Good call.Adam Graves comes to mind. A tough player with good hands, but not really a 50-goal scorer. Graves had a miracle season during the Rangers cup run 1993-94 when he netted 52. Probably not the flukiest 50-goal season, but definitely worth of mention here.
Missed start of 1981-82 season with bruised shoulder, an injury suffered during St. Louis' Sept. 27, 1981, preseason game vs. Winnipeg. Re-aggravated the injury during St. Louis' Jan. 8, 1982, game at Colorado and required shoulder manipulation therapy to correct the problem. ... Missed end of 1982 playoffs with right knee injury that required postseason arthroscopic surgery. ... Missed part of 1982-83 season with broken nose and fractured cheekbone, injuries suffered when he fought with Behn Wilson during St. Louis' Jan. 1, 1983, game vs. Philadelphia. ... Asked St. Louis front office to trade him to Edmonton after 1983-84 season. ... Traded by St. Louis to Edmonton on a conditional basis for future considerations in September 1984, but returned to St. Louis two weeks later after failing to meet conditions required for Edmonton to go through with the trade. The aborted trade forced the Blues to make Babych available for the Waiver Draft, since he had told the front office he wanted out of St. Louis. ... Was first pick in 1984 NHL Waiver Draft. ... Missed parts of 1984-85 season with sprained right knee, an injury suffered in February 1985, and with sprained left knee, an injury suffered in March 1985. ... Missed part of 1985-86 season with bruised wrist, an injury suffered during Quebec's Jan. 14, 1986, game vs. Winnipeg. ... Missed first half of 1986-87 season while recovering from surgery on Sept. 27, 1986, to repair torn MCL in right knee. He suffered the injury when slashed by Ken McRae during Hartford's Sept. 26, 1986, preseason game vs. Quebec. ... Suspended by Hartford for refusing a demotion to Binghamton (AHL) on Feb. 25, 1987. He eventually did report to the minor-league team. ... Attended Hartford's 1987 training camp, but failed to make team and retired rather than report to minor leagues. By retiring within 20 pro games of his knee surgery, he was eligible for a disability claim.
http://www.hockeydraftcentral.com/1978/78003.html
if we're going to talk unlikely muckers who scored 50, how about al secord? caught lightning in a bottle with savard and larmer for a few years before injuries did him in.
In an interesting footnote on this question is that Bob Kudelski was on pace for a 50 goal season when he got traded from Ottawa to Florida. He slowed down tremendously with the Panthers, but still had a 40 goal season. He likely would have declined had he stayed in Ottawa as well, but, still, the idea that he might have hit 50 if he got to stay in his surroundings would have made him the obvious answer to this question in the future.
He scored 6 goals in the NHL after that season.
He's still relatively young (26) and has improved his total points and points per game every season thus far (the benefit of starting slow ). His goal totals progression doesn't have the same trend but I don't expect him to fall back to scoring about 30 (yet). He might break 50 again if Getzlaf dishes the puck up to his potential (yeah I know Perry was very strong last year without Getzlaf but it was somewhat flukey). I expect at least a couple 40+ goal seasons, though.corey perry.
hes good but i doubt we see another year like last. (his high was only 32 before)
While not important, it is interesting that a guy with 50 goals did get a gwg. It's a fun piece of trivia.
I agree it's interesting trivia type material. While OT, but similar, I think Brett Hull scored over 500 NHL goals without a single empty netter. Maybe someone can confirm?
Vic Hadfield?
I know he played with Ratelle and Gilbert, but prior to it he had never scored more than 26 goals, and after he had a couple low thirty goal seasons with the Pens but I think he's gotta be considered here.
Rob Brown with 49 deserves an HM.
kurri never scored 50 without gretzky
i don't know if that's true. i'd have to think he scored at least a few EN goals in dallas.
but yeah, pre-hitchcock, hull was not someone you wanted on the ice at the end of the game to protect a one or two goal lead. and in detroit, they had so many better options to finish the game, and hull was slower than ever by that point. but i guess it is possible, being that on dallas you also had so many much better defensive forwards: modano, lehtinen, carbonneau, skrudland, keane, reid, langenbrunner...
he definitely used to like to say, "i scored 72 and 86 goals without a single empty net or shorthanded goal." he did start to PK some his third 70 goal year though.
Players who scored 50+ once and never broke 40 in another season:
Player | Highest G |2nd highest G | Diff
Wayne Babych | 54 | 27 | 27
Jacques Richard | 52 | 27 | 25
Guy Chouinard | 50 | 31 | 19
Vic Hadfield | 50 | 31 | 19
Bob Carpenter | 53 | 32 | 21
Gary Leeman | 51 | 32 | 19
Rick Kehoe | 55 | 33 | 22
Danny Grant | 50 | 34 | 16
Craig Simpson | 56 | 35 | 21
Jonathan Cheechoo | 56 | 37 | 19
Hakan Loob | 50 | 37 | 13
Adam Graves | 52 | 38 | 14
Ray Sheppard | 52 | 38 | 14
Bernie Geoffrion | 50 | 38 | 12
Mike Modano | 50 | 38 | 12
Sergei Fedorov | 56 | 39 | 17
Sidney Crosby | 51 | 39 | 12
Beat me to it. I know that this is blasphemy to many posters here. But the Rocket only did it once and that was in a war year with extremely weak competition, Never came close again even though schedule increased to 60 and then 70 games. his next best was 45 which came post war but stiil a time of weak competition.Well that's a solid list, with some surprising names at the bottom. If Boom Boom is on the list, you may as well toss in Richard, which in spite of it being a great season by a great goal-scorer is somewhat fluky because of the fact he did it in 50.
My vote is for Jacques Richard because of the leap in goals per game, goals, shooting percentage, and to a lesser extent, shots per game between that season and all the other ones.