Dec. 10 NHL History
1924: The NHL’s first game featuring two Montreal-based teams is played, with the first-year Maroons facing the Canadiens. The Canadiens win 5-0 at the Forum behind four goals by Aurel Joliat and the ninth NHL shutout by goaltender Georges Vezina.
1969: At age 45, Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender Johnny Bower plays his final NHL game; it’s also his only start during the 1969-70 season. Toronto loses 6-3 to the Canadiens at the Forum. Bower finishes with a 220-161-79 record with the Maple Leafs. He’s inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1976.
1970: The Boston Bruins take 72 shots on goal against goaltender Joe Daley in an 8-2 victory against the Buffalo Sabres at Boston Garden. Johnny Bucyk leads the Bruins with two goals and four assists. The game is tied 2-2 after two periods, but the Bruins score six consecutive goals during a third period in which they outshoot the Sabres 30-10. Boston’s 72 shots are the third-highest single-game total in modern-day NHL history.
1986: Wayne Gretzky becomes the first player in NHL history with 40 career hat tricks when he scores three goals to lead the visiting Edmonton Oilers to a 7-4 victory against the Winnipeg Jets. Gretzky, playing in his eighth NHL season, scores twice in the first period and completes the milestone hat trick by beating Winnipeg goaltender Daniel Berthiaume 1:47 into the second.
Gretzky finishes his career with 50 hat tricks, still the NHL record.
Exactly three years later, Gretzky becomes the first player in NHL history to reach 1,900 points with an assist during in the Los Angeles Kings’ 8-4 victory against the Quebec Nordiques at Le Colisee.
1992: The NHL announces that conditional expansion franchises have been awarded to Anaheim and Miami. The teams are scheduled to begin play in the 1993-94 season. The newcomers will bring the NHL to 26 teams.
1997: Defenseman Michel Petit becomes the first player in NHL history to score a point for 10 different teams, when his first assist of the season helps the Phoenix Coyotes earn a 3-3 tie against the Chicago Blackhawks at United Center.
2016: Forward Jarome Iginla becomes the 16th player in NHL history to play 1,500 games when he steps onto the ice for the Colorado Avalanche against the Montreal Canadiens at Bell Centre. But not much goes right for Iginla or his team: He goes scoreless and takes two minor penalties, and the Avalanche lose 10-1.
