The scariest players in NHL history and why players feared them - The Daily Goal Horn (2024)

FAQs

Who was the most feared fighter in NHL history? ›

Chris “Knuckles” Nilan was known for his no-holds-barred approach to fighting on the ice. With more than 3,000 penalty minutes and over 250 fights in his career, Nilan made his mark as one of the league's most feared enforcers.

1. Zdeno Chara. Zdeno Chara doesn't fight much anymore—because he doesn't have to. The Norris Trophy-winning defenseman is much more valuable on the ice than in the penalty box, and his Boston Bruins have plenty of other players who can also administer justice as needed.

3. Tie Domi Fights a Fan. Tie Domi did a lot of things in his career, but what he might be most remembered for is when he fought the Philadelphia Flyers fan in the penalty box. Domi is in the box, with fans yelling at him.

The Flyers–Senators brawl was a National Hockey League (NHL) regular season game between the Philadelphia Flyers and the Ottawa Senators that resulted in a league record for penalty minutes. The game was played on March 5, 2004, at the Wachovia Center, the home arena of the Flyers.

Imlach was known as a ruthless overlord who would berate his players verbally, physically, and mentally. Imlach makes this list as one of the most hated NHL coaches, largely based on his treatment of star captain Darryl Sittler .

1 Physical Freak: Zdeno Chara

The aware for biggest physical freak in NHL history has to go to Zdeno Chara. The man is like trying to move a boulder when he has a hold of the puck given his massive 6'9" frame and 250 pounds of muscle.

Zdeno Chara has the record of the hardest shot in the NHL competition when he reached 108.8 mph in 2012.

What is the tragic number in NHL? ›

It could also be referred to as the "clinching number". Teams other than the front-running team have what is called an elimination number (or "tragic number") (often abbreviated E#). This number represents the number of wins by the leading team or losses by the trailing team which will eliminate the trailing team.

Billy Coutu was the first, and to date only, player banned from the NHL for life for violence in 1927; he assaulted referee Jerry Laflamme and tackled referee Billy Bell before starting a bench-clearing brawl during a Stanley Cup game between the Boston Bruins and Ottawa Senators, apparently on the orders of Bruins ...

Sidney Crosby became the youngest captain in the NHL to win the Stanley Cup in 2009 at 21 years 10 months. The youngest captain to lead his team to the Stanley Cup in the history of the trophy is Mike Grant of the 1895 Montreal Victorias, who was 21 years and 2 months at the time.

The longest undefeated streak (ties included) in NHL history belonged to the 1979–80 Philadelphia Flyers, who went unbeaten for 35 consecutive games. They also owned the record for the most consecutive games with at least one point.

The Kings completed the largest comeback in NHL playoff history, going from being down 5–0 to win the game in overtime, 6–5. Combined with upset wins in Games 1 and 5, the underdog Kings eliminated the heavily favored Gretzky-led Oilers in a 3–2 series victory to reach the second round.

1. January 23, 1944: Detroit 15, New York Rangers 0. The most one-sided game in NHL history took place in Detroit on January 23, 1944, when the Red Wings blanked the New York Rangers, 15-0.

But Gordie did that too, and he and his fighting partner remain the only players to ever trade punches in the NHL All-Star Game. It happened on November 3, 1948, in only the second All-Star Game in league history.

Joel Quenneville resigns as Florida Panthers head coach in wake of NHL sex abuse case. Joel Quenneville tendered his resignation as head coach of the Florida Panthers on Thursday amid an ongoing investigation into allegations of sexual assaults levied against a former Chicago video coach.

Joslin joins a small fraternity of Black coaches who have led professional teams. Dirk Graham became the first Black coach in the NHL when he guided the Chicago Blackhawks for 52 games in 1998-99.

Did Wayne Gretzky ever coach in the NHL? ›

Gretzky became executive director for the Canadian national men's hockey team during the 2002 Winter Olympics, in which the team won a gold medal. In 2000, he became part-owner of the Phoenix Coyotes, and following the 2004–05 NHL lock-out, he became the team's head coach.

He retired following the 1987–88 IHL season. Bill McCreary is most remembered for his open ice hit on Wayne Gretzky on January 3, 1981. The myth that McCreary never played another shift in the NHL is false – the January 3 game was McCreary's second game in his 12-game NHL career.

Gretzky's back problems date to a game against the New York Islanders March 22, 1990. In that game, he was checked from behind by winger Alan Kerr and went, head-first, into the chest of New York defenseman Ken Baumgartner. The lower-back injury sidelined Gretzky for three of the Kings' 10 playoff games.

The Golden Knights currently ice the biggest, tallest, heaviest hockey team in the entire NHL. The current 21-man roster weighs a total of 4,351 pounds.

The Toronto Maple Leafs have the most power plays by a team in a game, with 16 opportunities against the Atlanta Thrashers on October 14, 2005.

ABOUT NHL POWER PLAYERS™

For the fifth straight year, the NHL Power Players™ will return and they want YOU! The NHL Power Players™ is an initiative focused on selecting young hockey fans to help advise the League on hockey-related topics important to their generation.

105 mph

Hockey puck / Maximum velocity

Who is the fastest hockey player ever? Hockey Hull holds this title. He was able to skate 29.7 mph, which is over 40 kph, and he clocked a 118.3 mph (190.5 kph) slapshot with his wooden stick once. It sent the entire hockey community into a frenzy and continues to be impressive today.

The Boston Bruins have taken the most shots by a team in a game, with 73 taken against the Quebec Nordiques on March 21, 1991.

Who are the most knowledgeable NHL fans? ›

New York Rangers

The Rangers have always been one of the great American teams in the NHL and have always produced some of the best and most knowledgeable fans in the game.

To those who knew of his son, William James Sidis was quite possibly the smartest man who ever lived. Born in Boston in 1898, William James Sidis made the headlines in the early 20th century as a child prodigy with an amazing intellect. His IQ was estimated to be 50 to 100 points higher than Albert Einstein's.

According to the Guinness Book of World Records, Marilyn vos Savant, a magazine columnist, has the highest ever recorded IQ, with a score of 228.

3, 2011, and played seven seasons in the League, including winning the Stanley Cup with the Chicago Blackhawks in 2015 (wearing No. 11). Fun fact: Desjardins and forward Melvin Angelstad (two games with the Washington Capitals in 2003-04) are the only players in NHL history to wear No. 69.

19, 25, 36, 41, 45, 50, 70, 72, 74 and 88 are all worn by at least one player at each position. Of course, 66, 69 and 99 are not worn by anybody.

The number 00 has only been worn twice in NHL history. Martin Biron wore 00 for the 1996 season with the Buffalo Sabres, but only appeared in three games and had an 0-2 record. The only other time the number appeared on an NHL surface was by goaltender John Davidson in his 1977-78 campaign with the New York Rangers.

Philadelphia Flyers

The Philadelphia Flyers have an arena that is easily one of the most intimidating arenas to play in in the whole of the NHL. Their fans are loud and some of the meanest in all of hockey.

Detroit Red Wings 15 – New York Rangers 0

The 1944 game started explosively, with two goals in the first period, before the floodgates opened. Five goals followed in the second period, with another eight coming in the third. It rubber-stamped by far the worst defeat in NHL history.

Montreal's Bell Centre is the largest arena in the NHL with a seating capacity of 21,302. Uniondale's Nassau Coliseum is the smallest arena with a seating capacity of 13,900.

Manon Rheaume's participation in the NHL was a groundbreaking and revolutionary moment for the sport of ice hockey, especially for female athletes. In 1992, Manon became the first woman to ever play in an NHL game.

Who is the girl banned from hockey? ›

town over dressing room dispute on co-ed team. 12-year-old Berkeley Trayhorne has been permanently released by the Dalmeny Minor Hockey Association after a prolonged and heated dispute over dressing room access.

G. Goals. A goal is awarded to the last player on the scoring team to touch the puck prior to the puck entering the net.

NHL Rule 14D states that “[n]o playing Coach or playing Manager or goalkeeper shall be permitted to act as Captain or Alternate Captain.”

Now, those kids are showing their appreciation with a plethora of birthday cards and well wishes for Steve Wochy, the oldest living former NHLer who turned 100 on Christmas Day. “It's a terrific, beautiful neighbourhood,” he says. “They treat me good, especially now with the way I am. They look after me.”

1949: The Montreal Canadiens and New York Rangers stage one of the best goaltending duels in NHL history when Bill Durnan of the Canadiens and Chuck Rayner of the Rangers match saves for 60 minutes in a 0-0 tie at the Forum.

The third match in the men's field hockey at the 1932 Olympics in Los Angeles, California, USA, ended with India beating the home team 24–1, the largest ever margin of victory in any Olympic hockey match.

Hot: Washington Capitals

The Caps are currently the hottest team in the league, riding an eight-game winning streak.

Enforcers are typically among the lowest scoring players on the team and receive a smaller share of ice time. They are also not highly paid compared to other players, and tend to move from team to team.

Who are the hardest hitting teams in NHL 22? ›

The 2022-23 Edmonton Oilers have the greatest power play in NHL history. That is not hyperbole. The Oilers have scored on an incredible 32.4 per cent of their power-play opportunities this season.

As of the end of the 2021 Stanley Cup playoffs, which ended the 2020–21 NHL season, the Montreal Canadiens lead all active NHL teams in playoff appearances, having appeared in 85 of their 103 seasons played in the NHL, and playoff games played, with 781. The Canadiens additionally lead all NHL teams in wins (447).

With 2.68 million fans, the Chicago Blackhawks was the National Hockey League (NHL) team account with the greatest number of Facebook likes in April 2023. The Facebook presence of the NHL itself had around 4.65 million fans.

The Bruins are the favorites at FOX Bet (+350, bet $10 to win $45 total) to win the Stanley Cup for the seventh time and first since 2011.

Gretzky had a major influence on the style of play of the Edmonton Oilers and in the NHL as a whole, helping to inspire a more team-based strategy. Using this approach, the Oilers, led by Gretzky, became the highest-scoring team in NHL history.

sem*nko is considered one of the toughest players ever in the NHL. After Gretzky won a car for being chosen as the MVP of the 1983 NHL All-Star game, he gifted the car to sem*nko to show his appreciation for his on-ice work.

On March 27, the Maple Leafs and Bruins played a span of 11:53 without a whistle in the first period of a game at TD Banknorth Garden. Carolina Hurricanes forward Tuomo Ruutu had no idea the 8-plus minute stretch Thursday was taking place -- talk about focus. "That's pretty unbelievable, really," Ruutu said.

Pettersson, a forward with the Vancouver Canucks, had defeated Ovechkin and three other players in the GEICO NHL Hardest Shot event at the 2023 NHL All-Star Skills presented by DraftKings Sportsbook with a blast of 103.2 mph Friday.

Is NHL hit 17% harder? ›

Hockey hits are, on average, 17% harder than football hits even though hockey players are 20% smaller than football players? Interesting. Josh Meinhardt and 1,419 others like this. Ice hasn't any friction.