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The first season.
History of the NHL
After the suspension of the national hockey association (NHA), the national hockey league (NHL) was formed to take its place in 1917. -
The only Competitor for the Stanley Cup.
The Stanley Cup
The NHL emerged as the only major league and the sole competitor for the Stanley Cup; in 1947, the NHL completed a deal with the Stanley Cup trustees to gain full control of the Cup. -
NHL Expands into the U.S.
NHL Expansion
The NHL first expanded into the United States in 1924 with the founding of the Boston Bruins, and by 1926 consisted of ten teams in Ontario, Quebec, the Great Lakes region, and the Northeastern United States. -
The Original Six
The Original Six.
The Great Depression and World War II reduced the league to six teams, later known as the "Original Six" (Boston Bruins, Detroit Red Wings, Chicago Black Hawks, New York Rangers, Toranto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadians), by 1942. Maurice Richard became the first player to score 50 goals in a season in 1944–45. -
The Period of Dynasties
The Period of DynastiesThe Original Six era was a period of dynasties. The Toronto Maple Leafs won the Stanley Cup five times between 1944–45 and 1950–51. In the 1951 Stanley Cup Finals, the Maple Leafs defeated the Canadiens four games to one in the only final in NHL history when all games were decided in overtime.[68] Beginning in 1948–49, the Red Wings won seven consecutive regular season titles, a feat that no other team has accomplished. -
Legend of the Octopus
Legend of the Octopus
During the 1952 Stanley Cup Finals that the Legend of the Octopus was created. Brothers Pete and Jerry Cusimano brought a dead octopus to the Detroit Olympia for the fourth game of the finals. They hoped that the octopus would inspire Detroit to an eighth game victory. Detroit went on to defeat Montreal 3–0 and the tradition was born. -
Maurice Richard
Maurice RichardIn March 1955, Richard was suspended for the remainder of the season, including the playoffs, after he received a match penalty for slashing Boston's Hal Laycoe then punching a linesman who attempted to intervene.The suspension touched off a wave of anger towards league president Clarence Campbell, who was warned not to attend a scheduled game in Montreal after receiving numerous death threats, mainly from French-Canadians accusing him of anti-French bias. -
Westward Expansion in the NHL
NHL Expands Westward.
In February 1966, the governors of the NHL met and decided to award franchises to Los Angeles, Minnesota, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Oakland and St. Louis. The league rejected bids from Baltimore, Buffalo and Vancouver. In Canada, there was widespread outrage over the denial of an expansion team to Vancouver in 1967; three years later, the NHL awarded a franchise to Vancouver, which formerly played in the Western Hockey League, for the 1970–71 season, along with the Buffalo Sabres. -
End of the Original Six
The End of the Original Six
The Original Six era ended with the 1967 Stanley Cup Finals between the two-time defending champion Canadiens, and the Maple Leafs. The Maple Leafs finished the era by winning the Cup four times between 1962 and 1967, their 1967 championship is the last Maple Leafs title to date. -
Canadians vs. Soviet Union
Summit Series
The NHL became first involved in international play in the mid-1970s, starting with the Summit Series in 1972 which pitted the top Canadian players of the NHL against the top players in the Soviet Union. With the eight-game series tied at three wins apiece and a tie, Paul Henderson scooped up a rebound and put it past Soviet goaltender Vladislav Tretiak with 34 seconds left in the eighth and final game to score the series-winning goal. -
The World Hockey Association (WHA)
World Hockey Association.
In 1972, the NHL faced competition from the newly formed World Hockey Association (WHA). The WHA lured many players away from the NHL. The NHL suddenly found itself in a war for talent. By the time the 1972–73 WHA season began, 67 players had switched from the NHL to the WHA. The NHL also found itself competing with the WHA for markets. Initially, the league had no intention to expand past 14 teams, but the threat the WHA represented caused the league to change its plans. -
More Dynasties
More NHL Dynasties
Although the league expanded from six to 21 teams, dynasties still prevailed in the NHL. The Montreal Canadiens won four consecutive Stanley Cups starting in 1975-76. In 1980, the New York Islanders won their first of four consecutive Stanley Cups, immediately following four straight by the Canadiens. -
Wayne Gretzky
Wayne Gretsky
Wayne Gretzky scored 137 points in 1979–80 and won the first of nine Hart Trophies as the NHL's most valuable player. Over the next several seasons, Gretzky established new highs in goals scored in a season, with 92 in the 1981–82 season; in assists, with 163 in the 1985–86; and in total points, with 215 in 1985–86. Gretzky also set the record for scoring 50 goals in the fewest number of games, achieving the mark in 39 games. -
Sothern Expansion
Sothern Expansion
The 21-team era ended in 1990, when the league revealed ambitious plans to double league revenues from $400 million within a decade and bring the NHL to 28 franchises during that period. The NHL quickly announced three new teams: The San Jose Sharks, who began play in the 1991–92 season, and the Ottawa Senators and Tampa Bay Lightning, who followed a year later. -
Manon Rheaume: First woman to play in the NHL
Manon Rheaume
The Tampa Bay Lightning made NHL history when goaltender Manon Rheaume played a period of an exhibition game, on September 23, 1992. In doing so, Rheaume became the first woman to play in an NHL game. -
The Lockout
NHL Lockout
The 1994–95 NHL lockout was a lockout that came after a year of NHL hockey that was played without a collective bargaining agreement. The lockout caused the 1994–95 season to be shortened to 48 games.This NHL lockout lasted 104 days.
