With Time To Spare

On January 26, 1921, the out-manned Ottawa Senators were clinging to a lead over the Canadiens in the third period of a game in Montreal. But the Ottawa boys were tiring because they had only one substitute player on their bench, a kid named McKell. The Habs had four subs on their roster.

There was ill feeling right from the start. The Senators were seething because of a pregame ruling by Habs owner George Kennedy that barred Punch Broadbent from bolstering the Ottawa lineup. Why Kennedy had the right to ban Broadbent from the contest isn't made clear in the newspaper accounts of the match, but he did. And a good thing too, for Broadbent was a scorer. The following season he would score 25 goals in 16 consecutive games, an NHL record that remains safe in the books to this day, despite the exploits of Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux.

Without Broadbent, the Senators frustrated the Montrealers with their patented "kitty bar the door" strategy.

Late in the game, a Montreal player pushed the puck past Ottawa goalie Clint Benedict to tie the score 3-3. Ottawa players screamed that the goalie was illegally scored on but the referee Cooper Smeaton turned a deaf ear.

He faced the puck at centre ice and play resumed . . . at least by one of the teams. The Ottawa men, still furious at Smeaton, made no effort to go after the puck. They stood idly by while Montreal scored the go-ahead goal. Still sulking, they watched Montreal add an insurance marker. By then, the Senators had had enough.

They told Smeaton they would not play another second unless he stepped aside and let another official take over. "You can do what you want," replied Smeaton, "but you'll be dealing with me until this game is over."

With that, the Ottawa players left the ice for their dressing room and Smeaton promptly awarded the game to Montreal. The final score was 5-3.

But the fans were so enraged by the actions of the Ottawa players that they almost rioted. While some chased after the Ottawa players, threatening to pummel them, others turned venomous toward the Ottawa fans in the crowd. The latter, frightened by the ugly mood of the mob, scurried like rabbits for the exits.

When the game was halted, there were still five minutes and 13 seconds to be played.