The 1965 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1964–65 season, and the culmination of the 1965 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested between the Chicago Black Hawks and the Montreal Canadiens. The Canadiens won the best-of-seven series, four games to three, to win the Stanley Cup. Significantly, Game 7 marked the first time that any NHL competition had taken place during the month of May.

Paths to the Finals

Montreal defeated the three-time defending champion Toronto Maple Leafs 4–2 to advance to the finals and Chicago defeated the Detroit Red Wings 4–3.

Game summaries

As in 1955, all games were won by the home team. This was the last final until 2003 that this happened.^[1] Gump Worsley made his first Finals appearance after 12 years in the league and recorded two shutouts, including the one in game seven. Jean Beliveau was the inaugural winner of the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, scoring eight goals and eight assists in thirteen games.

Jean Béliveau wins first Conn Smythe Trophy

Stanley Cup engraving

The 1965 Stanley Cup was presented to Canadiens captain Jean Beliveau by NHL President Clarence Campbell following the Canadiens 4–0 win over the Black Hawks in game seven.

The following Canadiens players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup

1964–65 Montreal Canadiens

Players

Stanley Cup engraving

• ^A Garry Peters played 13 games. ^B Bryan Watson played 8 games. ^C Ernie Wakely was dressed, but did not play in the regular season. All three players spent most of season in the minors, but name was put on the Stanley Cup. None of the three players played in the playoff, or officially qualifies for Cup engraving.
• *Gilles Tremblay played 25 games and missed the rest of the season injured was still included on the Stanley Cup.
• When Toronto won the Stanley Cup in 1962, 1963, and 1964, they took up more room than was allowed for engraving their winning members' names on it. So when Montreal won the Stanley Cup, the ring was finished off with 32 members. Had the ring been engraved correctly in 1964–65, there would have been more than enough room to include all 27 members of the Montreal Canadiens 1965–66 roster with their full first and last names, and non-playing positions.