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1967–68 St. Louis Blues season

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1967–68 St. Louis Blues
Division3rd West
1967–68 record27–31–16
Goals for177
Goals against198
Team information
General managerLynn Patrick
CoachLynn Patrick
Scotty Bowman
CaptainAl Arbour
ArenaSt. Louis Arena
Team leaders
GoalsRed Berenson (22)
AssistsGerry Melnyk (35)
PointsRed Berenson (51)
Penalty minutesBarclay Plager (153)
WinsGlenn Hall (19)
Goals against averageGlenn Hall (2.48)

The 1967–68 St. Louis Blues season was the inaugural season in the history of the franchise. The Blues were one of the six new teams added to the NHL in the 1967 expansion. The other franchises were the Minnesota North Stars, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, and California Seals. The league doubled in size from its Original Six.

St. Louis was the last of the expansion teams to officially get into the league. The Blues were chosen over Baltimore at the insistence of the Chicago Black Hawks. The Black Hawks were owned at that time by the Wirtz family, who also owned the St. Louis Arena. The team's first owners were insurance tycoon Sid Salomon Jr., his son, Sid Salomon III, and Robert L. Wolfson. Sid Salomon III convinced his initially wary father to make a bid for the team. Salomon then spent several million dollars on renovations for the 38-year-old Arena, which increased the number of seats from 12,000 to 15,000 and provided its first significant maintenance since the 1940s.

Because the playoff format required an expansion team to make it to the Stanley Cup finals, the Blues became the first expansion team to reach that mark. However, they were the last of the still operating 1967 expansion teams to win the cup, which they did in 2019.

Offseason

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NHL draft

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The Blues attempted to select Saskatoon Blades forward Dale Fairbrother with their first round pick, but the pick was ruled invalid since Fairbrother was on the Portland Buckaroos' sponsored list.[1][2] The Blues passed on making selections in the second and third rounds.[2]

Regular season

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Original logo of the St. Louis Blues

The franchise's first game was played on October 11, 1967. The Blues and Minnesota North Stars played to a 2–2 tie at the St. Louis Arena,[3] with the Blues' first ever team goal scored by Larry Keenan of North Bay, Ontario. A St. Michaels product, Keenan had his career end prematurely due to injuries. He relocated back to North Bay where he coached a local Midget AAA team for many years.

The Blues were originally coached by Lynn Patrick who resigned in late-November and was replaced by Scotty Bowman. Although the league's rules effectively kept star players with the Original Six teams, the Blues were one of the stronger teams of the Western Division. The playoff format required an expansion team to make it to the Stanley Cup finals, and the Blues made it to the final round.

Season standings

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West Division[4]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1 Philadelphia Flyers 74 31 32 11 173 179 −6 73
2 Los Angeles Kings 74 31 33 10 200 224 −24 72
3 St. Louis Blues 74 27 31 16 177 191 −14 70
4 Minnesota North Stars 74 27 32 15 191 226 −35 69
5 Pittsburgh Penguins 74 27 34 13 195 216 −21 67
6 Oakland Seals 74 15 42 17 153 219 −66 47


Record vs. opponents

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Schedule and results

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No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 T October 11, 1967 2–2 Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 0–0–1
2 L October 13, 1967 1–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 0–1–1
3 W October 14, 1967 4–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 1–1–1
4 L October 18, 1967 1–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 1–2–1
5 T October 21, 1967 3–3 Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 1–2–2
6 L October 22, 1967 0–1 @ Detroit Red Wings (1967–68) 1–3–2
7 L October 25, 1967 2–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 1–4–2
8 L October 28, 1967 1–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1967–68) 1–5–2
9 W November 1, 1967 5–1 Boston Bruins (1967–68) 2–5–2
10 W November 4, 1967 3–2 Detroit Red Wings (1967–68) 3–5–2
11 L November 8, 1967 1–5 @ Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 3–6–2
12 W November 11, 1967 5–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 4–6–2
13 L November 12, 1967 2–5 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1967–68) 4–7–2
14 L November 15, 1967 1–4 Chicago Black Hawks (1967–68) 4–8–2
15 L November 18, 1967 3–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 4–9–2
16 L November 19, 1967 2–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 4–10–2
17 L November 22, 1967 1–3 Montreal Canadiens (1967–68) 4–11–2
18 L November 25, 1967 1–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 4–12–2
19 L November 26, 1967 0–1 @ New York Rangers (1967–68) 4–13–2
20 W November 29, 1967 3–2 Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 5–13–2
21 L December 2, 1967 1–5 Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 5–14–2
22 L December 3, 1967 2–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 5–15–2
23 L December 6, 1967 2–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 5–16–2
24 W December 9, 1967 1–0 @ Oakland Seals (1967–68) 6–16–2
25 W December 10, 1967 2–1 Toronto Maple Leafs (1967–68) 7–16–2
26 W December 13, 1967 3–1 Oakland Seals (1967–68) 8–16–2
27 T December 14, 1967 2–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 8–16–3
28 L December 16, 1967 0–1 Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 8–17–3
29 L December 17, 1967 3–5 @ New York Rangers (1967–68) 8–18–3
30 W December 20, 1967 2–1 @ Oakland Seals (1967–68) 9–18–3
31 L December 23, 1967 0–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 9–19–3
32 W December 25, 1967 1–0 @ Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 10–19–3
33 W December 27, 1967 4–2 Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 11–19–3
34 W December 29, 1967 2–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 12–19–3
35 L December 30, 1967 1–8 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1967–68) 12–20–3
36 W January 3, 1968 4–0 Oakland Seals (1967–68) 13–20–3
37 W January 6, 1968 2–1 Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 14–20–3
38 T January 10, 1968 2–2 @ Oakland Seals (1967–68) 14–20–4
39 T January 11, 1968 2–2 @ Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 14–20–5
40 L January 13, 1968 1–3 New York Rangers (1967–68) 14–21–5
41 T January 14, 1968 2–2 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1967–68) 14–21–6
42 W January 17, 1968 5–0 Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 15–21–6
43 T January 21, 1968 2–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 15–21–7
44 W January 24, 1968 5–2 Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 16–21–7
45 T January 25, 1968 4–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1967–68) 16–21–8
46 W January 27, 1968 4–3 New York Rangers (1967–68) 17–21–8
47 W January 31, 1968 9–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 18–21–8
48 L February 1, 1968 0–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 18–22–8
49 W February 3, 1968 4–1 Oakland Seals (1967–68) 19–22–8
50 L February 7, 1968 4–6 Boston Bruins (1967–68) 19–23–8
51 L February 10, 1968 1–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 19–24–8
52 T February 11, 1968 3–3 @ Boston Bruins (1967–68) 19–24–9
53 T February 14, 1968 2–2 Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 19–24–10
54 W February 16, 1968 3–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 20–24–10
55 T February 17, 1968 2–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 20–24–11
56 W February 21, 1968 5–1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1967–68) 21–24–11
57 L February 22, 1968 1–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1967–68) 21–25–11
58 L February 25, 1968 2–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 21–26–11
59 T February 28, 1968 3–3 Montreal Canadiens (1967–68) 21–26–12
60 T March 2, 1968 3–3 Chicago Black Hawks (1967–68) 21–26–13
61 L March 3, 1968 3–9 @ Boston Bruins (1967–68) 21–27–13
62 W March 6, 1968 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 22–27–13
63 W March 9, 1968 3–1 Oakland Seals (1967–68) 23–27–13
64 W March 10, 1968 1–0 @ Oakland Seals (1967–68) 24–27–13
65 T March 13, 1968 3–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1967–68) 24–27–14
66 T March 15, 1968 1–1 Oakland Seals (1967–68) 24–27–15
67 L March 16, 1968 3–6 Detroit Red Wings (1967–68) 24–28–15
68 L March 20, 1968 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1967–68) 24–29–15
69 L March 22, 1968 1–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1967–68) 24–30–15
70 T March 23, 1968 3–3 @ Oakland Seals (1967–68) 24–30–16
71 W March 27, 1968 3–0 Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 25–30–16
72 L March 28, 1968 0–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1967–68) 25–31–16
73 W March 30, 1968 3–2 Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 26–31–16
74 W March 31, 1968 5–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1967–68) 27–31–16

Expansion draft

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  • St. Louis Blues selections
# Player Drafted from
1. Glenn Hall (G) Chicago Black Hawks
2. Don Caley (G) Detroit Red Wings
3. Jim Roberts (D/W) Montreal Canadiens
4. Noel Picard (D) Montreal Canadiens
5. Al Arbour (D) Toronto Maple Leafs
6. Rod Seiling (D) New York Rangers
7. Ron Schock (C) Boston Bruins
8. Terry Crisp (C) Boston Bruins
9. Don McKenney (C) Detroit Red Wings
10. Wayne Rivers (RW) Boston Bruins
11. Billy Hay (C) Chicago Black Hawks
12. Darryl Edestrand (D) Toronto Maple Leafs
13. Norm Beaudin (RW) Detroit Red Wings
14. Larry Keenan (LW) Toronto Maple Leafs
15. Ron Stewart (C) Boston Bruins
16. Fred Hucul (D) Toronto Maple Leafs
17. John Brenneman (LW) Toronto Maple Leafs
18. Gerry Melnyk (C) Chicago Black Hawks
19. Gary Veneruzzo (LW) Toronto Maple Leafs
20. Max Mestinsek (RW) New York Rangers

Player statistics

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Forwards

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Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Gordon "Red" Berenson 55 22 29 51 22
Gerry Melnyk 73 15 35 50 14
Frank St. Marseille 57 16 16 32 12
Don McKenney 39 9 20 29 4
Terry Crisp 73 9 20 29 10
Bill McCreary 70 13 13 26 22
Gary Sabourin 50 13 10 23 50
Larry Keenan 40 12 8 20 4
Ron Schock 55 9 9 18 17
Tim Ecclestone 50 6 8 14 16
Ron Stewart 19 7 5 12 11
Craig Cameron 32 7 2 9 8
Dickie Moore 27 5 3 8 9
Wayne Rivers 22 4 4 8 8
Ron Attwell 18 1 7 8 6
Roger Picard 15 2 2 4 21
Gary Veneruzzo 5 1 1 2 0
Norm Beaudin 13 1 1 2 4
Claude Cardin 1 0 0 0 0

Defensemen

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Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Jim Roberts 74 14 23 37 66
Barclay Plager 49 5 15 20 153
Fred Hucul 43 2 13 15 30
Noel Picard 66 1 10 11 142
Al Arbour 74 1 10 11 50
Bob Plager 53 2 5 7 86
Jean-Guy Talbot 23 0 4 4 2
Ray Fortin 24 0 2 2 8
Gordon Kannegiesser 19 0 1 1 13
Darryl Edestrand 12 0 0 0 2

Goaltending

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Note: GP= Games played; MIN= Minutes; W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against

Player GP MIN W L T SO GAA
Glenn Hall 49 2858 19 21 9 5 2.48
Seth Martin 30 1552 8 10 7 1 2.59
Don Caley 1 30 0 0 0 0 6.00

Post-season stats

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Forwards

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Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Gordon "Red" Berenson 18 5 2 7 9
Gerry Melnyk 17 2 6 8 2
Frank St. Marseille 18 5 8 13 0
Don McKenney 6 1 1 2 2
Terry Crisp 18 1 5 6 6
Bill McCreary 15 3 2 5 0
Gary Sabourin 18 4 2 6 30
Larry Keenan 18 4 5 9 4
Ron Schock 12 1 2 3 0
Tim Ecclestone 12 1 2 3 2
Craig Cameron 14 1 0 1 11
Dickie Moore 18 7 7 14 15
Gary Veneruzzo 9 0 2 2 2

Defensemen

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Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Jim Roberts 18 4 1 5 20
Barclay Plager 18 2 5 7 73
Noel Picard 13 0 3 3 46
Al Arbour 14 0 3 3 10
Bob Plager 18 1 2 3 69
Jean-Guy Talbot 17 0 2 2 8
Ray Fortin 3 0 0 0 2
Doug Harvey 8 0 4 4 12

Goaltending

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Note: GP= Games played; MIN= Minutes; W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against; SV% = Save percentage

Player GP MIN W L T SO GAA SV%
Glenn Hall 18 535 8 10 – 1 2.44 .916

Playoffs

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1968 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Western Division Quarter-finals vs. Philadelphia – Blues win 4–3
# Date Visitor Score Home OT Decision Attendance Series
1 April 4 St. Louis 1–0 Philadelphia Hall 10,649 Blues lead 1–0
2 April 6 St. Louis 3–4 Philadelphia Hall 11,111 Series tied 1–1
3 April 10 Philadelphia 2–3 St. Louis OT Hall 10,867 Blues lead 2–1
4 April 11 Philadelphia 2–5 St. Louis Hall 11,070 Blues lead 3–1
5 April 13 St. Louis 1–6 Philadelphia Hall 10,587 Blues lead 3–2
6 April 16 Philadelphia 2–1 St. Louis OT Hall 13,738 Series tied 3–3
7 April 18 St. Louis 3–1 Philadelphia Hall 14,646 Blues win 4–3

Stanley Cup Finals

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The Blues beat the North Stars in a game 7 double overtime and made the Stanley Cup finals. Although they lost in four straight games, they played proudly, as all four games each were decided by just one goal (and two of the four were decided in overtime). Glenn Hall was especially noted for his goaltending, especially in game three when the Blues were outshot 46 to 15. Red Burnett, one of the most prominent hockey writers of the day, said of Hall's playing, "A number of Hall's saves were seemingly impossible. Experts walked out of the Forum convinced no other goaltender had performed so brilliantly in a losing cause." In overtime in game three, Hall made an exceptional save on Dick Duff and then, standing on his head, made another. Burnett said, "It was a heartbreaker to see. After the saves on Duff, Bobby Rousseau came and batted home the second rebound." Hall's playing won him the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs.

However, Montreal was not to be denied and won the Stanley Cup in game four as J. C. Tremblay fired home the winning goal. When the game ended, the fans came on the ice to celebrate, and balloons, hats and programs were thrown from the stands.

Date Visitors Score Home Score Notes
May 5 Montreal 3 St. Louis 2 OT
May 7 Montreal 1 St. Louis 0
May 9 St. Louis 3 Montreal 4 OT
May 11 St. Louis 2 Montreal 3

Montreal wins the series 4–0.

Awards and honors

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  • Glenn Hall, Conn Smythe Trophy

References

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  1. ^ "Invalid Claim by St. Louis in 1967 NHL Amateur Draft". Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  2. ^ a b "1967 NHL Amateur Draft – Quick Facts". Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved June 2, 2015.
  3. ^ "St Louis Blues – History". Archived from the original on June 20, 2008. Retrieved December 1, 2007.
  4. ^ "1967–1968 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
  5. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
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