Remembrance Day evening saw a full slate of three NHL games. Montreal dumped Chicago 4-1, Toronto got past Detroit 3-1 and the Rangers doubled the count on Boston, 4-2.
Worsley sharp in return
Yesterday, when it was apparent that Montreal goaltender Charlie Hodge was going to be unable to play because of a back injury, the Habs summoned veteran Lorne (Gump) Worsley from the Quebec Aces of the American Hockey League. Playing his first NHL game in a year, the Gumper did not disappoint as he put in a sensational performance in leading the Habs to that 4-1 win. He was particularly sharp in the first period when he took away four sure Chicago goals on point-blank shots. Overall, he made 26 saves and just narrowly missed recording a shut out.
Claude Provost, normally considered a defensive stalwart, was the offensive spark plug for Montreal. The veteran right winger had a hand in all four Montreal goals. He assisted on each of the three Habs’ second-period markers and scored one himself in the third. That goal was his 7th of the season. The only Chicago marker was scored by Phil Esposito in the first, his 4th this year.
Montreal defenceman Terry Harper returned to the lineup after missing seven games. He was a standout on the blue line all night, hitting everything in sight. Harper didn’t figure to play much, given his recent inaction, but Blake used him in all situations. Terry was none the worse for wear after the contest, and had this to say, “I was getting a little groggy at the end. But my back is okay.”
Ralph Backstrom of the Canadiens put in a strong game as well. He was clipped above the right eye for a 10-stitch gash early in the third period, but returned to the ice after being sewn up and hardly missed a beat.
Sawchuk’s revenge
Last summer, Detroit Red Wings general manager Sid Abel took a calculated risk and left veteran goaltender Terry Sawchuk unprotected during the annual league draft. The gamble failed as the Toronto Maple Leafs claimed Sawchuk for the $20,000 draft fee. Abel was non-plussed, believing that young Roger Crozier would be much more than an adequate replacement and professed to be unconcerned about Terry’s departure.
For the first time last night, Sawchuk and Crozier met head-to-head – with round one going to the veteran now manning the goal for the Leafs. The Red Wings, with a nine-game unbeaten streak on the line, looked tired and out of sorts, and whenever they were able to get something going, Sawchuk was there to shut the door. It appeared that the Wings were feeling the effects of that tough 3-3 tie with Boston only 24 hours earlier. Wings’ coach Sid Abel said as much:
“We ran out of gas after the first period. Only great work by the kid (goalie Crozier) and the fact they hit a few goal posts kept the score down.”
Toronto scorers were Jim Pappin, Don McKenney and Bob Pulford. Pulford’s goal came with nine seconds left in the game into an empty net while Crozier was on the bench for a sixth attacker. Bruce MacGregor was the Detroit marksman.
Sawchuk lauded his youthful counterpart and replacement in the Detroit goal:
“Roger had the goal posts going for him but he made a few big saves or it would have been one-sided. I had a soft night with Carl Brewer, Bobby Baun, Allan Stanley Tim Horton playing so well on defence. Man, did they belt those Wings.”
Henry, Ingarfield net two each for Rangers
In New York, the Rangers rode two goal performances by Camille Henry and Earl Ingarfield, as well as Jacques Plante’s goaltending, to their win over Boston. The Bruins outshot the Rangers 34-29, but Plante’s steady netminding kept the Rangers in front all night. Bruins’ rookie Wayne Rivers, called up for the game, scored his first NHL goal. John Bucyk had the other Boston marker.
Henry now has scored five of the last eight Ranger goals. His two tonight came on deflections of shots by Harry Howell and Rod Gilbert.
Plante, in his second straight game replacing the injured Marcel Paille, was at his best in the first period, turning aside 16 Boston drives.
AHL Action
Three games were played in the American Hockey League. The Hershey Bears won their fifth straight, a 3-0 whitewashing of the Cleveland Barons. In the other matches, the Pittsburgh Hornets stung Baltimore 6-4 and Rochester doubled Providence 4-2.
Hershey goalie Claude Dufour stopped 25 Cleveland shots to record his first shut out of the season against the Barons. Chuck Hamilton, Gene Ubriaco and Don Awrey had the Hershey tallies. The game was marred by an ugly incident in which Cleveland’s Bill Needham engaged a fan in a fight while he was in the penalty box. The fan suffered face cuts requiring 12 stitches.
Cleveland coach Freddie Glover sent Needham to the dressing room but referee Tom Smith did not assess any further penalties against Needham. The league office plans to review the case. No police charges have been filed.
At Pittsburgh, Bob Dillabough scored two goals only seven seconds apart and that was the difference as the Hornets downed Baltimore. Ted Hampson also had a pair for Pittsburgh, with singles coming off the sticks of Lowell MacDonald and Murray Hall. Dave Creighton, Dave Richardson, Ken Schinkel and Dick Meissner were the Baltimore goal-getters.
In Providence, Rhode Island, the Americans scored three times in the third to get past the Reds. Eddie Litzenberger, Dick Gamble, Bronco Horvath and Peter Stemkowski each netted one for the Amerks. George Raniere and Jeannot Gilbert replied for the Reds.