Legendary hockey reporter Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as "The Hockey Maven," shares his humor and insight with readers each Wednesday.
This week Stan features John Ferguson, a self-described Vancouver rink rat, who eventually gained a spot on the Montreal Canadiens first line and won the Stanley Cup five times.
The following interview is based on several of Fischler's meetings with Ferguson that led to his autobiography, "Thunder and Lightning," ghost-written by Fischler.
Voices from the Past: John Ferguson
Rugged forward won Stanley Cup five times in eight seasons with Canadiens
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By
Stan Fischler
Special to NHL.com
What was your hockey dream as a youngster and through your minor league years?
"All I ever wanted was to play for the Canadiens but to get there I had to go through Junior hockey and then the minors. I learned a lot with the Melville Juniors in Saskatchewan and also the minor pros in Fort Wayne and then the Cleveland Barons. Jackie Gordon, my AHL coach (for the Barons), stressed that I had to improve my skating if I expected to get to the NHL. I worked hard at that part of my game and eventually (Canadiens coach) Toe Blake scouted me. I wound up getting an invite to Montreal's camp in September 1963."
How was your debut at the Canadiens training camp?
"I had a lot of rough edges that needed smoothing. When I got to Montreal's camp the first thing I did when we started scrimmaging was run into as many opponents as possible. That pleased Blake because he still was disappointed in the way his club had been pushed around since Chicago beat them in the '61 [Stanley Cup Playoffs]. The more I hit my new teammates, the more I survived the cuts. Finally, Blake told me I had made the big club."
What do you remember about your first NHL game?
"Toe started me at left wing alongside Jean Beliveau and Bernie Geoffrion. We opened at Boston Garden against a tough Bruins team led by defenseman Ted Green. As soon as the puck was dropped Green came after me -- 12 seconds into my first NHL game. Suffice to say, I neutralized him and that sent a message; John Ferguson is prepared to defend his team. In my debut, I also put two pucks behind Green's goalie, Ed Johnston, and I also had an assist. Plus, we battled back from a pair of two-goal deficits for a 4-4 tie. I never looked back after that."
What did you learn from Toe Blake?
"He liked to tell me, 'Winning is simple. All you have to do is outscore the fellow you're playing against and make sure he doesn't get any opportunities.' It sounded good and I didn't feel out of place skating alongside Beliveau and Geoffrion. Boomer led the team in scoring while Big Jean and myself were right behind. At one point in the (1963-64) season I was among the NHL's leading scorers, including Bobby Hull of Chicago, but then I had bad luck."
How bad?
"I had a huge skate cut after a collision with the Bruins' Ed Westfall. His skate sliced my thumb, leaving it hanging by the skin from the rest of my hand. They rushed me to the hospital, sewed me up and put on a steel cast. The only 'good' part was that it allowed me to take stock of our team. One of my favorites was rookie defenseman Terry Harper because he reminded me of me. He wasn't big on skills but tremendous when it came to heart. They said he couldn't skate or shoot but somehow he could play defense. Terry wasn't much of a fighter, but I saw him take on one of the best scrappers in the league, Orland Kurtenbach. Kurt won the fight but then Terry looked him in the eye and said, 'Want some more?'"
Describe the march to your first Stanley Cup?
"My first season we didn't do so well but in my second year we went to Game Seven of the Cup Final against Chicago (in 1965) with the last game at The Forum. The big surprise was Blake changing from our young goalie, Charlie Hodge, to old Gump Worsley. I was nervous but it didn't take long to shake the butterflies. We jumped all over them in the first period and built a three-goal lead and won it 4-0 for my first Cup. I had spent a lifetime trying to reach the NHL and after two years with Montreal I had the Cup in my arms. Trust me, there are no better feelings in the world than that!"
You played for five Cup-winners; which was the most surprising series?
"Definitely 1970-71, first round against Boston. They had Bobby Orr, Phil Esposito -- one of the strongest teams in NHL history. They opened the series beating us and took a 5-1 lead in the second game. We had a raw rookie, Ken Dryden, in goal. But we made it 5-2 late in the second period and had a fantastic third, beating them, 7-5. That game was the series turning point. The second game comeback win gave us confidence to knock off Boston and go to the Final and beat Chicago.
How did that play out?
"We still had rookie Dryden in goal and lost the first couple of games in Chicago but bounced back at home to tie the series. It looked like a 'homer' series when we went back to Chicago for Game Seven. We were down 2-0 in the second, but we got a break when Jacques Lemaire fired an 80-footer that beat Tony Esposito and put us back in the game. Henri Richard tied it late in the second and lifted us ahead to stay early in the third with me on the ice for the clincher. That Cup win was my fifth in eight years and the most satisfying because we had been underdogs from the Bruins series to the Final!"
If there's a lesson to be learned from all this, what is it?
"You don't win the Cup if you don't have a hot goaltender. The best example is Ken Dryden. When we beat Chicago in the Final it was because Kenny was better than Tony Esposito. Same when we beat Boston. Didn't matter whether the Bruins had Eddie Johnston or Gerry Cheevers, Dryden was better."
Any other fond memories?
"One more: I scored the last playoff goal at the old Madison Square Garden (on April 13, 1967). The afternoon of the game I walked to Times Square searching for a movie star. I didn't find one, but I did find the back of the net that night!"