Summary
Bobby Hull of Chicago set two NHL records with 54 goals and a total of 97 points. He also won the the Hart Trophy as the league's most valuable player for the second year in a row, but his Blackhawks still finished in second place, 8 points behind the Montreal Canadiens.
Montreal was once again led on offense by Jean Beliveau, Bobby Rousseau, and Henri Richard, but their best player was probably Jacques Laperriere, who won the Norris Trophy as the league's top defenseman.
Defenseman Marcel Pronovost went to Toronto and center Andy Bathgate to Detroit in an eight-player trade before the season opened. The Maple Leafs ended up in third place with the Red Wings 5 points behind them in fourth.
But the Red Wings eliminated the Blackhawks in a six-game semifinal series, while Montreal also won in six over Toronto.
Given little chance to win the Stanley Cup, Detroit surprised everyone by winning the first two games of the final series in Montreal. The Canadiens turned the tables by winning Game 3 in Detroit. In Game 4, Detroit goaltender Roger Crozier injured a leg and Montreal squeaked out a 2-1 win to even the series.
Crozier was back in net for Game 5, but the injury cut back on his agility and Montreal coasted to a 5-1 win. Detroit forced overtime in Game 6, only to see the series end suddenly on a goal by Henri Richard at 2:20 of the extra period. Despite the defeat, Crozier won the Smythe Trophy as MVP of the playoffs.
