| ARTICLES |
| Remembering 'The Rocket's' red glare by Evan Weiner / NHL.com correspondent |
Who was the best player to ever wear Le Bleu, Blanc et Rouge of the
Montreal Canadiens?
That is a tough question. There was Jean Beliveau, Doug Harvey,
Bernard "Boom Boom" Geoffrion, Toe Blake, Howie Morenz (who was
sometimes called the Babe Ruth of hockey), Jacques Plante and Henri
Richard among others. But Maurice "The Rocket" Richard tops a long list
of Canadiens greats both on and off the ice.
Richard joined the Canadiens in 1942-43 and scored five goals in 16
games. In this first full season, 1943-44, Richard scored 32 times in 46
games, but really shined in the playoffs netting 12 goals in nine games,
leading the Canadiens to the Stanley Cup. Richard never scored as many
goals in a Stanley Cup playoff year again, but the 1944 playoffs was just a
stepping-stone to Richard's next feat.
The Rocket became the first player in NHL history to score 50 goals in a
season in 1944-45 and he did it in just 50 games. It was a mark that
eventually would be tied by the New York Islanders' Mike Bossy in
January 1981 and broken by Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky 11 months later
when he scored 50 goals in 39 games.
Montreal Canadiens?
That is a tough question. There was Jean Beliveau, Doug Harvey,
Bernard "Boom Boom" Geoffrion, Toe Blake, Howie Morenz (who was
sometimes called the Babe Ruth of hockey), Jacques Plante and Henri
Richard among others. But Maurice "The Rocket" Richard tops a long list
of Canadiens greats both on and off the ice.
Richard joined the Canadiens in 1942-43 and scored five goals in 16
games. In this first full season, 1943-44, Richard scored 32 times in 46
games, but really shined in the playoffs netting 12 goals in nine games,
leading the Canadiens to the Stanley Cup. Richard never scored as many
goals in a Stanley Cup playoff year again, but the 1944 playoffs was just a
stepping-stone to Richard's next feat.
The Rocket became the first player in NHL history to score 50 goals in a
season in 1944-45 and he did it in just 50 games. It was a mark that
eventually would be tied by the New York Islanders' Mike Bossy in
January 1981 and broken by Edmonton's Wayne Gretzky 11 months later
when he scored 50 goals in 39 games.
| Maurice "The Rocket" Richard tops the long list of hockey greats who played for the Montreal Canadiens. |
Richard had toppled Joel Malone's record of 44 goals. Malone set his mark with the 1917-18 Canadiens in just
20 games in the NHL's first season. Malone's NHL did not resemble Richard's NHL. Goaltenders had to stand
up and block shots and were not allowed to drop to the ice and make saves.
The National Hockey League of Richard's early days differed drastically from Bossy and Gretzky's NHL. Richard
scored his 50 goals in 50 games during the World War II era when a number of NHL players were in the
Canadian armed forces. There were just six teams and hockey strategy was evolving slowly along with rule
changes. In The Rocket's early days, a two-minute penalty was a two minute penalty. A player did not return to the
ice after his team was scored upon during a penalty kill until the two minutes elapsed.
That rule was changed following the 1955-56 season because Richard's Canadiens were so good on the power
play and sometimes would score two or three goals during the man advantage.
There was not as much attention paid to players at the time. In Richard's early days, there were newspapers and
radio reporters. There was no TV coverage. Bossy and Gretzky had TV coverage, but in their early days, cable TV
was really in its infancy, there were no all talk radio stations and the Internet development was just a dream. So
Richard could go out and just play and not face much scrutiny.
Richard was not constantly reminded of the possibility of scoring 50 in 50 like Bossy was in 1980-81 or Gretzky
the following season. Yes, Rocket's NHL was different.
"Well, 50 in 50 in those days was a good achievement," said Richard in the early 1990s. "They were only six
teams and only played 50 games. Today, they use more players and they are on the ice every 20-30 seconds and
the play is faster. There is no doubt about that.
"Today, the players are much bigger, they are all over six foot. They got 25 players they can dress and the game is
a little faster because the lines are changing every 25 or 30 seconds. In our time, we used to be on ice for two
minutes, two and a half minutes sometimes, three minutes. That makes a big difference. The game is faster
today."
Richard left out one other important factor. The players of his era were weaker skaters than in the Bossy/Gretzky
era or today.
But 50 goals in 50 games was quite an achievement. Oddly enough, it was the only time in The Rocket's career
he got to that plateau. After the war, the NHL added 10 games and had a 60 game schedule, Richard notched 45
goals in 1946-47 and his final two 40-goal seasons came in a 70-game schedule in 1949-50 and 1950-51.
Richard's linemates in his 50-goal season were center Elmer Lach and left wing Toe Blake, two Hall of Famers.
Known as "The Punch Line", the entire line finished 1-2-3 in scoring, Lach had 26 goals and 44 assists for 80
points to lead the NHL, Richard had 50 goals and 23 assists for 73 points to finish second and Blake had 29
goals and 38 assists for 67 points. Richard continued his goal-a-game streak in the 1945 playoffs, scoring six
goals in six games in a loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Rocket would go on to lead the NHL in goals four more times. He was either a first or second team All-Star
from 1944 through 1957. He was on eight Stanley Cup winning teams, was the first player to score 500 goals,
and was probably the most popular and best-known person in Quebec during the 1940s and 1950s. That
popularity became a major problem in 1955.
On March 13, the Canadiens were playing in Boston and Bruins defenseman Hal Laycoe high-sticked Richard.
Richard skated over to Laycoe and hit him in the face and shoulders with his stick. Richard continued to go after
Laycoe and was restrained by linesman Cliff Thompson. Richard broke loose and punched Thompson twice in
the face, knocking him out.
NHL President Clarence Campbell came down hard on Richard, suspending him for the remainder of the
season and the playoffs and that did not sit well with people in Montreal.
"I never talked to President Campbell for many years after that. But at the end, he became a good friend of mine,"
Richard recalled. "He announced the suspension three days after I had the fight in Boston with Hal Laycoe and I
hit a linesman. The linesman was holding me two, three times behind and the third time I turned around and hit
the linesman on the nose or on the eyes, I don't know. Three days later, they suspended me for the rest of the
season and the playoffs.
"The suspension for the playoff was a little too much. I think I should have been suspended the following season
because it happened during the regular season."
20 games in the NHL's first season. Malone's NHL did not resemble Richard's NHL. Goaltenders had to stand
up and block shots and were not allowed to drop to the ice and make saves.
The National Hockey League of Richard's early days differed drastically from Bossy and Gretzky's NHL. Richard
scored his 50 goals in 50 games during the World War II era when a number of NHL players were in the
Canadian armed forces. There were just six teams and hockey strategy was evolving slowly along with rule
changes. In The Rocket's early days, a two-minute penalty was a two minute penalty. A player did not return to the
ice after his team was scored upon during a penalty kill until the two minutes elapsed.
That rule was changed following the 1955-56 season because Richard's Canadiens were so good on the power
play and sometimes would score two or three goals during the man advantage.
There was not as much attention paid to players at the time. In Richard's early days, there were newspapers and
radio reporters. There was no TV coverage. Bossy and Gretzky had TV coverage, but in their early days, cable TV
was really in its infancy, there were no all talk radio stations and the Internet development was just a dream. So
Richard could go out and just play and not face much scrutiny.
Richard was not constantly reminded of the possibility of scoring 50 in 50 like Bossy was in 1980-81 or Gretzky
the following season. Yes, Rocket's NHL was different.
"Well, 50 in 50 in those days was a good achievement," said Richard in the early 1990s. "They were only six
teams and only played 50 games. Today, they use more players and they are on the ice every 20-30 seconds and
the play is faster. There is no doubt about that.
"Today, the players are much bigger, they are all over six foot. They got 25 players they can dress and the game is
a little faster because the lines are changing every 25 or 30 seconds. In our time, we used to be on ice for two
minutes, two and a half minutes sometimes, three minutes. That makes a big difference. The game is faster
today."
Richard left out one other important factor. The players of his era were weaker skaters than in the Bossy/Gretzky
era or today.
But 50 goals in 50 games was quite an achievement. Oddly enough, it was the only time in The Rocket's career
he got to that plateau. After the war, the NHL added 10 games and had a 60 game schedule, Richard notched 45
goals in 1946-47 and his final two 40-goal seasons came in a 70-game schedule in 1949-50 and 1950-51.
Richard's linemates in his 50-goal season were center Elmer Lach and left wing Toe Blake, two Hall of Famers.
Known as "The Punch Line", the entire line finished 1-2-3 in scoring, Lach had 26 goals and 44 assists for 80
points to lead the NHL, Richard had 50 goals and 23 assists for 73 points to finish second and Blake had 29
goals and 38 assists for 67 points. Richard continued his goal-a-game streak in the 1945 playoffs, scoring six
goals in six games in a loss to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
The Rocket would go on to lead the NHL in goals four more times. He was either a first or second team All-Star
from 1944 through 1957. He was on eight Stanley Cup winning teams, was the first player to score 500 goals,
and was probably the most popular and best-known person in Quebec during the 1940s and 1950s. That
popularity became a major problem in 1955.
On March 13, the Canadiens were playing in Boston and Bruins defenseman Hal Laycoe high-sticked Richard.
Richard skated over to Laycoe and hit him in the face and shoulders with his stick. Richard continued to go after
Laycoe and was restrained by linesman Cliff Thompson. Richard broke loose and punched Thompson twice in
the face, knocking him out.
NHL President Clarence Campbell came down hard on Richard, suspending him for the remainder of the
season and the playoffs and that did not sit well with people in Montreal.
"I never talked to President Campbell for many years after that. But at the end, he became a good friend of mine,"
Richard recalled. "He announced the suspension three days after I had the fight in Boston with Hal Laycoe and I
hit a linesman. The linesman was holding me two, three times behind and the third time I turned around and hit
the linesman on the nose or on the eyes, I don't know. Three days later, they suspended me for the rest of the
season and the playoffs.
"The suspension for the playoff was a little too much. I think I should have been suspended the following season
because it happened during the regular season."
| The Maurice Richard Trophy, given to the NHL's top goal scorer, is one of the many ways the Rocket's memory is still preserved. |
On March 17, the Canadiens returned home to play Detroit in what was to have been a first-place
showdown. The NHL offices were located in Montreal and Campbell attended the game even
though politicians told him to stay away. Detroit got off to a lead and midway through the first
period, Campbell was pelted by eggs, vegetables and garbage. A tear gas bomb was then
detonated and the Montreal Forum was evacuated. Detroit was awarded a forfeit victory, which
really was secondary to the problem at hand.
Outside the Forum, a riot started. All of this startled The Rocket who really did not know how well
liked he really was in the province.
"I was really surprised to see that. I had to go on radio and ask the people who were doing all the
damage on the street to the store to stop. It only lasted one night," Richard said.
Montreal would make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, but would lose to Detroit in seven games. The
next day, Richard said he would come back in 1956 and help the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup.
The Canadiens would go onto win five Cups in Richard's final five seasons, an NHL record.
Richard retired in 1960.
He briefly coached the World Hockey Association's Quebec Nordiques in 1972 but left after two
games. "I didn't like that too much, I think the young guys are hard to run. They are not living the
same way we did," he said of this brief coaching experience.
In 1992, the NHL's first 50-goal scorer was made a member of the Privy Council of Canada which
allowed him to be called L`Honourable or The Honourable Maurice Richard.
The Rocket died in 2000, but hasn't been forgotten. The NHL gives out the Maurice "Rocket"
Richard Trophy to the league's top scorer. The Quebec Junior Hockey League’s PEI Rocket is
named after him and the club’s logo includes a Rocket and Richard’s number 9. A movie on
Richard's life was released in French in late 2005 and an English version with subtitles hit
theatres in April 2006.
showdown. The NHL offices were located in Montreal and Campbell attended the game even
though politicians told him to stay away. Detroit got off to a lead and midway through the first
period, Campbell was pelted by eggs, vegetables and garbage. A tear gas bomb was then
detonated and the Montreal Forum was evacuated. Detroit was awarded a forfeit victory, which
really was secondary to the problem at hand.
Outside the Forum, a riot started. All of this startled The Rocket who really did not know how well
liked he really was in the province.
"I was really surprised to see that. I had to go on radio and ask the people who were doing all the
damage on the street to the store to stop. It only lasted one night," Richard said.
Montreal would make it to the Stanley Cup Finals, but would lose to Detroit in seven games. The
next day, Richard said he would come back in 1956 and help the Canadiens win the Stanley Cup.
The Canadiens would go onto win five Cups in Richard's final five seasons, an NHL record.
Richard retired in 1960.
He briefly coached the World Hockey Association's Quebec Nordiques in 1972 but left after two
games. "I didn't like that too much, I think the young guys are hard to run. They are not living the
same way we did," he said of this brief coaching experience.
In 1992, the NHL's first 50-goal scorer was made a member of the Privy Council of Canada which
allowed him to be called L`Honourable or The Honourable Maurice Richard.
The Rocket died in 2000, but hasn't been forgotten. The NHL gives out the Maurice "Rocket"
Richard Trophy to the league's top scorer. The Quebec Junior Hockey League’s PEI Rocket is
named after him and the club’s logo includes a Rocket and Richard’s number 9. A movie on
Richard's life was released in French in late 2005 and an English version with subtitles hit
theatres in April 2006.