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The 1948-49 NHL season was the 32nd season of the National Hockey League. Six teams each played 60 games.
Regular season
Don Gallinger, hopeful he could win an appeal of his suspension in the gambing scandal, finally admitted to gambling and was expelled from the NHL for life in September.
On October 8th, 1948, the New York Rangers were due to start their season against the Montreal Canadiens, the team suffered bad misfortune. Buddy O'Connor, Frank Eddolls, Edgar Laprade, Bill Moe, and Tony Leswick were travelling in their car from Montreal to Saranac Lake, when their car was struck by a truck near Rouse's Point, New York. O'Connor suffered several broken ribs, Eddolls sufered a severed tendon in his knee, Laprade suffered a broken nose, Moe had a cut in the head requiring several stitches and Tony Leswick only escaped with a few bruises. The Rangers were affected. They only scored 133 goals and finished last.
A league record of ten major penalties was set November 25th, 1948 when 11,000 fans at the Montreal Forum, fans witnessed a donnybrook. It started when Ken Mosdell elbowed Gus Mortson. Mortson retaliated by knocking Mosdell down with his stick. Rocket Richard then sprang onto Mortson's back and they fought, and then all hands joined in. Mortson, Richard, Howie Meeker, and Mosdell were banished with majors. Play had scarcely began when Ken Reardon and Joe Klukay began fencing and Bill Barilko went at Reardon, while Klukay got into it with Billy Reay, and in another fight, Hal Laycoe got into it with Garth Boesch. In the game itself, Turk Broda picked up his first shutout as Toronto won 2-0.
A sad note was the death of former Pittsburgh Pirates defenceman Tex White, who was found dead in his bed at his home in Port Colborne, Ontario. He was only 48 years old.
Both Detroit and Montreal lost key players to injury this year. Montreal lost Elmer Lach with a fractured jaw when he collided with Toronto defenceman Bob Goldham, and Butch Bouchard injured a knee. Detroit lost Gordie Howe who underwent knee surgery.
Bill Durnan got hot in the second half of the season and recorded four consecutive shutouts, going 309 minutes and 21 seconds without giving up a goal. In all, Durnan had 10 shutouts and won his fifth Vezina Trophy in six years.
Final standings
| National Hockey League | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Detroit Red Wings | 60 | 34 | 19 | 7 | 75 | 195 | 145 | 621 |
| Boston Bruins | 60 | 29 | 23 | 8 | 66 | 178 | 163 | 434 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 60 | 28 | 23 | 9 | 65 | 152 | 126 | 728 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 60 | 22 | 25 | 13 | 57 | 147 | 161 | 706 |
| Chicago Black Hawks | 60 | 21 | 31 | 8 | 50 | 173 | 211 | 695 |
| New York Rangers | 60 | 18 | 31 | 11 | 47 | 133 | 172 | 413 |
Scoring leaders
Stanley Cup playoffs
Playoff bracket
Semifinals
Detroit Red Wings vs. Montreal Canadiens| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 22 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | OT |
| March 24 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | Detroit Red Wings | 3 | OT |
| March 26 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | |
| March 29 | Detroit Red Wings | 3 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | |
| March 31 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 3 | |
| April 2 | Detroit Red Wings | 1 | Montreal Canadiens | 3 | |
| April 5 | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 3 |
Detroit wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 3
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Boston Bruins
| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 22 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 0 | |
| March 24 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 2 | |
| March 26 | Boston Bruins | 5 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 | OT |
| March 29 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | |
| March 30 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Boston Bruins | 2 |
Stanley Cup Finals
Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Detroit Red Wings| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| April 8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 2 | |
| April 10 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 1 | |
| April 13 | Detroit Red Wings | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 | |
| April 16 | Detroit Red Wings | 1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3 |
Toronto wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 0
NHL awards
See also
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- 2nd National Hockey League All-Star Game
- National Hockey League All-Star Game
- 1948 in sports
- 1949 in sports
References
"1948-49 NHL season"