NHL Rewind: Blame It On The Elephants

[ad_1]

Turofsky / HHOF images

It was the Toronto Maple Leafs against the Ringling Brothers Circus Elephants in the 1933 NHL Playoffs and the Pachyderms won. But we’ll get to that in a minute.

For starters, the Conn Smythe Maple Leafs were the favorites to win their second straight title in 1932-1933. They finished first in the Canadian division and faced the Boston Bruins, leaders of the American division, in the playoff round of the five semi-finals. The opener at Beantown – a 2-1 victory over Boston in overtime – proved to be an omen for things to come.

In his book The Trail of the Stanley Cup, Charles Coleman called it “one of the most exciting games ever played in Boston”. The historian also noted that Toronto right winger Ace Bailey was attacked by a supporter late in the second period. After the Leafs won Game 2, also in overtime, Smythe shouted to the angry Bruins crowd, “Take a good look at your team. This is the last time you will see them this season.

Unimpressed, the Bruins invaded Maple Leaf Gardens for the third game and won 2-1, again in overtime. But Toronto bounced back and forced a decisive fifth game at home on April 3, 1933. A record crowd of 14,530 spectators gathered in the arena for what would be the longest game in NHL history at that time.

“After fifth overtime,” Leafs defenseman King Clancy wrote in his autobiography Clancy, “we were so drained of energy we all lay on the locker room floor. We weren’t worth a quarterback.

Speaking of quarterbacks, NHL President Frank Calder suggested that teams do a draw to determine the winner. Smythe passed this message on to his team, after which enraged left winger Harold ‘Baldy’ Cotton stood up shouting, “No son of (gun) will call this game.”

Smythe brainstormed. He was convinced that if he could get a five to 10 minute rest for his club they would be revived. He called President Calder and Bruins coach-manager Art Ross and obstructed them.

“I took my time,” Smythe said in his book If You Can’t Beat ‘Em In The Alley. “I said a lot, ‘On one side …’ and ‘On the other side …’ When I thought the rest had been long enough, I told Calder we were ready to continue. He went to Calder and said, “My team wants to play.”

Smythe youngster Ken Doraty, who had seen less playing time than the other Leafs, was sent to the ice with forward Andy Blair. On the other side, Ross sent in his best player, Eddie Shore, who had worked the most ice time, and Ross was hoping for the best. Instead, he got the worst of the decision making.

Just before five minutes into sixth overtime, the marathon was settled. Toronto’s Blair intercepted a pass from Shore and sidelined the puck to Doraty who beat goaltender Tiny Thompson for the decisive blow. Broadcaster Foster Hewitt described the winning game: “There’s Eddie Shore looking for the puck in the corner next to the Boston net. Andy Blair’s for the Leafs now … he’s moving to Shore nearby. Shore clears the puck … Blair intercepts! Blair has the puck. Ken Doraty rushes to the front of the net. Blair walks by. Doraty takes it! HE SHOOTS! HE SCORES!”

It was 1:50 a.m. and the exhausted Leafs were due to meet the Rangers later that day, April 4, 1933. When the Toronto train reached Grand Central Station in New York at 4:10 p.m., Smythe phoned Madison Square Garden to ask. match to postpone for one day. “They said the game had to go on,” said Smythe, “because the elephants were coming and the circus needed time to set in. Well, that turned out to be a lie.

Less than four hours from the train, the tired Leafs took to the ice and lost 5-1. “We were so tired,” said Smythe, whose club never recovered and lost the best of five series 3-1.

“It was the rottenest thing,” Smythe said in his autobiography. “We found that Madison Square Garden had really had time to postpone the first game. ”

Smythe then confronted the Garden officials: “You lied. You told me that because of the circus, there would be no ice (the next day), we could not postpone this first game. ”

The MSG boss replied, “Well, we’ve changed our mind.”

The Rangers won the Stanley Cup in 1933, but Smythe never forgave New Yorkers for their circus alibi.

And when it came time to engrave the names of the players on the Stanley Cup, a sneer in the Leafs hall exclaimed: “Add an elephant!” ”

[ad_2]