1967 – 68 Chicago Black Hawks season The 1967 – 68 Chicago Black Hawks season was the Hawks ' forty - second season in the NHL , and the team was coming off their best regular season in team history , as Chicago finished in first place for the first time in club history in 1966 - 67 , as they earned a franchise record 94 points . The Black Hawks would then be upset by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the NHL semi - finals , as they lost to the Leafs in six games . Off - season . There were many changes in the NHL during the off - season , most notably the league doubled in size , as six expansion teams began play in the 1967 - 68 season . The new teams added to the league were the California Seals ( renamed to Oakland Seals in November ) , Los Angeles Kings , Minnesota North Stars , Philadelphia Flyers , Pittsburgh Penguins , and St . Louis Blues . All the new expansion teams were placed in the West Division , while the Original Six teams were placed in the newly created East Division . The NHL schedule also increased , as the league went from 70 games to 74 . The Black Hawks would see some changes to their roster , as they lost a number of players in the 1967 NHL Expansion Draft , including goaltender Glenn Hall , who was left unprotected by the Hawks , and saw him be drafted by the St . Louis Blues . Chicago also was involved in a blockbuster trade , as the Hawks sent Phil Esposito , Ken Hodge , and Fred Stanfield to the Boston Bruins for Pit Martin , Gilles Marotte , and Jack Norris . Regular season . The Black Hawks would begin the season horribly , as they lost their first six games to quickly fall into last place in the East Division . Chicago would rebound from their poor start , and get very hot , as they went 20 - 4 - 12 in their next 36 games . The Black Hawks would cool off , and finish the season with a 32 - 26 - 16 record , earning 80 points , and the fourth and final playoff berth in the East Division to qualify for post - season play for the ninth consecutive season . Offensively , the Hawks were led by Stan Mikita , who led the NHL in scoring for the second straight season , as he scored 40 goals and added 47 assists for a league best 87 points , winning the Art Ross Trophy and Hart Memorial Trophy . Bobby Hull would lead the league in goals for the sixth time in his career , as he scored 44 times , and earned 75 points . Kenny Wharram had another very solid season , earning 69 points , while Doug Mohns earned 53 points . Pat Stapleton led the defense in scoring with 38 points , while Pierre Pilote finished just behind him with 37 . Newly acquired Gilles Marotte led the team in penalty minutes with 122 . In goal , Denis DeJordy saw most of the action , playing in 50 games , while recording a career high 23 wins , along with a team best 2 . 71 GAA , and four shutouts . Playoffs . The Hawks would open the playoffs against the New York Rangers in the East Division semi - finals . The Rangers finished the season with 90 points , which was 10 more than Chicago . The series opened up with two games at Madison Square Garden in New York , and the Rangers took control of the series , winning both games for a 2 - 0 series lead . The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the next two games , and the Hawks responded on their home ice , winning both games to even the series up . The fifth game was played in New York , however , the Black Hawks held off the Rangers , winning the game 2 - 1 , and took a 3 - 2 series lead . Chicago would wrap up the series in the sixth game at home , easily defeating the Rangers 4 - 1 , and advance to the East Division finals . Chicago would face the Montreal Canadiens , with the winner advancing to the Stanley Cup final . The Canadiens had the best record in the NHL , as they earned 94 points . Montreal swept the Boston Bruins in their first playoff round . The series began at the Montreal Forum , and the Canadiens quickly took a 2 - 0 series lead , as they dominated the Hawks in both games , winning 9 - 2 and 4 - 1 . The series moved to Chicago for the next two games , however , in the third game of the series , Montreal took a 3 - 0 series lead , doubling the Hawks 4 - 2 to put Chicago on the brink of elimination . The Black Hawks staved off elimination in the fourth game , narrowly defeating Montreal 2 - 1 , however , in the fifth game , played in Montreal , the Canadiens ended the series with an overtime winning goal , and advance to the Stanley Cup final . Draft picks . Chicago ' s draft picks at the 1967 NHL Amateur Draft held at the Queen Elizabeth Hotel in Montreal , Quebec .