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The Hamilton Red Wings and the 1962 Memorial Cup
Chapter Five Hamilton clobbers Quebec City in four straight, Memorial Cup next The Hamilton Red Wings were ready to do battle near the Plains of Abraham during the third week of April in 1962, as the Ontario Junior A champs met up with the Quebec Citadels in the first game of the Memorial Cup Eastern Series playoffs. And in the first game of the best-of-seven series, Hamilton handily beat Quebec 6-3 before a crowd approaching 5,000 at the Coliseum in Quebec City. Howie Menard scored first for the victors, with Quebec tying up the contest later in the first period. Hamilton scored twice in the second, thanks to Pit Martin and John Gofton, while Quebec scored once again to give the Wings a 3-2 advantage. Then Hamilton paced the remaining period with three more goals, off the sticks of Joe Bujdoso, Lowell MacDonald, and Paul Henderson. In an interesting move by Hamilton, former Red Wings nemesis Roger Crozier of the Saint Catharines Teepees was named the stand-by netminder for Hamilton for the remainder of the Memorial Cup competition.
Larry Harrop, who was a standout with the Hamilton Bees of the Junior C loop, traveled with the Red Wings to Quebec City, and would remain with the team, but Coach Eddie Bush wanted the talents of Crozier in case both Harrop and first-line goalie Buddy Blom were injured. The second game was not a Hamilton rout, but the team did win when squad captain Howie Menard fired the winner in the Quebec net during the second overtime period to give the Red Wings a 2-0 series lead. “The game shouldn’t have gone into overtime,” noted Menard after the game. “But we got ourselves into that position so it was up to us to get us out.” Hamilton opened the scoring with a MacDonald marker in the first, the only goal in the period, and the Citadels answered with the only goal in the second. Then Henderson scored to open up the third, while Quebec responded. Then Martin gave the Wings a 3-2 lead, which was nulled before the end of the third period. There was no scoring in the overtime session until the .59-second mark of the second 10-minute period, giving Hamilton the win and a 2-0 series lead. The teams returned to Hamilton for game three of the series April 22, and the Wings dominated the contest, winning 8-1 at the Forum. It was Hamilton’s 15th win in the last 18 playoff games. Hamilton played a superb game, as noted by the Spectator’s Joe Watkins: “There wasn’t a weak spot in the Hamilton lineup,” noted Watkins. “The tough luck guy was probably Wayne Rivers who was out-lucked on a least half a dozen occasions. But the Wing right-winger made up for it by turning in a magnificent defensive chore.” Henderson led the Hamilton charge with a pair of goals, and Bujdoso got his second of the series. Menard also scored, his 11th in the series, while MacDonald’s goal gave him 15 on the series. Martin, Gofton, and Jimmy Peters also scored for the Wings. “It was tough but what can you do,” said Citadels Coach Len Corriveau after the game. “We have no alibis. The weather was hot for both teams. And we both played on the same ice. “My players can play better than they did this afternoon,” Corriveau continued. “They weren’t shooting or checking the way they can. Maybe it will be different Tuesday night.” But there wasn’t much difference in the fourth game of the series, as Hamilton downed Quebec 9-3 to win the playoff series in four straight. The win game Hamilton a berth in the Memorial Cup finals for the first time in the history of the city. “This is the biggest moment of my life,” said Hamilton’s Bob Wall after the deciding game. “I thought it was a big thrill when we won the Ontario championship but each one gets better. I don’t know how I’ll feel when we win the Memorial Cup. I never had it so good.” Quebec opened up the scoring in the first, with a response from Hamilton by Rivers in that period. Quebec also opened up the scoring in the second, but the rest of the period was all Hamilton’s with goals by Bujdoso, Menard, and Earl Heiskala. Bujdoso took his second of the game to start the third, and then Menard scored, followed by Henderson, MacDonald, and Peters. Coach Bush was his usual understated self after the victory. “We weren’t so sharp in the first period,” he said. Sometimes you only play as hard as you have to.” Quebec Coach Corriveau was questioned about his use of only six replacements, and offered this response: “These boys have been with me all year and win, lose, or draw they are the players I’ll use as long as we’re in the running. This has been a great experience for them and I wouldn’t want to take it away from any of them.” And after trailing for 33 minutes of the 60-minute contest, Hamilton gained its momentum for the final 27 minutes of the game, finishing with a six-goal advantage. “It has been along haul for the Red Wings,” Hanley noted. “They played 50 games of the regular schedule, 11 exhibition games, and 19 playoff games to date. The boys have been in camp since last September.” A few days later the Red Wings found out their final-round opponents, as the Edmonton Oil Kings defeated the Brandon Wheat Kings in a 5-3 decision to win the Western Canada Junior hockey title four games to three. The finals would begin at Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens in a best-of-seven match-up. It was the Oil Kings’ third successive trip to the Memorial Cup. NEXT: East meets West for the national Junior hockey title
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