5 to Score 7 Goals in a Single WHL Game

On five occasions in the history of the Western Hockey League a player has scored seven goals in a single game. Two of the five went on to lengthy NHL careers. One scored all seven of his team’s goals in a 7-4 victory. The last time the feat was accomplished was on October 2, 1990.

Brian Propp – Brandon Wheat Kings

Brian Propp of the Brandon Wheat Kings was the first WHL player to score seven in a game. On January 25, 1977 Propp scored just over half of his team’s goals as they defeated the Portland Winter Hawks 12-6.

Brian was in his first of three seasons with the Wheat Kings. He scored 55 goals that season, then went on to have seasons of 70 and 94 goals. Propp was the fourteenth overall pick of the Philadelphia Flyers in 1979. His NHL career consisted of over 1,000 regular season games between 1979-80 and 1993-94 with the Flyers, Boston Bruins, Minnesota North Stars and Hartford Whalers.

Ray Ferraro – Brandon Wheat Kings

Ray Ferraro was the next to score seven in a game. Ferraro also played for the Brandon Wheat Kings and scored his seven on January 5, 1984 as the Wheat Kings downed the Prince Albert Raiders 15-4. That year, Ray set the current WHL record for most points in a single season with an incredible 108. Despite the performance in the that 1983-84 season, Ray was denied the CHL Player of the Year honours because of a guy called Mario Lemieux playing in the QMJHL.

Ferraro was a fifth round pick of the Hartford Whalers in 1982, before he’d played a game in the WHL. He proceeded to play 1,258 regular season games in the NHL between 1984-85 and 2001-02 with the Whalers, New York Islanders, New York Rangers, Los Angeles Kings, Atlanta Thrashers and St. Louis Blues.

Mark Mackay – Moose Jaw Warriors

The following season, Mark Mackay of the Moose Jaw Warriors scored seven on December 19, 1984 as the Warriors downed the Wheat Kings 12-3. 1984-85 was Mackay’s only year in the WHL. He scored 66 goals and assisted on 74 for 140 points in 71 games. Mark was awarded the Jim Piggott Trophy as WHL rookie of the year. The following season, Mackay was in Germany where he played out his professional hockey career.

Dennis Holland – Portland Winterhawks

Dennis Holland of the Portland Winterhawks scored seven on November 23, 1988 as the Winterhawks downed the Kamloops Blazers 10-5. 1988-89 was the fourth of four seasons Holland spent with Portland. He finished the season with 82 goals and 167 points in 69 games and led the WHL in goal scoring and points, earning the Bob Clarke Trophy. He averaged over two points per game during his WHL career with 429 in 209.

Dennis was a third round pick of the Detroit Red Wings in 1987 but never played in the NHL. He wrapped up his pro hockey career after the 1997-98 season after stints in the AHL, IHL, ECHL and three seasons in Germany.

Kimbi Daniels – Swift Current Broncos

Kimbi Daniels was the last, and most impressive, of the seven goal club. Daniels scored all seven goals for the Swift Current Broncos on October 2, 1990 as the Broncos beat the Medicine Hat Tigers 7-4. It was the third of five seasons in the WHL for Kimbi and he totalled 54 goals on the year.

The Philadelphia Flyers picked up Daniels in the third round of the 1990 NHL Entry Draft. He played 27 games with the Flyers, all while he was still a junior in the WHL. He never caught on in the NHL but did play 500 games in the ECHL, contributing 504 points.

1986-87 WHL Scoring Leaders

Despite finishing first overall with 55 wins and 113 points, having five players with more than 100 points and a superstar coaching staff with Ken Hitchcock as head coach and Don Hay as assistant, the Kamloops Blazers could not get past the WHL semi-finals in 1986-87. Kamloops fell to the Portland Winterhawks, who in turn would fall to the Medicine Hat Tigers in the finals.

That disappointment has been all but forgotten after the Blazers marched to three Memorial Cup victories in the 1990’s. What does remain in the Western Hockey League history books is the scoring records etched by Blazers star Rob Brown.

Rob Brown – Kamloops Blazers

Brown totalled 212 points on 76 goals and 136 assists. The points and assists remain as WHL single season records today. Just three years before, Ray Ferraro of the Brandon Wheat Kings set an unreachable record for goals in a season with 108.

It was Brown’s last of four seasons in the WHL. The Pittsburgh Penguins drafted him in the fourth round of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft, 67^th overall. In just his second season in the NHL, 1988-89, Brown reached the pinnacle of his NHL career playing alongside Mario Lemieux. Rob scored 49 goals and totalled 115 points playing just 68 games.

Craig Endean – Seattle Thunderbirds/Regina Pats

Craig Endean finished second to Brown with 146 points. He split his season between the Seattle Thunderbirds and the Regina Pats. Endean’s season was a bit of cheat, appearing in 76 games when the league played a 72 game schedule. 1986-87 was his fourth of five seasons in the WHL. The Winnipeg Jets drafted him in the fifth round of the 1986 NHL Entry Draft. The only two NHL games he would play were with Winnipeg at the start of the 1986-87 season while still a junior.

Len Nielson – Regina Pats

Len Nielson capped his five year WHL career finishing third with 136 points as a member of the Regina Pats. Undrafted, Nielson played just two years of pro hockey, split between minor pro in North America and Finland.

Joe Sakic – Swift Current Broncos

In his first full season in the WHL, Joe Sakic finished fourth with 133 points on 60 goals and 73 assists over 72 games with the Swift Current Broncos. The following year, his last in the league, Sakic led the WHL with 160 points while only appearing in 64 games.

Sakic was the 15^th overall pick at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft by the Quebec Nordiques. Of course, Joe went on to a Hockey Hall of Fame NHL career spanning from 1988-89 to 2008-09. He played for solely for the Nordiques/Colorado Avalanche franchise, appearing in 1,378 regular season games and contributing 1,641 points.

Theo Fleury – Moose Jaw Warriors

Another very familiar name in the hockey world followed Sakic in fifth place. Theoren Fleury was in his third of four seasons with the Moose Jaw Warriors. He scored 61 goals and assisted on 68 more for 129 points. The following season, he also totalled 160 points but had two few goals than Sakic.

Despite being 5’6” and a lowly eighth round pick of the Calgary Flames in 1987, Fleury went on to a stellar NHL career. Between 1988-89 and 2002-03, Theo played 1,084 regular season games and totalled 1,088 points. He scored 455 goals over that period and was a 51 goal scorer with the Flames in 1990-91. Along with Calgary, Fleury also played for the Colorado Avalanche, New York Rangers and Chicago Blackhawks.