It seems to be an unintended theme lately at Vintage Hockey Cards Report to feature super-clean players that were denied the Lady Byng Trophy. Don Marshall is 115th on the NHL’s all-time games played list with 1,176. Yet, Marshall sat just 127 minutes in penalties over his career. Yet, Don was denied the Lady Byng Trophy. However, he was part of the five year Stanley Cup reign by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1950’s and stocked up on hardware during his brief but successful days in the minors.
Don Marshall – Junior and Minor Pro
Marshall played his junior hockey with the Montreal Junior Canadiens. In his rookie year, the team reached the Memorial Cup finals. The series was held jointly between Montreal and Toronto. Sam Pollock and Billy Reay coached the team and future NHL stars like Dickie Moore and Charlie Hodge were on the roster along with Marshall. Montreal played the Regina Pats and took the championship winning four of five games.
In his first year of pro hockey, Don played for the Cincinnati Mohawks of the IHL. Over 60 regular season games with the Buddy O’Connor coached team, Marshall scored 46 goals and assisted on 51 for 97 points. He tied for second in the IHL for goals and assists and held the second position in the overall scoring race.
The Mohawks placed first overall in the six team IHL. They were crowned playoff champs after sweeping the Grand Rapids Rockets in four games in the finals. Over nine playoff games, Don scored five and assisted on five. Marshall was awarded the James Gatschene Memorial Trophy as the IHL’s rookie of the year.
The following year, Marshall moved to the American Hockey League and played 70 games with the Buffalo Bisons. His 39 goals placed him sixth in the AHL while his 57 assists and 96 points both were good for third. Don was honoured with the Dudley ‘Red’ Garrett Memorial Award as AHL rookie of the year.
The Bisons placed first overall during the regular season in the six team league. However, they were upset, swept away in three games by the Cleveland Barons in the opening round. Teammates on that Buffalo club included Gaye Stewart, Pierre Pilote and Jacques Plante.
Don Marshall – NHL Career
Marshall saw his first National Hockey League action in 1951-52, in the form of a single game with the Montreal Canadiens while still a junior. Don played a total of 1,176 regular season games in the NHL before retiring after the 1971-72 season. He scored 265 goals and assisted on 324 for 589 points. Along with the Canadiens, Marshall also played for the New York Rangers, Buffalo Sabres and Toronto Maple Leafs. He was a 20+ goal scorer six times during his career, once with Montreal and Buffalo and four times with the Rangers.
Don Marshall Collection
Don also appeared in 94 Stanley Cup playoff games, many during the five year reign of the Montreal Canadiens between 1955-56 and 1959-60. These would be the only five times that Marshall’s name would appear on the Cup.
Marshall sat 127 penalty minutes over 1,176 regular season NHL games. His most was 14 PIM during the 1957-58 season with Montreal. He sat ten or more minutes just five times during his lengthy career. However, Don was denied the Lady Byng Trophy.
At the 1970 NHL Expansion Draft to fill the rosters of the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks, Marshall was taken fifth overall by Buffalo. He was the third player picked by the Sabres behind Tom Webster and Al Hamilton.
Don Marshall – Rookie Card
The Don Marshall rookie card appears as number 35 in the 1955-56 Parkhurst set. The first Marshall hockey card is valued at around 2.5 times that of a common card. The set is dominated by the rookie card of Marshall’s Montreal teammate, Jacques Plante.
| Season | Team | Lge | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
| 1951-52 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 1952-53 | Cincinnati Mohawks | IHL | 60 | 46 | 51 | 97 | 24 |
| 1953-54 | Buffalo Bisons | AHL | 70 | 39 | 57 | 96 | 8 |
| 1954-55 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 39 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 9 |
| 1954-55 | Montreal Royals | QHL | 10 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 2 |
| 1955-56 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 66 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 10 |
| 1956-57 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 12 | 8 | 20 | 6 |
| 1957-58 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 68 | 22 | 19 | 41 | 14 |
| 1958-59 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 10 | 22 | 32 | 12 |
| 1959-60 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 16 | 22 | 38 | 4 |
| 1960-61 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 70 | 14 | 17 | 31 | 8 |
| 1961-62 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 66 | 18 | 28 | 46 | 12 |
| 1962-63 | Montreal Canadiens | NHL | 65 | 13 | 20 | 33 | 6 |
| 1963-64 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 11 | 12 | 23 | 8 |
| 1964-65 | New York Rangers | NHL | 69 | 20 | 15 | 35 | 2 |
| 1965-66 | New York Rangers | NHL | 69 | 26 | 28 | 54 | 6 |
| 1966-67 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 24 | 22 | 46 | 4 |
| 1967-68 | New York Rangers | NHL | 70 | 19 | 30 | 49 | 2 |
| 1968-69 | New York Rangers | NHL | 74 | 20 | 19 | 39 | 12 |
| 1969-70 | New York Rangers | NHL | 57 | 9 | 15 | 24 | 6 |
| 1970-71 | Buffalo Sabres | NHL | 62 | 20 | 29 | 49 | 6 |
| 1971-72 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NHL | 50 | 2 | 14 | 16 | 0 |
| NHL Totals | 1176 | 265 | 324 | 589 | 127 |