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68-535: The award was first handed out at the conclusion of the 1970–71 NHL season . It was named in honour of Lester B. Pearson , who was Prime Minister of Canada from 1963 to 1968, the recipient of the 1957 Nobel Peace Prize , and a former player and coach for the University of Toronto Varsity Blues men's ice hockey team . On April 29, 2010, the National Hockey League Players' Association announced that

136-610: A forward line (Esposito centering Wayne Cashman and Hodge). Boston won the East Division championship in a runaway. In the West Division, the powerful Chicago Black Hawks had been moved there partially to accommodate the expansion Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks (both of which were placed in the East Division) but more in an effort to provide greater balance between the divisions. Chicago broke St. Louis' stranglehold over

204-637: A major league. The San Francisco Seals were one such team from the WHL. The NHL awarded an expansion team to Barry Van Gerbig for the San Francisco Bay area. Van Gerbig decided to purchase the WHL club with the intent of bringing them into the NHL as an expansion team the following season. Van Gerbig had planned to have the team play in a new arena in San Francisco, but the new arena was never built. He decided to move

272-400: A more detailed plan for revival, a majority of NHL owners from the "old establishment" voted in favor of Finley. General manager Bill Torrey left by mid-season due to clashes with Finley. Finley renamed the team the "Bay Area Seals" to begin the 1970–71 season. However, on October 16, 1970, just two games into the season, he changed the team name to the "California Golden Seals", following

340-602: A new record for assists with 102. The Bruins also had the four league leading scorers, the first time in history this was achieved (the only other time being by the Bruins in 1974), and seven of the top eleven leading scorers, the only time in NHL history this has ever been achieved. They had 6 of the top 8 scorers in the league. Furthermore, the Bruins set marks for the highest scoring single season marks at every position: center (Esposito), left wing ( Johnny Bucyk with 116), right wing ( Ken Hodge with 105) and defence (Orr), as well as for

408-705: A new team in the Bay Area that became the Sharks. Coincidentally, in their first two seasons in the league, the Sharks played their home games at the Cow Palace in Daly City (the same facility the NHL rejected as a home for the Seals in 1967) while their new permanent home arena in San Jose was being completed. Dennis Maruk was the last Seals player active in the NHL, retiring as a member of

476-472: A number of other marketing gimmicks intended to promote the team to the fans, among them changing the Seals' colors to green and gold to match those of the popular A's. The team's uniform crest was now the word "Seals" in a unique typeface, but an alternate logo using a sketch based on a photo of star player Carol Vadnais was used on marketing materials such as pennants, stickers and team programs. The original 1967 California Seals logo recolored in green and gold

544-726: A professional ice hockey club that competed in the National Hockey League (NHL) from 1967 to 1976 . Based in Oakland, California , they played their home games at the Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena . The Seals were one of six teams added to the league as part of the 1967 NHL expansion . Initially named the California Seals , the team was renamed the Oakland Seals during the 1967–68 season and then

612-534: A record of 28–30–16 for 72 points while the Philadelphia Flyers were in 4th at 26–33–15 for 67 points. Minnesota then lost their final four games while the Flyers went 2–0–2 to jump ahead of Minnesota in the final standings by 1 point. It was widely rumored that Minnesota did so to avoid playing the far superior Chicago Black Hawks, since at this time in the playoffs the first place team played the third place team and

680-485: A semblance of familiarity and continuity for existing Seals fans, the team retained a portion of the club's WHL roster such as Charlie Burns , George Swarbrick , Gerry Odrowski , Tom Thurlby , and Ron Harris . The Bay Area was not considered a particularly lucrative hockey market; however, the terms of a new television agreement with CBS called for two of the expansion teams to be located in California and other than

748-453: A year later to fund the Sabres. This, as well as the team's mediocre on-ice performance, led to major changes to both the Seals' front office and the roster – only 7 of the 20 Seals players remained after the first season. The new-look Seals were somewhat more successful. In their second season they improved to 69 points, which while still seven games below .500 was good enough for second place in

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816-476: A year until a group headed by San Francisco hotel magnate Melvin Swig bought the team on July 28, 1975, with the intention of moving the team to a proposed new arena in San Francisco. The team fell just short of the playoffs, and after a mayoral election, plans for the new arena were cancelled. With a new arena out of the picture, the league dropped their objection to the relocation of the franchise. Although attendance

884-490: Is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1970–71 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs): The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1970–71 (listed with their last team): NOTE: Bathgate would finish his major professional career in the World Hockey Association . Oakland Seals The California Golden Seals were

952-573: Is the only defenceman to win the Pearson/Lindsay. Lafleur, Lemieux (x2) and Gretzky (x5), Ovechkin and McDavid have also all led the league in goal scoring in the years they won the Hart, Pearson/Lindsay and Art Ross; though only Ovechkin and McDavid won the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy which was introduced in 1998–99. Brett Hull, Ovechkin and Auston Matthews have also led the league in goals in years they won

1020-635: Is the worst coach I ever played for!" Although Richard retracted his "angry comment", as he called it, MacNeil still resigned. A new award for the most outstanding player as voted by the members of the NHL Players Association , the Lester B. Pearson Award , was introduced this season and the first winner was Phil Esposito . Source: NHL. Note: GP = Games played; Min – Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts The following

1088-517: The 1970 draft (Seals selected Chris Oddleifson ), Ernie Hicke , and cash. As a result of the Seals' dreadful season , the Canadiens had the top pick in the 1971 draft, and used it to select future Hall of Fame member Guy Lafleur . This transaction now ranks as one of the most one-sided deals in NHL history. The team rebounded in 1971–72 , but the arrival of the World Hockey Association (WHA) wiped out most of those gains. Finley refused to match

1156-526: The Art Ross Trophy for the same season a combined 23 times and completed a Hart-Pearson/Lindsay-Art Ross sweep: Esposito, Lafleur (x2), Gretzky (x5), Lemieux (x3), Jagr, St. Louis, Crosby (x2), Ovechkin, Malkin, Kane, McDavid (x3), Kucherov and Draisaitl. Hasek and Price are the only goaltenders to win the Hart and Pearson/Lindsay in the same year. Bobby Orr won the Norris , Pearson and Art Ross in 1974-75 and

1224-580: The Bay Area Seals in 1970 before becoming the California Golden Seals the same year. The Seals were the least successful of the teams added in the 1967 expansion, never earning a winning record and only making the playoffs twice in nine seasons of play. Off the ice, they were plagued by low attendance. The franchise was relocated in 1976 to become the Cleveland Barons , who would merge with

1292-585: The Minnesota North Stars two years later. They were the only franchise from the 1967 expansion never to reach the Stanley Cup Finals . In 1966, the NHL announced that six expansion teams would be added as a new division for the 1967–68 season, officially because of a general desire to expand the league to new markets, but also to squelch the Western Hockey League 's threat to turn into

1360-722: The Stanley Cup by beating the Black Hawks in seven games in the finals. The NHL added two expansion teams in Buffalo and Vancouver . The 1970 NHL Expansion Draft was held on June 10 to fill the rosters of the two new teams. At the beginning of the season, the Oakland Seals were renamed California Golden Seals . The 1970 NHL Amateur Draft was held on June 11 at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal , Quebec . Gilbert Perreault

1428-572: The .500 mark at mid-season. Then Orland Kurtenbach was injured and the team sagged. On October 29, Gordie Howe became the first player to record 1,000 assists in a 5–3 win over Boston at the Detroit Olympia . Detroit introduced a fine rookie goaltender, Jim Rutherford , who had bright moments despite the Red Wings last place finish. However, they suffered their worst defeat in franchise history January 2, when Toronto crushed them 13–0. Sid Abel ,

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1496-639: The Barons' place in the Adams Division. The North Stars ultimately relocated to Texas following the 1992–93 season to become the Dallas Stars . The Cleveland Barons remain the most recent team in an established North American major professional league to fold. They were also the last actively playing NHL team to do so since the Brooklyn Americans in 1942 (the franchise was formally cancelled in 1946) and

1564-581: The Bay Area. They asked the NHL for permission to move the North Stars there in the late 1980s, but the league was unwilling to abandon a traditional hockey market like the Twin Cities . Meanwhile, a group led by former Hartford Whalers owner Howard Baldwin was pushing the NHL to bring a team to San Jose , where an arena was being built. Eventually, a compromise was struck whereby the Gunds would sell their share of

1632-508: The East Division with 97 points. This was the fifteenth playoff series between these two teams with Montreal winning twelve of the fourteen previous series. They last met in the 1969 Stanley Cup Semifinals which Montreal won in six games. Boston won five of the six games in this year's regular season series. The Montreal Canadiens were matched against the Boston Bruins, and in one of the most extraordinary upsets in hockey history, Ken Dryden

1700-629: The Hart and Pearson/Lindsay (but not the Art Ross). 1970%E2%80%9371 NHL season The 1970–71 NHL season was the 54th season of the National Hockey League . Two new teams, the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks made their debuts and were both put into the East Division. The Chicago Black Hawks were moved to the West Division, and the Oakland Seals were renamed the California Golden Seals . The Montreal Canadiens won

1768-625: The Kings there were no other prospective franchise applicants of similar pedigree to the Seals. Nevertheless, while the WHL Seals had drawn well at the Cow Palace the team drew poorly in Oakland once they entered the NHL. The plan to bring fans in from San Francisco failed, and on November 6, 1967, Van Gerbig announced that the team's name would be changed to the Oakland Seals (although the league did not register

1836-411: The NHL. However, they did not return to the NHL. Due to three straight years of non-competitive finals (where the West Division winning St. Louis Blues were swept all 3 years by an established East Division club); the NHL changed the match-ups for the semifinals by having the winner of the series of the 1st vs. 3rd East Division teams play the winner of the 2nd vs. 4th West Division teams. Similarly,

1904-618: The North Stars in 1989 . The last former Seals player in any league was George Pesut , who was active in Germany until 1994. Though no longer an active team, the Seals remained a popular subject, and are the subject of multiple works. In 2006, Brad Kurtzberg published the first book on the Seals franchise, Shorthanded: The Untold Story of the Seals: Hockey's Most Colorful Team . In January 2017, filmmaker Mark Greczmiel released his documentary, The California Golden Seals Story on iTunes. In 2016,

1972-421: The North Stars to Baldwin's group, with the Gunds receiving an expansion team in the Bay Area to begin play in the 1991–92 season . In return, the Sharks would have the rights to players from the North Stars and then participate with the North Stars as an equal partner in an expansion draft with the new franchise. On May 5, 1990, the Gunds officially sold their share of the North Stars to Baldwin and were awarded

2040-494: The Seals into the NHL as an expansion team. The team participated with the other five expansion teams in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft ; however, the terms imposed by the established Original Six teams were very one-sided in their favor. The existing NHL teams were permitted to protect nearly all of their best players, thus the players available for selection were mostly castoffs, aging players well past their prime and career minor leaguers. To bolster their roster and also to maintain

2108-771: The Seals tribute site, GoldenSealsHockey.com was founded to help promote the November 2017 release of the book, The California Golden Seals: A Tale of White Skates, Red Ink, and One of the NHL's Most Outlandish Teams , which covers the Seals' and Barons' entire history, including their six years in the WHL. The San Jose Sharks unveiled their Reverse Retro jersey based on the final years of the Golden Seals on October 20, 2022. Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes Notes: Includes Cleveland Barons (1976–78) Career: Single season: These are

Ted Lindsay Award - Misplaced Pages Continue

2176-512: The Seals, but when no credible buyers came forward who were interested in keeping the team in the Bay Area, he sold the team back to the league for $ 6.585 million. A 1973 attempt by Finley to sell the team to Indianapolis interests who planned to relocate the team to that city was rejected by the NHL's board of governors. In early 1975, newspapers reported that the Seals and Pittsburgh Penguins were to be relocated to Denver and Seattle , respectively, in an arrangement that would have seen

2244-459: The WHA's contract offers, causing five of the team's top ten scorers from the previous season to bolt to the new league. Devoid of any defensive talent save for goaltender Gilles Meloche , the Seals sank into last place again in 1972–73 , where they would remain for the rest of their history. Although divisional restructuring in 1974–75 included a revamped format in which three teams in each division made

2312-471: The West Division with 87 points. The Minnesota North Stars finished fourth in the West Division with 72 points. This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams with St. Louis winning both of the previous series. They met in the previous year's Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which the Blues won in six games. Minnesota won this year's six game regular season series earning eight of twelve points. This

2380-482: The airlines had put into service at the time. Finley also introduced the flamboyant green and gold "Seals luggage" which all players and coaches were required to carry, to identify them as the northern California NHL team. On May 22, 1970, the Seals traded their pick in the first round of the 1971 NHL Amateur Draft to the Montreal Canadiens along with Francois Lacombe in return for Montreal's first round pick in

2448-477: The all-expansion West Division. The Seals were actually favored to win their first round playoff matchup against the Kings, but were upset in seven games. Oakland regressed to 58 points the following season, but still edged out Philadelphia for the final playoff spot on a tiebreaker. Their second playoff appearance was a brief one as they were swept by the Pittsburgh Penguins. Those were the only two years that

2516-913: The award 11 times, while members of the Pittsburgh Penguins won the award ten times. The Lindsay Award is considered to be the companion of the Hart Memorial Trophy —the trophies have been won by the same player for the same season 35 times (of the 52 seasons both have been awarded) by 22 players: Bobby Clarke , Phil Esposito , Guy Lafleur (x2), Gretzky (x5), Mario Lemieux (x3), Mark Messier (x2), Brett Hull , Sergei Fedorov , Eric Lindros , Dominik Hasek (x2), Jaromir Jagr , Joe Sakic , Martin St. Louis , Sidney Crosby (x3), Alexander Ovechkin (x2), Evgeni Malkin , Carey Price , Patrick Kane , Connor McDavid (x3), Nikita Kucherov , Leon Draisaitl , and Auston Matthews . 13 of those players have also won

2584-531: The award would be reintroduced as the Ted Lindsay Award to honor Hall of Famer Ted Lindsay for his skill, tenacity, leadership, and role in establishing the original Players' Association. The voting for the trophy is conducted at the end of the regular season by the members of the NHL Players Association . Wayne Gretzky won the award five times during his career. Members of the Edmonton Oilers have won

2652-550: The board for the rest of the game, and the Habs won their third Stanley Cup in four years. It was the final game for Canadiens superstar and captain Jean Beliveau who retired after the season. The Canadiens were the last road team to win a Game 7 of a Stanley Cup Finals until the Pittsburgh Penguins in 2009 . It was Al MacNeil's final game as Montreal coach — after he had benched Richard for Game 5, The Pocket Rocket declared "[MacNeil]

2720-459: The change until December 8 to focus more on the East Bay). The Seals were never successful at the gate even after the name change, and because of this poor attendance Van Gerbig threatened on numerous occasions to move the team elsewhere. First-year coach and general manager Bert Olmstead publicly advocated a move to Vancouver , resulting in an offer from Labatt's brewery to purchase and relocate

2788-504: The division, winning handily over the Blues and advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals . The Montreal Canadiens, who missed the playoffs in 1969–70, appeared to be sinking once more. Players did not like Claude Ruel 's dictatorial rule as coach, and Ralph Backstrom and John Ferguson retired. Ruel resigned and Al MacNeil took over. Both Ferguson and Backstrom returned, but Backstrom was later traded to Los Angeles for draft choices. The Vancouver Canucks played well at first and were around

Ted Lindsay Award - Misplaced Pages Continue

2856-622: The expense of the expansion teams; seven of the eight finalists were Original Six teams over the next four seasons. Until realignment in 1974–75 when the Original Six and expansion teams were more thoroughly mixed, the Philadelphia Flyers were the only expansion team to reach a Cup final, which they won in 1974. A significant controversy arose before the playoffs. With 4 games to play, the Minnesota North Stars were in 3rd place with

2924-481: The finals in seven games. Hull won two games with goals on face-offs, despite Glen Sather 's coverage to check him. This was the fifteenth series between these two teams with the Montreal Canadiens winning nine of the fourteen previous series. They last met in the 1968 Stanley Cup Semifinals which Montreal won in five games. The teams split this year's six-game regular season series. The series went

2992-442: The first defenceman to get a hat trick in a playoff game when Boston won 5–2. The New York Rangers finished second in the East Division with 109 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs finished fourth with 82 points. This was the eighth playoff meeting between these two teams with New York winning four of the seven previous series. They last met in the 1962 Stanley Cup Semifinals which Toronto won in six games. New York won five of

3060-629: The first period on Denis DeJordy of Los Angeles at the Forum in Inglewood , California. Then, at 15:40 he became the first player to score 60 goals. The Bruins won 7–2. Buffalo had a star, Gilbert Perreault , who on March 18 broke Nels Stewart 's (and Danny Grant 's, and Norm Ferguson 's) rookie record with his 35th goal in a 5–3 win over St. Louis. He went on to finish the season with 38. Billy Taylor and Don Gallinger , now middle-aged, were finally forgiven for their gambling in 1948 and were reinstated to

3128-489: The franchise made the playoffs. The league's rejection of a proposed move to Vancouver prompted a lawsuit that was not settled until 1974 (San Francisco Seals Ltd. v. National Hockey League) . The Seals organization filed suit against the NHL claiming that the prohibition violated the Sherman Act . The Seals asserted that the league's constitution was in violation by prohibiting clubs from relocating their operations, and that

3196-496: The full seven games, with the Canadiens winning in Chicago despite trailing 2–0 halfway into the second period of game seven. Jacques Lemaire took a shot from centre ice that miraculously escaped goaltender Tony Esposito cutting the Black Hawks' lead to 2–1. Henri Richard tied the game just before the end of the second period, and scored again 02:34 into the third, giving the Habs the lead. Montreal goalie Ken Dryden kept Chicago off

3264-426: The group filed for bankruptcy after missing a payment and relinquished the team to Van Gerbig, who put the team back on the market. Prior to the 1970–71 season , Charles O. Finley , the flamboyant and eccentric owner of baseball's Oakland Athletics , purchased the Seals. Finley and Roller Derby boss Jerry Seltzer had both put in bids on the team. Although Seltzer's offer was slightly better financed and included

3332-531: The hands of a 1967 Expansion franchise. This was the third playoff series between these two teams with Chicago winning both previous series. They last met in the 1968 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which the Black Hawks won in six games. The teams split this year's six-game regular season series. Bobby Hull and the Chicago Black Hawks were just too much for the Rangers and the Black Hawks advanced to

3400-418: The inclusion of player names on the back of the jerseys, which then set the precedent for today's 32 current NHL teams identifying players in the same fashion. Finley also was the first owner to allow players to fly first class on commercial flights to games, thus starting a trend that ultimately culminated in NHL teams regularly chartering aircraft by the 21st century. The Seals regularly used the new Boeing 747s

3468-588: The last team to cease operations since the Montreal Maroons had their franchise formally canceled in 1947 (though they had not iced a team since 1938). As a result, the NHL consisted of 17 teams for the 1978–79 season . The current NHL team in the Bay Area, the San Jose Sharks , has a historical connection to the Seals. Years after the Barons-North Stars merger, the Gunds wanted to bring hockey back to

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3536-483: The other semifinal series pitted the winner of the 1st vs. 3rd West Division teams against the winner of the 2nd vs. 4th East Division teams. Combined with the transfer of the Chicago Black Hawks into the West Division (which previously consisted only of expansion teams), the Stanley Cup Finals series was expected to be more competitive. The realignment and change in playoff format brought the desired results, but at

3604-526: The playoffs, the team's efforts were frustrated by their placement in the Adams Division , with the strong Sabres, Boston Bruins , and Toronto Maple Leafs of the day. The Seals once again finished well out of playoff contention, and were notably the only team to lose at home to the expansion Washington Capitals . Finley soon lost patience with his struggling hockey team, especially given the contrast to his World Series champion Athletics. He tried to sell

3672-507: The relocation request was denied in an attempt to keep the San Francisco market in the NHL and thereby discourage the formation of a rival team or league in that location. The court ruled that the NHL was a single entity, and that the teams were not competitors in an economic sense, so the league restrictions on relocation were not a restraint of trade. For the 1969–70 season the team was sold to Trans-National Communications , whose investors included Pat Summerall and Whitey Ford . However,

3740-408: The second played the fourth. Nothing was proven against the North Stars (who defeated their first round opponents, St. Louis, four games to two, while the Flyers were swept by the powerful Black Hawks), but the format was changed the next year to the 1 vs. 4/2 vs. 3 format that prevailed thereafter. The Boston Bruins finished first in the league with 121 points. The Montreal Canadiens finished third in

3808-413: The six games in this year's regular season series. The Chicago Black Hawks finished first in the West Division with 107 points. The Philadelphia Flyers finished third in the West Division with 73 points. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Chicago won this year's six game regular season series earning nine of twelve points. The St. Louis Blues finished second in

3876-463: The start of the 1976–77 season, rendering the Barons all but invisible in Cleveland. After two more years of losses and with attendance worse than it had been in Oakland, the Gunds (by this time majority owners) were permitted to merge the Barons with the equally strapped Minnesota North Stars on June 14, 1978. The merged team continued as the Minnesota North Stars under the Gunds' ownership, but assumed

3944-621: The team across the Bay from the Cow Palace in Daly City to Oakland to play in the new Oakland–Alameda County Coliseum Arena . He renamed the club the California Seals. This was done in an attempt to appeal to fans from San Francisco, and to address complaints from the other NHL teams that Oakland was not considered a major league city and would not be a draw for fans. A year later, Van Gerbig brought

4012-523: The team to the Canadian city as well as a proposal to move the team to Buffalo from the Knox brothers, who like Vancouver had been shut out of the 1967 expansion. The NHL, not wanting to endanger its TV deal with CBS, rejected both proposals. As a compromise, the NHL agreed to expand again in 1970 , adding teams in both Vancouver and Buffalo . The Knoxes bought a minority share of the Seals in 1969, only to sell it

4080-405: The team's general manager, asked owner Bruce Norris if he could dismiss coach Ned Harkness . Told that he could not, Abel resigned. Norris then elevated Harkness to general manager and Doug Barkley was named coach. Detroit took a tumble to the basement of the East Division after that. On March 12, Boston's Phil Esposito broke Bobby Hull 's record for goals by a player in a season at 7:03 of

4148-506: The top four teams in each division qualifying. This season saw a marked increase in goal scoring, especially by the Boston Bruins , who shattered scoring records as they set the mark for most goals by a team (399) by nearly a hundred over the previous record holder. They also set records for most victories (57) and points (121). Phil Esposito set records for most goals in a season with 76 and for most points with 152. Defenceman Bobby Orr won his second consecutive Hart Memorial Trophy and set

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4216-548: The top ten scorers for the franchise, including its time in Cleveland. The Golden Seals had the following team captains: In 1967–68 , KTVU 2 televised 12 games with Tim Ryan on play-by-play. In 1968–69 , away games were broadcast on the radio by KEEN with Tim Ryan again on play-by-play. In 1969–70 , Saturday and Sunday games were broadcast by KGO radio. Jim Gordon , Bill Schonely and Bill McColgan each did play-by-play alone on multiple games. Meanwhile, Harvey Wittenberg and Rick Weaver did one game each; Weaver did

4284-403: The two teams sold to groups in those cities that had already been awarded "conditional" franchises for the 1976–77 season. At the same time, the league announced that if the Seals' sale to the Denver group was not completed or new ownership found locally, the franchise would be liquidated at the end of the season. The Denver arrangement fell through, and the league ran the Seals for more than

4352-495: Was finally showing some improvement and the team playing better, minority owners George and Gordon Gund persuaded Swig to seek approval to move the team to their hometown of Cleveland . The team's final game in Oakland was a win over the Los Angeles Kings on April 4, 1976; league approval for the move was granted on July 14, and the team was renamed the " Cleveland Barons " after the city's old AHL squad. Unfortunately, details were not finalized until less than six weeks before

4420-493: Was hot in goal for the Canadiens as they ousted the Bruins in seven games. Game 2 featured what many perceive as one of the greatest comebacks in NHL history. With the Bruins leading 5–2 heading into the third period, the Canadiens, who had trailed 5–1, scored 5 goals in the final session to win 7–5. The prominent Canadian sports journalist Red Fisher lists the Canadiens' comeback has the 8th most memorable moment in his over 49 years of covering hockey. In game 4, Bobby Orr became

4488-441: Was often seen on trading cards and other unofficial material, but was never adopted by the team. The Seals are remembered for wearing white skates, but initially Torrey convinced Finley to use green and gold painted skates instead, as team-colored skates were a trend of the period. However, this was all for naught, as the Seals finished with the worst record in the NHL that year. Other innovations that Finley's Seals incorporated, were

4556-445: Was selected first overall by Buffalo. From this season through the 2002–03 season , teams wore their white (or yellow) jerseys at home and their colored jerseys on the road. For 1970–71 the NHL went to a balanced schedule, with each team playing each other team six times, three at home and three on the road, without regard to divisional alignment. Nevertheless, playoff qualification was determined entirely by divisional standings, with

4624-443: Was the first playoff series between these two teams. Montreal won this year's six game regular season series earning eight of twelve points. The Canadiens' upset of Boston was so sensational that the Canadiens nearly suffered a fatal letdown against the Minnesota North Stars. The Canadiens' 6–3 loss in Montreal on April 22 to Minnesota, led by the goaltending of Cesare Maniago was the first playoff defeat for an Original Six team at

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