Wayne Gretzky October 11 NHL History
1997: Wayne Gretzky has his 66th five-point game in the NHL.

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: Oct. 11

1924: The Bruins and Montreal Maroons are granted NHL franchises for $15,000 each. The Bruins, who become the first U.S. team to join the League, name Art Ross as their general manager.

1930: The Toronto Maple Leafs acquire King Clancy in a trade from Ottawa in exchange for Art Smith, Eric Pettinger and $35,000. The cash involved is a record payment for any hockey player.

1961: Jean Beliveau is named captain of the Montreal Canadiens. He succeeds Doug Harvey, who was traded to the New York Rangers on June 13. Harvey, serving as player-coach, scores a goal in his debut to help the Rangers defeat the Bruins 6-2 at Boston Garden.

1975: Guy Lafleur of the Montreal Canadiens becomes the first player in NHL history to have three or more points in each of his team’s first three games of a season. Lafleur has a goal and two assists in Montreal’s 7-2 win against the St. Louis Blues at the Forum.

1979: After retiring from the Red Wings in 1971, Gordie Howe returns to play in the NHL for the Hartford Whalers.

1984: Mario Lemieux wastes no time announcing his arrival in the NHL, scoring a goal on his first shot, on his first shift, in his NHL debut with the Pittsburgh Penguins. 

Lemieux pokes the puck past All-Star defenseman Ray Bourque of the Boston Bruins, races in on a breakaway and beats goaltender Pete Peeters 2:59 into the game. The No. 1 pick in the 1984 NHL Draft also assists on the second of Warren Young’s two goals, but the Penguins fail to hold leads of 2-0 and 3-1, losing 4-3 at Boston Garden. Bourque scores the winning goal with 5:32 remaining in the third period.

1997: Wayne Gretzky scores three goals for his 50th NHL hat trick and first with the New York Rangers in a 6-3 victory against the Vancouver Canucks at GM Place. Gretzky also has assists on two goals by defenseman Bruce Driver for his 66th five-point game in the NHL.

2001: Peter Laviolette becomes the first coach in NHL history to start his career with four consecutive road victories when the New York Islanders defeat the New Jersey Devils 6-4 in East Rutherford, New Jersey.

2014: The Minnesota Wild become the fifth team since the adoption of the red line in 1943 to begin a season with back-to-back shutouts by defeating the Colorado Avalanche 3-0 at Pepsi Center. The win comes two nights after the Wild’s 5-0 victory against Colorado at Xcel Energy Center. Less than an hour after the Wild complete their second shutout, the San Jose Sharks match that accomplishment when they defeat the Winnipeg Jets 3-0 at SAP Center; that victory comes three nights after San Jose starts its season by defeating the Los Angeles Kings 4-0 at Staples Center. The Wild and Sharks join the 1955-56 Montreal Canadiens, the 1973-74 Philadelphia Flyers, the 2001-02 Calgary Flames and the 2005-06 Florida Panthers as the only teams to begin their season with consecutive shutouts.

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