This Day in Hockey History – December 24, 1949 – Gettin Nothin for Christmas

Dec 24, 2018

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When the New York Rangers played the Montreal Canadiens on Christmas Eve in 1949, neither of their goaltenders let any coal in their stockings. The shutouts by Chuck Rayner and Bill Durnan made this NHL game the only 0-0 tie played on Christmas Eve or Christmas Day.

A crowd of 12,085 showed up at the Forum for the Christmas Eve matchup. The Montreal Gazette pointed out, “Lynn Patrick is having his trouble with the Rangers, and they are virtually the same troubles that Dick Irvin is having with Canadiens.” That is to say that both teams had the “best defensive records” but had trouble scoring. Patrick himself said before the game, “We can’t put the puck in the net. There’s nothing wrong with us defensively, but we can’t score goals and you need goals to win.”

True to form, neither team lit the lamp. Instead, ““close checking kept goal shots at a minimum.” The New York Daily News admitted, “The Canadiens held an edge on play, outshooting the Rangers, 30-15. They missed plenty of scoring opportunities.” The highlight of the night was that “Big Bill Durnan [of the Canadiens] and Bonnie Prince Charlie Rayner [of the Rangers], the two top net-minders in the game today, were in peak form as they turned aside every shot directed at them.” This shutout was Durnan’s fifth of the season and 31st of his career. For Rayner, this was his third shutout of the season and 17th of his career. Durnan was playing his last of seven seasons for the Canadiens, having earned the Vezina Trophy all but one of them. Meanwhile, Rayner (after two seasons with the Americans) played with the Rangers for eight and picked up the Hart Memorial Trophy in that 1949-50 season.

On the same night, the Toronto Maple Leafs hosted the Boston Bruins and experienced a very different game. Rather than being unable to score, the Leafs had trouble stopping the Bruins. When the first period ended with the Bruins leading 4-1, Toronto pulled its famed goaltender Turk Broda and replaced him with Al Rollins. Conn Smythe, as head of the Leafs, “told reporters he benched Broda because of the terrible support received from team-mates and not because of his playing, sat on the bench from the second period on and helped Coach Hap Day. Leafs responded with a hard-thumping, go-get-‘em display for about 15 minutes that almost sent the fans wild, but they couldn’t keep it up and Bruins bounced back to take command.” The game ended 8-4 in favor of the Bruins.

Additional Sources:

Dink Carroll, “Canadiens Tie Here but Lose at Detroit on Week-end” and “Smythe on Rampage, Broda Benched As Boston Bruins Wallop Leafs 8-4,” Montreal Gazette, 26 Dec. 1949, p. 14.
“Ranger, Canadien Sixes Play to a Scoreless Tie,” New York Daily News, 25 Dec. 1949, p. 25C.“A-Z: Aught for Rangers, Zero for Canadiens,” New York Daily News, 25 Dec. 1949, p. 45.
“A-Z: Aught for Rangers, Zero for Canadiens,” New York Daily News, 25 Dec. 1949, p. 45.