1957 Stanley Cup Finals

The 1957 Stanley Cup Final NHL championship series was contested by the defending champion Montreal Canadiens and the Boston Bruins. The Canadiens were making their seventh consecutive Final appearance, while Boston was making their first appearance since the 1953 Final, also against Montreal. The Canadiens won the series 4–1, for their second-straight Cup victory.
==Paths to the Final==
Montreal defeated the New York Rangers 4–1 while Boston defeated the Detroit Red Wings 4–1 to reach the Final.
==Montreal Canadiens 4, Boston Bruins 1==
The teams last met in the 1955 Semi-finals where Montreal defeated Boston 4 games to 1. The Canadiens again won in five games with goalie Jacques Plante limiting the Bruins to 6 goals, 4 of which were scored by Fleming Mackell. Except for Game 1, Boston's line of Mackell, Jerry Toppazzini and Larry Regan held the Richards off the board but Montreal's second line of Jean Béliveau, Bernie Geoffrion and Bert Olmstead out played Boston's line of Don McKenney, Real Chevrefils and Leo Labine. The Canadiens also had depth scoring from their third and fourth lines while the Bruins had none.
Game 1 at the Montreal Forum saw the Canadiens out shoot the Bruins 39-23. After a scoreless first period, with Phil Goyette in the box for hooking, Boston's Fleming Mackell opened the scoring with a Power play goal. A pass from Doug Mohns at the point to Mackell at the side of the net saw him slip the puck past Plante. Maurice Richard then took over the game. A backhander from the slot and then a power play goal in which he was sent in on a breakaway by Doug Harvey staked Montreal to a 2-1 lead. A backhand shot from Bernie Geoffrion on the power play and a Maurice Richard wrister past Don Simmons on a drop pass from brother Henri Richard had Montreal leading 4-1 going into the third period. With less than two minutes to go in the game, Maurice smacked a shot in low on Simmon's stick side for a convincing 5-1 Montreal win.
Game 2 at Montreal was the closest match of the series. Shots were nearly even and despite seven power plays, no special team goals were scored. After a scoreless first period in which Vic Stasiuk and Doug Harvey engaged in some nasty spearing, Jean Béliveau scored the only goal of the game on a breakaway at 2:27 of the second period for a 1-0 Montreal win.
Game 3 at the Boston Garden saw Montreal dash Boston's hopes with three goals in the first period. Bernie Geoffrion's shot to the low left corner, a Floyd Curry shot, also to the low left corner and a Geoffrion shot on the power play, also to the low left corner had the Habs in front 3-0 going into the second period. Boston's Don McKenney raced down the right wing and fired a backhander past Plante (into the low left corner) to cut the lead to 3-1. However, 7:31 into the third period, Phil Goyette scored on a rebound to make it 4-1. Fleming Mackell scored a consolation goal in the last minute, slipping a shot past Plante from the side of the net for a 4-2 Canadiens win and a stranglehold on the series.
Game 4 at Boston saw the Bruins play their best game of the series. Although outshot 28-21, Don Simmons held Montreal off the scoresheet in recording his first career playoff shutout. Fleming Mackell opened the scoring on the power play 2:56 into the game, scoring from his favorite spot, beside the net. In the game's last minute, Mackell scored an empty netter past Maurice Richard who tried to stop Mackell's shot. Boston's 2-0 win set the series at 3 game to 1.
Game 5 at Montreal was a penalty-filled match as the desperate Bruins fought to avoid elimination. After five penalties, André Pronovost opened the scoring at 18:11 of the first period. As Don Marshall broke into the slot, he was taken out by two Bruins defenders causing Don Simmons lost sight of the puck and Pronovost tapped it in. A melee broke out a minute later with Leo Labine and Bert Olmstead the main combatants resulting in a Montreal power play to begin the second period. Dickie Moore broke around Bob Armstrong 14 seconds in and scored on Simmons. Armstrong crashed into Simmons on the play and was hurt, missing the remainder of the game. Later in the period, a low Geoffrion slap shot beat Simmons between the legs for his playoff leading 11th goal. The Bruins launched a furious assault in the third period in which Leo Labine scored on a Leo Boivin rebound, cutting the lead to 3-1. Don Marshall stopped the come back with a backhand goal with less than three minutes remaining. Floyd Curry scored a minute later to complete a 5-1 Montreal win.
#	Date 	Visitor 	Score	Home 	Record
1	April 6 	Boston Bruins 	1-5 	Montreal Canadiens	0-1
2	April 9 	Boston Bruins 	0-1 	Montreal Canadiens	0-2
3	April 11	Montreal Canadiens	2-4 	Boston Bruins 	3-0
4	April 14	Montreal Canadiens	0-2 	Boston Bruins 	1-3
5	April 16	Boston Bruins 	1-5 	Montreal Canadiens	1-4
==Montreal Canadiens 1957 Stanley Cup Champions==
==Gallery==
16Apr1957-Richard_on_Simmons.jpg|Don Simmons stops Maurice Richard in Game 5 of the 1957 Stanley Cup Finals.
56-57SCupFMontrealGameAd.jpg|Montreal
==Video==
Highlights with English commentary of all goals in the 1957 Stanley Cup Finals and the Cup presentation.
Montreal Canadiens win 1957 Stanley cup
==References==
* 
* Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). Lord Stanley's Cup. Triumph Books, 12, 50. ISBN 1–55168–261–3. 
Category:1957 in hockey
Category:Stanley Cup
Category:Boston Bruins
Category:Montreal Canadiens