When Plante wore a mask -- and changed the face of history.

[Forkboy]

50 years since he donned the mask.



Those who were there can likely still see Andy Bathgate's short shot slicing into Plante's face, opening a deep cut running from the corner of his lips through his nostril. They can still see a pool of blood forming on the ice even as Plante was collapsing downward. They probably can still hear the buzz from Madison Square Garden fans watching Plante struggle to his feet and heading slowly toward the Rangers clinic.

What they did not see or hear was Plante, his jersey spotted with blood and now wearing the seven stitches needed to repair his ugly wound, telling coach Blake in the Canadiens dressing room he planned to return to the ice wearing his cream-colored, plexiglass mask. He had worn it several times during practices, but up to that night there was never any question about wearing it during a game. Not when two points were at stake. Blake wanted no part of a goalie mask.

A coach's word always was the last word in those days. Not with Plante. Not at a time when teams didn't have the luxury of a backup goaltender. Blake's argument was that Plante would lose sight of the puck whenever it fell between his feet. But if, as threatened, Plante refused to play without a mask, what was Blake to do? He lost the argument to his goalie.

http://www.nhl.com/ice/news.htm?id=503722

Terry Sawchuk could have used a mask as well. Here's Sawchuk with his 600+ stitches worth of scars. Hard to believe wearing a mask was looked down upon as being wimpy.