1936–37 NHL season

The New York Americans had started in first place, but then their players came down with influenza and the team went downhill. But the worst blow was when Roy Worters suffered a hernia and had to retire. Alfie Moore and Lorne Chabot were not adequate replacements and the Amerks finished last in the Canadian Division.

On November 16, 1936, Hal Winkler made his NHL debut for the New York Rangers and gained a 1–0 shutout over the Montreal Maroons. He was the first goaltender to have a shutout in his NHL debut.[1] The Montreal Canadiens had hit the bottom in 1935–36, and Babe Siebert was obtained to shore up the defence. But the most loved of all movements was buying Howie Morenz back from the Rangers. The Canadiens went from last to first in the Canadian Division. Morenz was just hitting his stride in January 1937, when tragedy struck. On one of his hurtling rushes, he was being checked by Earl Seibert of Chicago when his left skate got caught in the dasher of the end boards, and Morenz suffered a badly fractured leg. After suffering a nervous breakdown worrying about if he would be able to come back, more bad luck occurred. On March 8, 1937, X-rays revealed that Howie had blood clots in his healing leg. An operation was scheduled for the next day, but when Howie ate a light supper and told the nurse he wanted to rest, in falling asleep his pallor suddenly changed and the nurse knew something was wrong. A blood clot had stopped his heart, and attempts to revive Howie failed. News of Morenz's death shocked the hockey world, and thousands filed past his bier, many in tears, to pay their last respects.

Beyond Morenz's tragic mishap, it was an injury-filled year for many stars. Already suffering from a bad back, Boston's Eddie Shore suffered a broken vertebra that cost him the remainder of the season. Charlie Conacher of the Maple Leafs repeatedly injured his wrist, costing him much of the season, and was never the same player thereafter. A series of minor injuries precipitated Lionel Conacher's decision to retire at year's end, while Sylvio Mantha and Roy Worters suffered career-ending injuries. Other stars who missed several weeks of time or had season-ending injuries included Red Wings captain Doug Young, Larry Aurie, Russ Blinco, Buzz Boll, Pit Lepine, Dave Trottier, Toe Blake and Art Chapman.

With five games left to play, Chicago owner Frederic McLaughlin, a partisan of American-born players, decided to field an all-American lineup, the first time in major senior hockey that this was done. With incumbent Mike Karakas in goal, the Black Hawks signed Ernest Klingbeil and Paul Schaefer on defence, with a line of Milt Brink centering Al Suomi and Bun Laprairie. The team went 1–3 with the sextet in the lineup.

Detroit, led by Vezina Trophy winning Normie Smith, finished first in the American Division.

Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
       Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Source: NHL.[2]

• Boston Bruins: Art Ross
• Chicago Black Hawks: Clem Loughlin
• Detroit Red Wings: Jack Adams
• New York Rangers: Lester Patrick

• Montreal Canadiens: Cecil Hart
• Montreal Maroons: Tommy Gorman
• New York Americans: Red Dutton
• Toronto Maple Leafs: Dick Irvin