1971–72 Chicago Black Hawks season

NHLTeamSeason
Season=1971–72
Team=Chicago
Conference=
ConferenceRank=
Division=West
DivisionRank=1st
Record=46–17–15
HomeRecord=28–3–8
RoadRecord=18–14–7
GoalsFor=256
GoalsAgainst=166
GeneralManager=Tommy Ivan
Coach=Billy Reay
Captain= "Vacant"
AltCaptain=
Arena=Chicago Stadium
Attendance=
GoalsLeader=Bobby Hull (50)
AssistsLeader=Pit Martin (51)
PointsLeader=Bobby Hull (93)
PlusMinusLeader=Bobby Hull (+54)
PIMLeader=Keith Magnuson (201)
WinsLeader=Tony Esposito (31)
GAALeader=Tony Esposito (1.77)
StanleyCup=
DivisionWin=Yes

The 1971–72 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks forty-sixth season in the NHL, and the club was coming off a first place finish in their first season in the West Division in 1969-70, as they had a team record 49 victories and 107 points. The Black Hawks defeated the Philadelphia Flyers and New York Rangers to earn a berth in the Stanley Cup finals for the first time since 1965, however, the were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens in seven games. [ [http://hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1971.html 1970-71 NHL Season Summary - Hockey-Reference.com ] ]

Chicago had an excellent start to the season, winning their opening five games, and the team never let up throughout the season, as they had an unbeaten streak of ten games in December to take control of the West Division. The Black Hawks would then finish the season off on a twelve game unbeaten streak to win their third straight divisional title, as they finished the year with a record of 46-17-15, tying the club record wtih 107 points that was set during the 1970-71 season. The Hawks finished 21 points ahead of the second place Minnesota North Stars. [ [http://hockey-reference.com/teams/CBH/1972_games.html 1971-72 Chicago Black Hawks Games - Hockey-Reference.com ] ]

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Bobby Hull, who scored a team high 50 goals and 93 points, which placed him seventh in NHL scoring. Hull also led the club with a +54 rating.Pit Martin led the club with 51 assists, and finished second in team scoring with 75 points. Dennis Hull had 30 goals and 69 points, while Stan Mikita was just behind him with 26 goals and 65 points. On defense, Pat Stapleton led the club with 41 points, while Bill White and Doug Jarrett had 29 points. Keith Magnuson once again led the team in penalty minutes, as he accumulated 201.

In goal, Tony Esposito led the club with 31 victories and a 1.77 GAA, along with nine shutouts while appearing in 48 games. [ [http://goaliesarchive.com/hawks/indexesposito.html Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Tony Esposito ] ] Backup goaltender Gary Smith was also very good, winning 14 games while having a 2.42 GAA, and five shutouts. [ [http://goaliesarchive.com/hawks/indexsmith.html Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Gary Smith ] ] They helped the team have an NHL low 166 goals against, and were awarded the Vezina Trophy for their efforts.

The Hawks opened the playoffs against the Pittsburgh Penguins, who had a record of 26-38-14, earning 66 points, while placing fourth in the West Division. The series opened with two games at Chicago Stadium, and the Black Hawks, who had a record of 28-3-8 at home, continued their dominance, as they defeatd the Penguins 3-1 and 3-2 to take a 2-0 series lead. The series moved to the Pittsburgh Civic Arena for the next two games, however, it was the Black Hawks who continued to stay hot, as they shutout the Penguins 2-0 in the third game, and finished off the series sweep with a 6-5 overtime win in the fourth game.

Chicago's next opponent was the New York Rangers, who had finished the season with a 48-17-13 record, earning 109 points, and a second place finish in the East Division. The Rangers defeated the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Montreal Canadiens in their first playoff series. Since the Black Hawks won their division, they were given home ice advantage in the series. The series opened up with two games at Chicago Stadium, however, it was the Rangers who struck first, defeating the Hawks 3-2, then taking the second game in Chicago by a score of 5-3 to take an early 2-0 series lead. Chicago could not get themselves back in the series, as New York won the third game 3-2, and the Rangers completed the sweep of the Black Hawks with a 6-2 thumping in the fourth game.

eason standings

Game log

Regular Season

Transactions

Playoff stats

coring leaders

References

ources

* [http://hockey-reference.com/teams/CBH/1972.html Hockey-Reference]
* [http://www.rauzulusstreet.com/hockey/nhlrecords/nhl1972.htm Rauzulu's Street]
* [http://www.goaliesarchive.com/hawks/index.html Goalies Archive]
* [http://hockeydb.com/ihdb/draft/nhl1971a.html HockeyDB]
*National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007