This Day in Hockey History – November 5, 1955 – Powered Up Power Play

Depending on the team asked, the big hero or villain of the first weekend in November 1955 was Jean Beliveau. Either way, he was aided and abetted by the referees whose calls gave the Montreal Canadiens the opportunities to show off the strength of their power play. On Saturday, November 5, Beliveau scored all four of the Canadiens’ goals, including three during one power play. That Sunday, he scored the tying goal during a power play and was not called for being inside the crease at the time. To say that the opponents, the Boston Bruins, were furious would be an understatement.

That weekend featured back-to-back matchups between the Habs and the Bruins. The first game was held at Montreal’s Forum for 13,799, and the second game was held at Boston Garden for 13,634 (their largest crowd in nearly two years). In both games, Boston took the lead early leaving Montreal to catch up.

At the time, the Canadiens had a very strong power play. Typically, Coach Toe Blake used five future Hall-of-Famers: Beliveau, Bert Olmstead, Maurice Richard, Doug Harvey, and Tom Johnson. They took full advantage of the rule that players had to serve their full penalties no matter how many goals were scored.

On Saturday, the Bruins scored within the second minute of play. Late in the period, referee Jerry Olinski sent both Richard and Ken Mosdell to the box for tripping. Boston’s Doug Mohns used the two-man advantage to score unassisted. However, with only ten seconds left in the first period, the tables turned. Boston’s Cal Gardner received a two-minute penalty which continued into the second period. Only 16 seconds into that period, Hal Laycoe was called for hooking (or, according to Boston, “for nothing”).

That was when Beliveau began his blitz, scoring a hat trick in 44 seconds. All three goals were scored by 1:26 into the second period. Beliveau’s was the second-fastest hat trick after Bill Mosienko scored his within 21 seconds on March 23, 1952. His left wing, Bert Olmstead, also had the second-fastest three assists. Having taken the lead, the Montreal fans “held up the game by littering the ice with programs, newspapers, coins and other debris.”

As if that was not bad enough, Beliveau poured salt in the wound by scoring a fourth goal at 15:53 of the third period. According to the recap, “This time he picked up Boom Boom Geoffrion’s rebound and beat Terry Sawchuk, whose view of the puck was screened by players in front of him.” Olmstead got credit for another assist. This line had scored all of Montreal’s goals to bring them a 4-2 victory.

On Sunday, the Bruins again wasted little time in scoring. Again, the Habs did not score until the second period. Maurice Richard tallied at 1:13, and rookie Claude Provost scored his first NHL goal at 19:35. During the first half of the third period, Boston pulled ahead 3-2.

Again, it came down to a penalty. At 17:46, referee Jack Mehlenbacher sent Mohns off for tripping. According to Boston Coach Milt Schmidt, who had had enough by that point, “Doug Harvey stepped on Mohns’ stick and went down. Dougie didn’t even have his stick. He had lost it. He only called the penalty when he heard the crowd roar.” Leo Labine, who had scored earlier, remarked, “Mehlenbacher couldn’t even see the play. He was right in front of our bench when the play happened, and there must have been a half a dozen players between him and the play.”

Montreal’s power play again went to work. With little over a minute remaining, Beliveau tied up the game. Sawchuk was incensed, explaining, “Beliveau was standing in the crease with not one but both feet. Richard’s shot hit him on the foot and then hit me. I dropped to the ice to grab it and sprawled across the cage. But Beliveau knocked it over me with his stick and then got out of the crease like a burglar.” Being inside the crease violated Rule 62, but Beliveau claimed, “Somebody pushed me.” According to the Boston Globe, no one was within ten feet of him at the time.

As expected, the Bruins reacted poorly. Sawchuk went after the official and had to be restrained by his teammates. As the Globe reported, “Milt Schmidt was so mad after the game that he kicked over the big trash can in the Bruins’ dressing room.” The Bruins felt “robbed” in both games. Lynn Patrick commented, “We should have had four points. Instead they got three and we wound up with only one.”

The bitterness did not end there. After the Canadiens went on to win the Stanley Cup, the Bruins’ management led the charge for changing the penalty-serving rule. In early June 1956, Montreal cast the only nay vote when the NHL (and their affiliate leagues) changed the rule to allow those with minor penalties to be released from the box if the other team scored. Although “The Canadiens Rule” reduced Montreal’s power-play goals, they still went on to win four more consecutive championships. With them, Beliveau later won five more times for a total of ten.

Additional Sources:

• Mike Commito, Hockey 365: Daily Stories from the Ice (Toronto: Dundurn, 2018), kindle version.
• https://thepinkpuck.com/2019/06/06/this-day-in-hockey-history-june-6-1956-goal-grants-freedom/
• “Beliveau Nets Four, Habs Win 4-2; Tie At Boston 3-3,” Montreal Gazette, 7 Nov. 1955, p. 26.
• Tom Fitzgerald, “Beliveau’s Late Goal Gives Montreal Tie With Bruins,” Boston Globe, 7 Nov. 1955, p. 9.
• Herb Ralby, “Enraged Bruins Blast Referee on Beliveau Goal,” Boston Globe, 7 Nov. 1955, p. 14.