Word: imlach
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This year, hardly anybody outside of Toronto gave the Leafs much chance to make even the playoffs. Coach George ("Punch") Imlach's team was the oldest in the league, held together with stitches, tape and pride. Captain George Armstrong was 36 and quite possibly in his last season; Forward Red Kelly was 39; Defenseman Allan Stanley, 41. Goalie Johnny Bower admitted to 42. And behind him in the nets was Terry Sawchuk, 37, bothered by a chronically bad back and talking about retirement after an illustrious 20-year career that won him four Vezina trophies as hockey...
...matter of survival-with very little honor. Down two games to one, then three games to two, they scrambled back twice to tie, won the deciding game 4-0 when the exhausted Red Wings simply ran out of steam. "We acted like champions," said Toronto Coach Punch Imlach, "and we played like champions." Anybody else would have been content to say that the best team finally...
...Chicago started this week tied for the lead in league scoring with none other than Montreal's Jean Beliveau (19 goals, 21 assists v. 20 goals, 20 assists). Although Hull is playing his first season at left wing and only his third in the N.H.L., Toronto Coach Punch Imlach rates him second only to Beliveau, and Chicago fans are already hoping that some day their young star will lead the team to its initial first-place finish...
...Even Imlach concedes that he fired up his team chiefly with gab and hard work. But he also got sulky Winger Frank Mahovlich to begin hustling and himself turned up two new Leaf forwards-Larry Regan obtained from the Bruins and Gerry Ehman from Hershey. They scored the big goals in the stretch drive and against Boston. Long-starved Leaf fans suddenly became fanatics. Radios were installed in hospital delivery rooms. For the final series against Montreal, scores were announced during Parliament proceedings...
...Canadiens alone seemed unimpressed by Big-Time Talker Imlach, whipped in their first goal in the first game just 36 seconds after the face-off. With Superstars Jean Beliveau and Maurice Richard injured, the Canadiens were forced to hustle, had still enough spare talent to wrap up the series in five games. But for Toronto fans, it was almost thrill enough to be the losers...