Note: I am working on getting the summaries up
Game 1 Summary is up -
Game 2 Summary is up
Game 3 Summary is up -
Game 4 Summary is up
The Summit Series pitted the best Canadian hockey professionals against the best from the Soviet Union for the first time.
Played in 1972, the series held huge political and social ramifications. Every game was highlighted in newspapers across the globe. Referees were used from multiple countries in this battle of hockey titans. The first four games were played across Canada, from Montreal to Vancouver, games 5-8 were played in the (then) USSR. Game 1 was a shock to Canadiens players and citizens when they lost. The Canadien hockey juggernaught was supposed to steam-roll the Soviet Amateurs. Fortunately Canada was able to tie the series after a physical game 2. Game three was a tie, leaving the series at 1-1-1. Game four was a Canadien disaster. After three periods of poor play they were actually booed off the ice. That moved the series to the USSR at 1-2-1. Canada lost game 5 giving the Soviets a commanding 3-1-1 lead. With only 3 games to play the Russians only had to won one more game to seal the series. Canada just wouldn't let that happen, gobbling up games 6, 7 and 8. Game 8's highlight came when Paul Henderson scored "The Goal" with 34 seconds remaining in the third period to take a 6-5. Most Canadiens (at least those alive at the time) remember where they were when the Goal was scored.
Game #1
"
WE LOST" read the front page headline in the Sunday Express. It was supposed to be a cake walk for
Team Canada. The
Soviet amateurs would be crushed by Canada's top professionals. But it wasn't shaping up that way.
See
Summit Series Game 1 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 1 Montreal, Sept. 2, 1972. USSR 7 - Canada 3.
First Period
1-Canada P. Esposito (F. Mahovlich, Bergman) :30
2-Canada Henderson (Clarke) 6:32
3-USSR Zimin (Yakushev, Shadrin) 11:40
4-USSR Petrov (Mikhailov) 17.28(SH)
Penalties: Henderson (tripping) 1:03, Yakushev (tripping) 7:04, Mikhailov (tripping), 15:11, Ragulin (tripping) 17:19
Second Period
5-USSR Kharlamov (Maltsev) 2:40
6-USSR Kharlamov (Maltsev) 10:18
Penalties: Clarke (slashing) 5:16, Lapointe (slashing) 12:53
Third Period
7-CANADA Clarke (Ellis, Henderson) 8:22
8-USSR Mikhailov (Blinov) 13:32
9-USSR Zimin 14:29
10-USSR Yakushev (Shadrin) 18:37
Penalties: Kharlamov (high sticking) 14:45, Lapointe (cross checking) 19:41
Shots on Goal:
Soviets 10 10 10 - 30
Canada 10 10 12 - 32
Goalies:
Tretiak (29/32) 60 minutes played, 3 goals
Dryden (23/30) 60 minutes played, 7 goals
Game MVPs:
USSR - Kharlamov
Canada - Clarke
Attendance 18,818 (Montreal)
Players on ice:
Canada: Bergman, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, Hadield, Cournoyer, Berenson, Seiling, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Redmond, Lapointe, Awrey, F. Mahovlich, Clarke
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Ragulin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Blinov, Maltsev, Zimin, Mishakov, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Vikulov, Shadrin, Liapkin, Paladiev
Game #2
Game number two was held in
Maple Leaf Gardens in Toronto. Canada redeemed themselves nicely, thanks largely to a couple of brother acts, and a radically different game plan.
See:
Summit Series Game 2 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 2 Toronto, Sept. 4, 1972. Canada 4 - USSR 1
First Period
No Scoring
Penalties: Park (cross checking) 10:08, Henderson (tripping) 15:19
Second Period
1-Canada Phil Esposito (Park, Cashman) 7:14
Penalties: Gusev (tripping) 2:07, Soviet Union Bench Minor (served by Zimin) 4;13, Bergman (tripping) 15:16, Tsygankov (slashing) 19:54, Kharlamov (10 minute misconduct) 19:54
Third Period
2-CANADA Cournoyer (Park) 1:19 (PP)
3-USSR Yakushev (Liapkin, Zimin) 5:53 (PP)
4-CANADA P. Mahovlich (P. Esposito) 6:47 (SH)
5-CANADA F. Mahovlich (Mikita, Cournoyer) 8:59
Penalties: Clarke (slashing) 5:13, Stapleton (hooking) 6:14
Shots on goal:
Soviet Union: 7 5 9 - 21
Canada: 10 16 10 - 36
Goalies:
Tretiak (32/36) 60 minutes, 4 goals against
T. Esposito (20/21) 60 minutes, 1 goal against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Tretiak
Canada -
P. Esposito &
T. Esposito
Attendance 16,485 (Toronto)
Players on Ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Goldsworthy, Cournoyer, Cashman, White, Henderson, P.Mahovlich, Mikita, Parise, Savard, Lapointe, F. Mahovlich, Clarke
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Ragulin, Tsygankov, Starshinov, Maltsev, Zimin, Mishakov, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Shadrin, Anisin, Liapkin, Paladiev
Game #3
Canada wondered which Team Canada would show up: The one that bombed in Montreal, or dominated in Toronto? The answer was both. Canada probably should have won the game, but they blew two two-goal leads during this game. It became obvious that this team was not yet in good enough condition or playing as a cohesive unit.
See:
Summit Series Game 3 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 3 Winnipeg, Sept. 6, 1972. Canada 4 - USSR 4
First Period
1-Canada Parise (White, P. Esposito) 1:54
2-USSR Petrov 3:16 (SH)
3-Canada Ratelle (Cournoyer, Bergman) 18:25
Penalties: Vasiliev (elbowing 3:02, Cashman (slashing) 8:01, Parise (interference) 15:47
Second Period
4-CanadaP Esposito (Cashman, Parise) 4:19
5-USSR Kharlamov (Tsygankov) 12:56 (SH)
6-Canada Henderson (Clarke, Ellis) 13:47
7-USSR Lebedev (Anisin, Vasiliev) 14:59
8-USSR Bodunov (Anisin) 18:28
Penalties: Petrov (interference) 4:46, Lebedev (tripping) 11:00
Third Period
No Scoring
Penalites: White (slashing), Mishakov (slashing) 1:33, Cashman (minor, slashing and 10 minute misconduct) 10:44
Shots on goal:
Soviet Union: 9 8 8 - 25
Canada 15 17 6 - 38
Goalies:
Tretiak (34/38) 60 minutes, 4 goals
T. Esposito (21/25) 60 minutes, 4 goals
Game MVPs:
USSR -
Tretiak
Canada - Henderson
Attendance 9,800 (Winnipeg)
Players on ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Cournoyer, Cashman, White, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Mikita, Parise, Savard, Lapointe, F. Mahovlich, Clarke
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Maltsev, Mishakov, Mikhailov, Shatalov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Shadrin, Solodukhin, Anisin, Lebedev, Bodunov
Game #4
After a shocking loss in Montreal and a less than impressive effort in Winnipeg, it was becoming obvious that Canadian fans were becoming increasingly frustrated with the results. That would be hammered home by the end of the night. Vancouver's Pacific Coliseum played host to game four, but it would not be a friendly venue for Team Canada.
See:
Summit Series Game 4 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 4 Vancouver, Sept. 8, 1972. USSR 5 - Canada 3
First Period
1-USSR Mikhailov (Lutchenko, Petrov) 2:01 (PP)
2-USSR Mikhailov (Lutchenko, Petrov) 7:29 (PP)
Penalties: Goldsworthy (cross checking) 1:24, Goldsworthy (elbowing) 5:58, P. Esposito (tripping) 19:29
Second Period
3-Canada Perreault 5:37
4-USSR Blinov (Petrov, Mikhailov) 6:34
5-USSR Vikulov (Kharlamov, Maltsev) 13:52
Penalties: Kuzkin (tripping) 8:39
Third Period
6-Canada Goldsworthy (P. Esposito, Bergman) 6.54
7-USSR Shadrin (Yakushev, Vasiliev) 11:05
8-Canada D. Hull (P. Esposito) 19:38
Penalties: Petrov (holding) 2:01
Shots on Goal:
Soviet Union: 11 14 6 - 31
Canada: 10 8 23 - 41
Goalies:
Tretiak (38/41) 60 minutes, 3 goals against
Dryden (26/31) 60 minutes, 5 goals against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Mikhailov
Canada - P. Esposito
Attendance 15,570 (Vancouver)
Players on ice
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, Goldsworthy, D. Hull, Hadfield, Cournoyer, Seiling, White, Henderson, Awrey, F. Mahovlich, Clarke, Perreault
Soviet Union: Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Ragulin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Blinov, Maltsev, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Vikukov, Shadrin, Anisin, Lebedev, Bodunov, Paladiev
Game #5
After Game #4, the series moved to the
Soviet Union. Team Canada nicknamed themselves as
Team 50 once they arrived in the Soviet Union. After being unceremoniously
booed off the ice in the final game in Canada, the team felt alone in the world. Seemingly it was just the fifty of them (players plus the
coaches,
trainers,
doctors etc) behind the vaunted
Iron Curtain, and they were taking on the mighty Soviet
empire all by themselves.
See:
Summit Series Game 5 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 5 Moscow, Sept. 22, 1972. USSR 5 - Canada 4
First Period
1-Canada Parise (Perreault, Gilbert) 15:30
Penalties: Ellis (tripping) 3:49, Kharlamov (slashing) 12:25
Second Period
2-Canada Clarke (Henderson) 3:34
3-Canada Henderson (Lapointe, Clarke) 11:58
Penalties: Ellis (slashing) 5:38, Kharlamov (holding) 5:38, Bergman (roughing) 8:13, White (slashing) 20:00, Blinov (slashing) 20:00
Third Period
4-USSR Blinov (Petrov, Kuzkin) 3:34
5-Canada Henderson (Clarke) 4:56
6-USSR Anisin (Liapkin, Tsygankov) 9:05
7-USSR Shadrin (Anisin) 9:13
8-USSR Gusev (Ragulin) 11:41
9-USSR Vikulov (Kharlamov) 14:46
Penalties: Clarke (holding) 10:25, Tsygankov (high sticking) 10:25, Yakushev (hooking) 15:48
Shots on goal:
Canada: 12 13 12 - 37
Soviet Union: 9 13 11 - 33
Goalies:
Tretiak (33/37) 60 minutes, 4 goals against
T. Esposito (28/33) 60 minutes played, 5 goals against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Petrov - Yakushev
Canada - T. Esposito - Henderson
Attendance 15,000 (Moscow)
Players on ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, Cournoyer, Seiling, White, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Parise, Lapointe, F. Mahovlich, Clarke, Perreault
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Ragulin, Tsygankov, Blinov, Maltsev, Misahkov, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Vikulov, Shadrin, Anisin, Liapkin, Martyniuk
Game #6
After the
Soviet come-from-behind victory in game 5 to take a commanding 3-1-1 series lead, you would have expected
Team Canada to be
demoralized and
dejected and
Russia would have gone for the kill. Things didn't exactly unfold that way, however.
Canada kept positive and felt that they could still win, while
Russia, admittedly in hind sight, became
overconfident and ultimately allowed the Canadians back into the series.
See:
Summit Series Game 6 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 6 Moscow, Sept. 24, 1972. Canada 3 - USSR 2
First Period
No Scoring
Penalties: Bergman (tripping) 10:21, P. Esposito (double minor, charging) 13:11
Second Period
1-USSR Liapkin (Yakushev, Shadrin) 1:12
2-Canada Hull (Gilbert) 5:13
3-Canada Cournoyer (Berenson) 6:21
4-Canada Henderson 6:36
5-USSR Yakushev (Shadrin, Liapkin) 17:11 (PP)
Penalties: Ragulin (interference) 2:09, Lapointe (roughing) 8:29, Vasiliev (roughing) 8:29, Clarke (minor slashing, and 10 minute misconduct) 10:12, D Hull (slashing) 17:02, P. Esposito (major, high-sticking) 17:46, Team Canada bench minor (served by Cournoyer) 17:46
Third Period
No Scoring
Penalties: Ellis (holding) 17:39
Shots on Goal:
Canada 7 8 7 - 22
Soviet Union 12 8 9 - 29
Goalies:
Tretiak (19/22) 60 minutes, 3 goals against
Dryden (27/29) 60 minutes, 2 goals against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Lutchenko - Yakushev
Canada - Dryden - Bergman
Attendance 15,000 (Moscow)
Players on ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, D. Hull, Cournoyer, Berenson, White, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Parise, Savard, Lapointe, Clarke
Soviet Union: Lutchenko, Ragulin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Maltsev, Mikhailov, Shatalov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Vikulov, Shadrin, Anisin, Lebedev, Bodunov, Liapkin, Volchkov
Game #7
Game six was Canada's first
victory since
game two. This sparked an outpouring of excitement back home. 50,000 rejuvenated fans sent telegrams and best wishes to the team. This helped motivate Team Canada, who were all but alone in the powerful, undemocratic country. Somehow the victory in
game six provided a great sense of confidence in the team. No matter how unlikely it may have seemed to an outsider, the team truly believed that they would win
game seven, and then game eight.
See:
Summit Series Game 7 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 7 Moscow, Sept. 24, 1972. Canada 4 - USSR 3
First Period
1-Canada P. Esposito (Ellis, Park) 4:09
2-USSR Yakushev (Shadrin, Liapkin) 10:17
3-USSR Petrov (Vikulov, Tsygankov) 16:27 (PP)
4-Canada P. Esposito (Parise, Savard) 17:34
Penalties: Mikhailov (tripping) 2:00, P. Mahovlich (roughing) 5:16, Mishakov (holding) 5:16, Mishakov (holding) 11:09, P. Esposito (cross checking) 12:39, White (interference) 15:45
Second Period
No Scoring
Penalties: Gilbert (hooking) 00:59, Parise (slashing) 6:04, Anisin (hooking) 6:11, P. Esposito (roughing) 12:44, Kuzkin (roughing) 12:44, Parise (roughing) 15:14, Kuzkin (roughing) 15:14, Stapleton (holding) 14:24
Third Period
5-Canada Gilbert (Ratelle, Hull) 2:13
6-USSR Yakushev (Maltsev, Lutchenko) 5:15 (PP)
7-Canada Henderson (Savard) 17:54
Penalties: Bergman (holding) 3:26, Gilbert (charging) 7:25, Bergman (major, roughing) 16:26, Mikhailov (major, roughing) 16:26
Shots on goal:
Canada 9 7 9 - 25
Soviet Union 6 13 12 - 31
Goalies:
Tretiak (21/25) 60 minutes, 4 goals against
T. Esposito (28/31) 60 minutes, 3 goals against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Mikhailov - Yakushev
Canada - P. Esposito - White
Attendance 15,000 (Moscow)
Players on ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, Goldsworthy, D. Hull, Cournoyer, White, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Parise, Savard, Lapointe, Clarke
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Ragulin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Blinov, Maltsev, Mishakov, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Vikulov, Shadrin, Anisin, Liapkin, Volchkov
Game #8
Momentum was clearly on the
Canadian side heading into decisive
game 8, yet they still had to win the game in order to claim victory in the series. A tied game would result in a tied series, but the Russians would have claimed victory because they had scored 1 more goal than the Canadians would have. That didn't sit well with the Canadians, so Team 50 set out to make sure that would not happen.
See:
Summit Series Game 8 Summary for the summary.
Statistics
Game 8 Moscow, Sept. 28, 1972. Canada 6 - USSR 5
First Period
1-USSR Yakushev (Liapkin, Maltsev) 3:34 (PP)
2-Canada P. Esposito (Park) 6:45 (PP)
3-USSR Lutchenko (Kharlamov) 13:10 (PP)
4-Canada Park (Ratelle, Hull) 16:59
Penalties: White (holding) 2:25, P. Mahovlich (holding) 3:01, Petrov (hooking) 3:44, Parise (minor, interference, 10 minute misconduct, game misconduct) 4:10, Tsygankov (interference) 6:28, Ellis (interference) 9;27, Petrov (interference) 9:46, Cournoyer (interference) 12:51
Second Period
5-USSR Shadrin 0:21
6-Canada White (Gilbert, Ratelle) 10:32
7-USSR Yakushev 11:43
8-USSR Vasiliev (Shadrin) 16:44 (PP)
Penalties: Stapleton (cross checking) 14:58, Kuzkin (elbowing) 18:06
Third Period
9-Canada P. Esposito (P. Mahovlich) 2:27
10-Canada Cournoyer (P. Esposito, Park)
11-Canada Henderson (P. Esposito) 19:26
Penalties: Gilbert (major, fighting) 3:41, Mishakov (major, fighting) 3:41, Vasiliev (tripping) 4:27, D hull (high sticking) 15:24, Petrov (elbowing) 15:24
Shots on Goal
Canada 14 8 14 - 36
Soviet Union 12 10 5 - 27
Goalies:
Tretiak (30/36) 60 minutes, 6 goals against
Dryden (22/27) 60 minutes, 5 goals against
Game MVPs:
USSR - Shadrin - Yakushev
Canada - Henderson - Park
Attendance 15,000 (Moscow)
Players on Ice:
Canada: Bergman, Stapleton, Park, Ellis, P. Esposito, Gilbert, D. Hull, Cournoyer, White, Ratelle, Henderson, P. Mahovlich, Parise, Savard, Lapointe, F. Mahovlich, Clarke
Soviet Union: Gusev, Lutchenko, Kuzkin, Vasiliev, Tsygankov, Blinov, Maltsev, Mishakov, Mikhailov, Yakushev, Petrov, Kharlamov, Vikulov, Shadrin, Anisin, Liapkin, Volchkov
Sources:
azhockey.com
1972summitseries.com