Worst NHL Team Ever?

[Elvis P]

I'll take the 1974-75 Washington Capitals (8-67-5)

The expansion Caps first coach, Jim Anderson, remembered the existential pain of goalie Ron Low: "I'd see him with tears in his eyes after games." Anderson lasted only 54 games as coach, before being replaced by Red Sullivan, who had the honor of leading the Caps through a 17-game losing streak before he surrendered the coaching reins. "He suffered from stomach ulcers, and the losing got to him, and he really couldn't take it anymore," remembered former Cap Jack Lynch.

While the team set all kinds of records for futility, they also set some awful individual ones. Goalie Michel Belhumeur, for example, went 0-24-3 on the season, and combined with Low to surrender an NHL record 446 goals.

The Caps lost 37 straight games on the road, finally defeating the California Golden Seals in Oakland near the end of the season.

Click to read more...

 

[papershoes]

the 92-93 ottawa senators were also pretty brutal...with an overall record of 10-70-4, led by stand-out goaltender peter sidorkiewicz (8-46-3)

they managed to follow up this 'stellar' season in 93-94 with an overall record of 14-61-9 led by new goaltender craig billington (11-41-4)

 

[ekcut]

The Leafs....pick any year

 

[discostu]

The best comment I heard by a former player on the 1992-93 Senators team, is

"We're actually a good team, we just play in a really good league".

What makes the 1992-93 Senators team so heartbreaking, is, that the 1992-93 season was probably one of the most interesting from a fan's perspective around the league. It was one of the peak years of the run-and-gun era, and, there's nothing worse than being on the bad end of a run-and-gun game night after night. I remember our goalie being named one of the game stars on a lot of nights, when we'd let in 5 goals.

 

[Inkling]

the 92-93 ottawa senators were also pretty brutal...with an overall record of 10-70-4, led by stand-out goaltender peter sidorkiewicz (8-46-3)

That was the year of the Daigle Cup. The Sharks finished with the same number of points as the Sens (24) but had one more win. Suffice it to say that they were both pretty bad teams.

 

[spintheblackcircle]

I'll take the 1974-75 Washington Capitals (8-67-5)

The expansion Caps first coach, Jim Anderson, remembered the existential pain of goalie Ron Low: "I'd see him with tears in his eyes after games." Anderson lasted only 54 games as coach, before being replaced by Red Sullivan, who had the honor of leading the Caps through a 17-game losing streak before he surrendered the coaching reins. "He suffered from stomach ulcers, and the losing got to him, and he really couldn't take it anymore," remembered former Cap Jack Lynch.

While the team set all kinds of records for futility, they also set some awful individual ones. Goalie Michel Belhumeur, for example, went 0-24-3 on the season, and combined with Low to surrender an NHL record 446 goals.

The Caps lost 37 straight games on the road, finally defeating the California Golden Seals in Oakland near the end of the season.

time to show my age:

I was 6 back then and we lived in Maryland. We went to 12 games that first year, and actually saw 5 of their wins. We thought we were their good luck charm.

I can still hear the fat bald guy 2 rows in front me screaming out for the whole arena to hear "JOLY, YOU SUCK!!!". Poor Greg Joly.

 

[nosl]

Junior

London Knights of the OHL

1995-96 - 3W - 60L - 3T

 

[frontsfan2005]

Some other historically bad teams:

1989-90 Nordiques (12-61-7, 31 pts)
1985-86 Red Wings (17-57-6, 40 pts)
1983-84 Penguins (16-58-6, 38 pts)
1983-84 Devils (17-56-7, 41 pts)
1980-81 Jets (9-57-14, 32 pts)
1972-73 Islanders (12-60-6, 30 pts)
1953-54 Black Hawks (12-51-7, 31 pts)
1943-44 Rangers (6-39-5, 17 pts)
1930-31 Quakers (4-36-4, 12 pts)
1929-30 Pirates (5-36-3, 13 pts)
1928-29 Black Hawks (7-29-8, 22 pts, scored 33 goals all season)
1924-25 Bruins (6-24-0, 12 pts)
1919-20 Bulldogs (4-20-0, 8 pts)

 

[Chili]

Any team that won only 4 games deserves a mention:

Philadelphia Quakers 4-36-4 in 1930-31

 

[Passchendaele]

It has to be the 1974-75 Capitals. Bill Mikkelson ended the season with a -82.

 

[Resolute]

London Knights of the OHL

1995-96 - 3W - 60L - 3T

Junior hockey sure has its share of doozies.

1966-67 Calgary Buffaloes: 4-47-5. Though that's gonna happen when you are the only expansion team in a new league that was otherwise made up of the Edmonton Oil Kings, and five of the top teams defecting from the SJHL.

The 1981-82 Spokane Flyers were 3-22-1 when they died of embarrassment midseason. Their bus was later sold to Victoria, who traded it to Seattle for a player.

Speaking of Victoria, 1989-90 Cougars went 5-65-2. Worst team in WHL history.

The Drumheller Falcons may have been one of the worst Junior A teams in history. Their last four seasons in the AJHL:
1979-80: 9-49-1
1980-81: 10-50-0
1981-82: 10-50-0
1982-83: 0-26-0 (folded)

Junior B is even better. The Siksika Ice of the Heritage Junior B League (southern Alberta) went 3-34-0 in 2004-05. They scored 109 goals (2.95 per game), and gave up 445 (12.03 per game). The Livingstone Rockmen went 0-38-0 in 2005-06, scoring just 56 goals, and giving up 351.

 

[HockeyThoughts]

the 92-93 ottawa senators were also pretty brutal...with an overall record of 10-70-4, led by stand-out goaltender peter sidorkiewicz (8-46-3)

they managed to follow up this 'stellar' season in 93-94 with an overall record of 14-61-9 led by new goaltender craig billington (11-41-4)

Additionally the San Jose sharks were just as terrible in the 92-93 season, going;
11-70-2
They were second in the NHL second to none other then the Ottawa Senators.

 

[Sear91]

1974-75 Capitals. The epitome of fail...

 

[brianscot]

The main thing that I remember about the 80-81 Winnipeg team is that Dave Christian went from the miracle on ice to disaster on ice in just one calendar year.

They actually had some good young players (Christian, Morris Lukowich, Dave Babych), but were also loaded with guys playing out the string (Rick Dudley, Jude Drouin, Tom Bladon, etc).

Interestingly, some future coaches also played for Winnipeg that year --- Barry Melrose and Rick Bowness.

 

[MeHateHe]

The Drumheller Falcons may have been one of the worst Junior A teams in history. Their last four seasons in the AJHL:
1979-80: 9-49-1
1980-81: 10-50-0
1981-82: 10-50-0
1982-83: 0-26-0 (folded)

For a single year, they were still better than the Creston Valley Thunder of the late, lamented Rocky Mountain Junior Hockey League. They were 5-47 in their first season (92-93). They lost one game 26-0. They went through three coaches that year.

The funny thing is the team featured a player who has nearly 200 games in the NHL and is currently leading the AHL in scoring (Jason Krog).

 

[Boom Boom Bear]

The main thing that I remember about the 80-81 Winnipeg team is that Dave Christian went from the miracle on ice to disaster on ice in just one calendar year.

They actually had some good young players (Christian, Morris Lukowich, Dave Babych), but were also loaded with guys playing out the string (Rick Dudley, Jude Drouin, Tom Bladon, etc).

Interestingly, some future coaches also played for Winnipeg that year --- Barry Melrose and Rick Bowness.

And that Winnipeg team is one of the best arguments for "tanking the season in order to get a #1 draft pick" ever: they drafted Dale Hawerchuk 1st overall that summer, and the 18 year old netted 103 points and the Calder Trophy, and helped the Jets improve by a miraculous 48 points in 81-82.

 

[yada]

Wow look at that 28-29 blackhawks team that only scored 33 goals all season

 

[yada]

Wow look at that 28-29 blackhawks team that only scored 33 goals all season

Also how can you have a 37 game losing streak for those capitols : what an awful feeling for those players.

 

[brianscot]

The 1943-44 New York Rangers finished with 17 points, featuring just 6 wins in 50 games.

They gave up almost twice as many goals as they scored.

It's true that post expansion player stats are bloated, but remember also that people like Maurice Richard got to play teams like this ten times per season

 

[SenorDingDong]

07/08 Leafs

 

[Hockeynomad]

1974-75 Washington Capitals.

Flash back to 1974 and they were another expansion team in its first year in the NHL along with the Kansas City Scouts bring the team complement to 18.

The WHA was also engaged in its expansion with 15 teams.

The total number of teams was 33. This was before the influx of europeans, I think the only non North americans in both leagues were Salming and Hammerstrom of the Leafs.

So the talent was really dilluted.

I recall the two games they played against the Habs the score was 10-0 and 11-1 for the Habs.

The Caps only seemed to remotely match the Habs when the Habs were killing a penalty, then not even.

Sad bunch. Won only eight games.

 

[Icer]

1917-18 Montreal Wanderers. 1-5 record. Outscored by opponents 35-17, gave up almost 6 goals a game. Folded in January 1918 when their arena was destroyed by fire.

 

[Al Bundy*]

Got to go with the 1992-93 Sharks.

71 losses- most ever.

 

[Hockeynomad]

1917-18 Montreal Wanderers. 1-5 record. Outscored by opponents 35-17, gave up almost 6 goals a game. Folded in January 1918 when their arena was destroyed by fire.

Wow, your memory is good...

 

[spintheblackcircle]

Got to go with the 1992-93 Sharks.

71 losses- most ever.

Good point, but they were "only" outscored by 196. The 1975-75 Caps were outscored by 265. That's almost a goal more a game.