Pens try to regroup ahead of Game 2 in 1976 playoffs

Larouche: "Things will be different. You'll see."

After dropping Game One of their 1976 Preliminary Round series to the Maple Leafs, the Penguins had a day off before the series was scheduled to resume at the Igloo on April 8. The Pittsburgh Press ran this profile of the man who stoned the Penguins in that first game, Toronto goaltender Wayne Thomas (go to the following page for the article - and enjoy the Bad Company profile too, if you wish...)

In the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, writer Bob Whitley held out little hope for the Pens in his article, "End is Near For Tender Pens." Pierre Larouche, however, seemed to think otherwise. "We get a few goals and things will be a lot different. You'll see," he told Whitley.

Pens tie high-flying Habs - February 1977

On February 16, 1977, Montreal came to town and the game was quickly shaping up to be your standard 1970s Canadiens-Penguins tilt: two quick goals by the Flying Frenchmen and an apparent blowout on the horizon. But for some strange reason, Pittsburgh decided to start playing. 

Pierre Larouche

Thirteen seconds after Pens goaltender Denis Herron let a bad one dribble by him to give Montreal their 2-0 lead, Rick Kehoe and Pierre Larouche broke in on a two-on-one. Kehoe used his teammate as a decoy and beat Ken Dryden cleanly. By the time the horn rang, the Penguins had built an improbable 3-2 lead, the last goal coming on another Larouche-Kehoe rush, with Pierre this time pulling the trigger. 

The teams traded goals in the second, giving the Penguin fans hope that the team might actually capture its first win against the Habs in their last 10 tries. Guy Lafleur, however, had other ideas. The superstar came into the Penguins zone on the right side early in the third and surprised Herron with a rocket of a shot, low on the stick side. 

There was no quit in the Penguins on this night, though, and it was only the incredible goaltending of Ken Dryden down the stretch that enabled the Canadiens to leave the Igloo with a point.

Larouche traded: "The more never arrived"

With their struggles continuing through the early part of the 1977-78 season, the Pens pulled off their second blockbuster trade in less than a month in an effort to shake things up and keep fans coming out to the Igloo. After acquiring tough guy Dave Schultz from Los Angeles for popular forward Syl Apps on November 1, the Penguins bookended the month by sending former 50-goal man Pierre Larouche to Montreal for Pete Mahovlich and prospect Peter Lee.

In the Post-Gazette's report, coach Johnny Wilson cited a lack of drive on Larouche's part as a motivation for the deal. "Everyone associated with Pierre expected more and the more never arrived."

The 31-year-old Mahovlich welcomed the trade after having run-ins with Canadiens head coach Scotty Bowman. "Maybe we can get something going here," he said in this article.

The trade, which went down just prior to the Penguins meeting the Canadiens in Montreal on November 29, did not bear immediate results for Pittsburgh as the Habs handed them a 9-1 loss. Both Larouche and Mahovlich played for their new teams. 

Ironically, it was Lee who ended up being the most valuable addition for the Pens long term. He went on to score 245 points in 431 games for the club. Mahovlich would don the Penguin uniform 117 times and tally 114 points.

You can't help but wonder why General Manager Baz Bastien sent Larouche to a powerhouse division rival. As this thorough analysis by Pittsburgh Press writer Dan Donovan reveals, Larouche had a clause in his contract allowing him to approve any potential trade. He apparently nixed one the year before to the lowly Cleveland Barons before readily agreeing to go to the hockey Mecca of Montreal.

Although the Penguins picked up a big name with a few Stanley Cup rings to his name, it had to come as a huge disappointment to their fans to watch a homegrown potential superstar leave town under such sordid circumstances. Whether the deal was the result of Larouche's immaturity or the Penguins' rush to find a marquee name to help fill the Igloo's empty seats -- and it was probably a mixture of both -- the bottom line was that Penguins fans saw a young talent around whom a contending team could be built leave town, just as the long grind of the 1977-78 season truly began to set in...

My first game: Penguins-Canadiens, 1977

This is the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette's report from the first live hockey game I ever saw, which was played on Nov. 29, 1977 at the Montreal Forum between the Canadiens and Penguins. I was all of 8 years old and already a huge Penguins fan. One of my uncles had some connections and often got tickets to Habs games - highly prized commodities for any Montrealer, but even moreso for a young boy who lived, breathed and dreamed nothing but hockey and his favourite team, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

A few hours before game time the tickets arrived via courier and my mother informed me of what was going on. I still remember seeing the grey delivery truck pulling up outside our house while I played street hockey in the light of overhead street lamps, and thinking it was strange that such a truck was stopping here. My uncle remembered that I was a Penguins fan, and when he realized he couldn't go that night, decided to give them to me. I would head to the Forum with my older brother.

I hurriedly gulped down my dinner, bursting with energy and elation at this immense stroke of good fortune that had just befallen me. Not only was I going to see my first game ever, but I was going to see the PENGUINS!! Unfathomable, and it was all happening so quickly.

I remember having pretty decent seats, about halfway up, on one of the bluelines. The things I remember most about the game included marvelling at the Pens' great blue uniforms while the starters stood on the blueline during the anthems; buying a Penguins pennant at the souvenir stand (one I'm happy to say I still own and which is in pretty decent shape); Guy Lafleur's hair blowing behind him as he skated in the warmup; and the electric excitement in the air. The Forum was the epicentre of Montreal in those days, and seeing any game - even one in November that turned out to be a mismatch - was cause for excitement for anyone in attendance.

I always seemed to think that the Penguins had lost 7-1, until I looked up a Montreal Gazette article from the day after on microfiche years later and discovered that it was even worse - 9-1! I don't remember being bothered in the least that they got shellacked, though. I was just so excited to be there and to see them live. You have to remember, back then, we only got one game a week, so it was an event if you got to see the Penguins at all, let alone in person.

Another interesting note about this game is that it took place the day the Penguins traded Pierre Larouche to the Habs for Pete Mahovlich and Peter Lee, among others. Larouche had a big game, and I don't believe Mahovlich played that night - but I'm still looking for confirmation of that. Here's another P-G piece that discusses Larouche's happiness with the deal.

Pens-Caps - The game that started it all

The Penguins will begin their eighth playoff series against the Washington Capitals on Saturday. With a Sidney Crosby-Alex Ovechkin battle on the menu, the series will no doubt add another memorable chapter to what has turned into a long and heated rivalry over the years.

Where did it all start, you ask?

The teams first met on November 16, 1974 at the Civic Arena, during the Caps' inaugural season. The dreadful D.C.ers came in with only one win in 16 contests and would be going up against a Pens team that was starting to develop into a potent offensive force, thanks in large part to the play of rookie Pierre Larouche. In this preview article from the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette the day of the game, we learn that it's Larouche's 19th birthday and that he seems a little worried about how his teammates might help him celebrate.

Have a look at the "Civic Arena Rosters" and see if you recognize any of the players in the Caps column. No? Well, don't be ashamed. This was certainly a collection of nobodys, save perhaps for goalie Ron Low, who enjoyed a long playing career and went on to become an NHL head coach. And if you're a Caps fan, you'll know #7 Yvon Labre, the first Washington player to have his number retired.

The Pens, by the way, would rout the Capitals, 8-1.