# 1938–39 Boston Bruins season

The 1938–39 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 15th season in the NHL, and they were coming off of a very successful regular season in 1937–38, winning the American Division with a record of 30–11–7, however, they lost to the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Stanley Cup semi-finals. This season, the Bruins would meet the Maple Leafs in a rematch, and win the series 4–1 to win the Stanley Cup for the second time, and the first time in 10 years.

## Regular season

In the off-season, the NHL would lose a franchise, as the Montreal Maroons would fold, leaving the league with seven teams, and eliminating the American and Canadian Division format the league had been using since 1926. The Bruins would make a key acquisition, acquiring Roy Conacher from the Kirkland Lake Hargreaves of the NOHA.
Boston would see goaltender Tiny Thompson get injured during an early season game, forcing the club to sign Frank Brimsek, who played for the Providence Reds of the IAHL. Brimsek stepped in and played great hockey, and when Thompson came back from his injury, the Bruins decided to deal him to the Detroit Red Wings for Norm Smith. Brimsek would help lead the Bruins to 1st place in the NHL standings, as they finished the season with a record of 36–10–2, earning 74 points, their highest point total since the 1929–30 season.
Bill Cowley would lead the team with 42 points, despite missing 14 games due to injuries. His 34 assists were a league high. Rookie Roy Conacher scored an NHL high 26 goals, and added 11 assists to finish with 37 points. Milt Schmidt continued to show improvement, scoring a career high 32 points. Flash Hollett led the Bruins defense with 27 points, as he scored 10 goals and added 17 assists, while Dit Clapper scored 13 goals and 26 points from the blueline.
In goal, rookie Frank Brimsek led the NHL with 33 wins and a 1.56 GAA, earning both the Vezina Trophy and the Calder Memorial Trophy. He also recorded 10 shutouts, which was among the league leaders.

### Final standings

National Hockey League :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| Boston Bruins | 48 | 36 | 10 | 2 | 156 | 76 | 74 |
| New York Rangers | 48 | 26 | 16 | 6 | 149 | 105 | 58 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 48 | 19 | 20 | 9 | 114 | 107 | 47 |
| New York Americans | 48 | 17 | 21 | 10 | 119 | 157 | 44 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 48 | 18 | 24 | 6 | 107 | 128 | 42 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 48 | 15 | 24 | 9 | 115 | 146 | 39 |
| Chicago Black Hawks | 48 | 12 | 28 | 8 | 91 | 132 | 32 |
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

### Record vs. opponents

1938–39 NHL Records :
| Team | BOS | CHI | DET | MTL | NYA | NYR | TOR |
| Boston | — | 8–0 | 7–1 | 6–2 | 5–2–1 | 5–3 | 5–2–1 |
| Chicago | 0–8 | — | 1–5–2 | 4–4 | 2–4–2 | 3–4–1 | 2–3–3 |
| Detroit | 1–7 | 5–1–2 | — | 4–3–1 | 3–3–2 | 2–6 | 3–4–1 |
| Montreal | 2–6 | 4–4 | 3–4–1 | — | 3–2–3 | 1–4–3 | 2–4–2 |
| N.Y. Americans | 2–5–1 | 4–2–2 | 3–3–2 | 2–3–3 | — | 2–5–1 | 4–3–1 |
| N.Y. Rangers | 3–5 | 4–3–1 | 6–2 | 4–1–3 | 5–2–1 | — | 4–3–1 |
| Toronto | 2–5–1 | 3–2–2 | 4–3–1 | 4–2–2 | 3–4–1 | 3–4–1 | — |

## Schedule and results

| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Record | Pts |
| 1 | November 3 | Boston Bruins | 3–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1–0–0 | 2 |
| 2 | November 6 | Boston Bruins | 4–1 | Detroit Red Wings | 2–0–0 | 4 |
| 3 | November 13 | Boston Bruins | 1–2 | New York Americans | 2–1–0 | 4 |
| 4 | November 15 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1–1 | Boston Bruins | 2–1–1 | 5 |
| 5 | November 20 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–4 | Boston Bruins | 3–1–1 | 7 |
| 6 | November 22 | New York Rangers | 2–4 | Boston Bruins | 4–1–1 | 9 |
| 7 | November 27 | New York Americans | 2–8 | Boston Bruins | 5–1–1 | 11 |
| 8 | December 1 | Boston Bruins | 0–2 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–2–1 | 11 |
| 9 | December 4 | Boston Bruins | 5–0 | Chicago Black Hawks | 6–2–1 | 13 |
| 10 | December 6 | Chicago Black Hawks | 0–2 | Boston Bruins | 7–2–1 | 15 |
| 11 | December 11 | Boston Bruins | 3–0 | New York Rangers | 8–2–1 | 17 |
| 12 | December 13 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–3 | Boston Bruins | 9–2–1 | 19 |
| 13 | December 15 | Boston Bruins | 1–0 | Montreal Canadiens | 10–2–1 | 21 |
| 14 | December 18 | Boston Bruins | 2–0 | Detroit Red Wings | 11–2–1 | 23 |
| 15 | December 20 | New York Americans | 0–3 | Boston Bruins | 12–2–1 | 25 |
| 16 | December 25 | New York Rangers | 1–0 | Boston Bruins | 12–3–1 | 25 |
| 17 | December 27 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–8 | Boston Bruins | 13–3–1 | 27 |
| 18 | December 29 | Boston Bruins | 2–4 | New York Americans | 13–4–1 | 27 |
| 19 | December 31 | Boston Bruins | 1–2 | New York Rangers | 13–5–1 | 27 |
| 20 | January 1 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–4 | Boston Bruins | 14–5–1 | 29 |
| 21 | January 3 | New York Americans | 1–2 | Boston Bruins | 15–5–1 | 31 |
| 22 | January 5 | Boston Bruins | 2–1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 16–5–1 | 33 |
| 23 | January 7 | Boston Bruins | 0–2 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 16–6–1 | 33 |
| 24 | January 10 | Chicago Black Hawks | 1–3 | Boston Bruins | 17–6–1 | 35 |
| 25 | January 17 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1–2 | Boston Bruins | 18–6–1 | 37 |
| 26 | January 19 | Boston Bruins | 0–1 | Montreal Canadiens | 18–7–1 | 37 |
| 27 | January 22 | Boston Bruins | 5–0 | Detroit Red Wings | 19–7–1 | 39 |
| 28 | January 24 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–6 | Boston Bruins | 20–7–1 | 41 |
| 29 | January 29 | Boston Bruins | 3–2 | New York Americans | 21–7–1 | 43 |
| 30 | January 31 | New York Americans | 2–2 | Boston Bruins | 21–7–2 | 44 |
| 31 | February 2 | Boston Bruins | 2–1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 22–7–2 | 46 |
| 32 | February 5 | Boston Bruins | 3–0 | Chicago Black Hawks | 23–7–2 | 48 |
| 33 | February 7 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0–2 | Boston Bruins | 24–7–2 | 50 |
| 34 | February 9 | Boston Bruins | 4–2 | New York Rangers | 25–7–2 | 52 |
| 35 | February 12 | New York Rangers | 3–2 | Boston Bruins | 25–8–2 | 52 |
| 36 | February 14 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–2 | Boston Bruins | 26–8–2 | 54 |
| 37 | February 16 | Boston Bruins | 5–1 | Montreal Canadiens | 27–8–2 | 56 |
| 38 | February 19 | Boston Bruins | 1–4 | Detroit Red Wings | 27–9–2 | 56 |
| 39 | February 21 | Chicago Black Hawks | 2–8 | Boston Bruins | 28–9–2 | 58 |
| 40 | February 25 | Boston Bruins | 0–1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 28–10–2 | 58 |
| 41 | February 26 | Boston Bruins | 5–1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 29–10–2 | 60 |
| 42 | February 28 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–6 | Boston Bruins | 30–10–2 | 62 |
| 43 | March 5 | New York Rangers | 3–5 | Boston Bruins | 31–10–2 | 64 |
| 44 | March 7 | Detroit Red Wings | 0–3 | Boston Bruins | 32–10–2 | 66 |
| 45 | March 9 | Boston Bruins | 9–6 | New York Americans | 33–10–2 | 68 |
| 46 | March 12 | Boston Bruins | 4–2 | New York Rangers | 34–10–2 | 70 |
| 47 | March 14 | Chicago Black Hawks | 2–4 | Boston Bruins | 35–10–2 | 72 |
| 48 | March 19 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–7 | Boston Bruins | 36–10–2 | 74 |

## Playoffs

In the playoffs, Boston would have a 1st round bye, advancing straight to the NHL semi-finals, where they would face the 2nd place New York Rangers in a best of 7 series. New York had 58 points during the regular season, which was 16 less than the Bruins. The series opened at Madison Square Garden in New York, and the Bruins would win a thrilling, triple overtime game by a score of 2–1. Game 2 moved to the Boston Garden, and Boston took a 2–0 series lead with a 3–2 overtime victory. The Bruins took a commanding 3–0 lead in the series with a 4–1 win, looking to close out the series in the 4th game, as the series shifted back to New York. The Rangers would hold off elimination, defeating Boston 2–1, and then in game 5 in Boston, the game would be decided in overtime, with New York once again winning by a 2–1 score to cut the series lead to 3–2. Game 6 was played back in New York, and the Rangers easily defeated the Bruins 3–1, to tie the series up at 3 games, forcing a 7th game to be played in Boston. The game would be tied 1–1 after regulation time, and would not be settled until the 3rd overtime period, when Boston finally snapped the tie, winning the game 2–1, and taking the series 4–3, to advance to the Stanley Cup finals.
The Bruins opponent was the Toronto Maple Leafs, who finished the season with a 19–20–9 record, earning 47 points, which was 27 points fewer than Boston. The Leafs defeated the New York Americans and Detroit Red Wings to earn a spot in the best of seven finals. The series would begin with 2 games in Boston, and each team won a game, as the series moved to Maple Leaf Gardens for games three and four. Boston would take control in Toronto, winning game three by a 3–1 score, then shutting out the Leafs 2–0 in game four, to take a 3–1 series lead. Boston then returned home for game five, and defeated Toronto 3–1, to win their first Stanley Cup in 10 years, and second in team history.

### Boston Bruins 4, New York Rangers 3

| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Record |
| 1 | March 21 | Boston Bruins | 2–1 | New York Rangers | 1–0 |
| 2 | March 23 | New York Rangers | 2–3 | Boston Bruins | 2–0 |
| 3 | March 26 | New York Rangers | 1–4 | Boston Bruins | 3–0 |
| 4 | March 28 | Boston Bruins | 1–2 | New York Rangers | 3–1 |
| 5 | March 30 | New York Rangers | 2–1 | Boston Bruins | 3–2 |
| 6 | April 1 | Boston Bruins | 1–3 | New York Rangers | 3–3 |
| 7 | April 2 | New York Rangers | 1–2 | Boston Bruins | 4–3 |

### Boston Bruins 4, Toronto Maple Leafs 1

| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | Record |
| 1 | April 6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1–2 | Boston Bruins | 1–0 |
| 2 | April 9 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3–2 | Boston Bruins | 1–1 |
| 3 | April 11 | Boston Bruins | 3–1 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–1 |
| 4 | April 13 | Boston Bruins | 2–0 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3–1 |
| 5 | April 16 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1–3 | Boston Bruins | 4–1 |

## Player statistics
### Regular season
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Bill Cowley | C | 34 | 8 | 34 | 42 | 2 |
| Roy Conacher | LW | 47 | 26 | 11 | 37 | 12 |
| Milt Schmidt | C/D | 41 | 15 | 17 | 32 | 13 |
| Bobby Bauer | RW | 48 | 13 | 18 | 31 | 4 |
| Woody Dumart | LW | 46 | 14 | 15 | 29 | 2 |
| Flash Hollett | D | 44 | 10 | 17 | 27 | 35 |
| Dit Clapper | RW/D | 42 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 22 |
| Gord Pettinger | C | 48 | 11 | 14 | 25 | 8 |
| Ray Getliffe | C/LW | 43 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 11 |
| Mel Hill | RW | 46 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 16 |
| Eddie Shore | D | 44 | 4 | 14 | 18 | 47 |
| Cooney Weiland | C | 45 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 9 |
| Charlie Sands | C/RW | 37 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 10 |
| Jack Crawford | D | 48 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 |
| Jack Portland | D | 48 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 46 |
| Red Hamill | LW | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| Frank Brimsek | G | 43 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Harry Frost | RW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Pat McReavy | C | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Terry Reardon | C/RW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jack Shewchuk | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Tiny Thompson | G | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| Frank Brimsek | 2610 | 43 | 33 | 9 | 1 | 68 | 1.56 | 10 |
| Tiny Thompson | 310 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 1.55 | 0 |
| Team: | 2920 | 48 | 36 | 10 | 2 | 76 | 1.56 | 10 |

### Playoffs
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| Bill Cowley | C | 12 | 3 | 11 | 14 | 2 |
| Roy Conacher | LW | 12 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 12 |
| Mel Hill | RW | 12 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 12 |
| Milt Schmidt | C/D | 12 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 2 |
| Bobby Bauer | RW | 12 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 0 |
| Woody Dumart | LW | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 6 |
| Flash Hollett | D | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| Eddie Shore | D | 12 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 19 |
| Jack Crawford | D | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 9 |
| Ray Getliffe | C/LW | 11 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| Gord Pettinger | C | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 7 |
| Dit Clapper | RW/D | 12 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 6 |
| Frank Brimsek | G | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Harry Frost | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Red Hamill | LW | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Jack Portland | D | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 11 |
| Charlie Sands | C/RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Cooney Weiland | C | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO |
| Frank Brimsek | 863 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 18 | 1.25 | 1 |
| Team: | 863 | 12 | 8 | 4 | 18 | 1.25 | 1 |
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;