How much longer would it have been before goalies wore masks if Plante didn't do it in 1959?

[Crosby2010]

So we all know the story, Andy Bathgate is breaking down the wing and unleashes a shot that cuts Plante. He leaves the game, gets stitched up but won't go back in without his mask on. He was using the mask in practice but coaches in the NHL didn't want their goalies wearing them. I know the idea is that it was thought to be "chicken" but I honestly think the biggest reason was that coaches feared it could impair their vision on the ice with one on. So as the story goes Plante goes back into the game on November 1st, 1959. So Plante never missed a minute. If you look at the old boxscore no one replaced him. They must have stopped the game for a few minutes before he got stitched up because no one else played goal that day for Montreal. Charlie Hodge was Montreal's back up that year.

Anyway, what sort of timeline do you figure we are looking at if Plante never becomes the first one to wear one? I guess the story could be that if it wasn't Plante it would be someone else, but would it? Johnny Bower NEVER wore a mask and retired in 1970. Did Gump Worsley ever wear a mask? He didn't in Minnesota and ironically he was the other goalie in that Plante game in 1959. Glenn Hall wore one by the time he was in St. Louis, but that is almost a decade later. Not sure when Sawchuk donned one but he had one by 1967 with the Leafs for sure.

Does it go well into the 1960s before someone finally does it? Because to me it is a bit like slim pickings otherwise with the other 5 teams. Bower never wore one, Worsley never wore one, Hall wore one a decade later, Sawchuk looks to have had one by 1963 or 1964 at the latest. That leaves Harry Lumley in Boston, who never wore one. And even when Eddie Johnston came in back in 1962 on the Bruins he didn't wear one then either. Not sure when he started. Looks like by the time Cheevers was a regular on Boston he was donning a mask.

So really, it looks like Plante was sort of a lone wolf there for a while. It isn't as if goalies followed suit right after that. I think eventually it gets there but I think Plante easily sped up the process. It would be well into the 1960s before someone would have done it, I think.

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[Michael Farkas]

Sawchuk had one to start the 1962-63 season. But the timeline was going to be right here regardless. Don Simmons was wearing one that season (1959).

 

[Doctor No]

Johnny Bower NEVER wore a mask and retired in 1970. Did Gump Worsley ever wear a mask?

Johnny Bower first wore a mask on January 19, 1969.

 

[Doctor No]

As far as Worsley, he was convinced in his last year to wear a mask by Cesare Maniago - he wore it the first game of the year (October 13, 1973) against Buffalo but couldn't get the eye holes right, then started wearing it January 9, 1974 until the end of the season (I believe).

Here's January 9, 1974:

 

[Doctor No]

Here's a fun shot of Bower with the mask:

 

[Doctor No]

And here's Don Simmons in the January 4, 1960 Windsor Star:

I believe Simmons was waiting for Plante (or someone) to start wearing one before he started, because he didn't have the leverage to start himself.

And this Boston Globe summary from January 11, 1960 claims that January 10 was Simmons' eighth NHL game wearing the mask:

 

[Crosby2010]

Here's a fun shot of Bower with the mask:

View attachment 836482

I did not know that Bower and Worsley both tried the mask right at the end. I had just never seen an image with any of them wearing one before.

 

[Doctor No]

I did not know that Bower and Worsley both tried the mask right at the end. I had just never seen an image with any of them wearing one before.

You're far from the only one - it's a pretty common belief these days (and you'll oftentimes hear that Worsley was the last to go maskless in the NHL).

If you haven't seen Rob Vanstone's book, I can't recommend it enough:

Book Feature - Brave Face: Wild Tales of Hockey Goaltenders in the Era Before Masks (by Rob Vanstone)

OVERVIEW Brave Face is billed by the publisher, Triumph Books, as "a fascinating and immersive chronicle of hockey's original maskless warriors." More than 400 stitches decorated Terry Sawchuk's face during his 16 years as a goaltender in the National Hockey League, the result of high-speed...

forums.hfboards.com

As far as Worsley, Maniago convinced him that he's retiring at the end of the season anyhow, so why not keep his face?

 

[Crosby2010]

You're far from the only one - it's a pretty common belief these days (and you'll oftentimes hear that Worsley was the last to go maskless in the NHL).

If you haven't seen Rob Vanstone's book, I can't recommend it enough:

Book Feature - Brave Face: Wild Tales of Hockey Goaltenders in the Era Before Masks (by Rob Vanstone)

OVERVIEW Brave Face is billed by the publisher, Triumph Books, as "a fascinating and immersive chronicle of hockey's original maskless warriors." More than 400 stitches decorated Terry Sawchuk's face during his 16 years as a goaltender in the National Hockey League, the result of high-speed...

forums.hfboards.com

As far as Worsley, Maniago convinced him that he's retiring at the end of the season anyhow, so why not keep his face?

I always knew it was Andy Brown as the last official NHL goalie to go maskless. In fact after 1974 he still went maskless into the WHA until 1977 I believe (that is insane to see a picture in the late 1970s of a maskless goalie). But for some reason just thought Worsley went maskless the entire time too and while both were done in the NHL in 1974 I just always figured there was some technicality like Worsley may have retired mid-season or something for Brown to be the guy remembered as the last.

Here is the funny thing, Clint Benedict is technically the first guy to wear some sort of a mask in 1930 to help heal a broken nose if I recall. Then he ditched it. I can't believe it took 30 years after that before someone came in to finally make it permanent.

 

[The Panther]

Obviously I can't fault Jacques Plante for refusing to play without the mask, but for his legacy (I consider him the greatest goalie ever) I kind of wish he hadn't been the one to do it, since that's basically all anyone knows him for now (unless you're over 80 or are a regular on this forum). If you ask even professional hockey people what Plante did in his career, most would say, "Oh, the Montreal guy who was the first to wear a mask." Which is fine, but it's like saying, "Oh, Bobby Orr? Yeah, that Boston guy who had a nice haircut."

What I find rather surprising is that it took from the tail-end of the 1950s to the early/mid-1980s before several goaltenders started wearing the helmet-cage. It just seems like an obvious thing to have done earlier (technology permitting), but, I dunno, maybe it's that thing where coaches / players were worried about vision impairment issues.

 

[Michael Farkas]

maybe it's that thing where coaches / players were worried about vision impairment issues.

Shortly after Plante donned the mask, he went on a hot streak the rest of November - 10-0-1, 1.18 GAA, 2 shutouts.

But then...went 0-3-3, 3.50 GAA. So the Canadiens forced him to undergo a series of vision tests with and without the mask.

 

[JackSlater]

So we all know the story, Andy Bathgate is breaking down the wing and unleashes a shot that cuts Plante. He leaves the game, gets stitched up but won't go back in without his mask on. He was using the mask in practice but coaches in the NHL didn't want their goalies wearing them. I know the idea is that it was thought to be "chicken" but I honestly think the biggest reason was that coaches feared it could impair their vision on the ice with one on. So as the story goes Plante goes back into the game on November 1st, 1959. So Plante never missed a minute. If you look at the old boxscore no one replaced him. They must have stopped the game for a few minutes before he got stitched up because no one else played goal that day for Montreal. Charlie Hodge was Montreal's back up that year.

Anyway, what sort of timeline do you figure we are looking at if Plante never becomes the first one to wear one? I guess the story could be that if it wasn't Plante it would be someone else, but would it? Johnny Bower NEVER wore a mask and retired in 1970. Did Gump Worsley ever wear a mask? He didn't in Minnesota and ironically he was the other goalie in that Plante game in 1959. Glenn Hall wore one by the time he was in St. Louis, but that is almost a decade later. Not sure when Sawchuk donned one but he had one by 1967 with the Leafs for sure.

Does it go well into the 1960s before someone finally does it? Because to me it is a bit like slim pickings otherwise with the other 5 teams. Bower never wore one, Worsley never wore one, Hall wore one a decade later, Sawchuk looks to have had one by 1963 or 1964 at the latest. That leaves Harry Lumley in Boston, who never wore one. And even when Eddie Johnston came in back in 1962 on the Bruins he didn't wear one then either. Not sure when he started. Looks like by the time Cheevers was a regular on Boston he was donning a mask.

So really, it looks like Plante was sort of a lone wolf there for a while. It isn't as if goalies followed suit right after that. I think eventually it gets there but I think Plante easily sped up the process. It would be well into the 1960s before someone would have done it, I think.

Of course we know that they stopped the game and waited for Plante. It's part of our heritage.



As far as Plante, he sped the process up but certainly it would have happened anyway and probably before long. History, whether in sports or otherwise, tends to play out regardless of any individual. There are rare cases where someone pushes things in an unexpected direction but mostly things happen the way that they were trending.

 

[Crosby2010]

Of course we know that they stopped the game and waited for Plante. It's part of our heritage.



As far as Plante, he sped the process up but certainly it would have happened anyway and probably before long. History, whether in sports or otherwise, tends to play out regardless of any individual. There are rare cases where someone pushes things in an unexpected direction but mostly things happen the way that they were trending.

I always like the scene where the nurse sort of looks at him and smiles politely. They were accurate with this clip. The Habs were on the road when this happens and they have the white sweaters, which were the road sweaters back then too. Also, to this day after years of seeing that commercial I have no idea who that kid is that talks to Toe Blake. I am just guessing that perhaps it is a trainer. They never specify.

Obviously I can't fault Jacques Plante for refusing to play without the mask, but for his legacy (I consider him the greatest goalie ever) I kind of wish he hadn't been the one to do it, since that's basically all anyone knows him for now (unless you're over 80 or are a regular on this forum). If you ask even professional hockey people what Plante did in his career, most would say, "Oh, the Montreal guy who was the first to wear a mask." Which is fine, but it's like saying, "Oh, Bobby Orr? Yeah, that Boston guy who had a nice haircut."

What I find rather surprising is that it took from the tail-end of the 1950s to the early/mid-1980s before several goaltenders started wearing the helmet-cage. It just seems like an obvious thing to have done earlier (technology permitting), but, I dunno, maybe it's that thing where coaches / players were worried about vision impairment issues.

That's the thing, even in 1959 it still would have hurt like heck if the puck hit you with the "Jason style" mask on. In the 1960s Cheevers had stitches on his mask indicating where he could have been cut otherwise. Tretiak in 1972 had the cage, but we didn't. Not Dryden or Esposito. Even Grant Fuhr had the Jason mask in the earlier part of the 1980s. I don't know why we didn't switch to the cage quicker in the NHL either. You would think your vision would be better, not worse, with the cage.

 

[DJ Man]

I believe that Joe Schaefer, the Rangers' trainer was the "house goalie," and if Plante couldn't continue, the Canadiens would have had to use him in their goal.

Seems incredible in retrospect that the league would allow such a thing.

 

[Stephen]

Here's a fun shot of Bower with the mask:

View attachment 836482

This one is great too:

 

[Doctor No]

This one is great too:

Love this one - hey, when you've gotta take your mask off to get a smoke in, you've gotta take your mask off to get a smoke in.

 

[Stephen]

Love this one - hey, when you've gotta take your mask off to get a smoke in, you've gotta take your mask off to get a smoke in.

I love the casual wear too.