WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:03.100 Welcome to the Deep Dive. Today, we are really 00:00:03.100 --> 00:00:05.660 immersing ourselves in a piece of vintage hockey 00:00:05.660 --> 00:00:08.939 history that, well... It genuinely shaped the 00:00:08.939 --> 00:00:11.480 modern game. It absolutely did. And we have this 00:00:11.480 --> 00:00:14.619 really fascinating stack of historical records, 00:00:14.900 --> 00:00:18.620 season summaries, and archival game logs to go 00:00:18.620 --> 00:00:20.760 through. Right. And our mission today is to just 00:00:20.760 --> 00:00:24.780 completely unpack the 1935 to 1936 National Hockey 00:00:24.780 --> 00:00:27.780 League season. Which is such a wild year. Because 00:00:27.780 --> 00:00:30.320 if you follow the sport, you know that today's 00:00:30.320 --> 00:00:34.679 NHL is this massive, incredibly wealthy corporate 00:00:34.679 --> 00:00:36.920 machine. Oh, yeah. Billion dollar deals everywhere. 00:00:37.179 --> 00:00:38.820 But for you listening, we want to take you back 00:00:38.820 --> 00:00:41.380 to a moment when the league was essentially fighting 00:00:41.380 --> 00:00:43.619 for its life. Literally just trying to survive 00:00:43.619 --> 00:00:46.119 the week. Exactly. We're talking about desperate 00:00:46.119 --> 00:00:48.820 franchise buyouts, the psychological toll of 00:00:48.820 --> 00:00:52.880 the longest NHL game ever played, and some truly 00:00:52.880 --> 00:00:55.159 bizarre structural experiments that the league 00:00:55.159 --> 00:00:57.679 quickly tried to forget. It serves as this perfect 00:00:57.679 --> 00:00:59.880 microcosm of professional sports in transition. 00:01:00.100 --> 00:01:02.259 When we analyze the source material for this 00:01:02.259 --> 00:01:04.379 specific season, we aren't just looking at a 00:01:04.379 --> 00:01:06.280 ledger of who. waist of the Stanley Cup. No, 00:01:06.340 --> 00:01:08.900 it's much bigger than that. Right. We are analyzing 00:01:08.900 --> 00:01:11.920 an eight -team league operating right in the 00:01:11.920 --> 00:01:15.200 shadow of the Great Depression. The NHL was grappling 00:01:15.200 --> 00:01:18.099 with its own identity, trying to balance economic 00:01:18.099 --> 00:01:20.900 survival with competitive integrity. It's the 00:01:20.900 --> 00:01:23.640 bridge. This season is the bridge between the 00:01:23.640 --> 00:01:25.900 chaotic early days in professional hockey and 00:01:25.900 --> 00:01:28.560 the structured, modernized era we recognize today. 00:01:28.739 --> 00:01:30.519 That's a great way to put it. Okay, let's unpack 00:01:30.519 --> 00:01:32.519 this right from the start because the chaos begins 00:01:32.519 --> 00:01:36.120 before a single game is even played. In November 00:01:36.120 --> 00:01:39.620 of 1935, the St. Louis Eagles are in a complete 00:01:39.620 --> 00:01:43.200 free fall. Just hemorrhaging money. Yeah. The 00:01:43.200 --> 00:01:45.599 franchise owners essentially approach the NHL 00:01:45.599 --> 00:01:48.040 with a plea to just hit pause. They want to suspend 00:01:48.040 --> 00:01:51.189 operations for a year, save some cash. and then 00:01:51.189 --> 00:01:53.290 eventually move the team back to Ottawa. And 00:01:53.290 --> 00:01:55.650 the lead's response to that request is incredibly 00:01:55.650 --> 00:01:57.489 telling. They flatly denied it, right? Flat out 00:01:57.489 --> 00:02:00.329 no. Instead of allowing a franchise to go dormant 00:02:00.329 --> 00:02:02.469 and disrupt the schedule, the NHL stepped in 00:02:02.469 --> 00:02:05.409 on October 15th and forcibly bought back the 00:02:05.409 --> 00:02:07.810 St. Louis franchise, along with all the player 00:02:07.810 --> 00:02:09.909 contracts. And here's where it gets really interesting. 00:02:10.210 --> 00:02:13.689 The price tag for that entire operation... $40 00:02:13.689 --> 00:02:17.099 ,000. $40 ,000. 40 grand to dissolve a professional 00:02:17.099 --> 00:02:19.319 sports team. Today, you couldn't even cover a 00:02:19.319 --> 00:02:21.180 fraction of a rookie's salary with that. Not 00:02:21.180 --> 00:02:24.180 even close. But in 1935, that was the cost of 00:02:24.180 --> 00:02:26.900 containing a localized financial disaster. They 00:02:26.900 --> 00:02:28.979 just wiped the Eagles off the map. And Chicago 00:02:28.979 --> 00:02:31.580 didn't even bother participating in the subsequent 00:02:31.580 --> 00:02:33.539 dispersal draft for those St. Louis players. 00:02:33.740 --> 00:02:35.719 Which tells you a lot about the tight budgets 00:02:35.719 --> 00:02:37.479 across the board. Like, they couldn't even afford 00:02:37.479 --> 00:02:39.800 to take on a free player's contract. Exactly. 00:02:40.360 --> 00:02:42.800 And St. Louis wouldn't see another NHL team until 00:02:42.800 --> 00:02:46.180 the massive expansion in 1967. If we connect 00:02:46.180 --> 00:02:49.060 this to the bigger picture, it demonstrates the 00:02:49.060 --> 00:02:52.219 fragility of the league's ecosystem. The NHL 00:02:52.219 --> 00:02:54.620 couldn't afford the optics of a team simply taking 00:02:54.620 --> 00:02:56.819 a year off. Right. It looks like the whole league 00:02:56.819 --> 00:02:59.919 is folding. So they contracted down to just eight 00:02:59.919 --> 00:03:03.199 teams split evenly between the American and Canadian 00:03:03.199 --> 00:03:06.800 divisions. But suffering St. Louis didn't magically 00:03:06.800 --> 00:03:10.020 fix the underlying economic anxiety. The New 00:03:10.020 --> 00:03:12.740 York Americans were actively drowning in financial 00:03:12.740 --> 00:03:15.259 trouble as the season progressed. You see it 00:03:15.259 --> 00:03:17.599 all over the ownership notes. You have figures 00:03:17.599 --> 00:03:20.099 like Leo Dandurant, who had just sold his stake 00:03:20.099 --> 00:03:22.500 in the Montreal Canadiens, sniffing around the 00:03:22.500 --> 00:03:24.439 Americans. Oh, and Joseph Kataranich publicly 00:03:24.439 --> 00:03:26.479 stating he'd buy the team if the price was right. 00:03:26.560 --> 00:03:29.340 Yeah. Ultimately, those deals fell through, but 00:03:29.340 --> 00:03:32.060 it paints a picture of a league where owners 00:03:32.060 --> 00:03:34.039 were constantly looking over their shoulders, 00:03:34.199 --> 00:03:36.780 waiting for the bank to call. That constant looming 00:03:36.780 --> 00:03:39.819 anxiety dictated how these teams operated. But 00:03:39.819 --> 00:03:42.180 we also see fascinating shifts happening in the 00:03:42.180 --> 00:03:45.379 presentation of the sport itself. Yes. Amidst 00:03:45.379 --> 00:03:48.050 all this financial doom and bloom. the Boston 00:03:48.050 --> 00:03:50.449 Bruins made a radical aesthetic decision that 00:03:50.449 --> 00:03:53.349 year. It's the Boston Bruins' iconic jersey shift. 00:03:53.610 --> 00:03:56.469 Prior to 1935, they wore brown and gold uniforms 00:03:56.469 --> 00:03:59.090 with a massive block B dominating the chest. 00:03:59.370 --> 00:04:01.810 But this season marks the debut of their black 00:04:01.810 --> 00:04:04.449 and gold color scheme. Which is such an untouchable 00:04:04.449 --> 00:04:07.129 piece of branding today. But it wasn't just a 00:04:07.129 --> 00:04:10.270 color swap, was it? They completely rearranged 00:04:10.270 --> 00:04:12.669 the layout of the sweater. They moved that primary 00:04:12.669 --> 00:04:15.490 Block B logo to the shoulders and placed the 00:04:15.490 --> 00:04:17.529 player's number front and center on the chest. 00:04:17.829 --> 00:04:20.829 Just a giant number right on the front. Think 00:04:20.829 --> 00:04:23.189 about the implications of that for the fan experience. 00:04:23.370 --> 00:04:26.490 Right, because in an era... Without high -definition 00:04:26.490 --> 00:04:29.949 broadcasts or giant arena jumbotrons, identifying 00:04:29.949 --> 00:04:32.930 individual players from the chief seats was difficult. 00:04:33.189 --> 00:04:35.170 Putting the number on the front was a direct 00:04:35.170 --> 00:04:37.329 move to highlight the individual athletes so 00:04:37.329 --> 00:04:39.009 people actually knew who they were cheering for. 00:04:39.209 --> 00:04:42.410 It's a brilliant, if visually jarring, piece 00:04:42.410 --> 00:04:45.250 of trivia. Imagine the Bruins skating out today 00:04:45.250 --> 00:04:48.250 with just a giant 488 where the crest should 00:04:48.250 --> 00:04:50.209 be. It would look like a practice jersey. So 00:04:50.209 --> 00:04:52.910 we have an eight -team league, a new look in 00:04:52.910 --> 00:04:55.470 Boston, and a heavy cloud of financial stress. 00:04:55.750 --> 00:04:58.310 And as we get into the 48 -game regular season, 00:04:58.449 --> 00:05:01.129 that stress really starts to manifest in the 00:05:01.129 --> 00:05:03.069 front offices. Oh, absolutely. I want to look 00:05:03.069 --> 00:05:06.110 at Chicago, specifically how ownership handled 00:05:06.110 --> 00:05:09.170 their superstar Howie Morens. Morens is a legendary 00:05:09.170 --> 00:05:11.750 figure, but his performance that season for the 00:05:11.750 --> 00:05:14.050 Chicago Blackhawks was noticeably declining. 00:05:14.310 --> 00:05:16.430 He was slowing down. Yeah. And what's fascinating 00:05:16.430 --> 00:05:19.290 here is how the situation was resolved. A modern 00:05:19.290 --> 00:05:21.509 front office would handle an aging star through 00:05:21.509 --> 00:05:23.850 the general manager. Maybe a careful trade or 00:05:23.850 --> 00:05:26.649 a shift in ice time to protect his legacy. Right. 00:05:26.910 --> 00:05:30.730 But in 1935, Morenza's poor play incurred the 00:05:30.730 --> 00:05:34.089 direct personal wrath of Chicago's owner, Frederick 00:05:34.089 --> 00:05:37.319 McLaughlin. Wrath. That is such a loaded word 00:05:37.319 --> 00:05:40.600 for a historical log to use. It strips away any 00:05:40.600 --> 00:05:42.860 illusion of corporate procedure. It wasn't a 00:05:42.860 --> 00:05:45.180 hockey trade. It was an owner throwing his hands 00:05:45.180 --> 00:05:48.220 up in frustration. McLaughlin personally orchestrated 00:05:48.220 --> 00:05:50.500 trading Morenz away to the New York Rangers. 00:05:50.800 --> 00:05:53.420 Just directly intervening, it highlights the 00:05:53.420 --> 00:05:56.680 sheer dictatorial power owners wielded. There 00:05:56.680 --> 00:05:59.160 was no buffer. If the owner was unhappy with 00:05:59.160 --> 00:06:00.899 you, you were on the next train out of town. 00:06:01.100 --> 00:06:03.540 Which brings us to an even wilder front office 00:06:03.540 --> 00:06:06.579 meltdown over in the Canadian division. The Montreal 00:06:06.579 --> 00:06:09.160 Maroons are completely defying logic this season. 00:06:09.240 --> 00:06:11.139 They finish first in their division. They rack 00:06:11.139 --> 00:06:14.920 up 22 wins, 16 losses, and 10 ties for 54 points. 00:06:15.100 --> 00:06:17.819 On paper, they are a powerhouse. But behind the 00:06:17.819 --> 00:06:20.019 scenes, the organization is crumbling. It is 00:06:20.019 --> 00:06:23.300 the ultimate paradox of the 1935 -36 season. 00:06:23.519 --> 00:06:25.800 The Maroons were winning, yet the fans were actively 00:06:25.800 --> 00:06:28.220 abandoning them. Attendance was in free fall. 00:06:28.639 --> 00:06:31.240 And... we have to consider the intense pressure 00:06:31.240 --> 00:06:33.779 that placed on Tommy Gorman. He wasn't just the 00:06:33.779 --> 00:06:36.180 coach. He was wearing all the hats. Yeah, he 00:06:36.180 --> 00:06:38.860 was serving simultaneously as the team president 00:06:38.860 --> 00:06:41.540 and the manager. So what does this all mean for 00:06:41.540 --> 00:06:44.180 Gorman on a human level? You are putting a winning 00:06:44.180 --> 00:06:46.420 product on the ice, but the building is empty 00:06:46.420 --> 00:06:49.379 and the revenue is just drying up. The physical 00:06:49.379 --> 00:06:52.850 and mental toll was profound. Gorman actually 00:06:52.850 --> 00:06:55.850 experienced severe nervous and health problems 00:06:55.850 --> 00:06:58.470 directly attributed to the stress of the empty 00:06:58.470 --> 00:07:01.250 seats. It became so debilitating that Lionel 00:07:01.250 --> 00:07:04.310 Conacher had to step in temporarily just to keep 00:07:04.310 --> 00:07:07.220 the team functioning. It's hard to fathom a modern 00:07:07.220 --> 00:07:09.500 team president having a nervous breakdown while 00:07:09.500 --> 00:07:12.079 in first place. It really underscores how entirely 00:07:12.079 --> 00:07:14.819 dependent these teams were on nightly gate receipts. 00:07:14.860 --> 00:07:16.779 There were no television deals to cushion the 00:07:16.779 --> 00:07:18.819 blow. If people didn't buy a ticket that night, 00:07:18.860 --> 00:07:21.660 the team couldn't pay its bills. Exactly. And 00:07:21.660 --> 00:07:24.259 to fix their momentum, the Maroons pull off a 00:07:24.259 --> 00:07:27.279 massive midseason trade. They ship Toe Blake 00:07:27.279 --> 00:07:29.899 to the Canadians in exchange for the rights to 00:07:29.899 --> 00:07:32.839 Lauren Chabon. And the mechanics of acquiring 00:07:32.839 --> 00:07:36.139 Chabot are just as interesting. Chicago had actually 00:07:36.139 --> 00:07:38.300 suspended Chabot because he flat out refused 00:07:38.300 --> 00:07:41.459 a demotion to the minor elites. The Maroons capitalized 00:07:41.459 --> 00:07:44.439 on that standoff. And once they installed Chabot 00:07:44.439 --> 00:07:47.699 in the net, their defensive structure solidified. 00:07:48.400 --> 00:07:50.819 propelling them to that division title. Goaltending 00:07:50.819 --> 00:07:53.459 truly was the ultimate currency. Now, while the 00:07:53.459 --> 00:07:55.759 Maroons were battling attendance issues and front 00:07:55.759 --> 00:07:58.420 office stress to win the Canadian division, the 00:07:58.420 --> 00:08:00.319 American division was a completely different 00:08:00.319 --> 00:08:02.680 story. It was a masterclass by the Detroit Red 00:08:02.680 --> 00:08:04.399 Wings. They cruised to the top of the league 00:08:04.399 --> 00:08:07.519 with 56 points, distancing themselves from Boston, 00:08:07.620 --> 00:08:10.199 Chicago, and the Rangers. Meanwhile, at the very 00:08:10.199 --> 00:08:12.339 bottom of the league, you had the Montreal Canadiens 00:08:12.339 --> 00:08:16.040 managing only 11 wins across the entire 48 -game 00:08:16.040 --> 00:08:18.040 schedule. Which sets up a post... season that 00:08:18.040 --> 00:08:20.800 is going to look completely alien to anyone accustomed 00:08:20.800 --> 00:08:23.600 to modern tournament brackets. Yes, the bizarre 00:08:23.600 --> 00:08:26.740 two game total goals playoff format. The top 00:08:26.740 --> 00:08:29.500 three teams from each division qualified, but 00:08:29.500 --> 00:08:31.699 how they played each other is a crucial piece 00:08:31.699 --> 00:08:34.360 of sports evolution. The format they use for 00:08:34.360 --> 00:08:37.120 the quarterfinals is just mind bending. So the 00:08:37.120 --> 00:08:39.139 two division winners, Detroit and the Maroons, 00:08:39.200 --> 00:08:42.340 get a bye. sending them directly to a best -of 00:08:42.340 --> 00:08:44.340 -five semifinal against each other. That part 00:08:44.340 --> 00:08:46.740 tracks. That makes sense. But the second - and 00:08:46.740 --> 00:08:49.679 third -place teams have to battle it out in a 00:08:49.679 --> 00:08:52.059 two -game total goal series. For our listeners 00:08:52.059 --> 00:08:54.600 who track modern hockey, walking into a playoff 00:08:54.600 --> 00:08:57.200 series where wins and losses technically don't 00:08:57.200 --> 00:08:59.919 matter is a lot to wrap your head around. It 00:08:59.919 --> 00:09:02.440 entirely subverts the psychology of the game. 00:09:02.730 --> 00:09:05.850 In a two -game total goals format, you aren't 00:09:05.850 --> 00:09:08.669 trying to win two distinct matches. You're playing 00:09:08.669 --> 00:09:12.750 one long 120 -minute game broken across two nights 00:09:12.750 --> 00:09:15.370 in two different cities. The victor is simply 00:09:15.370 --> 00:09:17.549 the team that scores the most aggregate goals. 00:09:17.710 --> 00:09:19.809 Right. Let's use the quarterfinal between the 00:09:19.809 --> 00:09:22.210 Toronto Maple Leafs and the Boston Bruins to 00:09:22.210 --> 00:09:24.590 illustrate how chaotic this actually was. Oh, 00:09:24.629 --> 00:09:26.509 this is the perfect example. So game one happens 00:09:26.509 --> 00:09:28.889 at the Boston Garden. Boston absolutely locks 00:09:28.889 --> 00:09:31.610 it down. Tiny Thompson gets the shutout. They 00:09:31.610 --> 00:09:33.340 score three. Three times and they walk away with 00:09:33.340 --> 00:09:36.299 a 3 -0 victory. In any standard format, Boston's 00:09:36.299 --> 00:09:38.480 the driver's seat. They carry a plus -three goal 00:09:38.480 --> 00:09:40.679 differential into Maple Leaf Gardens for game 00:09:40.679 --> 00:09:43.639 two. And the strategic challenge there is immense. 00:09:44.000 --> 00:09:46.980 Does Toronto pull their goalie early if they're 00:09:46.980 --> 00:09:49.620 only up by two goals late in the game, even though 00:09:49.620 --> 00:09:51.600 they're technically winning that specific match? 00:09:51.820 --> 00:09:53.720 Exactly, because winning the game isn't enough. 00:09:54.190 --> 00:09:56.730 They have to win the math. As it turns out, Toronto 00:09:56.730 --> 00:09:58.970 didn't need to worry about pulling their goalie. 00:09:59.029 --> 00:10:02.669 Game two became an offensive explosion. Boston 00:10:02.669 --> 00:10:05.029 actually manages to score twice in the first 00:10:05.029 --> 00:10:07.909 two periods of game two. But Toronto unleashes 00:10:07.909 --> 00:10:10.590 a six -goal barrage in the second period alone. 00:10:10.830 --> 00:10:13.679 Six goals in one period. By the final horn, Toronto 00:10:13.679 --> 00:10:16.399 wins the game 8 -3. So mathematically, Boston 00:10:16.399 --> 00:10:19.179 won Game 1 and Toronto won Game 2. The series 00:10:19.179 --> 00:10:22.240 is tied 1 -1 in terms of wins. But because Toronto 00:10:22.240 --> 00:10:24.539 racked up eight goals to Boston's combined six 00:10:24.539 --> 00:10:27.179 across both nights, Toronto advances. It perfectly 00:10:27.179 --> 00:10:29.460 illustrates why the NHL abandoned this format 00:10:29.460 --> 00:10:32.519 the very next year. A single blowout period entirely 00:10:32.519 --> 00:10:35.320 negated a hard -fought strategic shutout from 00:10:35.320 --> 00:10:38.039 two nights prior. We saw the exact same flaw 00:10:38.039 --> 00:10:40.080 in the other quarterfinal between Chicago and 00:10:40.080 --> 00:10:42.320 the New York Americans. New York won the first 00:10:42.320 --> 00:10:45.799 game 3 -M. And Chicago fought back to win the 00:10:45.799 --> 00:10:48.919 second game 5 -4. Chicago won the hockey game, 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:50.700 but New York advanced because the aggregate score 00:10:50.700 --> 00:10:53.820 was 7 -5. It creates this weird dissonance where 00:10:53.820 --> 00:10:56.279 you can watch your team win a playoff game on 00:10:56.279 --> 00:10:58.639 the ice and still be eliminated. It's fascinating 00:10:58.639 --> 00:11:01.899 history, but terrible for competitive integrity. 00:11:02.120 --> 00:11:04.240 Terrible. So Toronto takes out the Americans 00:11:04.240 --> 00:11:06.919 in their semifinal bracket. But the other side 00:11:06.919 --> 00:11:08.600 of the bracket? This is the centerpiece of the 00:11:08.600 --> 00:11:12.139 1935 -36 season. The legendary six -overtime 00:11:12.139 --> 00:11:15.379 marathon. The Detroit Red Wings versus the Montreal 00:11:15.379 --> 00:11:17.840 Maroons. Game one of this series is legendary. 00:11:18.120 --> 00:11:20.960 It took place on March 24th at the Montreal Forum. 00:11:21.179 --> 00:11:23.940 The puck dropped at 8 .30 in the evening. This 00:11:23.940 --> 00:11:26.500 matchup pitted the two best teams in the league 00:11:26.500 --> 00:11:28.700 against each other, both fresh off a bye week. 00:11:29.049 --> 00:11:31.129 You look at the game logs for this night and 00:11:31.129 --> 00:11:34.330 the numbers frankly look like a typo. They play 00:11:34.330 --> 00:11:36.750 the first period scoreless. Fucking period scoreless. 00:11:36.909 --> 00:11:40.210 Third period ends 0 -0. So they enter sudden 00:11:40.210 --> 00:11:42.409 death overtime. First goal wins. And they just 00:11:42.409 --> 00:11:44.409 keep playing. First overtime yields nothing. 00:11:44.529 --> 00:11:46.429 Second, third, fourth, fifth overtime. They are 00:11:46.429 --> 00:11:49.009 playing through the night. Consider the physical 00:11:49.009 --> 00:11:52.700 toll this took on the human body in 1936. These 00:11:52.700 --> 00:11:55.279 athletes are wearing heavy wool sweaters that 00:11:55.279 --> 00:11:57.580 are soaking up sweat and melting ice. They're 00:11:57.580 --> 00:11:59.899 skating on rudimentary blades. The nutritional 00:11:59.899 --> 00:12:02.639 science of the era was practically non -existent. 00:12:02.679 --> 00:12:04.440 They were likely drinking coffee and smoking 00:12:04.440 --> 00:12:06.639 cigarettes in the locker room between periods. 00:12:06.840 --> 00:12:09.659 Just fueling up on tobacco and caffeine to go 00:12:09.659 --> 00:12:12.340 play a fifth hour of professional hockey? The 00:12:12.340 --> 00:12:14.200 ice surface itself must have been an absolute 00:12:14.200 --> 00:12:16.759 disaster after six hours of continuous play. 00:12:17.019 --> 00:12:19.299 Pitted and rutted, and through all of this, you 00:12:19.299 --> 00:12:21.720 have a goaltending duel for the ages. Lauren 00:12:21.720 --> 00:12:24.080 Shabbat, the guy the Maroons traded for to save 00:12:24.080 --> 00:12:26.779 their season, is facing an onslaught. He faces 00:12:26.779 --> 00:12:30.700 66 shots and stops 65 of them. Which forces Detroit's 00:12:30.700 --> 00:12:33.419 goaltender, Normie Smith, to deliver a superhuman 00:12:33.419 --> 00:12:36.179 performance to keep his team alive. Smith faced 00:12:36.179 --> 00:12:39.100 92 shots that night. 92 shots! He didn't allow 00:12:39.100 --> 00:12:42.159 a single puck past him. Making 92 saves in a 00:12:42.159 --> 00:12:44.919 single game under those physical conditions is 00:12:44.919 --> 00:12:46.799 a feat of endurance that is difficult to fully 00:12:46.799 --> 00:12:50.370 comprehend. Finally, at 16 minutes and 30 seconds 00:12:50.370 --> 00:12:52.870 into the sixth overtime period, the deadlock 00:12:52.870 --> 00:12:55.570 breaks. A Detroit player named Mud Bruneteau 00:12:55.570 --> 00:12:59.230 manages to slip one past Chabot, ending the game 00:12:59.230 --> 00:13:01.549 one narrow. And the time on the clock when the 00:13:01.549 --> 00:13:04.070 red light finally went on? 2 .25 in the morning. 00:13:04.230 --> 00:13:07.389 2 .25 a .m. They had been playing hockey for 00:13:07.389 --> 00:13:10.210 roughly six hours. It immediately set the record 00:13:10.210 --> 00:13:12.690 for the longest game in Stanley Cup playoff history, 00:13:12.889 --> 00:13:15.809 and it remains the longest ice hockey game ever 00:13:15.809 --> 00:13:17.950 played. And Mug Bruneteau, by the way, was a 00:13:17.950 --> 00:13:21.169 rookie playing his debut NHL season. What a way 00:13:21.169 --> 00:13:23.230 to etch your name into the history books. The 00:13:23.230 --> 00:13:25.429 psychological impact of a game like that cannot 00:13:25.429 --> 00:13:28.909 be overstated. When a team battles for six grueling 00:13:28.909 --> 00:13:31.870 overtimes only to lose on home ice at 2 .30 in 00:13:31.870 --> 00:13:34.330 the morning, it breaks them. The Maroons simply 00:13:34.330 --> 00:13:36.600 had nothing. left to give you can see that completely 00:13:36.600 --> 00:13:38.379 reflected in the rest of the series the maroons 00:13:38.379 --> 00:13:40.039 come out for game two and get shut out again 00:13:40.039 --> 00:13:42.899 by normie smith three narrow detroit just steamrolls 00:13:42.899 --> 00:13:45.299 them sweeping the series three games to none 00:13:45.299 --> 00:13:47.799 to advance to the stanley cup finals detroit's 00:13:47.799 --> 00:13:50.559 momentum was unstoppable at that point they met 00:13:50.559 --> 00:13:52.879 the toronto maple leafs in the finals detroit 00:13:52.879 --> 00:13:56.720 took game one three one and then completely dismantled 00:13:56.720 --> 00:13:59.220 toronto in game two with a nine to four blowout 00:13:59.440 --> 00:14:02.320 Toronto showed a pulse in Game 3, scraping out 00:14:02.320 --> 00:14:05.639 a 4 -3 overtime win thanks to Buzble, but Detroit 00:14:05.639 --> 00:14:08.480 slammed the door in Game 4. A third -period goal 00:14:08.480 --> 00:14:11.440 by Pete Kelly secured a 3 -2 victory, and the 00:14:11.440 --> 00:14:13.620 Detroit Red Wings claimed the Stanley Cup, taking 00:14:13.620 --> 00:14:16.440 the series three games to one. It cemented Detroit 00:14:16.440 --> 00:14:19.259 as the undisputed powerhouse of that year. But 00:14:19.259 --> 00:14:21.100 when we look beyond the Cup at the individual 00:14:21.100 --> 00:14:24.820 awards handed out for the 1935 -36 season, we 00:14:24.820 --> 00:14:27.000 get a clear picture of the sheer concentration 00:14:27.000 --> 00:14:29.840 of talent in this eight -team league. The Boston 00:14:29.840 --> 00:14:31.960 Bruins might have been victims of that bizarre 00:14:31.960 --> 00:14:35.059 total goals playoff math, but their defense was 00:14:35.059 --> 00:14:37.639 heavily recognized. Eddie Shore took home his 00:14:37.639 --> 00:14:40.120 second consecutive Hart Trophy as the league's 00:14:40.120 --> 00:14:42.399 most valuable player. Winning consecutive Hart 00:14:42.399 --> 00:14:45.179 Trophies as a defenseman in an era defined by 00:14:45.179 --> 00:14:48.080 rugged physical play speaks volumes about Shore's 00:14:48.080 --> 00:14:50.279 dominance. And behind him, Tiny Thompson secured 00:14:50.279 --> 00:14:52.759 his third Vizina Trophy for allowing the fewest 00:14:52.759 --> 00:14:54.620 goals. And you have the Lady Bing Trophy for 00:14:54.620 --> 00:14:56.879 sportsmanship. This is one of my favorite stats 00:14:56.879 --> 00:15:00.009 from this season. Frank Berger had an absolute 00:15:00.009 --> 00:15:02.509 stranglehold on that award. He had won it for 00:15:02.509 --> 00:15:06.889 seven consecutive years. But in 1935 -36, Doc 00:15:06.889 --> 00:15:09.889 Romniz of the Chicago Blackhawks finally unseated 00:15:09.889 --> 00:15:13.000 him. We also saw significant parity in the offensive 00:15:13.000 --> 00:15:16.080 production across the league. Sweeney Schreiner 00:15:16.080 --> 00:15:18.799 of the New York Americans led all scorers with 00:15:18.799 --> 00:15:22.820 45 points in 48 games. But the gap between first 00:15:22.820 --> 00:15:25.899 and 10th place was incredibly narrow, with players 00:15:25.899 --> 00:15:28.080 like Marty Berry, Paul Thompson, and Charlie 00:15:28.080 --> 00:15:30.620 Conacher all hovering right around the 40 -point 00:15:30.620 --> 00:15:32.960 mark. You also see this distinct changing of 00:15:32.960 --> 00:15:35.220 the guard. We mentioned Mud Brunetto making his 00:15:35.220 --> 00:15:37.519 debut alongside guys like Ray Getliff and rookie 00:15:37.519 --> 00:15:39.620 of the year Mike Kourakis. At the same time, 00:15:39.659 --> 00:15:42.200 Joe Primo of the Toronto Maple Leafs is skating 00:15:42.200 --> 00:15:45.340 in his final game. It's the perpetual cycle of 00:15:45.340 --> 00:15:47.620 the sport, the veterans making way for the next 00:15:47.620 --> 00:15:50.220 generation. Synthesizing all of this, the 1935 00:15:50.220 --> 00:15:52.940 -36 season represents a massive proving ground. 00:15:53.179 --> 00:15:55.980 The NHL asserted its authority over failing franchises 00:15:55.980 --> 00:15:58.440 rather than letting the league splinter. They 00:15:58.440 --> 00:16:00.700 recognized that gimmicky playoff structures harmed 00:16:00.700 --> 00:16:03.159 the integrity of the game. And we witnessed the 00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:06.200 absolute ceiling of human endurance in that six 00:16:06.200 --> 00:16:09.379 overtime marathon. The league that emerged from 00:16:09.379 --> 00:16:11.960 this season was distinctly more modern in its 00:16:11.960 --> 00:16:14.059 philosophy. It was a crucible. They tested the 00:16:14.059 --> 00:16:16.539 boundaries of economics, rules and stamina and 00:16:16.539 --> 00:16:18.759 forged a clearer vision for the future of hockey. 00:16:19.000 --> 00:16:21.220 Before we wrap up this deep dive, I want to leave 00:16:21.220 --> 00:16:23.639 you with a thought to mull over. We spent a lot 00:16:23.639 --> 00:16:26.000 of time discussing the St. Louis Eagles and how 00:16:26.000 --> 00:16:29.389 the NHL. forcibly bought their entire franchise 00:16:29.389 --> 00:16:32.889 for $40 ,000 just to stop the financial bleeding. 00:16:33.110 --> 00:16:35.169 A completely different world. When you look at 00:16:35.169 --> 00:16:37.450 the modern sports landscape today where expansion 00:16:37.450 --> 00:16:40.230 franchises are auctioned off for billions of 00:16:40.230 --> 00:16:43.049 dollars and leagues expand globally with almost 00:16:43.049 --> 00:16:46.269 zero friction, consider what is lost when that 00:16:46.269 --> 00:16:48.950 existential pressure disappears. Does the sheer 00:16:48.950 --> 00:16:51.909 desperation of a Depression -era eight -team 00:16:51.909 --> 00:16:55.350 league create a purer, more urgent form of competition? 00:16:55.919 --> 00:16:58.320 Or was it merely a chaotic stepping stone to 00:16:58.320 --> 00:17:00.480 the polished corporate giants we cheer for today? 00:17:01.019 --> 00:17:02.700 Something to think about the next time you watch 00:17:02.700 --> 00:17:04.700 the puck drop. Thanks for joining us on this 00:17:04.700 --> 00:17:05.119 deep dive.