1959–60 Montreal Canadiens season

	1959–60 Montreal Canadiens
Division	1st NHL
1959–60 record	40–18–12
Goals for	255
Goals against	178
Team information
General manager	Frank J. Selke
Coach	Toe Blake
Captain	Maurice Richard
Arena	Montreal Forum
Team leaders
Goals	Jean Beliveau (34)
Assists	Henri Richard (43)
Points	Jean Beliveau (74)
Penalty minutes	Henri Richard (66)
Wins	Jacques Plante (40)
Goals against average	Jacques Plante (2.54)
	← 1958–59 1960–61 →

The 1959–60 Montreal Canadiens season was the club's 51st season of play. The Canadiens finished 1st in the league and defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs 4 games to 0 in the 1960 Stanley Cup Finals to win the Stanley Cup for the 12th time in team history and fifth year in a row.

Regular Season[]

1Nov1959-Plante mask — A bloodied Jacques Plante displays the mask his wore on November 1, 1959.

The use of the goalie mask was Plante's most enduring contribution to the game, however, occurred as a result of an incident on November 1, 1959. He was hit in the face by a shot from New York Rangers player Andy Bathgate, needing to go to the dressing room for stitches. When he returned, he was wearing the crude home-made goalie mask that he'd been using in practices. His coach, Toe Blake, was livid, but he had no other goalie to call upon, and Plante refused to return to the goal unless he kept the mask. Blake agreed on the condition that Plante discard the mask when the cut healed. Only Camille Henry beat him in that game, which the Canadiens won 3–1. In the ensuing days Plante refused to discard the mask, and as the Canadiens continued to win, Blake became less obstinate. The unbeaten streak stretched to 18 games. Plante didn't wear the mask, at Blake's request, against Detroit on March 8, 1960. The Canadiens lost 3–0, and the mask returned for good the next night. Plante subsequently designed his own mask and masks for other goalies. Although Plante was not the first NHL goalie known to wear a facemask (Montreal Maroons goaltender Clint Benedict had done so thirty years before), Plante introduced the mask as everyday equipment, which continues to this day.

Final Standings[]

National Hockey League
	GP	W	L	T	Pts	GF	GA
Montreal Canadiens	70	40	18	12	92	255	178
Toronto Maple Leafs	70	35	26	9	79	199	195
Chicago Black Hawks	70	28	29	13	69	191	180
Detroit Red Wings	70	26	29	15	67	186	197
Boston Bruins	70	28	34	8	64	220	241
New York Rangers	70	17	38	15	49	187	247

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 8, 1959	4–1	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	1–0–0
2	T	October 10, 1959	1–1	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	1–0–1
3	L	October 11, 1959	4–8	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	1–1–1
4	W	October 15, 1959	4–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	2–1–1
5	L	October 17, 1959	2–4	New York Rangers (1959–60)	2–2–1
6	W	October 18, 1959	6–5	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	3–2–1
7	W	October 22, 1959	4–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	4–2–1
8	W	October 24, 1959	5–1	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	5–2–1
9	W	October 25, 1959	2–1	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	6–2–1
10	W	October 27, 1959	2–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	7–2–1
11	T	October 28, 1959	1–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	7–2–2
12	T	October 31, 1959	2–2	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	7–2–3
13	W	November 1, 1959	3–1	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	8–2–3
14	W	November 5, 1959	8–2	New York Rangers (1959–60)	9–2–3
15	T	November 7, 1959	2–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	9–2–4
16	W	November 12, 1959	3–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	10–2–4
17	W	November 14, 1959	8–1	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	11–2–4
18	W	November 15, 1959	4–1	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	12–2–4
19	W	November 21, 1959	4–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	13–2–4
20	W	November 22, 1959	3–1	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	14–2–4
21	W	November 26, 1959	4–2	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	15–2–4
22	W	November 28, 1959	1–0	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	16–2–4
23	W	November 29, 1959	4–2	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	17–2–4
24	L	December 2, 1959	0–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	17–3–4
25	L	December 3, 1959	4–7	New York Rangers (1959–60)	17–4–4
26	T	December 5, 1959	2–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	17–4–5
27	T	December 6, 1959	4–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	17–4–6
28	L	December 12, 1959	2–3	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	17–5–6
29	T	December 13, 1959	4–4	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	17–5–7
30	W	December 17, 1959	8–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	18–5–7
31	W	December 19, 1959	5–3	New York Rangers (1959–60)	19–5–7
32	L	December 20, 1959	5–6	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	19–6–7
33	W	December 26, 1959	9–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	20–6–7
34	W	December 27, 1959	3–1	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	21–6–7
35	W	December 30, 1959	3–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	22–6–7
36	W	January 2, 1960	6–5	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	23–6–7
37	L	January 3, 1960	3–8	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	23–7–7
38	W	January 9, 1960	2–1	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	24–7–7
39	L	January 10, 1960	0–3	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	24–8–7
40	W	January 14, 1960	3–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	25–8–7
41	W	January 16, 1960	8–2	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	26–8–7
42	W	January 17, 1960	3–1	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	27–8–7
43	W	January 21, 1960	11–2	New York Rangers (1959–60)	28–8–7
44	W	January 23, 1960	4–2	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	29–8–7
45	W	January 24, 1960	3–2	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	30–8–7
46	T	January 27, 1960	2–2	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	30–8–8
47	W	January 28, 1960	4–2	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	31–8–8
48	T	January 30, 1960	2–2	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	31–8–9
49	L	January 31, 1960	5–6	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	31–9–9
50	W	February 4, 1960	4–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	32–9–9
51	W	February 6, 1960	5–3	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	33–9–9
52	L	February 7, 1960	1–4	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	33–10–9
53	W	February 10, 1960	4–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	34–10–9
54	L	February 13, 1960	6–7	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	34–11–9
55	L	February 14, 1960	0–2	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	34–12–9
56	T	February 18, 1960	3–3	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	34–12–10
57	T	February 20, 1960	3–3	New York Rangers (1959–60)	34–12–11
58	W	February 21, 1960	6–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	35–12–11
59	L	February 24, 1960	1–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	35–13–11
60	W	February 27, 1960	3–2	New York Rangers (1959–60)	36–13–11
61	W	March 3, 1960	5–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	37–13–11
62	T	March 5, 1960	2–2	Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	37–13–12
63	L	March 6, 1960	2–4	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	37–14–12
64	L	March 8, 1960	0–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1959–60)	37–15–12
65	W	March 9, 1960	9–4	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	38–15–12
66	W	March 12, 1960	5–0	Chicago Black Hawks (1959–60)	39–15–12
67	L	March 13, 1960	2–3	@ Boston Bruins (1959–60)	39–16–12
68	L	March 17, 1960	2–6	Toronto Maple Leafs (1959–60)	39–17–12
69	W	March 19, 1960	5–1	Boston Bruins (1959–60)	40–17–12
70	L	March 20, 1960	1–3	@ New York Rangers (1959–60)	40–18–12

^[1]

Playoffs[]

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0[]

The Canadiens placed first in the standings and met the Chicago Black Hawks in the first round of the playoffs. The Canadiens would sweep the Hawks 4–0 to move on to the finals against Toronto.

Montreal Canadiens 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 0[]

For more details on this topic, see 1960 Stanley Cup Finals.

Montreal swept the Maple Leafs, outscoring them 15–5, en route to being the first team since the 1951–52 Detroit Red Wings to go without a loss in the playoffs.

After the series Rocket Richard retired. He went out with style, finishing with his 34th finals goal in game three.

Date	Away	Score	Home	Score
April 7	Toronto Maple Leafs	2	Montreal Canadiens	4
April 9	Toronto Maple Leafs	1	Montreal Canadiens	2
April 12	Montreal Canadiens	5	Toronto Maple Leafs	2
April 14	Montreal Canadiens	4	Toronto Maple Leafs	0

Player Stats[]

Regular Season[]

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Beliveau, JeanJean Beliveau	C	60	34	40	74	57
Richard, HenriHenri Richard	C	70	30	43	73	66
Geoffrion, BernieBernie Geoffrion	RW	59	30	41	71	36
Moore, DickieDickie Moore	LW	62	22	42	64	54
Bonin, MarcelMarcel Bonin	W	59	17	34	51	59
Provost, ClaudeClaude Provost	RW	70	17	29	46	42
Goyette, PhilPhil Goyette	C	65	21	22	43	4
Marshall, DonDon Marshall	LW	70	16	22	38	4
Richard, MauriceMaurice Richard	RW	51	19	16	35	50
Pronovost, AndreAndre Pronovost	LW	69	12	19	31	61
Johnson, TomTom Johnson	D	64	4	25	29	59
Backstrom, RalphRalph Backstrom	C	64	13	15	28	24
Harvey, DougDoug Harvey	D	66	6	21	27	45
McDonald, AbAb McDonald	LW	68	9	13	22	26
Langlois, AlbertAlbert Langlois	D	67	1	14	15	48
Talbot, Jean-GuyJean-Guy Talbot	D	69	1	14	15	60
Hicke, BillBill Hicke	RW	43	3	10	13	17
Turner, BobBob Turner	D	54	0	9	9	40
Tremblay, J.C.J.C. Tremblay	D	11	0	1	1	0
Fleming, ReggieReggie Fleming	D/LW	3	0	0	0	2
Hoekstra, CecCec Hoekstra	C	4	0	0	0	0
Hodge, CharlieCharlie Hodge	G	1	0	0	0	0
Plante, JacquesJacques Plante	G	69	0	0	0	2

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SO
Plante, JacquesJacques Plante	4140	69	40	17	12	175	2.54	3
Hodge, CharlieCharlie Hodge	60	1	0	1	0	3	3.00	0
Team:	4200	70	40	18	12	178	2.54	3

Playoffs[]

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Richard, HenriHenri Richard	C	8	3	9	12	9
Geoffrion, BernieBernie Geoffrion	RW	8	2	10	12	4
Moore, DickieDickie Moore	LW	8	6	4	10	4
Beliveau, JeanJean Beliveau	C	8	5	2	7	6
Bonin, MarcelMarcel Bonin	W	8	1	4	5	12
Marshall, DonDon Marshall	LW	8	2	2	4	0
Richard, MauriceMaurice Richard	RW	8	1	3	4	2
Harvey, DougDoug Harvey	D	8	3	0	3	6
Goyette, PhilPhil Goyette	C	8	2	1	3	4
Hicke, BillBill Hicke	RW	7	1	2	3	0
Pronovost, AndreAndre Pronovost	LW	8	1	2	3	0
Backstrom, RalphRalph Backstrom	C	7	0	3	3	2
Langlois, AlbertAlbert Langlois	D	8	0	3	3	18
Provost, ClaudeClaude Provost	RW	8	1	1	2	0
Talbot, Jean-GuyJean-Guy Talbot	D	8	1	1	2	8
Johnson, TomTom Johnson	D	8	0	1	1	4
Turner, BobBob Turner	D	8	0	0	0	0
Plante, JacquesJacques Plante	G	8	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO
Plante, JacquesJacques Plante	489	8	8	0	11	1.35	3
Team:	489	8	8	0	11	1.35	3

^[2]

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: Montreal Canadiens
James Norris Memorial Trophy: Doug Harvey
Vezina Trophy: Jacques Plante
Jean Beliveau, Centre, NHL First Team All-Star
Doug Harvey, Defense, NHL First Team All-Star
Bernie Geoffrion, Right Wing, NHL Second Team All-Star
Jacques Plante, Goaltender, NHL Second Team All-Star

Farm Teams[]

Minor Pro[]

Junior A[]

Transactions[]

Roster[]

Jacques Plante, Charlie Hodge, Doug Harvey, Tom Johnson, Bob Turner, Jean-Guy Talbot, Albert Langlois, Ralph Backstrom, Jean Beliveau, Marcel Bonin, Bernie Geoffrion, Phil Goyette, Bill Hicke, Don Marshall, Ab McDonald, Dickie Moore, Andre Pronovost, Claude Provost, Henri Richard, Maurice Richard (captain), Frank Selke (manager), Toe Blake (coach), Hector Dubois, Larry Aubut (trainers).

Gallery[]

Video[]

Colour highlights and interviews from the 1960 Stanley Cup Finals.

Montreal Canadiens win 5th consecutive Stanley cup - 1960 color film

References[]

↑ 1959–60 Montreal Canadiens Games. Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-06-04.
↑ 1959-60 Montreal Canadiens Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com. hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-05-28.

[1] 1959–60 Montreal Canadiens Games. Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-06-04.

[2] 1959-60 Montreal Canadiens Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com. hockey-reference.com. Retrieved on 2009-05-28.

[1]

[2]

Montreal Canadiens Seasons
1900s	1909–10
1910s	1910–11 • 1911–12 • 1912–13 • 1913–14 • 1914–15 • 1915–16 • 1916–17 • 1917–18 • 1918–19 • 1919–20
1920s	1920–21 • 1921–22 • 1922–23 • 1923–24 • 1924–25 • 1925–26 • 1926–27 • 1927–28 • 1928–29 • 1929–30
1930s	1930–31 • 1931–32 • 1932–33 • 1933–34 • 1934–35 • 1935–36 • 1936–37 • 1937–38 • 1938–39 • 1939–40
1940s	1940–41 • 1941–42 • 1942–43 • 1943–44 • 1944–45 • 1945–46 • 1946–47 • 1947–48 • 1948–49 • 1949–50
1950s	1950–51 • 1951–52 • 1952–53 • 1953–54 • 1954–55 • 1955–56 • 1956–57 • 1957–58 • 1958–59 • 1959–60
1960s	1960–61 • 1961–62 • 1962–63 • 1963–64 • 1964–65 • 1965–66 • 1966–67 • 1967–68 • 1968–69 • 1969–70
1970s	1970–71 • 1971–72 • 1972–73 • 1973–74 • 1974–75 • 1975–76 • 1976–77 • 1977–78 • 1978–79 • 1979–80
1980s	1980–81 • 1981–82 • 1982–83 • 1983–84 • 1984–85 • 1985–86 • 1986–87 • 1987–88 • 1988–89 • 1989–90
1990s	1990–91 • 1991–92 • 1992–93 • 1993–94 • 1994–95 • 1995–96 • 1996–97 • 1997–98 • 1998–99 • 1999–00
2000s	2000–01 • 2001–02 • 2002–03 • 2003–04 • 2004–05 • 2005–06 • 2006–07 • 2007–08 • 2008–09 • 2009–10
2010s	2010–11 • 2011–12 • 2012–13 • 2013–14 • 2014–15 • 2015–16 • 2016–17 • 2017–18 • 2018–19 • 2019–20
Bold indicates Stanley Cup Championship

Montreal Canadiens
Franchise	Franchise • Original Six • Players • Coaches • General Managers • Seasons • Records • Draft Picks • Award Winners
Arenas	Jubilee Arena • Montreal Arena • Mount Royal Arena • Montreal Forum • Bell Centre
Affiliates	Laval Rocket (AHL)

1959–60 NHL season by team
Teams	Boston • Chicago • Detroit • Montreal • New York • Toronto
See also	All-Star Game • 1960 Stanley Cup Finals

1959–60 Montreal Canadiens season

Contents

Regular Season[]

Final Standings[]

Game Log[]

Playoffs[]

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 0[]

Montreal Canadiens 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 0[]

Player Stats[]

Regular Season[]

Playoffs[]

Awards and Records[]

Farm Teams[]

Minor Pro[]

Junior A[]

Transactions[]

Roster[]

Gallery[]

Video[]

See Also[]

References[]