1956-57 Montreal Canadiens Jacques Plante Jersey

After earning his fame as a member of the Montreal Canadiens beginning in 1952-53, where he won six Stanley Cup championships, six Vezina Trophies and the Hart Trophy, as well as the notoriety of being the innovator of the modern goalie mask in 1959, Jacques Plante, who was born on this date in 1929, began the second phase of his career when a personality conflict between the quirky goaltender and headstrong coach Toe Blake led to Plante being traded to the New York Rangers in 1963.

Plante's first season with the Rangers saw him play in 65 of the Rangers 70 games, but the club finished fifth out the six teams and out of the playoffs, a position he was not accustomed to while with the Canadiens, who not only made the playoffs ever year of his time in Montreal, they won the championship six out of his 11 seasons in Montreal.

His second season in New York was not nearly as simple, as he only played 33 games with the Rangers and spent time in the minors with the Baltimore Clippers, playing in 17 games before retiring, as he required surgery on his right knee in addition to his wife's illness at the time.

For the next two seasons Plante was a sales representative for Molson beer and had seemingly left his playing days behind him. All that changed in 1967 when the NHL expanded by six teams, doubling the number of jobs available at all positions, especially the close-knit world of goaltending, which previously was limited to roughly 12 jobs.

With the six new expansion teams looking to fill their rosters, a mix of career minor leaguers and veterans were pressed into service by "the second six", with mixed results. The St. Louis Blues were the most successful of the first year teams, upsetting the first place Philadelphia Flyers in the opening round of the playoffs and eliminating the Minnesota North Stars to become the Western Conference, made up entirely of the expansion clubs, representative in the Stanley Cup Finals, where they were quickly dispatched by the Canadiens.

Pleased with the play of veteran Glenn Hall, the Blues drafted the retired Plante in an effort to strengthen their goaltending tandem, and the rejuvenated Plante accepted the Blues overtures and returned to the NHL. Splitting time with Hall, they posted nearly identical records as the pair led the league with the least number of goals allowed, which earned them a split of that season's Vezina Trophy at the age of 40. The Vezina was Plante's seventh, a new NHL record.

During the playoffs, the Blues defeated both the Flyers and Los Angeles Kings to return to the finals, only to meet the same fate at the hands of the Canadiens.

St. Louis then traded Plante to the Toronto Maple Leafs for the 1970-71 season where he led the NHL with the best goals against average at just 1.88.

He played for the Maple Leafs again in 1971-72, appearing in 34 games, and most of the 1972-73 season before being dealt late in the year to the Boston Bruins where he played the final eight games of his storied NHL career, going 7-1-0 to help the Bruins qualify for the playoffs.

Having failed miserably with their choice of Maurice Richard as head coach, who lasted just two games of their debut season, the Quebec Nordiques of the rival World Hockey Association (WHA) signed Plante to a ten year contract to be not only their head coach, but their general manager as well. Plante did manage to improve the team enough in 1973-74 to post a winning record at 38-36-4, but did not qualify for the playoffs and resigned at the end of the season.

Plante then came out of retirement once more at the age of 46 to join the Edmonton Oilers, also of the WHA. The Oilers goaltending position that season was a revolving door of sorts, as Plante appeared in 40 games that season, but his 1592 minutes played was only the equivalent of 26 1/2 games. In all, the three Oilers goalies made 100 appearances in 78 games as their coaches, first Brian Shaw and later Bill Hunter were quick with the hook.

Sadly, Plante was attending the Oilers training camp for the 1975-76 season, but retired for good when he learned that his youngest son had passed away.

Aside from his credit for the modern goalie mask, he is also viewed as an innovator for shouting instructions to his teammates, leaving the crease to play the puck, raising his arm to indicate an icing call for his defensemen, cutting down angles and staying square to the shooter. He is also one of the goaltender to write a book on how to play the position and is viewed as the innovator of modern goaltending.

In addition to his Stanley Cups and awards, his final NHL totals were 837 games, 434 wins, 82 shutouts and a lifetime goals against average of 2.38.

Plante was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978 and the Canadiens retired his #1 in 1995.

Today's featured jersey is a 1956-57 Montreal Canadiens Jacques Plante jersey from the season Plante won his second of five consecutive Vezina Ttrophies and Stanley Cups.

The Canadiens would adopt this style of jersey in 1947-48 with sleeve numbers arriving in 1958-59. Other than changes to the location of the sleeve numbers from above the blue arm stripes to being contained inside them, this jersey would remain unchanged until 1975-76 when the collar changed to a v-neck.

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

Bonus jersey: Today's bonus jersey is a 1974-75 Edmonton Oilers Jacques Plante jersey from his final season of play, his only one as a member of the WHA.

During the team's inaugural season of 1972-73 the team was known as the Alberta Oilers and to drive home the point, all the jerseys had "ALBERTA" on the back where the players name would customarily have been.

For 1973-74 the team changed their name to the Edmonton Oilers, and with the change in team name, the club then went with the standard player names on the back of their sweaters, only in the unusual, almost handwritten font you see on today's featured jersey, which was actually recycled from the previous year and worn only in the preseason, as the club had a new set of jerseys made for the regular season which featured blue shoulders and a more standard block font for the names.

Today's video section begins with an interview with Plante about goalie masks in the 1970's and the modifications made to provide more protection.

Next up is a interview with Plante, Johnny Bower and Glenn Hall from 1977.

  

  

Zamboni Tribute Day

In honor of the birthdate of Frank Zamboni, a tribute to the ice resurfacing machine he invented that bears his name, the Zamboni, perhaps the most fun word to say in the entire world.

The next time you happen to be looking for a gift-giving idea for us at Third String Goalie, you couldn't possibly go wrong with this piece of brilliance.

1911-12 Princeton Tigers Hobey Baker Jersey

Born on this date in 1892, Hobart Amory Hare "Hobey" Baker was considered he first American star hockey player. He hailed from Philadelphia and enrolled at Princeton University in 1910, where he played for both the hockey and football teams. He was considered one of the best athletes of his time, showing immediate skill in hockey, football, golf, baseball, tennis, swimming and track.

While at Princeton he would win a national championship in 1911 as a halfback with the football team and in 1912 and again in 1914 with the hockey team, where he was known as a fast and agile skater.

The 1912 Princeton championship hockey team

Sportswriters in Philadelphia referred to him as "the blond Adonis of the gridiron", thanks in part to the fact he played football without a helmet! Baker set a school record with 92 points in 1911, a record which stood for 63 years. In 1913 he was named captain of the team for his senior year.

Baker in his Princeton football uniform

While statistics were not kept during Baker's time at Princeton, it's been estimated that he scored over 120 goals and 100 assists in three years, an average of nearly 4.5 goals per game and more than 3 assists per game. Aside from his offensive skills, he was also well known for his sportsmanship and gentlemanly play, being called for only a single penalty during his entire college career and known for visiting the opponents dressing room after every game to shake hands with each player.

Hobey Baker

He concluded his football career at Princeton with a 20-3-4 record and his hockey career with a 20-7 mark.

After graduating in 1914, Baker would win a national amateur championship with the St. Nicholas Hockey Club in 1915. So well known was Baker by this point that the marquee at the arena would read "Hobey Baker plays tonight." While with the St. Nicholas club, Baker turned down a $20,000 offer to play for the Montreal Canadiens, as it was frowned up at the time to for someone of his stature in society to play sports for money.

The St. Nicholas hockey club

Following his graduation from Princeton, Baker worked for a time in New York and took up aviation as a hobby, including once leading a squadron of a dozen planes over the Princeton football stadium before landing his plane on the football field!

He then enlisted in the United States Army Air Service. While serving in Europe during World War I, Baker rose to the level of captain and was named commander of the 141st Aero Squadron, where he had the planes painted in Princeton's black and orange and adopted a tiger as the squadron logo.

In 1918, while Baker was test piloting a recently repaired plane, it crashed, killing him just hours before he was due to leave France and return home to the United States.

Baker was so highly regarded that he was the only American in the Hockey Hall of Fame's inaugural class of nine inductees in 1945 as well as one of the first group of inductees into the United States Hockey Hall of Fame in 1973. Two years later, Baker was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame, making him the only person to be inducted into both the Hockey  Hall of Fame and College Football Hall of Fame.

In 1921, Princeton named it's new arena the Hobey Baker Memorial Rink, which is still used by the Tigers and currently the second oldest arena in American college hockey.

Princeton's Hobey Baker Memorial Rink

1980 would see the NCAA introduce the Hobey Baker Award, given annually to the best college hockey player in the United States.

Today's featured jersey is a 1911-12 Princeton University Hobey Baker jersey. This wool sweater is identical to the ones worn by the Tigers during team photos in 1912 and 1914, with it's orange P logo on the chest. It differs from the university's football jerseys of the day, which had v-neck collars, as the hockey team used round neck collars, a lesson in paying attention to details when trying to authenticating jerseys, or in this case, a sweater.

Today's first video is about Baker and the Hobey Baker Award.

Next up are a pair of biographies of Baker, both very well done.

Dominik Hasek Buffalo Sabres Jersey Retrospective

Dominik Hasek became the youngest player in in professional hockey history when, at age 16 he suited up for HC Pardubice in the Czechoslovak Extraliga in 1980. He would play for Pardubice for nine seasons, including winning the championship twice in both 1987 and 1989 and be named the top player of the Czechoslovak Extraliga in 1987, 1989 and 1990 as well as the Goaltender of the Year for five consecutive seasons from 1986 through 1990.

He would play one season in Czechoslovakia for Dukla Jihlava in 1989-90 before moving to North America, as the restrictions on players from communist countries were now being lifted. 

A very young Hasek with Tesla Pardubice

Drafted 199th overall in the 10th round back in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft by the Chicago Blackhawks, when players from communist countries had little chance of ever playing in the NHL, Hasek would not even find out he had been drafted until several months later. He would begin his time in North American hockey with the Indianapolis Ice of the IHL in 1990-91 before making his NHL with the Blackhawks - eight years after being originally drafted. His first win would come on March 8, 1991, a 5-3 win over his future club - the Buffalo Sabres.

Hasek during his rookie season with Chicago, as evidenced by the
1991 NHL All-Star patch, wearing the unfamiliar #34

The following season, backing up Chicago's then number one goaltender Ed Belfour, Hasek would split his time between Chicago and Indianapolis, playing in 20 games for each club. Unable to win the starting job from Belfour, Hasek would be traded during the offseason to the Buffalo Sabres where he would begin the next phase of his career.

Hasek's career in Buffalo got off to a slow start, as he fought to maintain his position on the Sabres depth chart with Tom Draper (11 games played), Daren Puppa (24) and Grant Fuhr (29) all competing for playing time in 1992-93. Eventually, Hasek would play in 28 games that season, finishing with a 11-10-4 record, but his goals against average of 3.15 was the lowest of the four, besting Fuhr's 3.47.

Hasek began his Sabres career in the classic blue and gold jerseys with the Stanley Cup Centennial patch decorating his jersey in 1992-93

Hasek took the reigns as the Sabres number one goaltender the following season with 58 games played and 30 wins to go along with a stellar 1.95 goals against average to lead the league thanks in part to 7 shutouts, also best in the NHL. Following the season he was recognized with both the Jennings Trophy, shared with Fuhr for the fewest goals allowed, and the Vezina Trophy as the league's best goaltender. During the playoffs, Hasek dueled with the Devils' Martin Brodeur and eventually prevailed in a 1-0 win in four overtimes to set a record for Most Saves in a Shutout with 70 which still stands today.

The 1994-95 season was shortened by labor issues, but when the season got underway, Hasek played in 41 of Buffalo's 48 games with a 2.11 goals against average to again lead the league on his way to a second consecutive Vezina Trophy.

Hasek won his second consecutive Vezina Trophy in 1994-95 with the Sabres 25th Anniversary patch on the upper right chest

photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

1995-96 was down year for the Sabres and Hasek, as his goals against average rose to 2.83 and he won 22 while losing 30 and tying 6, but just when he began to look mortal, he went on an extended run of goaltending excellence never before seen in the history of the NHL.

The Sabres wore the #1 patch in 1995-96 as a memorial to the late Roger Crozier, the first goaltender in Sabres history
photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

The 1996-97 season saw Hasek play in 67 games, winning 37 with a 2.09 goals against average. Following the season he would be named not only the recipient of his third Vezina Trophy in four seasons, but also be awarded both the Pearson Award as the Most Outstanding Player voted by his fellow players and the Hart Trophy as the NHL's Most Valuable Player, only the fourth goaltender to ever win the MVP award and first in 35 years.

For the 1996-97 season, the Sabres introduced an entirely new identity package, which included a change in the team colors and a bold, new logo plus a memorial patch to honor their original owner, Seymour Knox III
photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

Hasek would double up on both the Pearson Award and Hart Trophy, as well as winning his fourth Vezina Trophy in 1998 following his 33 wins and outstanding team record 13 shutouts in 72 games with a 2.09 goals against and a .932 save percentage in 1997-98. 

Hasek competed in the Super Skills Competition at the 1998 NHL All-Star Game with the Czech flag on his jersey to denote his nationality for the one and only time due to the new World vs North America format

His third consecutive 30 win season came in 1998-99 when he set a career bests in both goals against average with 1.87 and a save percentage of .937, the sixth consecutive season he would lead the league. His trophy cabinet expanded yet again with this third consecutive Vezina Trophy, his fifth in six seasons. During the playoffs, Buffalo, the seventh seed in the east, marched to the only Stanley Cup Final during his time with the Sabres.

A special patch adorned the Sabres jerseys during
the 1999 Stanley Cup Final

A persistent injury limited Hasek to 35 games during the 1999-00 season, but he still managed 15 wins with a 2.21 goals against in his curtailed season, the first in seven seasons he did not take home an NHL award.

A Sabres 1999-00 jersey with the NHL 2000 patch, the fifth and final regular season patch worn by Hasek while with Buffalo in addition to the 1999 Stanley Cup Final patch and the Czech flag from the 1998 Super Skills Competition for a total of seven patches worn by "The Dominator"
photo courtesy of Classic Auctions

He rebounded in 2000-01 with 67 games played while equalizing a career high with 37 wins. His goals against was a familiar 2.11 and his save percentage was .921, all of which added up to a sixth Vezina Trophy in eight seasons. An overtime loss in Game 7 of the second round ended Hasek's time with Buffalo, as he was traded in an effort to lower the club's payroll and give him the opportunity to play with a more competitive team after nine memorable seasons with the Sabres.

The Sabres introduced an alternate jersey for the first time in their history in time for Hasek's final season in Buffalo, the fifth different style of Sabres jersey he wore

His outstanding career with the Sabres was recognized last night as Buffalo retired Hasek's #39, the sixth number retired by the club and first one in nine years.

Here is his speech at his retirement ceremony from last night.

Finally, an episode of "Beyond Blue & Gold" featuring Hasek on the occasion of his induction into the Sabres Hall of Fame in March of 2014.

Teemu Selanne Anaheim Ducks Jersey Retrospective

Last night at the Honda Center Teemu Selanne became the first player in the history of the Anaheim Ducks franchise to have his number retired when his number 8 was raised to the rafters.

Selanne played 21 NHL seasons, with 15 of those being in Ahaheim. He began his career with the Winnipeg Jets in 1992-93 in spectacular style, setting the NHL record for Most Goals by a Rookie with 76. He remains one of only eight men to score 70 in a season and it remains the fifth highest by a player in a single season and the only 70 goal season by a rookie.

Selanne was dealt by a financially distressed Jets team to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim midway through the 1995-96 season and formed a memorable duo with linemate Paul Kariya for years.

He would play six seasons with the Mighty Ducks and would wear five different jersey styles for the club.

The first two jerseys were the Mighty Ducks original home and away jerseys, which broke new ground as the first jerseys in league history to feature a bold diagonal waist stripe when they debuted for the 1993-94 season. The infuence was immediate, as both the St. Louis Blues and Calgary Flames would follow suit the following season. They also added new, radical colors to the NHL palette, those being eggplant and jade.

The Mighty Ducks 1993-2003 home jersey,
this particular one manufactured by Nike



The Mighty Ducks 1993-2003 eggplant colored road jersey

In addition to the Mighty Ducks standard home and away jerseys, Selanne had the misfortune to arrive in Anaheim the season they club debuted their first alternate jersey, the absurd "Wild Wing" jersey which featured their team mascot as a super hero breaking through the ice, made possible by the first use of dye-sublimation technology, which now allowed designs to be printed onto the jerseys, rather than being limited to just sewing pieces of fabric together to create limited striping patterns.

The jerseys were so poorly received by the players that they were only worn six times and the players even went so far to request that they not be pictured wearing them in the following season's media guide!

The Mighty Ducks short lived "Wild Wing" alternate of 1995-96

After the failure of the Wild Wing alternate in 1996, the Mighty Ducks would try again in 1997-98 when they would introduce not one, but two new alternate jerseys. The pair would share the same template. The first was a somewhat unnecessary white alternate, but the "fourth" jersey was jade with eggplant running down the arms, which complimented the home white and road eggplant jerseys well enough.

The white third jersey arrived first, having been worn during the

season opening Game ONe Japan event in Tokyo

The jade alternate was the first fourth jersey in league
history and was used for just two seasons

During Selanne's first six years with the Mighty Ducks he would put together back-to-back 50 goal seasons with 51 in 1996-97 and 52 in 1997-98. Thanks to his 58 assists in 1996-97, Selanne would also have the highest scoring season with Anaheim with 109 points. After his 52 goal season in 1998, he followed that with a 47 goal, 107 point season in 1998-99 which earned him the inaugural Rocket Richard Trophy as the leading goal scorer in the NHL. He would lead the Mighty Ducks in scoring in 1997, 1998 and 1999.

Selanne would also appear in seven NHL All-Star Games during his first tour of duty with the Mighty Ducks. This would lead to a unique jersey variation, as Selanne would participate in the 1997 All-Star Super Skills Competition with the flag of Finland on his jersey for the one and only time to denote his nationality as part of the first World vs. North America All-Star Game format to promote the participation of NHL players in the upcoming 1998 Olympics in Nagano, Japan.

Selanne wore the Finland flag on his jersey during the 1997 Super Skills
Competition at the 1997 NHL All-Star Game for the one and only time

Other than the Game ONe 1997 patch worn on the eggplant jerseys on October 3, 1997 and the new white third jersey on October 4, 1997, the only other patch worn by Selanne during the first phase of his Anaheim career was the eggplant version of the NHL 2000 patch during the 1999-00 NHL season on the Mighty Ducks home white, road eggplant and white alternate jerseys, as the jade alternate was discontinued after the 1998-99 season.

During the 2000-01 season, Selanne was the Mighty Ducks leading scorer, but with the team in last place, they chose to trade Selanne to the San Jose Sharks. After two and a half seasons in San Jose, he signed a one year contract, along with former Anaheim linemate Kariya, with the Colorado Avalanche. With the NHL season cancelled in 2004-05, Selanne chose to rest and allow his body to heal rather than play in Europe like many other NHLers chose to.

Again a free agent, Selanne chose to return to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim for the 2005-06 season. Unlike other older veteran players who did not play during 2004-05 and were never the same again, the year off rejuvenated Selanne, who rebounded from a dismal 15 goal season in Colorado to post a 40 goal season in 2005-06. His strong performance upon his return to the NHL was recognized by Selanne being named the 2006 recipient of the Masterton Trophy for dedication and perseverance to hockey.

His 40 goal season was followed by a 48 goal, 94 point 2006-07 season, easily the best of his second stint in Anaheim, which was capped off by a triumphant Stanley Cup championship, which caused many to speculate if the now 36 year old would retire on top.

That was not to be, and not by a long shot, as Selanne would play an additional seven seasons with the Ducks. Age and injuries began to take their toll, as he was limited to 26 games in 2007-08, 65 and 54 games the two following seasons. However, Selanne still had a surprise for his loyal fans, as he rebounded in 2010-11 with a 73 game, 80 point season and backed that up with a full 82 games and 66 points in 2011-12. He would play two more seasons before retiring after the 2013-14 season at the age of 43.

When Selanne returned to the club in 2005-06, they were in their final season of wearing their original white and eggplant jerseys, only with the dark jerseys now being worn at home and the whties on the road. During Selanne's absence, the club introduced a black alternate jersey in 2003-04, which Selanne wore during his first season back with the Mighty Ducks. However, Selanne found on his return to Anaheim that his traditional #8 was now in use by Latvian defenseman Sandis Ozolinsh. Selanne chose to revert to the #13 that he wore during his rookie season in Winnipeg.

The Mighty Ducks final alternate jersey, worn by Selanne for one season
on his return to Anaheim, notable for the #13

A change in ownership for the club saw a change in name from the original and unconventional Mighty Ducks of Anaheim to the Anaheim Ducks for 2006-07. Along with the name change came an entirely new identity package, which meant new logos, colors and, of course, jerseys. The new name and jerseys were christened with the first Stanley Cup in franchise history - fine way to break in the team's new look. Additionally, with Ozolinsh having been traded away the previous season, Selanne was now free to return to his preferred #8 for 2006-07.

The Ducks introduced an entirely new look for 2006-07 and
promptly won the Stanley Cup

The rounded shirt tail look arrived in 2007-08 with the
new Reebok Edge jerseys

After sticking to just a black home jersey and a white road for the first four seasons of the new era as the Anaheim Ducks, the team introduced their a new alternate jersey for the first time since 2005-06. The jersey was an attractive looking upgrade over their home and road jerseys, as the promotion of the capital "D", in the form of a duck's footprint was a bold statement of identity rather than the too short wordmark of the home and road jerseys. Additionally, the more liberal incorporation of orange made for a much more vibrant jersey than the primary black home jersey.

The fifth alternate jersey in Ducks history arrived in 2010

This particular jersey was worn at the start of the 2011-12 season as part of the NHL Premiere series of games, where selected teams opened their regular season in Europe, as evidenced by the NHL Premiere Finland patch on the right chest. The Ducks were no doubt sent to Finland due to Selanne's popularity in his homeland.

One final jersey variation would await Selanne during the final season of his career, as the Ducks were chosen to play outdoors at Dodger Stadium against the Los Angeles Kings as part of the Stadium Series of games, meant to capitalize on the popularity of the New Year's Day Winter Classic games. As with the Winter Classic, teams would wear special one-off jerseys for the event, with the Ducks choosing a bold orange look, which no doubt was visible from the upper reaches of the baseball stadium.

The Anaheim Ducks orange Stadium Series jersey was

worn just once on January 25, 2014 outdoors at Dodger Stadium

Of note, during Selanne's final season with the Ducks, they would wear their original eggplant jerseys for an October 13th turn back the clock game to commemorate their 20th NHL season.

During his second time with the club, Selanne would again lead the team in scoring in 2006, 2007 and one final time in 2012, no easy feat at the age of 41 and when competing with young All-Stars such as Ryan Getzlaf and Corey Perry.

In all, Selanne would play 15 seasons in Anaheim, six during his first run with the club as the Mighty Ducks. He would return to the Mighty Ducks for the 2005-06 season and then play eight more after the club name was changed to the Anaheim Ducks, which included winning a Stanley Cup in 2007.

Selanne would wear nine different styles of jerseys, two sets of home and road jerseys and five alternates plus the addition of the one-off Stadium Series jersey for a grand total of ten during his career with the Mighty Ducks and later just Ducks.

Patches worn by Selanne during his second tour of duty in Anaheim included the one game only Teammates for Kids patch on January 5, 2007 on the black home jersey, the 2007 Stanley Cup Finals patch, the NHL Premiere 2011 patch on the white road jersey on October 7, 2011 and on the black alternate on October 7, 2011, the "24" memorial patch for former Mighty Ducks player Ruslan Salei, who died in the Lokomotiv Yaroslavl Air Disaster, the Ducks 20th Anniversary patch during his final NHL season of 2013-14 and the Stadium Series patch on the Ducks special one-off orange jerseys on January 25, 2014.

Here is the tribute video to Selanne from last evening's special night in Anaheim.

Next are highlights of the retirement ceremony from last evening.