1941–42 Boston Bruins season

The 1941–42 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 18th season in the NHL. The Bruins had finished first in the NHL for the four straight years but missed it this year by 4 points, largely due to losing the Kraut Line of Milt Schmidt, Bobby Bauer and Woody Dumart to war service. Also, Bill Cowley missed 20 games with a broken jaw and Dit Clapper missed 16 games and the entire playoffs with a ruptured Achilles tendon. The Bruins lost in the Semi-finals to the Detroit Red Wings 2 games to 0.
==Pre-season==
The Bruins played the following exhibition games:
*Wednesday, November 5 - Bruins 5, Ottawa Senators, QSHL 0 @ Ottawa
==Regular Season==
Boston's home opener on November 16, 1941 saw the players presented with Stanley Cup medals by Boston mayor Maurice Tobin as part of the pre-game ceremonies. Boston wore their alternate jersey with "Bruins" written in script on the front and defeated the New York Rangers 2-1. The November 27 game versus the Brooklyn Americans saw the Bruins score 4 goals in overtime (as it wasn't sudden death) to win 6-2. On December 9, 1941, the game versus the Chicago Black Hawks was delayed for over a half hour as United States President Franklin Delano Roosevelt declared that America was at war. Hockey’s Book of Firsts, p.71, James Duplacey, JG Press, ISBN 978-1-57215-037-9
Goalie Frank Brimsek had his nose broken during the January 24, 1942 game versus the Montreal Canadiens. Nick Damore played his only NHL game filling in for Brimsek the next night, a 7-3 win over the Habs before Brimsek returned. Scoring champion Bill Cowley had his jaw broken during the 4-3 loss to the Detroit Red Wings on January 22, 1942 and missed 20 games, returning for the last game of the season on March 17, 1942. On January 31, Herb Cain had his cheek fractured when boarded by Bucko McDonald (missing 6 games) and Dit Clapper suffered a ruptured Achilles tendon when he collided with Rudolph Kampman (missing the rest of the season) in the 3-2 (OT) win over the Toronto Maple Leafs.
Busher Jackson was purchased from the Brooklyn Americans on January 4, 1942 and joined brother Art Jackson for the first of three seasons they'd play together for the Bruins.
On February 6, 1942 at the Boston Garden, the Bruins hosted a game versus a team of mostly retired NHL All-stars in support of the U.S. Army Relief Society and raised over $14,000 for military widows and orphans. The Bruins Busher Jackson played for the Stars so he could oppose his brother Art and be reunited with his former linemates Joe Primeau and Charlie Conacher. Brothers also playing against each other included Roy Conacher and Charlie. Former Bruins Eddie Shore and goalie Tiny Thompson played for the Stars who were coached by the Bruins coach, Cooney Weiland while Bill Cowley, out with a broken jaw, coached the Bruins.
The Stars warmed up wearing jerseys of the NHL teams they'd played for before changing into "V for Victory" jerseys for the game, which consisted of two 15 minute periods with a break in between in which the Bruins farm team, the Boston Olympics played the first period of their game versus the Johnstown Jets. Body checking was kept to a minimum and two goals by Bobby Bauer and one by Gordie Bruce put the Bruins up 3-0.
The second period saw the Stars go on a run with two goals by Bill Cook and goals by George Owen and Jackson put the Stars up 4-3. Fifteen minutes had past but the gong didn't sound, allowing Bruce to tie the game up. Then all players from both teams got on the ice and played for a few minutes with no score until the game ended. Shore was deemed the star of the game.
The Kraut Line played their last game before leaving for war service on February 10, 1942. The line scored 11 points in a 8-1 victory over Montreal Canadiens. In a very classy gesture, the Habs carried them off the ice when the game was over.
===Final Standings===
===Game Log===
Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results	Regular Season Results 	Regular Season Results
No. 	R 	Date 	Score 	Opponent 	Record
1 	L 	November 8, 1941 	0–2 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42)	0–1–0
2 	W 	November 15, 1941 	2–1 	@ New York Rangers (1941–42) 	1–1–0
3 	W 	November 16, 1941 	2–1 	New York Rangers (1941–42) 	2–1–0
4 	W 	November 18, 1941 	7–2 	Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	3–1–0
5 	L 	November 20, 1941 	2–3 	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42)	3–2–0
6 	W 	November 23, 1941 	4–2 	@ Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	4–2–0
7 	W 	November 25, 1941 	7–1 	Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	5–2–0
8 	W 	November 27, 1941 	6–2 OT 	@ Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	6–2–0
9 	W 	November 29, 1941 	3–1 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	7–2–0
10 	W 	November 30, 1941 	3–2 	Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	8–2–0
11 	W 	December 2, 1941 	3–1 OT 	Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42) 	9–2–0
12 	L 	December 7, 1941 	4–5 	@ New York Rangers (1941–42) 	9–3–0
13 	T 	December 9, 1941 	2–2 OT 	Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42) 	9–3–1
14 	T 	December 14, 1941 	3–3 OT 	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42)	9–3–2
15 	W 	December 16, 1941 	4–0 	Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	10–3–2
16 	W 	December 20, 1941 	4–2 OT 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	11–3–2
17 	T 	December 21, 1941 	2–2 OT 	@ Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	11–3–3
18 	W 	December 23, 1941 	3–2 	New York Rangers (1941–42) 	12–3–3
19 	L 	December 25, 1941 	0–2 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42)	12–4–3
20 	W 	December 30, 1941 	4–1 	Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42) 	13–4–3
21 	W 	January 1, 1942 	5–4 	Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	14–4–3
22 	L 	January 4, 1942 	2–3 	@ Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	14–5–3
23 	W 	January 6, 1942 	3–2 	Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42) 	15–5–3
24 	W 	January 13, 1942 	2–1 	Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	16–5–3
25 	W 	January 18, 1942 	4–3 	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42)	17–5–3
26 	L 	January 20, 1942 	2–4 	New York Rangers (1941–42) 	17–6–3
27 	L 	January 22, 1942 	3–4 	@ Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	17–7–3
28 	T 	January 24, 1942 	2–2 OT 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	17–7–4
29 	W 	January 25, 1942 	7–3 	Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	18–7–4
30 	T 	January 27, 1942 	0–0 OT 	Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42) 	18–7–5
31 	L 	January 29, 1942 	4–5 	@ Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	18–8–5
32 	W 	January 31, 1942 	3–2 OT 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42)	19–8–5
33 	L 	February 1, 1942 	1–2 	Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	19–9–5
34 	L 	February 3, 1942 	3–5 OT 	Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42) 	19–10–5
35 	L 	February 5, 1942 	1–4 	@ New York Rangers (1941–42) 	19–11–5
36 	W 	February 8, 1942 	3–0 	Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	20–11–5
37 	W 	February 10, 1942 	8–1 	Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	21–11–5
38 	L 	February 15, 1942 	0–2 	@ Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42)	21–12–5
39 	L 	February 19, 1942 	4–6 	@ Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	21–13–5
40 	L 	February 24, 1942 	3–4 	New York Rangers (1941–42) 	21–14–5
41 	T 	March 1, 1942 	3–3 OT 	Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	21–14–6
42 	W 	March 3, 1942 	5–3 	Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42) 	22–14–6
43 	L 	March 7, 1942 	3–4 OT 	@ Montreal Canadiens (1941–42) 	22–15–6
44 	L 	March 8, 1942 	1–3 	@ Detroit Red Wings (1941–42) 	22–16–6
45 	W 	March 10, 1942 	9–1 	Chicago Black Hawks (1941–42) 	23–16–6
46 	W 	March 12, 1942 	2–1 	@ New York Rangers (1941–42) 	24–16–6
47 	L 	March 14, 1942 	4–6 	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1941–42)	24–17–6
48 	W 	March 17, 1942 	8–3 	Brooklyn Americans (1941–42) 	25–17–6
==Playoffs==
=== Boston Bruins 2, Chicago Black Hawks 1 ===
The Black Hawks were the first team the Bruins ever met in the playoffs, in 1927. The Bruins defeated the Hawks then and repeated it in 1942, two games to one. The Bruins played the entire playoffs without Dit Clapper, out with a severe ankle laceration.
Game 1 was a close affair with Roy Conacher scoring for the Bruins in the first period and Max Bentley tying the game with less than two minutes left. Des Smith won the game for the Bruins, 6:51 into overtime.
Game 2 was dominated by the Hawks who scored goals in the second period by Bill Mosienko, Alex Kaleta and Bill Carse before George Allen added another in the third period for a 4-0 win. Pete LoPresti earned the shutout.
Game 3 saw the Bruins stake a 2-0 lead on a pair of goals by Gordie Bruce. Max Bentley cut the lead in half until Jack McGill scored. Bill Mosienko made the game close but the Bruins prevailed 3-2 to win the series.
#	Date 	Visitor 	Score 	Home 	Record
1	March 22	Boston Bruins 	2-1 (OT)	Chicago Black Hawks	1-0
2	March 24	Chicago Black Hawks	4-0 	Boston Bruins 	1-1
3	March 26	Chicago Black Hawks	2-3 	Boston Bruins 	1-2
=== Detroit Red Wings 2, Boston Bruins 0 ===
After defeating the Red Wings in the 1941 Stanley Cup Finals, the Wings got their revenge on the Bruins, eliminating them in the Semi-finals 2 games to 0.
Game 1 saw the Wings take commanding 3-0 and 4-1 leads and despite a Hat trick from the Bruins Jack McGill, they'd take game 1 by a 6-4 score.
Game 2 resulted in a 3-1 win for the Wings led by a pair of goals from Joe Carveth, eliminating the Bruins. The Wings would lose the Finals to the Toronto Maple Leafs and be the first team in NHL history to lose a seven game series after winning the first 3 games.
#	Date 	Visitor 	Score	Home 	Record
1	March 29	Detroit Red Wings	6-4 	Boston Bruins 	1-0
2	March 31	Boston Bruins 	1-3 	Detroit Red Wings	0-2
==Player Stats==
===Regular Season===
;Scoring
# 	Player	Pos	GP	G 	A 	Pts	PIM
9 	 	LW 	43	24	13	37 	12
15 	 	C/D	36	14	21	35 	34
17 	 	RW 	36	13	22	35 	11
7 	 	RW 	45	12	22	34 	8
2 	 	D 	48	19	14	33 	21
14 	 	LW 	35	14	15	29 	8
10 	 	C 	28	4 	23	27 	6
16 	 	C 	47	6 	18	24 	25
11 	 	C 	13	8 	11	19 	2
4 	 	LW 	34	8 	10	18 	2
12 	 	LW 	43	7 	10	17 	19
5 	 	D 	32	3 	12	15 	31
3, 8 	 	D 	48	7 	7 	14 	70
18 	 	LW 	26	5 	7 	12 	18
20 	 	LW 	15	4 	8 	12 	11
6 	 	D 	43	2 	9 	11 	37
4, 18 	 	LW 	9 	6 	3 	9 	2
17 	 	RW 	10	1 	2 	3 	0
18, 21	 	D 	22	2 	0 	2 	14
10, 11	 	C 	9 	1 	1 	2 	0
12 	 	C 	6 	0 	1 	1 	0
14 	 	D 	13	0 	1 	1 	4
19 	 	RW 	3 	0 	0 	0 	2
18 	 	D 	6 	0 	0 	0 	2
19 	 	G 	1 	0 	0 	0 	0
1 	 	G 	47	0 	0 	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player	MIN 	GP	W 	L 	T	GA 	GAA 	SO
 	2930	47	24	17	6	115	2.35	3
 	60 	1 	1 	0 	0	3 	3.00	0
Team: 	2990	48	25	17	6	118	2.37	3
===Playoffs===
;Scoring
# 	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
11	 	C 	5 	4	1	5 	6
20	 	LW 	5 	2	3	5 	4
9 	 	LW 	5 	2	1	3 	0
8 	 	D 	5 	1	2	3 	2
10	 	C 	5 	0	3	3 	5
4 	 	LW 	5 	1	0	1 	0
6 	 	D 	5 	0	1	1 	4
12	 	LW 	5 	0	1	1 	0
2 	 	D 	5 	0	1	1 	2
16	 	C 	5 	0	1	1 	0
18	 	LW 	5 	0	1	1 	0
21	 	D 	5 	0	1	1 	7
7 	 	RW 	5 	0	1	1 	0
14	 	D 	5 	0	0	0 	0
1 	 	G 	5 	0	0	0 	0
;Goaltending
Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA 	SO
 	307	5 	2	3	16	3.13	0
Team: 	307	5 	2	3	16	3.13	0
Official NHL game sheets indicate Cliff Thompson played 6 regular season games, not 3.
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals 
MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts 
==Awards and Records==
* Vezina Trophy: Frank Brimsek (2nd win)
* Frank Brimsek, Goaltender, NHL First Team All-Star
==Transactions==
*Mel Hill is sold to the Brooklyn Americans on June 27, 1941.
*Due to service in Canada's wartime production industry, Terry Reardon could not leave Canada so he is traded to the Montreal Canadiens for Paul Gauthier on November 5, 1941.
*Pat McReavy is traded to the Detroit Red Wings for Dutch Hiller on November 24, 1941.
*Robert "Red" Hamill is sold to the Chicago Black Hawks on December 17, 1941.
*Busher Jackson is purchased from the Brooklyn Americans on January 4, 1942.
*Phil Hergesheimer is purchased from Chicago on January 26, 1942.
==Trivia==
*Goalie Nick Damore subbed in for Frank Brimsek and played the only game of his NHL career on January 25, 1942 in the Bruins 7-3 win over the Montreal Canadiens.
*Jack Shewchuk wore jersey #21 from February 3, 1942 on, the first time a Bruin wore this number and the highest number worn by a Bruin to that time.
*The Bruins went 4-6-1 after the Kraut Line left for war service.
*Bruins who recorded a Hat trick this season include:
**Jack McGill during the 6-4 loss to the Detroit Red Wings, Game 1 of the 1942 Semi-finals on March 29, 1942.
==Gallery==
41-42NHLExhBosBruOttawaGameAd.jpg|Exhibition @ Ottawa
15Nov1941-Brimsek_save_Cain.jpg|Bruins Frank Brimsek makes a save in a 2-1 win against the Rangers while #4 Herb Cain looks, November 15, 1941.
15Nov1941-Krauts_Shewchuk_vs_NYR.jpg|The Kraut Line and #18 Jack Shewchuk in action against the Rangers, November 15, 1941.
1941-Nov15-Henry-Dumart.jpg|Jim Henry stops Woody Dumart, November 15, 1941.
1941-Nov15-Schmidt-Henry.jpg|Milt Schmidt is stopped by Jim Henry, November 15, 1941.
30Nov1941-Hollett-Gardiner-Graboski.jpg|Flash Hollett doesn't score on his attempt on Bert Gardiner in this November 30, 1941 game won 3-2 by the Bruins. Habs #8 Tony Graboski defends.
1942-Feb6-Harvey-ArtJackson-Ray-CharlieConacher.jpg|Brothers Busher and Art Jackson, Roy and Charlie Conacher at the charity game to raise money for the U.S. Army Relief Society, February 6, 1942.
1942-Feb10-Crawford-Kraut Line.jpg|Jack Crawford congratulates the Kraut Line, February 10, 1942.
Jacksons_Art_Ross.jpg|Brothers Busher and Art Jackson, seen here with Art Ross, played for the Bruins for 3 seasons beginning in 1942.
1941-42-Conacher_Brooklyn_Anderson_Rayner.jpg|A rare action photo of the Bruins alternate 1940's jersey. Bruins Jack McGill hunts for a rebound on Chuck Rayner and Tommy Anderson of the Brooklyn Americans during the 1941-42 season.
1941-Brimsek-Hextall-Patrick-Crawford-Colville-Jackson.jpg|Frank Brimsek, Bryan Hextall, Lynn Patrick, Jack Crawford, Neil Colville, Art Jackson in the 1941-42 season.
==See Also==
*1941–42 NHL season
==References==
Category:Boston Bruins seasons
Category:1941 in hockey
Category:1942 in hockey