Toronto Maple Leafs
Stanley Cup Champions 1945

Team Roster
Front Row L to R - Mel Hill, Nick Metz, Frank J. Selke (Publicity), Conn Smythe (manager), Hap Day (coach), Bob Davidson, Ed Bickle (president), William MacBrien (vice president), Sweeney Schriner, Lorne Carr.

Middle Row - Archie Campbell (assistant trainer), Johnny McCreedy, Tom O'Neill, Ted "Teeder" Kennedy, Walter Babe Pratt, Gus Bodnar, Art Jackson, Jack McLean, Tim Daly (trainer).

Top Row - Don Metz, Frank McCool, Wally Stanowski, Ross Johnstone, Pete Backor, Reg Hamilton, Elwin "Moe" Morris.

The 1945 Stanley Cup Final was a best-of-seven series between the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Maple Leafs won the series by 4 games to 3.

For the first time, two rookie goalies met in a Stanley Cup last round. 18-year-old Harry Lumley was in net for the Wings and the Leafs had 26-year-old Frank McCool replacing Turk Broda, who was doing army service. McCool, whose surname belied his jumpy demeanor, had been discharged from the army himself with stomach ulcers, but despite his medical condition, he would win the 1945 Calder Trophy.

McCool did not allow second-place Detroit, who'd gone 8–1–1 against third-place Toronto that season, a goal until just past the two-minute mark of the fourth game. His three-in-a-row zeroes were a postseason record that would not be repeated for 58 years. Detroit would force a game 7

The Maple Leafs won the Cup in game 7 against the Red Wings by a final score of 2–1 at Olympia Stadium, with Babe Pratt scoring the championship winning goal at 12:14 of 3rd.

After the game, the Detroit crowd chanted, "We want Lumley!" and the dejected goalie was brought back to the ice from the dressing room while Toronto celebrated. Lumley would go on to a Hockey Hall of Fame career and McCool would play just 22 more games in the NHL, as January 1946 brought Turk Broda back to the Maple Leafs.

This was the first time in the history of game seven of the NHL Stanley Cup Finals that the home team did not win. The home team did not lose a game seven final again until Montreal beat Chicago in 1971 final. This did not happen again until Pittsburgh beat Detroit in 2009 and then again in 2011 when Boston defeated Vancouver.

Dates & Scores
April 6 Toronto 1 Detroit 0
April 8 Toronto 2 Detroit 0
April 12 Detroit 0 Toronto 1
April 14 Detroit 5 Toronto 3
April 19 Toronto 0 Detroit 2
April 21 Detroit 1 Toronto 0 OT
April 22 Toronto 2 Detroit 1

NOTE
The Stanley Cup was called the stovepipe cup in those days, due to the long shape of rings below the Original Stanley Cup Bowl.