The Forgotten Montreal Canadiens Great: George Hainsworth

If you ask anyone to name their list of all-time goaltending greats in the NHL, you are more than likely going to find one Canadien in the top 5, almost definitely in the top 10. Whether it's the domination of Ken Dryden and Patrick Roy, or the innovations of Jacques Plante or Georges Vezina, the history of the Canadiens is rife with great goalies. But the name Hainsworth doesn't always get brought up in the same way.

If you look at just the pure numbers, Hainsworth is one of the greatest goalies of all time. His domination in his first stint with the Montreal Canadiens is legendary, including possibly the greatest season that a goalie has ever had in NHL history.

The Set Up

Just before George Hainsworth joined the Montreal Canadiens, the team was blessed with one of the most legendary goalies of all time, Georges Vezina. While Hainsworth had possibly the greatest single season, Vezina probably had the greatest run in NHL history.

Georges Vezina, the Chicoutimi Cucumber, made his debut with the Montreal Canadiens in 1911, and the Montreal Canadiens didn't have another goalie until 1925, where during a game against Pittsburgh, he was pulled in favour of Frenchy Lacroix.

This wasn't due to poor play, however. This was because Vezina had practically collapsed on the ice and physically could not play the game anymore. This was because he was struggling with tuberculous, a condition that would eventually take his life months later. One of the toughest iron men in NHL history could only be taken off the ice only by what would kill him.

The season after his death, the Montreal Canadiens donated a trophy in honour of their long-standing goalie, to be handed out to the goalie/goalie tandem that had the lowest goals against average. Nowadays, the goalie voted to be the best in the league gets the Vezina Trophy.

Hainsworth: The First Vezina Winner

By the time that Vezina had passed away and the Canadiens had come to the tough search for a replacement for Vezina, a slight Ontarian was rising up the ranks, making a name for himself with the Saskatoon Crescents: George Hainsworth.

The Crescents had former Canadien Newsy Lalonde, and thhe WCHL was folding, so the Canadiens jumped on the chance, and claimed the small goalie, and thrust him into the starting role.

Hainsworth made good on their bet, playing in all 44 games, and finishing with a 28-14-2 record, and finishing with a 1.47 GAA, good enough to win the first ever Vezina Trophy. Fitting enough for Vezina's successor.

The next season, Hainsworth improved his numbers even further, finishing with a miniscule 1.05 GAA. While this was one of the lowest scoring eras of NHL history, due to the rule that you can't pass in the offensive zone, these were still very impressive numbers.

But that was nothing compared to the 1928-29 season.

The Greatest Goaltending Season Ever

Starting the 1928-29 season, the Montreal Canadiens had been good, but never got over the hump, falling short of the grand prize in the past two years, despite some stellar defending and goaltending. And the team, and in particular, Hainsworth, took everything to the next level.

There has never, and I am fairly confident that there will never be another season like George Hainsworth's 1928-29 season. The season was only 44 games, and Hainsworth finished with a record of 22-7-15. Which is good, but you have to take into account that out of 44 games, 22 of them were shutouts.

Despite the expansion of the amount of games played in a season, 22 shutouts in a single season still stands as the best ever. The next best seasons are just at 15.

Half of the games Hainsworth played he was perfect. This lead to the absolutely absurd stat that he finished the season with a 0.95 goals against average. This smashed the previous record of 1.06 GAA previously set by...George Hainsworth the year previous. These two amounts are still the best two goals against averages in a single season to this day.

However, the Canadiens still fell short of the grand prize: The Stanley Cup.

The Latter Years

The next season, Hainsworth's numbers took a slight dip, but the most important part was that George Hainsworth and the Montreal Canadiens got over the hump and won his first Stanley Cup.

And it was so nice, they did it twice, winning the Stanley Cup in their defense year the next campaign. But as the team failed in the years after, and the Great Depression was hitting hard. The Ontario-born Hainsworth was dealt to Toronto for Quebecois-born Lorne Chabot, trying to capture more of the local audience and raise ticket sales.

As a member of the Toronto Maple Leafs, Hainsworth continued his rock solid play, but he and the team never found much postseason success, and after four seasons in Toronto, Hainsworth retired.

Records and Legacy

22 shutouts and 0.96 GAA in a single season is one of the greatest statlines ever seen in the NHL. That season, he also recorded over 343 minutes straight without allowing a goal, and a 16 game unbeaten streak.

Hainsworth also won the first three Vezina Trophies, which ties him in 7th for most Vezina wins. And despite playing in a relatively small amount of games, Hainsworth is third in most career shutouts with 94.

I think his career is best summed up with this quote from the Saskatoon Star:

"We suppose that one of the reasons hockey is such a great sport is that it demands the basic elements of man’s struggle for existence: courage, ability, and intelligence. These were the qualities which made George Hainsworth a star. So spare in stature that it seemed a well-driven puck must surely bowl him over like a ten-pin, he showed, in measure out of proportion to his tiny frame the mettle which every goalkeeper must have, plus the speed and deftness to turn aside flying rubber and the brains to outguess on-rushing forwards. The combination made him one of the greatest goalies in hockey history, and his net-minding feats … will be remembered long after his untimely death and its unfortunate cause have been forgotten."

- Puck Struck