1928–29 NHL season

1928–29 NHL season
1928–29 NHL season
League	National Hockey League
Sport	Ice hockey
Duration	November 15, 1928 – March 29, 1929
Number of games	44
Number of teams	10
Regular season
Season champions	Montreal Canadiens
Season MVP	Roy Worters (Americans)
Top scorer	Ace Bailey (Maple Leafs)
Canadian Division champions	Montreal Canadiens
American Division champions	Boston Bruins
Stanley Cup
Champions	Boston Bruins
Runners-up	New York Rangers
NHL seasons
	← 1927–28 1929–30 →

The 1928–29 NHL season was the 12th season of the National Hockey League. Ten teams played 44 games each. This was the first Stanley Cup Finals that saw two United States–based teams compete for the cup. The Boston Bruins defeated the New York Rangers two games to none in the best-of-three final.

League business

Notable rule changes

Forward passing was permitted from the neutral zone across the blue line into the attacking zone, as long as no offensive player preceded the puck into the attacking zone; forward passing within the attacking zone was still forbidden. Regular season overtime was changed to a 10-minute, non-sudden-death format, to be played in its entirety.

During this season, the NHL office started tabulating defensive statistics, such as shots stopped, saves made and save percentage.^[1]

The league was determined to increase scoring. In the final game of the season between the Rangers and Pittsburgh, forward passing in the attacking zone was allowed; kicking of the puck was allowed; and goalies were prohibited from holding the puck more than three seconds. The experiment was considered a success, and the changes were a part of the rules for the 1928–29 season.^[1]

Arena changes

The Boston Bruins moved from Boston Arena to Boston Madison Square Garden.
Due to the new Chicago Stadium, the new home of the Chicago Black Hawks, still under construction, the team played games at Chicago Coliseum through January, then played the rest of their "home" games in February and March at either Detroit Olympia in Detroit (sharing it with the Detroit Cougars) or Peace Bridge Arena in Fort Erie, Ontario.

Regular season

Ottawa continued in financial trouble and sold Punch Broadbent to the New York Americans. They continued to erode, and at one point, rumour had it that they would be sold to a Chicago group. Frank Ahearn, the Senators owner, denied this, but admitted that the team was for sale to the highest bidder.

The New York Americans, last place finishers in 1927–28, surprised everyone by occupying first place for much of the season in the Canadian Division. They were held up by the great play of defenceman Lionel Conacher and goaltender Roy Worters. However, the Montreal Canadiens dislodged the Americans and finished first. Boston, led by rookie Tiny Thompson in goal, led the American Division.

Bruins' player George Owen was the first NHL player to regularly wear headgear for protective purposes. Prior to this, the only time protective headgear was worn was to temporarily protect injuries. Fifty-one years later the NHL mandated the use of helmets. Craig MacTavish was the last NHL player to not wear a helmet, retiring in 1997.

The Chicago Black Hawks set records for goal scoring futility, scoring on average less than one goal per game (33), while giving up a league worst 85 goals against. In one stretch from February 7 through February 28, the Hawks were shut out in eight consecutive games.^[2] Forward Vic Ripley was the Hawks' leading goal scorer with only 11 goals and 2 assists for 13 points for the entire 44-game season.^[3]

The season produced a record 120 shutouts in the 220 games played. George Hainsworth, Canadiens goaltender, set an NHL record that remains unmatched through the 2015–16 season of 22 shutouts and a 0.92 goals against average. Seven other goaltenders hit double digits in shutouts.^[2]

Final standings

Canadian Division
	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PIM	Pts
Montreal Canadiens	44	22	7	15	71	43	465	59
New York Americans	44	19	13	12	53	53	486	50
Toronto Maple Leafs	44	21	18	5	85	69	541	47
Ottawa Senators	44	14	17	13	54	67	461	41
Montreal Maroons	44	15	20	9	67	65	638	39

American Division
	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PIM	Pts
Boston Bruins	44	26	13	5	89	52	472	57
New York Rangers	44	21	13	10	72	65	384	52
Detroit Cougars	44	19	16	9	72	63	381	47
Pittsburgh Pirates	44	9	27	8	46	80	324	26
Chicago Black Hawks	44	7	29	8	33	85	363	22

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold

Playoffs

The playoff format was revised to match the divisional first-place teams in a best-of-five semifinal. The divisional second-place teams and third-place teams played off in a two-game total-goals series to determine the participants for the other best-of-three semifinal. The semifinal winners then played off in a best-of-three series for the Cup.

Playoff bracket

First round

Semifinals

Final

C1

Mtl Canadiens

0

A1

Boston

3

A1

Boston

2

C2

NY Americans

0G

A2

NY Rangers

0

A2

NY Rangers

1G

A2

NY Rangers

2

C3

Toronto

0

C3

Toronto

7G

A3

Detroit

2G

Quarterfinals

(A2) New York Rangers vs. (C2) New York Americans

March 19	New York Rangers		0–0	New York Americans	Madison Square Garden III	Recap
No scoring		First period		No scoring
No scoring		Second period		No scoring
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
John Ross Roach		Goalie stats		Roy Worters

March 21	New York Americans		0–1	2OT	New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden III	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
No scoring		Second overtime period			19:50 – Butch Keeling (1)
Roy Worters		Goalie stats			John Ross Roach

New York Rangers won series on total goals 1–0

(C3) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (A3) Detroit Cougars

March 19	Toronto Maple Leafs		3–1	Detroit Cougars	Olympia Stadium	Recap
Andy Blair (1) – 01:35 Art Smith (1) – 18:35		First period		No scoring
No scoring		Second period		16:35 – George Hay (1)
Andy Blair (2) – 18:07		Third period		No scoring
Lorne Chabot		Goalie stats		Dolly Dolson

March 21	Detroit Cougars		1–4	Toronto Maple Leafs	Arena Gardens	Recap
No scoring		First period		06:45 – Hap Day (1) 08:30 – Eric Pettinger (1)
No scoring		Second period		18:00 – Red Horner (1)
Larry Aurie (1) – 18:50		Third period		19:59 – Ace Bailey (1)
Dolly Dolson		Goalie stats		Lorne Chabot

Toronto won the series on total goals 7–2

Semifinals

(C1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (A1) Boston Bruins

March 19	Montreal Canadiens		0–1	Boston Bruins	Boston Madison Square Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period		04:00 – Cooney Weiland (1)
No scoring		Second period		No scoring
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
George Hainsworth		Goalie stats		Tiny Thompson

March 21	Montreal Canadiens		0–1	Boston Bruins	Boston Madison Square Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period		06:13 – Cooney Weiland (2)
No scoring		Second period		No scoring
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
George Hainsworth		Goalie stats		Tiny Thompson

March 23	Boston Bruins		3–2	Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period		09:27 – Albert Leduc (1) 09:36 – Aurele Joliat (1)
Bill Carson (1) – 09:36 Dutch Gainor (1) – 13:58 Eddie Shore (1) – 14:49		Second period		No scoring
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
Tiny Thompson		Goalie stats		George Hainsworth

Boston won series 3–0

(A2) New York Rangers vs. (C3) Toronto Maple Leafs

March 24	Toronto Maple Leafs		0–1	New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden III	Recap
No scoring		First period		07:33 – Butch Keeling (2)
No scoring		Second period		No scoring
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
Lorne Chabot		Goalie stats		John Ross Roach

March 26	New York Rangers		2–1	OT	Toronto Maple Leafs	Arena Gardens	Recap
Bun Cook (1) – 04:35		First period			03:05 – Andy Blair (3)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Frank Boucher (1) – 02:05		First overtime period			No scoring
John Ross Roach		Goalie stats			Lorne Chabot

New York won series 2–0

Stanley Cup Finals

The Bruins won their first Stanley Cup defeating the Rangers. In the process, Boston became one of the few Cup winners in history to not lose a single game in the playoffs, and the last team until 1952 to go undefeated in the playoffs.

March 28	New York Rangers		0–2	Boston Bruins	Boston Madison Square Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period		No scoring
No scoring		Second period		02:00 – Dit Clapper (1) 10:00 – Dutch Gainor (2)
No scoring		Third period		No scoring
John Ross Roach		Goalie stats		Tiny Thompson

March 29	Boston Bruins		2–1	New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden III	Recap
No scoring		First period		No scoring
Harry Oliver (1) – 14:01		Second period		No scoring
Bill Carson (2) – 18:02		Third period		06:48 – Butch Keeling (3)
Tiny Thompson		Goalie stats		John Ross Roach

Boston won series 2–0

Awards

Frank Boucher won his second consecutive Lady Byng award and George Hainsworth won his third consecutive Vezina Trophy.

1928–29 NHL awards
O'Brien Cup: (Canadian Division champion)	Montreal Canadiens
Prince of Wales Trophy: (American Division champion)	Boston Bruins
Hart Trophy: (Most valuable player)	Roy Worters, New York Americans
Lady Byng Trophy: (Excellence and sportsmanship)	Frank Boucher, New York Rangers
Vezina Trophy: (Fewest goals allowed)	George Hainsworth, Montreal Canadiens

Player statistics

Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

PLAYER	TEAM	GP	G	A	PTS	PIM
Ace Bailey	Toronto Maple Leafs	44	22	10	32	78
Nels Stewart	Montreal Maroons	44	21	8	29	74
Carson Cooper	Detroit Cougars	43	18	9	27	14
Howie Morenz	Montreal Canadiens	42	17	10	27	47
Andy Blair	Toronto Maple Leafs	44	12	15	27	41
Frank Boucher	New York Rangers	44	10	16	26	8
Harry Oliver	Boston Bruins	43	17	6	23	24
Bill Cook	New York Rangers	43	15	8	23	41
Jimmy Ward	Montreal Maroons	44	14	8	22	46
Frank Finnigan	Ottawa Senators	44	15	4	19	71

Source: NHL.^[4]

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Mins = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

Player	Team	GP	W	L	T	Mins	GA	SO	GAA
George Hainsworth	Montreal Canadiens	44	22	7	15	2800	43	22	0.92
Tiny Thompson	Boston Bruins	44	26	13	5	2710	52	12	1.15
Roy Worters	New York Americans	44	16	12	10	2390	46	13	1.15
Dolly Dolson	Detroit Cougars	38	19	16	9	2750	63	10	1.37
John Ross Roach	New York Rangers	44	21	13	10	2760	65	13	1.41

Source: hockey-reference.com^[5]

Coaches

American Division

Boston Bruins: Art Ross
Chicago Black Hawks: Herb Gardiner and Dick Irvin
Detroit Cougars: Jack Adams
New York Rangers: Lester Patrick
Pittsburgh Pirates: Odie Cleghorn

Canadian Division

Montreal Canadiens: Cecil Hart
Montreal Maroons: Eddie Gerard
New York Americans: Tommy Gorman
Ottawa Senators: Dave Gill
Toronto Maple Leafs: Conn Smythe

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1928–29 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

Tiny Thompson, Boston Bruins
Cooney Weiland, Boston Bruins
George Owen, Boston Bruins
Johnny Gottselig, Chicago Black Hawks
Mush March, Chicago Black Hawks
Herbie Lewis, Detroit Cougars
Georges Mantha, Montreal Canadiens
Armand Mondou, Montreal Canadiens
Baldy Northcott, Montreal Maroons
Dave Trottier, Montreal Maroons
Earl Robinson, Montreal Maroons
Red Horner, Toronto Maple Leafs
Andy Blair, Toronto Maple Leafs

Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1928–29 (listed with their last team):

Cy Denneny, Boston Bruins
Duke Keats, Chicago Black Hawks
Dick Irvin, Chicago Black Hawks
Red Green, Detroit Cougars
Herb Gardiner, Montreal Canadiens
Punch Broadbent, New York Americans

References

Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
McFarlane, Brian (1973). The Story of the National Hockey League. New York: Pagurian Press. ISBN 0-684-13424-1.
Ross, J. Andrew (2015). Joining the Clubs: The Business of the National Hockey League to 1945. Syracuse University Press. ISBN 978-0-8156-3383-9.

Notes

^ ^a ^b Ross 2015, p. 170.
^ ^a ^b Dryden 2000, p. 31.
^ McFarlane, Brian. "Worst NHL Team Ever". ithappenedinhockey.com. Archived from the original on May 31, 2010. Retrieved November 11, 2011.
^ Dinger 2011, p. 146.
^ "1928–29 NHL Season Goalie Statistics". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved January 5, 2011.