Tony Esposito signs his 1969-70 rookie card during a game at United Center in Chicago in December 2017. He wears his Blackhawks 1969-70 NHL regular-season championship ring on his right hand, a Stanley Cup ring given to him by the team on his left.
Rugged Black Hawks rookie defenseman Keith Magnuson picked up his first of 72 fighting majors, having racked up 18 penalty minutes with four minors and a misconduct one game earlier against the New York Rangers.
Magnuson, who trained in karate during the offseason, battled Canadiens rookie forward Marc Tardif late in the third period. Each proudly declared victory after the bout, even as Magnuson needled his foe by saying, "You know something? I don't even know [Tardif's] name."
Chicago captain Pat Stapleton directed his team for eight minutes in the second period when coach Billy Reay left the bench to seek medical attention after having nearly fainted because of stomach cramps.
"Everybody coached, the guys went on their own," said Stapleton, a defenseman who had two assists in Chicago's first victory in seven games to start the season.
And the two-time defending Stanley Cup-champion Canadiens, winners of the NHL title four times in the previous five seasons, were booed lustily through the third period by many among the 17,107 fans as Chicago sat on its 5-0 lead. It mattered little to the crowd that Montreal had not lost on home ice in 26 games (23-0, three ties), the final 16 of the 1968-69 season, seven in the 1969 Stanley Cup Playoffs and three to begin 1969-70.