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1958-59 Regular Season
Red Wings vs. Toronto Maple Leafs |
1958-59 was the 23rd season of Detroit Red Wings hockey. The Wings were just four years removed from their most recent Stanley Cup win (1955), but the franchise had fallen quite far since the mid-1950s. The Wings were coming off a disappointing third-place finish (29-29-12) and a blowout loss to Montreal in the first round in four straight. Detroit also had their first midseason coaching change, as Jimmy Skinner resigned 37 games into the season due to illness, replaced by former Production Line center Sid Abel. Abel returned behind the bench for 1958-59, while Jack Adams was in his 31st consecutive season as General Manager. Home games were played at Olympia Stadium.
The Red Wings continued their downward slide in 1958-59, finishing in last place in the NHL with a 25-37-8 record. Their 58 points were six points back of fifth place New York and 33 behind first place Montreal. This was the first time the Red Wings failed to qualify for the playoffs since the 1937-38 season. It was also the first time the team finished in last place since their inaugural campaign in 1926-27!
The Red Wings were dead last in offense, scoring just 167 goals on the year. Team captain Gordie Howe led Detroit on offense, with 32 goals and 78 points. There was a bit of a drop-off after "Mr. Hockey", as Norm Ullman was the only other Red Wing with at least 20 goals, scoring 22 to go with 58 points. Center Alex Delvecchio was next with 19 goals and 54 points. The top scorer on defense was Marcel Pronovost, with 11 goals and 32 points, placing him fourth on the team's scoring list!
Considering the anemic offense, the defense was actually respectable. The Wings allowed 218 goals, worst in the league, but kept the team in games more often than not. Detroit used two goaltenders that year. The main netminder was Terry Sawchuk. Sawchuk played in 67 games, sporting a 23-36-8 record with a respectable 3.01 GAA and 5 shutouts for a last-place team. Sawchuk's efforts were recognized as he was named to the Second All-Star team. Bob Perrault filled in for three games when Sawchuk was injured, posting a 2-1-0 record, a 3.00 GAA and 1 shutout. Perrault was one of the dozens of unfortunate goaltenders who could not crack the Original Six NHL in an era before backup goaltenders. Despite a 22-year career in hockey, Perrault played just 31 games in the league.
This program is from the Thursday, November 27th game between the Red Wings and Toronto Maple Leafs. Detroit won, 3-2, in front of 12,325 at Olympia, to improve to 12-9-1 on the year. The Wings would go 13-28-6 the rest of the way. Heading into this game, Sawchuk's GAA was an excellent 2.15 in 20 games.
Part of the core of the Wings dynasty was still in Detroit. Sawchuk had been reacquired from the Boston Bruins prior to the 1957-58 season for Johnny Bucyk (probably should have kept him...). Red Kelly was considered one of the top defenseman in the game, and was the first winner of the Norris Trophy. One of the early rushing defensemen, Kelly was asked to play most of the 1958-59 season on a broken ankle, to try and get the team in the playoffs. When his play was criticized later on, Kelly admitted he was playing on a bad ankle. The resulting news story infuriated Adams, who attempted to trade Kelly to New York. Marcel Pronovost was another pioneer in puck-rushing defense, who won four Cups with the Wings (and 1 with Toronto) and played 21 years in the league. Surprisingly, his number has yet to be retired by the Wings. Alex Delvecchio was a dependable, durable center for 22 years, and would serve as captain for 12 seasons.
Of all the players acquired during Adams' fire sale after 1955, defenseman Warren Godfrey spent by far the longest on the team, playing parts of 12 seasons with Detroit. Norm Ullman was a dependable goal-scorer for the Wings, scoring 490 goals in 20 seasons in the NHL (with Detroit and Toronto). Defenseman Gus Mortson was part of the Leafs dynasty of 1947-51, winning four Cups in five seasons. 1958-59 was his final season in the NHL. Charlie Burns, on the other hand, was in his rookie season and only year in Detroit, and would go on to play 10 years in the NHL. Hall of Famers on the Wings roster include Sawchuk, Howe, Delvecchio, Kelly, Ullman, Pronovost, Adams and Abel.
The Leafs were a team on the rise in 1958-59. After winning the 1951 Stanley Cup, the franchise spent most of the 1950s in mediocrity, never rising above third place and never getting past the first round. Halfway through the season, Punch Imlach was named General Manager. The nucleus for their 1960s dynasty was almost complete by this season. Players like Tim Horton, Dick Duff, Ron Stewart, George Armstrong, Carl Brewer, Bob Baun and Frank Mahovlich grew up in the Leafs system. Mahovlich was their biggest star, the winner of the 1957 Calder Trophy and would lead the team to four Stanley Cups. However, constant clashes with the abrasive Punch Imlach would wear on Mahovlich, being hospitalized twice for depression and tension. Bert Olmstead was drafted from Montreal for veteran leadership, having won 4 Cups with the Canadiens.
One of the Leafs' greatest moves was purchasing Johnny Bower from New York during the 1958 Interleague Draft. Bower had spent 13 seasons in the minor leagues, with only parts of three with the Rangers, and was 33 years old when he joined Toronto. He would play 12 years with the Leafs, winning four Stanley Cups and two Vezina Trophies. Hall of Famers on the Leafs include Mahovlich, Bower, Horton, Stanley, Olmstead, Duff, Pulford, Armstrong, Conn Smythe, Imlach and King Clancy.
Lastly, here's an advertisement on the back of this program for Gordie Howe Pro-Style Skates. Howe had taken over as captain of the Red Wings after Ted Lindsay was traded to Chicago after 1957.
Hockey is one of the more expensive sports to play (even worse if your child wants to be a goaltender). Look at the price of men's skates in this ad, $8.88. Adjusted for inflation, that's about $99.20. A pair of men's CCM skates can go as high as $400 today! Hockey sticks were rather cheap as well, from 79¢ to $2.49, or $8.83 to $27.82. Good luck finding a quality hockey stick for less than $100 anymore. Gloves back then went from $4.98 to $11.95, or $55.63 to $133.50. Depending on the brand, hockey gloves can run from $70 to $250. I found a slightly-used pair of CCM gloves at a Flint Firebirds end-of-season sale two years ago for $10. Following season, the same type of gloves were going for $50 a pair.
This program is 31 pages long, and is smaller in size than a typical Wings program. Plenty of advertisements, stats and articles. "Reddi Red Wing Sez" was a regular column in Wings programs back then, and included news from throughout the hockey world. The upcoming opponents, Montreal, are featured on page 11, while Deadline Redline highlights December's upcoming schedule.
The newest team in the Detroit sports scene, the Detroit Pistons, are featured on the inside cover. "A Fast Action Sport You're Sure to Like" is the title of the ad, and it featured two upcoming home games, against the Philadelphia Warriors and New York Knicks. The Pistons arrived in Detroit for the 1957-58 season and shared Olympia with the Red Wings for several seasons until moving into Cobo Arena upon that building's opening.
Local advertisements, besides this one, include Friar Tuck Hamburgers, Rheaume's Restaurant, Checker Bar BQ, Michigan Building Janitor Services, Great Lakes Electric, and Cadillac Storage. Since the auto industry was still booming at this time, car advertisements include the 1959 Ford Thunderbird, the 1959 Oldsmobile, the 1959 DeSoto and the 1959 Plymouth, Auto dealers include Dick Shalla Chevrolet, Art Grissom Buick and BJ Ratigan DeSoto Plymouth.
References
National Hockey League Regular Season Statistics:
1958-59,
from hockeydb.com
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