Of Near Brushes With Habness, And The Canadiens Working On The Railroad

Hockey and the railways have a strong connection and have played an important part in uniting Canada. From the famous locomotive works in Stratford, Kingston and Montreal, to the railway hubs in Manitoba and the Maritimes, as well as in the numerous smaller towns that sprouted up along the tracks, many railroad workers have donned their skates to play for their local teams.

The Montreal Canadiens of 1909, and today's Les Habitants share a connection with the railway industry. During the time of the club's inception one hundred years ago, it wasn't uncommon that several of the team's players found full time or off season employment working on the rails. As train travel began connecting Canada's distant parts in the day, railway stations often had their own teams of players.

Today in Montreal, the Bell Centre sits directly against La Gare Windsor, which was originally built to serve as both the transcontinental terminal of the Canadian Pacific Railway and also as its company headquarters. Since VIA Rail consolidated its operations at Gare Centrale in the 1980s, Windsor Station has seen only commuter trains. These have been pushed far back from the station by the construction of the Bell on the site of the original trainsheds. Parts of the original station, including its surprisingly modernist skylit hall, are still maintained for public use.

So, why you might ask, am I writing about trains on a Canadiens blog?

That's a damn good question too!

Pardon the obvious bad pun, but I got sidetracked. I started out looking up the career of a former NHL player online, and links led me to learn about what this player had done for a living after retirement. As the player in question was a railway employee, it led to my discovering of how train travel and its industry tied into early Canadiens history. Some posts just happen this way, I guess.

This story get its start while my wife and I are standing in line at Metropolis in Montreal this past Grey Cup Sunday, waiting in the queue to see former Soundgarden and Audioslave lead singer Chris Cornell in concert.

Perhaps because I often wear Montreal Canadiens colours when I am out and about, I often get asked the silliest of questions, such as, "Nice hoodie, are you a fan?"

Of course I inform that yes, I am in fact a Habs empassioned nutcase with a blog, no less. It speeds up the conversation, and it helps to separate the casuals from the diehards of Habs fandom real quick.

My wife Joanne is the big fan of all things Cornell. She goes nutso in a similar compulsion as I do with the Canadiens and Springsteen. Me, I just like the Soundgarden stuff Cornell did best, and love my wife more than enough, to brave the chilling cold and make a great time of it. It wasn't difficult! My better half was more than determined to have our asses freeze off in a lineup all in the name of getting the best general admission seats in the house - which we did. Along the way, we met some equally die hard fans, and inevitably, with me in my Habs hoodie, the hockey subject came up.

After a few brief questions, one young woman whom we hung around at the backstage door with prior to the show's start and are now standing in line with informs me that her grandfather once played in the NHL.

"No way?", I ask, "With Montreal?"

"Yes, he played a season with Montreal, and then he went to New Jersey."

Now my brain is reeling, right. The young lady is at the most in her late twenties, but my guess is she can't be no more than 21 or 22. I'm calculating as I speak, while eliminating that Stephane Richer or Claude Lemieux or Rollie the Goalie can't possible have a 20 something grandchild.

I'm messed!

"What was his name?"

After a minute's struggle, she recalls the name - Maurice Croghan.

"He died before I was born. I never met him, but he played for the Maroons."

"Oh, okay, not the Canadiens then. It was the Jersey thing that threw me off. If he played for the Maroons, he could not have played for the Devils of course."

"No, I don't know who he played with in New Jersey, my family just told me he went there after playing for the Maroons in 1935."

In '35, then his name is on the Stanley Cup!", I exclaimed, to her confusion.

"I'm not sure, I'd have to ask."

I told her quickly that the name Maurice Croghan rang a bell, and that I was familiar with the history of the Maroons franchise. If indeed he played in that season, his name would be ingraved on the Cup. I told her I would look it up once I arrived home.

"Do an internet search in a couple of weeks, and you might find somthing at my site", I suggested.

The young lady, whose name I dumbly never asked for, changed the conversation flow from there, and we began talking about where we were from and what we did for a living.

She informed me that she was from the eastern townships of Quebec, in a place familiar to me - Cowansville, Quebec. I made a mental note of it, once I got into researching just who was Maurice Croghan.

As it turns out, Croghan was actually Montreal Canadiens property for a season, upon the disolution of the Maroons after the club's final 1937-38 campaign. In looking up the player, I came upon the interesting connection to the railway industry.

A brief resume of Croghan's short NHL stint reads as such: The defenseman who went by the name Moe in the day, wore number 16 and played in 16 games for the Maroons in 1937-38. Moe Croghan was termed a sturdy defensive rearguard in his day, and counted no goals or assists in his short NHL time. Upon the Maroons franchise going out of business, he became property of the Canadiens, playing in some exhibition games prior to the start of the 1938-39 season - in possibly the Habs most dismal era on record.


















Croghan was born November 19, 1914 in Montreal, and played junior and senior hockey in his hometown until joining the Quebec Aces in 1936. Croghan's talent were on display that season, as the Aces ventured all the way to the Allen Cup, and after his successful run he was signed on by the Maroons.

There's no accounting of Croghan playing with a New Jersey based club around this time, but he wasn't far off in stints with the Habs affiliated Providence Reds and Springfield Indians, where he split his 1938-39 season. From 1939 to 1941, he played with the Montreal Victorias of the MCHL and the Montreal Royals of the QSHL.

After his retirement from the game, the native Montrealer relocated to Sherbrooke, Quebec, taking on a job with the Canadian National Railway as a locomotive engineer.

At age 64, Croghan passed away of a heart attack on February 7, 1979, and he is burried in Lac Brome, Quebec. In his obituary seen here, his birth name may have been "Morris" and not "Maurice", as the Lost Hockey website states a photo contribution from a Moe Croghan Jr, and this obit lists a Morris as one of his children. He was survived at the time by his wife, nee Lillian Hartley, and two daughters, Sandra Nicholson and Linda Mailloux.













That was all the detail I could find on Croghan's hockey career and life away from the game. From searching the net, I was led to site called Hockey Railroaders, that featured a more detailed account of how some former Montreal Canadiens players made a living away from the rink.

From the early 1900's, up until World War II in the 1940's, several Canadiens players, as well as other NHLer's worked on the railroad across Canada. Aurel Joliat, Maurice Richard, Dickie Moore, Marcel Dheere, Herb Gardner, Sam Pollock, Joe Cattarinich, Lorne Chabot, Len Grosvenor, Harry Mummery, and Howie Morenz all spent a good deal of their youth and playing days learning a trade that would provide income to them once away from the rinks in summer.

During WWII, the Canadian Pacific Railway reorganized its entire shop systen for the war. Wartime shop production signaled the end of the Great Depression and offered jobs to many of its laid off CPR employees.

The Canadiens original goalie in the 1909-10 season, Jos Cattarinich, was a brakeman with CPR when he met and befriended Leo Dandurand. The pair would go on to own and manage the Canadiens for several seasons, as well as partnering in the tobacco business and horse racing endeavors.

Mummery who played for both the Canadiens and Toronto Blueshirts in 1917, was employed by the CNR as a locomotive engineer. Also working as a fireman during the season, Mummery brought his rail eating ritual to both the firehouse and the arena dressing room. A large man at 250 pounds, Mummery set up pot bellied stoves in both workplaces, cooking large steaks in them with the help of a freshly hosed shovel, a practice he took to while riding the rails and cooking his meat in the steam engine's fire box.

Morenz followed his father and uncle, apprenticing as a machinist with Stratford's Grand Trunk Railway in 1919. The Canadiens future star played for three teams in different levels in the city, one of which was operated by GTR. In one incident, Morenz had dropped a metal block on his foot, causing it to swell badly - not bad enough to cause him to miss that night's game however. After the contest, Morenz's skate boot literally needed to be cut off to remove his swollen foot from it.

Morenz was always proud of his trade, and oftenmentioned that he was a machinist by profession. Two years later, Morenz and his GTR team played a game against the Montreal CNR shops at the Mount Royal Arena. The GTR team led by Morenz steamrolled the CNR's, and Howie scored 9 goals. The performance caught the attention of the Canadiens director Cecil Hart, who then made it a point to sign Morenz.






















Before his NHL career got going, goaltender Lorne Chabot worked full time with the CPR in Brandon, Manitoba while playing senior hockey with the Wheat Kings in 1921. A age 16, Chabot had enlisted in the army. Unaware of his age, he was stationed in France, driving an ammunition wagon with the Royal Canadian Field Artillery. He was soon found out and sent home.

Former Canadiens defenseman Herb Gardiner got a late start in professional hockey due to his committments to the war and the railroad. Gardiner had quit playing senior hockey at age 18 to work for the CPR as a surveyor. After serving three years with the Canadian Army, Gardiner rejoined the CPR while playing with the Calgary Tigers in the WCHL. In losing to the Canadiens in the 1924 Cup final, Gardiner made the Habs acquaintance and was signed by them two seasons later.

Len Grosvenor, who toiled with the Canadiens in 1932, worked his entire life, in and around hockey, on the railroad.

























Onesime Richard, the father of Maurice, worked as a carpenter for 40 years with the CPR. Each morning he would board the train in Bordeaux and catch a ride to the Angus shop, where he would build freight cars. Maurice joined him in 1942 while playing for the Canadiens Seniors, earning up to $40 a week working as a machinest for the Munitions Department. The future Rocket was on leave a great deal at this time due to his burgeoning hockey career, and did not resign his position with CPR until after his 50 goal season.

Following his retirement from hockey in 1938, Aurel Joliat went on to work for CNR in Ottawa as an agent. He was also later employed as a coach and with the Quebec Liquor Commission.




















St. Boniface's Marcel Dheere joined the Canadiens in a trade on Christmas day, 1940 and also found work at the time with Montreal RCAF and Montreal Canada Car. Dheere played hockey at several levels including the Canadiens over the next few seasons before leaving the city. He served in the military in 1944-45, and the strong connections he made while in Montreal set him up for employment with the railway as a switchman for the next 30 years.

After high school graduation in 1943, Sam Pollock was a junior clerk with the railway for a few years, while also working in hockey and baseball. He left the railway for good in 1946 to coach and scout in the Canadiens organization. Three years later, Pollock signed Dickie Moore, a CPR alumni, to a Montreal Junior Canadiens contract on the word of Frank Selke.

Hope you enjoyed this little sidetrack - it was more to do than blogging about O'Byrne derailing!

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Once Upon A Time, The Canadiens Made The Blues Legit

The Canadiens are in St. Louis tonight to play the Blues in a rare Sunday night game. Often when the Canadiens and Blues meet, I think back to all the players who have shared both jerseys over the years.

The Blues were once the Canadiens Annex, thanks in no small part to Scotty Bowman, who coached the team in their first three seasons starting in 1967.

When the NHL expanded by six teams that year, the Blues, on Bowman's advice, picked apart the Canadiens minor league teams and built a fairly solid roster very quickly. Bowman knew his stuff, and the Blues made three straight trips to the Stanley Cup final.

With a team loaded with former Habs, the Blues lost to the Canadiens in 1968 and 1969. The following year, St. Louis fell to the heavily favoured Bruins in four games. In fact, when Bobby Orr scored the Cup winner flying through the air, it was a former Hab - Noel Picard - who tripped him!

Early Blues history has the Canadiens written all over them. The Plager brothers, Barclay and Bill, who became legends in St. Louis, were once coached by Bowman in junior when they played for the Canadiens sponsored Peterborough (T.P.T.'s) Petes. Bowman lured some great names from the Canadiens past to play for the Blues during those years, including Jacques Plante, Doug Harvey, Ted Harris, Jean Guy Talbot, and Dickie Moore.

Small wonder the Blues contended so quickly!


Since 1967, sixty-six players, including many former Canadiens, have worn both the bluenote and the CH. Here's an alphabetical listing.

Don Awrey, Murray Baron, Normand Baron, Red Berenson, Bob Berry, Christian Bordeleau, Andre Boudrias, Valeri Bure, Jim Campbell, Guy Carbonneau, Shayne Corson, Bill Collins, Wayne Connelly, J.J. Daigneault, Gilbert Delorme, Rory Fitzpatrick, Ron Flockhart, Dave Gardner, Doug Gilmour, Gaston Gingras, Phil Goyette, Ted Harris, Doug Harvey, Sean Hill, Fran Huck, Pat Hughes, Mark Hunter, Mike Keane, Christian Laflamme, Mike Lalor, Guy Lapointe, Michel Larocque, Claude Larose, Gary Leeman, Chuck Lefley, Jocelyn Lemieux, Bill McCreary, Rick Meagher, Sergio Momesso, Dickie Moore, Phil Myre, Ric Natress, Greg Paslawski, Noel Picard, Jacques Plante, Michel Plasse, Stephane Quintal, Rob Ramage, Stephane Richer, Vincent Riendeau, Phil Roberto, Jimmy Roberts, Bill Root, Martin Rucinski, Glen Sather, Brian Savage, Bill Sutherland, Jean Guy Talbot, Larry Trader, Pierre Turgeon, Perry Turnbull, Ernie Wakely, Rick Wamsley, Eric Weinrich, Doug Wickenheiser, and Rick Wilson.

Additionally, several Habs prospects, such as goalie Ted Ouimet, and prospect Andre " Moose" Dupont, also got their NHL careers rolling in St. Louis, after toilling in the Habs system for years.

In 41 years of games between the Blues and Canadiens, the Habs have owned them big time. The teams have met 118 times, with the Canadiens holding a record of 70-25-22, with one overtime loss.

Here's hoping the dominations continues tonight. The Blues owe us!

Habs and Leafs: A Jersey Shared Parts 1 to 4

Since 1927, when the Canadiens longest standing rival, the Toronto Maple Leafs, first entered the NHL, very few transactions have taken place between the two teams. Perhaps due to the fact that a blown deal between the teams would be cause for aggravated embarrassment, considering the proportions of the rivalry. Because of the small number of trades involving the teams, the number of players who have donned both jerseys is quite minimal through an 80 year history.

I though it would make an interesting piece, to list all of those who have worn both the bleu, blanc, rouge of the Canadiens, and the blue and white of the Leafs, so I did some research and found 72 players who fit the bill as both one time Habs or Maple Leafs.

I have always wondered what the perception are when a player stars for two teams. To which team's history does he belong to and why, are questions I ask myself when going over such players.

Here are the links to the four part series I completed in February.

Part 1 - From the 1920's to the 1950's
Part 2 - The 1960's and 1970's
Part 3 - The 1980's
Part 4 - From 1990 to 2008

Habs And Leafs: A Jersey Shared - Part 2: The 1960's and 1970's

For hockey fans in Canada, the decade of the 1960's was the equivalent of hockey heaven, as the country's two teams were perenial Stanley Cup favorites. The Canadiens started off the decade as five time champions, but with Maurice Rocket Richard's retirement, the team was in transition and took some steps back.

In Toronto meanwhile, the Maple Leafs were busy building a claim of their own. After losing out to Chicago in 1961, the Leafs strung three Cup titles together as the Habs subtly retuned and rebuilt.

From 1961 to 1964, the Canadiens were ousted in the first round, never to meet the Leafs in the final until 1967 - likely the last time it would ever happen. The playoff format was different then - first place met third, second met fourth.

The Canadiens were still a strength, finishing 1st overall in 1961 and 1962, only to lose to Chicago both times. The following season, the Habs were a mere three points back of first place Toronto, but finished third and were ousted by the Leafs. In 1964, the teams switched places in the final standings, with the result being the same.

Montreal would meet the Leafs in the first rounds of 1965 and 1966, defeating them both years on their way to winning the Cup. As Montreal would handle Toronto four straight the second year, the 1967 Cup final was set up as a mismatched battle of 1960's titans. It would be the perenial contenders adrift from Montreal versus an aging but wily club from Toronto.

It was Canada's centennial year, and Expo 67 was being held in Montreal. With the Canadiens overly assured at making it three in a row, the Maple Leafs used the Habs overconfidence as motivation. An upset ensued, and a classic one at that, as the Leafs oldtimers shut down the Habs offense in four of six games, winning their 13th Stanley Cup. While Montreal was stunned, they were also stung. The following season, the NHL doubled in size, and the Canadiens were once more back at the podium.

Unfortunately for hockey fans in Canada, that 1967 series would become a landmark of where the two teams started to go in different directions. While Montreal continued to produce winning teams, the Leafs lost sight of the formula that made them winners. The Canadiens reign would last, on and off, with 8 Cups in the next 12 seasons. Toronto spiralled beyond comprehension for twenty five years, not becoming worthy contenders again in 1993.

During the competitive 1960's, only 11 players suited up for both the Habs and Leafs, neither team daring the repercussions of a major trade between the two. The players who donned both jerseys were a collection one time prospects who didn't fit in with strong teams, journeymen who made for roster extra's, and players seemingly having seen better days.

The 1960's

Al McNeil ( = ) - TOR 1955-60/MON 1960-61

TOR: 71-4-8-12 / MON: 41-1-7-8 / 5-0-0-0 Defenseman Al MacNeil played over 500 NHL games in the 50s and 60s. He was capable of taking the body in his own end and was fairly effective at passing the puck ahead to his forwards.




















Born in Sydney, Nova Scotia, MacNeil was a Toronto Maple Leafs prospect and played three years with the junior Marlboros. During his first four pro seasons he was mostly used as a injury replacement while seeing full time duty with the Rochester Americans of the AHL. The one exception was his 53 game tenure on the Toronto blueline in 1953-54.

In June, 1960, MacNeil was traded to the Montreal Canadiens who assigned him to the EPHL's Hull-Ottawa Canadiens for the entire 1960-61 schedule. The next season he played 61 games and provided grit and steady play in his own end for the Habs. With youngsters like Jacques Laperriere waiting in the wings, Montreal opted to send MacNeil to the Chicago Black Hawks in May, 1962. He went on to enjoy the finest stretch of his career as a regular for the next four years on one of the top clubs in the league.

After retiring as a player, MacNeil succeeded Claude Ruel as coach of the Montreal Canadiens 23 games into the 1970-71. He led them to a strong finish and an upset of the Boston Bruins in the quarterfinals on the way to the Stanley Cup. Unrest in the dressing room cost MacNeil a chance to return in 1971-72.

Eddie Litzenberger - MON 1952 - 55/TOR 1961 - 64***

























MON: 34-8-2-12 /
TOR: 114-17-23-40 / 20-1-4-5

In the seven seasons between stops in Montreal and Toronto, Litzenberger was a much better Blackhawk than he ever was a Hab or Leaf, offensively speaking. He was lost among many good Habs prospects in the mid fifties, and was traded to Chicago for Paul Masnick on December 10, 1954. He a key componant of the Hawks 1961 Cup run but was dealt to Detroit in the offseason. Midway through the 1961-62 season, the Leafs scooped Litzenberger off waivers, and he became a part of Toronto's three Cup dynasty of the early sixties. It's hard to say if he would have ever fit in with the Canadiens, who certainly didn't miss him from 1955 to 1960.

Bronco Horvath - MON 1956 - 57/TOR 1962 - 63

MON: 1-0-0-0 /
TOR: 10-0-4-4 /

Horvath's tale is similar to that of Litzenberger in that there was no room for him in Montreal in the late 1950's. The Canadiens aquired Horvath in a cash deal with Rangers and he appeared in only one game in 1957. Claimed in the inter-league draft the hapless Bruins, Horvath became a player in Beantown, leading the NHL in goals with 39 in 1960. He would pass through Chicago and New York a second time before the Leafs would pick him off waivers in January of 1963. Horvath would go on to tear up the AHL with the Rochester Americans where he'd win 3 Calder Cups.

Cesare Maniago - TOR 1960 - 61/MON 1962 - 63

























TOR: 7-4-2-1 / 2-1-1
MON:14-5-5-4 /

Cesare Maniago would become best known as the franchise goalie for the expansion Minnesota North Stars in 1967. Maniago was a highly thought of hot prospect, due to his large frame and size, who toiled in the Leafs system for a few years in the early 1960's.



















The Habs Maniago claimed him off waivers from Toronto and after a dazzling season with the Hull Ottawa Canadiens, Maniago made it to Montreal as Jacques Plante's backup in 1962-63. Two years later, with Gump Worsley and Charlie Hodge ahead of him on the depth chart, the Habs swung a six player deal with the Rangers that brought Noel Price, Earl Ingarfield, Dave McComb, and Gord Labossierre into the Canadiens organization.

Marc Reaume - TOR 1954 - 60/MON 1963 - 64

TOR: 266-8-39-47 / 19-0-2-2
MON: 3-0-0-0/

Reaume was a very sound defenseman with the Leafs in the latter half of the 1950's. Groomed as a solid stay at home type with the St. Mike Majors, Reaume would fetch the Leafs a jewel upon his trade to Detroit - one on one for Red Kelly during the 1960 season. The Habs paid double price for Reaume in 1963, sending two decent minor leaguers, Ralph Keller and Chuck Hamilton, to Hershey (AHL) for what amounted to a three game stint with Montreal. After the 1964 season, he was reclaimed by the Leafs organization where he remained a solid minor league defenseman in their system for a half dozen seasons.

Dick Duff - TOR 1954 - 64**/MON 1964 - 70****




















TOR: 582-174-168-342 / 54-14-23-37
MON: 305-87-85-172 / 60-16-26-42

For a decade, Hall Of Famer Dick Duff was a constant 20 goal threat for the Maple Leafs, and was a key player in their early 1960's Cup wins. Duff's production was tailing off some during the regular season in 1963-64 and he was traded to the Rangers in a mega deal with Bob Nevin, Arnie Brown, Bill Collins and Rod Seilling for Andy Bathgate and Don McKenny.



















The Canadiens aquired Duff within a year after he disappointed in New York, and he refound his 20 goal scoring touch with the Habs. He would go on to win four Stanley Cups with Montreal from 1965 to 1969. The following season, he was traded to the Los Angeles Kings for Dennis Hextall.

Dickie Moore - MON 1951 - 63******/TOR 1964 - 65



















MON: 654-254-340-594 / 112-38-56-94
TOR: 38-2-4-6 / 5-1-1-2

Moore's worth to the Habs cannot be summed up in a mere paragragh. He is the Canadiens all time best left winger, who prospered during the team's most glorious reign. Winner of two Art Ross Trophies, he once held the NHL record for points in a season.

























Having left the game in 1963 while still productive, he was tempted out of retirement by Toronto after they had claimed him in the June inter-league draft. His season in a Leafs jersey left much to be desired and Moore called it quits again. Three years later, at age 37, he was back at it once more, this time with the St. Louis Blues. A fair regular season ensued and Moore found his old touch in 1968 playoffs, with 7 goals and 7 assists in 18 games.

Dick Gamble - MON 1950 - 56/TOR 1965 - 67

























MON: 178-38-41-79 / 14-1-2-3
TOR: 3-1-0-1 /

The Maple Leafs initially held Gamble's NHL rights, but felt he was too small to be of use. Instead, Punch Imlach brought Gamble to the Quebec Aces where in 1950-51 he notched 94 points in 77 games.

Canadiens coach Dick Irvin Sr. took notice, bringing the young ace to Montreal in 1951. During his first full season, Gamble potted 42 points and a chance to skate with Rocket Richard and Elmer Lach. But injuries and illness took their toll, taking the steam out of his scoring touch. By 1953, after an All-Star game appearance, Gamble was traded to the Blackhawks, returned to the Canadiens and then sent back to Imlach and his Aces.

By 1957, Gamble joined the AHL, where thirteen seasons with the Buffalo Bisons and the Rochester Americans established him as one of the most prolific and durable scorers in league history. He nailed down eleven 30-goal plus seasons and is ranked fifth among all-time point scorers and fourth in all-time goals. In 1965, the Leafs apparently had a change of heart somewhat and made a trade with the Bisons. Gamble would only suit up for three games with Toronto.

Noel Price - TOR 1958 - 59/MON 1965 - 67

TOR: 29-0-0-0 / 5-0-0-0
MON: 39-0-9-9 / 3-0-1-1



















Noel Price was a journeyman fringe defenseman, a solid stay at homer, perhaps too good for the AHL, but yet not quite rounded enough to be a full time NHL'er. After short stints in Toronto, Detroit, New York, and Montreal, the 1967 expansion altered his worth. Despite his shortcomings, Price was an astute observer of the position, and was twice later reaquired by Montreal to tutor young prospects on the Nova Scotia Voyageurs roster - namely Larry Robinson. Both Montreal and Toronto gained little upon trading for or aquiring Price, as he always seemed to be packaged in multi-player deals.

Bill Sutherland - MON 1962 - 63/TOR 1968 - 69

MON: 0-0-0-0 / 2-0-0-0
TOR: 44-7-5-12 /

Sutherland toiled in the Habs farm system for a decade by the time he saw action for the Canadiens in the 1963 playoffs. The 1967 expansion was his savior and he became a Philadelphia Flyer for a year. Toronto claimed him in the inter-league draft of 1968, and dealt him back to Philly in a package that gained the Leafs future Calder Cup winner Brit Selby.

Larry Hillman - TOR 1960 - 68/MON 1968 - 69

TOR: 260-13-75-88 / 32-2-3-5
MON:25-0-5-5 / 1-0-0-0

Larry Hillman was one of the most traveled professional hockey players to ever sit aboard a train, a bus and eventually, an airplane. During his 22-year pro career, he played for 15 different teams. All the while, no one confused him with Bobby Orr. His most settled times were the eight seasons he shuffled back and forth between Toronto and its AHL counterparts, the Rochester Americans. Rarely traded, but often waivered, Hillman landed in Montreal for the 1969 playoff stretch run, punching the clock for 25 games.

Larry Mickey - TOR 1968 - 69/MON 1969 - 70

TOR: 55-8-9-17 / 3-0-0-0
MON: 21-4-4-8 / 0-0-0-0

In June of 1969 the Toronto Maple Leafs chose Larry Mickey in the intra-league draft and he went on to score 27 points, playing on an effective line with Forbes Kennedy and Brit Selby. He then toiled briefly with the Montreal Canadiens, Los Angeles Kings, and Philadelphia Flyers before finishing off his NHL tenure by spending parts of four seasons with the Buffalo Sabres.

The Sum Of The Parts:

Six one-time Leafs became Habs, and five former Leafs suited up for the Canadiens. The Leafs won 3 Cups with Lizenberger, and Montreal won 4 with Duff. Of the remaining players, it could be said that both Toronto and Montreal likely never envisioned Maniago as a goalie of prominance, but neither suffered greatly for losing him. The Leafs turned Marc Reaume over for great returns. While the Habs might have been premature in letting both Litzenberger and Horvath depart, it can be argued that neither had a future in Montreal - at least none that would have altered a Stanley Cup landscape.

I'd give a slight edge to Toronto in turning over assets for short lived successes in the decade, though Montreal equalled that edge by getting more out of Duff that the Leafs did out of Moore. Still, without any deals between the teams, the decade is an absolute draw as far as which former players of either team gave whichever team an advantage.

The 1970's

Jacques Plante - MON 1947 - 63******/TOR 1970 - 73

MON: 556-314-133-107 / 90-59-28
TOR: 106-48-38-15 / 6-0-4

One of the most legendary figures in the history of goaltending, Jacques Plante not only dominated the position, he helped reinvented it. Plante was the backbone of the Canadiens 1950's dynasty before his personal antics and sideshow behavior earned him a ticket to the Rangers.

















After a successful run with the Blues, including a pair of Stanley Cup final appearances, Plante became a Maple Leaf and refound his form. Both the Habs and Leafs did well in exchanges when Plante departed them. The Habs gained Gump Worsley - who helped them to four more Stanley Cups - and a handfull of role players. Toronro shipped him along with a minor leaguer to Boston for a first round pick that became Ian Turnbull.

























Garry Monahan - MON 1967 - 69/TOR 1970 - 75

MON: 14-0-0-0 /
TOR: 313-51-73-124 / 15-2-1-3

The first player ever drafted in an amateur draft in 1963, Monahan barely slugged it out in Montreal's system for six seasons. His game had some attraction, and when Detroit offered Peter Mahovlich for him, Sam Pollock could not refuse. In the early 1970's, Monahan found himself a Leaf, becoming a reliable forward who did not miss a game for four seasons. Toronto shipped him to Los Angeles for some fringe returns, reaquiring 4 years later for cash.

Frank Mahovlich - TOR 1956 - 68****/MON 1970 - 74**

TOR: 720-296-301-597/ 76-24-36-60
MON: 263-129-181-310 / 49-27-31-58



















Frank Mahovlich is simply one of the greatest left wingers to play the game. Some hockey experts have even suggested that had he ended up elsewhere than Toronto, his numbers would have been even greater. With the Leafs, Mahovlich was a superstar, but a depressed and seemingly underachieving one.

Regardless of the 4 Cup wins in Toronto, Mahovlich was often miserable, for his treatment from the Leafs staff left much to be desired. After Toronto refused a million dollar offer for him from Chicago, things really staled, and his relationship with coach Punch Imlach caused Mahovlich to take medical leaves more than once.

The Leafs pulled off one of the biggest trades ever, sending Mahovlich in a package to Detroit that made Norm Ullman and Paul Henderson Maple Leafs. Mahovlich refound his enthusiam in Motown, notching a 49 goal campaign in his first full season there. Joy, in Detroit was brief however, as Wings management seemed directionless during the Big M's time there.



















Needing a boost, the Canadiens sent three players, including future 50 goal man Mickey Redmond to the Wings in hopes of stimulating the Habs playoff hopes. It worked to extremes, and Mahovlich was peerless in leading all playoff scorers while Montreal confounded hockey experts on the way to an unlikely 1971 Stanley Cup. Mahovlich remained a Hab for three further excellent seasons, some of his most productive and consistant ones. Another Cup followed in 1973. The Big M jumped to the WHA in 1974, when Montreal's contract offer fell way short of his demands.

Wayne Thomas - MON 1972 - 74/TOR 1975 - 77






















MON: 52-31-13-8 / 0-0-0
TOR: 97-38-37-25 / 15-6-8

In Montreal, Wayne Thomas may best be remembered as a goalie who stepped in when Ken Dryden stepped out in 1974. Originally a Maple Leafs prospect, the Habs aquired Thomas from the L.A. Kings four years earlier.









































As Dryden returned, Thomas sat out the entire 1974-75 season before being bargained off to Toronto for their first round pick in the 1976 draft (Peter Lee). Upon arriving in Toronto, Thomas was stellar, and earned an invite to the mid-season All Star game. Halfway through the next year, Thomas lost his role to the up and coming Mike Palmateer, and was placed on waivers. He finished his career as a New York Rangers to little success.



The Sum Of The Parts:



It's quite cut and dried here. In the 1970's, Montreal added one former cast off Leaf, who played a major role in two Cup wins. The Leafs picked up three former Habs who offered them temporary success at best, but hardly represented building blocks.



The Final Tally:



If so few players from each organization changed hands as the 1960's became the 1970's, it is completely explained by the different directions the teams were headed in. Montreal added players who would put them over the top, or at least help maintain their status there. Toronto sought to remain competitive by bringing in players who would make them better at the time, regardless of the long term or the big picture. Montreal's building from within philosophy made adding such players sensible. Toronto's view of maintaining respectability blinded them to the values of building from within. Some suggest that continues to this day.