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Richard Riot
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Richard Riot
The Richard Riot was a riot on March 17, 1955 (Saint Patrick's Day), in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The riot was named after Maurice Richard, the star ice hockey player for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Following a violent altercation on March 13 in which Richard hit a linesman, NHL president Clarence Campbell suspended him for the remainder of the 1954–55 NHL season, including the playoffs. Montreal fans protested that the suspension was too severe; the team's largely Francophone fan base claimed the length of the suspension was motivated by Richard's French Canadian ethnicity. Outside of Montreal, however, the suspension was seen as justified and, if anything, too short.
On March 17, Campbell appeared at the Montreal Forum for the Canadiens' first game after Richard's suspension. His presence provoked a riot at the Forum that spilled into the streets. The riot caused an estimated $100,000 in property damage, thirty-seven injuries, and 100 arrests. Tensions eased after Richard made a personal plea accepting his punishment and promising to return the following year to help the team win the Stanley Cup. The incident likely cost Richard the 1954–55 scoring title (a feat Richard never achieved in his NHL career) and played a role in the off-season departure of longtime Canadiens head coach Dick Irvin. The dichotomy between Anglo and Francophone fans has been interpreted as a precursor or starting point to the Quiet Revolution.
Maurice Richard was the star player for the Montreal Canadiens, and it was common for opponents to provoke him during games. Teams reportedly sent players onto the ice to purposefully annoy him by yelling ethnic slurs, hooking, slashing, and holding him as much as possible. Throughout his career, Richard was fined and suspended several times for retaliatory assaults on players and officials, including a $250 fine for slapping a linesman in the face less than three months before the March 13, 1955 incident. Richard was considered the embodiment of French-Canadians and was a hero during a time when many perceived themselves as second-class citizens. He was revered when he fought the "damn English" during games. In his book, The Rocket: A Cultural History of Maurice Richard, Benoît Melançon compares Richard to Major League Baseball's Jackie Robinson by stating that both players represented the possibility for their minority groups to succeed in North America.
During the 1950s, Quebec's industries and natural resources were controlled primarily by English Canadians or Americans. French-speaking Quebecers were the lowest-paid ethnic group in Quebec, which resulted in a sense that control rested with the Anglophone minority. Because of this and other factors, there had been growing discontent in the years before the riot. In early 1954, Richard's teammate, Bernie Geoffrion, was suspended in a move seen as anti-Francophone. Following the suspension, Richard, who had a weekly column in the Samedi-Dimanche newspaper, called President Campbell a "dictator" in print. The League in turn forced Richard to retract his statement and discontinue his column. In his 1976 biography of Richard, Jean-Marie Pellerin wrote that his humiliation was shared by all Francophone Quebecers, who were sent running once more by the "English boot". This was reflected in a Montreal newspaper's editorial cartoon (pictured), which portrayed Richard as an unruly schoolboy made to write lines by Campbell, shown as the teacher; the cartoon had a deeper meaning as an example of the societal hierarchy that existed between English and French Canadians.
On March 13, 1955, an on-ice episode sparked one of the worst incidents of hockey-related violence in history. On that date in Boston, Richard was part of a violent confrontation in a game between the Canadiens and their rival Boston Bruins. The Bruins' Hal Laycoe, who had previously played defence for the Canadiens, high-sticked Richard in the head during a Montreal power play. Richard required five stitches to close a cut that resulted from the high-stick. Referee Frank Udvari signaled a delayed penalty, but allowed play to continue because the Canadiens had possession of the puck. When the play ended, Richard skated up to Laycoe, who had dropped his stick and gloves in anticipation of a fight, and struck him in the face and shoulders with his stick. The linesmen attempted to restrain Richard, who repeatedly broke away from them to continue his attack on Laycoe, eventually breaking a stick over his opponent's body before linesman Cliff Thompson corralled him. Richard broke loose again and punched Thompson twice in the face, knocking him unconscious. Richard then left the ice with the Canadiens' trainer. According to Montreal Herald writer Vince Lunny, Richard's face resembled a "smashed tomato." Richard was given a match penalty and an automatic $100 fine, and Laycoe a five-minute major penalty plus a ten-minute misconduct for the high stick.
Boston police attempted to arrest Richard in the dressing room after the game ended, but were turned back by Canadiens players who barred the door, preventing any arrest. Bruins management finally persuaded the officers to leave with a promise that the NHL would handle the issue. Richard was never arrested for the incident. He was instead sent to the hospital by team doctors after complaining of headaches and stomach pains.
The Laycoe incident was Richard's second altercation with an official that season, after having slapped a linesman in the face in Toronto the previous December, for which he was fined $250. Upon hearing the referee's report, league president Clarence Campbell ordered all parties to appear at a March 16 hearing at his office in Montreal.
The game's on-ice officials, Richard, Laycoe, Montreal assistant general manager Ken Reardon, Boston general manager Lynn Patrick, Montreal coach Dick Irvin, and NHL referee-in-chief Carl Voss attended the March 16 hearing. In his defence, Richard contended that he was dazed and thought Thompson was one of Boston's players. He did not deny punching or attacking Laycoe.
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Richard Riot
The Richard Riot was a riot on March 17, 1955 (Saint Patrick's Day), in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. The riot was named after Maurice Richard, the star ice hockey player for the Montreal Canadiens of the National Hockey League (NHL). Following a violent altercation on March 13 in which Richard hit a linesman, NHL president Clarence Campbell suspended him for the remainder of the 1954–55 NHL season, including the playoffs. Montreal fans protested that the suspension was too severe; the team's largely Francophone fan base claimed the length of the suspension was motivated by Richard's French Canadian ethnicity. Outside of Montreal, however, the suspension was seen as justified and, if anything, too short.
On March 17, Campbell appeared at the Montreal Forum for the Canadiens' first game after Richard's suspension. His presence provoked a riot at the Forum that spilled into the streets. The riot caused an estimated $100,000 in property damage, thirty-seven injuries, and 100 arrests. Tensions eased after Richard made a personal plea accepting his punishment and promising to return the following year to help the team win the Stanley Cup. The incident likely cost Richard the 1954–55 scoring title (a feat Richard never achieved in his NHL career) and played a role in the off-season departure of longtime Canadiens head coach Dick Irvin. The dichotomy between Anglo and Francophone fans has been interpreted as a precursor or starting point to the Quiet Revolution.
Maurice Richard was the star player for the Montreal Canadiens, and it was common for opponents to provoke him during games. Teams reportedly sent players onto the ice to purposefully annoy him by yelling ethnic slurs, hooking, slashing, and holding him as much as possible. Throughout his career, Richard was fined and suspended several times for retaliatory assaults on players and officials, including a $250 fine for slapping a linesman in the face less than three months before the March 13, 1955 incident. Richard was considered the embodiment of French-Canadians and was a hero during a time when many perceived themselves as second-class citizens. He was revered when he fought the "damn English" during games. In his book, The Rocket: A Cultural History of Maurice Richard, Benoît Melançon compares Richard to Major League Baseball's Jackie Robinson by stating that both players represented the possibility for their minority groups to succeed in North America.
During the 1950s, Quebec's industries and natural resources were controlled primarily by English Canadians or Americans. French-speaking Quebecers were the lowest-paid ethnic group in Quebec, which resulted in a sense that control rested with the Anglophone minority. Because of this and other factors, there had been growing discontent in the years before the riot. In early 1954, Richard's teammate, Bernie Geoffrion, was suspended in a move seen as anti-Francophone. Following the suspension, Richard, who had a weekly column in the Samedi-Dimanche newspaper, called President Campbell a "dictator" in print. The League in turn forced Richard to retract his statement and discontinue his column. In his 1976 biography of Richard, Jean-Marie Pellerin wrote that his humiliation was shared by all Francophone Quebecers, who were sent running once more by the "English boot". This was reflected in a Montreal newspaper's editorial cartoon (pictured), which portrayed Richard as an unruly schoolboy made to write lines by Campbell, shown as the teacher; the cartoon had a deeper meaning as an example of the societal hierarchy that existed between English and French Canadians.
On March 13, 1955, an on-ice episode sparked one of the worst incidents of hockey-related violence in history. On that date in Boston, Richard was part of a violent confrontation in a game between the Canadiens and their rival Boston Bruins. The Bruins' Hal Laycoe, who had previously played defence for the Canadiens, high-sticked Richard in the head during a Montreal power play. Richard required five stitches to close a cut that resulted from the high-stick. Referee Frank Udvari signaled a delayed penalty, but allowed play to continue because the Canadiens had possession of the puck. When the play ended, Richard skated up to Laycoe, who had dropped his stick and gloves in anticipation of a fight, and struck him in the face and shoulders with his stick. The linesmen attempted to restrain Richard, who repeatedly broke away from them to continue his attack on Laycoe, eventually breaking a stick over his opponent's body before linesman Cliff Thompson corralled him. Richard broke loose again and punched Thompson twice in the face, knocking him unconscious. Richard then left the ice with the Canadiens' trainer. According to Montreal Herald writer Vince Lunny, Richard's face resembled a "smashed tomato." Richard was given a match penalty and an automatic $100 fine, and Laycoe a five-minute major penalty plus a ten-minute misconduct for the high stick.
Boston police attempted to arrest Richard in the dressing room after the game ended, but were turned back by Canadiens players who barred the door, preventing any arrest. Bruins management finally persuaded the officers to leave with a promise that the NHL would handle the issue. Richard was never arrested for the incident. He was instead sent to the hospital by team doctors after complaining of headaches and stomach pains.
The Laycoe incident was Richard's second altercation with an official that season, after having slapped a linesman in the face in Toronto the previous December, for which he was fined $250. Upon hearing the referee's report, league president Clarence Campbell ordered all parties to appear at a March 16 hearing at his office in Montreal.
The game's on-ice officials, Richard, Laycoe, Montreal assistant general manager Ken Reardon, Boston general manager Lynn Patrick, Montreal coach Dick Irvin, and NHL referee-in-chief Carl Voss attended the March 16 hearing. In his defence, Richard contended that he was dazed and thought Thompson was one of Boston's players. He did not deny punching or attacking Laycoe.
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