1974 Canada-USSR Summit Series

1974-75 • 1974 Western Canada Junior All-Stars & European Exhibitions

The historic 1972 series pitting Team Canada against the USSR's finest, was followed in 1974 with another Team Canada, this time composed of the WHA's top players. Notable members of the 1974 team were Gordie Howe, who missed the 1972 series as he was retired, and Bobby Hull, who was omitted from the 1972 team after he had signed with the WHA that summer. Paul Henderson, who scored the famous late goal in the final game to give Canada the series win in 1972, also played for the WHA squad. Toronto's Billy Harris was coach, with Edmonton's Bill Hunter as general manager. The WHA all-stars were unable to repeat as series champs, with the Soviets winning four games to Canada's one lone win, with three ties serving as little consolation. Richard Bendell, a researcher who recently published an extensive account of the 1972 Canada-USSR Summit Series, has also studied game films of the 1974 Series, and has noted many instances where errors or omissions were made in the scoring summaries. What follows are the "official" game summaries as reported by the media in 1974, with the presumptive errors included, and following each, a summary of the scoring revisions as determined by Mr Bendell. The accumulated scoring totals for both teams lists the official statistics as based on the 1974 game summaries, then a revised account which takes into Mr Bendell's research. Game films from the 1974 Series vary in quality, especially those games played in Moscow. Many segments are missing and almost half of Game 5 is unavailable. This is an ongoing research project, and Mr Bendell can be reached at thesummitseries1972@yahoo.com. Game Summaries and Scoring Revisions Game 1 • September 17, 1974 Le Colisee, Quebec Bobby Hull scored two goals, including the game-tying goal in the third period, to allow Canada a tie against the Soviets in the first game of the series. Canada pressed the attack and had many opportunities to score during the final five minutes, but key saves by Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak, and missed shots by the Canadian attackers, kept the score unchanged. USSR 3, Canada 3 USSR 0 3 0 - 3 Canada 1 1 1 - 3 1st period: 1. Can: McKenzie (Lacroix, Hull) 12:13. 2nd period: 2. USSR: Lutchenko (Tsygankov, Kapustin) 7:46. 3. Can: Hull (Walton, G. Howe) 12:07. 4. USSR: Kharlamov (Vasilyev) 14:04. 5. USSR: Petrov (Gusev, Kharlamov) 17:10. 3rd period: 6. Can: Hull (Lacroix, McKenzie) 14:18. Shots: USSR: 8-11-9—28; Canada: 9-10-15—34 Goaltenders: USSR: Tretiak, Canada: Cheevers. Scoring revision: Alexander Gusev should be awarded an assist on Valeri Kharlamov's 2nd period goal. Game 2 • September 19, 1974 Maple Leaf Gardens, Toronto Canada won its first game of the series with an even attack and a little luck. A goal by the Soviets early in the 2nd period was waved off. Canada scored soon thereafter, and led wire-to-wire for the win. Gordie Howe missed almost the entire game after bruising his ribs early in the 1st period. Canada 4, USSR 1 USSR 0 1 0 - 1 Canada 2 1 1 - 1 1st period: 1. Can: Backstrom (Mark Howe, G. Howe) 4:31. 2. Can: Lacroix (McKenzie, Tremblay) 10:49. 2nd period: 3. Can: Hull (Lacroix, McKenzie) 2:50. 4. USSR: Yakushev (Shadrin, Lebedev) 13:09. 3rd period: 5. Can: Tremblay (Lacroix, Hull) 17:03. Shots: USSR: 13-8-9—30; Canada: 10-16-7—33 Goaltenders: USSR: Tretiak, Canada: Cheevers. Scoring revision: Bobby Hull should be awarded an assist on Andre Lacroix' 1st period goal, in place of John McKenzie. Pat Stapleton should be awarded an assist on J.-C. Tremblay's 3rd period goal, in place of Andre Lacroix.   Game 3 • September 21, 1974 Winnipeg Arena, Winnipeg Coach Harris rested six of his stars: Gordie Howe, Frank Mahovlich, Rejean Houle, Rick Ley, Gerry Cheevers and Brad Selwood all got the night off, and the understudies had a difficult time holding back the Soviets. Two late goals by Paul Henderson made the score respectable for Team Canada., but the game was never in doubt as the Soviets controlled the play from the outset. USSR 8, Canada 5 USSR 1 3 4 - 8 Canada 1 1 3 - 5 1st period: 1. Can: MacGregor (Henderson) 14:58. 2. USSR: Yakushev (Shadrin) 17:25. 2nd period: 3. USSR: Mikhailov (Petrov) 1:23. 4. Can: Webster (Bernier, Tardif) 12:40. 5. USSR: Vasilyev (Mikhailov, Petrov) 15:14. 6. USSR: Maltsev (Anisin) 15:31. 3rd period: 7. USSR: Yakushev (Shadrin) 2:35. 8. USSR: Bodunov 8:44. 9. USSR: Yakushev 11:27. 10. Can: Henderson (Harrison) 14:31. 11. Can: Henderson (Harrison, MacGregor) 15:04. 12. Can: Bernier (Webster, Hamilton) 16:01. 13. USSR: Lebedev (Lutchenko) 18:05. Shots: USSR: 11-16-12—39; Canada: 8-14-12—34 Goaltenders: USSR: Tretiak, Canada: McLeod. Scoring revision: Al Hamilton should be awarded an assist on Tom Webster's 2nd period goal, in place of Marc Tardif. Marc Tardif should be awarded an assist on Serge Bernier's 3rd period goal, in place of Tom Webster. Gennady Tsygankov should be awarded an assist on Boris Mikhailov's 2nd period goal. Vladimir Vasiliev's 2nd period goal should be awarded to Vladimir Petrov, while Vasiliev gets an assist. Victor Kuznetsov should be awarded an assist on Boris Maltsev's 2nd period goal. Yuri Lebedev should be awarded an assist on Vladimir Yakushev's 3rd period goal. Alexander Bodunov's 3rd period goal should have assists awarded to Alexander Maltsev and Viacheslav Anisin. Game 4 • September 23, 1974 Pacific Coliseum, Vancouver The Canadians scored four goals in five minutes, including three by Bobby Hull, late in the 1st period to take a 5-2 lead. The Soviets then pecked away at the lead, tying with two late goals in the 3rd period. The Canadians then had a late power play, but could not convert. USSR 5, Canada 5 USSR 2 1 2 - 5 Canada 5 0 0 - 5 1st period: 1. USSR: Vasilyev (Kharlamov) 3:34. 2. Can: G. Howe (Stapleton, Backstrom) 4:20. 3. USSR: Mikhailov (Petrov) 5:59. 4. Can: Hull (Mahovlich) 12:45. 5. Can: Hull (Stapleton) 15:11. 6. Can: Mahovlich (Bernier, Houle) 17:10. 7. Can: Hull (Lacroix) 17:45. 2nd period: 8. USSR: Yakushev (Lebedev) 11:04. 3rd period: 9. USSR: Maltsev 16:08. 10. USSR: Gusev (Mikhailov, Petrov) 16:59. Shots: USSR: 12-8-6—26; Canada: 11-8-8—27 Goaltenders: USSR: Tretiak, Canada: Cheevers. Scoring revision: Mark Howe should be awarded an assist on Gordie Howe's 1st period goal, in place of Ralph Backstrom. Assists on Bobby Hull's 1st period goal at 12:45 should be awarded to Rejean Houle and Paul Shmyr, in place of Frank Mahovlich. John McKenzie should be awarded an assist on Hull's 1st period goal at 15:11. Alexander Gusev should be awarded an assist on Boris Mikhailov's 1st period goal. Vladimir Shadrin and Yuri Lyapkin should be awarded assists on Alexander Yakushev's 2nd period goal in place of Yuri Lebedev. Shots on goal should be revised to 10 shots for USSR in the 2nd period for a total of 28 in the game, and 9 shots for Canada in the 3rd period, for a total of 28 in the game.   Game 5 • October 1, 1974 Luzhniki Arena, Moscow The Soviets played a hard-hitting game which kept the Canadians effectively bottled up in their own end, producing just 16 shots against Tretiak. Ralph Backstrom received a rare misconduct for arguing a call, and while he was cooling his heels, Alexander Gusev scored what would be the game winner for the Soviets. USSR 3, Canada 2 Canada 0 1 1 - 2 USSR 1 1 1 - 3 1st period: 1. USSR: Maltsev (Vikulov, Anisin) 5:34. 2nd period: 2. Can: G. Howe (Backstrom, Mark Howe) 0:15. 3. USSR: Maltsev (Shadrin, Vikulov) 15:04. 3rd period: 4. USSR: Gusev 11:48. 5. Can: Mark Howe (Shmyr) 18:10. Shots: Canada: 4-4-8—16; USSR: 9-10-8—27 Goaltenders: Canada: Cheevers, USSR: Tretiak. Scoring revision: Mark Howe should be awarded an assist on Gordie Howe's 2nd period goal, in place of Marty Howe. Bobby Hull and Gordie Howe should be awarded assists on Mark Howe's 3rd period goal, in place of Paul Shmyr. Valeri Kharlamov and Boris Mikhailov should be awarded assists on Alexander Gusev's 3rd period goal. Game 6 • October 3, 1974 Luzhniki Arena, Moscow The Soviets took advantage of a blown penalty call that should have given Canada a man-advantage midway through the 2nd period. Instead, the Soviets put the game out of reach against an angered Canadian squad. USSR 5, Canada 2 Canada 1 1 0 - 2 USSR 2 2 1 - 5 1st period: 1. USSR: Mikhailov (Kharlamov) 0:34. 2. USSR: Vasilyev (Kharlamov) 2:43. 3. Can: Houle (Shmyr) 15:56. 2nd period: 4. Can: G. Howe (Mark Howe) 2:55. 5. USSR: Anisin (Vikulov) 8:22. 6. USSR: Shatalov (Tsygankov) 13:57. 3rd period: 7. USSR: Kharlamov (Vikulov) 13:00. Shots: Canada: 13-9-6—28; USSR: 14-8-7—29 Goaltenders: Canada: Cheevers, USSR: Tretiak Scoring revision: Serge Bernier should be awarded an assist on Rejean Houle's 1st period goal. Vladimir Petrov and Alexander Gusev should be awarded assists on Vladimir Vasiliev's 1st period goal, in place of Valeri Kharlamov. Sergei Kapustin should be awarded an assist on Viacheslav Anisin's 2nd period goal.   Game 7 • October 5, 1974 Luzhniki Arena, Moscow Bobby Hull scored an apparent game-winning goal as time expired, but the goal was disallowed. The timekeeper had allowed time to pass during other stoppages, adding to the Canadians' ire. Canada 4, USSR 4 Canada 1 2 1 - 4 USSR 2 2 0 - 4 1st period: 1. USSR: Anisin (Lutchenko) 3:34. 2. USSR: Tyurin (Lebedev, Yakushev) 6:47. 3. Can: Webster (Lacroix) 17:42. 2nd period: 4. Can: Backstrom (G. Howe, Mark Howe) 2:55. 5. Can: Mark Howe (Tremblay, Backstrom) 6:38. 6. USSR: Gusev (Petrov, Kharlamov) 7:20. 7. USSR: Mikhailov (Petrov, Kharlamov) 7:59. 3rd period: 8. Can: Backstrom (Tremblay) 6:38. Shots: Canada: 10-13-7—30; USSR: 11-7-3—21 Goaltenders: Canada: Cheevers, USSR: Tretiak. Scoring revision: Gordie Howe should be awarded an assist on Mark Howe's 2nd period goal in place of Ralph Backstrom. Game 8 • October 6, 1974 Luzhniki Arena, Moscow Victor Shalimov scored two goals, his first coming with a two-man advantage early in the third period, to lead the Soviets, who closed out the eight-game set with their fourth victory. USSR 3, Canada 2 Canada 1 0 1 - 2 USSR 0 1 2 - 3 1st period: 1. Can: Hull (Backstrom, Tremblay) 13:47. 2nd period: 2. USSR: Yakushev (Shadrin) 6:27. 3rd period: 3. USSR: Shalimov 0:53. 4. USSR: Shalimov (Yakushev) 6:59. 5. Can: Backstrom (G. Howe, Ley) 12:42. Shots: Canada: 10-8-6—24; USSR: 10-12-8—30 Goaltenders: Canada: Cheevers, USSR: Sidelnikov Scoring revision: Gordie Howe should be awarded an assist on Bobby Hull's 1st period goal in place of Ralph Backstrom. Victor Shalimov should be awarded an assist on Alexander Yakushev's 2nd period goal. Vladimir Shadrin and Victor Kuznetsov should be awarded assists on Victor Shalimov's goal at 0:53 of the 3rd period. Scoring The first 5 columns are the official statistics, the last three are the revised figures (marked by *) based on Mr. Bendell's research. USSR Player Scoring no. Player gp g a pts pim g* a* pts* 22 Vyacheslav Anisin 8 2 2 4 0 2 3 5 24 Alexander Bodunov 7 1 0 1 4 1 0 1 26 Alexander Filippov 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 36 Yuri Fyodorov 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 Alexander Gusev 8 3 1 4 4 3 4 7 8 Sergei Kapustin 5 0 1 1 6 0 2 2 17 Valeri Kharlamov 8 2 6 8 4 2 5 7 30 Konstantin Klimov 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 29 Sergei Kotov 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 12 Victor Kuznetzov 8 0 0 0 4 0 2 2 11 Yuri Lebedev 8 1 3 4 6 1 3 4 5 Yuri Lyapkin 5 0 0 0 2 0 1 1 3 Vladimir Lutchenko 8 1 2 3 4 1 1 2 10 Alexander Maltsev 8 4 0 4 0 4 1 5 13 Boris Mikhailov 7 4 2 6 0 4 3 7 16 Vladimir Petrov 7 1 6 7 4 2 6 8 14 Vladimir Popov 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 27 Alexander Sapyolkin 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 19 Vladimir Shadrin 8 0 5 5 11 0 6 6 31 Victor Shalimov 4 2 0 2 0 2 1 3 32 Yuri Tyurin 4 1 0 1 4 1 0 1 7 Gennady Tsygankov 6 0 2 2 2 0 3 3 6 Valeri Vasilyev 8 3 1 4 7 2 2 4 21 Vladimir Vikulov 4 0 4 4 0 0 4 4 9 Alexander Volchkov 2 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 15 Alexander Yakushev 7 6 2 8 2 6 2 8 Also on roster (pos, no): Alexei Volchenkov (D, 18); Sergei Glukhov (D, 28); Sergei Korotkov (D, 33); Alexander Kulikov (D, 37); Vladimir Repnyov (F, 23); Mikhail Titov (F, 32); Alexander Golikov (F, 34); Victor Afonin (G, 25). USSR Goaltending no. Goaltender gp ga record avg 1 Alexander Sidelnikov 1 2 1-0-0 2.00 20 Vladislav Tretiak 7 25 3-1-3 3.57 Canada Player Scoring no. Player gp g a pts pim g* a* pts* 14 Ralph Backstrom 8 4 4 8 10 4 1 5 21 Serge Bernier 8 1 2 3 4 1 2 3 24 Al Hamilton 3 0 1 1 4 0 2 2 15 Jim Harrison 3 0 2 2 0 0 1 1 19 Paul Henderson 7 2 1 3 0 2 1 3 9 Gordie Howe 7 3 4 7 2 3 7 10 11 Mark Howe 7 2 4 6 4 2 5 7 10 Marty Howe 4 0 0 0 12 0 0 0 5 Rejean Houle 7 1 1 2 2 1 2 3 16 Bobby Hull 8 7 2 9 0 7 3 10 7 Andre Lacroix 8 1 6 7 6 1 5 6 2 Rick Ley 7 0 1 1 14 0 1 1 20 Bruce MacGregor 5 1 1 2 5 1 1 2 27 Frank Mahovlich 6 1 1 2 6 1 0 1 23 John McKenzie 7 1 3 4 12 1 3 4 6 Brad Selwood 4 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 18 Paul Shmyr 7 0 2 2 4 0 2 2 17 Rick Smith 7 0 0 0 14 0 1 1 12 Pat Stapleton 8 0 2 2 12 0 3 3 22 Marc Tardif 5 0 1 1 10 0 1 1 3 J.-C. Tremblay 8 1 4 5 2 1 4 5 4 Mike Walton 6 0 1 1 2 0 1 1 8 Tom Webster 4 2 1 3 6 2 0 2 Also on roster (pos, no): Ron Chipperfield (F, 32), Wayne Dillon (F, 28), Gilles Gratton (G, 33), Gavin Kirk (F, 29), Barry Long (D, 25), Pat Price (D, 26), Dennis Sobchuk (F, 31). Canada Goaltending no. Goaltender gp ga record avg 30 Gerry Cheevers 7 24 1-3-3 3.44 1 Don McLeod 1 8 0-1-0 8.14   _______________________________________ Home • Credits & Legal Stuff   Reviews, Podcasts and Media • Article: Color of Hockey: Alton White (The Hockey News), by William Douglas — March 8, 2020 • Review: US Sports History, by Rick Macales — Feb 6, 2021 • Podcast: Good Seats Still Available, by Tim Hanlon — Feb 28, 2021 • Podcast: Digital to Dice (Youtube), by Dave Gardner — July 3, 2022   WHA Fact Book, 2nd ed Book Details Complete WHA, 11th ed Book Details   (c) Scott Surgent