December 31, 1975: Hockey's "Game of the Century"

Left to right: Peter Mahovlich,

Vladislav Tretiak, Yvan Cournoyer

December 31, 1975: A hockey game is played at the Montreal Forum. It not only ends up getting labeled "The Game of the Century," but it is often credited with "saving the sport."

Super Series '76 was scheduled, with 2 Soviet club teams taking on NHL teams. One was the reigning Soviet Champions, CSKA Moscow. Translated into English, "CSKA" (pronounced "CHESS-kah") became "Central Sports Club of the Army." It was a team sponsored by the country's Red Army, and that's what they were called in the American media: "The Red Army." The other was Krylya Sovetov, translated as "Soviet Wings." This suggests they were sponsored by the country's Air Force. Not quite: They were sponsored by the country's aircraft builders.

The Super Series began on December 28, 1975, at Madison Square Garden, and the Red Army pounded the New York Rangers, 7-3. This was understandable: Despite celebrating their 50th Season, the Broadway Blueshirts were in total disarray, having recently fired their head coach and general manager, Emile Francis; and traded away several key players, including goaltender Eddie Giacomin, defenseman Brad Park and center Jean Ratelle. On December 29, the Soviet Wings beat the Pittsburgh Penguins, 7-4. Also not a surprise: The Pens were not a good team at the time.

The next game got people's attention, though: On New Year's Eve, at the Montreal Forum, the Red Army took on the Montreal Canadiens, a team loaded with future Hall-of-Famers, and one of the favorites to win the Stanley Cup.

Les Habitantes got on the board first, as Steve Shutt scored 3:10 into the game. At 7:25, Yvon Lambert made it 2-0. Boris Mikhailov scored for the Soviets, 3:54 into the 2nd period. At 9:39, Canadien Captain Yvan Cournoyer scored, to make it 3-1. So, of the Habs' 1st 3 goals, 2 were scored by men with the French variation on the Russian name "Ivan," meaning "John."

At 16:21, Valery Kharlamov scored, to make it 3-2. At 4:04 into the 3rd period, Boris Aleksandrov scored to tie the game. It ended in a 3-3 tie, and the entire game only saw 8 penalties called. Montreal goalie Ken Dryden saved 10 of 13 shots, while the Soviets' Vladislav Tretiak saved 35 of 38. Each man was reprising a fine performance in the 1972 "Summit Series." It has been called one of the greatest games in the sport's history.

"We outshot them 38 to 13, and that was pretty indicative of the way the game went," the Canadiens' Doug Risebrough said. "Vladislav Tretiak stole the game. He was just great. But the final score didn’t matter. Whether we won, lost or tied the game, we knew we had something special."

On January 4, 1976, an NHL team finally got a win. The Buffalo Sabres, who had advanced to the previous season's Stanley Cup Finals, beat the Wings, 12-6 at the Buffalo Memorial Auditorium. But the Russians re-established their dominance: On January 7, the Wings went into the Chicago Stadium, and beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 4-2.

On January 8, the Red Army went into the Boston Garden and, playing a Boston Bruins team with Bobby Orr injured, Phil Esposito traded to the Rangers for Park and Ratelle, and Park and Ratelle not really settled in yet, dominated the Beantown Brats, 5-2. And on January 10, the Wings went out to Long Island, and beat the rising New York Islanders, 2-1.

There was one game left to play. On January 11, the Red Army went into The Spectrum in Philadelphia, to play the Philadelphia Flyers, 2-time defending Stanley Cup Champions. And the Flyers, in the process of standing up for America, undid a lot of the undoing of the damage.

They had a well-balanced team led by Captain Bobby Clarke and goaltender Bernie Parent. But they were also the most violent team hockey had ever seen, known as "The Broad Street Bullies." Philadelphia fans, enjoying their image as a city for tough people, loved it. 

In the 1st period, Ed Van Impe was sent to the penalty box for hooking. When his penalty ended, with the score still 0-0, he went right at Kharlamov, and elbowed him in the head. The referee, Lloyd Gilmour, did not call a penalty. Red Army coach Konstantin Loktev decided that his players were not going to be treated fairly, and, with the clock reading 11:21 of the 1st period (in other words, 9:39 to go), pulled his team off the ice. Bob Cole, calling the game for CBC (the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation), yelled, "They're going home! They're going home!"

With the threat of losing their share of the gate receipts, the Russians were talked back into going back onto the ice, and the Flyers beat them, 4-1. Tretiak said the Flyers won by playing "rude hockey." Loktev called them "a bunch of animals." They were both right. But the Flyers had won, and came away believing the Russians were skilled but soft. They were right, too.

The Flyers made it 3 straight trips to the Stanley Cup Finals, and printed up memorabilia reading, "HAT TRICK IN '76." But the Canadiens put a stop to that, sweeping them in 4 straight, for the 1st of 4 straight Stanley Cups. They credited the New Year's Eve tie with the Soviets for sparking them into that dynasty. Dryden, Cournoyer, Shutt, Guy Lafleur, Jacques Lemaire, Bob Gainey, Serge Savard, Guy Lapointe and Larry Robinson would all be elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

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December 31, 1975 was a Wednesday. There were 4 regular-season games in the NHL that day:

* The New York Rangers lost to the Atlanta Flames, 8-1 at Madison Square Garden.

* The Pittsburgh Penguins beat the Los Angeles Kings, 5-1 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh.

* The Detroit Red Wings beat the Washington Capitals, 4-0 at the Olympia Stadium in Detroit.

* And the Boston Bruins beat the Minnesota North Stars, 6-1 at the Metropolitan Sports Center in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota.

There were no games in the World Hockey Association. Nor were there any in the NBA. There was 1 in the American Basketball Association: The Denver Nuggets beat the Kentucky Colonels, 141-137 at the McNichols Arena in Denver.

Baseball was out of season. There were 2 college bowl games played. Number 4 Alabama beat Number 8 Penn State, 13-8 in the Sugar Bowl in New Orleans. It was the 1st Sugar Bowl indoors, at the Superdome, after being outdoors at Tulane Stadium since New Year's Day 1935. And West Virginia beat North Carolina State, 13-10 in the Peach Bowl, at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

December 24, 1931: The 1st Rockefeller Center Christmas Tree

December 24, 1931: This is the 1st Christmas with a Christmas tree in Rockefeller Center in New York, even though the project is still under construction. 30 Rockefeller Plaza -- a.k.a. 30 Rock, and known as the RCA Building, then the GE Building from 1988 to 2015, and now the Comcast Building -- opened on May 1, 1933, and the Rockefeller Center Skating Rink in 1936. The tree has been placed between 30 Rock's front entrance and the Rink ever since.

The tree is usually a Norway Spruce, nearly always cut from somewhere in New York State, and tends to rise to between 70 and 100 feet. It is decorated only with lights, not "ornaments" as we now understand that term. With 30 Rock's most famous tenant being NBC, the tree-lighting ceremony, presided over by the Mayor of New York, was televised locally beginning in 1951 and nationally since 1997.

Some cities, including Philadelphia, Baltimore, Pittsburgh, Miami and Denver,  have their main trees at City Hall. Other cities:

* Atlanta: Colony Square.

* Boston: Boston Common.

* Chicago: Millennium Park.

* Cincinnati: Fountain Square.

* Cleveland: Public Square.

* Dallas: The Galleria Dallas, a shopping mall.

* Detroit: Campus Martius Park.

* Kansas City: Crown Center.

* Los Angeles: The Grove at The Farmers' Market.

* Milwaukee: Fiserv Forum, the new sports arena.

* Minneapolis: Nordic Plaza.

* New Orleans: The French Market.

* St. Louis: Kiener Plaza Park, in front of the Old Courthouse.

* San Diego: Liberty Station.

* San Francisco: Union Square.

* Seattle: Pike Place Market.

* Washington, D.C.: In front of the White House.

*

December 24, 1931 was a Thursday. Baseball was in the off-season. Football was in midweek: There was a college game on Christmas Day, but no college or pro games on this Christmas Eve. The NBA hadn't been founded yet.

There was 1 game in the NHL: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat their arch-rivals, the Montreal Canadiens, 2-1 at the Montreal Forum. Harvey "Busher" Jackson, the left wing on the Leafs' "Kid Line" with right wing Charlie Conacher and center Joe Primeau, scored the winning goal 9:55 into overtime.

December 2, 1995: The Curse of St. Patrick

December 2, 1995: In an NHL "Original Six" matchup, the Detroit Red Wings beat the Montreal Canadiens, 11-1 at the Montreal Forum. Vyacheslav Kozlov scored 4 of those Detroit goals. Mark Recchi had the lone tally for the Habs.

This was the game in which Canadiens' goalie Patrick Roy was infamously hung out to dry by Canadiens management. General manager Réjean Houle told head coach Mario Tremblay to leave Roy in the net. He left Roy there until 11:57 of the 2nd period, after the Canadiens' defense, strong enough to win the Stanley Cup 2 1/2 years earlier, had collapsed to the point where he'd allowed 9 goals in that time.

Roy skated over to where team president Ronald Corey was sitting, and said, "It's my last game in Montreal." Roy was suspended, and, 4 days later, came "Le Trade": Roy and team Captain Mike Keane, a right wing who had also been feuding with Tremblay, were traded to the Colorado Avalanche for goaltender Jocelyn Thibault, left wing Martin Ručinský and right wing Andrei Kovalenko.

Ironically, until the season before, the Avalanche had been the Quebec Nordiques. Roy was from Quebec City, and had grown up loving the Nords and hating the Habs, before winning 3 Vezina Trophies and helping them win 3 Stanley Cups. 

He helped the Avs win the Cup that season, and again in 2001. In addition to the '96 Cup with the Avs, Keane would win the Cup again with the Dallas Stars in 1999. What did the Habs get? Not much, although Kovalenko did score the last goal at the Forum, as the team was preparing to move into the new Molson Centre (now the Bell Centre).

Canadien fans took Roy's side in the dispute. They let their displeasure be known all season long, including into the move, with the new arena having room for an additional 3,300 fans. It took until 2008 for Roy and the team to reconcile enough to get him to come for the retirement of his Number 33.

The winningest team in hockey history took until 2021 to return to the Stanley Cup Finals, losing it to the Tampa Bay Lightning. It is known as "The Curse of St. Patrick," even if, as he has proven in his subsequent coaching and management career, Roy is no saint. He had helped them win their 23rd and 24th Stanley Cups. They are still looking for their 25th.

*

December 2, 1995 was a Saturday. These 9 other games were played in the NHL:

* The New York Rangers beat the Ottawa Senators, 4-2 at the Ottawa Civic Centre (now the TD Place Arena).

* The New York Islanders beat the New Jersey Devils, 4-1 at the Nassau Coliseum.

* The Boston Bruins beat the Buffalo Sabres, 6-4 at the FleetCenter (now the TD Garden) in Boston.

* The Florida Panthers beat the Hartford Whalers, 5-3 at the Hartford Civic Center (now the PeoplesBank Arena).

* The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim played to a tie, 4-4 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto.

* The Chicago Blackhawks and the Winnipeg Jets played to a tie, 2-2 at the Winnipeg Arena.

* The St. Louis Blues beat the Edmonton Oilers, 7-3 at the Edmonton Coliseum (formerly the Northlands Coliseum).

* The Dallas Stars and the Los Angeles Kings played to a tie, 2-2 at The Forum outside Los Angeles in Inglewood, California.

* The San Jose Sharks beat the Washington Capitals, 5-3 at the San Jose Arena (now the SAP Center).

* And the Philadelphia Flyers, the Pittsburgh Penguins, the Vancouver Canucks, the Calgary Flames, the Colorado Avalanche and the Tampa Bay Lightning were not scheduled.

The University of Texas, America's Number 9-ranked college football team, defeats their arch-rivals, Texas A&M University, ranked Number 16. The score is Longhorns 16, Aggies 6, at A&M's home, Kyle Field in College Station.

Elsewhere in Texas, the University of Houston beat crosstown rival Rice University, 18-17 at Rice Stadium. These would be the last 2 football games ever played in the Southwest Conference. I have a separate entry for the league's end.

These other college football games were played that day:

* Number 2 Florida beat Number 23 Arkansas, 34-3, at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta, in the Southeastern Conference Championship Game.

* Army beat Navy, 14-13 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.

* And Oklahoma State beat the University of Hawaii, 24-20 at Aloha Stadium in Honolulu.

Nebraska won the National Championship defeating Florida in the Fiesta Bowl. Texas lost the Sugar Bowl to Virginia Tech. Texas A&M beat Michigan in the Alamo Bowl in San Antonio. The last Cotton Bowl of the SWC era had no Texas-based team: Colorado beat Oregon, 38-6. Southern California beat Northwestern in the Rose Bowl, and Florida State beat Notre Dame in the Orange Bowl.

Baseball was out of season. There were 10 NBA games on this day:

* The New York Knicks beat the Philadelphia 76ers, 94-85 at Madison Square Garden.

* The New Jersey Nets beat the Cleveland Cavaliers, 79-78 at the Brendan Byrne Arena at the Meadowlands.

* The Washington Bullets beat the Boston Celtics, 135-107 at the USAir Arena (formerly the Capital Centre) in the Washington suburb of Landover, Maryland.

* The Detroit Pistons beat the Atlanta Hawks, 104-96 at The Palace in the Detroit suburb of Auburn Hills, Michigan.

* The Houston Rockets beat the Charlotte Hornets, 113-98 at The Summit in Houston. (The arena has since been converted into the Central Campus of the Lakewood Church, Dr. Joel Osteen's "megachurch.") Clyde Drexler scored 41 points. 

* The San Antonio Spurs beat the Phoenix Suns, 101-93 at the Alamodome in San Antonio. David Robinson scored 37 points.

* The Denver Nuggets beat the Minnesota Timberwolves, 109-105 at the McNichols Area in Denver.

* The Chicago Bulls beat the Los Angeles Clippers, 104-98 at the Los Angeles Memorial Sports Arena. Michael Jordan scored 37 points.

* The Golden State Warriors beat the Indiana Pacers, 100-97 at the Oakland Coliseum Arena.

* The Sacramento Kings beat the Orlando Magic, 109-106 at the Arco Arena in Sacramento.

And in English soccer, North London team Arsenal went to Birmingham, and played Aston Villa to a 1-1 draw at Villa Park.

November 29, 1924: The Montreal Forum Opens

November 29, 1924: The Montreal Forum opens. The Montreal Canadiens, holders of the Stanley Cup, defeat the Toronto St. Patricks, 7-1. Billy Boucher scored the arena's 1st goal. And its 2nd. And its 3rd. In addition to this hat trick, Aurèle Joliat scored 2, and Sylvio Mantha and Howie Morenz each scored 1.

The only Toronto goal against the Canadiens' Georges Vézina was scored by Jack Adams, later to be the longtime head coach and general manager of the Detroit Red Wings. The St. Patricks wore green, but in 1927, they would be renamed the Toronto Maple Leafs, and switch to blue. They and the Canadiens have been the NHL's greatest rivalry ever since.

Originally, the Forum wasn't meant to be the Canadiens' home. It was meant to be the home of the Montreal Maroons, a newly-founded team, while the Canadiens continued to play home games at the Mount-Royal Arena. The Maroons' 1st game at the Forum came on December 3, but they lost to the Hamilton Tigers, 2-0.

The Maroons won the Stanley Cup in 1926. For the next season, the Canadiens moved in, and the Forum was busier than ever: Its 9,300 seats played host to the Canadiens or the Maroons every Thursday and Saturday, the Quebec Senior Hockey League on Wednesdays and Saturdays, the Quebec Junior Hockey League on Mondays, the Bank League on Tuesdays, and the Railways and Telephone League on Fridays.

The Canadiens' famed "CH" logo has confused people for over a century. It is short for the team's official name, le Club de hockey Canadien. Madison Square Garden president George "Tex" Rickard, boxing promoter and founder of the New York Rangers, probably without knowing the truth, told a reporter that the "H" stood for "Habitant," a term used to describe farmers in early Quebec. Ever since, the Canadiens have been known as Les Habitants, or the Habs for short. The chant became, "Go, Habs, go!"

The Canadiens won the Stanley Cup in 1916 and 1924, before the Forum opened. They won it in 1930 and 1931, led by Morenz, the man eventually known as "the Babe Ruth of Hockey." In 1937, Morenz broke his leg during a game, was hospitalized, and died of a heart attack in the hospital. A benefit game was played at the Forum, between a combined team of Canadiens and Maroons against a team made up of players from the rest of the League. A few months later, at the end of the 1937-38 season, the Maroons went out of business due to the Great Depression.

In 1942, Maurice Richard arrived on the Canadiens' roster. "The Rocket" led them to 8 Stanley Cups. In 1953, along came Jean Béliveau, and he led them to 10. Richard's last 5 and Béliveau's 1st 5, from 1956 to 1960, were the only instance ever of 5 straight Cup wins.

They followed the 1955 season, in which an incident in Boston led to Richard's suspension for the Playoffs, which led to a riot inside the Forum that spilled out into the streets. French-Canadians, for whom the Canadiens, and Richard in particular, were a point of pride were angry at Clarence Campbell, the NHL's Anglophone President, suspending him, thinking he was trying to fix the Cup for an Anglophone team. Richard went on radio and told the fans to stop, that he would take his punishment, support the team to win the Cup this time, and play to win it in the future.

They lost the Finals to the Detroit Red Wings, but with Richard joined by his brother Henri, Béliveau, defenseman Doug Harvey and goalie Jacques Plante, won those next 5 Cups. Henri actually topped his brother, and Béliveau, by being a member of 11 Cup-winning teams. In all of North American sports, only Bill Russell of the NBA's Boston Celtics matched Henri Richard's 11 World Championships.

In 1968, the Forum was seriously renovated, and expanded, to a seating capacity of 16,259, plus 1,700 in standing room, for a total of 17,959. The support poles were removed. One thing that was retained: Whereas most arenas used a horn to signal the end of a period, the Forum used a high-pitched siren, which was kept after the move to the Bell Centre.

In 1972, the Forum hosted the 1st game of the 8-game "Summit Series" between Canada and the Soviet Union, which the Soviets won in a 7-3 shocker. Canada would win the series with dramatic wins in Moscow in Games 6, 7 and 8.

From 1976 to 1979, the Canadiens had a run of 4 straight Cups, led by a slew of Hall-of-Famers: Forwards Guy Lafleur, Yvan Cournoyer, Steve Shutt and Jacques Lemaire; defensemen Larry Robinson, Serge Savard and Guy Lapointe; and goaltender Ken Dryden.

Between them, Morenz, Maurice Richard, Béliveau and Lafleur were, effectively, the Mount Rushmore of hockey. They were a foursome that could only be matched in North American sports by the Yankees' Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Joe DiMaggio and Mickey Mantle. (The Celtics? Bill Russell and Larry Bird, but who are the other two? Bob Cousy and John Havlicek? Not the same. No football team can match it, either.)

From 1956 to 1979, the Canadiens won 15 of the 24 available Stanley Cups. Their 1979 Cup was their 22nd, matching the Yankees for the most World Championships in North American sports. They won a 23rd in 1986 and a 24th in 1993. The Yankees didn't win their 24th World Series until 1998, surpassing them with a 25th in 1999.

In the 1976 Olympics, the Forum hosted basketball, boxing, volleyball, handball, and gymnastics, including Nadia Comaneci registering the 1st perfect 10 in Olympic history -- 7 of them.

The Beatles played the Forum on September 8, 1964. Other notable concerts there included Bob Dylan's Rolling Thunder Revue in 1975, Bob Marley in 1978, and, all in separate shows in 1981, Rush, Queen, and the Jacksons.

But there was only so much that could be done with a 1924-built arena. So the Molson Centre, now the Bell Centre, was built a mile to the east, in Montreal's downtown (Centre-ville). On March 11, 1996, the Forum's final game was played, a 4-1 win over the Dallas Stars. They were chosen as the opponent because their Captain was as former Canadiens' Captain, Guy Carbonneau. Maurice Richard, Béliveau and Lafleur participated in a ceremonial puck-drop with Carbonneau and Canadiens Captain Pierre Turgeon.

In the Canadiens' locker room, replicated at the new arena, the lockers were topped by the faces of the team's members of the Hockey Hall of Fame. On each side, one in English and one in French, are words from Canadian Army doctor John McCrae's World War I poem In Flanders Fields: "To you from failing hands we throw the torch; be yours to hold it high." After the game, a symbolic torch was passed from the earliest living Canadiens Captain, Butch Bouchard, to each succeeding Captain, including both Richards, Béliveau and Carbonneau, up to Turgeon.

Over the next 4 years, a construction company owned by 1950s Canadien Hall-of-Famer Dickie Moore converted the building into retail space, including a shopping mall and a movie theater. A small bleacher section, and a bench with a statue of Maurice Richard, are roughly where center ice was. 

UPDATE: The Canadiens do not have a team Hall of Fame, but they have more retired uniform numbers, 15, more players so honored, 19, and more players elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame, 71, than any other NHL team. Of those 71, 55 can legitimately be claimed by the Canadiens, for having helped them win at least 1 of their record 24 Stanley Cups:

* From their founding era, 1909 until the 1917 founding of the NHL, including the 1916 Stanley Cup: Founding owner Ambrose O'Brien, defenseman Jean-Baptiste "Jack" Laviolette, center Édouard "Newsy" Lalonde, right wing Didier "Cannonball" Pitre, and goaltender Georges Vézina.

* From their 1924 Stanley Cup: Vézina; owners William Northey, Joseph Cattarinich and Léo Dandurand; center "Phantom" Joe Malone and Howie Morenz (Number 7 retired), left wing Aurèle Joliat, and defensemen Sprague Cleghorn and Sylvio Mantha.

* From their 1930 and 1931 Stanley Cups: Northey, Cattarinich, Dandurand, Morenz, Aurèle Joliat, Mantha and goaltender George Hainsworth.

* From their 1944 and 1946 Stanley Cups: Owner Donat Raymond, general manager Tommy Gorman, head coach Dick Irvin Sr.; right wing Maurice "the Rocket" Richard (Number 9 retired), left wing Hector "Toe" Blake, centers Elmer Lach (Number 16 retired) and Herbert "Buddy" O'Connor, defensemen Émile "Butch" Bouchard (Number 3 retired) and Kenny Reardon, and goaltender Bill Durnan.

* From their 1953 Stanley Cup: Raymond, Irvin, Richard, Lach, Bouchard, left wings Dickie Moore (Number 12 retired) and Bert Olmstead, right wing Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion (Number 5 retired), defensemen Doug Harvey (Number 2 retired) and Tom Johnson, and goaltender Jacques Plante (Number 1 retired).

* From their 5 straight Stanley Cups of 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959 and 1960: Raymond, Maurice Richard, Bouchard (left after 1956), Moore, Olmstead (left after 1958), Geoffrion, Harvey, Tom Johnson, Plante; owner Hartland Molson, general manager Frank Selke, Toe Blake back as head coach, and centers Jean Béliveau (Number 4 retired) and Henri Richard (Maurice's brother, Number 16 retired).

* From their 1965, 1966, 1968 and 1969 Stanley Cups: Molson, Blake, Béliveau (hung on until 1971), Henri Richard; general manager Sam Pollock, goaltender Lorne "Gump" Worsley, defenseman Jacques Laperriere, right wing Yvan Cournoyer (Number 12 retired), and left wing Dick Duff.

* From their 1971 and 1973 Stanley Cups: Pollock, Henri Richard, Laperriere, Cournoyer; head coach Scotty Bowman; goaltender Ken Dryden (Number 29 retired); defensemen Guy Lapointe (Number 5 retired), Serge Savard (Number 18 retired) and Larry Robinson (Number 19 retired); left wings Frank Mahovlich (the former Toronto Maple Leafs superstar) and Steve Shutt, center Jacques Lemaire, and right wing Guy Lafleur (Number 10 retired).

* From their 4 straight Stanley Cups of 1976, 1977, 1978 and 1979: Pollock, Bowman, Cournoyer, Dryden, Lapointe, Savard, Robinson, Shutt, Lemaire, Lafleur; left wing Bob Gainey (Number 23 retired), and defenseman Rod Langway.

* From their 1986 Stanley Cup: Savard as general manager, Robinson, Gainey, goaltender Patrick Roy (Number 33 retired), defenseman Chris Chelios and center Guy Carbonneau.

* From their 1993 Stanley Cup: Savard, Roy, Cabronneau, and center Denis Savard (no relation to Serge, although, since Number 18 was not yet retired, he received it because of his surname).

Since their last Cup win, the Habs have had only 4 Hall-of-Famers: Center Pierre Turgeon for 1 year, 1995-96, but served as team Captain that season, as they moved from the Forum to what's now named the Bell Centre; right wing Mark Recchi, 4 years, 1995-99; center Doug Gilmour, 2 years, 2001-03; and defenseman Shea Weber, 5 years, 2016-21. The 1999-2000 season was the 1st season in Montreal Canadiens history that the team did not have at least one player on its roster who, through the 2025-26 season, has been elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

In addition, 7 Canadiens broadcasters have received the Hockey Hall of Fame's award for lifetime achievement in broadcasting, the Foster Hewitt award:

* In English: Doug Smith, 1937-1955; Danny Gallivan, 1952-1984; and Dick Irvin Jr., 1966-1997.

* In French: René Lecavalier, 1952-1985; Richard Garneau, 1957-1989; Gilles Trembaly, 1971-1997; and Pierre Houde, 1989-present.

*

November 29, 1924 was a Saturday. There was 1 other game in the NHL that night. The Hamilton Tigers beat the Ottawa Senators, 5-3 at the Barton Street Arena in Hamilton.

In the NFL, the Frankford Yellow Jackets beat the Buffalo Bisons, 45-7 at Frankford Stadium in Northeast Philadelphia. Sunday sports were banned in Pennsylvania until 1933.

Most college football teams had already finished their seasons. But the Army-Navy game was played at Municipal Stadium in Baltimore, and Army won, 12-0. Municipal Stadium was converted into Memorial Stadium, home of the Orioles and Colts, in 1954.

Notre Dame went to Forbes Field in Pittsburgh, and beat Carnegie Tech, the school now known as Carnegie-Mellon University, 40-19. Baylor beat Rice, 17-9 at Rice Field in Houston. Locally, Fordham beat Georgetown, 9-6 at the Polo Grounds; and NYU, CCNY, Columbia, Rutgers and Princeton were not scheduled.

Also, Arsenal drew with Cardiff City, 1-1 at Ninian Park in Cardiff, Wales.

November 8, 1952: Maurice Richard Becomes the NHL's All-Time Goals Leader

November 8, 1952: The Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 6-4 at the Montreal Forum. At 10:01 of the 2nd period, Maurice Richard scored for the Canadiens. It was the 325th goal of his career, surpassing Nels Stewart as the NHL's all-time leader.

Les Habitantes got goals from 6 different players, a rarity. In addition to "The Rocket," scoring for them were Dick Gamble, Floyd Curry, Elmer Lach, Dick Gamble and Paul Meger.

This was one of the earliest hockey games broadcast on television, as the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation had just begun television broadcasting, with Hockey Night In Canada. CBC would also cover that season's Stanley Cup Finals, won by the Canadiens.

Richard would become the 1st player with 400 career goals in 1954, and the 1st with 500 in 1957. He retired in 1960, with 544. Gordie Howe would surpass him in 1963, finishing with 801. Wayne Gretzky would break that record in 1994, and extend it to 894.

In 1999, the NHL would establish the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, for the League's annual goal-scoring leader. Richard died the next year.

*

November 8, 1952 was a Saturday. One other NHL game was played that day. The Toronto Maple Leafs and the Detroit Red Wings played to a 3-3 tie at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. The New York Rangers and the Boston Bruins were not scheduled.

Baseball was out of season. The NFL played the next day, but these were among the college football games played that day:

* Number 1 Michigan State beat Indiana, 41-14.

* Number 3 Georgia Tech beat Army, 45-6 at Grant Field in Atlanta.

* Number 4 Oklahoma were upset by Notre Dame, 27-21 at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana.

* Number 5 UCLA beat Oregon, 57-0 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

* Number 6 Southern California beat Stanford, 54-7 at the old Stanford Stadium in the San Francisco suburb of Palo Alto, California.

* Number 7 Kansas were upset by Nebraska, 14-7 at Memorial Stadium in Lawrence, Kansas.

* Number 8 Tennessee beat Louisiana State (LSU), 22-3 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

* Number 9 Purdue were held to a 14-14 tie by Minnesota at Memorial Stadium in Minneapolis.

* Number 12 Duke were upset by Navy, 16-6 at Duke Stadium (now Wallace Wade Stadium) in Durham, North Carolina.

* Number 15 Penn State were upset by Syracuse, 25-7 at Beaver Field in State College, Pennsylvania.

* In New York City, Fordham played Clemson to a 12-12 tie at Triborough Stadium (later Downing Stadium) on Randall's Island. Columbia traveled to Memorial Field in Hanover, New Hampshire, and lost to Dartmouth, 38-14.

* And in New Jersey, Rutgers beat Lafayette, 21-6 at Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway; and Number 19 Princeton beat Harvard, 41-21 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton.

There were 4 games played in the NBA:

* The New York Knicks beat the Baltimore Bullets, 92-62 at the Baltimore Coliseum.

* The Boston Celtics beat the Syracuse Nationals, 106-83 at the Boston Garden.

* The Minneapolis Lakers beat the Philadelphia Warriors, 93-71 at the Philadelphia Arena.

* And the Rochester Royals beat the Indianapolis Olympians, 99-96 in 4 overtimes at the Edgerton Park Arena in Rochester, New York.

And in English soccer, Arsenal beat Yorkshire team Middlesbrough, 4-1 at the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury, in North London. Arsenal would go on to win the 1952-53 Football League title.

And actress Alfre Woodward was born on this day.

November 2, 1937: The Howie Morenz Memorial Game

November 2, 1937: A benefit game -- effectively, an all-star game -- is held for the family of the late Montreal Canadiens legend Howie Morenz at the Montreal Forum. Morenz had broken his leg in a game the preceding January, and then died of a heart attack in March, often blamed on the near-party atmosphere his former teammates kept bringing to his hospital room.

The Howie Morenz Memorial Game featured a combined team of the 2 Montreal clubs, the Canadiens and the Maroons. (The Great Depression finally caught up with the Maroons, and they went out of business at the conclusion of the 1937-38 season.) Canadiens Hall-of-Famers in this game included Aurel Joliat, Toe Blake, and Babe Siebert -- who would drown in a boating accident 2 years later, and whose family would be the subject of the next NHL benefit game, also at the Forum. The Maroons included Frank "King" Clancy, at the end of the line after a Hall of Fame career with the Ottawa Senators and the Toronto Maple Leafs.

The Montreal team played an All-Star team made up of the rest of the NHL, including Hall-of-Famers: From the Leafs, Red Horner, Charlie Conacher and Harvey "Busher" Jackson; from the New York Rangers, Frank Boucher; from the New York Americans, David "Sweeney" Schriner and Leafs legend Clarence "Hap" Day; from the Boston Bruins, Clarence "Tiny" Thompson, Eddie Shore and Aubrey "Dit" Clapper; and from the Detroit Red Wings, Ebenezer "Ebbie" Goodfellow and Marty Barry. The 2 representatives from the Chicago Black Hawks, Johnny Gottselig and Harold "Mush" March, aren't in the Hall, but should be.

The Canadiens retired Morenz's Number 7, and then the Montreal All-Stars lost to the NHL All-Stars 6-5. The attendance was 8,683, a sellout, and $26,595 (Canadian) was raised for the Morenz family. That's about $531,550 in current Canadian dollars, or $408,918 in U.S. dollars at the current exchange rate.

Morenz's son, Howie Morenz Jr., was 10 years old at the time, and was presented with his father's jersey. He went on to play professionally, but bad eyes kept him from reaching the NHL, and he became an executive in the food supply industry, before dying in 2015, at age 88.

Howie's daughter Marlene married a later Canadiens Hall-of-Famer, Bernie "Boom-Boom" Geoffrion. Their son Dan Geoffrion played for the Canadiens, the Quebec Nordiques and the Winnipeg Jets. And Dan's son Blake Geoffrion played for the Nashville Predators before coming to the Canadiens, honoring his grandfather Boom-Boom (whose Number 5 is retired) and his great-grandfather the Stratford Streak (number 7) by wearing Number 57. Unfortunately, a head injury ended his playing career in 2013.

Bernie died in 2006. Dan is now a scout for the Leafs. And Blake is now an executive in the Columbus Blue Jackets' organization.

*

November 2, 1937 was a Tuesday. There were no other scores on this historic day: The NHL took the day off, the baseball season was over, the football season was in midweek, and the NBA hadn't been founded yet.

October 29, 1939: The Babe Siebert Memorial Game

October 29, 1939: The Babe Siebert Memorial Game is played at the Montreal Forum. It raised $15,000 for his family -- about $320,000 in today's money.

Charles Albert Siebert grew up in Zurich, Ontario, on the shore of Lake Huron, about 130 miles west of Toronto and 120 miles northeast of Detroit. He played left wing and won Stanley Cups with the 1926 Montreal Maroons and the 1933 New York Rangers. With Nels Stewart and Hooley Smith on the Maroons, he formed one of the first nicknamed forward lines in hockey, the S-Line.

In 1934, while with for the Boston Bruins, he played in the 1st All-Star benefit game for an NHL player, Ace Bailey of the Toronto Maple Leafs, whose career, and very nearly his life, was ended by a vicious check by Bruin defenseman Eddie Shore. (There had been benefits for players in the pre-NHL era, including in 1908 for the family of Montreal Wanderers star William Hodgson "Hod" Stuart, who had died in a diving accident the year before, only 28.)

Indeed, Bruins general manager Art Ross traded for Siebert specifically to convert him to a defenseman and play in place of the suspended Shore. When Shore returned, they formed a formidable defensive pairing.

But the 2 stars couldn't get along, and, in 1936, the Bruins traded him to the Montreal Canadiens. He was immediately named their Captain, led them to the Canadian Division title (though they got knocked out of the Playoffs by the Detroit Red Wings in the Stanley Cup Semifinals), and won the 1937 Hart Trophy as NHL Most Valuable Player.

The following fall, he played in another All-Star benefit game, this time for Canadiens superstar Howie Morenz, who had died in March from complications from leg surgery. The Habs had slumped since his injury, and this, plus the thought that he would never play again, and all the well-wishers coming in and bringing him booze, brought on a heart attack. With today's medicine, Morenz would have had his leg in an immobilizer, been out of the hospital the next day, and would have been back on the ice at the start of the next season, presuming he didn't want to retire. He was only 34, so he should have had several years left if he so chose.

Siebert's wife Bernice was left a paraplegic following complications during the birth of their 2nd child. Babe spent most of his income on her medical bills and various means of making life more convenient for her. Fans at the Forum routinely saw him carry his wife to her seat before every home game, and then carry her out after. This made him immensely popular with fans, especially women.

In 1939, 35 years old and plagued with injuries, he retired. This made him, probably, the last NHL player other than a goaltender to wear Number 1. He was immediately offered the Canadiens' head coaching position.

He never got the chance to coach a game. On August 25, 1939, while vacationing with his family and swimming with his daughters Judy and Joan, then just 11 and 10 years old, at a family cottage on the shore of Lake Huron, he drowned attempting to retrieve an inflatable tire they were playing with.

The league organized an all-star benefit game to aid Siebert's widow and daughters. It was the 3rd such benefit game in NHL history, and, as I said, Siebert had played in the 1st 2. The Canadiens faced an all-star team composed of the best players from the remaining teams. The All-Stars won, 5-2. Though only about 6,000 fans showed up, the organizers met their target of $15,000.

Albert "Babe" Siebert should not be confused with Earl Seibert (note the different spelling), a defenseman who also played in the 1930s, and most of the 1940s. He was a teammate of Babe Siebert on the Cup-winning 1933 Rangers, and also won the Cup with the 1938 Chicago Black Hawks.

Sadly, he was the player who got tangled up along the boards with Morenz, and, until his own death in 1990, blamed himself -- unfairly, since it wasn't the broken leg that killed Morenz. Seibert is also in the Hockey Hall of Fame, as is his father, Oliver Seibert (the 1st father & son in the Hall), and in 1998, as part of its 50th Anniversary celebrations, The Hockey News ranked him Number 72 on their list of the 100 Greatest Hockey Players. (Babe Siebert didn't make the list.)

Babe Siebert was buried in Woodland Cemetery in Kitchener, Ontario, outside Hamilton. Kitchener is the hometown of New Jersey Devils Hall-of-Famer Scott Stevens.

*

October 29, 1939 was a Sunday. The NHL's regular season began 4 days later. The NBA hadn't been founded yet. Baseball season ended 21 days earlier, with the New York Yankees' sweep of the Cincinnati Reds in the World Series. These games were played in the NFL:

* The New York Giants beat the Brooklyn Dodgers, 7-6 at Ebbets Field. The football version of the Dodgers went out of business after the 1949 season. The most notable thing about them is that they were owned by Yankees co-owner Dan Topping, and, in 1951, Topping brought the football Dodgers' public address announcer to Yankee Stadium. His name was Bob Sheppard, and he would be the Yankees' P.A. announcer until 2007, also doing the football Giants' games from 1956 to 1996.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates and the Cleveland Rams played to a tie, 14-14 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Pittsburgh vs. Cleveland would eventually become a great NFL rivalry, but not under those names, and not with both of those teams. The Pirates renamed themselves the Steelers in 1940. The Rams moved to Los Angeles for the 1946 season, and the Browns became Cleveland's new NFL team in 1950, after dominating the All-America Football Conference for 4 years.

* The Detroit Lions beat the Chicago Bears, 10-0 at Wrigley Field in Chicago.

* The Green Bay Packers beat the Washington Redskins, 24-14 at the Dairy Bowl in the Milwaukee suburb of West Allis, Wisconsin. The Dairy Bowl was a football stadium built in the infield of a speedway, now known as the Milwaukee Mile, at the Wisconsin State Fair Park.

* And the Philadelphia Eagles and the Chicago Cardinals each had a bye week.

October 19, 1957: Maurice Richard Starts the 500 Goals Club

The "e" next to the "500" is a French abbreviation: "le cinq centième."

October 19, 1957: The Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Black Hawks, 3-1 at the Montreal Forum. Maurice Richard scores on a power play, putting the puck past Glenn Hall at 15:52 of the 1st period. Pandemonium erupts, as the most popular player the Canadiens will ever have has scored the 500th goal of his career.

In 1952, he had surpassed Nels Stewart, with 324, as the all-time leader. He had gone past the 400-goal barrier. Now, he had reached 500.

How far ahead was Richard? At the time, Gordie Howe was 2nd on the all-time list, with 358. In 1960, Richard would retire with 544. In 1963, Howe would pass Richard, and finish with 801. In 1994, Wayne Gretzky would pass Howe, and finish with 894.

In 1999, the NHL established the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy, given to the League's annual goalscoring leader. Richard died the next year.

As of October 19, 2022, there are 45 players who have scored at least 500 goals in their careers, a feat made easier by longer schedules, better equipment, and better training. There have been 31 who have topped Richard's 544, 20 who have scored 600, 8 who have scored 700; and Gretzky, Howe and Alexander Ovechkin have topped 800. Ovechkin is easily the leader among players born and trained to play hockey in Europe. The leader among players born and trained in America is Mike Modano, with 561. (UPDATE: In 2023, Steven Stamkos became the 46th member of the 500 Goals Club.)

*

October 19, 1957 was a Saturday. There was 1 other game in the NHL: The Toronto Maple Leafs beat the Boston Bruins, 7-0 at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Brian Cullen and Billy Harris both scored hat tricks. The New York Rangers and the Detroit Red Wings were not scheduled.

Baseball was out of season. The NBA had no games scheduled. The NFL played all its games the next day. These notable college football games were played that day:

* Number 1 Michigan State were upset by Purdue, 20-13 at Ross-Ade Stadium in West Lafayette, Indiana.

* Number 2 Oklahoma beat Kansas, 47-0 at Owen Field in Norman, Oklahoma. Four weeks later, Oklahoma saw its 47-game winning streak, still an all-time record, end with a loss to Notre Dame. They still won the Big 7 Conference title.

* Number 3 Texas A&M beat Texas Christian, 7-0 at Amon G. Carter Stadium in Fort Worth, Texas.

* Number 4 Minnesota were upset by Illinois, 34-13 at Memorial Stadium in Champaign, Illinois.

* Number 5 Duke beat Wake Forest, 34-7 at Duke Stadium (now Wallace Wade Stadium) in Durham, North Carolina. Duke received an invitation to the Orange Bowl, where they were crushed by Oklahoma.

* Number 6 Iowa beat Number 13 Wisconsin, 21-7 at Iowa Stadium (now Kinnick Stadium) in Iowa City.

* Number 7 Oregon State were upset by UCLA, 26-7 at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

* Number 9 Auburn beat Georgia Tech, 3-0 at Grant Field in Atlanta. Auburn won the Southeastern Conference title, but did not play in the Sugar Bowl. They were awarded the National Championship by the AP, the writers' poll.

* Number 10 Arkansas were upset by Texas, 17-10 at Razorback Stadium in Fayetteville, Arkansas.

* The night before, Number 11 Mississippi beat Tulane, 50-0 at Tulane Stadium in New Orleans. Although "Ole Miss" did not win the Southeastern Conference title, they were invited to return to Tulane Stadium, where they beat Texas in the Sugar Bowl.

* Number 15 Navy beat Georgia, 27-14 at Thompson Stadium in Annapolis, Maryland.

* Number 16 Pittsburgh were upset by Number 19 Army, 29-13 at Michie Stadium in West Point, New York.

* Number 18 Rice beat Southern Methodist University (SMU), 27-21 at the Cotton Bowl in Dallas. Rice won the Southwest Conference title, and returned to the Cotton Bowl to play in the game of the same name, but lost to Navy.

* Number 19 Washington State were upset by Oregon, 14-13 at Rogers Field in Pullman, Washington. Oregon went on to win the Pacific Coast Conference title.

* Ohio State were not ranked at the time, but beat Indiana, 56-0 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus. They went on to win the Big 10 title, and beat Oregon in the Rose Bowl. They were awarded the National Championship by UPI, the coaches' poll.

* Among New York City teams, Columbia lost to Harvard, 19-6 at Harvard Stadium in Boston.

* And in New Jersey, Rutgers lost to Lehigh, 13-7 at Rutgers Stadium in Piscataway; and Princeton lost to Colgate, 12-10 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton.

And in English soccer, Arsenal lost to Birmingham City, 3-1 at the Arsenal Stadium, a.k.a. Highbury, in North London.

Also, actor Michael O'Leary was born. He played Jimmy, the evangelical Christian ballplayer who ends up marrying Millie the league slut, in the film Bull Durham; and Marty Taylor, brother of series lead Tim, on the sitcom Home Improvement.

October 11, 1952: The 1st NHL Game On Television

October 11, 1952: For the 1st time, a National Hockey League game is shown on television.

It is broadcast in French on CBFT, Channel 2 in Montreal. The producer and announcer is René Lecavalier, who would continue broadcasting for the Canadiens until 1985.

The Montreal Canadiens defeat the Detroit Red Wings, 2-1 at the Montreal Forum. Elmer Lach scores for Les Habitantes at 4:39 of the 2nd period. Alex Delvecchio ties it 5 minutes later. With 3:53 left in regulation, Billy Reay scores on a power play to win it for the home team. 

The Canadiens went on to win the Stanley Cup that season. Reay later coached the Chicago Black Hawks to the Stanley Cup Finals in 1971 and 1973, losing both times -- to the Canadiens.

On November 1, 1952, Hockey Night In Canada would debut nationally on CBC, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, with Toronto Maple Leafs broadcaster Foster Hewitt, who had made the 1st hockey broadcast on radio in 1923, making the transition to TV. He was already known for introducing the phrase, "He shoots, he scores!" Lecavalier, on the French version of HNIC, La Soirée du hockey, would introduce the French version of Hewitt's phrase: "Il lance, et compte!"

*

As all HNIC nights are, October 11, 1952 was a Saturday. There was 1 other NHL game played that day: The Black Hawks beat the Maple Leafs, 6-2 at Maple Leaf Gardens.

The baseball season had ended 4 days earlier, when the New York Yankees beat the Brooklyn Dodgers, 4-2 at Ebbets Field, in Game 7 of the World Series. The NFL played its games the next day. And the NBA season was about to start. But there were college football games played:

* Number 1-ranked Wisconsin lost to Ohio State, 23-14 at Ohio Stadium in Columbus.

* Number 2 Michigan State capitalized by beating Texas A&M, 48-6 at Spartan Stadium in East Lansing, Michigan.

* The University of Pittsburgh beat Number 8 Notre Dame, 22-19 at Notre Dame Stadium in South Bend, Indiana.

* Alabama beat Virginia Tech, 33-0 at Denny Stadium in Tuscaloosa -- later renamed Bryant-Denny Stadium.

* Penn State beat West Virginia, 35-21 at the old Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, West Virginia.

* Army beat Dartmouth, 37-7 at Michie Stadium in West Point, New York.

Among New York City teams:

* NYU lost to Holy Cross, 35-0 at Triborough Stadium in Manhattan -- later renamed Downing Stadium.

* Columbia lost to Yale, 35-28 at the Yale Bowl in New Haven, Connecticut.

* Fordham did not play that week.

Among New Jersey teams:

* Rutgers lost to Colgate, 13-7 at Colgate Athletic Field in Hamilton, New York -- later renamed Crown Field at Andy Kerr Stadium.

* Princeton lost to Penn, 13-7 at Palmer Stadium in Princeton.

Also, Arsenal drew with Sheffield Wednesday, 2-2 at Highbury in North London. 

September 15, 1976: The 1st Canada Cup

Left to right: Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Denis Potvin, Bobby Clarke

September 15, 1976: Canada defeats Czechoslovakia, 5-4 at the Montreal Forum, and wins the 1st Canada Cup, taking the Final 2 games to none. Darryl Sittler of the Toronto Maple Leafs scores the winning goal in overtime. Bobby Orr of the Boston Bruins, who wanted to sit it out because of his injured knees, but was talked into it with an appeal to patriotism, was named the Most Valuable Player of the tournament.

Unless you count the 1972 "Summit Series" between Canada and the Soviet Union -- in which Orr was too injured to play -- this was the 1st time hockey had had something resembling soccer's World Cup, with the best available players, both professional and amateur, eligible, something that Hockey Canada had been insisting upon.

Hockey Canada also put aside its pro-NHL bias, which led to WHA players like Bobby Hull, Gerry Cheevers and Bernie Parent being kept out of the '72 Summit Series and nearly blowing it for Canada, and included players signed to both leagues. That was the theory, anyway. In reality, while Cheevers and Parent had both been welcomed back into the NHL, only Cheevers was selected, despite Parent having helped the Philadelphia Flyers win back-to-back Stanley Cups. And the only player actually with a WHA team at the time was Hull, of the Winnipeg Jets.

In the round-robin games, Canada went 4-1, Czechoslovakia 3-1-1, the Soviet Union and Sweden both 2-2-1, the U.S. 1-3-1, and Finland 1-4. In addition to Montreal, games were played at Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto, the Ottawa Civic Centre, the Winnipeg Arena; and one American arena, The Spectrum in Philadelphia (naturally, tying in with the U.S. Bicentennial), hosted 2 games, both of them matches of the U.S. team.

The tournament is now called the World Cup of Hockey. Canada won the tournament in 1976, 1984, 1987, 1991, 2004 and 2016. The Soviet Union won it in 1981. The U.S. won it in 1996, after losing the Final to Canada in 1991. With 2016, it was set to be held every 4 years, in September, right before the start of the new season. The 2020 edition was canceled due to the COVID epidemic. A bid to merely postpone the 2020 WCOH to 2021, rather than cancel it outright, failed, leaving the concept in limbo.

UPDATE: The 2024 edition was not held, either. Instead, a "4 Nations Face-Off" was held, with Canada beating the U.S. in the Final in Boston on February 20, 2025, after Sweden and Finland had been eliminated. An agreement has been reached to stage a WCOH in 2028.

*

September 15, 1976 was a Wednesday. Dutch actress Carice van Houten, known for her role on Game of Thrones, was born on this day. And these Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Cleveland Indians, 2-0 at Cleveland Municipal Stadium. Doyle Alexander pitched a 4-hit shutout. Thurman Munson went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Indians manager Frank Robinson, did not put himself into the game. He played his last game 3 days later.

* The New York Mets were swept in a doubleheader by the St. Louis Cardinals, 7-0 and 4-1 at Shea Stadium. John Denny pitched a 4-hit shutout in the opener, outpitching a washed-up Mickey Lolich.

* The Chicago Cubs beat the Montreal Expos, 2-0 at Jarry Park in Montreal. Ray Burris pitched a 4-hit shutout.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the Philadelphia Phillies, 7-2 at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia. Dave Parker went 4-for-5 with a home run and 2 RBIs. Willie Stargell went 1-for-4 with a walk. Mike Schmidt went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The Baltimore Orioles were leading the Detroit Tigers, 1-0 after 6 innings at Memorial Stadium in Baltimore, when the game was called due to rain. Andrés Mora had hit a home run. Reggie Jackson, in his only season in Baltimore, went 0-for-3. Wayne Garland had allowed 2 hits, on his way to a 20-win season, and a big free-agent contract with Cleveland. Sadly, he hurt his shoulder in Spring Training, and was never the same pitcher.

* The Houston Astros beat the Atlanta Braves, 4-3 at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.

* The Cincinnati Reds beat the Los Angeles Dodgers, 4-3 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Pete Rose went 4-for-5. Johnny Bench went 1-for-3 with a walk.

* The Texas Rangers beat the Chicago White Sox, 4-3 at Comiskey Park in Chicago.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Milwaukee Brewers, 2-1 at Milwaukee County Stadium. Butch Hobson hit a home run. Carl Yastrzemski went 0-for-2 with 2 walks. Hank Aaron, in his last month as an active player, went 0-for-3 with a walk. Robin Yount, on the way up, did the same.

* The California Angels beat the Kansas City Royals, 2-1 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium of Anaheim). Nolan Ryan went the distance for the win, allowing 6 hits and striking out 9. George Brett went 0-for-3 with a walk.

* The San Francisco Giants beat the San Diego Padres, 2-1 at San Diego Stadium (later renamed Jack Murphy Stadium and Qualcomm Stadium).

* And the Oakland Athletics beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-2 at the Oakland Coliseum. The A's scored all 5 runs in the bottom of the 8th inning. Rod Carew went 1-for-3.

September 2, 1972: The Soviets Shock Canada

Paul Henderson (left) and Valeri Kharlamov.

Henderson's moment was yet to come. Kharlamov's had arrived.

September 2, 1972: Hockey's "Summit Series" begins at the storied Montreal Forum. It is the 1st of 4 games across Canada, followed by 2 weeks of rest, then 4 games in Moscow.

Team Canada was a team of NHL All-Stars -- and only NHL players. Superstar left wing Bobby Hull and goaltender Gerry Cheevers, the latter recently having backstopped the Boston Bruins to a 2nd Stanley Cup in 3 seasons, were ruled ineligible because they'd defected -- not to the Soviet Union, but to the newly-formed World Hockey Association.

The greatest player in the game at the time, Bobby Orr of the Bruins, was hurt and unable to play. And 2 of the all-time greats, Gordie Howe and Jean Béliveau, had retired a year earlier. And, at the age of 36, Béliveau's Montreal teammate Henri Richard was considered too old. But these players were available and selected:

* From the Montreal Canadiens: Goaltender Ken Dryden, defensemen Guy Lapointe and Serge Savard, left wings Frank Mahovlich (better known from his earlier years with Toronto) and Pete Mahovlich (Frank's brother), right wing Yvan Cournoyer.

* From the Toronto Maple Leafs: Left wing Paul Henderson and right wing Ron Ellis.

* From the Boston Bruins: Defenseman Don Awrey, center Phil Esposito and right wing Wayne Cashman.

* From the New York Rangers: Defensemen Brad Park and Rod Seiling, left wing Vic Hadfield, center Jean Ratelle and right wing Rod Gilbert. Hadfield, Ratelle and Gilbert were known as the GAG Line, for "Goal A Game."

* From the Chicago Black Hawks: Goaltender Tony Esposito (Phil's brother), defensemen Pat Stapleton and Bill White, left wing Dennis Hull (Bobby's brother), and center Stan Mikita.

* From the Detroit Red Wings: Defenseman Gary Bergman, center Red Berenson and right wing Mickey Redmond.

* From the Philadelphia Flyers: Center Bobby Clarke.

* From the Minnesota North Stars: Left wing Jean-Paul Parisé and right wing Bill Goldsworthy.

* And from the Buffalo Sabres: Center Gilbert Perreault.

Home Provinces:

* From Quebec, Lapointe, Savard, Cournoyer, Ratelle, Gilbert and Perreault.

* From Ontario, the Mahovliches, the Espositos, Dennis Hull, Dryden, Henderson, Ellis, Awrey, Cashman, Park, Seiling, Vic Hadfield, Stapleton, White, Bergman, Redmond, Parisé, Goldsworthy, and, though born in Slovakia, Mikita.

* From Manitoba, Clarke.

* And from Saskatchewan, Berenson.

* None come from the Maritime Provinces or Western Canada. This was not unusual: In the 1972 All-Star Game, John McKenzie of the Bruins, Garry Unger of the Blues and Greg Polis of the Pittsburgh Penguins were from Alberta, but McKenzie had defected to the WHA; Ross Lonsberry of the Flyers and Keith Magnuson of the Black Hawks were from Saskatchewan; but everybody else selected for that game was from Manitoba on east. No players were from British Columbia or any of the Maritimes.

Most of the Soviet players were from Moscow and environs:

* From CSKA Moscow (Central Club of the Army): Goaltender Vladislav Tretiak; defensemen Alexander Gusev, Vladimir Lutchenko, Viktor Kuzkin and Alexander Ragulin; center Vyacheslav Starshinov; left wings Valery Kharlamov, Yuri Blinov and Yevgeny Mishakov; center Vladimir Petrov; right wings Boris Mikhailov and Vladimir Vikulov.

* From Spartak Moscow, better known for its soccer team: Goaltender Victor Zinger, defensemen Gennady Tsygankov and Yevgeny Poladiev, left wing Alexander Yakushev. center Vladimir Shardin, right wings Yevgeny Zimin and Alexander Martynyuk.

* From Dynamo Moscow, also better known for its soccer team: Defenseman Valery Vasiliev and right wing Alexander Maltsev.

* From Krylya Sovetov (translated as "Soviet Wings," another Moscow-based club team): Goaltender Alexander Sidelnikov, defenseman Yuri Shatalov, left wing Yuri Lebedev, center Vyacheslav Anisin, right wing Alexander Bodunov.

* From Khimik Voskresenk (based outside Moscow): Defenseman Yuri Liapkin.

* And from SKA Leningrad (now SKA St. Petersburg): Center Vyacheslav Solodukhin.

The pseudo-amateur Soviets had picked on real amateurs in the World Championships and the Winter Olympics for years. Still, they would be no match for real professionals from the country that invented the game. Especially in the Forum, the Yankee Stadium of hockey -- or was Yankee Stadium the Montreal Forum of baseball? No, the Commies didn't stand a chance...

And when Phil Esposito scored for Canada, only 30 seconds into Game 1, most Westerners' suspicions appeared to be confirmed. When Paul Henderson made it 2-0 at 6:32, it looked like the rout was on.

It was -- the other way. Zimin scored at 12:30. Petrov tied it at 17:28. Kharlamov gave the Soviets the lead with a terrific goal at 2:40 of the 2nd period, and scored an even more spectacular goal at 10:18.

Clarke, the young Captain of the Flyers, closed the gap to 4-3 with 11:38 remaining in regulation. But Mikhailov scored with 6:28 left, Zimin scored again with 5:31 left, and Yakushev put the exclamation point on with 1:23 left. Soviet Union 7, Canada 3.

This game was more shocking for Canada than the U.S.-U.S.S.R. basketball game that was played in the Olympics 7 days later; and for this, the Soviets didn't have to cheat. Had the Soviets put together a baseball team that upset a U.S. team at Yankee Stadium, it wouldn't have been as shocking to Americans as this game was to Canadians. Kharlamov and goaltender Tretiak became legends on this night.

Canada had been embarrassed, in its national sport, in that sport's greatest building. And it would get worse before it would get better.

*

September 2, 1972 was a Saturday. This was also the day that Milt Pappas pitched a no-hitter for the Chicago Cubs against the San Diego Padres at Wrigley Field in Chicago, with the Cubs winning, 8-0. It should have been a perfect game, but it was taken away from him due to a bad call by umpire Bruce Froemming. I have a separate entry for that event.

These other Major League Baseball games were played:

* The New York Yankees beat the Chicago White Sox, 2-1 at Yankee Stadium. Steve Kline outpitched Tom Bradley. Bernie Allen hit a home run. Thurman Munson went 1-for-3 with the team's other RBI.

* The New York Mets beat the Houston Astros, 11-8 at the Astrodome in Houston. Ken Boswell hit a home run for the Mets. Willie Mays appeared only as a defensive replacement, and did not come to bat.

* The Boston Red Sox beat the Kansas City Royals, 5-3 at Fenway Park in Boston. Carl Yastrzemski went 0-for-3, with an RBI on a sacrifice fly.

* A doubleheader was split at Atlanta Stadium (later renamed Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium). The Atlanta Braves won the opener, 10-7. The Philadelphia Phillies won the nightcap, 3-0. Dave Downs pitched an 8-0 shutout. It was 1 of 13 shutouts pitched by the Phillies that year, 8 of which were pitched by Steve Carlton.

Over the 2 games, Hank Aaron went 4-for-8 with a walk and 4 RBIs, including hitting the 666th and 667th home runs of his career. Ten days later, Mike Schmidt would make his major league debut for the Phils.

* The Pittsburgh Pirates beat the San Francisco Giants, 6-3 at Three Rivers Stadium in Pittsburgh. Roberto Clemente went 2-for-3 with 2 walks, a home run, and 3 RBIs. It was the 239th home run of his career. He would hit 1 more.

* The Montreal Expos beat the Cincinnati Reds, 7-2 at Riverfront Stadium in Cincinnati. Pete Rose and Johnny Bench both went 0-for-4, with Rose adding a walk.

* The Cleveland Indians beat the Minnesota Twins, 5-3 at Metropolitan stadium in the Minneapolis suburb of Bloomington, Minnesota. Steve Dunning was the winning pitcher, and helped his own cause with a 2-run home run. Harmon Killebrew went 1-for-3 with an RBI. Rod Carew went 2-for-5.

* The Los Angeles Dodgers beat the St. Louis Cardinals, 5-1 at Busch Memorial Stadium in St. Louis. Lou Brock went 0-for-3. Frank Robinson, in his only season with the Dodgers, did not enter the game.

* The Milwaukee Brewers beat the Texas Rangers, 6-2 at Arlington Stadium in the Dallas suburb of Arlington, Texas.

* The California Angels beat the Baltimore Orioles, 2-0 at Anaheim Stadium (now Angel Stadium). Rudy May pitched a 3-hit shutout to beat Jim Palmer. Brooks Robinson went 1-for-4.

* And the Detroit Tigers beat the Oakland Athletics, 3-1 at the Oakland Coliseum. Bill Freehan and Mickey Stanley hit home runs in the top of the 11th inning, off Dave Hamilton, who blew the game for Vida Blue. Fred Scherman was the winning pitcher, in relief of Mickey Lolich. Al Kaline went 2-for-5. Reggie Jackson went 1-for-4.

It was the week before the college football season opened in America. In English soccer, it was a battle of London teams, and Arsenal and Chelsea played to a 1-1 draw at Highbury.