Yesterday in the history of hockey: September 20
Tomorrow in the history of hockey: September 22
September 21 is an interesting day in NHL history. One of its earliest superstars was born on this date. A goalkeeper legend paid off twice after retirement. The greatest player in league history scored his first goal in his new home and played his first game in China. So let’s start our daily trip to revisit all the best memories.
Plante Return to Creas
There have been many times over the past few decades that players have announced retirement only to return to the ice later. That’s the case with Hall of Fame goalkeeper Jacques Plante.
Plante initially retired in 1965 at the age of 36 after two seasons with the New York Rangers. He returned to his uniform on September 21, 1967, and began the California SEALs in a preseason game against the Los Angeles Kings. The game played in Port Huron, Michigan ended with a 3-3 deadlock.
The six-time Stanley Cup champion never competed in the SEALs’ regular season but returned to the St. Louis Blues the following season. He and goalkeeper legend Glenn Hall won the Vezina Trophy in 1968-69, when the season was given to the goalkeeper who gave up the fewest goals this season.
Plante has since participated in four NHL seasons. There are two more in St. Louis, with two along with Toronto Maple Leaf, and the last season splits between the Maple Leaf and the Boston Brown Bear. He retired for the second time in 1973, but returned to play 31 games for the Edmonton Oilers when he became a member of the World Hockey Association (WHA) in 1974-75.
Another great class
The Hockey Hall of Fame opened the door to seven new members on September 21, 1992. Marcel Dionne, Woody Dumart, Bob Gainey and Lanny McDonald entered as players, while Keith Allen, Bob Johnson and Frank Mathers were selected as builders.
Dionne has played 1,348 games in 18 NHL seasons, scoring 731 goals and 1,771 points. He has had the greatest success with the Kings in 12 seasons after breaking into the league with the Detroit Red Wings. He won the Art Rose Trophy after scoring 53 goals and leading the league with 137 points in the 1979-80 season. He scored at least 36 goals in each of the Kings’ 11 full seasons, including 50 or more. In the 1986-87 season, he was traded to the Rangers and played with them until his retirement in 1989.
Dumart played 774 games in 16 seasons with the Bruins, where he scored 211 goals and 430 points. His best season was in 1946-47, when he scored 24 goals and 52 points in 60 games. He was part of the 1939 and 1941 Stanley Cup Championships in Boston.
Gainey spent the entire 16 seasons of his career with the Montreal Canadaens. In 1,160 professional games, he scored 239 goals and 501 points. He was a member of five Stanley Cup champion teams and won the Conn Smith Trophy with the most valuable player in the 1979 playoffs. He won the Selke trophy because he was the best defensive forward in four leagues. After retiring in 1989, he had a successful coaching career with Minnesota Polaris and Dallas Stars before becoming the Canadian General Manager in 2003.
McDonald’s scored 500 goals and 1,006 points in 1,111 professional games with the Maple Leafs, Colorado Rockies and Calgary Flames. He was so popular in Toronto that when he was traded to the Rockies in 1979, fans protested against moving outside the Maple Leaf Gardens. His final act as Captain of the Flames in 1989 was to accept the Stanley Cup after scoring a goal against the Canadiens.
Allen was the first coach in the history of the Faladelphia Flyers series and was in 1980 until his death in 2014. Johnson, known as “Badger Bob,” coached at the University of Wisconsin from 1966 to 1982 and won three national titles. He brought the flames to the 1986 Stanley Cup final and won the championship with the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1991, just five months before his death from brain cancer. Mathers is known for his 35-year relationship with the American Hockey League (AHL), and he is a player, coach, general manager and president.
Odd number and ending
After scoring 20 goals and 42 points in the 1974-75 season, Bruce traded defender Larry Sacharuk to Bob Macmillan’s ranger on September 21, 1975. Sacharuk never played only 44 games in the next two seasons, and then he never repeated the success before Wha played briefly. Right-wing Macmillan scored 46 goals and 129 points for the Blues in 187 games before being traded to the Atlanta Flames.
On September 21, 1988, the Kings and Vancouver Canucks played a preseason in Portland, Oregon. The Karnaks won a 4-3 overtime victory, but the game was memorable as Wayne Gretzky scored the Kings’ first goal, although the record was never officially calculated.
Ottawa Senator traded defensive Sami Salo to left-wing Peter Schaefer on September 21, 2002. Salou played 566 games for the Canucks over the next nine seasons. Schaefer spent 53 goals and 158 points in Ottawa over the next four seasons.
The Kings and Canucks played another memorable preseason game on September 21, 2017. The two competitors met in Shanghai for the first time in China. Nearly 11,000 fans watched the Kings win 5-2 thanks to two goals from Tanner Pearson.
Happy birthday to you
On September 21, a total of 23 current and former NHL players were born.
The first and best person, because Howie Morenz was born in Mitchell, Ontario on this date in 1902. He was nicknamed “Stratford Streak” for playing junior hockey in Stratforio, Ontario. Morenz made his debut with the Canadians (NHL) in the 1923-24 season and quickly became a star in the league. He has performed well in end-to-end sprints at speed since the Forward Pass violated the rules of most of his career. After 253 goals and 401 points in 430 games, Morentz was traded to the Chicago Blackhawks in 1934. After a short stop with the Rangers, he returned to Montreal for the 1936-37 season.
Morentz’s career ended on January 28, 1937, when his leg was severely broken after being struck by a board of directors when he was stranded on the ice skating. He never left the hospital because the blood clot eventually led to his death on March 8, 1937.
Other notable players born on this date include Gord Dineen (63), Troy Loney (62), Bob Errey (61), Curtis Leschyshyn (56) and Nick Jensen (35).
*Originally built by Greg Boysen
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