November 19: On this day in 1929, Leaf defenseman and future Hall-of-Famer Hap Day scored 4 goals in a 10-5 loss to the Pittsburgh Pirates. In one evening, Day recorded more than half of his entire goal output in the 1929-30 season when he scored 7 goals in 43 games. Pittsburgh defenseman John McKinnon also scored four goals in the same game. It has been the only time in NHL history when two defenseman scored four goals in the same game.
November 19: On this day in 1949, Bob Hassard played his first NHL game at center with the Leafs. It was the only game he played that season. In that era, the Leafs were deep at the center position and the lineup was tough to crack. Nevertheless, Hassard did play 109 games for Toronto through 1954, scoring 9 goals and adding 28 assists. He never played a playoff game for the Leafs but his name was included at the engraver's office after the Leafs won the Cup in 1951, even though Bob Hassard played just 12 regular season games that year.
November 19: On this day in 1966, in the final season of the "Original Six", the NHL regular season standings were as follows:
Chicago Toronto New York Boston Montreal Detroit | GP 12 14 15 13 12 14 | W 8 4 4 5 5 4 | L 2 3 6 5 6 8 | T 2 7 5 3 1 2 | GF 48 34 43 36 26 43 | GA 27 36 43 41 28 49 | Pts 18 15 13 13 11 10 |
November 19: On this day in 1967, Hall-of-Fame Leaf defenseman Tim Horton played in his 1000th game as a Toronto Maple Leaf. Horton was part of a Leaf defensive nucleus that propelled them to four Stanley Cups between 1962 and 1967. After playing 1185 games as a Leaf, Horton went on to play 261 more regular season games with the Rangers, Penguins and Sabres.
November 19: On this day in 1971, former leaf defenseman Dmitry Yushkevich was born in Cherepovets, U.S.S.R. Yushkevich played 506 games over 7 seasons as a Leaf after a trade with the Philadelphia Flyers in 1995 brought him to Toronto. At his peak and mostly under Head Coach Pat Quinn, Yushkevich was briefly considered to be one of the premier defensemen in the NHL. He was one of three Leafs, along with Mats Sundin and Curtis Joseph to represent the Leafs at the NHL All-Star game in 2000. He was traded to the Florida Panthers in the summer of 2002.
November 19: On this day in 2010, Pat Burns, one of the most successful NHL coaches of the past 20 years, died Friday after a lengthy battle with cancer. Burns, 58, died while surrounded by his family at La Maison Aube-Lumière in Sherbrooke, Que. due to colon cancer which eventually spread to his lungs. During his 14-year NHL coaching career, Burns posted a 501-353-151-14 record in 1,019 games behind the bench of the Montreal Canadiens, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins and New Jersey Devils. Burns won the Stanley Cup with the Devils in 2003, and is the only person in league history to win three Jack Adams Trophies, awarded to the NHL's coach of the year.
Pat Burns in his own words
"To listen to the national anthem being sung at the Montreal Forum and look up and see all those Stanley Cup banners up there and saying, 'What am I doing here?'" — on his first game as coach of the Montreal Canadiens.
"It was a great time … just some great people.… Got to the final, Calgary decided they weren't going to lose another one like they did in '86 [to Montreal]." — on Montreal losing the 1989 Stanley Cup final to the Flames.
"I remember being on the ice after the game, and I remember Ron MacLean coming up to me with the microphone, and I didn't know what to say. I was baffled for words." — on winning the 2003 Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils.
"I tell my friends and family if you feel something, go to the doctor, get diagnosed, get something checked out." — on the importance of personal health.
"I don't want anybody feeling sorry for me. I've had a great life, I've had an enjoyable life, I've had some fun. I've been lucky to be part of one of the greatest sports around [and] the National Hockey League." — on retiring from coaching after being diagnosed with cancer.
Pat Burns in his own words
"To listen to the national anthem being sung at the Montreal Forum and look up and see all those Stanley Cup banners up there and saying, 'What am I doing here?'" — on his first game as coach of the Montreal Canadiens.
"It was a great time … just some great people.… Got to the final, Calgary decided they weren't going to lose another one like they did in '86 [to Montreal]." — on Montreal losing the 1989 Stanley Cup final to the Flames.
"I remember being on the ice after the game, and I remember Ron MacLean coming up to me with the microphone, and I didn't know what to say. I was baffled for words." — on winning the 2003 Stanley Cup with the New Jersey Devils.
"I tell my friends and family if you feel something, go to the doctor, get diagnosed, get something checked out." — on the importance of personal health.
"I don't want anybody feeling sorry for me. I've had a great life, I've had an enjoyable life, I've had some fun. I've been lucky to be part of one of the greatest sports around [and] the National Hockey League." — on retiring from coaching after being diagnosed with cancer.