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September 1962 - STATE OF THE NHL
The NHL just celebrated its 45th season in style, as the Toronto Maple Leafs won their 10th Stanley Cup after defeating the Chicago Black Hawks four games to two.
The league seems to be in good hands, with young stars like Chicago’s Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, Dave Keon and Frank Mahovlich joining established veterans like Gordie Howe, Terry Sawchuk and Jean Beliveau, who all continue to be prolific players into their 30s.
The 23 year old Hull tied the league record for goals last year, notching 50 in 70 games for the Hawks and is only the third to accomplish the feat, along with the recently retired Maurice “Rocket” Richard and Montreal’s Bernie Geoffrion.
Howe, now 34 years old and still with the Detroit Red Wings, is coming off another productive season (33 goals and 44 assists) and leads most of the career stat categories, including points (1126) and assists (624). With 502 goals, he is 42 behind the career mark set by The Rocket.
From a team perspective, the Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs have dominated the league, winning 25 of the first 45 Stanley Cup championships, with the Habs winning 15 and the Leafs winning 10. Detroit is next with 7 Cups and the Bruins, Hawks and Rangers each have won 3 championships.
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