WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.480 I want you to imagine a professional sports league 00:00:02.480 --> 00:00:07.040 teetering right on the brink of total collapse. 00:00:07.519 --> 00:00:10.500 Like we're talking legendary franchises just 00:00:10.500 --> 00:00:12.859 flat out suspending operations because they literally 00:00:12.859 --> 00:00:14.820 cannot afford to turn the lights on. Yeah, just 00:00:14.820 --> 00:00:17.570 totally out of money. Exactly. And on top of 00:00:17.570 --> 00:00:20.250 that, you have a rogue outlaw league banging 00:00:20.250 --> 00:00:22.570 on the door publicly demanding a shot at the 00:00:22.570 --> 00:00:25.510 championship. You have a massive iconic arena 00:00:25.510 --> 00:00:29.629 being built essentially with IOUs and sweat equity 00:00:29.629 --> 00:00:32.109 because the funding completely dried up. Right. 00:00:32.490 --> 00:00:35.070 And if that isn't enough chaos for you, imagine 00:00:35.070 --> 00:00:37.810 a championship series being relocated. Not for 00:00:37.810 --> 00:00:40.049 extreme weather, not for a scheduling conflict 00:00:40.049 --> 00:00:42.689 with another sport, but because a literal circus 00:00:42.689 --> 00:00:44.750 took over the building. It's almost too bizarre 00:00:44.750 --> 00:00:47.929 to be true, but it is. It really is. Welcome 00:00:47.929 --> 00:00:50.229 to The Deep Dive. For this one, we're focusing 00:00:50.229 --> 00:00:53.210 on what we're titling The Deep Dive. outlaw leagues 00:00:53.210 --> 00:00:57.670 the circus and the 1931 -32 nhl season we're 00:00:57.670 --> 00:00:59.810 using wikipedia's historical records to exploit 00:00:59.810 --> 00:01:02.189 one of the most chaotic foundational and downright 00:01:02.189 --> 00:01:04.719 unbelievable years in nhl history And it really 00:01:04.719 --> 00:01:07.120 is a season that just defies conventional logic. 00:01:07.340 --> 00:01:10.599 We aren't just looking at a schedule of hockey 00:01:10.599 --> 00:01:13.379 games today. We're looking at a battle for a 00:01:13.379 --> 00:01:15.939 league's very survival. The Great Depression 00:01:15.939 --> 00:01:18.239 was suffocating the economy and the stakes could 00:01:18.239 --> 00:01:20.180 not have been higher. I mean, this was a transitional 00:01:20.180 --> 00:01:23.200 do or die moment that would determine the entire 00:01:23.200 --> 00:01:26.359 future identity of professional hockey. So our 00:01:26.359 --> 00:01:29.239 mission today is to help you understand how this 00:01:29.239 --> 00:01:32.879 absolute madness of a 15th season set the stage. 00:01:33.319 --> 00:01:35.519 For the modern game we know today. Exactly. We'll 00:01:35.519 --> 00:01:38.340 be weaving in all these major SEO keywords, if 00:01:38.340 --> 00:01:40.400 you will, of Stanley Cup history. We're talking 00:01:40.400 --> 00:01:42.540 the Toronto Maple Leafs, the New York Rangers, 00:01:42.700 --> 00:01:45.120 the origins of Maple Leaf Gardens, outlaw hockey 00:01:45.120 --> 00:01:47.379 leagues, and even the origins of Hockey Night 00:01:47.379 --> 00:01:50.420 in Canada. It's a packed year. It is. Okay, let's 00:01:50.420 --> 00:01:52.560 unpack this. We have to start with the grim reality 00:01:52.560 --> 00:01:56.420 of November 1931. The league was shrinking and 00:01:56.420 --> 00:02:00.409 fast. Yeah. Going into this season, the NHL contracted 00:02:00.409 --> 00:02:03.849 down to just eight teams. At the September NHL 00:02:03.849 --> 00:02:06.329 meeting, the league formally granted the request 00:02:06.329 --> 00:02:09.229 of the Philadelphia Quakers and the Ottawa Senators 00:02:09.229 --> 00:02:12.289 to simply suspend their franchises for the year. 00:02:12.409 --> 00:02:14.729 Just take a year off. Right. Because the economic 00:02:14.729 --> 00:02:17.090 pressure was just too much. And the Quakers, 00:02:17.210 --> 00:02:19.490 as it turns out, would never return. Wait. So 00:02:19.490 --> 00:02:21.490 if Ottawa and Philadelphia just close up shop. 00:02:22.030 --> 00:02:24.409 What happens to their rosters? I mean, you can't 00:02:24.409 --> 00:02:26.849 just have dozens of professional hockey players 00:02:26.849 --> 00:02:29.650 suddenly unemployed in 1931, right? You'd think 00:02:29.650 --> 00:02:31.530 it would be a massive crisis, but the remaining 00:02:31.530 --> 00:02:33.930 owners got incredibly creative with their accounting. 00:02:34.090 --> 00:02:38.069 The eight surviving teams essentially divided 00:02:38.069 --> 00:02:40.849 up the Ottawa and Philadelphia players, but they 00:02:40.849 --> 00:02:42.770 didn't buy them outright. The contracts were 00:02:42.770 --> 00:02:44.550 released from Ottawa and Philadelphia with the 00:02:44.550 --> 00:02:46.710 strict legal intention that those players would 00:02:46.710 --> 00:02:49.189 revert back to their original clubs once the 00:02:49.189 --> 00:02:51.750 economy recovered. So you were basically renting 00:02:51.750 --> 00:02:54.849 an entire professional hockey team's roster to 00:02:54.849 --> 00:02:58.300 your biggest rivals. Yeah. It really highlights 00:02:58.300 --> 00:03:01.300 the extreme financial desperation of the era. 00:03:01.460 --> 00:03:03.979 The priority was keeping the players on the ice 00:03:03.979 --> 00:03:06.360 and keeping the league afloat, even if it meant 00:03:06.360 --> 00:03:08.520 loaning your star player to the team you're competing 00:03:08.520 --> 00:03:11.520 against. And the desperation wasn't just isolated 00:03:11.520 --> 00:03:14.319 to Ottawa and Philadelphia. Over in Michigan, 00:03:14.580 --> 00:03:17.319 the Detroit Falcons were entirely bankrupt and 00:03:17.319 --> 00:03:19.539 had actually gone into receivership. It was a 00:03:19.539 --> 00:03:22.419 very bleak landscape. But Ottawa actually had 00:03:22.419 --> 00:03:24.699 a lifeline on the table, didn't they? I read 00:03:24.699 --> 00:03:27.099 they received a massive offer. to sell the team 00:03:27.099 --> 00:03:30.560 for $300 ,000. During the Depression, that is 00:03:30.560 --> 00:03:32.979 an astronomical sum of money. A total fortune 00:03:32.979 --> 00:03:35.840 at the time, but there was a massive catch attached 00:03:35.840 --> 00:03:38.919 to that money. Always. The condition of the $300 00:03:38.919 --> 00:03:41.379 ,000 sale was that the Ottawa team had to pack 00:03:41.379 --> 00:03:44.080 up, cross the border, and move to Chicago to 00:03:44.080 --> 00:03:46.919 play in the newly built Chicago Stadium. To pack 00:03:46.919 --> 00:03:49.379 up an entire franchise and move them into a city 00:03:49.379 --> 00:03:52.219 that already has an NHL team? Why would the rest 00:03:52.219 --> 00:03:54.360 of the league ever agree to that? Well, they 00:03:54.360 --> 00:03:56.659 didn't. And this is where the cutthroat territorial 00:03:56.659 --> 00:03:59.699 politics of the era really come into play. The 00:03:59.699 --> 00:04:02.639 owners of the Chicago Blackhawks flatly refused 00:04:02.639 --> 00:04:06.259 to allow a new competing team within their territory. 00:04:06.419 --> 00:04:08.939 Naturally. They wanted a monopoly on the local 00:04:08.939 --> 00:04:12.479 fan base and the gate receipts. So they exercised 00:04:12.479 --> 00:04:15.340 their veto power, completely killing that $300 00:04:15.340 --> 00:04:18.720 ,000 lifeline for Ottawa. Which ironically left 00:04:18.720 --> 00:04:21.560 the door wide open for some serious outside threats. 00:04:22.000 --> 00:04:23.959 Because while the NHL... AHL is busy fighting 00:04:23.959 --> 00:04:25.800 amongst itself and putting out these internal 00:04:25.800 --> 00:04:28.879 financial fires. A massive external predator 00:04:28.879 --> 00:04:31.540 appears on the horizon. Right. And what's fascinating 00:04:31.540 --> 00:04:33.639 here is the rise of what was known as the American 00:04:33.639 --> 00:04:37.079 Hockey Association. By the 1930 -31 season, they 00:04:37.079 --> 00:04:39.779 had evolved and rebranded into the American Hockey 00:04:39.779 --> 00:04:43.480 League, the AHL. And heading into this 1931 -32 00:04:43.480 --> 00:04:46.519 season, the AHL boldly declared themselves to 00:04:46.519 --> 00:04:49.139 be a major league, not a developmental league, 00:04:49.199 --> 00:04:52.279 not a farm system, but a direct heavyweight competition. 00:04:52.329 --> 00:04:54.430 And they didn't just put out a press release, 00:04:54.509 --> 00:04:56.370 right? They aggressively moved right into the 00:04:56.370 --> 00:04:58.949 NHL's backyard. They put a franchise in Chicago, 00:04:59.149 --> 00:05:01.850 which directly infringed on the NHL's Blackhawks, 00:05:01.850 --> 00:05:03.889 the same Blackhawks who just vetoed the Ottawa 00:05:03.889 --> 00:05:07.810 move. Then they put a franchise in Buffalo, where 00:05:07.810 --> 00:05:10.069 the NHL already had a minor league affiliate 00:05:10.069 --> 00:05:13.889 established. NHL president Frank Calder was reportedly 00:05:13.889 --> 00:05:17.889 furious. He publicly condemned the AHL as a rogue 00:05:17.889 --> 00:05:21.009 outlaw league. That label of outlaw league is 00:05:21.009 --> 00:05:23.509 crucial because it sets up a constitutional crisis 00:05:23.509 --> 00:05:26.790 for the sport of hockey. The HL didn't just ignore 00:05:26.790 --> 00:05:29.910 Calder's insults. They called his bluff. They 00:05:29.910 --> 00:05:32.290 formally proposed a direct challenge for the 00:05:32.290 --> 00:05:34.209 Stanley Cup. Which brings us to a part of hockey 00:05:34.209 --> 00:05:36.149 history that modern fans often misunderstand. 00:05:36.709 --> 00:05:39.370 Today, we think of the Stanley Cup as the exclusive 00:05:39.370 --> 00:05:42.810 corporate property of the NHL. But that wasn't 00:05:42.810 --> 00:05:45.129 the case back then at all. Not at all. The Stanley 00:05:45.129 --> 00:05:47.209 Cup was originally donated by Lord Stanley as 00:05:47.209 --> 00:05:49.329 a challenge cup. It belonged to the sport itself 00:05:49.329 --> 00:05:51.310 and it was overseen by independent trustees. 00:05:51.610 --> 00:05:53.810 Right. Those trustees were the legal guardians 00:05:53.810 --> 00:05:56.769 of the Cup's original deed. When the AHL issued 00:05:56.769 --> 00:05:58.889 their challenge, the trustees reviewed it and 00:05:58.889 --> 00:06:01.689 actually ordered the NHL to play the AHL outlaws 00:06:01.689 --> 00:06:05.629 for the Cup. That is wild. The NHL was legally 00:06:05.629 --> 00:06:08.930 obligated by these independent trustees to defend 00:06:08.930 --> 00:06:11.990 the most prestigious trophy in the sport against 00:06:11.990 --> 00:06:15.129 a rogue league they actively despised. It could 00:06:15.129 --> 00:06:18.399 have fundamentally altered sports history. Imagine 00:06:18.399 --> 00:06:20.980 the legitimacy the AHL would have gained if they 00:06:20.980 --> 00:06:23.199 played that series. Totally. But the NHL was 00:06:23.199 --> 00:06:25.959 saved by the bell. The Great Depression was just 00:06:25.959 --> 00:06:28.540 as brutal to the outlaws as it was to the establishment. 00:06:29.060 --> 00:06:31.699 Before the challenge games could even materialize, 00:06:31.779 --> 00:06:34.899 the AHL's brand new Buffalo franchise collapsed 00:06:34.899 --> 00:06:37.259 financially. The Outlaw League suddenly shows 00:06:37.259 --> 00:06:39.680 weakness, and Frank Calder doesn't hesitate. 00:06:40.139 --> 00:06:42.860 He swoops in immediately. He executed a brilliant, 00:06:42.959 --> 00:06:45.779 ruthless business maneuver. Calder bypassed the 00:06:45.779 --> 00:06:48.660 AHL leadership entirely and entered into direct, 00:06:48.779 --> 00:06:51.620 private negotiations with James Norris. And Norris 00:06:51.620 --> 00:06:53.579 was the owner of the AHL's Chicago team, right? 00:06:53.740 --> 00:06:56.220 Exactly. The wealthy owner of the AHL's Chicago 00:06:56.220 --> 00:06:59.639 Shamrocks, Calder brokered a merger. He took 00:06:59.639 --> 00:07:02.040 Norris' Chicago Shamrocks and merged them with 00:07:02.040 --> 00:07:04.819 the bankrupt Detroit Falcons of the NHL. Wow. 00:07:05.199 --> 00:07:08.139 So by doing this, he removed the strongest financial 00:07:08.139 --> 00:07:11.290 pillar of the Outlaw League. completely outflanked 00:07:11.290 --> 00:07:14.370 them. They had no choice but to officially sign 00:07:14.370 --> 00:07:17.170 an agreement with the NHL, forcing them to drop 00:07:17.170 --> 00:07:19.750 their major league ambitions and become the NHL's 00:07:19.750 --> 00:07:22.730 minor league affiliate system. Which is crazy 00:07:22.730 --> 00:07:24.949 to think about. Yeah. If we connect this to the 00:07:24.949 --> 00:07:28.129 bigger picture, you see a league operating on 00:07:28.129 --> 00:07:31.029 the razor's edge. The entire minor league farm 00:07:31.029 --> 00:07:33.730 system as we know it today wasn't born out of 00:07:33.730 --> 00:07:36.329 some grand cooperative developmental strategy. 00:07:36.470 --> 00:07:38.810 Right. It was just survival. It was forged by 00:07:38.810 --> 00:07:41.870 neutralizing a hostile takeover. The line between 00:07:41.870 --> 00:07:44.449 being a major leaguer and folding entirely was 00:07:44.449 --> 00:07:47.870 razor thin. Which brings us perfectly to the 00:07:47.870 --> 00:07:50.189 physical embodiment of that struggle up in Toronto. 00:07:50.889 --> 00:07:53.230 Let's shift our focus up to Canada, because while 00:07:53.230 --> 00:07:55.629 all this corporate warfare is happening, the 00:07:55.629 --> 00:07:57.709 Toronto Maple Leafs were making a massive physical 00:07:57.709 --> 00:08:00.329 transition. They were moving out of the old arena 00:08:00.329 --> 00:08:02.629 gardens and attempting to build a brand new state 00:08:02.629 --> 00:08:05.069 -of -the -art home, the iconic Maple Leaf Gardens. 00:08:05.310 --> 00:08:08.009 But just like the rest of the league, this massive 00:08:08.009 --> 00:08:10.629 construction project was plagued by the immense 00:08:10.629 --> 00:08:14.250 financial pressures of the early 1930s. At one 00:08:14.250 --> 00:08:16.750 critical point, the construction of Maple Leaf 00:08:16.750 --> 00:08:19.589 Gardens was nearing total collapse. The funding 00:08:19.589 --> 00:08:21.750 just dried up. The money simply wasn't there 00:08:21.750 --> 00:08:24.350 to finish the building. No. And this is where 00:08:24.350 --> 00:08:27.470 we see one of the most incredible, gritty financial 00:08:27.470 --> 00:08:31.089 miracles in sports history. Con Smythe and Frank 00:08:31.089 --> 00:08:34.090 Selk, the driving forces behind the Maple Leafs, 00:08:34.090 --> 00:08:36.830 had to get incredibly creative. They didn't go 00:08:36.830 --> 00:08:39.389 to the banks. No, they went directly to the construction 00:08:39.389 --> 00:08:41.889 unions. They asked the union workers to accept 00:08:41.889 --> 00:08:44.169 stock in Maple Leaf Gardens as partial payment 00:08:44.169 --> 00:09:09.850 for their physical labor. It's amazing. It really 00:09:09.850 --> 00:09:12.909 shows how fragile these now legendary sports 00:09:12.909 --> 00:09:15.830 institutions were at the time. Survived because 00:09:15.830 --> 00:09:18.490 the community willed them to survive. And the 00:09:18.490 --> 00:09:21.250 ultimate sports irony. After all that blood, 00:09:21.429 --> 00:09:23.850 sweat, and stock trading to finally get the doors 00:09:23.850 --> 00:09:27.350 open, the Toronto Maple Leafs didn't even win 00:09:27.350 --> 00:09:29.750 their home opener. Oh, of course not. The Chicago 00:09:29.750 --> 00:09:32.230 Blackhawks came into town and spoiled the massive 00:09:32.230 --> 00:09:36.049 party with a 2 -1 win. A Blackhawks player named 00:09:36.049 --> 00:09:38.990 Mush March actually holds the historical distinction 00:09:38.990 --> 00:09:42.009 of scoring the very first goal in the brand new 00:09:42.009 --> 00:09:44.919 Maple Leaf Gardens. A humbling reminder that 00:09:44.919 --> 00:09:47.539 no matter how grand the stage or how dramatic 00:09:47.539 --> 00:09:50.519 the backstory, the game itself remains entirely 00:09:50.519 --> 00:09:53.120 unpredictable once the puck drops. Absolutely. 00:09:53.240 --> 00:09:56.039 So the workers literally bleed to get Maple Leaf 00:09:56.039 --> 00:09:58.860 Gardens open. But once the doors open, who are 00:09:58.860 --> 00:10:00.740 the guys actually putting on the show to make 00:10:00.740 --> 00:10:02.639 those stock shares worth something? Here's where 00:10:02.639 --> 00:10:04.379 it gets really interesting. Yeah, the talent 00:10:04.379 --> 00:10:07.019 level was incredible. Because despite the financial 00:10:07.019 --> 00:10:10.019 doom and gloom off the ice, the talent on the 00:10:10.019 --> 00:10:12.940 ice during the 1931 -32 season was... bursting 00:10:12.940 --> 00:10:15.240 at the seams. Let's look at the landscape at 00:10:15.240 --> 00:10:17.419 the end of the 48 -game regular season. The Montreal 00:10:17.419 --> 00:10:19.919 Canadiens finished first in the Canadian division 00:10:19.919 --> 00:10:23.580 with 57 points. Over in the American division, 00:10:23.779 --> 00:10:26.559 the New York Rangers took the top spot with 54 00:10:26.559 --> 00:10:29.549 points. The concentration of talent in an eight 00:10:29.549 --> 00:10:31.529 -team league meant the individual performances 00:10:31.529 --> 00:10:34.730 were just staggering. Look at Toronto's Harvey 00:10:34.730 --> 00:10:37.809 Busher Jackson. He completely dominated the league, 00:10:37.970 --> 00:10:40.769 finishing as the top scorer with 53 points in 00:10:40.769 --> 00:10:43.409 just 48 games. He was the offensive engine that 00:10:43.409 --> 00:10:46.320 made the Maple Leafs a powerhouse. Exactly. But 00:10:46.320 --> 00:10:48.960 you can't talk about hockey in the 1930s without 00:10:48.960 --> 00:10:51.059 talking about the Montreal Canadiens' absolute 00:10:51.059 --> 00:10:54.539 superstar, Howie Morenz. Morenz was the defining 00:10:54.539 --> 00:10:56.779 player of his generation, and he was as effective 00:10:56.779 --> 00:10:59.340 as ever this season. He took home the Hart Trophy 00:10:59.340 --> 00:11:01.100 as the league's most valuable player for the 00:11:01.100 --> 00:11:03.460 second time in his career. He was the reason 00:11:03.460 --> 00:11:05.779 the Canadiens secured that top divisional spot. 00:11:06.019 --> 00:11:07.559 And the guys keeping the puck out of the net 00:11:07.559 --> 00:11:10.639 were just as dominant. Chuck Gardner of the Chicago 00:11:10.639 --> 00:11:13.700 Blackhawks won the Vizina Trophy. He played an 00:11:13.700 --> 00:11:16.179 agonizingly heavy workload and finished with 00:11:16.179 --> 00:11:18.960 an astonishing goals against average of 1 .85. 00:11:19.299 --> 00:11:22.200 Just a brick wall. Seriously. With all this elite 00:11:22.200 --> 00:11:25.120 talent concentrated in a shrinking league, the 00:11:25.120 --> 00:11:28.039 perceived value of true star players was sky 00:11:28.039 --> 00:11:31.100 high, which leads to one of the most fascinating 00:11:31.100 --> 00:11:34.440 what -if scenarios of the era regarding a potential 00:11:34.440 --> 00:11:37.159 blockbuster trade. Oh, the $40 ,000 question. 00:11:37.850 --> 00:11:40.190 James Strachan, the president of the Montreal 00:11:40.190 --> 00:11:42.549 Maroons, was desperate to get his hands on the 00:11:42.549 --> 00:11:45.950 Boston Bruins' ace defenseman, Eddie Shore. And 00:11:45.950 --> 00:11:48.649 Shore was an absolute legend, a punishing, brilliant, 00:11:48.830 --> 00:11:51.759 game -changing player. Strachan publicly stated 00:11:51.759 --> 00:11:55.340 he was willing to pay a staggering $40 ,000 for 00:11:55.340 --> 00:11:57.860 Shore's contract. Let's put that number in perspective 00:11:57.860 --> 00:12:00.100 based on what we discussed earlier. The Ottawa 00:12:00.100 --> 00:12:03.460 Senators were offered $300 ,000 for their entire 00:12:03.460 --> 00:12:05.740 franchise. Right, including all their players, 00:12:05.980 --> 00:12:08.580 equipment, league rights, everything. And Strachan 00:12:08.580 --> 00:12:12.100 was offering $40 ,000 for one single human being. 00:12:12.279 --> 00:12:15.120 And yet, Boston said no. The Bruins had fallen 00:12:15.120 --> 00:12:17.360 to the absolute bottom of the American division. 00:12:17.399 --> 00:12:20.330 They finished dead last. And still, they refused 00:12:20.330 --> 00:12:22.629 to part with their star. There was no deal. It 00:12:22.629 --> 00:12:24.850 tells you everything you need to know about Eddie 00:12:24.850 --> 00:12:27.029 Shore's immense value to the Bruins' identity 00:12:27.029 --> 00:12:29.909 and ticket sales. The owners realized they would 00:12:29.909 --> 00:12:32.289 rather finish in last place with a star player 00:12:32.289 --> 00:12:35.330 that fans would pay to see than rebuild with 00:12:35.330 --> 00:12:38.509 a massive infusion of cash but no marquee attraction. 00:12:39.070 --> 00:12:42.250 Better to lose with a star than lose with nobodies. 00:12:42.370 --> 00:12:46.169 Exactly. So, the 48 -game regular season wraps 00:12:46.169 --> 00:12:49.620 up, and we head into the playoffs. And the playoff 00:12:49.620 --> 00:12:53.279 format in 1932 was, well, it was incredibly quirky. 00:12:53.480 --> 00:12:56.039 It was a highly unusual bracket by today's standards. 00:12:56.120 --> 00:12:58.600 Only the top three teams from each of the two 00:12:58.600 --> 00:13:01.200 divisions qualified. Okay. But here's the strange 00:13:01.200 --> 00:13:03.419 part. The two division winners, the Canadians 00:13:03.419 --> 00:13:05.620 and the Rangers, bypassed the first round entirely 00:13:05.620 --> 00:13:08.799 and met each other in a best -of -five Stanley 00:13:08.799 --> 00:13:11.799 Cup semifinal series. Wait, the two best teams 00:13:11.799 --> 00:13:13.899 in the league play each other in the semifinals? 00:13:14.080 --> 00:13:16.659 That was the structure. Meanwhile, the second 00:13:16.659 --> 00:13:18.580 and third place teams from the divisions played 00:13:18.580 --> 00:13:20.779 off in a completely different format, a two -game 00:13:20.779 --> 00:13:23.500 total goals series. I love looking back at total 00:13:23.500 --> 00:13:26.139 goals series because it totally changes the psychology 00:13:26.139 --> 00:13:29.559 on the ice. A team down by three goals in the 00:13:29.559 --> 00:13:32.480 final minute of game one isn't pulling their 00:13:32.480 --> 00:13:34.759 goalie to win that specific game. No, not at 00:13:34.759 --> 00:13:37.299 all. They're pulling their goalie just to salvage 00:13:37.299 --> 00:13:39.940 the aggregate math for game two. It's wild to 00:13:39.940 --> 00:13:42.309 think about modern teams playing that way. The 00:13:42.309 --> 00:13:44.950 physical and mental toll of playing 120 minutes 00:13:44.950 --> 00:13:47.850 of hockey where every single goal compounds is 00:13:47.850 --> 00:13:50.649 immense. For example, Toronto played Chicago. 00:13:50.950 --> 00:13:54.610 Chicago won game one 1 -0. But in game two, Toronto 00:13:54.610 --> 00:13:58.009 exploded and won 6 -1, taking the series on total 00:13:58.009 --> 00:14:01.490 goals 6 -2. Wow. And it's worth noting here that 00:14:01.490 --> 00:14:04.389 for the first time since the 1926 -27 season, 00:14:04.730 --> 00:14:06.610 three of the final four teams remaining in the 00:14:06.610 --> 00:14:09.340 playoffs were based in Canada. The Toronto Maple 00:14:09.340 --> 00:14:11.639 Leafs, the Montreal Canadiens, and the Montreal 00:14:11.639 --> 00:14:14.559 Maroons. It was a year of total Canadian playoff 00:14:14.559 --> 00:14:16.600 dominance. But the New York Rangers were ready 00:14:16.600 --> 00:14:18.299 to disrupt that narrative. Remember, they were 00:14:18.299 --> 00:14:20.919 playing the Montreal Canadiens in that best -of 00:14:20.919 --> 00:14:22.860 -five semifinal of the division leaders. Right. 00:14:23.000 --> 00:14:26.120 And this series produced an absolute grueling 00:14:26.120 --> 00:14:28.419 classic in Game 2 at the Montreal Forum. Game 00:14:28.419 --> 00:14:31.850 1 went to the Canadiens 4 -3. Then in game two, 00:14:31.970 --> 00:14:34.710 the teams push each other to the absolute limit. 00:14:34.870 --> 00:14:37.210 They go to triple overtime. Triple overtime. 00:14:37.750 --> 00:14:40.590 Finally, Bonecook scores for the Rangers to win 00:14:40.590 --> 00:14:43.610 it. That exhausting marathon completely shifted 00:14:43.610 --> 00:14:45.769 the momentum and the Rangers went on to win the 00:14:45.769 --> 00:14:48.250 next two games, eliminating the mighty Canadians. 00:14:48.649 --> 00:14:51.309 Meanwhile, the Maple Leafs dispatched the Montreal 00:14:51.309 --> 00:14:53.889 Maroons in their total goals semifinal, setting 00:14:53.889 --> 00:14:56.549 the stage for the Stanley Cup finals. The Toronto 00:14:56.549 --> 00:14:59.299 Maple Leafs versus the New York Rangers. Best 00:14:59.299 --> 00:15:01.820 of five for the ultimate prize. And this is where 00:15:01.820 --> 00:15:04.519 the story takes a turn into pure, unbelievable 00:15:04.519 --> 00:15:08.299 absurdity. The Stanley Cup finals are set. The 00:15:08.299 --> 00:15:10.879 absolute pinnacle of the sport. Yep. Games one 00:15:10.879 --> 00:15:12.700 and two are scheduled to be played at Madison 00:15:12.700 --> 00:15:14.970 Square Garden in New York City. Game one goes 00:15:14.970 --> 00:15:17.210 off fine. Toronto wins a high scoring game, 6 00:15:17.210 --> 00:15:20.070 -4. But when it came time for game two, the Rangers 00:15:20.070 --> 00:15:22.409 were suddenly evicted from their own arena. Hold 00:15:22.409 --> 00:15:24.190 on. You're telling me the pinnacle of the sport 00:15:24.190 --> 00:15:26.590 was bumped for literal clowns. Did the Rangers 00:15:26.590 --> 00:15:29.169 try to fight this? It sounds like a joke, but 00:15:29.169 --> 00:15:31.730 it's historical fact. The circus had arrived 00:15:31.730 --> 00:15:34.740 in town. Madison Square Garden management looked 00:15:34.740 --> 00:15:37.700 at the revenue projections and simply prioritized 00:15:37.700 --> 00:15:39.899 the circus over the Stanley Cup finals. That 00:15:39.899 --> 00:15:42.779 is insane. The Rangers were quite literally displaced 00:15:42.779 --> 00:15:45.659 by elephants, acrobats, and tightrope walkers. 00:15:45.740 --> 00:15:47.720 I can't even imagine the social media reaction 00:15:47.720 --> 00:15:50.440 if that happened today. Sorry guys, you have 00:15:50.440 --> 00:15:52.580 to play the Stanley Cup somewhere else. The clowns 00:15:52.580 --> 00:15:54.740 need the locker room. Yeah, fans would riot. 00:15:55.039 --> 00:15:57.700 Because of the circus, Game 2 had to be relocated 00:15:57.700 --> 00:16:00.340 to a completely different city. The New York 00:16:00.340 --> 00:16:03.159 Rangers had to take a train up to Boston to play 00:16:03.159 --> 00:16:05.679 their home game at the Boston Garden. The sheer 00:16:05.679 --> 00:16:08.159 disruption of moving a Stanley Cup Finals game 00:16:08.159 --> 00:16:11.200 to a neutral rival city didn't seem to bother 00:16:11.200 --> 00:16:13.100 the Maple Leafs one bit, though. They were an 00:16:13.100 --> 00:16:15.000 absolute juggernaut in this series. They really 00:16:15.000 --> 00:16:17.419 were. Toronto swept the New York Rangers three 00:16:17.419 --> 00:16:21.039 games to none. But the defining detail of this 00:16:21.039 --> 00:16:23.340 series, the thing that etched it into hockey 00:16:23.340 --> 00:16:26.279 lore, is the incredible symmetry of the scorelines. 00:16:26.759 --> 00:16:29.639 This famously became known as the tennis series. 00:16:29.899 --> 00:16:31.879 Because of the exact number of goals Toronto 00:16:31.879 --> 00:16:34.559 scored in every single game. Right. Game one 00:16:34.559 --> 00:16:38.179 in New York, Toronto wins 6 -4. Game two, the 00:16:38.179 --> 00:16:41.299 circus game in Boston, Toronto wins 6 -2. Game 00:16:41.299 --> 00:16:43.639 three, back home at Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto 00:16:43.639 --> 00:16:46.500 wins 6 -4 again. Six goals every time. Exactly. 00:16:46.580 --> 00:16:49.620 Six goals in all three games. Game, set, match. 00:16:49.899 --> 00:16:52.440 It was a masterclass in offensive consistency, 00:16:52.779 --> 00:16:55.440 bringing the franchise its third Stanley Cup 00:16:55.440 --> 00:16:58.039 championship. And think about the narrative stakes 00:16:58.039 --> 00:17:00.559 here. Winning that final game in front of their 00:17:00.559 --> 00:17:02.759 home crowd at the brand new Maple Leaf Gardens. 00:17:03.000 --> 00:17:05.920 Oh, man. They won the cup inside the very building 00:17:05.920 --> 00:17:07.900 that the union workers had built with their own 00:17:07.900 --> 00:17:10.640 sweat and stock options just months prior. It 00:17:10.640 --> 00:17:12.859 was a massive financial and emotional validation 00:17:12.859 --> 00:17:15.940 for the entire city. To witness that payoff must 00:17:15.940 --> 00:17:18.000 have been incredible. But this brings up something 00:17:18.000 --> 00:17:19.460 else that happened that year, something that 00:17:19.460 --> 00:17:21.599 changed how fans experience the sport forever. 00:17:21.799 --> 00:17:24.069 Yeah. This raises an important question. We've 00:17:24.069 --> 00:17:26.410 talked about the games, the arenas, the financial 00:17:26.410 --> 00:17:30.210 turmoil and the workers. But Canada is a massive, 00:17:30.329 --> 00:17:34.130 sprawling country. How is the average fan sitting 00:17:34.130 --> 00:17:37.150 in a small, isolated town actually consuming 00:17:37.150 --> 00:17:40.490 all this drama in the dead of winter in 1931 00:17:40.490 --> 00:17:43.789 and 1932? Most fans couldn't afford to travel 00:17:43.789 --> 00:17:46.849 to Boston or New York or even buy a ticket to 00:17:46.849 --> 00:17:49.680 the New Gardens. They listened. This season marks 00:17:49.680 --> 00:17:52.619 the massive off -ice debut of Canadian national 00:17:52.619 --> 00:17:55.339 radio coverage for the Maple Leafs. It was a 00:17:55.339 --> 00:17:58.779 profound media revolution. The games began being 00:17:58.779 --> 00:18:01.240 broadcast across the country on the Canadian 00:18:01.240 --> 00:18:04.619 National Railway or CNR radio network. Such a 00:18:04.619 --> 00:18:06.480 game changer. For the first time in history, 00:18:06.660 --> 00:18:08.779 you didn't have to be in the building or wait 00:18:08.779 --> 00:18:10.720 a day or two for the newspaper to arrive on the 00:18:10.720 --> 00:18:14.049 train to experience the thrill of the game. families 00:18:14.049 --> 00:18:16.130 were suddenly huddled around wooden radio sets 00:18:16.130 --> 00:18:18.410 in their living rooms, hearing the actual crack 00:18:18.410 --> 00:18:21.210 of the puck and the live roar of the crowd. The 00:18:21.210 --> 00:18:23.250 program was originally known as the General Motors 00:18:23.250 --> 00:18:25.930 Hockey Broadcast. And this isn't just some forgotten 00:18:25.930 --> 00:18:28.430 trivia fact. This specific radio broadcast is 00:18:28.430 --> 00:18:30.750 the direct ancestor of a cultural institution. 00:18:31.089 --> 00:18:34.150 It evolved, over the decades, into the modern 00:18:34.150 --> 00:18:36.390 television broadcast of Hockey Night in Canada. 00:18:37.339 --> 00:18:39.519 The origins of a program that practically defines 00:18:39.519 --> 00:18:42.279 Canadian national identity started right here 00:18:42.279 --> 00:18:46.119 in this chaotic 1931 -32 season. It's incredible 00:18:46.119 --> 00:18:49.180 to trace that lineage. The roots of how millions 00:18:49.180 --> 00:18:52.160 of fans experience hockey today, the national 00:18:52.160 --> 00:18:54.460 broadcast, the shared communal experience of 00:18:54.460 --> 00:18:56.519 a Saturday night game, were planted during a 00:18:56.519 --> 00:18:58.680 season where the league itself was fighting just 00:18:58.680 --> 00:19:01.000 to keep the lights on. It transformed hockey 00:19:01.000 --> 00:19:04.019 from a local arena event into a unifying national 00:19:04.019 --> 00:19:07.119 experience. So what does this all mean? We started 00:19:07.119 --> 00:19:09.460 this deep dive looking at a league in crisis, 00:19:09.740 --> 00:19:12.299 the Great Depression forcing the Ottawa Senators 00:19:12.299 --> 00:19:14.920 and Philadelphia Quakers to pack it in, the Detroit 00:19:14.920 --> 00:19:17.680 Falcons going totally bankrupt, an outlaw league. 00:19:18.109 --> 00:19:19.930 aggressively trying to steal the Stanley Cup 00:19:19.930 --> 00:19:22.890 by legally challenging the NHL supremacy. And 00:19:22.890 --> 00:19:26.410 yet, out of all that chaos, we got the construction 00:19:26.410 --> 00:19:28.789 of the legendary Maple Leaf Gardens built on 00:19:28.789 --> 00:19:31.230 the sheer willpower of union workers. We got 00:19:31.230 --> 00:19:33.230 the birth of a national radio tradition that 00:19:33.230 --> 00:19:35.710 would become Hockey Night in Canada. We got Howie 00:19:35.710 --> 00:19:39.750 Morenz's MVP magic and the... quirky, unforgettable 00:19:39.750 --> 00:19:42.289 tennis series where the Toronto Maple Leafs scored 00:19:42.289 --> 00:19:44.470 six goals a game to win the cup. It shows you 00:19:44.470 --> 00:19:47.450 that history is rarely a smooth upward trajectory. 00:19:47.710 --> 00:19:51.130 It's messy. The foundations of the modern multi 00:19:51.130 --> 00:19:54.670 -billion dollar NHL were forged in the desperation 00:19:54.670 --> 00:19:58.730 and grit of the 1931 -32 season. Absolutely. 00:19:59.180 --> 00:20:01.259 It's a reminder to you, the listener, that whenever 00:20:01.259 --> 00:20:04.079 you see modern sports drama, billionaire contract 00:20:04.079 --> 00:20:07.480 disputes, arena funding battles, or rival leagues 00:20:07.480 --> 00:20:10.299 trying to poach talent, none of it is new. It 00:20:10.299 --> 00:20:12.799 is baked into the very DNA of professional sports. 00:20:13.099 --> 00:20:15.099 Thank you for coming on this deep dive into the 00:20:15.099 --> 00:20:17.420 source material with us. We love unpacking these 00:20:17.420 --> 00:20:19.700 wild historical moments and finding the connective 00:20:19.700 --> 00:20:21.559 tissue to the sports landscape we know today. 00:20:21.799 --> 00:20:23.279 But before we go, I want to leave you with one 00:20:23.279 --> 00:20:25.650 final thought to ponder. We talked about how 00:20:25.650 --> 00:20:28.289 the Stanley Cup trustees legally ordered the 00:20:28.289 --> 00:20:31.049 NHL to defend the Cup against the Outlaw American 00:20:31.049 --> 00:20:35.029 Hockey League, but the AHL's Buffalo team collapsed 00:20:35.029 --> 00:20:37.670 before the games could actually happen. A true 00:20:37.670 --> 00:20:40.289 historical near -miss that most fans don't even 00:20:40.289 --> 00:20:43.190 know about. So think about that. What if the 00:20:43.190 --> 00:20:45.369 Great Depression hadn't wiped out that Buffalo 00:20:45.369 --> 00:20:48.970 franchise? What if that series had actually happened 00:20:48.970 --> 00:20:51.750 and the Outlaw League had defeated the NHL on 00:20:51.750 --> 00:20:55.119 the ice in 1932? That changes everything. Would 00:20:55.119 --> 00:20:57.440 the NHL have survived the absolute embarrassment 00:20:57.440 --> 00:21:00.180 of losing the cup to an upstart competitor while 00:21:00.180 --> 00:21:02.339 simultaneously dealing with their own bankruptcies? 00:21:02.480 --> 00:21:05.339 Or would the most famous trophy in all of sports 00:21:05.339 --> 00:21:07.279 belong to a completely different league today? 00:21:07.660 --> 00:21:09.900 Something for you to chew on until our next deep 00:21:09.900 --> 00:21:10.160 dive.