Which Canadiens goalie helped popularize the goalie mask after a 1959 facial injury?

The Canadiens goalie who helped popularize the goalie mask after a 1959 facial injury was Jacques Plante.

On November 1, 1959, a shot by New York Rangers forward Andy Bathgate broke Plante's nose early in a game. Plante returned from the dressing room wearing the crude fiberglass mask he had already used in practice. He refused to continue without it, and coach Toe Blake accepted the mask because Montreal had no other goaltender available.

Montreal won the game 3–1, and Plante kept wearing the mask as the Canadiens continued winning. Although he briefly went without it at Blake's request in March 1960, a 3–0 loss against Detroit helped settle the matter: the mask returned for good the following night.

Plante was not the first NHL goaltender to wear facial protection. Clint Benedict used a crude leather mask in 1930. Plante's importance was making regular mask use practical and accepted, then designing improved versions. He also became known for playing the puck beyond his crease and for winning seven Vezina Trophies.