Top 5 NHL Goal Scorers In 1968-69

In 1968-69, Bobby Hull of the Chicago Black Hawks set a National Hockey League record that would last for just two seasons. Hull scored 58 goals, a record that would remain a NHL best until Phil Esposito shattered the mark with 76 goals two years later in 1970-71. Of course, there was no award for this feat back in 1968-69. The Rocket Richard Trophy honouring the NHL’s top goal scorer was not introduced until 1998-99.

Bobby Hull – Chicago Blackhawks

Bobby Hull led the league with what was his fourth of five times during his National Hockey League career that he scored 50 or more goals in a single season. Despite his offensive efforts, the Black Hawks finished sixth and last in the East Division and did not qualify for the post season. Chicago had 77 points in 76 games, a point total that would have placed them second in the West Division.

Phil Esposito – Boston Bruins

Phil Esposito finished tied for second with 49 goals. Esposito shattered the NHL record for points in a season with 126, earning the Art Ross Trophy. Phil helped his team to a 100 point finish during the regular season, behind only the Montreal Canadiens. The Bruins lost in the semi-finals but would be redeemed the following season by winning the Stanley Cup.

Frank Mahovlich – Detroit Red Wings

Frank Mahovlich of the Detroit Red Wings also finished with 49 goals. Despite Mahovlich and Gordie Howe finishing among the top five goal scorers, Detroit finished fifth in the East and did not qualify for the post season. The 49 goals was a high for Frank in a career that spanned from 1956-57 to 1973-74 and saw him score a total of 533 goals while playing for the Red Wings, Montreal Canadiens and Toronto Maple Leafs.

Ken Hodge – Boston Bruins

Ken Hodge of the Bruins nearly doubled his goal production from the previous season, finishing fourth in the NHL with 45 goals. Hodge would achieve the 50 goal plateau for the only time in his career five years later with exactly 50 in 1973-74.

Gordie Howe – Detroit Red Wings

At 41 years old, Gordie Howe finished fifth with 44 goals. His career high of 49 goals came back in 1952-53. Despite his 801 career regular season NHL goals, Gordie never topped the 50 goal plateau in a single season. After never having a player top the 100 point plateau before 1968-69, Howe was one of three to top 100 points, along with Esposito and Hull, with 103.

In the end, the two teams that met in the Stanley Cup final did not have a representative in the top five goal scorers. The Montreal Canadiens faced off against the St. Louis Blues and came out with a sweep. It was the second consecutive year that the two came together in the final series with St. Louis not winning a single game.

Gordie Howe 1968-69 O-Pee-Chee Hockey Card [YouTube Shorts]

1960-61 NHL Top 5 Goal Scorers

The hockey gods looked down with irony on the National Hockey League in 1960-61. Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard became the first 50 goal scorer in the NHL with 50 goals in 50 games in 1944-45. The next 50 goal scorer didn’t come until 1960-61, the first year that Richard was absent from the league after retiring. Let’s take a look at the top five goal scorers in that 1960-61 NHL season.

Bernie Geoffrion – Montreal Canadiens

Bernie ‘Boom Boom’ Geoffrion of the Montreal Canadiens led the NHL with 50 goals while playing in 64 of the team’s 70 regular season games. He also led the league with 95 points, earning the Art Ross Trophy. To top things off, Geoffrion was named the recipient of the Hart Memorial Trophy as the NHL’s MVP. It was a career season for Bernie, who played in the NHL from 1950-51 to 1967-68.

Frank Mahovlich – Toronto Maple Leafs

Frank Mahovlich of the Toronto Maple Leafs came a close second with 48 goals. In a National Hockey League career that lasted from 1957-58 to 1973-74, Mahovlich would have just one season with more goals, 1968-69, scoring 49 with the Detroit Red Wings.

Dickie Moore – Montreal Canadiens

Dickie Moore was a two time winner of the Art Ross Trophy in 1957-58 and 1958-59. 1960-61 was Moore’s swan song, finishing third in the NHL with 35 goals. His numbers would drop drastically over the next two years before retiring. Dickie would make two comeback attempts in 1964-65 with Toronto and 1967-68 with the St. Louis Blues but neither were lengthy or successful.

Jean Beliveau – Montreal Canadiens

Jean Beliveau was the third member of the Canadiens among the top five goal scorers. Beliveau finished with 32 goals, a far cry from his career best of 47 in 1955-56. Beliveau played his entire NHL career with the Canadiens from 1953-54 to 1970-71.

Bobby Hull – Chicago Blackhawks

Bobby Hull of the Chicago Black Hawks had a lull in his NHL career in 1960-61 but still finished fifth in the league with 31 goals. The season before, he scored 39. The following season, he would become just the third NHLer to score 50. Hull would score 50 or more five times during his career with the Black Hawks, including a career high 58 in 1968-69.

With all that goal scoring power, the Canadiens finished first overall in the six team league during the regular season. Montreal finished just two points ahead of second place Toronto but scored 20 more goals. Despite finishing in third, fifteen points behind the Canadiens, the Chicago Black Hawks eliminated Montreal in the opening round of the playoffs. Chicago met the Detroit Red Wings in the finals and won the Stanley Cup in six games.

 

NHL Hockey Trivia: Toronto Maple Leafs Individual Records

The Toronto Maple Leafs are one of the oldest franchises in the National Hockey League and were once one of the most successful. The individual records of the Toronto Maple Leafs may not be as flashy as other NHL teams but the players involved are often legends of the game.

Test and expand your knowledge of Toronto Maple Leafs records with these four hockey trivia questions and answers.

Q. Before Rick Vaive came along in the early 1980’s and lifted Toronto’s goal scoring record above the 50 goal plateau, the Maple Leafs record for most goals in a season had stood since the 1960-61 season. Who held Toronto’s record for most goals in a season previous to the 1981-82 NHL season?

A. In 1960-61, Frank Mahovlich finished the season with 48 goals. The total was good for second in the NHL behind Bernie Geoffrion of the Montreal Canadiens who scored 50. It should be noted that Mahovlich did this when the Maple Leafs only played a 70 game schedule. Frank topped his personal best in 1968-69 as a member of the Detroit Red Wings, scoring 49.

Q. What Hockey Hall of Fame member holds the Toronto Maple Leafs record for most assists in a single season?

A. Doug Gilmour holds the record with 95 in 1992-93. This is the seventeenth highest single season total in NHL history. Gilmour also holds the number 2 spot in this category with 84 assists in the following season.

Gilmour totalled 964 assists over his NHL career. He played in the league from 1983-84 to 2002-03 with the St. Louis Blues, Calgary Flames, Toronto, New Jersey Devils, Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres and Montreal Canadiens. Doug was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2011.

Q. What Toronto Maple Leafs goaltender holds the team career record for most shutouts, most wins and most losses?

A. Walter ‘Turk’ Broda played with Toronto from 1936-37 to 1951-52. Toronto was Broda’s only NHL club and finished his career with 62 shutouts, 302 wins and 224 losses. In eight of his seasons with the Maple Leafs, Broda appeared in every single regular season game. Twice, he was the recipient of the Vezina Trophy. In 1967, 15 years after retiring as a player, Turk was finally inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

Q. There are four players that have scored more than 300 goals as a Toronto Maple Leaf. Who holds the record for most goals in a Maple Leafs jersey?

A. Mats Sundin left Toronto after the 2007-08 season having scored 420 goals for the Maple Leafs. Darryl Sittler had held the mark at 389 before that. Dave Keon scored 365 as a Maple Leaf and Ron Ellis scored 332 in Toronto.

Sundin scored 564 goals over his National Hockey League career. That total ties him for 21^st overall with Joe Nieuwendyk. The first overall pick at the 1989 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques played in the NHL from 1990-91 to 2008-09 with Quebec, Toronto and the Vancouver Canucks. Sundin entered the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2012.

Hockey Trivia: Bobby Hull of the Chicago Black Hawks

Perhaps the greatest goal scorer in the history of the National Hockey League, Bobby Hull, along with Stan Mikita, wowed them in Chicago throughout the 1960’s. There were two distinctive parts to the Golden Jet’s professional hockey career:  The National Hockey League and the World Hockey Association. As an indicator of his success and popularity, the Bobby Hull rookie card from the 1958-59 Topps series is worth a whopping $3000.

This article deals with Bobby Hull’s career in the National Hockey League. Test and expand your hockey trivia knowledge of Bobby Hull’s NHL accomplishments with these four trivia questions.

Q. Despite having eleven more total points in his rookie season, who did Bobby Hull finish second to in the 1957-58 Calder Memorial Trophy voting?

A. Frank Mahovlich of the Toronto Maple Leafs won the Calder in 1958. Ironically, both players were still in their teens and straight out of junior. Typically, back in the day, a player spent several years in the minor pro leagues before behind brought up to take one of the scarce NHL jobs.

With the Black Hawks in that first year, at the age of just 18, Hull scored 13 goals and assisted on 34 for 47 points while playing the full 70 game schedule. Mahovlich, a year older than Hull, totalled 36 points on 20 goals and 16 assists over 67 games for the Maple Leafs.

Q. Bobby Hull was a five time 50+ goal scorer in the National Hockey League. In which year did Bobby score his NHL career high 58 goals?

A. 1968-69 saw Hull create a new NHL goal scoring record. Bobby’s 58 goals would stand as a record for just two seasons before Phil Esposito shattered the mark in 1970-71 with 76. Hull was on pace for 58 in 1965-66 but missed five games and scored just 54.

His last 50 goal season in the NHL came in 1971-72 when he scored exactly 50 for the Blackhawks. In the WHA, Bobby exploded for 77 goals over 78 games with the Winnipeg Jets in 1974-75.

Q. From 1957-58 until the end of 1971-72, Hull played exclusively with the Chicago Black Hawks. Which two teams did he play for in his final NHL season?

A. After the WHA merged with the NHL for the 1979-80 season, Hull followed the Winnipeg Jets as they switched leagues. After 18 games with the Jets, Bobby jumped ship to the Hartford Whalers where he played another nine games before retiring.

Q. Better known for his offensive abilities, in what year was Bobby Hull awarded for his gentlemanly play with the Lady Byng Trophy?

A. Hull won the Byng in 1964-65 while sitting 32 minutes in the penalty box over 61 regular season games. He was also awarded the Hart Memorial Trophy that same year as the NHL’s most valuable player.

In a five year stretch from 1963-64 to 1967-68, Chicago dominated the Lady Byng. Ken Wharram won the trophy the year before Hull. Stan Mikita went from king of the sin bin early in his NHL career to a two time winner of the Lady Byng in 1966-67 and 1967-68.

1961-62 NHL Team Leaders

The Toronto Maple Leafs won the first of three consecutive Stanley Cup championships in 1961-62. The second place Leafs met the third place Chicago Black Hawks in the finals with Toronto coming out on top in six games. Montreal dominated the regular season while the Boston Bruins reached franchise lows. Boston’s .271 winning percentage that year still stands as the second lowest in team history today. The lowest came in their first year of existence, 1924-25, when the team won just 6 of its 30 games, equal to .200.

Bobby Hull – Chicago Black Hawks

Bobby Hull led the Chicago Black Hawks with 84 points and was awarded the Art Ross Trophy as league leader. Andy Bathgate of the New York Rangers also ended up with 84 points. Hull and Bathgate both played the full 70 game schedule but Hull was awarded the scoring championship on his 50 goals to Bathgate’s 28. It was the second of three times that Bobby received the Art Ross.

Andy Bathgate – New York Rangers

Andy Bathgate and the Rangers squeaked into the post season, four points better than fifth place Detroit. The Maple Leafs took six games to oust New York in the first round of the Stanley Cup playoffs. Andy was named to the First All-Star Team at right wing.

Gordie Howe – Detroit Red Wings

Gordie Howe’s consistent finish in the top five was not enough to push the Red Wings into the post season. Howe tied Chicago’s Stan Mikita for third in the NHL with 77 points. The team had only Gordie, Alex Delvecchio and Norm Ullman to rely on for offense. The trio scored 84 of the team’s 184 goals.

Frank Mahovlich – Toronto Maple Leafs

Frank Mahovlich led the Stanley Cup champion Toronto Maple Leafs with 71 points, good enough for fifth in the NHL. However, surprisingly it was defenseman Tim Horton that led the team in the playoffs with 16 points in 12 games. Mahovlich contributed 12 points in 12 games, en route to the championship.

Ralph Backstrom – Montreal Canadiens

The Montreal Canadiens finished first overall with an outstanding 98 points, 13 more than second place Toronto. The team scored 27 more goals than any other team and allowed 14 less than their next opponent. Yet, Ralph Backstrom led the team with just 65 points, a total that was good for seventh place in the race for the Art Ross Trophy. Despite their domination during the regular season, Montreal fell to the third place Black Hawks in the opening round of the playoffs.

Johnny Bucyk – Boston Bruins

Johnny Bucyk led the downtrodden Boston Bruins with 60 points. Boston’s 177 goals was the lowest in the league but the killer was the 306 they allowed. The next highest goals against belonged to the Red Wings at 219.

1969-70 NHL Goal Scoring Leaders

1969-70 was a bit of a setback in the National Hockey League’s new found offensive explosiveness. After setting a new mark for most goals in a season with 58 in 1968-69, Bobby Hull pulled back drastically in 1969-70 with just 38 goals. Phil Esposito led the NHL with just 43 goals. It would be the last time there wouldn’t be a 50 goal scorer in the league until the lockout shortened 1994-95 season.

Phil Esposito – Boston Bruins

For Phil Esposito, it was the first of six consecutive seasons leading the league in goals. In fact, with seven times, only Bobby Hull has led in that department more times. Even the great Wayne Gretzky and Maurice ‘Rocket’ Richard only led the league five times each.

Garry Unger – Detroit Red Wings

Garry Unger of the Detroit Red Wings finished second with 42, just one behind Esposito. It was just the third year for Unger in a NHL career that saw him play over 1,100 regular season games. Yet, it was Garry’s career high for goals in a season. A bit of an unsung hero, Unger scored 413 regular season goals between 1967-68 and 1982-83 with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings, St. Louis Blues, Atlanta Flames, Los Angeles Kings and Edmonton Oilers.

Stan Mikita – Chicago Blackhawks

Stan Mikita finished third with 39 goals, one off his career high set two years earlier. Mikita was dead centre in a National Hockey League career that spanned from 1959-60 to 1979-80. Stan played nearly 1,400 regular season games during his career and scored 541 goals.

Frank Mahovlich – Detroit Red Wings

Coming off a 49 goal season, Frank Mahovlich of the Detroit Red Wings finished tied for fourth with 38 goals. Frank scored a total of 533 goals in 1,181 regular season NHL games between 1957-58 and 1973-74 with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and Montreal Canadiens.

Bobby Hull – Chicago Blackhawks

Although Bobby Hull’s goal production was down twenty from the previous season, from 58 to 38, he was still able to place in the top five. The goal total was quite respectable, given that Hull played just 61 of Chicago’s 76 regular season games. In 1,063 regular season career NHL games, Bobby scored 610 goals. Hull was a five time 50 goal scorer in a time when the feat was a rarity.

As for the 1969-70 NHL season, the league was led by Boston Bruins defenseman Bobby Orr. Orr became the first defenseman to lead the NHL in points with 120, earning the Art Ross Trophy. He also won the Norris, Hart and Conn Smythe to become the only NHL player to this day to win four major awards. The Bruins met the St. Louis Blues in the finals and captured the Stanley Cup with a four game sweep over the third year NHL expansion team.

 

1965-66 NHL Team Leaders

The Montreal Canadiens dominated the 1965-66 National Hockey League season. The Habs finished first overall in the six team league, eight points ahead of second place Chicago. Montreal then swept the Toronto Maple Leafs in the opening round of the Stanley Cup playoffs before capturing the championship in six games against the fourth seed Detroit Red Wings.

Bobby Hull – Chicago Black Hawks

Bobby Hull not only led the Chicago Black Hawks but finished atop the whole NHL with 97 points, capturing the Art Ross Trophy. Hull’s 97 points set an NHL record for most points in a season, eclipsing the previous mark of 96 set by Dickie Moore of Montreal in 1958-59.

Bobby Rousseau – Montreal Canadiens

Leading the Montreal Canadiens with a career high of 78 points and finishing tied for second in the league was Bobby Rousseau. Bobby played in the NHL from 1960-61 to 1974-75 with the Canadiens, Minnesota North Stars and New York Rangers. His next highest point total came in 1968-69 when he totalled 70 with the Habs.

Gordie Howe – Detroit Red Wings

Gordie Howe occupied a familiar spot, leading the Detroit Red Wings in points with 75. Howe was fifth in the race for the Art Ross Trophy and had just three more points than teammate Norm Ullman. However, Ullman proved more of a factor in the Red Wings reaching the Stanley Cup final with 15 playoff points compared to Howe’s 10.

Bob Nevin – New York Rangers

The New York Rangers finished last in the NHL in 1965-66, one point behind the Boston Bruins and 27 points out of a playoff position. Bob Nevin led the club with 62 points. Nevin played in the NHL from 1960-61 to 1975-76 and would only total more points on one other occasion. In 1974-75, with the Los Angeles Kings, Bob contributed 72 points. Of course, the regular season was ten games longer that year than in 1965-66.

Murray Oliver – Boston Bruins

The Boston Bruins had the least goals for and the most goals against in 1965-66. Leading the way for Bruins was Murray Oliver with 60 points. Oliver played in the NHL from 1959-60 to 1974-75 with the Detroit Red Wings, Boston Bruins, Toronto Maple Leafs and Minnesota North Stars. In fact, Oliver and Bobby Rousseau were teammates with the North Stars for the 1970-71 season.

Frank Mahovlich and Bob Pulford – Toronto Maple Leafs

As was the way with the ‘Original 6’ era Toronto Maple Leafs, individual scoring numbers were never exceptionally high. In 1965-66, Frank Mahovlich and Bob Pulford tied for the team lead with just 56 points each. Dave Keon was just two points behind with 54. It was a career high for Pulford but a mediocre season for Mahovlich.