For nearly seventy years, Maple Leaf Gardens was the home of
the National Hockey League’s Toronto Maple Leafs. The arena, known in short as
MLG, was also home to several other teams over the years in the sports of
indoor soccer, lacrosse and basketball. Test and expand your hockey knowledge
of Toronto’s Maple Leaf Gardens with the following four hockey trivia
questions.
Q. Besides the Toronto Maple Leafs, what other professional hockey team
called Maple Leaf Gardens home?
A. The Toronto
Toros of the World Hockey Association called MLG home for the 1974-75 and
1975-76 season after played their first year at Varsity Arena. The Toros began
as a WHA franchise in Ottawa and moved to Birmingham for the 1976-77 season.
Q. In what season did the Toronto Maple Leafs win the first Stanley Cup
in their new home?
A. The Maple
Leafs began play at Maple
Leaf Gardens in 1931-32. The team won the Stanley Cup that year with a
final series victory over the New York Rangers. Toronto swept New York in the
best of five series with the final game being played at MLG. Of the three
games, only one was played in New York and Toronto each with the other played
in Boston due to the Circus taking over Madison Square Garden in New York.
Starring for Toronto that year were Busher Jackson, Joe Primeau and Charlie
Conacher.
Q. What was the first NBA team to play home games at Maple Leaf
Gardens?
A. The Buffalo
Braves of the National Basketball Association played a total of 16 home games
at MLG over four seasons between 1971 and 1975. The Braves are the predecessors
of the current Los Angeles Clippers. The franchise played mainly out of the
Buffalo Memorial Auditorium from 1970-71 to 1977-78. They then moved to San
Diego where they took on the Clippers name for the first time. The franchise
lasted in San Diego from 1978-79 until 1983-84 before moving north to Los
Angeles.
The Toronto Raptors never called Maple Leafs Gardens home.
The NBA franchise began play for the 1995-96 season and played home games at
the SkyDome until the Air Canada Centre opened for the 1999-00 season.
Q. In what year did Maple Leaf Gardens host the first annual NHL
All-Star Game?
A. In October of
1947, the first official NHL All-Star Game was played at MLG. 13 years earlier,
in 1934, the first NHL All-Star game of any kind was played as a benefit for
Ace Bailey. The 1947 game featured the defending Stanley Cup champion Toronto
Maple Leafs against an All-Star team from the other five teams in the league.
The All-Stars came out on top 4-3 before a crowd of 14,169 with Doug Bentley
scoring the winning goal in the third period, assisted by Maurice ‘Rocket’
Richard and Milt Schmidt.
