TORONTO (June 28) — Pardon me while I inject some schmaltz into the euphoria of Leafs Nation over Gavin McKenna officially coming aboard in the draft. Events did occur for the hockey club and its followers prior to Friday. And, I’m not referring to Wednesday or Thursday. My thought process, in fact, returns to the ethereal night of May 2, 1967, when the Leafs defeated Montreal to most–recently lift the Stanley Cup. Among hockey rooters in this city — old ones 😛 — that date stands alongside the worldly events of Nov. 22, 1963 and Sep. 11, 2001.

Obviously not for collective impact, but for instant recall.

As I write this blog, five members of the 1967 championship team remain with us… including two of the greatest and most–iconic names in franchise history: Dave Keon and Frank Mahovlich. Both well into their middle–80’s but still so identifiable for their contributions to the Stanley Cup dynasty under Punch Imlach. What a privilege for Leaf followers to have Nos. 14 and 27 still in their midst. If you think of the Montreal team that lost the 1967 Cup final, only Yvan Cournoyer, now 82, is still alive (Dick Duff, as well, but he’d been traded by the Leafs and Rangers). All of the other glorified Canadiens have since passed, including Gump Worsley, J.C. Tremblay, Jean Beliveau, Henri Richard, Ralph Backstrom and John Ferguson. When they were still among us, however, the Montreal club arranged for numerous commemorative nights and reunions. Simultaneously, the Leafs lost two decades of alumni activity as a result of Harold Ballard’s bitterness… and Keon’s lengthy estrangement (1975 to 2016) from the club.

DAVE KEON (ABOVE) AND FRANK MAHOVLICH — TORONTO MAPLE LEAF LEGENDS ALIVE IN THEIR MID–80’s, HAVING PLAYED SIGNIFICANT ROLES ON THE STANLEY CUP TEAMS OF 1962–63–64–67.

The National Hockey League schedule for next season will be unveiled in a couple of weeks. It will determine whether Toronto plays a Sunday night game on Feb. 14, 2027 to mark 100 years since the franchise name–change from St. Patricks to Maple Leafs. And, the arrival of founder Conn Smythe, who built Maple Leaf Gardens in the teeth of the Great Depression. In 2016–17, the club celebrated its centennial as a charter member of the NHL (for 1917–18). Brendan Shanahan, president of the team, used the occasion to officially retire a host of jersey numbers (9, 14, 17, 21, 27 among then)… and to bring Keon back into the fold after his four–decades–long refusal to partake in any event organized by the Leafs (Keon was cast aside by Ballard after the 1974–75 season and the refusal of subsequent regimes to retire, rather than “honor”, jersey numbers kept him at a distance).

How did Shanahan break the impasse?

“He asked me,” said Keon, somewhat disingenuously given that many of his former Leaf teammates (including captain George Armstrong) had begged him to come back for the final NHL game at the Gardens (Feb. 13, 1999). Overtures that he flatly and obstinately refused. Keon attended the unveiling (Jan. 23, 2016) of his bronze statue along Legends Row on the west plaza of the Air Canada Centre (now Scotiabank Arena). He then agreed to return, one year later, for a pre–game ceremony marking a half–century since the 1967 Stanley Cup team. It made sports news, nationwide. Yet, the beloved Johnny Bower received a longer, louder and warmer ovation; deservedly so for his unbridled devotion to the team… and his wonderful rapport with fans through the decades.

But, that was then… and this is now. Emotional wounds have thankfully healed. Keon would know, as well as anyone, that most star players from the 1960’s have died. Phil Esposito and Bobby Orr remain as Boston’s dynamic duo. But, that’s it. Chicago has lost Stan Mikita and Bobby Hull. Detroit, Gordie Howe and Alex Delvecchio. Montreal, Beliveau and the Pocket Rocket. Jean Ratelle of the Rangers is still here at 85, but flashy Rod Gilbert has passed away. Point being that Keith Pelley and Mats Sundin should plan to have Keon and Mahovlich at Scotiabank Arena during the season opener in October. To drop ceremonial pucks for the 100th anniversary of the Maple Leafs moniker. Allowing the legendary duo to experience adulation one more time. Perhaps, one last time.

 
HOCKEY CARDS, ABOVE, FROM THE TOPPS SET OF 1966–67, THE LAST YEAR THE LEAFS WON THE STANLEY CUP. AND, FROM THE 1967–68 TOPPS SET (BELOW), A FINAL SEASON AS TEAMMATES IN TORONTO. MAHOVLICH WAS TRADED TO DETROIT IN MARCH 1968, THEN WENT TO MONTREAL (JANUARY 1971) AND WON TWO MORE CUPS WITH THE HABS.

 
For young people that may be unaware, Keon and Mahovlich rank among the most–identifiable names in Leafs history. Mahovlich outpointed Bobby Hull for the Calder Trophy as NHL rookie–of–the–year in 1957–58. His 48 goals in 1960–61 stood as a team mark for more than 20 years; eclipsed by Rick Vaive (54 goals) in 1981–82. Despite his scoring exploits, the Big M wasn’t always popular with Leafs fans. His long, loping strides on the ice often made him appear to be moving at half–speed. It didn’t help that Imlach chose to be publicly needle the sensitive winger from St. Mike’s, deliberately mispronouncing his surname as “Maholovich”. Never did Frank smile more broadly than the night he was traded to Detroit (Mar. 3, 1968) in a multi–player swap that brought Norm Ullman, Paul Henderson and Floyd Smith to Toronto. Once free of Imlach, Frank erupted for 49 goals in MoTown, playing on a latter–day “Production” line with Howe and Delvecchio. He went to Montreal in January 1971, primarily for winger Mickey Redmond, and added two more Stanley Cup titles to the four he won with the Maple Leafs.

Keon is regarded, quite simply, as the greatest player in franchise history — a designation he received in 2016 while the club commemorated its 100th anniversary (it began play the year the NHL was incorporated). Equally proficient on both sides of the center red line, Keon cemented his legacy on Apr. 9, 1964 when he scored all Toronto goals in a 3–1 victory at Montreal in Game 7 of the Cup semifinals. The Leafs trailed 3–2 in the series but prevailed at home, 3–0, in Game 6, setting up Keon’s unforgettable heroics. It paved the way for Toronto to win its third consecutive championship, downing Detroit, also in seven games. Davey’s last big hurrah as a Leaf occurred in the spring of ’67. Though the forward line of Bob Pulford, Jim Pappin and Peter Stemkowski paced the attack against Chicago and Montreal, Keon’s all–round game earned him the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

If Keon and Mahovlich, as we pray, remain in relatively good health, they must be on hand to open the 100th year since the St. Patricks became the Maple Leafs. Long–time fans understand the enormity of having two franchise legends still in their midst. Now, it’s time for the rest of the club’s enormous following to bask. While it still can.

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