Career
Lach signed with the Montreal Canadiens on October 24, 1940. He came to the Canadiens' training camp with only an overnight bag, not expecting to be offered a contract. In his first NHL season, Lach played 43 games, scoring seven goals and adding 14 assists. He was limited to only one game the following season, after suffering an elbow injury in the first game. He returned the following season to score 58 points in 45 games. He set a still-standing Canadiens records by scoring six assists in one game on February 6, 1943.
In the 1943–44 season, Montreal head coach Dick Irvin tried a line combination of Lach at centre, Maurice Richard on the right wing, and Toe Blake at left. This line became known as the Punch line and dominated the NHL for four seasons. In the first season of the Punch line, Lach played 48 games, scoring on average an assist per game; he also added 24 goals. At the conclusion of the season, Lach was named to the Second All-Star team. He also won his first Stanley Cup, helping sweep the Chicago Black Hawks in the Stanley Cup Finals.
In the 1944–45 season, Lach played in all 50 games, picking up a league-leading 80 points, of which 26 were goals and 54 were assists. That season, linemate Maurice Richard became the first player in the NHL to score 50 goals in 50 games. That season, the Punch line amassed 220 points in total, a NHL record until the 1960s. Lach was presented the Hart Memorial Trophy as the league's Most Valuable Player, and was named to the First All-Star team.
After being eliminated by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the semi-finals in the previous season, Lach and the Canadiens won another Stanley Cup in the 1945–46 season. Lach led all players with 34 regular season assists, and was named once more to the Second All-Star team. In the 1947–48 season, Lach became the first recipient of the Art Ross Trophy, after leading the league in points, with 61. The Punch line ceased to exist after Blake retired at the end of the season. Lach led the league in assists for the last time in the 1951–52 season, with 50. In the 1952–53 season, Lach won his third and final Stanley Cup in a memorable finish. At 1:22 of overtime, he scored the Cup-winning goal against the Boston Bruins; however, in the on-ice celebration immediately after the goal, Maurice Richard accidentally broke Lach's nose with his stick.
Read more about this topic: Elmer Lach
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