Jan. 18, 1964 - Goaltender Terry Sawchuk, some of his work bordering on sheer larceny, set an all-time record for shutouts in the NHL when his Detroit Red Wings upended the Montreal Canadiens, 2-0, tonight before 14,922 fans at the Montreal Forum. The Red Wings rode to the win on Sawchuk’s 36-save performance, Floyd Smith’s seventh goal of the season, and No. 8 of the campaign for Eddie Joyal. It was the fourth shutout in the current season for Sawchuk and his 95th going back to the 1949-50 season. That pushed him ahead of the lifetime mark he had shared with George Hainsworth, who played for the Canadiens, Maple Leafs, and Saskatoon Sheiks of the long-defunct Western Canada Hockey League in a career that started in 1926 and ended in 1937. Tonight, driven by embarrassment, Montreal coach Toe Blake took a desperate step to prevent the Wings from setting another record against his club.
Although down 2-0 in the last minute of play, he lifted goalie Charlie Hodge for a sixth attacker. It didn’t work. Afterward, his energy spent, Sawchuk commented on the record he had just broken. “I didn’t give a darn about that during the game,” he said. “The win was more important.” Then his eyes twinkled as his head popped out of his jersey. “Hey, did you know I stopped one of those shots with the butt end of my stick? No kidding.” “There’s not that much to say about it,” Sawchuk continued. “It’s not like Gordie Howe’s record. But I’ll tell you this. It’s much harder to get. You gotta play 60 minutes to get my record.”
Howe’s reaction to Sawchuk’s achievement was simple but sincere. “Wonderful,” said Gordie, “just wonderful.” Asked if he had ever seen Terry play a better game, the veteran Howe replied: “No. But he’s an old pro. He plays them all great. He’s too great a player to let anything like pressure bother him.”
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