1940–41 Detroit Red Wings season

1940–41 Detroit Red Wings
Division	3rd NHL
1940–41 record	21–16–11
Goals for	112
Goals against	102
Team information
General manager	Jack Adams
Coach	Jack Adams
Captain	Ebbie Goodfellow
Arena	Olympia Stadium
Team leaders
Goals	Syd Howe (20)
Assists	Syd Howe (24)
Points	Syd Howe (44)
Penalty minutes	Jimmy Orlando (99)
Wins	Johnny Mowers (21)
Goals against average	Johnny Mowers (2.01)

The 1940–41 Detroit Red Wings season was the Red Wings' 15th season. The Red Wings finished 3rd in the league and lost to the Boston Bruins in the 1941 Stanley Cup Finals 4 games to 0 becoming the first team in NHL history to be swept in a 7 game playoff series.

Regular Season

Final Standings

National Hockey League

	GP	W	L	T	Pts	GF	GA
Boston Bruins	48	27	8	13	67	168	102
Toronto Maple Leafs	48	28	14	6	62	145	99
Detroit Red Wings	48	21	16	11	53	112	102
New York Rangers	48	21	19	8	50	143	125
Chicago Black Hawks	48	16	25	7	39	112	139
Montreal Canadiens	48	16	26	6	38	121	147
New York Americans	48	8	29	11	27	99	186

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.

Game Log

Regular Season Results
No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record
1	W	November 3, 1940	4–2	New York Americans (1940–41)	1–0–0
2	L	November 9, 1940	0–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	1–1–0
3	T	November 10, 1940	2–2 OT	New York Rangers (1940–41)	1–1–1
4	T	November 16, 1940	3–3 OT	@ New York Rangers (1940–41)	1–1–2
5	W	November 17, 1940	2–0	@ New York Americans (1940–41)	2–1–2
6	T	November 19, 1940	4–4 OT	@ Boston Bruins (1940–41)	2–1–3
7	W	November 21, 1940	2–1	Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	3–1–3
8	T	November 24, 1940	1–1 OT	Boston Bruins (1940–41)	3–1–4
9	W	November 29, 1940	3–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	4–1–4
10	L	December 1, 1940	1–3	Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	4–2–4
11	W	December 5, 1940	5–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	5–2–4
12	L	December 7, 1940	2–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	5–3–4
13	W	December 8, 1940	3–1	@ New York Rangers (1940–41)	6–3–4
14	W	December 13, 1940	3–2 OT	New York Rangers (1940–41)	7–3–4
15	L	December 15, 1940	1–2 OT	Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	7–4–4
16	L	December 17, 1940	2–3 OT	@ New York Americans (1940–41)	7–5–4
17	T	December 19, 1940	1–1 OT	New York Americans (1940–41)	7–5–5
18	L	December 22, 1940	3–5	Boston Bruins (1940–41)	7–6–5
19	W	December 25, 1940	3–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	8–6–5
20	W	December 29, 1940	2–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	9–6–5
21	W	January 1, 1941	4–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	10–6–5
22	W	January 4, 1941	3–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	11–6–5
23	W	January 5, 1941	3–0	Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	12–6–5
24	T	January 7, 1941	1–1 OT	@ Boston Bruins (1940–41)	12–6–6
25	T	January 9, 1941	3–3 OT	@ New York Americans (1940–41)	12–6–7
26	L	January 12, 1941	1–2	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	12–7–7
27	T	January 14, 1941	3–3 OT	@ New York Rangers (1940–41)	12–7–8
28	L	January 18, 1941	1–2	@ Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	12–8–8
29	L	January 19, 1941	1–2	New York Rangers (1940–41)	12–9–8
30	W	January 24, 1941	4–2 OT	New York Americans (1940–41)	13–9–8
31	L	January 26, 1941	0–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	13–10–8
32	L	January 30, 1941	1–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	13–11–8
33	T	February 6, 1941	4–4 OT	@ Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	13–11–9
34	T	February 9, 1941	2–2 OT	Boston Bruins (1940–41)	13–11–10
35	L	February 11, 1941	0–4	@ Boston Bruins (1940–41)	13–12–10
36	W	February 14, 1941	2–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	14–12–10
37	W	February 16, 1941	2–1	Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	15–12–10
38	L	February 22, 1941	2–6	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	15–13–10
39	W	February 23, 1941	3–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1940–41)	16–13–10
40	L	February 27, 1941	0–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	16–14–10
41	W	February 28, 1941	5–4	New York Americans (1940–41)	17–14–10
42	W	March 2, 1941	4–2 OT	New York Rangers (1940–41)	18–14–10
43	L	March 4, 1941	0–6	@ New York Rangers (1940–41)	18–15–10
44	W	March 6, 1941	6–1	@ New York Americans (1940–41)	19–15–10
45	W	March 8, 1941	4–0	@ Montreal Canadiens (1940–41)	20–15–10
46	W	March 13, 1941	3–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1940–41)	21–15–10
47	T	March 16, 1941	2–2 OT	Boston Bruins (1940–41)	21–15–11
48	L	March 18, 1941	1–4	@ Boston Bruins (1940–41)	21–16–11

Playoffs

Detroit Red Wings 2, Chicago Black Hawks 0

Gus Giesebrecht scored the series winning goal in overtime in Game 2.

Boston Bruins 4, Detroit Red Wings 0

The Wings opponent was the Boston Bruins, who finished the regular season with 67 points, 14 more than Detroit. Detroit had defeated the New York Rangers and Chicago Black Hawks to earn a spot in the Final. Despite playing without league scoring leader Bill Cowley, the Bruins swept the Wings 4-0, becoming the first team in NHL history to sweep a 7 game series. Bobby Bauer scored the Cup winning goal, Milt Schmidt led the league in playoff scoring while Eddie Wiseman scored 6 goals in the playoffs, most in the league.

Mel Hill takes a shot on Johnny Mowers in Game 1 of the Finals.

Game 1 at the Boston Garden saw the rusty Wings play its first game in a week. The Bruins had played 3 days before and were sharper with a goal by Eddie Wiseman in the first and Milt Schmidt in the second. The Bruins Pat McReavy scored at 9:16 of the third after Schmidt deked Wings goalie Johnny Mowers to the ice and fed McReavy a pass which he tapped into the open net. The Wings woke up and Carl Liscombe potted his 3rd of the playoffs. Syd Howe cut the Bruins lead to 3-2 with his first of the playoffs with less than 3 minutes remaining but the Bruins held on for a 1-0 series lead.

Game 2 in Boston saw no goals in the first two periods. The Wings Mud Bruneteau broke the ice at 2:41 of the third. Mowers held the Bruins off until the 13:35 mark when Terry Reardon took a pass on the left boards from Herb Cain and tied the score. Right after the goal, Cain and Wings Harold Jackson got into a fight at center ice. Both received 5 minute majors and the teams played 4 on 4. This benefited the Bruins as Schmidt rushed into the Wings zone and drew several players to him. Roy Conacher was about to head for the bench but seeing an opening, headed into the Wings zone and was sent in alone on Mowers after receiving a pass from Schmidt. He beat Mowers for the game winner and the Bruins led the series 2-0.

Game 3 at the Detroit Olympia saw the teams trade goals twice in the first. The Wings Bill Jennings open the score only to have Wiseman counter less than a minute later. Sid Abel netted one at 7:45 but Schmidt countered with his 5th of the playoffs at 14:07. Less than a minute into the second period, Woody Dumart was behind the Wings net and sent a pass to Schmidt in the slot who scored. The Wings couldn't solve Brimsek and a late third period Power play goal by Art Jackson sealed a 4-2 Bruins win and sent the Wings to the brink of elimination.

Bobby Bauer scores the Cup winner at 8:43 of the second period, Game 4 on April 12, 1941.

Game 4 in Detroit saw the Wings go up 1-0 in the first period on a goal by Carl Liscombe, his 4th of the playoffs. The Wings held the Bruins off until Jimmy Orlando took a penalty in the second penalty. Hollett and Bauer both scored on the power play, Bauer's goal a rebound his slid under Mowers after he couldn't control a Schmidt shot. With a minute left in the second period, Wiseman raced down the left wing and fired a shot over Mower's shoulder to make the Bruins lead 3-1. Neither team scored in the third period and the Bruins took the Cup. Players from both teams milled around center ice, shaking hands until the presentation was made. This was the Bruins second Stanley Cup in three seasons and third in franchise history. Eddie Wiseman led the playoffs in goals with 6 while Milt Schmidt was the scoring leader with 14 points.

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	April 6	Detroit Red Wings	2–3	Boston Bruins	0-1
2	April 8	Detroit Red Wings	1–2	Boston Bruins	0-2
3	April 10	Boston Bruins	4–2	Detroit Red Wings	3–0
4	April 12	Boston Bruins	3–1	Detroit Red Wings	4–0

Player Stats

Regular Season

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Howe, SydSyd Howe	C/LW	48	20	24	44	8
Abel, SidSid Abel	C/LW	47	11	22	33	29
Bruneteau, MudMud Bruneteau	RW	45	11	17	28	12
Wares, EddieEddie Wares	D/RW	42	10	16	26	34
Motter, AlexAlex Motter	C	47	13	12	25	18
Giesebrecht, GusGus Giesebrecht	C	43	7	18	25	7
Goodfellow, EbbieEbbie Goodfellow	C/D	47	5	17	22	35
Liscombe, CarlCarl Liscombe	LW	33	10	10	20	0
Grosso, DonDon Grosso	LW/C	45	8	7	15	14
Fisher, JoeJoe Fisher	RW	27	5	8	13	11
Orlando, JimmyJimmy Orlando	D	48	1	10	11	99
Stewart, JackJack Stewart	D	47	2	6	8	56
Jennings, BillBill Jennings	RW	12	1	5	6	2
Carveth, JoeJoe Carveth	RW	19	2	1	3	2
Brown, ConnieConnie Brown	C	3	1	2	3	0
Douglas, LesLes Douglas	C	18	1	2	3	2
Herchenratter, ArtArt Herchenratter	LW	10	1	2	3	2
Kilrea, KenKen Kilrea	LW	15	2	0	2	0
Bruneteau, EddieEddie Bruneteau	RW	11	1	1	2	2
Whitelaw, BobBob Whitelaw	D	23	0	2	2	2
Wilder, ArchArch Wilder	LW	18	0	2	2	2
Jackson, HaroldHarold Jackson	D	1	0	0	0	0
Behling, DickDick Behling	D	3	0	0	0	0
Mowers, JohnnyJohnny Mowers	G	48	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SO
Mowers, JohnnyJohnny Mowers	3040	48	21	16	11	102	2.01	4
Team:	3040	48	21	16	11	102	2.01	4

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Howe, SydSyd Howe	C/LW	9	1	7	8	0
Liscombe, CarlCarl Liscombe	LW	8	4	3	7	12
Grosso, DonDon Grosso	LW/C	9	1	4	5	0
Abel, SidSid Abel	C/LW	9	2	2	4	2
Jennings, BillBill Jennings	RW	9	2	2	4	0
Motter, AlexAlex Motter	C	9	1	3	4	4
Bruneteau, MudMud Bruneteau	RW	9	2	1	3	2
Giesebrecht, GusGus Giesebrecht	C	9	2	1	3	0
Stewart, JackJack Stewart	D	9	1	2	3	8
Brown, ConnieConnie Brown	C	9	0	2	2	0
Orlando, JimmyJimmy Orlando	D	9	0	2	2	31
Fisher, JoeJoe Fisher	RW	5	1	0	1	6
Goodfellow, EbbieEbbie Goodfellow	C/D	3	0	1	1	9
Bruneteau, EddieEddie Bruneteau	RW	3	0	0	0	0
Kilrea, KenKen Kilrea	LW	5	0	0	0	0
Whitelaw, BobBob Whitelaw	D	8	0	0	0	0
Wares, EddieEddie Wares	D/RW	9	0	0	0	0
Mowers, JohnnyJohnny Mowers	G	9	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO
Mowers, JohnnyJohnny Mowers	561	9	4	5	20	2.14	0
Team:	561	9	4	5	20	2.14	0

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

• O'Brien Trophy: Detroit Red Wings

Gallery

Pre-season @ Windsor

Bruins wearing their gold jerseys in action against the Red Wings, January 7, 1941.

Video

A minute worth of video of Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals which the Bruins won 3-1, sweeping Detroit and winning the Cup. This was the first sweep in a 7 game series in NHL history. The Cup winning goal by Bobby Bauer which put the Bruins ahead 2-1 at 8:43 of the second period and the Bruins third goal by Eddie Wiseman are shown. The game end with the players shaking hands concludes the video.

The Bostonians defeats the Red Wings at the Stanley Cup in the Olympia stadium, D...HD Stock Footage

See Also

• 1940–41 NHL season

External Links

• 1940–41 Detroit Red Wings Games. Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-05-07.

Detroit Red Wings
Team	Franchise • Players • Coaches • GMs • Seasons • Draft Picks • Little Caesars Arena
Stanley Cups	1936, 1937, 1943, 1950, 1952, 1954, 1955, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2008
Affiliates	Grand Rapids Griffins (AHL), Toledo Walleye (ECHL)

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