On This Date in Sports November 11, 1943: Coming up Empty
In collaboration with the Sportsecyclopedia.com
Clint Smith of the Chicago Black Hawks nets the first empty-net goal in NHL history, in a 6-4 win over the Boston Bruins. Bruins bench boss Art Ross pioneered the strategy of removing the goalie late in the game when his team was trailing. Ross came up with the idea of watching amateur hockey and employed it when his team was down, removing Brett Gardiner with his team down 5-4 in the final minutes at Chicago Stadium.
Arthur Howard Ross was one of the most influential men in the early days of the NHL. Born January 13, 1885, in Naughton, Ontario, Art Ross’ playing career came to an end as the NHL was beginning, as his team, the Montreal Wanderers season end when a fire destroyed their arena. After working as a referee in the NHL, Art Ross became coach of the Hamilton Tigers in 1922, lasting just one season, winning only six games and losing 18. Two years later, he got a second chance when he was named a coach for the Boston Bruins, the first American based team in the NHL.
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After initial struggles, Art Ross helped guide the Boston Bruins to the Stanley Cup in 1929. Ross also served as Boston’s Vice President and General Manager and was responsible for selecting the team’s name. As part of this duty, he often went on scouting trips, where he first saw the strategy of pulling the goalie employed as teams sought to tie the game when trailing in the final minute. Ross first tried it in the NHL in 1931, when Tiny Thompson came off the ice with the Boston trailing the Montreal Canadiens 1-0 in the last stages of a playoff game. The play did not work out as the Bruins lost 1-0.
Art Ross took a two-year hiatus from coaching in 1934. After returning, he led the Bruins to a second Stanley Cup in 1939. Ross again handed over the coaching reins in 1939, only to return two years later The Bruins were scuffling in the early part of the 1943/44 season when Ross looked to attempt to use the extra attacker again. Down 5-4 against the Chicago Black Hawks, Ross called Brett Gardiner to the bench. This time the move would backfire, as Clint Smith sent the puck into the empty net, giving Chicago a 6-4 win.
The art of pulling a goalie when trailing in the final minute would eventually become standard practice in the NHL. Art Ross would later get inducted to the Hockey Hall of Fame. In 1947 he donated a trophy to the league to be given to the NHL’s leading scorer. That trophy would be called the Art Ross Trophy.