Mickey Redmond arrived at Maple Leaf Gardens on March 27, 1973, one goal away from making Detroit Red Wings history. By the time he left, he had passed the milestone with an encore to spare. Redmond scored his 50th and 51st goals just 18 seconds apart as Detroit overwhelmed the Toronto Maple Leafs 8–1.
Highlights
Redmond became Detroit’s first 50-goal scorer on March 27, 1973.
His milestone goal came at 16:47 of the third period.
He scored his 51st just 18 seconds later.
Detroit defeated Toronto 8–1 at Maple Leaf Gardens.
Bill Collins contributed two goals and an assist, including the winner.
Redmond finished 1972–73 with 52 goals and scored 51 the following season.
He became the third NHL player with multiple 50-goal seasons.
Playing his 73rd game of the 1972–73 season, Redmond carried 49 goals into the matchup and remained there until late in the third period. At 16:47, he beat Toronto goaltender Ron Low with Gary Bergman drawing the assist. The goal gave Detroit a 6–1 lead and made Redmond the first player in franchise history to score 50 goals in a season.
The celebration had barely begun when Redmond struck again. His unassisted goal at 17:05 pushed Detroit’s lead to 7–1 and brought his season total to 51. He finished the campaign with 52, becoming the seventh player in NHL history to reach the 50-goal mark. Philadelphia’s Rick MacLeish also joined the club that season, becoming its eighth member.
Bill Collins, meanwhile, had a strong claim to the night’s best all-around offensive performance. He assisted on Henry Boucha’s opening goal before scoring the eventual winner just 3:44 into the first period, with assists going to Red Berenson and Ron Stackhouse. Boucha returned the favour in the second period, helping Collins score his second goal of the game and 20th of the season. Collins finished with two goals and an assist.
Redmond’s breakthrough was the beginning of a remarkable two-season stretch. He followed his 52-goal campaign with 51 in 1973–74, becoming only the third player in NHL history to record more than one 50-goal season, following Bobby Hull and Phil Esposito. For Detroit, the night in Toronto marked the arrival of its first member of hockey’s exclusive 50-goal club.
The Franchise: Detroit Red Wings: A Curated History of Hockeytown
Explore the storied history of the Detroit Red Wings — legends, moments, rivalries, and the culture that made Hockeytown iconic.
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