1952–53 Detroit Red Wings season

1952–53 Detroit Red Wings
Division	1st NHL
1952–53 record	36–16–18
Goals for	222
Goals against	133
Team information
General manager	Jack Adams
Coach	Tommy Ivan
Captain	Ted Lindsay
Alternate captains	Red Kelly Bob Goldham Marty Pavelich
Arena	Olympia Stadium
Team leaders
Goals	Gordie Howe (49)
Assists	Gordie Howe (46)
Points	Gordie Howe (95)
Penalty minutes	Ted Lindsay (111)
Wins	Terry Sawchuk (32)
Goals against average	Glenn Hall (1.67)

The 1952–53 Detroit Red Wings season was the Red Wings' 27th season. The Red Wings finished first in the league and lost in the Semi-finals to the Boston Bruins 4 games to 2.

Regular Season

When Terry Sawchuk was injured in practice, the Red Wings brought up Glenn Hall and he made his NHL debut December 27 and played well in a 2-2 tie with the Montreal Canadiens. He then picked up his first career shutout January 7, blanking the Boston Bruins 4-0.

Red Wings General Manager Jack Adams got into trouble January 18 when, after a 3-2 loss to Montreal, he entered the officials room and argued with referee Red Storey. Dick Irvin, coach of Montreal, was very upset about this and NHL president Clarence Campbell agreed, fining Adams $500.

Final Standings

National Hockey League

	GP	W	L	T	Pts	GF	GA
Detroit Red Wings	70	36	16	18	90	222	133
Montreal Canadiens	70	28	23	19	75	155	148
Boston Bruins	70	28	29	13	69	152	172
Chicago Black Hawks	70	27	28	15	69	169	175
Toronto Maple Leafs	70	27	30	13	67	156	167
New York Rangers	70	17	37	16	50	152	211

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	October 9, 1952	5–3	New York Rangers (1952–53)	1–0–0
2	L	October 11, 1952	1–2	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	1–1–0
3	T	October 12, 1952	4–4	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	1–1–1
4	T	October 14, 1952	1–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	1–1–2
5	W	October 16, 1952	7–0	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	2–1–2
6	W	October 19, 1952	6–1	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	3–1–2
8	L	October 25, 1952	0–9	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	3–3–2
9	L	October 26, 1952	2–3	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	3–4–2
10	W	October 30, 1952	4–1	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	4–4–2
11	L	November 2, 1952	2–4	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	4–5–2
12	L	November 6, 1952	0–2	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	4–6–2
13	T	November 8, 1952	3–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	4–6–3
14	W	November 9, 1952	3–1	New York Rangers (1952–53)	5–6–3
15	W	November 13, 1952	3–0	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	6–6–3
16	W	November 16, 1952	5–2	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	7–6–3
17	T	November 19, 1952	2–2	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	7–6–4
18	W	November 22, 1952	10–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	8–6–4
19	L	November 23, 1952	0–3	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	8–7–4
20	T	November 27, 1952	2–2	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	8–7–5
21	W	November 29, 1952	3–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	9–7–5
22	W	November 30, 1952	4–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	10–7–5
23	W	December 4, 1952	5–3	New York Rangers (1952–53)	11–7–5
24	W	December 6, 1952	2–0	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	12–7–5
25	T	December 7, 1952	1–1	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	12–7–6
26	W	December 11, 1952	10–1	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	13–7–6
27	W	December 13, 1952	3–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	14–7–6
28	T	December 14, 1952	0–0	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	14–7–7
29	T	December 18, 1952	1–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	14–7–8
30	T	December 20, 1952	1–1	New York Rangers (1952–53)	14–7–9
31	W	December 21, 1952	5–2	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	15–7–9
32	T	December 25, 1952	3–3	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	15–7–10
33	T	December 27, 1952	2–2	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	15–7–11
34	W	December 28, 1952	7–1	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	16–7–11
35	L	December 31, 1952	0–2	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	16–8–11
36	W	January 4, 1953	5–3	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	17–8–11
37	W	January 8, 1953	4–0	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	18–8–11
38	W	January 11, 1953	5–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	19–8–11
39	L	January 14, 1953	2–3	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	19–9–11
40	W	January 15, 1953	4–0	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	20–9–11
41	T	January 17, 1953	1–1	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	20–9–12
42	L	January 18, 1953	2–3	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	20–10–12
43	L	January 22, 1953	2–8	New York Rangers (1952–53)	20–11–12
44	L	January 24, 1953	0–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	20–12–12
45	T	January 25, 1953	3–3	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	20–12–13
46	W	January 29, 1953	5–2	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	21–12–13
47	W	January 31, 1953	4–0	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	22–12–13
48	W	February 1, 1953	5–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	23–12–13
49	T	February 5, 1953	3–3	New York Rangers (1952–53)	23–12–14
50	W	February 7, 1953	3–1	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	24–12–14
51	W	February 8, 1953	5–3	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	25–12–14
52	T	February 11, 1953	2–2	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	25–12–15
53	L	February 12, 1953	1–3	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	25–13–15
54	W	February 15, 1953	4–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	26–13–15
55	W	February 16, 1953	3–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	27–13–15
56	L	February 18, 1953	0–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	27–14–15
57	W	February 19, 1953	4–1	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	28–14–15
58	W	February 22, 1953	2–1	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	29–14–15
59	W	February 28, 1953	4–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	30–14–15
60	W	March 2, 1953	10–2	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	31–14–15
61	W	March 5, 1953	7–1	New York Rangers (1952–53)	32–14–15
62	W	March 7, 1953	3–0	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	33–14–15
63	W	March 8, 1953	3–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1952–53)	34–14–15
64	W	March 11, 1953	2–0	@ New York Rangers (1952–53)	35–14–15
65	T	March 12, 1953	2–2	@ Boston Bruins (1952–53)	35–14–16
66	L	March 14, 1953	1–3	Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	35–15–16
67	T	March 15, 1953	0–0	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	35–15–17
68	W	March 19, 1953	6–1	Boston Bruins (1952–53)	36–15–17
69	L	March 21, 1953	3–4	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1952–53)	36–16–17
70	T	March 22, 1953	1–1	Montreal Canadiens (1952–53)	36–16–18

Playoffs

Boston Bruins 4, Detroit Red Wings 2

The Bruins and Red Wings last met in the 1946 Semi-finals where the Bruins won 4 games to 1. Detroit were heavy favorites, having finished in first place with 21 more points than Boston. Boston's Woody Dumart effectively checked Gordie Howe, limiting him to 2 goals in the series, having scored 49 in the regular season. Boston's line of Ed Sandford, Johnny Peirson and Fleming Mackell led offensively with Sandford scoring 6 goals. Detroit's coach Tommy Ivan acknowledged that Bruins goalie Jim Henry was the biggest reason for Boston's upset. Detroit had over 40 shots in every game but one in the series.

Game 1 at the Detroit Olympia saw the Red Wings dominate the Bruins from the opening whistle. First period goals by Ted Lindsay and two by Marty Pavelich staked Detroit to a 3-0 lead. A second period goal by Alex Delvecchio and third period goals by Metro Prystai, Johnny Wilson and Lindsay's second lead Detroit to a 7-0 rout with Terry Sawchuk picking up the shutout.

Game 2 at Detroit saw the Bruins bounce back. Playing with a greater commitment to defense and countering off the rush, Fleming Mackell staked the Bruins to a 1-0 lead before Howe tied it up on the Power play with John McIntyre in the box. Making up for his penalty, McIntyre's pass to Dave Creighton put the Bruins ahead 2-1 at the end of the first period. The Wings couldn't solve Jim Henry in the second period but veteran Joe Klukay put the Bruins up 3-1. Third period goals by Bruins Johnny Peirson and Creighton's second of the game stunned the Wings crowd. Two late goals by Metro Prystai weren't enough as the Bruins won 5-3 and tied the series going to Boston.

Game 3 at the Boston Garden was the turning point in the series. In a clean, hard-fought game in which only two penalties were called, Ed Sandford opening the scoring for the Bruins. Tony Leswick tied it up in the second but the Wings couldn't solve Jim Henry and the game went into overtime. Dave Creighton fed Jack McIntyre a pass at 12:29 of the first OT who snapped it past Sawchuk for a Bruins 2-1 win.

Game 4 at Boston was a reversal of Game 1. The Bruins jumped out to a 2-0 lead on first period goals by Sandford and McIntyre. After an early second period fight between Mackell and Pavelich, the Bruins poured it on and goals by Milt Schmidt, McIntyre's second of the game and Dave Creighton made it 5-0 Boston. The Wings recovered later in the second and goals by Prystai and Delvecchio made it 5-2. Henry barred the door in the third period and Sandford's second of the game made it 6-2 Bruins. The Wings were on the brink of elimination going back to Detroit.

Game 5 at Detroit saw the Wings determined to not be eliminated at home. They came out on fire and goals by Lindsay and Bob Goldham in the game's first minute had them in front 2-0. The game got chippy and multiple penalties for high sticking were called. Benny Woit made it 3-0 Wings but the rough play continued as Klukay and Lindsay got into a mix-up. In the second period, Howe scored his second and last goal of the series before Ed Sandford got the Bruins on the board. However, the Wings Johnny Wilson responded and the period ended with the Wings up 5-1. After an early goal in the third period by Sandford, the game boiled over. Leo Labine was given a misconduct for high sticking. Glen Skov made it 6-2 Detroit but the Bruins wouldn't relent and Schmidt made it 6-3. Tony Leswick high sticked Fleming Mackell resulting in a fight and the Bruins going on the power play. Schmidt scored making it 6-4. After Marcel Pronovost took an interference penalty, a frustrated Terry Sawchuk protested to referee Red Storey which resulted in a misconduct. The Wings held on for an unconvincing 6-4 win.

Bruins Jim Henry stops Gordie Howe while Metro Prystai looks on in Game 6 of the 1953 Semi-finals, April 5, 1953.

Game 6 at Boston went wrong from the beginning for the Red Wings. Tony Leswick took a slashing penalty and Ed Sandford scored his 6th goal of the series on the power play to open the scoring for Boston. The Bruins went up 2-0 in the second on McIntyre's goal. Late in the second, third liner Reg Sinclair gave the Wings hope, cutting the lead to 2-1. In the third period, the Wings poured it on but to no avail. Woody Dumart continued to hold Howe off the board and a long shot by Fleming Mackell got by Sawchuk making it 3-1 Bruins. Ted Lindsay responded two minutes later but the first playoff goal for Leo Labine sealed a 4-2 victory and a 4-2 series win for the Bruins.

#	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	March 24	Boston Bruins	0-7	Detroit Red Wings	0-1
2	March 26	Boston Bruins	5-3	Detroit Red Wings	1-1
3	March 29	Detroit Red Wings	1-2 (OT)	Boston Bruins	1-2
4	March 31	Detroit Red Wings	2-6	Boston Bruins	1-3
5	April 2	Boston Bruins	4-6	Detroit Red Wings	3-2
6	April 5	Detroit Red Wings	2-4	Boston Bruins	1-4

Player Stats

Regular Season

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Howe, GordieGordie Howe	RW	70	49	46	95	57
Lindsay, TedTed Lindsay	LW	70	32	39	71	111
Delvecchio, AlexAlex Delvecchio	C/LW	70	16	43	59	28
Prystai, MetroMetro Prystai	C	70	16	34	50	12
Kelly, RedRed Kelly	D/C	70	19	27	46	8
Wilson, JohnnyJohnny Wilson	LW	70	23	19	42	22
Pavelich, MartyMarty Pavelich	LW	64	13	20	33	49
Leswick, TonyTony Leswick	W	70	15	12	27	87
Skov, GlenGlen Skov	C/LW	70	12	15	27	54
Pronovost, MarcelMarcel Pronovost	D	68	8	19	27	72
Sinclair, RegReg Sinclair	RW/C	69	11	12	23	36
Goldham, BobBob Goldham	D	70	1	13	14	32
Bonin, MarcelMarcel Bonin	W	37	4	9	13	14
Woit, BennyBenny Woit	RW/D	70	1	5	6	40
Hay, JimJim Hay	D	42	1	4	5	2
Wilson, LarryLarry Wilson	C	15	0	4	4	6
Jankowski, LouLou Jankowski	C/RW	22	1	2	3	0
Stasiuk, VicVic Stasiuk	LW	3	0	0	0	0
Folk, BillBill Folk	D	8	0	0	0	2
Zeidel, LarryLarry Zeidel	D	9	0	0	0	8
Almas, RedRed Almas	G	1	0	0	0	0
Hall, GlennGlenn Hall	G	6	0	0	0	0
Sawchuk, TerryTerry Sawchuk	G	63	0	0	0	5

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SO
Sawchuk, TerryTerry Sawchuk	3780	63	32	15	16	120	1.90	9
Hall, GlennGlenn Hall	360	6	4	1	1	10	1.67	1
Almas, RedRed Almas	60	1	0	0	1	3	3.00	0
Team:	4200	70	36	16	18	133	1.90	10

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Lindsay, TedTed Lindsay	LW	6	4	4	8	6
Prystai, MetroMetro Prystai	C	6	4	4	8	2
Howe, GordieGordie Howe	RW	6	2	5	7	2
Wilson, JohnnyJohnny Wilson	LW	6	2	5	7	0
Delvecchio, AlexAlex Delvecchio	C/LW	6	2	4	6	2
Woit, BennyBenny Woit	RW/D	6	1	3	4	0
Kelly, RedRed Kelly	D/C	6	0	4	4	0
Pavelich, MartyMarty Pavelich	LW	6	2	1	3	7
Goldham, BobBob Goldham	D	6	1	1	2	2
Sinclair, RegReg Sinclair	RW/C	3	1	0	1	0
Leswick, TonyTony Leswick	W	6	1	0	1	11
Skov, GlenGlen Skov	C/LW	6	1	0	1	2
Bonin, MarcelMarcel Bonin	W	5	0	1	1	0
Jankowski, LouLou Jankowski	C/RW	1	0	0	0	0
Hrymnak, SteveSteve Hrymnak	D	2	0	0	0	0
Fielder, GuyleGuyle Fielder	C	4	0	0	0	0
Hay, JimJim Hay	D	4	0	0	0	2
Pronovost, MarcelMarcel Pronovost	D	6	0	0	0	6
Sawchuk, TerryTerry Sawchuk	G	6	0	0	0	10

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO
Sawchuk, TerryTerry Sawchuk	372	6	2	4	21	3.39	1
Team:	372	6	2	4	21	3.39	1

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: Detroit Red Wings
• Hart Memorial Trophy: Gordie Howe
• Art Ross Memorial Trophy: Gordie Howe
• Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Red Kelly
• Gordie Howe, Right Wing, NHL First Team All-Star
• Ted Lindsay, Left Wing, NHL First Team All-Star
• Red Kelly, Defence, NHL First Team All-Star
• Terry Sawchuk, Goaltender, NHL First Team All-Star

Gallery

Milt Schmidt, Terry Sawchuk, Marcel Pronovost during Game 1 of the 1953 Semi-finals, March 24, 1953.

Video

A fascinating video of hockey at all levels in 1953 featuring Jean Béliveau playing for the Quebec Aces and at the 6:45 mark, three minutes of excellent footage of the January 17, 1953 Canadiens-Red Wings game. Gordie Howe's game tying goal at 18:53 of the third period is shown.

Here's Hockey!

See Also

• 1952–53 NHL season

References

• 1952–53 Detroit Red Wings Games. Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-05-06.

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)