Nov. 1: Plante debuts mask in NHL game | NHL.com (2024)

Plus: Red Wings form 'Production Line'; James becomes League's first U.S.-born Black player

Plante is cut by a rising shot taken by New York Rangers forward
Andy Bathgate
3:06 into the first period of a game at Madison Square Garden. Plante goes off for repairs; when he returns, he's wearing a fiberglass mask. Plante has been using one in practice, but this is the first time he plays with one during a game.
The Canadiens win the game 3-1, and Plante insists to coach
Toe Blake
that he will no longer play without the mask. Blake, who's been opposed to the mask, relents. The facial protection catches on; within a few years most goalies wear one, and by the end of the 1973-74 season there are no more bare-faced goalies in the NHL.
The debut of Plante's mask comes seven years to the day he
plays his first NHL game
. With
Gerry McNeil
sidelined by injury, Plante
defeats the Rangers 4-1
in his first NHL start. He wins two games and ties one before being returned to the Montreal Royals.

MORE MOMENTS
1924:The NHL officially comes to the United States when the Boston Bruins join the League. The NHL expands to six franchises by adding the Bruins and Montreal Maroons.
1947: Under new coach Tommy Ivan, the Detroit Red Wings'
famed "Production Line"
of right wing
Gordie Howe
, center
Sid Abel
and left wing
Ted Lindsay
becomes a regular unit for the first time. The nickname is a nod to Detroit's automotive industry as well as the line's offensive prowess.

1975:Billy Reay of the Chicago Blackhawks becomes the second man to
coach 1,000 NHL games
. The milestone comes in a
3-1 victory against the Detroit Red Wings
at Olympia Stadium.
1981:
Val James
becomes the first
U.S.-born Black player to play in the NHL
when he takes the ice for the Buffalo Sabres in their
6-2 win against the Philadelphia Flyers
at Memorial Auditorium.
James
, a native of Ocala, Florida, who grows up on Long Island before playing two seasons in the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League, plays a total of seven games for the Sabres in 1981-82 and four more with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1986-87 during a decade-long pro career.
1984:
Mike Bossy
scores four goals for the New York Islanders during a
6-5 overtime loss at Montreal
, extending his season-opening goal-scoring streak to 10 games.
Brent Sutter
assists on all four goals. Bossy scores 17 times during the streak, which ends two nights later against the Quebec Nordiques.
1985:Sabres rookie
Daren Puppa
becomes the 17th goalie to have a
shutout in his first NHL game
. Puppa makes 37 saves in a 2-0 victory against the defending Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers at Northlands Coliseum. Ten of his saves come against
Wayne Gretzky
.

1992:
Mario Lemieux
scores twice in the Pittsburgh Penguins' 5-4 win at the Tampa Bay Lightning to extend his
team-record goal-scoring streak to 12 games
. Lemieux scores 18 goals during the 12-game streak.
2006:Pittsburgh rookie Evgeni Malkin becomes the first player since 1917-18, the NHL's first season, to
score a goal in six straight games from the start of his career
. Malkin scores his second of the game at 2:45 of overtime to give the Penguins a 4-3 victory against the Los Angeles Kings at Staples Center.
2017: Joe Thornton becomes the 20th player in NHL history with 1,400 points when he has an assist on Joe Pavelski's second-period goal in
the San Jose Sharks' 4-1 win
against the Nashville Predators at SAP Center.
On the same night, longtime teammate Patrick Marleau becomes the eighth player in League history to have 100 game-winning goals when he scores 1:09 into the third period of
a 3-1 win by the Toronto Maple Leafs
against the Anaheim Ducks at Honda Center. The two are teammates from Nov. 30, 2005, when the Sharks acquire Thornton in a trade with the Boston Bruins, until July 2, 2017, when Marleau signs as a free agent with the Maple Leafs. They reunite when the Sharks sign Marleau as a free agent on Oct. 9, 2019.
2018: The Canadiens set an NHL record by scoring the final two goals of their
6-4 win against the Washington Capitals
at Bell Centre in two seconds. Montreal's Max Domi scores at 19:38 of the third period to put the Canadiens ahead 5-4, and Joel Armia hits the empty net at 19:40. The previous mark for fastest two goals by one team is three seconds, set by the
St. Louis Eagles on March 12, 1935
, and matched by the
Minnesota Wild on Jan. 21, 2004
and the
New York Islanders on Nov. 30, 2016
.
2019: David Perron scores the fastest overtime goal in St. Louis Blues history when he scores eight seconds into OT for a
4-3 victory
against the Columbus Blue Jackets at Enterprise Center. He also joins
Joe Mullen
(Nov. 12-16, 1985) as the only players in Blues history to score two overtime goals in a span of three games.