Tim Horton Sets Defensive Milestone With Record-Breaking Game-Winner In 1964

The Toronto Maple Leafs arrived at Madison Square Garden on March 15, 1964, for a key matchup against the New York Rangers, and Tim Horton made sure the night would be remembered. Early in the third period, Horton fired a shot past Rangers goaltender Jacques Plante, with Dave Keon and Allan Stanley picking up the assists.

The timing of the goal made it even more dramatic. Just seven seconds earlier, Jim Neilson had tied the game at 1-1. While it wasn’t a record for the fastest pair of goals, Horton’s marker at 1:34 of the third period proved to be the decisive one, standing up as the game-winner.

That goal was Horton’s seventh game-winning goal of the 1963-64 season, setting a new NHL record for most game-winning goals by a defenseman. The previous mark had belonged to Baldy Northcott of the Montreal Maroons, who recorded six game-winners during the 1932-33 season, more than three decades earlier.

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Horton’s achievement was even more impressive considering his offensive role. Seven of his nine goals that season turned out to be game-winners, a remarkable ratio for a defenseman in the Original Six era. The record would later be tied several times before finally being surpassed by Oliver Ekman-Larsson, who scored eight game-winning goals for the Arizona Coyotes in 2015-16.

The 1963–64 season also marked one of Horton’s finest individual campaigns. He finished second in Norris Trophy voting behind Pierre Pilote of the Chicago Blackhawks, the first of two times Horton would place runner-up for the award. While his seven game-winning goals were a defensive record, they also tied him for third overall in the NHL that season, trailing only Bernie Geoffrion of the Montreal Canadiens and Ken Wharram of the Chicago Blackhawks.

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About Tim Horton

Tim Horton played 1,445 regular season and 126 playoff games in the National Hockey League between 1949-50 and 1973-74 with the Toronto Maple Leafs, New York Rangers, Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres. The four-time Stanley Cup champion was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1977.

Tim Horton NHL Stats

Regular Season

Playoffs

Ted Irvine Takes Control In The Third To Beat His Former Team In 1971

Some NHL performances seem to follow a script, and for Ted Irvine, hat tricks often arrived in a very specific way. Across his career, Irvine recorded three of them, and each felt like its own self-contained takeover: three consecutive goals, all natural hat tricks, all including the game winner. It became a pattern fans could almost sense coming once he got rolling.

His first came during the 1968-69 season, when Irvine scored three straight to give the Los Angeles Kings an early 3-0 cushion in a 3-2 win over the Oakland Seals. His third would come later with the St. Louis Blues, again featuring three unanswered goals in the third period to flip a game against the Pittsburgh Penguins. The second, though, may have been the most poetic, doing it against the team he once called home.

That moment arrived on March 7, 1971, when the New York Rangers hosted the Los Angeles Kings at Madison Square Garden. The opening period was scoreless, but Jean Ratelle broke through at 2:40 of the second to put New York ahead. The Kings responded late in the frame, however, as Eddie Joyal and Gilles Marotte struck to give Los Angeles a 2-1 lead heading into the third.

That’s when Irvine took over. At 3:57 of the final period, he beat Denis DeJordy for his 16th goal of the season, tying the game and shifting the momentum. Just over nine minutes later, with help from Pete Stemkowski, Irvine buried what would stand as the game winner, giving the Rangers their first lead since early in the night. With DeJordy pulled for an extra attacker in the final minute, Irvine completed the familiar pattern. He scored his third straight goal, unassisted, with 43 seconds remaining to seal a 4-2 Rangers victory. 

About Ted Irvine

Between 1963-64 and 1976-77, Ted Irvine played 724 regular season and 83 playoff games in the National Hockey League with the Boston Bruins, Los Angeles Kings, New York Rangers and St. Louis Blues. He was a 20 goal scorer twice during his NHL career, topping out with 26 in 1973-74 with the New York Rangers.

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NHL Hockey Trivia: Ted Irvine

Much more NHL hockey trivia can be found at our website: World's Best Hockey Trivia

1. Ted Irvine made his NHL debut with which team during the 1963–64 season?

Boston Bruins
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
St. Louis Blues

2. Ted Irvine recorded his most productive NHL season while playing for which team?

Boston Bruins
New York Rangers
Los Angeles Kings
St. Louis Blues

3. What was Ted Irvine’s career-high in goals during a single NHL season?

22
26
30
35

4. Ted Irvine recorded multiple hat tricks during his NHL career, most shared which distinction?

They were natural hat tricks
They occurred in playoff games
They came in overtime games
They were all short-handed goals

5. Ted Irvine is the father of which future professional wrestler?

Chris Jericho
Bret Hart
Edge
Roddy Piper

Frank Mahovlich and Lou Nanne Trade Hat Tricks at the Forum

When fans looked at a January 27, 1972 matchup between the Montreal Canadiens and Minnesota North Stars, few would have predicted a personal scoring duel between Frank Mahovlich and Lou Nanne. Mahovlich was in the midst of a dominant 43-goal campaign for Montreal, while Nanne was enjoying the best offensive season of his NHL career, scoring 21 goals, the only time he ever reached the 20-goal mark.

That night at the Montreal Forum, both players delivered rare performances. Mahovlich, known as The Big M, recorded the 13th of his 14 career NHL hat tricks. Across the ice, Nanne produced the only three-goal game of his NHL career, making the contest an unexpected showcase of individual offense.

The game itself was evenly matched from the opening faceoff, and the scoreboard reflected it. The first period exploded for seven goals, with Minnesota holding a slim 4-3 lead after 20 minutes. After J.P. Parise gave the North Stars a 2-1 advantage at 5:32, the remainder of the period belonged entirely to Mahovlich and Nanne, who traded goals in rapid succession.

Nanne opened the exchange by scoring his 14th goal of the season at 7:40. Mahovlich answered just over a minute later with his 23rd, then struck again only 51 seconds after that. Not to be outdone, Nanne responded 32 seconds later with his second goal of the night. In the second period, Mahovlich completed his hat trick to make it 5-4 Minnesota, with all three goals set up by his brother, Pete Mahovlich. Frank also assisted on a Guy Lafleur goal, giving him a four-point night.

Lafleur tied the game 5-5 early in the third period with an unassisted goal on Cesare Maniago. But the final word belonged to Nanne, who scored his third of the night and the game-winner at 16:24, beating Phil Myre with help from Murray Oliver and Ted Harris. Nanne also finished with four points, having assisted earlier on a Dean Prentice goal. Between them, Mahovlich and Nanne fired 18 shots, with Mahovlich taking 10 and Nanne eight.

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The story of Lou Nanne — NHL player, executive, and a central figure in Minnesota hockey.

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NHL Hockey Trivia: Frank Mahovlich

Much more NHL hockey trivia can be found at our website: World's Best Hockey Trivia

1. Frank Mahovlich spent the largest portion of his NHL career with which team?

Toronto Maple Leafs
Montreal Canadiens
Detroit Red Wings
Pittsburgh Penguins

2. Which nickname was Frank Mahovlich commonly known by during his NHL career?

The Big M
Mr. Hockey
The Golden Jet
Captain Courageous

3. Frank Mahovlich won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie in which season?

1958–59
1957–58
1959–60
1960–61

4. Including his time with Montreal, how many Stanley Cups did Frank Mahovlich win during his NHL career?

3
5
6
4

5. Frank Mahovlich was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in which category?

Player
Builder
Contributor
International