1940 MHL Playoffs: Abbott Cup Final

(W1) Philadelphia Minutemen (38-22-4) vs (E1) Brooklyn Kings (35-26-3)

It was the Philly County Arena’s First taste of Abbott Cup Final action, and the day before, the league realized it had a problem. Both the Minutemen and Kings wore predominantly white jerseys, and while they’d simply worn them during regular season meetings, it was decided that it wouldn’t fly for the most publicized games of the year. Brooklyn had some spare black jerseys they wore in previous years still around, so they wore those throughout the entirety of the series.

The first period of the series was cautious, with both teams pretty much trying to figure out what the other was doing to minimize their chances. Neither team stood out much over the other, and they traded the odd chance, but the series’ first goal would not come in the opening 20 minutes. The Minutemen outshot Brooklyn 11-8, but the two goalies stood tall.

The icebreaker came 25 seconds into the second period, with Wayne Robinson taking a loose puck off a faceoff and surprising Brooklyn’s Randall Thomas with a quick shot. Three and a half minutes after that, Harold Beauchamp would be sprung on a breakaway and beat Thomas cleanly with a shot that beat him to his left. The hosts had a quick 2-0 lead, and their defense helped them retain that lead. Brooklyn had just 6 shots on net in the frame, while Philly got more good chances on Thomas. Their 2-goal lead held to the end of the period.

Philly focused on defense in the third, trying strictly to prevent Brooklyn from scoring rather than increase the lead. However, they would take advantage of a poor clearing attempt by Brooklyn, and defenseman James Cash fed Clarence Leonard from the blueline, and he beat Thomas to make it 3-0. Brooklyn got a power play late in the game, and the Minutemen finally had a defensive breakdown allowing the Kings’ Melvin Stjelylai to score and get them on the board. However, Leonard would score again in the final minute, making Thomas look silly while restoring their 3-goal lead. The Minutemen won their first Abbott Cup Final game, taking it 4-1.

Game 1: Philadelphia 4, Brooklyn 1 (Philadelphia leads series 1-0)

The Philadelphia County Arena loved what they saw in Game 1, and were hoping to see something similar in the second game of the series. Brooklyn needed a wake-up call to be able to stay in it.

The Kings definitely looked a lot better to start Game 2. They were getting good looks on Richard Parent, but he stood tall. Philadelphia had good chances too, but Thomas looked absolutely locked in and wanting to redeem himself from a poor first game. As time ran out, there had still not been a single goal scored in the first period of the series, and the opening goal would have to come later.

Philly played like the better team in the second, getting their defense back in rhythm. However, they still couldn’t solve Thomas, who was playing like a man on a mission. The score would finally end its deadlock with 4:29 to play, but it was the visitors that opened the scoring. Robert Turner beat Parent on a rebound, catching him out of position. Brooklyn had their first lead of the series. Philly turned up their offense in the final minutes, but the scoreline remained. Brooklyn had the lead going into the third.

The third period was an absolute clinic of offensive pressure from Philly. They were executing effective, quick puck movement from the boards to the middle of the ice to get into shooting lanes. However, Thomas continued his great play, especially his glove. Philly was getting chance after chance after chance, but his left-hand glove appeared to be magnetic. Despite the Minutemen getting 24 shots on net in the final frame, Thomas completed the 45-save shutout, and Brooklyn had tied the series at 1 apiece heading home.

Game 2: Brooklyn 1, Philadelphia 0 (Series tied 1-1)

The Brooklyn Auditorium would be the site of Games 3 and 4, and the building was all too familiar with the Abbott Cup Final, having seen 5 prior editions of the series.

The series would finally see some first period action in Game 3, and it came early. Clarence Leonard beat Thomas on the power play with a long-range shot just 4 minutes in, confirming that he was, in fact, human and not a brick wall. Bill Johnson tied the game up in front at the halfway mark, and less than a minute after that, James Whaley’s second of the postseason gave Brooklyn the lead. It was their first time in the series they’d scored multiple goals, and it was only the first period. Brooklyn’s 2-1 lead held after 20 minutes.

The Minutemen got another early power play in the second, and they would once again capitalize, with Lionel Hansen beating Thomas on the blocker side. It was a 2-2 game. The teams would trade flurries of chances, but the tiebreaking goal wouldn’t come until the late stages of the period. James Cash, who had 3 goals in the entire regular season, rushed in on Thomas, had his first shot stopped, but didn’t give up and poked home the rebound. Philly took the 3-2 lead into the break, looking to hold on in the third.

Philly did not hold on to the lead in the third. Brooklyn’s Dave Michaud scored 3:24 into the final frame, taking advantage of a fallen Philly defender before beating Parent five-hole. The Kings had the upper hand in the final frame, but that one goal would remain as the only one, meaning overtime would be needed for the first time in the series. 

Overtime took 35 seconds to find a winner. The Kings would get an early rush, leading to a puck behind the net. Bill Johnson passed it to John Thomas in the slot, and his shot was partially saved by Parent, but kept rolling into the net. The home crowd erupted, and the Kings had a 2-1 series lead, and a chance to take a stranglehold in Game 4.

Game 3: Brooklyn 4, Philadelphia 3 (OT) (Brooklyn leads series 2-1)

The home crowd was expecting a great performance in Game 4, and they got what they wanted right away. Melvin Stjelylai opened the scoring 2:10 into the game, when his shovel toward the net deflected off of a defender’s skate and between Parent’s legs. Adding on to the early action was Richard Scott, who used his speed to break through the defense and beat Parent through his five-hole. Brooklyn seemed to be shooting there a lot, looking to exploit a supposed weakness there. The Kings doubled Philly’s shot totals in the opening frame, and took their 2-0 lead to the intermission.

The Minutemen were still in the game, and they showed it early on, with Gregory Hahn beating Thomas with a wicked shot from between the circles, seemingly with nobody on him. Philly was within a goal. Both teams had great looks in the frame, but the goalies did well, along with some defenders that made laudable shot blocks. Brooklyn had a couple of goalmouth scrambles late in the frame, but couldn’t capitalize on either of them. The Kings still held the lead going into the third, up by a goal.

Brooklyn wasn’t able to hold on until the end, as Philly tied it up with 11 minutes to play. A beautiful passing play led to Alphonse Boudreau’s 4th goal of the postseason making it a 2-2 tie. Play was congested for most of the period, and it seemed destined to go to overtime again. However, Philly would get a late powerplay. On the man advantage, the Minutemen stole the puck from a Brooklyn defender, leading to Yves Lang in 1-on-1 against a defender. He shot and beat Thomas on that, and Philly had a late lead. The building was silenced. Brooklyn had some late looks, but couldn’t get a late tying goal. Philly took Game 4, and the series was knotted up at 2.

Game 4: Philadelphia 3, Brooklyn 2 (Series tied 2-2)

It was a pivotal game 5 back in Philadelphia, with the winner of the game being one game away from winning the Abbott Cup. It felt like a must-win especially for Philadelphia, as Brooklyn would have home ice in Game 6.

The game started off evenly, with both teams getting the same number of chances. Philly hit the post early on, and Brooklyn had a great chance saved by Parent. Neither team could get too much going overall, so just like it was in Games 1 and 2, the first period ended scoreless, and the decisive first goal would have to come later.

The first goal of the game would come 6 minutes into the middle frame, and it was from a mistake. Parent had the puck in his crease and tried to pass it up to one of his teammates, but it was intercepted by Brooklyn, and it eventually came to John Thomas, who scored before Parent could react. The Minutemen would hit the crossbar almost immediately after, which would have tied the game. Eventually, off a goalmouth scramble with 5 minutes to play, Ivan Cremot scored his 3rd goal of the postseason, and had an incredibly enthusiastic celebration. The crowd loved it. Heading into the third period, it was all knotted up at 1.

Brooklyn had the advantage in the third period, getting more offensive chances and overall shots on Parent. They had a beautiful chance to take the lead, but the shot from Frank Demers went just wide. It was a very loosely-officiated game, and both teams complained at various points over what they perceived as uncalled penalties. It got to a point where Brooklyn head coach Myron Clearwaters was ejected for arguing with the referee. The 1-1 scoreline remained, and so for the second time in the series, the teams headed to OT.

In the extra frame, the Minutemen took advantage over Brooklyn’s lack of a coach, vastly outshooting them. Their problem was that Randall Thomas seemed to be locked in again, seeming like he flipped a switch to be unbeatable. They would also hit the iron a third and fourth time in the frame, which didn’t help. Ultimately, the first extra frame would see no winner, so the two teams headed to double overtime to look for a winner.

3:39 into the fifth period of play, the winner was found. Philadelphia had the puck in the offensive zone, and Harold Beauchamp found James Cash. Thomas was positioned exceptionally well in net, but his shot was absolutely picture-perfect, beating him above his left shoulder, and sending the crowd into a frenzy. Cash had scored 3 goals in the regular season, and he now had matched that total in 8 playoff games, with the biggest goal of his life.

Game 5: Philadelphia 2, Brooklyn 1 (2OT) (Philadelphia leads series 3-2)

The teams headed back to Brooklyn for Game 6, and it seemed as though the home crowd was still shell-shocked from their Game 5 loss. Obviously they were still enthusiastic and cheering, but they wondered if the Kings had blown their best chance of winning the series.

Game 6 started with a bang, with Richard Scott hitting the bar on the very first chance of the team, nearly sending the crowd into delirium. However, the Kings would still break the ice early on, with Robert Turner beating Parent from 35 feet. The crowd loved it, and for most of the opening frame, the Kings had the upper hand. Philly would make them pay at the end though, with Yves Lang tucking a rebound past a sprawling Thomas lying down on the ice, tying it at 1. Then, with 1:21 to play, defenseman Peter Thir made a nice read, cut to the net, and received a pass from Edouard Sabourin before beating Thomas, giving Philly the lead. The two quick goals silenced the Auditorium, as Philly led after 1.

In the second, Sabourin continued to make his mark on the game, with a nice solo rush, cutting from the boards to the middle of the ice, around a defender before beating Thomas to give the Minutemen a 3-1 lead. Just 36 seconds after that, a Harold Beauchamp shot would be saved by Thomas, but deflected off a defender and in, and just like that, it was 4-1 Philly. Brooklyn would desperately try to get something back, but Parent was staying strong in net. The building was almost dead silent when time ran out in the second, as time was running out for the hosts.

Alphonse Boudreau pretty much put the final nail in the coffin early in the third, scoring off a nice pass from Robert Prince to make it 5-1. Brooklyn had pretty much given up at that point, and the rest of the period felt like both teams were waiting for the game to end. As time ran out, the Minutemen poured onto the ice in celebration, as they claimed their first ever Abbott Cup, over the reigning champions in 6 games.

Game 6: Philadelphia 5, Brooklyn 1 (Philadelphia wins series 4-2)