Obscure hockey facts/stats

[The Panther]

Highest Even-Strength + Short-handed (i.e., non-PP) Points-per-Game from 1981-82 through 1990-91 (min. 300 GP):

1.75 – Wayne Gretzky
1.16 – Mario Lemieux
1.09 – Mike Bossy
1.08 – Jari Kurri
0.95 – Mark Messier
0.90 – Steve Yzerman
0.84 – Denis Savard
0.84 – Luc Robitaille
0.83 – Peter Stastny
0.81 – Dale Hawerchuk

 

[cupcrazyman]

tiger williams scoring 30+ goals and playing in an all star game--and people believed he belonged there

Probert played in the AS game in 87/88 during a season when he scored 29 goals.

 

[The Panther]

Probert played in the AS game in 87/88 during a season when he scored 29 goals.

Probert had a legit great season that year. The funny thing is, he cooled off just around the All Star game until the end of the season, but then he heated up in a big way in the playoffs. He actually broke Gordie Howe's club record (from the two-round era) for points in one playoff season!

Just before the All Star game, these were Probert's stats:
49GP - 24G - 25A - 49PTS (+18)

He was only 48th in scoring, but 12th among LW, meaning he was a strong 1st-line player. He had a top-10 shooting percentage, and a top-20 plus/minus.

He scored only one goal in the final 11 games of the season, and he missed six games to injury (?), so he almost surely would have had 30+ goals and over 400 PIM's in one season, which would have been (so I guess) unprecedented.

 

[alko]

A funny story about Lindros:

But one of the coolest books he has? A copy of Eric Lindros' Fire on Ice. Why? The autograph signed out to Caron.
"Inside the book, it's signed 'Mr. Caron, all the best.' - Eric Lindros. And then in small letters at the bottom in a Sharpie, it says 'P.S.: Help."

Help? The story goes that, while Lindros was holding out in 1991 after getting drafted by Quebec, Lindros would send signed copies of his books to teams he was interested in playing for and would write "help" in them. Using that theory, the Blues were one of those teams. And Lajoie has the one for Caron.

 

[The Panther]

Since the year of the stock-market crash of 1929, only one Toronto (Arenas) Maple Leafs defenceman has ever scored more than 3 goals in a game. That of course was Ian Turnbull on Feb. 2nd, 1977, who scored not 4 but 5 goals vs. Detroit. Every shot on net that Turnbull took that night went in.

Only 5 times in the past 92 years has a Toronto defenceman scored a hat-trick in a RS game (8 times if you count Red Kelly -- NHL.com lists him as a defenceman, but of course he was mainly a forward in Toronto). Those times are:

- Feb. 1975: Claire Alexander (3 goals)
- Feb. 1977: Ian Turnbull (5 goals)
- October 1981: Borje Salming (3 goals)
- March 1984: Jim Korn (3 goals)
- Oct. 2006: Tomas Kaberle (3 goals)

 

[The Panther]

A curious thing about the Edmonton Oilers top scorers in franchise history...

Most of them were/are left-handed. These include:
Gretzky
Messier
Coffey
Anderson
Huddy
Smyth
Weight
Nugent-Hopkins
McDavid
Draisaitl

Thus, when we parse the highest point-scoring games in Oilers' history by right-handed shooters, the top-10 includes Sam Gagner, Dave Lumley, Pat Hughes (twice), and Petr Klima.

And the all-time top-10 right-handed scorers in Oilers' history features: Sam Gagner, Dave Lumley, Pat Hughes, and Mike Grier.

The great exception to this unusual elite left-handed player trend is, of course, Jari Kurri:
-- 25 times in Oilers' history a right-handed shooter has had 5+ points in a game. Kurri did it 14 of 25 times (and 7 of the top 11).
-- 6 times in Oilers' history a right-handed shooter has had more than 100 points in a season. Kurri did it all six times.
-- Of the 11 top 'right-handed' scoring seasons in Oilers' history, only two aren't Kurri: Jimmy Carson (100 points in '89) and Blair MacDonald (94 points in '80).

 

[kaiser matias]

A curious thing about the Edmonton Oilers top scorers in franchise history...

Most of them were/are left-handed. These include:
Gretzky
Messier
Coffey
Anderson
Huddy
Smyth
Weight
Nugent-Hopkins
McDavid
Draisaitl

Thus, when we parse the highest point-scoring games in Oilers' history by right-handed shooters, the top-10 includes Sam Gagner, Dave Lumley, Pat Hughes (twice), and Petr Klima.

And the all-time top-10 right-handed scorers in Oilers' history features: Sam Gagner, Dave Lumley, Pat Hughes, and Mike Grier.

The great exception to this unusual elite left-handed player trend is, of course, Jari Kurri:
-- 25 times in Oilers' history a right-handed shooter has had 5+ points in a game. Kurri did it 14 of 25 times (and 7 of the top 11).
-- 6 times in Oilers' history a right-handed shooter has had more than 100 points in a season. Kurri did it all six times.
-- Of the 11 top 'right-handed' scoring seasons in Oilers' history, only two aren't Kurri: Jimmy Carson (100 points in '89) and Blair MacDonald (94 points in '80).

That comes back to the fact that most Canadian players shoot left (except those from BC for some reason), while those from the US tend towards right-shots. Europeans are more mixed I believe.

There was an IIHF study on this a few years ago trying to determine why this is the case. One theory is that when kids first start playing they put their dominant hand on the top for power and general control (thus right-handed players shooting right), but that doesn't make sense considering the BC and US examples. And growing up in BC I know that all my right-handed friends all shot right (I'm left handed and shot left), as we all wanted our dominant hand on the bottom of the stick for more nuanced control, not for power.

 

[Yozhik v tumane]

Since the year of the stock-market crash of 1929, only one Toronto (Arenas) Maple Leafs defenceman has ever scored more than 3 goals in a game. That of course was Ian Turnbull on Feb. 2nd, 1977, who scored not 4 but 5 goals vs. Detroit. Every shot on net that Turnbull took that night went in.

This is also the record for goals by a defenseman, held by Turnbull alone.

Only five other defensemen have managed 4 goals in a game. Turnbull and Harry Cameron are the only to do it twice.

Only 5 times in the past 92 years has a Toronto defenceman scored a hat-trick in a RS game (8 times if you count Red Kelly -- NHL.com lists him as a defenceman, but of course he was mainly a forward in Toronto).

It’s Salming’s fault: the time for defensemen to score hattricks was in the 70s and 80s and Toronto’s star defenseman only managed once.

Three or more goal games by a defenseman since 1929 per team:

Anaheim Ducks: 3
Arizona/Phoenix Coyotes: 2
Atlanta Flames: 1
Boston Bruins: 15 (Orr 9)
Buffalo Sabres: 7
Calgary Flames: 4
California Golden Seals: 2
Carolina Hurricanes: 4
Chicago Blackhawks: 5
Colorado Avalanche: 1
Colorado Rockies: 1
Columbus Blue Jackets: 3
Edmonton: 5 (Coffey 3)
Dallas Stars: 3
Detroit Red Wings: 8 (Reed Larson 3)
Florida Panthers: 1
Hartford Whalers: 1
Los Angeles Kings: 5
Minnesota North Stars: 2
Minnesota Wild: 2
Montreal Canadiens: 7
Montreal Maroons: 2
Nashville Predators: 1
New Jersey Devils: 1
New York Americans: 1
New York Islanders: 5 (Denis Potvin 4, Jean Potvin 1)
New York Rangers: 9 (Brad Park 3)
Ottawa Senators: 1
Philadelphia Flyers: 2
Pittsburgh Penguins: 3
Pittsburgh Pirates: 2
Quebec Nordiques: 2
San Jose Sharks: 1
St. Louis Blues: 4
Tampa Bay Lightning: 2
Toronto: 6 (incl. Boothman vs Boston in 1944)
Vancouver Canucks: 1
Vegas Golden Knights: 1
Washington Capitals: 2

Toronto does not necessarily look that bad compared to other teams, despite their head start. Defensemen only scored hattricks eight times in the 30s and 40s combined. Between Dec 21, 1944 and December 8, 1966, zero defensemen scored a hattrick.

NHL hattricks by defensemen per decade:
1910s: 5
1920s: 13
1930s: 4
1940s: 5
1950s: 0
1960s: 3
1970s: 32
1980s: 27
1990s: 20
2000s: 15
2010s: 16
2020s: 5

Calendar years without a D-man hattrick: 1921, 1923, 1925, 1927-28, 1930, 1935-39, 1941, 1946-66, 1969-70, 1987, 1997, 2002, 2004, 2009, 2012.

(Edit) Note: This may be full of oversights on my end, but here’s the source.

 

[The Panther]

Between Dec 21, 1944 and December 8, 1966, zero defensemen scored a hattrick.

File that one under 'Hockey Cocktail Party' factoid!

 

[kaiser matias]

Read this the other day:

The first American-born player to play 1000 games in the NHL was Gordie Roberts.

And he was also the last active teammate of Gordie Howe, last playing in the NHL in 1994, and retiring from pro hockey in 1996 (not counting Howe's 1997 cameo in the IHL). Fitting as Roberts was named after Howe.

 

[Big Phil]

Bob Probert scored the last goal at Maple Leaf Gardens.

Dave Semenko scored the last goal in WHA history.

 

[sabremike]

Read this the other day:

The first American-born player to play 1000 games in the NHL was Gordie Roberts.

And he was also the last active teammate of Gordie Howe, last playing in the NHL in 1994, and retiring from pro hockey in 1996 (not counting Howe's 1997 cameo in the IHL). Fitting as Roberts was named after Howe.

He has another neat claim to fame: He scored the first goal in Hartford Whalers history in a 4-1 loss at Minnesota in 1979.

 

[Retire91]

I found this while trying to figure out why Fedorov missed the Art Ross his Heart year, answer because Gretzky is a legend.

Anyway I think this might already be posted but just in case
From 1980/81 - 2000/01 the art ross was awarded 21 times but only to 3 individual players.
Gretzky with 10
Mario with 6
Jaromir with 5

 

[DeysArena]

During the challenge cup era, AHAC/CAHL/ECAHA teams only lost the cup three times - always to teams from Manitoba leagues.

 

[cupcrazyman]

Ken Dryden played in less than 400 Regular Season games.

His career save % was 0.922

 

[The Panther]

Ken Dryden played in less than 400 Regular Season games.

His career save % was 0.922

Dryden's NHL regular season record (ignoring ties):
258 - 57

Dryden's NHL playoff record:
80 - 32

Dryden's ECAC (now part of NCAA) record:
76 - 4

Dryden's AHL record:
16 - 7

He also won six Stanley Cups in eight playoff appearances.

 

[DeysArena]

Dryden's NHL regular season record (ignoring ties):
258 - 57

Dryden's NHL playoff record:
80 - 32

Dryden's ECAC (now part of NCAA) record:
76 - 4

Dryden's AHL record:
16 - 7

He also won six Stanley Cups in eight playoff appearances.

Do you realize that Ken Dryden played two whole seasons in which he didn't winning the Stanley Cup?

Talk about phoning it in.

 

[The Panther]

Man, 1984-85 has some of the weirdest NHL award voting results (assuming Hockey Ref. is correct in its numbers).

Mario Lemieux won the Calder trophy, of course. He had 53 of 63 first-place votes. Other first-place votes went to: Chris Chelios (okay), Steve Penney (uh... not really seeing it), Kirk Muller (hardly comparable to Mario!), Tomas Sandstrom (what the hell?), and... wait for it... MIKE McPHEE.

So, there were THREE Montreal Canadiens' rookies -- in a season where Montreal was pretty good but nothing overly special -- receiving 1st-place Calder votes over Lemieux. Chelios was at least a legit choice, but Penny and MIKE McPHEE??

Even more baffling is Tomas Sandstrom. On a Rangers club that just sagged 31-points downward in the standings and that was almost as bad as the Penguins, why the hell would you cast a Calder vote for a winger who produced 1/2 as many points as Mario?

For the hotly contested Lady Byng trophy, one expert gave a third-place to Dave Taylor of the Kings. Taylor had 132 penalty-minutes, second-most of his career and third-highest of his team. So, yep, I'd like an explanation for that one, as well.

Moving onto the Selke trophy, a tidy 37 different players received votes, kind of proving my point that nobody actually knows what this trophy is for. Some of the more bizarre choices by voters included Wayne Gretzky, Kevin McClelland (wut?), Tim Kerr, and Mike Zuke -- the last two both received 1st place votes!

Comparatively speaking, the Vezina trophy results aren't too bad (not sure Bob Janecyk deserved a vote, but whatever).

Finally, the Hart trophy. Gretzky had 208 points and went +100, and he received 60 of 63 first-place votes. The others went to Dale Hawerchuk (okay), Rod Langway (seriously?), and Brian Sutter of the Blues. Wait, what? Yes, Brian Sutter of the Blues.

 

[FerrisRox]

Man, 1984-85 has some of the weirdest NHL award voting results (assuming Hockey Ref. is correct in its numbers).

So, there were THREE Montreal Canadiens' rookies -- in a season where Montreal was pretty good but nothing overly special -- receiving 1st-place Calder votes over Lemieux. Chelios was at least a legit choice, but Penny and MIKE McPHEE??

I'm not saying he had any business being nominated instead of Mario, but you are heavily underplaying a fantastic season from a rookie Steve Penney.

Penney was top five in wins and top five in GAA average (among goalies that logged 50 or more games) and won the Molson Cup as the team MVP for the Canadiens. He easily could have been in the mix as a Calder nominee.

 

[ES]

For those kind of things @The Panther mentioned I really appreciate that PHWA has revealed all the votes for their awards.

 

[Johnny Engine]

For those kind of things @The Panther mentioned I really appreciate that PHWA has revealed all the votes for their awards.

I've noticed that at least to my eyes, the outlier votes have moderated by quite a bit in recent years, and the sort of "mistakes" the writers make now are more along the lines of "give a vote to a guy we all know is good but had a bum knee all year and didn't actually perform well" and less "Brad Lukowich for the Norris", and the scrutiny has to be part of that.
Which I suppose is good, but man, if you're going to make stupid choices, I really wish they'd make it entertaining.

 

[Hynh]

The first Kraken GWG was scored on an empty net tonight. That may seem rare but they join the Wild as teams with their first GWG also being ENGs.

 

[Hockey Outsider]

The record for fewest minutes played by a goalie earning a shutout belongs to Miikka Kiprusoff. On January 5th, 2002, he stopped all 28 shots he faced, but was only the ice for 55:57.

It's not uncommon for a team to play their backup goalie for 30 seconds. A coach could do that to get a rest for his players, if he's already used his time outs. But if another goalie plays even a second, the starter loses the shutout. In this game, there was no backup. San Jose had the net empty for more than four minutes, and Florida (apparently) couldn't muster a shot.

Does any know what happened during this game? San Jose won 6-0, so why would they have their goalie pulled? Looking at the number of penalties, this was a pretty rough game. Florida took 68 penalty minutes (two ten-minute misconducts, three fighting majors, and a whole bunch of minors). Maybe San Jose pulled Kipprusoff to get an extra attacker - but four minutes seems implausible.

Link - Florida Panthers at San Jose Sharks Box Score — January 5, 2002 | Hockey-Reference.com

 

[Yozhik v tumane]

The record for fewest minutes played by a goalie earning a shutout belongs to Miikka Kiprusoff. On January 5th, 2002, he stopped all 28 shots he faced, but was only the ice for 55:57.

It's not uncommon for a team to play their backup goalie for 30 seconds. A coach could do that to get a rest for his players, if he's already used his time outs. But if another goalie plays even a second, the starter loses the shutout. In this game, there was no backup. San Jose had the net empty for more than four minutes, and Florida (apparently) couldn't muster a shot.

Does any know what happened during this game? San Jose won 6-0, so why would they have their goalie pulled? Looking at the number of penalties, this was a pretty rough game. Florida took 68 penalty minutes (two ten-minute misconducts, three fighting majors, and a whole bunch of minors). Maybe San Jose pulled Kipprusoff to get an extra attacker - but four minutes seems implausible.

Link - Florida Panthers at San Jose Sharks Box Score — January 5, 2002 | Hockey-Reference.com

Might just be that they were able to maintain possession forever on any number of Florida’s delayed calls, I’m guessing.

I found one article on the game that berated Florida’s star forwards (Bure, Kozlov, Jokinen) for shying away from the close scoring lanes, seemingly out of fear for the Sharks’ physical defensemen. I thought it looked from the box score like the Panthers might have mailed it in and gooned it up in the third period. Sharks played 5 on 3 for most of the last five minutes of the game, imagine if they pulled Kiprusoff then just to humiliate their opponents? Probably not.

 

[alko]

20 years and 190 days - Time between Chara last and next game for Islanders.