Red Wings Were On First HNIC Telecast, OTD In 1952

As the Red Wings embark on their 90th season, (they started life as the Detroit Cougars in 1926), my editor ran across this video nugget. Sixty four years ago today, Canada's first nationally televised game featured the Red Wings and the Montreal Canadiens.

(CBC/Radio-Canada via YouTube)

Remember, this is being written by a die-hard hockey fan. Getting hockey on TV has never been easy. As I watch virtually any game I want either on my dish, computer or on my phone, you have to remember as recently as 23 years ago, most people in the States couldn't even watch the Stanley Cup Final on TV. (But that's just stupid ownership decisions)

According to the CBC, in Canada, in 1952, the problem was TV's were incredibly expensive and only 10% had TV's in their home, at all. So not a lot of people saw this game. And what a game it was.

The Red Wings were coming into the Montreal Forum as defending Stanley Cup champions, and Montreal was the team the Red Wings swept in four games to win The Cup. The game also featured at least a dozen future Hall of Famers, including one Gordie Howe, who died a few months ago.

Any hockey fan who grew up in the Detroit area probably know Hockey Night In Canada (HNIC) and now you know the Red Wings were on the first broadcast of the legendary series.