The 1954 Stanley Cup Finals was contested by the

Detroit Red Wings The Detroit Red Wings (colloquially referred to as the Wings) are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit. The Red Wings compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference, and are ...

and the defending champion

Montreal Canadiens The Montreal CanadiensEven in English, the French spelling is always used instead of ''Canadians''. The French spelling of ''Montréal'' is also sometimes used in the English media. (french: link=no, Les Canadiens de Montréal), officially ...

, in their fourth straight Finals. It was the second Detroit–Montreal Finals series of the 1950s. The Wings won the series 4–3 to win their second Stanley Cup in four years and sixth overall.

Paths to the Finals

Montreal defeated the

Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins are a professional ice hockey team based in Boston. The Bruins compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team has been in existence since 1924, making ...

4–0 to reach the Finals. Detroit defeated the

Toronto Maple Leafs The Toronto Maple Leafs (officially the Toronto Maple Leaf Hockey Club and often referred to as the Leafs) are a professional ice hockey team based in Toronto. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Div ...

4–1 to reach the Finals.

Game summaries

Tony Leswick Anthony Joseph Leswick (March 17, 1923 – July 1, 2001) was a Canadian ice hockey forward who played mostly for the New York Rangers and Detroit Red Wings of the NHL. Nicknamed "Tough Tony" and "Mighty Mouse", he was known also as a little pest, ...

scored the series-winning goal at 4:29 of overtime in the seventh game. In fact, Leswick's goal was one of the strangest Stanley Cup-winning goals in history, as Leswick's shot was deflected off the glove of Montreal's Doug Harvey and into the net. The Canadiens immediately skated off the ice without shaking hands with the Red Wings.Weekes, Don & Banks, Kerry, ''The Unofficial Guide to Even More of Hockey's Most Unusual Records'', Greystone Books, 2004 This was the second time in NHL history that a seventh game of the Stanley Cup Finals was decided in overtime; the previous time it happened, in , Detroit beat the

New York Rangers The New York Rangers are a professional ice hockey team based in the New York City borough of Manhattan. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its ho ...

in the Finals. This series is the most recent occasion where the seventh game of a Stanley Cup Finals was settled in overtime.

Broadcasting

CBC's coverage of games 3–5 were joined in progress at 9:30 p.m. (approximately one hour after start time). Meanwhile, CBC joined game six in at 10 p.m. (again, one hour after start time). Game seven was carried nationwide from opening the face-off at 9 p.m. Since game seven was played on

Good Friday Good Friday is a Christian holiday commemorating the crucifixion of Jesus and his death at Calvary. It is observed during Holy Week as part of the Paschal Triduum. It is also known as Holy Friday, Great Friday, Great and Holy Friday (also Holy ...

night, there were no commercials (

Imperial Oil Imperial Oil Limited (French: ''Compagnie Pétrolière Impériale Ltée'') is a Canadian petroleum company. It is Canada's second-biggest integrated oil company. It is majority owned by American oil company ExxonMobil with around 69.6 percent o ...

was the sponsor).

Stanley Cup engraving

The 1954 Stanley Cup was presented to Red Wings captain Ted Lindsay by NHL President

Clarence Campbell Clarence Sutherland Campbell, (July 9, 1905 – June 24, 1984) was a Canadian ice hockey executive, referee, and soldier. He refereed in the National Hockey League (NHL) during the 1930s, served in the Canadian Army during World War II, th ...

following the Red Wings 2–1 overtime win over the Canadiens in game seven. The following Red Wings players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup 1953–54 Detroit Red Wings

Notes

References

* * Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). ''Lord Stanley's Cup''. Bolton, Ont.: Fenn Pub. pp 12, 50. * {{Hockey Night in Canada

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup (french: La Coupe Stanley) is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, an ...