Most unlikely NHL Regular Season Record to ever break...

[MarkusKetterer]

Schultz's 472 seems staggering. Which makes Kevin Evans' 648!!! penalty minutes in 1987 just completely mind boggling. He had 290 more minutes than the second place guy on his team. 260 more than the second place guy in the *entire league*!

 

[BenchBrawl]

I doubt any team will catch up Montreal in Stanley Cups.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Schultz's 472 seems staggering. Which makes Kevin Evans' 648!!! penalty minutes in 1987 just completely mind boggling. He had 290 more minutes than the second place guy on his team. 260 more than the second place guy in the *entire league*!

and the weirdest thing is kevin evans wasn't even a plumber, by the standards of his league. he had a pretty respectable 19 goals and 50 points, and the other guy on his team that you alluded to, robbie nichols, had a stat line of 29 goals, 56 points, 357 PIMs.

a pair of teammates, combining for 48 goals, 106 points, 1,005 PIMs. even for the IHL that's ludicrous.

 

[Puck Dogg]

1963. That is the number Wayne Gretzky had assists at the end of his career. Leave his goals out, with assists alone he would still be the all-time leading scorer of NHL. I don't see anyone breaking this record anytime soon.

 

[The Panther]

I doubt any team will catch up Montreal in Stanley Cups.

Of course that's true, but what percentage of those Cups are before the NHL had 20 teams? (answer: 91%)

I would tend to focus on records that can at least conceivably be broken in comparable games/terms, and aren't in part the result of past conditions. It'd be like saying, "Teams used to play one another 14 times per season. No team will break that!"

 

[BenchBrawl]

Of course that's true, but what percentage of those Cups are before the NHL had 20 teams? (answer: 91%)

I would tend to focus on records that can at least conceivably be broken in comparable games/terms, and aren't in part the result of past conditions. It'd be like saying, "Teams used to play one another 14 times per season. No team will break that!"

Irrelevent objection.The game also changed.I don't think a young offensive genius has a fair chance of beating Gretzky's records, even if he's better than him.

The league might reduce their number of teams in 77 years with a collapsed economy or whatever.

 

[Rygu]

Al Secord has the only 40/300 season we'll ever see. 44 goals and 303 PIM in 81-82

 

[The Panther]

Al Secord has the only 40/300 season we'll ever see. 44 goals and 303 PIM in 81-82

Good one!

Bob Probert played 74 games in 1987-88. He was one measly goal and one minor-penalty away from a 30-goal, 400-penalty-minute season, which would have been almost unbelievable.

If you add in his first six playoff games that year (to make 80 games), he scored 32 goals and had 419 penalty minutes!

 

[whcanuck]

Edmonton's 446 goals in 1983-84, Pittsburgh led the league in '16-'17 with 282

 

[steve141]

Wow, that Dave Schultz one is pretty tough to beat. That's got to be it for non-scoring individual stats. . .

With the season scoring ones, I'll always say the Gretzky 163 assists in one season. Just forget it. In some future revamped-NHL era, I can actually imagine someone scoring 93 goals, or (less likely) hitting 200+ points, or scoring points in 52-straight games, etc., but I cannot see how anyone could even get anywhere near 163 assists. Let's put it this way, in the highest-scoring era, on the highest scoring team, Gretzky himself never got anywhere near that except in one season.

Likewise, for career marks, the Gretzky assists total would seem to be impenetrable.

Orr led the league in assists three years in a row. That's actually the most anyone has ever done it during the entire 100 year history of the NHL.

Except Gretzky of course, who led the league in assists 13 years in a row. I don't know if any other of his records involves him having over four times as much as the second best.

 

[AmericanDream]

NY Rangers - Mike Keenan skating Alex Kovalev for half a damn period without coming to the bench..lol...I think it is safe to say we will NEVER EVER see anything like that again,.

 

[Rygu]

NY Rangers - Mike Keenan skating Alex Kovalev for half a damn period without coming to the bench..lol...I think it is safe to say we will NEVER EVER see anything like that again,.

Wow I never knew that happened. Wtf lol.

 

[AmericanDream]

Wow I never knew that happened. Wtf lol.

yeah it was crazy - it wasn't half the period - but it was between 5-7 minutes of straight on the ice, Kovalev kept looking to the bench and they kept telling him to stay on hahahaha. It was punishment to Kovalev, but he probably loved being out there and just coasted for half the damn time!!

 

[DaveG]

Keenan was f***ing crazy man.

 

[alko]

Ok, now lets make some ranking list with %.

Because, as it seem unrealistic - 400 goals in season for some offensive stacked team could be doable. Very Very little probability, but if you think more about it... I would say 5 % possible.

Al Secord and his 40/300 season. Hm. What have to be made, to this happen again? With current rules its impossible. But, how will look NHL in 100 years? Still same rules? Ok, my pick - 1 %.

 

[The Panther]

Chance of anyone getting 163 assists again: 0%

I mean, c'mon. Gretzky's 2nd-best assist season was nearly 30 assists less than that. And Gretzky has the top-8 assists-total seasons in history (and 10 of the top 11).

To put it another way, his 1985-86 assists total is 21% more than his own second-best season, and 43% better than the 2nd-best guy's (Mario Lemieux's) best-ever season.

You know Gretzky's 92 goal season? Increase that by 21% = 111 goals. So, as I see it, his 1986 assists' total is the statistical equivalent of his scoring 111 regular season goals.

There is actually a recent book called Unbreakable, which details Gretzky's 50 goals in 39 games in 1981. However, I disagree, as I think 50 in 39, or 92 goals, is actually breakable, albeit obviously it won't be approached anytime soon. But the fact that someone besides Gretzky, in his era, scored 50 in 44 or scored 86 goals means, I think, that someone else could come along and do it again in a future NHL which is slightly different from today's version.

However, nobody in the highest-scoring era of hockey even came remotely close to Gretzky's 2nd or 3rd-best assists' season, and Gretzky himself never came close to his own 1986 total.

Fahget aboudit.

 

[thegoldenyear]

Might be some time before someone challenges Ken McAuley's 310 goals allowed.

The wild thing is this isn't some record set during the 80-odd-game sked era by a putative #1 goalie on a really poor team. No, McAuley did it in the early O6 era. Played all 50 games for a 1943-44 Rangers team that finished 6-39-5. Ken's GAA was 6.10.

Greg Millen - who otherwise fits the general expected criteria like a (bad) glove - has the next two marks, and is miles behind at 282 and 258. Marc Denis (77 games, 2002-03 CBJ) owns 25th place, Roberto Luongo (75 games, 2005-06 FLA) 66th...the only guys this millennium within 100 goals of McAuley.

 

[SovietWings]

Fun thing about Schultz's record: He did it in only 76 games, so it's about 6,2 minutes per game.
Previous years in playoffs he managed 139 minutes in 17 games, almost 8,2 minutes per game.

What about longest Stanley Cup drought? Maple Leafs and Blues are on a good way to break the NYR record of 53 seasons without the Cup.

Other really unbreakable record is Glen Hall's 502 consecutive games he stood in the crease.

And my favourite: Mike Sillinger playing for 12 different franchises. Although Jagr was on good path to break this one.

 

[The Panther]

What about longest Stanley Cup drought? Maple Leafs and Blues are on a good way to break the NYR record of 53 seasons without the Cup.

The most recent time the Leafs won a playoff series past the second round was 1932.

That's got to be some kind of record...

*********

Look at how close the Rangers were to losing that 1994 Final. If they had, we'd probably today be looking at a 77-year dry spell since their last Cup...

 

[bobholly39]

Chance of anyone getting 163 assists again: 0%

I mean, c'mon. Gretzky's 2nd-best assist season was nearly 30 assists less than that. And Gretzky has the top-8 assists-total seasons in history (and 10 of the top 11).

To put it another way, his 1985-86 assists total is 21% more than his own second-best season, and 43% better than the 2nd-best guy's (Mario Lemieux's) best-ever season.

You know Gretzky's 92 goal season? Increase that by 21% = 111 goals. So, as I see it, his 1986 assists' total is the statistical equivalent of his scoring 111 regular season goals.

There is actually a recent book called Unbreakable, which details Gretzky's 50 goals in 39 games in 1981. However, I disagree, as I think 50 in 39, or 92 goals, is actually breakable, albeit obviously it won't be approached anytime soon. But the fact that someone besides Gretzky, in his era, scored 50 in 44 or scored 86 goals means, I think, that someone else could come along and do it again in a future NHL which is slightly different from today's version.

However, nobody in the highest-scoring era of hockey even came remotely close to Gretzky's 2nd or 3rd-best assists' season, and Gretzky himself never came close to his own 1986 total.

Fahget aboudit.

I'm not trying to diminish Gretzky's offensive records of 163 assists or 92 goals. But I don't think it's nearly as impossible as you think that they're both beaten.

The NHL is all about increasing offense. They'll eventually tweak the rules enough to make it so. A Connor McDavid can score 164 assists or 93 goals in a much more offensive minded league (moreso than even the 80s of course).

I think there are other more unique records that won't be touched than straight out offensive records.

 

[brachyrynchos]

Goalie Alex Connell went 461 minutes 29 seconds without allowing a goal, 6 consecutive shutouts for Ottawa. Over the span of 7 games and 2 periods, January 31 to February 18 1928 he stopped everything that came his way, remarkable.
Most recent was Brian Boucher w/ Phoenix during the '03-04 season, 332 minutes 1 second. 5 consecutive shutouts (his only shutouts over the course of 3 seasons w/ Coyotes. He only recorded 12 more, playing 323 games)
It would take not only a really good goalie, but strong defense and bad opposition. And alot of luck, too.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

i don't foresee two players finishing 1-2 in team scoring for ten straight years anytime soon

 

[Panthera]

Might be some time before someone challenges Ken McAuley's 310 goals allowed.

The wild thing is this isn't some record set during the 80-odd-game sked era by a putative #1 goalie on a really poor team. No, McAuley did it in the early O6 era. Played all 50 games for a 1943-44 Rangers team that finished 6-39-5. Ken's GAA was 6.10.

Greg Millen - who otherwise fits the general expected criteria like a (bad) glove - has the next two marks, and is miles behind at 282 and 258. Marc Denis (77 games, 2002-03 CBJ) owns 25th place, Roberto Luongo (75 games, 2005-06 FLA) 66th...the only guys this millennium within 100 goals of McAuley.

Wow

A 6.10 GAA for a full season is certainly an "impressive" record (and one I sure hope no one on my team ever touches...). Sometimes people ask how much of a high GAA is the goalie being bad and how much is the defense being bad, but in this case I feel safe in saying it must have just been bad all over.

 

[cupcrazyman]

Eddie Shores 5 fighting majors in a game

Didn't they kick out players back then ?

 

[The Panther]

I'm not trying to diminish Gretzky's offensive records of 163 assists or 92 goals. But I don't think it's nearly as impossible as you think that they're both beaten.

I think you missed my point, however. I said that records like 92 goals and 215 points can and might be beaten. But 163 assists will not.

Why? Because (a) 92 goals and (b) 163 assists are not comparable records. You might think they are because they're both Gretzky's highest respective totals, but they're not. 163 assists is on a completely different level.

Gretzky's 92 goals would have been matched by Gretzky himself in 1984 if not for injury. Brett Hull scored 86. Mario 85, and who knows about in 1993? Adjust scoring levels in 2008 and maybe Ovechkin is up around 80-85 or whatever. People have come close.

Even 215 points is theoretically approachable. Gretzky's 1982, 1983, 1984, 1985, and 1986 (even 1987 before the last four games of the season and 1988 without injury) are all comparable. Lemieux's 1989 and 1993 likewise.

163 assists is different. Unlike the 92 goals or the 215 points (or 2.77PPG in 1984), Gretzky himself never once came close to that total. It was a total one-off.

To put it in perspective: Mario Lemieux -- arguably the most talented offensive player in the 125+ year history of the sport -- managed once to reach 114 assists, and never higher. That is, the most individually-talented player's greatest assists' season was short of Gretzky's total by about 50 assists. And that's by far the best he ever did.

So, this particular record is on a completely different level.

The best "assists season" since Gretzky fell out of the scoring race twenty years ago is Joe Thornton in 2006, when he had 96 assists. The most assists since Gretzky's prime ended in 1991 is Adam Oates with 97 for Boston in 1993. So, the best raw numbers we've seen in terms of assists in the past quarter-century are about 65 assists short of the record.

The 2005-06 season when Thornton had his big year was around 'average' in terms of historical scoring levels. By contrast, 1993 was sort-of a higher-than-usual scoring season for elite players. Gretzky's biggest season here (1986) "adjusts" (by historical League average scoring levels) to around 130 assists, and Thornton, as mentioned, stays around the same (96-ish).

In other words, the best playmaking season since (Gretzky) 27 years ago falls nearly 35 assists short of the record. (I believe Thornton's 2006 season is actually the highest 'adjusted' assists season in modern history, comparable with Lemieux's and Orr's best.)

So, in the history of the League, 35 assists short in "adjusted" levels and 50 short in raw numbers is the very-best anyone has managed in 110 years.

Kiss that one goodbye!