1955–56 NHL season


The 1955–56 NHL season was the 39th season of the National Hockey League. Six teams played 70 games each. The Montreal Canadiens were the Stanley Cup champions as they beat the Detroit Red Wings four games to one in the best-of-seven final series.

League business

At a governors' meeting in December, a discussion took place concerning the uniforms worn by officials. It was contended that the present orange and black uniforms were confusing to players and fans, particularly when red uniforms were worn by either of the participating teams. Furthermore, it was pointed out that the existing uniforms showed up black on television. It was unanimously agreed that officials' uniforms should be changed to black and white vertical stripes. The black and white uniforms were first worn on December 29, 1955.
With Montreal frequently racking up two or three goals on any one power play, NHL President Clarence Campbell said he'd like the penalty rule revised to a penalized player returning to the ice when a power play goal is scored on a minor penalty. The Canadiens was the lone club to vote against the new legislation.

Regular season

The streak of seven straight seasons at the top of the NHL held by the Detroit Red Wings' dynasty came to an end as the Montreal Canadiens were tops. The Canadiens set a new record for wins in a season with 45. The Canadiens had a new coach, their one-time great former All-Star left-winger, Hector "Toe" Blake.
Dick Irvin, formerly the coach in Montreal, whom Habs' GM Frank Selke Sr. found a little truculent, took over as coach in Chicago, but could not get them out of the cellar, though they did improve. It was sort of a homecoming for Irvin as he started his coaching career with Chicago in 1930.

Highlights

When the Hawks went to the Montreal Forum on October 22, Irvin was presented with a set of silver flatware by William Northey, representing the Canadian Arena Company. In the game itself, rookie Henri Richard scored two goals as Montreal shut out Chicago 6–0.
On November 5, Jean Beliveau scored three goals in 44 seconds as Montreal beat Boston 4–3. The record for the fastest hat trick still was held by Bill Mosienko with three goals in 21 seconds.
On December 29, officials debuted the new "zebra" outfits in a game between the Canadiens and Maple Leafs.
On January 11, a crowd of 15,570 delighted fans at Madison Square Garden watched the Rangers trounce the Canadiens 6–1. Pete Conacher was a star for the Rangers with two goals. Lou Fontinato and Maurice Richard had a gala fight and Fontinato knocked out Richard with a punch that required several stitches above Richard's eye.
Montreal routed the Rangers 9–4 on February 18 as Beliveau had the hat trick and Richard two. The Rocket was incensed when referee Louis Maschio gave his brother a misconduct penalty and his teammates had to cool him off.
Beliveau set a record for goals by a center when he scored his 45th goal on March 15. Maurice Richard was hurt in this game when he fell over Hawk defenceman Pierre Pilote's skate and went headlong into the goal. He required stitches and was taken to hospital for X-rays. The Rocket was back in the lineup on St. Patrick's Day as the Canadiens trounced the Rangers 7–2 and Richard had the hat trick.
Rookie Glenn Hall had a fabulous year with 12 shutouts and a 2.11 goals-against average for the ever-powerful Detroit Red Wings. He received the Calder Memorial Trophy over Henri "Pocket Rocket" Richard.

Playoffs

Playoff bracket

The top four teams in the league qualified for the playoffs. In the semifinals, the first-place team played the third-place team, while the second-place team faced the fourth-place team, with the winners advancing to the Stanley Cup Finals. In both rounds, teams competed in a best-of-seven series.

Player statistics

Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes
PlayerTeamGPGAPTSPIM
Jean BeliveauMontreal Canadiens70474188143
Gordie HoweDetroit Red Wings70384179100
Maurice RichardMontreal Canadiens7038337189
Bert OlmsteadMontreal Canadiens7014567094
Tod SloanToronto Maple Leafs70372966100
Andy BathgateNew York Rangers7019476659
Bernie GeoffrionMontreal Canadiens5929336266
Earl ReibelDetroit Red Wings6817395610
Alex DelvecchioDetroit Red Wings7025265124
Dave CreightonNew York Rangers7020315143

Source: NHL

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts
PlayerTeamGPMINGAGAAWLTSO
Jacques PlanteMontreal Canadiens6438401191.864212107
Glenn HallDetroit Red Wings7042001472.1030241612
Terry SawchukBoston Bruins6840801772.602233139
Harry LumleyToronto Maple Leafs5935271592.702128103
Lorne WorsleyNew York Rangers7042001992.843228104
Al RollinsChicago Black Hawks5834801722.971730113

Coaches

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1955–56 :

Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1955–56 :

Broadcasting

This was the fourth season of Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television. Coverage included selected Stanley Cup playoff games. Both regular season and playoff games were not broadcast in their entirety until the 1968–69 season, and were typically joined in progress, while the radio version of HNIC aired games in their entirety.