthy's nose. Dit Clapper scored on the power play at 4:54 before Charlie Sands made it 2-0 at 15:42 after his blueline blast deflected in off Maroons defenseman Stewart Evans. In the second period, Conacher was awarded a penalty shot after Bruins goalie Tiny Thompson tripped him in a goalmouth melee. Thompson made a brilliant skate save to preserve his shutout which was the turning point in the game. Ray Getliffe scored soon after on a rebound of a Bill Cowley shot and Goldsworthy returned to action with plaster over his nose. In the third period, captain Red Beattie beat goalie Bill Beveridge with a slapshot as the Bruins won 4-0 and tied the series.

Bruins-Maroons action, Game 2 of the 1937 Quarter-finals, March 26, 1937.

Game 3 at Boston saw Bobby Bauer play his first post season match. The first period was scoreless in which Tiny Thompson's hand was cut in a goalmouth scramble. The game was delayed for 12 minutes while Thompson received stitches. In the second period, the Bruins took a 1-0 lead on a goal by Dit Clapper. After Thompson made a save, he accidentally batted the puck into his own net at 15:49. Rattled, he misplayed a Russ Blinco shot, making it 2-1 for the Maroons. The Maroons added two more in the last frame to take the series 2 games to 1. They'd lose their second round series to the New York Rangers.

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	March 23	Boston Bruins	1-4	Montreal Maroons	0-1
2	March 26	Montreal Maroons	0-4	Boston Bruins	1-1
3	March 28	Montreal Maroons	4-1	Boston Bruins	2-1

NHL Awards

O'Brien Trophy:	Montreal Canadiens
Prince of Wales Trophy:	Detroit Red Wings
Calder Memorial Trophy:	Syl Apps, Toronto Maple Leafs
Hart Memorial Trophy:	Babe Siebert, Montreal Canadiens
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:	Marty Barry, Detroit Red Wings
Vezina Trophy:	Normie Smith, Detroit Red Wings

All-Star Teams

First Team	Position	Second Team
Normie Smith, Detroit Red Wings	G	Wilf Cude, Montreal Canadiens
Babe Siebert, Montreal Canadiens	D	Earl Seibert, Chicago Black Hawks
Ebbie Goodfellow, Detroit Red Wings	D	Lionel Conacher, Montreal Maroons
Marty Barry, Detroit Red Wings	C	Art Chapman, New York Americans
Larry Aurie, Detroit Red Wings	RW	Cecil Dillon, New York Rangers
Busher Jackson, Toronto Maple Leafs	LW	Sweeney Schriner, New York Americans
Jack Adams, Detroit Red Wings	Coach	Cecil Hart, Montreal Canadiens

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1936-37 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

• Bobby Bauer, Boston Bruins
• Milt Schmidt, Boston Bruins
• Clint Smith, New York Rangers
• Bryan Hextall, New York Rangers
• Syl Apps, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Gordie Drillon, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Turk Broda, Toronto Maple Leafs

Last Games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1936-37 (listed with their last team):

• Bun Cook, Boston Bruins
• Sylvio Mantha, Boston Bruins
• Andy Blair, Chicago Black Hawks
• Wildor Larochelle, Chicago Black Hawks
• Howie Morenz, Montreal Canadiens
• George Hainsworth, Montreal Canadiens
• Lionel Conacher, Montreal Maroons
• Alex Connell, Montreal Maroons
• Baldy Cotton, New York Americans
• Harry Oliver, New York Americans
• Lorne Chabot, New York Americans
• Roy Worters, New York Americans
• Bill Cook, New York Rangers
• Murray Murdoch, New York Rangers
• King Clancy, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Frank Finnigan, Toronto Maple Leafs

Gallery

Dit Clapper scores Boston's first goal of the season, November 15, 1936.

Bruins-Black Hawks action, November 24, 1936.

Bruins-Red Wings action, December 20, 1936.

Bill Cowley scored 2 goals in 40 seconds, December 29, 1936.

Bruins Tiny Thompson, #12 Flash Hollett, #16 Ray Getliffe defend against Rangers #15 Phil Watson at MSG, December 31, 1936.

Bruins-Rangers dust-up, January 3, 1937.

Disputed goal awarded to Ray Getliffe, January 12, 1937.

Hooley Smith's game winner, January 17, 1937.

Eddie Shore after being high-sticked by Sweeney Schriner, January 23, 1937.

Wally Kilrea battles #8 Jack Portland, January 31, 1937. Notice that 3 players are wearing helmets.

Bruins Thompson, #4 Allan Shields, #7 Cooney Weiland, #8 Jack Portland, #9 Leroy Goldsworthy versus the Maroons, February 9, 1937.

Leroy Goldsworthy's winner, February 16, 1937.

Alfie Moore stops the Bruins, February 23, 1937.

Cooney Weiland scores, March 2, 1937.

Tiny Thompson save, March 16, 1937.

Video

Fascinating video of December 20, 1936 game between the Rangers and the Montreal Canadiens. After a goalless first period, goals by Joffre Desilets and Aurel Joliat put the Habs up 2-0 going into the third. One of two Lynn Patrick goals that tied the game up in the third period is shown. The game went into overtime which was not sudden death. The Rangers scored three times, with the final goal by Frank Boucher shown. Toe Blake added a consolation goal and the Rangers won 5-3 (OT).

Ice Hockey - New York Rangers V Montreal Canadians (1936)

Highlights of the April 1, 1937 Stanley Cup Semi-finals Game 1 in which the New York Rangers defeated the Montreal Maroons 1-0 on a first period goal by Babe Pratt.

Montreal Maroons vs New York Rangers

See Also

• List of Stanley Cup champions

References

• Hockey Database
• NHL.com