The first-place Montreal Canadiens were facing the third-place Toronto Maple Leafs in round one, while the second-place Detroit Red Wings were challenged by the Chicago Black Hawks, the fourth-place finishers during the regular season.
The Leafs were using Paul Bibeault in goal. Bibeault had been borrowed from the Canadiens partway through the season to replace Turk Broda.
Maurice Richard scored five goals in the Game Two of the series. In Game Five, the Canadiens trounced Toronto 11-0 to win the series four games to one. In the other series, the Black Hawks knocked Detroit out of playoff competition, four games to one as well.
That set the showdown for a Canadiens-Black Hawks Stanley Cup Final. But Montreal wasn’t to be denied. They won the Stanley Cup in four straight games to win their first championship since 1930-31. The Canadiens’ potent Punch Line of Toe Blake, Maurice Richard and Elmer Lach led the charge, accounting for 10 of Montreal’s 15 goals in the final series.
