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1977–78 NHL season

The 1977–78 NHL season was the 61st season of the National Hockey League. The Montreal Canadiens won their third Stanley Cup in a row, defeating the Boston Bruins four games to two in the Stanley Cup Finals.

1977–78 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationOctober 12, 1977 – May 25, 1978
Number of games80
Number of teams18
TV partner(s)CBC, SRC (Canada)
NHL Network (United States)
Draft
Top draft pickDale McCourt
Picked byDetroit Red Wings
Regular season
Season championsMontreal Canadiens
Season MVPGuy Lafleur (Canadiens)
Top scorerGuy Lafleur (Canadiens)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVPLarry Robinson (Canadiens)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsMontreal Canadiens
  Runners-upBoston Bruins
NHL seasons

League business

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Prior to the start of the season, Clarence Campbell retired as NHL President. John Ziegler succeeded him in that capacity.

A trophy for the top defensive forward, the Frank J. Selke Trophy, made its debut this season and went to Bob Gainey, who played left wing for Montreal.

The league changed the playoff qualification format for this season. Whereas before the top three teams in every division qualified, the format was changed to guarantee the top two teams in each division a playoff spot. The last four qualifiers were from the next-best four regular-season records from teams finishing third or lower.

The 1977 NHL Amateur Draft was held on June 14, at the Mount Royal Hotel in Montreal, Quebec. Dale McCourt was selected first overall by the Detroit Red Wings.

Teams were required to place the last names of players on the back of all jerseys starting with this season, but Toronto Maple Leafs owner Harold Ballard initially refused, fearing that he would not be able to sell programs at his team's games. The NHL responded by threatening to levy a fine on the team in February 1978, so Ballard complied by making the letters the same color as the background they were on, which for the team's road jerseys was blue. The League threatened further sanctions, and despite playing more than one game with their "unreadable" sweaters, Ballard's Maple Leafs finally complied in earnest by making the letters white on the blue road jerseys. (Blue letter names would not come to the white home jerseys until the following year.)[1]

Officials began wearing their surnames on the back of their sweaters instead of being identified by numbers, as they were previously. The NHL returned to using uniform numbers for officials for the 1994–95 season.

Arena changes

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The St. Louis Blues's home arena, St. Louis Arena, was renamed the Checkerdome after Ralston Purina purchased both the team and the arena, referencing the pet food company's checkerboard logo.

Regular season

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Tom Lysiak (left) celebrates a goal with Atlanta Flames teammates in a game with the Colorado Rockies in 1978

Bobby Orr sat out the season to rest his oft-injured knee in the hope that rest would allow him to return to play in 1978–79; he would return for that season, only playing in six games before retiring. However, defenseman Doug Wilson proved to be an excellent replacement for the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Detroit Red Wings made changes, adding rookie Dale McCourt and Andre St. Laurent, who led the Wings to their first playoff appearance since 1970.

On December 11, 1977, the Philadelphia Flyers' Tom Bladon became the first defenceman in NHL history to score eight points in one game.[2] He scored four goals and four assists versus the Cleveland Barons. It was 25% of his point total for the entire season.

The Colorado Rockies qualified for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history. They would not make the playoffs again until after the team had moved to New Jersey, in 1988. The next time the playoffs came to Colorado would be the Colorado Avalanche's championship season of 1996.

Final standings

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GP = Games Played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold

Prince of Wales Conference

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Adams Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Boston Bruins 80 51 18 11 333 218 113
Buffalo Sabres 80 44 19 17 288 215 105
Toronto Maple Leafs 80 41 29 10 271 237 92
Cleveland Barons 80 22 45 13 230 325 57

[3]

Norris Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Montreal Canadiens 80 59 10 11 359 183 129
Detroit Red Wings 80 32 34 14 252 266 78
Los Angeles Kings 80 31 34 15 243 245 77
Pittsburgh Penguins 80 25 37 18 254 321 68
Washington Capitals 80 17 49 14 195 321 48

[3]

Clarence Campbell Conference

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Patrick Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
New York Islanders 80 48 17 15 334 210 111
Philadelphia Flyers 80 45 20 15 296 200 105
Atlanta Flames 80 34 27 19 274 252 87
New York Rangers 80 30 37 13 279 280 73

[3]

Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Black Hawks 80 32 29 19 230 220 83
Colorado Rockies 80 19 40 21 257 305 59
Vancouver Canucks 80 20 43 17 239 320 57
St. Louis Blues 80 20 47 13 195 304 53
Minnesota North Stars 80 18 53 9 218 325 45

[3]

Playoffs

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For the first time in NHL history, all of the Original Six teams qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs.

The playoffs were held in four rounds, preliminary, quarterfinals, semifinals and finals. In the preliminary round, the Detroit Red Wings was the only lower-placed team to win over the higher-placed team. The Red Wings were then defeated in five games by the first-place Montreal Canadiens. The Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Los Angeles Kings to advance to the quarterfinals, where the Leafs upset the third-place New York Islanders in seven games, setting up an Original Six playoff against Montreal. The upsets ended there as the Canadiens swept the Leafs to advance to the finals. In the other groupings, the higher-placed team won each round, and the second-place Boston Bruins advanced to the finals against the first-place Canadiens. In the finals, the Canadiens defeated the Bruins in six games to win their third consecutive Stanley Cup.

The Colorado Rockies made their one and only playoff appearance in the preliminary round against the Philadelphia Flyers, and were swept in two games. It would take another ten years before they got to the playoffs again in New Jersey. The Chicago Black Hawks were swept in the other Original Six matchup of the playoffs, losing to Boston in the quarterfinals.

Playoff seeds

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The twelve teams that qualified for the playoffs are ranked 1–12 based on regular season points.

Note: Only teams that qualified for the playoffs are listed here.

  1. Montreal Canadiens, Norris Division champions, Prince of Wales Conference regular season champions, NHL regular season champions – 129 points
  2. Boston Bruins, Adams Division champions – 113 points
  3. New York Islanders, Patrick Division champions, Clarence Campbell Conference regular season champions – 111 points
  4. Philadelphia Flyers – 105 points (45 wins)
  5. Buffalo Sabres – 105 points (44 wins)
  6. Toronto Maple Leafs – 92 points
  7. Atlanta Flames – 87 points
  8. Chicago Black Hawks, Smythe Division champions – 83 points
  9. Detroit Red Wings – 78 points
  10. Los Angeles Kings – 77 points
  11. New York Rangers – 73 points
  12. Colorado Rockies – 59 points

Playoff bracket

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Preliminary round Quarterfinals Semifinals Stanley Cup Finals
            
1 Montreal 4
8 Detroit 1
4 Atlanta 0
5 Detroit 2
1 Montreal 4
4 Toronto 0
3 NY Islanders 3
6 Toronto 4
3 Toronto 2
6 Los Angeles 0
1 Montreal 4
2 Boston 2
2 Boston 4
7 Chicago 0
2 Boston 4
3 Philadelphia 1
1 Philadelphia 2
8 Colorado 0
4 Philadelphia 4
5 Buffalo 1
2 Buffalo 2
7 NY Rangers 1
  • Division winners earned a bye to the Quarterfinals
  • Teams were re-seeded based on regular season record after the Preliminary and Quarterfinal rounds

Preliminary round

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(1) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (8) Colorado Rockies

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This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams. It was the Rockies' only playoff appearance in their first eight seasons before moving to New Jersey in 1982 (including two years in Kansas City and six in Denver).


April 11 Colorado Rockies 2–3 OT Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
Denis Dupere (1) – pp – 17:45 First period 11:57 – pp – Rick MacLeish (1)
No scoring Second period 19:31 – Bobby Clarke (1)
Dave Hudson (1) – 01:48 Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 00:23 – Mel Bridgman (1)
Doug Favell Goalie stats Bernie Parent
April 13 Philadelphia Flyers 3–1 Colorado Rockies McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
Reggie Leach (1) – 02:41 First period 06:59 – Dennis Owchar (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Don Saleski (1) – 01:13
Bob Kelly (1) – 10:36 		Third period No scoring
Bernie Parent Goalie stats Doug Favell
Philadelphia won series 2–0


(2) Buffalo Sabres vs. (7) New York Rangers

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This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams.


April 11 New York Rangers 1–4 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap  
No scoring First period 16:41 – Gilbert Perrault (1)
No scoring Second period 12:28 – Richard Martin (1)
Steve Vickers (1) – 02:35 Third period 08:33 – Jocelyn Guevremont (1)
17:50 – Gary McAdam (1)
Wayne Thomas Goalie stats Don Edwards
April 13 Buffalo Sabres 3–4 OT New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
Rene Robert (1) – 03:06
Derek Smith (1) – 16:29 		First period 14:36 – Steve Vickers (2)
19:59 – Pat Hickey (1)
Danny Gare (1) – pp – 18:04 Second period 15:07 – pp – Ron Duguay (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 01:37 – Don Murdoch (1)
Don Edwards Goalie stats John Davidson
April 15 New York Rangers 1–4 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Pat Hickey (2) – pp – 19:18 Second period 08:04 – Gilbert Perreault (2)
14:23 – pp – Craig Ramsay (1)
15:56 – Danny Gare (2)
No scoring Third period 10:32 – Rene Robert (2)
Wayne Thomas Goalie stats Don Edwards
Buffalo won series 2–1


(3) Toronto Maple Leafs vs. (6) Los Angeles Kings

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This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. The only previous meeting was in the 1975 preliminary round, in which Toronto won the series 2–1.


April 11 Los Angeles Kings 3–7 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 06:35 – pp – Stan Weir (1)
15:53 – Jerry Butler (1)
No scoring Second period 12:48 – Tiger Williams (1)
13:24 – Borje Salming (1)
Pete Stemkowski (1) – 09:41
Darryl Edestrand (1) – 17:52
Glenn Goldup (1) – 19:13 		Third period 02:18 – George Ferguson (1)
04:48 – George Ferguson (2)
09:51 – George Ferguson (3)
Rogie Vachon Goalie stats Mike Palmateer
April 13 Toronto Maple Leafs 4–0 Los Angeles Kings The Forum Recap  
Ron Ellis (1) – 01:12
Lanny McDonald (1) – 10:38
Jimmy Jones (1) – 15:29 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Darryl Sittler (1) – pp – 13:15 Third period No scoring
Mike Palmateer Goalie stats Rogie Vachon
Toronto won series 2–0


(4) Atlanta Flames vs. (5) Detroit Red Wings

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This was the first playoff series between these two teams; they would not meet again in Stanley Cup play until 2004, after the Flames had relocated to Calgary. (The Flames never won a playoff series while representing Atlanta, losing all six over an eight-year period.)

For Detroit, it was their only playoff series win in the twenty years between 1967 and 1986.


April 11 Detroit Red Wings 5–3 Atlanta Flames Omni Coliseum Recap  
Dale McCourt (1) – pp – 04:52
Errol Thompson (1) – pp – 07:05
Vaclav Nedomansky (1) – pp – 07:32
Dennis Hextall (1) – sh – 15:18 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 05:26 – Guy Chouinard (1)
Andre St. Laurent (1) – 19:59 Third period 00:09 – Eric Vail (1)
08:07 – Dick Redmond (1)
Ron Low Goalie stats Dan Bouchard
April 13 Atlanta Flames 2–3 Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Tom Lysiak (1) – 06:29 Second period 12:09 – Vaclav Nedomansky (2)
Bobby Lalonde (1) Third period 08:58 – Bill Lochead (1)
18:26 – Bill Lochead (2)
Dan Bouchard Goalie stats Jim Rutherford
Detroit won series 2–0


Quarterfinals

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(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (8) Detroit Red Wings

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This was the 12th playoff series meeting between these two teams. Detroit led 7–4 in previous playoff meetings. Montreal won their most recent meeting in six games in the 1966 Stanley Cup Finals. When Detroit won game two 4–2, the Red Wings victory marked the only time in the 1978 Stanley Cup playoffs that the Canadiens lost a game on home ice.

Game 4 was the final playoff game at the Detroit Olympia.


April 17 Detroit Red Wings 2–6 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Bill Lochead (3) – 07:45
Dale McCourt (2) – 18:56 		Second period 05:53 – Doug Jarvis (1)
06:46 – Rejean Houle (1)
14:39 – Yvan Cournoyer (1)
17:31 – Steve Shutt (1)
No scoring Third period 03:25 – Yvan Cournoyer (2)
07:25 – Pierre Mondou (1)
Ron Low Goalie stats Ken Dryden
April 19 Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Dale McCourt (3) – 18:06
Dale McCourt (4) – pp – 19:22 		Second period 03:37 – pp – Larry Robinson (1)
15:19 – Yvan Cournoyer (3)
Errol Thompson (2) – 00:22
Nick Libett (1) – 19:22 		Third period No scoring
Jim Rutherford Goalie stats Ken Dryden
April 21 Montreal Canadiens 4–2 Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia Recap  
Steve Shutt (2) – pp – 08:38 First period 07:54 – pp – Nick Libett (2)
No scoring Second period 13:48 – Nick Libett (3)
Jacques Lemaire (1) – 00:30
Pierre Larouche (1) – 03:46
Yvan Cournoyer (4) – 12:38 		Third period No scoring
Ken Dryden Goalie stats Ron Low
April 23 Montreal Canadiens 8–0 Detroit Red Wings Detroit Olympia Recap  
Doug Risebrough (1) – sh – 13:00
Bob Gainey (1) – sh – 13:24
Guy Lafleur (1) – pp – 15:51 		First period No scoring
Jacques Lemaire (2) – 01:24
Pierre Mondou (2) – pp – 05:46
Steve Shutt (3) – 07:54
Guy Lafleur (2) – 11:30 		Second period No scoring
Steve Shutt (4) – 17:37 Third period No scoring
Ken Dryden Goalie stats Jim Rutherford
April 25 Detroit Red Wings 2–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Vaclav Nedomansky (3) – 09:40 First period 00:20 – Rejean Houle (2)
11:09 – pp – Guy Lapointe (1)
Dennis Polonich (1) – 06:40 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 01:37 – pp – Doug Jarvis (2)
17:36 – Doug Jarvis (3)
Ron Low Goalie stats Ken Dryden
Montreal won series 4–1


(2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Chicago Black Hawks

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This was the sixth playoff meeting between these two teams. Boston won four of the previous five meetings. Chicago won their last series meeting 2–1 in the 1975 preliminary round.


April 17 Chicago Black Hawks 1–6 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Grant Mulvey (1) – pp – 15:29 First period 00:24 – Brad Park (1)
06:04 – pp – Wayne Cashman (1)
No scoring Second period 00:21 – Peter McNab (1)
06:12 – Peter McNab (2)
No scoring Third period 06:11 – pp – Bobby Schmautz (1)
17:58 – Terry O'Reilly (1)
Tony Esposito 35 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Ron Grahame 24 saves / 25 shots
April 19 Chicago Black Hawks 3–4 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Doug Hicks (1) – pp – 05:41
Stan Mikita (1) – 18:48 		First period 12:03 – Don Marcotte (1)
Bob Murray (1) – 19:13 Second period 16:59 – pp – Wayne Cashman (2)
No scoring Third period 05:17 – Rick Middleton (1)
No scoring First overtime period 01:50 – Terry O'Reilly (2)
Tony Esposito 20 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Ron Grahame 9 saves / 12 shots
April 21 Boston Bruins 4–3 OT Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
John Wensink (1) – 13:01
John Wensink (2) – 15:49 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 15:43 – pp – Stan Mikita (2)
Terry O'Reilly (3) – 01:14 Third period 13:04 – Grant Mulvey (2)
19:33 – Cliff Koroll (1)
Peter McNab (3) – 10:17 First overtime period No scoring
Gerry Cheevers 26 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Tony Esposito 26 saves / 30 shots
April 23 Boston Bruins 5–2 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium Recap  
Peter McNab (4) – 00:51
Terry O'Reilly (4) – pp – 06:14
Peter McNab (5) – 08:15
Brad Park (2) – 11:40 		First period No scoring
Brad Park (3) – 19:39 Second period 09:59 – pp – Stan Mikita (3)
No scoring Third period 17:55 – Ted Bulley (1)
Gerry Cheevers 12 saves / 14 shots Goalie stats Tony Esposito 17 saves / 22 shots
Boston won series 4–0


(3) New York Islanders vs. (6) Toronto Maple Leafs

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This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams.


April 17 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–4 New York Islanders Nassau Coliseum Recap  
No scoring First period 07:58 – Mike Kaszycki (1)
14:09 – Bobby Nystrom (1)
16:39 – Mike Bossy (1)
Darryl Sittler (2) – pp – 12:48 Second period 14:06 – Wayne Merrick (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Palmateer 23 saves / 27 shots Goalie stats Glenn Resch 29 saves / 30 shots
April 19 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–3 OT New York Islanders Nassau Coliseum Recap  
Ian Turnbull (1) – pp – 13:03 First period 16:28 – pp – Clark Gillies (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
George Ferguson (4) – 09:41 Third period 03:24 – Bob Bourne (1)
No scoring First overtime period 02:50 – Mike Bossy (2)
Mike Palmateer 37 saves / 40 shots Goalie stats Glenn Resch 28 saves / 30 shots
April 21 New York Islanders 0–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 14:37 – Ron Ellis (2)
No scoring Third period 05:37 – Ian Turnbull (2)
Glenn Resch 21 saves / 23 shots Goalie stats Mike Palmateer 19 saves / 19 shots
April 23 New York Islanders 1–3 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Bobby Nystrom (2) – pp – 10:54 Second period 03:53 – Borje Salming (2)
04:09 – Stan Weir (2)
No scoring Third period 04:49 – Pat Boutette (1)
Glenn Resch 25 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Mike Palmateer 31 saves / 32 shots
April 25 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–2 OT New York Islanders Nassau Coliseum Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Ian Turnbull (3) – 01:10 Second period 13:39 – Denis Potvin (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 08:02 – Bobby Nystrom (3)
Mike Palmateer 38 saves / 40 shots Goalie stats Glenn Resch 29 saves / 30 shots
April 27 New York Islanders 2–5 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
No scoring First period 02:49 – Darryl Sittler (3)
03:40 – pp – Jack Valiquette (1)
11:03 – pp – Lanny McDonald (2)
12:53 – Stan Weir (3)
No scoring Second period 04:36 – Pat Boutette (2)
Clark Gillies (2) – 04:51
Bob Bourne (2) – pp – 17:53 		Third period No scoring
Billy Smith 16 saves / 17 shots
Glenn Resch 3 saves / 7 shots 		Goalie stats Mike Palmateer 35 saves / 37 shots
April 29 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–1 OT New York Islanders Nassau Coliseum Recap  
No scoring First period 05:18 – Denis Potvin (2)
Ian Turnbull (4) – 03:42 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Lanny McDonald (3) – 04:13 First overtime period No scoring
Mike Palmateer 22 saves / 23 shots Goalie stats Glenn Resch 25 saves / 27 shots
Toronto won series 4–3


(4) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (5) Buffalo Sabres

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This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. Philadelphia won the only previous meeting in six games in the 1975 Stanley Cup Finals.


April 17 Buffalo Sabres 1–4 Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
Terry Martin (1) – 06:34 First period 06:19 – pp – Rick MacLeish (2)
No scoring Second period 01:08 – Bob Kelly (2)
06:13 – Rick MacLeish (3)
No scoring Third period 01:28 – Bill Barber (1)
Don Edwards 24 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Bernie Parent 24 saves / 25 shots
April 19 Buffalo Sabres 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
Richard Martin (2) – pp – 11:58 First period 07:16 – pp – Bill Barber (2)
Danny Gare (3) – pp – 14:20 Second period 04:09 – Andre Dupont (1)
10:31 – Rick MacLeish (4)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Don Edwards 31 saves / 34 shots Goalie stats Bernie Parent 20 saves / 22 shots
April 22 Philadelphia Flyers 1–4 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap  
Rick MacLeish (5) – pp – 08:36 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 09:18 – Gary McAdam (2)
No scoring Third period 00:43 – Gilbert Perreault (3)
03:17 – Derek Smith (2)
12:25 – Danny Gare (4)
Bernie Parent 29 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Don Edwards 20 saves / 21 shots
April 23 Philadelphia Flyers 4–2 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap  
Bob Kelly (3) – 05:56
Ross Lonsberry (1) – pp – 08:02
Rick MacLeish (6) – 14:13 		First period 15:13 – Craig Ramsay (2)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Bill Barber (3) – 14:59 Third period 16:57 – Craig Ramsay (3)
Bernie Parent 31 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Don Edwards 23 saves / 27 shots
April 25 Buffalo Sabres 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
No scoring First period 13:43 – pp – Bobby Clarke (2)
Terry Martin (2) – 10:53 Second period 11:07 – Paul Holmgren (1)
14:34 – Ross Lonsberry (2)
Derek Smith (3) – 13:04 Third period 06:59 – Don Saleski (2)
Don Edwards 22 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Bernie Parent 26 saves / 28 shots
Philadelphia won series 4–1


Semifinals

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(1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (4) Toronto Maple Leafs

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This was the 14th playoff series meeting between these two teams. Toronto lead 7–6 in previous meetings. Toronto won the most recent meeting in six games in the 1967 Stanley Cup Finals.


May 2 Toronto Maple Leafs 3–5 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Ron Ellis (3) – 02:25 First period 00:23 – Serge Savard (1)
17:06 – Yvan Cournoyer (5)
19:13 – Jacques Lemaire (3)
Ian Turnbull (5) – 08:27 Second period No scoring
Pat Boutette (3) – 14:32 Third period 03:14 – Yvan Cournoyer (6)
08:54 – Guy Lafleur (3)
Mike Palmateer 31 saves / 36 shots Goalie stats Ken Dryden 12 saves / 15 shots
May 4 Toronto Maple Leafs 2–3 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 04:01 – pp – Larry Robinson (2)
06:46 – Guy Lafleur (4)
Ian Turnbull (6) – 05:47
Dan Maloney (1) – pp – 08:35 		Second period 15:32 – pp – Guy Lafleur (5)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Palmateer 23 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Ken Dryden 21 saves / 23 shots
May 6 Montreal Canadiens 6–1 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Steve Shutt (5) – pp – 01:34
Rick Chartraw (1) – 13:09
Yvon Lambert (1) – 17:00 		First period No scoring
Guy Lafleur (6) – 11:02
Jacques Lemaire (4) – 12:26 		Second period 08:50 – George Ferguson (5)
Guy Lafleur (7) – 05:08 Third period No scoring
Ken Dryden 23 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Mike Palmateer 33 saves / 39 shots
May 9 Montreal Canadiens 2–0 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens Recap  
Jacques Lemaire (5) – 07:21 First period No scoring
Steve Shutt (6) – pp – 02:15 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Ken Dryden 23 saves / 23 shots Goalie stats Mike Palmateer 27 saves / 29 shots
Montreal won series 4–0


(2) Boston Bruins vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers

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This was the fourth playoff series meeting between these two teams. Philadelphia won two of the previous three meetings. This was the third straight semifinal meeting following Philadelphia's win in five games in 1976 and Boston's four-game sweep last season.

Game five was Fred Shero's last game as head coach of the Flyers, and Bernie Parent's final playoff game.[4]


May 2 Philadelphia Flyers 2–3 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Reggie Leach (2) – pp – 15:24 First period 07:45 – Jean Ratelle (1)
No scoring Second period 15:28 – Don Marcotte (2)
Bobby Clarke (3) – 05:02 Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 01:43 – Rick Middleton (2)
Bernie Parent 22 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 21 saves / 23 shots
May 4 Philadelphia Flyers 5–7 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Orest Kindrachuk (1) – pp – 17:48 First period 06:01 – pp – Bobby Schmautz (2)
08:55 – Rick Middleton (3)
12:31 – pp – Wayne Cashman (3)
19:51 – Jean Ratelle (2)
Bill Barber (4) – 05:22
Rick MacLeish (7) – 08:06
Bob Dailey (1) – 19:20 		Second period 02:36 – Bobby Schmautz (3)
Bobby Clarke (4) – 01:41 Third period 14:24 – Rick Middleton (4)
16:39 – Gregg Sheppard (1)
Bernie Parent 26 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 20 saves / 25 shots
May 7 Boston Bruins 1–3 Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
Brad Park (4) – pp – 13:42 First period 10:36 – André Dupont (2)
No scoring Second period 11:56 – Orest Kindrachuk (2)
No scoring Third period 03:32 – Bill Barber (5)
Ron Grahame 21 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Bernie Parent 24 saves / 25 shots
May 9 Boston Bruins 4–2 Philadelphia Flyers Spectrum Recap  
Bobby Schmautz (4) – 06:20
Don Marcotte (3) – 15:43 		First period No Scoring
Wayne Cashman (4) – 13:57 Second period 16:26 – Jimmy Watson (1)
Bobby Schmautz (5) – en – 19:25 Third period 06:34 – pp – Orest Kindrachuk (3)
Gerry Cheevers 28 saves / 30 shots Goalie stats Bernie Parent 12 saves / 15 shots
May 11 Philadelphia Flyers 3–6 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
No Scoring First period 17:04 – Mike Milbury (1)
Bill Barber (6) – 02:56
Orest Kindrachuk (4) – 13:40
Orest Kindrachuk (5) – 13:51 		Second period 04:29 – pp – Brad Park (5)
17:58 – Bobby Schmautz (6)
No Scoring Third period 06:18 – Don Marcotte (4)
12:22 – Peter McNab (6)
18:56 – en – Jean Ratelle (3)
Bernie Parent 27 saves / 32 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 21 saves / 24 shots
Boston won series 4–1


Stanley Cup Finals

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Main article: 1978 Stanley Cup Finals

This was the 17th playoff series (and the last Finals) meeting between these two teams. Montreal led 14–2 in previous meetings. This was a rematch of last year's Stanley Cup Finals, in which Montreal won in a four-game sweep.


May 13 Boston Bruins 1–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
Brad Park (6) – pp – 02:31 First period 04:31 – pp – Guy Lafleur (8)
09:53 – pp – Yvon Lambert (2)
No scoring Second period 13:54 – Steve Shutt (7)
No scoring Third period 03:55 – Yvan Cournoyer (7)
Gerry Cheevers 23 saves / 27 shots Goalie stats Ken Dryden 15 saves / 16 shots
May 16 Boston Bruins 2–3 OT Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Brad Park (7) – 03:57 Second period 07:00 – Steve Shutt (8)
Rick Smith (1) – 15:48 Third period 12:12 – Bob Gainey (2)
No scoring First overtime period 13:09 – Guy Lafleur (9)
Gerry Cheevers 32 saves / 35 shots Goalie stats Ken Dryden 30 saves / 32 shots
May 18 Montreal Canadiens 0–4 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
No scoring First period 00:59 – Gary Doak (1)
05:11 – Rick Middleton (5)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 02:54 – Peter McNab (7)
15:39 – Terry O'Reilly (5)
Ken Dryden 32 saves / 36 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 16 saves / 16 shots
May 21 Montreal Canadiens 3–4 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Doug Risebrough (2) – 03:26 First period 00:25 – Gregg Sheppard (2)
Larry Robinson (3) – 07:00 Second period No scoring
Guy Lafleur (10) – 19:27 Third period 09:19 – Peter McNab (8)
13:20 – Brad Park (8)
No scoring First overtime period 06:22 – Bobby Schmautz (7)
Ken Dryden 20 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 27 saves / 30 shots
May 23 Boston Bruins 1–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum Recap  
No scoring First period 07:46 – Larry Robinson (4)
11:10 – pp – Pierre Mondou (3)
No scoring Second period 13:04 – pp Pierre Larouche (2)
18:42 – Jacques Lemaire (6)
Don Marcotte (5) – pp – 11:22 Third period No scoring
Gerry Cheevers 21 saves / 25 shots
Ron Grahame 5 saves / 5 shots 		Goalie stats Ken Dryden 29 saves / 30 shots
May 25 Montreal Canadiens 4–1 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap  
Steve Shutt (9) – 07:01
Mario Tremblay (1) – 09:20 		First period 04:05 – pp – Brad Park (9)
Mario Tremblay (2) – 13:37
Rejean Houle (3) – 17:46 		Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Ken Dryden 15 saves / 16 shots Goalie stats Gerry Cheevers 20 saves / 24 shots
Montreal won series 4–2


Awards

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The league introduced the Frank J. Selke trophy this season. It rewards the forward judged to be the best at defensive abilities.

1978 NHL awards
Prince of Wales Trophy:
(Wales Conference regular season champion)		 Montreal Canadiens
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl:
(Campbell Conference regular season champion)		 New York Islanders
Art Ross Trophy:
(Top scorer, regular season)		 Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy:
(Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication)		 Butch Goring, Los Angeles Kings
Calder Memorial Trophy:
(Top first-year player)		 Mike Bossy, New York Islanders
Conn Smythe Trophy:
(Most valuable player, playoffs)		 Larry Robinson, Montreal Canadiens
Frank J. Selke Trophy:
(Best defensive forward)		 Bob Gainey, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy:
(Most valuable player, regular season)		 Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens
Jack Adams Award:
(Best coach)		 Bobby Kromm, Detroit Red Wings
James Norris Memorial Trophy:
(Best defenceman)		 Denis Potvin, New York Islanders
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:
(Excellence and sportsmanship)		 Butch Goring, Los Angeles Kings
Lester B. Pearson Award:
(Outstanding player, regular season)		 Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens
Vezina Trophy:
(Goaltender(s) of team(s) with best goaltending record)		 Ken Dryden & Michel Larocque, Montreal Canadiens

All-Star teams

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First Team   Position   Second Team
Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens G Don Edwards, Buffalo Sabres
Denis Potvin, New York Islanders D Larry Robinson, Montreal Canadiens
Brad Park, Boston Bruins D Börje Salming, Toronto Maple Leafs
Bryan Trottier, New York Islanders C Darryl Sittler, Toronto Maple Leafs
Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens RW Mike Bossy, New York Islanders
Clark Gillies, New York Islanders LW Steve Shutt, Montreal Canadiens

Player statistics

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Scoring leaders

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GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties In Minutes

Player Team GP G A Pts PIM
Guy Lafleur Montreal Canadiens 78 60 72 132 26
Bryan Trottier New York Islanders 77 46 77 123 46
Darryl Sittler Toronto Maple Leafs 80 45 72 117 100
Jacques Lemaire Montreal Canadiens 76 36 61 97 14
Denis Potvin New York Islanders 80 30 64 94 81
Mike Bossy New York Islanders 73 53 38 91 6
Terry O'Reilly Boston Bruins 77 29 61 90 211
Gilbert Perreault Buffalo Sabres 79 41 48 89 20
Bobby Clarke Philadelphia Flyers 71 21 68 89 83
Lanny McDonald Toronto Maple Leafs 74 47 40 87 54
Wilf Paiement Colorado Rockies 80 31 56 87 114

Source: NHL.[5]

Leading goaltenders

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Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts

Player Team GP MIN GA GAA W L T SO
Ken Dryden Montreal Canadiens 52 3071 105 2.05 37 7 7 5
Bernie Parent Philadelphia Flyers 49 2923 108 2.22 29 6 13 7
Gilles Gilbert Boston Bruins 25 1326 56 2.53 15 6 2 2
Chico Resch N.Y. Islanders 45 2637 112 2.55 28 9 7 3
Tony Esposito Chicago Black Hawks 64 3840 168 2.63 28 22 14 5
Don Edwards Buffalo Sabres 72 4209 185 2.64 38 16 17 5
Billy Smith N.Y. Islanders 38 2154 95 2.65 20 8 8 2
Michel Larocque Montreal Canadiens 30 1729 77 2.67 22 3 4 1
Mike Palmateer Toronto Maple Leafs 63 3760 172 2.74 34 19 9 5
Dan Bouchard Atlanta Flames 58 3340 153 2.75 25 12 19 2

Other statistics

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Plus-minus
  • Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens

Coaches

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Patrick Division

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Adams Division

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Norris Division

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Smythe Division

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Debuts

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The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1977–78 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

Nedomansky began his major professional career in the World Hockey Association.

Last games

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The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1977–78 (listed with their last team):

NOTE: Goldsworthy and Neilson would finish their major professional careers in the World Hockey Association.

Broadcasting

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Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and Stanley Cup playoff games.

In the U.S., this was the third season that NHL games aired in national broadcast syndication under the NHL Network package. Starting in the 1978 playoffs, the NHL Network began simulcasting most games with HNIC/CBC.

See also

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References

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  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, New York: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
  • Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
  • Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
  • Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
Notes
  1. ^ DeLaere, Matt (August 17, 2017). "What's in a Number?". Impressions. Retrieved March 2, 2018.
  2. ^ Hockey's Book of Firsts, p.27, James Duplacey, JG Press, ISBN 978-1-57215-037-9
  3. ^ a b c d Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 151. ISBN 9781894801225.
  4. ^ "DropYourGloves.com". Archived from the original on March 15, 2012. Retrieved December 25, 2010.
  5. ^ Dinger 2011, p. 150.
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