Cesare Maniago exemplified the need for expansion in 1967-68. Maniago was a star in the minor leagues for much of the 1960s, not only a top goaltender but the CHL MVP in 1965. But back in those Original Six days Cesare couldn't crack an NHL lineup. The few times he got called up to the NHL he backed up names like Jacques Plante, Ed Giacomin and Johnny Bower.The NHL was forced to expand because of players like Maniago. The minor leagues were becoming full of NHL quality players that really were as good as many NHLers. The farm teams could ice a team that could compete against the NHL. If they didn't expand, the minor leagues perhaps could have taken over the NHL as hockey's top league.
Full Cesare Maniago Biography
Maniago was a very prominent goalie in the 1970s, and therefor a very prominently featured goalie in Sebastien Tremblay's new book Goaltenders: The Expansion Years (1967-1979).
I recently had the chance to sit down with Tremblay and talk goalies, books, and hockey. Read the interview here.
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