1972–73 Chicago Black Hawks season

The 1972–73 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks' 47th season in the NHL, and the club was coming off their third consecutive first-place finish in 1971–72, as they finished on top of the West Division with a 46–17–15 record, tying a club record with 107 points. The Hawks swept the Pittsburgh Penguins in the NHL quarter-finals before they were swept by the New York Rangers in the semi-finals.[1]

1972–73 Chicago Black Hawks
West Division champions
Division1st West
1972–73 record42–27–9
Home record26–9–4
Road record16–18–5
Goals for284
Goals against225
Team information
General managerTommy Ivan
CoachBilly Reay
CaptainVacant
Alternate captainsDoug Jarrett
Stan Mikita
Bill White
ArenaChicago Stadium
Team leaders
GoalsJim Pappin (41)
AssistsPit Martin (61)
PointsJim Pappin (92)
Penalty minutesPhil Russell (156)
Plus/minusPhil Russell
Stan Mikita (+31)
WinsTony Esposito (32)
Goals against averageTony Esposito (2.51)

During the off-season, the Black Hawks lost Bobby Hull to the Winnipeg Jets in the newly created World Hockey Association, who signed him to the first $1 million contract in hockey history.[2] The NHL also expanded once again, as the New York Islanders joined the East Division, while the Atlanta Flames were placed in the West.

Chicago, dealing with the loss of Hull, got off to a quick start of the season, winning their first four games, before sliding into a slump that saw their record fall to 7–7–2. The club broke out of its slump, won 14 of the next 18 games, and took hold of the top spot in the West Division. The Hawks then cruised to their fourth-straight first-place finish, as they had a record of 42–27–9, earning 93 points, which was their lowest point total since missing the playoffs in the 1968–69 season. [3]

Offensively, the Black Hawks were led by Jim Pappin, who had a career season, scoring 41 goals and 92 points. Pit Martin earned 61 assists and 90 points, while Dennis Hull scored 39 goals and 90 points. Stan Mikita earned 83 points despite missing 21 games due to injuries. Bill White lead the defense, registering 47 points, while Pat Stapleton scored 10 goals and 31 points. Rookie Phil Russell had a team-high 156 penalty minutes, and had a +31 rating, which tied him with Mikita for the team lead.

In goal, Tony Esposito led the club with 32 victories and a 2.51 GAA, along with four shutouts while appearing in 56 games.[4] Backup goaltender Gary Smith won 10 games while having a 3.54 GAA.[5]

The Hawks opened the playoffs against the St. Louis Blues, who had a record of 32–34–12, earning 76 points, while placing fourth in the West Division. The series opened with two games at Chicago Stadium, and the Black Hawks easily defeated the Blues in the series opener, winning 7–1, before shutting out St. Louis, 1–0, in the second game to take an early series lead. The series shifted to the St. Louis Arena for the next two games; however, Chicago took a 3–0 series lead, winning 5–2 in the third game, but the Blues avoided the sweep, winning 5–3 in the fourth game. Chicago returned home for the fifth game, and easily took care of St. Louis, thumping the Blues 6–1 to win the series.

Chicago's next opponent was the New York Rangers, who had finished the season with a 47–23–8 record, earning 102 points, and a third-place finish in the East Division. The Rangers defeated the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Boston Bruins in their first playoff series. Since the Black Hawks won their division, they were given home ice advantage in the series. The series opened up with two games at Chicago Stadium, but it was the Rangers who struck first, winning the series opener by a 4–1 score. The Black Hawks rebounded in the second game, holding off New York for a 5–4 victory to even the series. The series moved to Madison Square Garden for the next two games, and it would be the Hawks who took control of the series, defeating the Rangers 2–1 and 3–1 to take a 3–1 series lead back to Chicago for the fifth game. The Black Hawks stayed hot, and easily beat the Rangers 4–1 to win the series and advance to the Stanley Cup finals for the second time in three years.

The Hawks opponent in the 1973 Stanley Cup finals was the Montreal Canadiens, who were the best team in the league during the regular season, as they had a 52–10–16 record, earning 120 points. The Canadiens had defeated the Buffalo Sabres and Philadelphia Flyers to earn a spot in the finals. The series opened at the Montreal Forum, and the powerful Canadiens easily won the first game by an 8–3 score, followed by a 4–1 win in the second game to take a 2–0 series lead. The finals shifted to Chicago Stadium for the next two games, and the Hawks cut into the Canadiens series lead with a 7–4 victory in the third game. Montreal rebounded in the fourth game though, shutting out Chicago 4–0 to take a 3–1 series lead. The fifth game returned to Montreal; however, the Black Hawks stayed alive with a wild 8–7 victory, cutting the Canadiens lead to 3–2 in the series. In the sixth game back in Chicago, Montreal rebounded, defeating the Hawks, 6–4, to win the Stanley Cup.

Season standings
West Division[6]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1Chicago Black Hawks7842279284225+5993
2Philadelphia Flyers78373011296256+4085
3Minnesota North Stars78373011254230+2485
4St. Louis Blues78323412233251−1876
5Pittsburgh Penguins7832379257265−873
6Los Angeles Kings78313611232245−1373
7Atlanta Flames78253815191239−4865
8California Golden Seals78164616213323−11048

Game log

Regular season
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecordPts
1October 7Chicago Black Hawks3–1Toronto Maple Leafs1–0–02
2October 8New York Rangers1–5Chicago Black Hawks2–0–04
3October 11Atlanta Flames1–4Chicago Black Hawks3–0–06
4October 14Chicago Black Hawks4–2St. Louis Blues4–0–08
5October 15St. Louis Blues3–1Chicago Black Hawks4–1–08
6October 17Chicago Black Hawks3–6Vancouver Canucks4–2–08
7October 21Chicago Black Hawks1–3Los Angeles Kings4–3–08
8October 22Chicago Black Hawks4–2California Golden Seals5–3–010
9October 26Chicago Black Hawks6–3Boston Bruins6–3–012
10October 28Chicago Black Hawks4–4New York Islanders6–3–113
11October 29Chicago Black Hawks1–7New York Rangers6–4–113
12November 1New York Rangers3–2Chicago Black Hawks6–5–113
13November 4Chicago Black Hawks3–5Minnesota North Stars6–6–113
14November 5California Golden Seals3–3Chicago Black Hawks6–6–214
15November 8New York Islanders1–6Chicago Black Hawks7–6–216
16November 9Chicago Black Hawks3–5Philadelphia Flyers7–7–216
17November 12Detroit Red Wings1–5Chicago Black Hawks8–7–218
18November 18Chicago Black Hawks5–3Montreal Canadiens9–7–220
19November 19Minnesota North Stars5–1Chicago Black Hawks9–8–220
20November 22Vancouver Canucks2–5Chicago Black Hawks10–8–222
21November 25Chicago Black Hawks4–2St. Louis Blues11–8–224
22November 26Montreal Canadiens2–3Chicago Black Hawks12–8–226
23November 29Detroit Red Wings3–8Chicago Black Hawks13–8–228
24December 2Chicago Black Hawks2–3Pittsburgh Penguins13–9–228
25December 3Pittsburgh Penguins2–4Chicago Black Hawks14–9–230
26December 6Los Angeles Kings0–6Chicago Black Hawks15–9–232
27December 10Minnesota North Stars1–5Chicago Black Hawks16–9–234
28December 12Chicago Black Hawks5–1Vancouver Canucks17–9–236
29December 13Chicago Black Hawks1–3Los Angeles Kings17–10–236
30December 15Chicago Black Hawks9–4California Golden Seals18–10–238
31December 17Los Angeles Kings0–2Chicago Black Hawks19–10–240
32December 20Philadelphia Flyers1–4Chicago Black Hawks20–10–242
33December 23Chicago Black Hawks3–5Toronto Maple Leafs20–11–242
34December 24Toronto Maple Leafs1–5Chicago Black Hawks21–11–244
35December 27St. Louis Blues5–3Chicago Black Hawks21–12–244
36December 28Chicago Black Hawks2–8Buffalo Sabres21–13–244
37December 31Buffalo Sabres2–4Chicago Black Hawks22–13–246
38January 3Pittsburgh Penguins5–3Chicago Black Hawks22–14–246
39January 6Chicago Black Hawks2–0Minnesota North Stars23–14–248
40January 7Boston Bruins4–5Chicago Black Hawks24–14–250
41January 10Chicago Black Hawks2–5Atlanta Flames24–15–250
42January 13Philadelphia Flyers3–2Chicago Black Hawks24–16–250
43January 14California Golden Seals6–6Chicago Black Hawks24–16–351
44January 17Chicago Black Hawks6–4Detroit Red Wings25–16–353
45January 18Chicago Black Hawks1–5Buffalo Sabres25–17–353
46January 20Chicago Black Hawks3–3Minnesota North Stars25–17–454
47January 21Pittsburgh Penguins3–9Chicago Black Hawks26–17–456
48January 24Vancouver Canucks3–3Chicago Black Hawks26–17–557
49January 27Chicago Black Hawks4–2Boston Bruins27–17–559
50January 28Minnesota North Stars1–5Chicago Black Hawks28–17–561
51February 1Chicago Black Hawks5–3New York Islanders29–17–563
52February 3Chicago Black Hawks2–2Philadelphia Flyers29–17–664
53February 4St. Louis Blues2–5Chicago Black Hawks30–17–666
54February 7Buffalo Sabres1–2Chicago Black Hawks31–17–668
55February 9Chicago Black Hawks4–3Atlanta Flames32–17–670
56February 11Philadelphia Flyers2–7Chicago Black Hawks33–17–672
57February 14New York Islanders2–4Chicago Black Hawks34–17–674
58February 17Chicago Black Hawks3–4St. Louis Blues34–18–674
59February 18Boston Bruins4–1Chicago Black Hawks34–19–674
60February 21Montreal Canadiens4–2Chicago Black Hawks34–20–674
61February 24Chicago Black Hawks0–2Pittsburgh Penguins34–21–674
62February 25Atlanta Flames2–4Chicago Black Hawks35–21–676
63February 27Chicago Black Hawks5–3New York Islanders36–21–678
64February 28Chicago Black Hawks3–3New York Rangers36–21–779
65March 3Chicago Black Hawks3–3Toronto Maple Leafs36–21–880
66March 4Chicago Black Hawks0–4Boston Bruins36–22–880
67March 8Chicago Black Hawks1–4Los Angeles Kings36–23–880
68March 10Chicago Black Hawks4–2Vancouver Canucks37–23–882
69March 11Chicago Black Hawks5–1California Golden Seals38–23–884
70March 14New York Rangers2–4Chicago Black Hawks39–23–886
71March 17Chicago Black Hawks2–3Atlanta Flames39–24–886
72March 18Detroit Red Wings2–0Chicago Black Hawks39–25–886
73March 21Buffalo Sabres2–6Chicago Black Hawks40–25–888
74March 24Atlanta Flames0–7Chicago Black Hawks41–25–890
75March 25Montreal Canadiens5–6Chicago Black Hawks42–25–892
76March 28Chicago Black Hawks3–4Montreal Canadiens42–26–892
77March 31Chicago Black Hawks2–4Detroit Red Wings42–27–892
78April 1Toronto Maple Leafs4–4Chicago Black Hawks42–27–993

Chicago Black Hawks 4, St. Louis Blues 1
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 4St. Louis Blues1–7Chicago Black Hawks1–0
2April 5St. Louis Blues0–1Chicago Black Hawks2–0
3April 7Chicago Black Hawks5–2St. Louis Blues3–0
4April 8Chicago Black Hawks3–5St. Louis Blues3–1
5April 10St. Louis Blues1–6Chicago Black Hawks4–1

Chicago Black Hawks 4, New York Rangers 1
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 12New York Rangers4–1Chicago Black Hawks0–1
2April 15New York Rangers4–5Chicago Black Hawks1–1
3April 17Chicago Black Hawks2–1New York Rangers2–1
4April 19Chicago Black Hawks3–1New York Rangers3–1
5April 24New York Rangers1–4Chicago Black Hawks4–1

Montreal Canadiens 4, Chicago Black Hawks 2
#DateVisitorScoreHomeRecord
1April 29Chicago Black Hawks3–8Montreal Canadiens0–1
2May 1Chicago Black Hawks1–4Montreal Canadiens0–2
3May 3Montreal Canadiens4–7Chicago Black Hawks1–2
4May 6Montreal Canadiens4–0Chicago Black Hawks1–3
5May 8Chicago Black Hawks8–7Montreal Canadiens2–3
6May 10Montreal Canadiens6–4Chicago Black Hawks2–4

Season stats

Scoring leaders
Player GP G A Pts PIM
Jim Pappin7641519282
Dennis Hull7839519027
Pit Martin7829619030
Stan Mikita5727568332
Cliff Koroll7733245738

Goaltending
PlayerGPTOIWLTGASOGAA
Tony Esposito5633403217714052.51
Gary Smith281340101027903.54

Playoff stats

Scoring leaders
Player GP G A Pts PIM
Dennis Hull16915244
Stan Mikita15713208
Pat Stapleton162151710
Pit Martin15106166
Jim Pappin16871524

Goaltending
PlayerGPTOIWLGASOGAA
Tony Esposito158951054613.08
Gary Smith26501504.62

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1972 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal, Quebec.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
113Phil Russell CanadaEdmonton Oil Kings (WCHL)
229Brian Ogilvie CanadaEdmonton Oil Kings (WCHL)
345Mike Veisor CanadaPeterborough Petes (OHA)
461Tom Peluso United StatesUniversity of Denver (NCAA)
577Rejean Giroux CanadaQuebec Remparts (QMJHL)
693Rob Palmer United StatesUniversity of Denver (NCAA)
7109Terry Smith CanadaEdmonton Oil Kings (WCHL)
8125Billy Reay CanadaUniversity of Wisconsin (NCAA)
9141Gary Donaldson CanadaVictoria Cougars (WCHL)

References
  1. 1971–72 NHL Season Summary – Hockey-Reference.com
  2. Legends of Hockey – The Legends – Honoured Player – Hull, Bobby – Biography
  3. 1972–73 Chicago Black Hawks Games – Hockey-Reference.com
  4. "Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Tony Esposito". Archived from the original on 2008-02-17. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  5. "Chicago Blackhawks goaltending history : Gary Smith". Archived from the original on 2008-08-28. Retrieved 2008-07-08.
  6. "1972–1973 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.

Sources
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