Fischler recounts 1954 blockbuster trade that changed fortunes for clubs involved

Legendary hockey reporter Stan Fischler writes a weekly scrapbook for NHL.com. Fischler, known as "The Hockey Maven," shares his humor and insight with readers each Wednesday. With the 2025 NHL Trade Deadline on March 7, Stan examines the careers of two Hockey Hall of Fame defensemen who were traded for each other and how they dramatically intertwined for more than a decade.

The 2025 NHL Trade Deadline on March 7, 2025, and the recent New York Rangers deal for J.T. Miller on Jan. 31, rekindled memories of a blockbuster exchange made seven decades ago that also changed Rangers history.

The Original Six version in 1954 not only had immediate reverberations for the two future Hockey Hall of Famers involved but their careers collided again twice with historic consequences.

On the morning before Thanksgiving 1954, Rangers defenseman Allan Stanley and forward Nick Mickoski were traded to the Chicago Black Hawks for defenseman Bill Gadsby and forward Pete Conacher.

"It basically was Gadsby for Stanley," explained Rangers publicist Herb Goren. "Our teams were both desperate to make the playoffs but, in this case, we believed we won the deal because Gadsby had talent and charisma."

Rangers’ Bill Gadsby and goalie Gump Worsley defend against Maple Leafs’ Bob Pulford at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Implausibly, the low-key Stanley eventually would win the Stanley Cup four times. A four-time All-Star, Gadsby would play 20 years and never win the Cup, yet their paths would cross at two pivotal episodes in NHL history.

Before the trade both players were failures. "We had missed the playoffs for six straight years with Gadsby," said Black Hawks executive Bill Tobin, "It was time for a change -- for both our teams."

The Rangers had become disillusioned with Stanley's buildup to a letdown.

"To get Allan from Providence," said Rangers coach and general manager Frank Boucher, "I was forced to give up about $40,000 worth of players. I was promised one of the best prospects of that era. The problem was Big Allan had come to the wrong town."

Stanley Cup Playoff-starved fans yearned for a rock ‘em sock ‘em bruiser, but mild-mannered Stanley was loathed by the old Madison Square Garden crowd. His deliberate skating style had fans calling him "Snowshoes."

"It got so [bad] they'd boo every time I touched the puck," Stanley later confessed in Sport magazine's April 1957 edition. "Then they began to boo whenever I'd set my skates on the ice. Why, even when I sat on the bench they'd yell at me." Then, a pause: "How could I play well?"

By contrast, Gadsby was grateful to be a Ranger in time to face the Boston Bruins in a home game Thanksgiving Eve, 1954.

"We couldn't have been happier," Goren said. "Our crowd was overjoyed because Gadsby starred and we beat the Bruins 3-1."

Meanwhile, Stanley's luck failed in Chicago and then Boston, where he seemed washed up at age 32, but then Lady Luck unexpectedly intervened. He was acquired by the Toronto Maple Leafs in a trade with the Boston Bruins on Oct. 8, 1958.

"I knew Allan was over 30," general manager Punch Imach later explained, "and people were telling me he couldn't help us but I wasn't in a position to be choosy. This was my first year in Toronto and the Leafs hadn't made the playoffs for two years."

Thriving in New York, Gadsby was named First All-Star in 1955-56, 1957-58 and 1958-59; and Second All-Star in 1956-57. Late in 1958-59, Stanley and Gadsby collided when the Rangers and Leafs battled for the final playoff berth.

Said Gadsby: "We had a wonderful team in 58-59; strong enough to maybe knock off Montreal. I figured I might even win my first Cup."

With just two weeks remaining in the regular season, New York led Toronto by seven points, but Stanley's Maple Leafs defeated Gadsby's Rangers 5-0 at Maple Leaf Gardens on March 14 and followed up with a 6-5 win in New York. When the dust cleared on the final night of the season, Toronto had squeezed past New York. Stanley was in. Gadsby was out and two years later he was traded to the Detroit Red Wings.

"By 1960," Maple Leafs historian Eric Zweig wrote, "Stanley not only carried the bulk of Toronto's defense load, he led all NHL blueliners with 10 goals." And in April 1962, the underdog Leafs beat Chicago for the Stanley Cup. "I waited 14 years for this night," enthused Stanley. "And I'll be back next season to help defend the Cup."

He was -- and he did. But when Toronto pursued a third straight title in 1963-64, it was Gadsby's Red Wings who took a 3-2 lead in the Stanley Cup Final with Game Six at Olympia Stadium in Detroit. Gadsby was one win away from the coveted Cup.

"I thought we had them when I set up Gordie Howe to give us a 3-2 lead," Gadsby remembered, "but they tied it 3-3 and we went to overtime. My dream ended with their goal by Bob Baun."

"My shot went off Bill Gadsby's stick and went the opposite way on goalie Terry Sawchuk," Baun remembered.

So did Gadsby.

"If I hadn't put my stick up the puck would have hit me in the face," he said. "Come to think of it, that would have been better."

Toronto won Game 7 and the Stanley Cup for the third straight season. Gadsby retired in 1966 after 20 NHL seasons, 1,248 games and no NHL championship to show for it.

Stanley helped the Maple Leafs to the Cup again in 1967, their last championship. He was 41 years old.

"Look at him," Maple Leafs captain George Armstrong said. "Physically he should be washed up, but he had heart for us when the games really counted."

"The last Cup win was exciting," Stanley said, "and more satisfying than any others because we went against all the critics and experts who said it couldn't be done."

In the end, Gadsby topped Stanley in one department. He was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1970, 11 years ahead of "Big Allan."

"Granted, I never won a Stanley Cup," Gadsby said, "but I loved everything about playing hockey. I even loved practicing."