This Week in Canadiens History: April 4th – April 11th
By Joshua Rosa
April 6th
A Hattrick of Hattricks
On this day, the year of our Lord 1944, the Montreal Canadiens beat the Chicago Blackhawks 3-1 to take a 2-0 lead in their series in the Stanley Cup Final. The Canadiens would sweep the series.
All the offence came from Maurice Richard, who recorded his first hattrick in the Stanley Cup Final. Richard would add two more to his resume, a record for the Stanley Cup Final.
Happy Birthday Gerald Diduck
On April 6th, 1965, Gerald Diduck was borm in Edmonton, Alberta. He was selected 16th overall by the New York Islanders, and spent time with the Canadiens, Canucks, Whalers, Stars, Leafs, Coyotes and Blackhawks.
Diduck was unfortunately the reason for the retirement of teammate Bob Nystrom. Nystrom was hit by Diduck’s accidental high stick, which almost caused Nystrom to almost lose his eye, and retire.
Happy Birthday Hal Gill
Hal Gill was born on April 6th, 1975, in Conchord, Massachushets. He was drafted by Boston and played seasons in Toronto, Philadelphia, Nashville, Pittsburgh and Montreal.
One of the tallest players of his time not named Zdeno Chara, Gill’s defensive play led the 8th seeded Canadiens past heavy favourites Washington and Pittsburgh to fall to Philadelphia in the 2010 playoffs. Gill was then traded to Nashville for Blake Geoffrion, making Geoffrion a 3rd generation Canadiens player.