1970–71 Chicago Black Hawks season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1970–71
Year:	1970
Team:	Chicago Black Hawks
Divisionrank:	1st
Record:	49–20–9
Homerecord:	30–6–3
Roadrecord:	19–14–6
Goalsfor:	277
Goalsagainst:	184
Captain:	Vacant
Goalsleader:	Bobby Hull (44)
Assistsleader:	Bobby Hull (52)
Pointsleader:	Bobby Hull (96)
Plusminusleader:	Bill White (+51)
Pimleader:	Keith Magnuson (291)
Winsleader:	Tony Esposito (35)
Gaaleader:	Tony Esposito (2.27)
Divisionwin:	Yes

The 1970–71 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks' 45th. The Black Hawks advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1965 but were defeated by the Montreal Canadiens in seven games.

Offseason

During the off-season, the NHL would expand by two teams, as the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks joined the league, and both clubs were placed in the East Division. The league also increased the schedule by two games, going from 76 to 78. The Black Hawks were moved to the West Division as part of the divisional realignment, and the club decided to strip Pat Stapleton from his team captaincy, electing to not have a captain of the team.

Regular season

Chicago started the season very well, as the team had a record of 18–4–5 in their first 27 games. The Hawks stayed hot throughout the season, and easily won the West Division with a club record 49 victories and 107 points, finishing 20 points ahead of the second place St. Louis Blues.^[1]

Offensively, the Hawks were led by Bobby Hull, who scored a team high 44 goals and 52 assists for 96 points, which placed him fifth in NHL scoring. His brother Dennis Hull also cracked the 40 goal barrier, as he scored 40 goals and added 26 assists for 66 points. Stan Mikita had another solid season, scoring 28 goals and 72 points. Pit Martin and Bryan Campbell each had very good seasons, finishing with 55 and 54 points respectively. On the blueline, Pat Stapleton led the team with 7 goals and 51 points, while Bill White chipped in with 4 goals and 25 points. White also led the club with a +51 rating. Keith Magnuson led the Hawks in toughness, setting a team record with 291 penalty minutes.

In goal, Tony Esposito led the club with 35 victories and a 2.27 GAA, along with six shutouts while appearing in 57 games.^[2] Backup goaltender Gerry Desjardins was very solid, winning 12 games while having a 2.47 GAA.^[3]

Game log

	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record	Pts
1	October 11		1–5	Chicago Black Hawks	1–0–0	2
2	October 14		2–8	Chicago Black Hawks	2–0–0	4
3	October 15	Chicago Black Hawks	2–1		3–0–0	6
4	October 17	Chicago Black Hawks	2–6		3–1–0	6
5	October 18		2–2	Chicago Black Hawks	3–1–1	7
6	October 22	Chicago Black Hawks	3–3		3–1–2	8
7	October 24	Chicago Black Hawks	1–0		4–1–2	10
8	October 25	Chicago Black Hawks	4–0		5–1–2	12
9	October 28	Chicago Black Hawks	1–2		5–2–2	12
10	October 31	Chicago Black Hawks	5–2		6–2–2	14
11	November 1	Chicago Black Hawks	2–5		6–3–2	14
12	November 4		2–4	Chicago Black Hawks	7–3–2	16
13	November 7	Chicago Black Hawks	1–1		7–3–3	17
14	November 8		3–3	Chicago Black Hawks	7–3–4	18
15	November 11		1–7	Chicago Black Hawks	8–3–4	20
16	November 14		1–2	Chicago Black Hawks	9–3–4	22
17	November 15		2–4	Chicago Black Hawks	10–3–4	24
18	November 21	Chicago Black Hawks	3–3		10–3–5	25
19	November 22		0–9	Chicago Black Hawks	11–3–5	27
20	November 25		3–5	Chicago Black Hawks	12–3–5	29
21	November 26	Chicago Black Hawks	2–3		12–4–5	29
22	November 28		1–3	Chicago Black Hawks	13–4–5	31
23	November 29		3–5	Chicago Black Hawks	14–4–5	33
24	December 2		3–4	Chicago Black Hawks	15–4–5	35
25	December 5	Chicago Black Hawks	4–1		16–4–5	37
26	December 6		2–6	Chicago Black Hawks	17–4–5	39
27	December 9		1–6	Chicago Black Hawks	18–4–5	41
28	December 12	Chicago Black Hawks	1–2		18–5–5	41
29	December 13		2–5	Chicago Black Hawks	19–5–5	43
30	December 16		3–8	Chicago Black Hawks	20–5–5	45
31	December 20		1–2	Chicago Black Hawks	21–5–5	47
32	December 22	Chicago Black Hawks	2–5		21–6–5	47
33	December 23	Chicago Black Hawks	6–4		22–6–5	49
34	December 26	Chicago Black Hawks	4–2		23–6–5	51
35	December 31	Chicago Black Hawks	8–3		24–6–5	53
36	January 2	Chicago Black Hawks	3–1		25–6–5	55
37	January 3	Chicago Black Hawks	5–3		26–6–5	57
38	January 6		4–2	Chicago Black Hawks	26–7–5	57
39	January 9		3–4	Chicago Black Hawks	27–7–5	59
40	January 10		3–2	Chicago Black Hawks	27–8–5	59
41	January 13		2–4	Chicago Black Hawks	28–8–5	61
42	January 16	Chicago Black Hawks	2–3		28–9–5	61
43	January 17		3–4	Chicago Black Hawks	29–9–5	63
44	January 21		0–2	Chicago Black Hawks	30–9–5	65
45	January 23	Chicago Black Hawks	2–6		30–10–5	65
46	January 24		3–5	Chicago Black Hawks	31–10–5	67
47	January 26	Chicago Black Hawks	3–3		31–10–6	68
48	January 28		1–4	Chicago Black Hawks	32–10–6	70
49	January 30	Chicago Black Hawks	1–3		32–11–6	70
50	January 31		1–4	Chicago Black Hawks	33–11–6	72
51	February 3	Chicago Black Hawks	4–2		34–11–6	74
52	February 4	Chicago Black Hawks	2–6		34–12–6	74
53	February 6	Chicago Black Hawks	6–2		35–12–6	76
54	February 7		0–1	Chicago Black Hawks	36–12–6	78
55	February 10		3–2	Chicago Black Hawks	36–13–6	78
56	February 13	Chicago Black Hawks	4–5		36–14–6	78
57	February 14		1–3	Chicago Black Hawks	37–14–6	80
58	February 17		1–5	Chicago Black Hawks	38–14–6	82
59	February 20	Chicago Black Hawks	1–7		38–15–6	82
60	February 21		5–7	Chicago Black Hawks	39–15–6	84
61	February 26	Chicago Black Hawks	3–1		40–15–6	86
62	February 27	Chicago Black Hawks	4–1		41–15–6	88
63	March 3	Chicago Black Hawks	5–1		42–15–6	90
64	March 5	Chicago Black Hawks	2–2		42–15–7	91
65	March 6	Chicago Black Hawks	2–2		42–15–8	92
66	March 10		4–2	Chicago Black Hawks	42–16–8	92
67	March 13	Chicago Black Hawks	4–1		43–16–8	94
68	March 14		4–4	Chicago Black Hawks	43–16–9	95
69	March 16	Chicago Black Hawks	7–4		44–16–9	97
70	March 18	Chicago Black Hawks	2–3		44–17–9	97
71	March 19	Chicago Black Hawks	4–2		45–17–9	99
72	March 21		0–2	Chicago Black Hawks	46–17–9	101
73	March 24		1–2	Chicago Black Hawks	47–17–9	103
74	March 27		1–3	Chicago Black Hawks	48–17–9	105
75	March 28		2–1	Chicago Black Hawks	48–18–9	105
76	March 31	Chicago Black Hawks	2–4		48–19–9	105
77	April 3	Chicago Black Hawks	4–1		49–19–9	107
78	April 4		3–2	Chicago Black Hawks	49–20–9	107

Playoffs

The Hawks opened the playoffs against the Philadelphia Flyers, who had placed third in the West Division with a record of 28–33–17, earning 73 points. The series opened with two games at Chicago Stadium, and the Black Hawks, who won a club record 30 games at home, continued their dominance, easily defeating the Flyers 5–2 and 6–2 to take a 2–0 series lead. The series moved to the Philadelphia Spectrum for the next two games, however, the Hawks were too much to handle for the Flyers, as Chicago won a close third game by a 3–2 score, before sweeping Philadelphia out of the playoffs with a 6–2 win in the fourth game.

Chicago's next opponent was the New York Rangers, who had finished the season in second place in the East Division with a 49–18–11 record, earning 109 points. The Rangers defeated the Toronto Maple Leafs in their first playoff series. Since the Black Hawks won their division, they were given a home-ice advantage in the series. The series opened up with two games at Chicago Stadium, however, the Rangers took a 1–0 series lead, defeating the Hawks in overtime by a 2–1 score. Chicago evened the series in the next game, shutting out New York 3–0. The series shifted to Madison Square Garden for the next two games, and the Rangers won the third game of the series by a 4–1 score, however, Chicago fought back in the fourth game, demolishing New York 7–1 to once again even the series. The fifth game was back in Chicago, and the Hawks took the series lead for the first time with a 3–2 overtime victory. Back in New York for the sixth game, the Rangers pushed the series to the limit, with their second overtime victory of the series, setting up a seventh and deciding game in Chicago. The Black Hawks used their home-ice advantage, and held on for a 4–2 victory, to win the series, and earn their first trip to the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1965.

The Black Hawks opponent was the Montreal Canadiens, who finished the season in third place in the East with a 42–23–13 record, earning 97 points. Montreal then upset the heavily favored Boston Bruins in the first round, followed by defeating the Minnesota North Stars in the second round. The series opened with two games at Chicago Stadium, and the Hawks took a commanding 2–0 series lead, defeating the Canadiens 2–1 and 5–3. The series shifted to the Montreal Forum for the next two games, and the Canadiens evened the series with two home wins of their own, by scores of 4–2 and 5–2. The fifth game returned to Chicago, and the Black Hawks stayed hot at home, shutting out Montreal 2–0 to take a 3–2 series lead with a chance to win the Stanley Cup in Montreal for game 6. However, the Canadiens forced a seventh and deciding game, winning by a score of 4–3. In the seventh game at Chicago Stadium, where the Hawks were 7–1 during the playoffs, the Black Hawks led 2–0 halfway through the game, but the Canadiens cut into the lead when Jacques Lemaire scored on a shot from center ice that got past Hawks goaltender Tony Esposito. The Canadiens tied the game at two before the end of the second when Henri Richard scored, setting up an intense third period. Richard once again scored 2:34 into the period, giving Montreal a 3–2 lead, and Canadiens goaltender Ken Dryden kept the Black Hawks off the scoreboard for the rest of the game, as Montreal would win the Stanley Cup in dramatic fashion for their third championship in four years. The Canadiens were the second team in NHL history, the other the 1945 Toronto Maple Leafs to win a game seven on the road in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Chicago Black Hawks 4, Philadelphia Flyers 0

	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	April 7		2–5	Chicago Black Hawks	1–0
2	April 8		2–6	Chicago Black Hawks	2–0
3	April 10	Chicago Black Hawks	3–2		3–0
4	April 11	Chicago Black Hawks	6–2		4–0

Chicago Black Hawks 4, New York Rangers 3

	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	April 18		2–1	Chicago Black Hawks	0–1
2	April 20		0–3	Chicago Black Hawks	1–1
3	April 22	Chicago Black Hawks	1–4		1–2
4	April 25	Chicago Black Hawks	7–1		2–2
5	April 27		2–3	Chicago Black Hawks	3–2
6	April 29	Chicago Black Hawks	2–3		3–3
7	May 2		2–4	Chicago Black Hawks	4–3

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 3

	Date	Visitor	Score	Home	Record
1	May 4		1–2	Chicago Black Hawks	1–0
2	May 6		3–5	Chicago Black Hawks	2–0
3	May 9	Chicago Black Hawks	2–4		2–1
4	May 11	Chicago Black Hawks	2–5		2–2
5	May 13		0–2	Chicago Black Hawks	3–2
6	May 16	Chicago Black Hawks	3–4		3–3
7	May 18		3–2	Chicago Black Hawks	3–4

Season stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
	78	44	52	96	32
	74	24	48	72	85
	78	40	26	66	16
	62	22	33	55	40
	78	17	37	54	26

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	SO	GAA
	57	3325	35	14	6	126	6	2.27
	22	1217	12	6	3	49	0	2.42
	2	120	2	0	0	6	0	3.00
	1	18	0	0	0	1	0	3.33

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
	18	11	14	25	16
	18	5	13	18	16
	18	3	14	17	4
	18	7	9	16	18
	18	10	4	14	24

Goaltending

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	GA	SO	GAA
	18	1151	11	7	42	2	2.19

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1970 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.

Round		Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	14			London Knights (OHA)
2	28			Drummondville Rangers (QMJHL)
3	42			Calgary Centennials (WCHL)
4	56			University of Minnesota-Duluth (NCAA)
5	70			Verdun Maple Leafs (QMJHL)

See also

• 1970–71 NHL season

Sources

• Hockey-Reference
• Rauzulu's Street
• Goalies Archive
• HockeyDB
• National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007

Notes and References

1. Web site: 1970-71 Chicago Black Hawks Schedule and Results.
2. Web site: Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Tony Esposito . 2008-06-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080217053311/http://www.goaliesarchive.com/hawks/indexesposito.html . 2008-02-17 . dead .
3. Web site: Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Gerry Desjardins . 2008-06-29 . https://web.archive.org/web/20080828024957/http://www.goaliesarchive.com/hawks/indexdesjardins.html . 2008-08-28 . dead .