Chicago Black Hawks (NHL, 1953-54)

1953-54 Regular Season
Black Hawks vs. Boston Bruins

      From 1944-58, the Chicago Black Hawks struggled mightily, both on the ice and at the box office. After appearing in the 1944 Stanley Cup Finals, the Hawks would miss the playoffs 12 times in that 14-year stretch, often buried in the basement of the six-team NHL. Attendance dropped to dangerously low levels, and rumors began swirling that the team was in danger of going out of business. Hawks owners resorted to scheduling neutral site games in multiple Midwest cities in hopes of drawing crowds. The other NHL teams at one point began sending talent to the Hawks to try to make the team competitive. 

      The team was coming off a surprise third-place finish in 1952-53, then stretched the powerful Montreal Canadiens to seven games in the first round. Former Red Wing Sid Abel returned as head coach, as did General Manager Bill Tobin. Home games were played at 16,666-seat Chicago Stadium.

     The Black Hawks were unable to build on that successful season. Instead, they crashed and burned in 1953-54, falling to the cellar of the NHL with an ugly 12-51-7 record. The 12 wins and 31 points were franchise records that still stand today. Chicago finished an incredible 37 points behind the fifth-place New York Rangers and 57 behind league-best Detroit. A 3-14-3 record by mid-November pretty much put the Black Hawks out of playoff contention immediately. Attendance nearly fell in half, as Chicago averaged just 6,574 per game that year, down from 11,925 per game in 1952-53.

     Chicago's offense had all the firepower of an empty squirt gun, as the Black Hawks managed to score just 133 goals, 19 less than the next-worst team, Toronto. Chicago was led in points by former Red Wing center Larry Wilson, who scored 9 goals and 42 points in 66 games (yup, that's your leading scorer). Pete Conacher had the most goals on the Black Hawks, scoring 19 goals to go with 28 points in 70 games. Rugged veteran Bill Gadsby was the highest scorer on defense, chipping in 12 goals and 41 points in all 70 games. Bill Mosienko (15), Lou Jankowski (15) and George Gee (10) were the only other Black Hawks with at least 10 goals that year.

     Another notable forward on the 1953-54 Black Hawks was Fred Sasakamoose. Sasakamoose, hailing from Debden, Saskatchewan, was one of the first Canadian Indigenous players in NHL history, as well as the first First Nations player with treaty status. This was his only season in the NHL, and he played 11 games, registering no goals and no points. He later became a band councilor of the Ahtahkakoop Cree Nation, and helped create athletic opportunities for Indigenous youth. Sasakamoose's memoir, Call Me Indian, is highly recommended.

     Defense was just as bad, as Chicago surrendered 242 goals, 60 more than the next-worst team, New York. The Black Hawks used three goaltenders that season, including former Calder Trophy winner Jack Gelineau, who allowed 18 goals in two games, and Jean Marois, who allowed 11 goals in two games. 

     The goaltender who took the most abuse was Al Rollins. Rollins was acquired from Toronto in the 1952 offseason in a blockbuster trade with the Toronto Maple Leafs. In that trade, Chicago received Rollins, plus Cal Gardner, Ray Hannigan and Gus Mortson for goaltender Harry Lumley. Rollins was coming off two solid seasons in Toronto, leading the Leafs to the 1951 Stanley Cup. However, Leafs management felt Lumley was an upgrade in goal and pulled the trigger. Rollins played spectacularly in 1952-53, finishing 27-28-15 with a 2.50 GAA and a career-high six shutouts. His 1953-54 numbers were significantly worse, with a 12-47-7 record and 3.23 GAA. Those numbers were mostly the fault of a terrible team in front of him. Rollins posted five shutouts, two of which were scoreless ties! While his GAA was by far the highest among the NHL's starters, it isn't too bad, considering his team managed an average of two goals per game. The rest of the league recognized Rollins as a great goaltender, selecting him for the NHL All-Star Game and awarding him the Hart Trophy.

     Obviously, the Black Hawks were nowhere near the postseason, and would not get back to the playoffs until 1958-59, when players such as Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita and Glenn Hall were on the team.

     This is a 20-page program, all in black and white and loaded with advertisements. Articles include "Facing Off For the Stanley Cup (pgs. 2 and 18) and "Hawk of the Week", which featured Al Rollins (he deserved it). On page 9, the program advertises "Bill Mosienko Nite" on March 19, honoring one of Chicago's top players in the pre-Hull era. 

This program is from the March 19, 1954 regular season game between the Black Hawks and Boston Bruins. Boston would end up finishing in fourth place with a 32-28-10 record, and featured future Hall of Famers Woody Dumart, Milt Schmidt, Bill Quackenbush and Head Coach Lynn Patrick. Cal Gardner was acquired from Chicago earlier in the season. Boston also featured rookie left wing Doug Mohns, who would go on to a 22-year NHL career. The Bruins had veteran "Sugar" Jim Henry in net, who played in all 70 games, with a 2.59 GAA and 8 shutouts. The Bruins would be back in the Stanley Cup Playoffs for the fourth straight year, but were swept aside by the powerful Montreal Canadiens in four straight, managing only four goals in the process.

     Despite the awful record, the Black Hawks actually did have some talent on their roster along with Rollins. Bill Gadsby was a rugged defenseman who would play 20 years in the NHL, spending time in New York and Detroit. Center Ken Wharram would play 29 games that season, and would be an integral part of the Black Hawks revival in the late 1950s, helping the team win the 1961 Stanley Cup, and would stay with the Hawks through 1969. Gadsby and Head Coach Sid Abel would later be inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

     Despite the two teams going in opposite directions on the season, March 19th was the Black Hawks night, as they blew out the Bruins, 7-0, in front of just 6,418 at Chicago Stadium. This win was just the fourth for Chicago in 22 games and came after being shutout in back-to-back games.

     Local advertisements include Horeck Jewelers (owned by former Black Hawk Pete Horeck), The Miracle Ham Company, Lucky Strikes cigarettes, Tivoli Laundry, and Patricca's Restaurant and Cocktail Lounge ("The Best Pizza in Town")

Aftermath: Sid Abel would be fired as Black Hawks coach after this season, replaced by Frank Eddolls. Abel would later resurface as Head Coach of the Detroit Red Wings.

References:

National Hockey League Statistics: 1953-54, from hockeydb.com