1945 Stanley Cup Finals

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The 1945 Stanley Cup Finals was a best-of-seven series between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Maple Leafs once again defeated the Red Wings in seven games, despite leading 3–0 in a situation similar to 1942. This was the last Finals until 2024 where a team forced a seventh game after being down 3–0.

1945 Stanley Cup Finals
1234567 Total
Toronto Maple Leafs 121300*2 4
Detroit Red Wings 000521*1 3
* – Denotes overtime period(s)
Location(s)Detroit: Olympia Stadium (1, 2, 5, 7)
Toronto: Maple Leaf Gardens (3, 4, 6)
CoachesToronto: Hap Day
Detroit: Jack Adams
CaptainsToronto: Bob Davidson
Detroit: Sid Abel
DatesApril 6–22, 1945
Series-winning goalBabe Pratt (12:14, third)
Hall of FamersMaple Leafs:
Ted Kennedy (1966)
Babe Pratt (1966)
Sweeney Schriner (1962)
Red Wings:
Syd Howe (1965)
Ted Lindsay (1966)
Harry Lumley (1980)
Bill Quackenbush (1976)
Earl Seibert (1963)
Coaches:
Jack Adams (1959, player)
Hap Day (1961, player)
← 1944 Stanley Cup Finals 1946 →

Paths to the Finals

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Toronto beat the defending champion Montreal Canadiens in six games to advance to the Finals. Detroit defeated the Boston Bruins in seven games to reach the Finals.

Game summaries

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This was the first Stanley Cup Finals in NHL history where both teams started rookie goaltenders. Harry Lumley, who had become the youngest goaltender to play in the league the previous year, was in the Wings' net, while Frank McCool substituted for regular Maple Leafs netminder Turk Broda, who was in Europe with the Canadian army at the time.

In the first three games, which were low-scoring goaltenders' duels, McCool did not allow the Wings a single goal, the first time one team shut out the other for the first three games in Stanley Cup Finals history. In addition, Toronto now stood one win away from sweeping Detroit, as the Red Wings' Mud Bruneteau noted after game three. The last time the two teams had met in the Finals, in 1942, Toronto had beaten Detroit—after going down three games to none, becoming the first professional sports team in North America to win a playoff round in such a fashion. Fittingly enough, the Red Wings did the coming back this time, as their offense finally caught fire.

In game four, the Maple Leafs had a chance to win the Cup on Maple Leaf Gardens ice, but the Red Wings got on the board for the first time in the series when Flash Hollett opened the scoring 8:35 into the game, ending McCool's shutout streak at 193:09 (dating back to the semifinals against Montreal). Four other Detroit players, including rookie Ted Lindsay (who scored what transpired to be the game-winner at 3:20 of the third period), scored to overcome Ted Kennedy's hat trick.

Games five and six were Lumley's time to shine, shutting out the Leafs, including an overtime shutout in the sixth game, and extending the Finals. The series returned to Detroit for a seventh game, the Wings hoping to avenge their "choking" against the Leafs in 1942.

Game seven

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Toronto coach Hap Day almost had to eat his words of a few years back when he said of the Leafs' 1942 comeback from being down 3–0 in games, "There will never be another experience like this." Babe Pratt, however, scored the winning goal in a 2–1 victory that saved the Maple Leafs from being the victim of a great comeback win by the Red Wings. Lumley left the ice almost immediately after the end of the game, but a Detroit Olympia crowd chant of "We want Lumley!" brought him back. Lumley would go on to a Hockey Hall of Fame career. and McCool played just 22 more games in the NHL, as Broda returned to the Leafs in January 1946.[1]

April 6 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–0 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
Sweeney Schriner (3) - 13:56 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Frank McCool Goalie stats Harry Lumley
April 8 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–0 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Ted Kennedy (4) - 13:04 Second period No scoring
Moe Morris (3) - 12:03 Third period No scoring
Frank McCool Goalie stats Harry Lumley
April 12 Detroit Red Wings 0–1 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 3:01 - Gus Bodnar (3)
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Frank McCool
April 14 Detroit Red Wings 5–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Flash Hollett (2) - pp - 8:35 First period 9:19 - Ted Kennedy (5)
11:44 - pp - Ted Kennedy (6)
Murray Armstrong (3) - 9:20 Second period 10:21 - Ted Kennedy (7)
Eddie Bruneteau (4) - sh - 1:11
Ted Lindsay (2) - 3:20
Joe Carveth (4) - 17:38
Third period No scoring
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Frank McCool
April 19 Toronto Maple Leafs 0–2 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 8:21 - Flash Hollett (3)
16:16 - Joe Carveth (5)
Frank McCool Goalie stats Harry Lumley
April 21 Detroit Red Wings 1–0 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Eddie Bruneteau (5) - 14:16 First overtime period No scoring
Harry Lumley Goalie stats Frank McCool
April 22 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–1 Detroit Red Wings Olympia Stadium Recap  
Mel Hill (2) - 5:38 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Babe Pratt (2) - pp - 12:14 Third period 8:16 - Murray Armstrong (4)
Frank McCool Goalie stats Harry Lumley
Toronto won series 4–3


Stanley Cup engraving

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The 1945 Stanley Cup was presented to Maple Leafs captain Bob Davidson by NHL President Red Dutton following the Maple Leafs 2–1 win over the Red Wings in game seven.

The following Maple Leafs players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup

1944–45 Toronto Maple Leafs

Players

  Centres

Coaching and administrative staff

  • Jack Bickell (Chairman/Owner), Ed Bickle (President/Owner)
  • William MacBrien, (Vice President/Owner), John Murdoch (Vice President)
  • Conn Smythe (Manager), Frank Selke Sr.(Business Manager/Publicity Director)
  • Clarence Hap Day (Coach), Tim Daly (Trainer)
  • Archie Campbell (Asst. Trainer)
  • Kerry Day (Mascot)

Engraving Notes

Ted Kennedy's name was engraved on the original ring as TEETER KENNEDY in 1945. He was engraved as Ted Kennedy on the later two versions of the 1945 Stanley Cup engravings.


See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ "FRANK M'COOL". New York Times. May 21, 1973. Retrieved April 9, 2018.

References and notes

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Preceded by Toronto Maple Leafs
Stanley Cup Champions

1945
Succeeded by