Summit Series at 50: A battle on ice that shaped today's NHL
Friday marks 50 years since Canada faced off against the Soviet Union in a bitter battle on the ice, beginning with Game 1 of the Summit Series at the Montreal Forum.
The series wasn't just about hockey -- in the midst of the Cold War, the 1972 series came to represent a struggle between political ideologies.
In that era, professionals were not allowed to play in international tournaments. But this time was different and the NHL's top Canadians took to the ice to play.
"We were Canadians. We were the originators of hockey, we were the developers of hockey, and we were the best in the world in hockey. And yet, every year, during the 1960s, the Soviets were called World Champions," recalled goaltender Ken Dryden in an interview with CTV Montreal.
Despite the title of 'World Champions,' most wrote the Soviets off.
"The first thing that occurred to Canadian players was when the Russians came out, they were wearing mismatched equipment," said NHL historian Dave Stubbs in a CTV interview. "They were wearing skates that you might wear in a beer league. I mean, it was just sort of like, 'Really? That's what these guys are coming to play us with?'"
As fans packed into the Montreal Forum, former prime minister Pierre Elliot Trudeau dropped the puck in the ceremonial faceoff. Canada opened the scoring early, going up 2-0 within minutes.
"We thought, 'Oh isn't this wonderful, this is what we thought it was going to be,'" forward Peter Mahovlich told CTV.
The Soviets were down, but certainly not out.
"All of a sudden, somebody crashes the party, and it's disaster," said Dryden.
The Russian players stormed back, eventually winning 7-3 in front of a stunned hometown crowd.
Team Canada goalie Ken Dryden looks back at the puck as it enters the net during Summit Series action in Montreal on Saturday, Sept. 2, 1972. Dryden had seven goals against him in the first game of the series, won 7–3 by the U.S.S.R. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Peter Bregg
"The loss in Montreal was absolutely unforeseen by anyone, especially the way the Russians just handed Canada their lunch. It was very dramatic," said Stubbs.
The series would go on to be played across Canada and ended up in a dramatic Game 8 in Moscow. Paul Henderson would win it for Team Canada with one of the most historic goals in Canadian history.
While Canada won the series, the Soviets would ultimately significantly impact the game itself.
"The Soviets demonstrated that they could not only play differently, but play differently at the top. We realized maybe there isn't just the Canadian way of doing it," said Dryden. "Alexander Ovechkin, you know, the roots of him are in the 1972 series. The roots of Wayne Gretzky are in the 1972 series," he added.
"Some of the things that transpired there helped change things in Russia for the better," said Mahovlich. "Six or seven years later, you have Russians playing in the NHL. That breaks down some of the stupid borders that we have."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Video shows suspect setting Toronto-area barbershop on fire
Video of a suspect lighting a Richmond Hill barbershop on fire earlier this week has been released by police.
'I have the will to live': N.B. woman needs double lung transplant
A New Brunswick woman suffering from sarcoidosis, a disease that limits your lung capacity, is in need of a double lung transplant.
The kids from 'Mrs. Doubtfire are all SUPER grown up now, and we're not OK
The adorable trio of child actors from the 1993 classic comedy 'Mrs. Doubtfire,' which starred the late and great Robin Williams, are all grown up and looking back on their seminal time together.
Police officer hit by driver of fleeing vehicle in Toronto
York Regional Police say they are continuing to search for a suspect in an auto theft investigation who was captured on video running over a police officer in Toronto last month.
Boeing is on the verge of launching astronauts aboard new capsule, the newest entry to space travel
It’s the first flight of Boeing’s Starliner capsule with a crew on board, a pair of NASA pilots who will check out the spacecraft during the test drive and a weeklong stay at the space station.
Britney Spears 'home and safe' after paramedics responded to an incident at the Chateau Marmont, source tells CNN
A source close to singer Britney Spears tells CNN that the pop star is 'home and safe' after she had a 'major fight' with her boyfriend on Wednesday night at the Chateau Marmont in West Hollywood.
Suter scores late goal, clinches series for Canucks
Pius Suter scored with 1:39 left and the Vancouver Canucks advanced to the second round of the NHL playoffs with a 1-0 victory over the Nashville Predators on Friday night in Game 6.
A Chinese driver is praised for helping reduce casualties in a highway collapse that killed 48
A Chinese truck driver was praised in local media Saturday for parking his vehicle across a highway and preventing more cars from tumbling down a slope after a section of the road in the country's mountainous south collapsed and killed at least 48 people.
TD worst-case scenario more likely after drug money laundering allegations: analyst
TD Bank Group could be hit with more severe penalties than previously expected, says a banking analyst after a report that the investigation it faces in the U.S. is tied to laundering illicit fentanyl profits.