NHL Hockey Trivia: The Stanley Cup

The Stanley Cup is the holy grail of hockey. Lord Stanley’s Mug is handed to the National Hockey League’s playoff champion each season. Test your knowledge and broaden your hockey horizons with the following four bits of trivia.

Q. What was the first non-‘Original Six’ NHL team to win the Stanley in the post expansion era?

A. The Philadelphia Flyers, known as the ‘Broad Street Bullies’ won the Stanley Cup with a victory over the Boston Bruins in the 1974 Stanley Cup. The Flyers would repeat the accomplishment the following season with a victory over the Buffalo Sabres. Those were the only two times the Flyers have ever won the Cup, although Philadelphia reached the finals in 1975-76 against the Montreal Canadiens, 1979-80 against the New York Islanders, 1984-85 and 1986-87 against the Edmonton Oilers, 1996-97 against the Detroit Red Wings and 2009-10 against the Chicago Blackhawks.

The Flyers entered the NHL for the 1967-68 season. Previous to their first Stanley Cup championship in 1973-74, Philadelphia had won just one playoff series. In 1972-73, the Flyers knocked off the Minnesota North Stars in the quarter-finals before falling to the Montreal Canadiens in the semi-finals.

Q. Unfortunately, there are defunct franchises throughout the history of the NHL. What was the last now-defunct team to win the Stanley Cup?

A. The Montreal Maroons were the darlings of the English population in Montreal. The Maroons won the Stanley Cup in 1935. In that 1934-35 NHL season, Montreal was just fourth in the nine team league during the regular season. In the finals, they swept the Toronto Maple Leafs in three games. Toronto had finished first overall.

The Maroons entered the National Hockey League for the 1924-25 season. The following year, they captured their first of two Stanley Cup championships. Montreal would also lose in the finals in 1927-28 to the New York Rangers. It was New York's first ever championship in only their second year in the league. The Maroons played their final NHL season in 1937-38.

Q. How many Stanley Cups did the Montreal Canadiens win during the 1970’s?

A. The Habs won a total of six Stanley Cups in the 1970’s. They dominated the Cup from four years from 1976 to 1979. They also won in 1971 and 1973. Montreal has won 24 championships, to date. Since the 1970's, however, the Canadiens have won the Stanley Cup just twice, in 1985-86 over the Calgary Flames and in 1992-93 over the Los Angeles Kings.

Q. What team has gone the longest without winning the Stanley Cup?

A. Until the 2009-10 season ended, the answer to this question was the Chicago Blackhawks, not having won the Stanley Cup since 1961. Chicago's win left the Toronto Maple Leafs as the team that has gone the longest without a Stanley Cup victory. The Leafs last won in 1967, a year before the league expanded to twelve teams. The St. Louis Blues remain the only 1967 expansion team to have never won a Stanley Cup but entered the league a year after Toronto won their last Cup.

Only 2 To Win Both The Hart Trophy And George Leader Cup

The Hart Memorial Trophy has been awarded to the Most Valuable Player in the National Hockey League since the 1923-24 season. The George Leader Cup was awarded to the MVP of the Western Hockey League from 1948-49 to 1972-73. Of course, Wayne Gretzky has won the Hart Trophy more times than any other player. The George Leader Cup was dominated by Guyle Fielder who won the award five times. Just two players in the history of professional hockey have won both awards.

Walter ‘Babe’ Pratt

Babe Pratt played pro hockey from 1935-36 to 1951-52, in the NHL to 1946-47. In the NHL, he appeared with the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Boston Bruins. Pratt also played in the CAHL, AHL and PCHL. Over his NHL career, he played 517 regular season games, scoring 83 goals and assisting on 209 for 292 points. In 63 Stanley Cup playoff games, he scored 12 goals and assisted on 17 for 29 points.

In 1939-40, Babe helped the New York Rangers to a Stanley Cup championship with a four games to two victory over the Maple Leafs. In 1944-45, he won his second and last Stanley Cup, this time with Toronto. The Maple Leafs took the full seven games to defeat the Detroit Red Wings. In 1966, Pratt was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame.

In 1943-44, Pratt was awarded the Hart Trophy in his first full year with the Maple Leafs. Playing the full 50 game schedule, Babe scored 17 goals and assisted on 40 for 57 points. It was his NHL career high for assists and points. The assist total tied him for seventh in the league. Toronto finished third with an even 50 points in 50 games. The Maple Leafs met their cruel demise in the opening round of the playoffs as the Montreal Canadiens easily won the series 4-1. The Habs outscored Toronto 23-6, including a game five 11-0 trouncing.

Pratt was awarded the George Leader Cup in two consecutive seasons, 1948-49 and 1949-50, the first two years the trophy was handed out. Both years, he was a member of the New Westminster Royals of the PCHL. After 1951-52, the PCHL would become the WHL.

In 1948-49, he scored 18 and assisted on 48 for 66 points in 63 regular season games. He tied for fifth in the league for assists. The Royals placed first in the five team North Division and first overall in the ten team league with 83 points in 70 games. New Westminster reached the finals before losing to the San Diego Skyhawks, four games to two.

The following season, Pratt played just 59 of the team’s 71 games, scoring eight goals and adding 29 assists for 37 points. Babe also acted as the team’s head coach. The Royals placed first overall in the PCHL, which had shrunk to just six teams. In a closely fought final series, New Westminster captured the championship with a 4-3 victory over the Los Angeles Monarchs. Each team scored 26 goals in the series. Two games were decided in overtime, including game seven.

Andy Bathgate

Bathgate won his Hart Trophy in 1958-59 as a member of the New York Rangers. He played the full 70 games, scoring 40 goals and totalling 88 points. He placed third in the NHL for goals, five behind the leader, Jean Beliveau of the Montreal Canadiens. He also placed third in points, eight behind leader Dickie Moore of the Canadiens. The Rangers finished fifth out of six and did not qualify for the post season.

In 1969-70, he was awarded the George Leader Cup as a member of the Vancouver Canucks of the WHL. Bathgate finished the regular season playing the full 72 game schedule. He scored 40 and added 68 assists for 108 points. Andy was fourth in goals and second in points, 19 behind Art Jones of the Portland Buckaroos. For Jones, a minor hockey legend, it was his fourth of six scoring titles in the WHL. The Canucks finished first in the seven team league with 102 points in 72 games. Vancouver won the championship with a four games to one victory over the Portland Buckaroos.

Andy Bathgate played in the NHL from 1952-53 to 1967-68 and returned for a year in 1970-71. Andy appeared with the New York Rangers, Toronto Maple Leafs, Detroit Red Wings and Pittsburgh Penguins. His only Stanley Cup victory came in 1963-64 as the Maple Leafs downed the Red Wings in seven games. In 1961-62, Bathgate tied Bobby Hull for the NHL lead with 84 points. However, Hull was awarded the Art Ross Trophy with more goals. Andy was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1978.

San Jose Sharks Individual Scoring Records

The San Jose Sharks entered the National Hockey League as an expansion team for the 1991-92 season. After two dismal seasons to start, the Sharks have become one of the most consistent regular season achievers in the NHL. However, the Stanley Cup finals have still been elusive for the California hockey club.

Along the way, the team has hosted some world class players with two going to the Hockey Hall of Fame and more to come. The individual single season offensive records of the team are pretty impressive for a team that didn’t compete during the high-scoring 1980’s.

 

Jonathan Cheechoo – Most Goals

In 2005-06, Cheechoo scored 56 goals for San Jose. It not only set a team record, it led the NHL, earning Jonathan the Rocket Richard Trophy. Playing all 82 regular season games for the Sharks that year, Cheechoo also assisted on 37 goals for a total of 93 points, good for tenth spot in the race for the Art Ross Trophy.

After just his first of three years in the Ontario Hockey League with the Belleville Bulls, Cheechoo was selected in the second round of the 1998 NHL Entry Draft by San Jose, 29^th overall. In his final season with Belleville, Jonathan placed fourth in the league with 45 goals.

It took until the 2002-03 NHL season before Cheechoo saw his first action with the Sharks. He placed with the club until 2008-09, scoring 165 goals and assisting on 126 for 291 points over 440 regular season games. In the Stanley Cup playoffs, he played 58 more games, adding 35 points. Jonathan spent the 2014-15 season in the KHL with Dynamo Minsk.

Joe Thornton – Most Assists

In 2006-07, his first full season with the Sharks, Thornton led the league with 92 assists, eight more than Sidney Crosby of the Pittsburgh Penguins. He scored 22 goals, as well, for 114 points over 82 games. The season before, he assisted on 96 but 24 were with the Boston Bruins before being traded midseason to the Sharks.

Destined for the Hockey Hall of Fame, Thornton started his NHL career in Boston. After two stellar seasons with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds of the OHL, he was the first overall pick by the Bruins at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft.

Joe Thornton – Most Points

Joe’s 114 points in 2006-07 stand as a team record. He was second in the race for the Art Ross Trophy that year, six points behind Sidney Crosby. The previous year, his 125 points led the league, earning him the Art Ross. However, 33 points were with the Bruins and just 92 were with the Sharks. He also earned the Hart Trophy that year as the league’s MVP.

Thornton had one other 100+ point season. In 2002-03 with Boston, he totalled 101. In his second year of junior with the Greyhounds, Joe placed second in the race for the Eddie Powers Trophy with 122 points, eight less than leader Marc Savard of the Oshawa Generals. He also placed second with 81 assists, six behind Savard.

Pat Falloon – Most Points Rookie

Falloon came into the National Hockey League expected to be a superstar. After his first season with San Jose in 1991-92, it looked like he might live up to the billing. His 59 points on 25 goals and 34 assists over 79 games in the franchise’s inaugural season remain the most by a rookie.

Unfortunately, that was the best offensive season put in during his NHL career. Pat played 575 regular season games in the league between 1991-92 and 1999-00, scoring 143 goals and assisting on 179 for 322 points. In the playoffs, he playing in 66 more games, adding just 18 points.

Pat was the second overall pick at the 1991 NHL Entry Draft by San Jose, behind just Eric Lindros who was selected by the Quebec Nordiques. Therefore, he’s an important part of San Jose Sharks Trivia, being the first player ever drafted by the club. Along with the Sharks, Falloon also played for the Philadelphia Flyers, Ottawa Senators, Edmonton Oilers and Pittsburgh Penguins.

 

Sandis Ozolins – Most Points Defenseman

Ozolins totalled 64 points on 26 goals and 38 assists over 81 games in 1993-94. It was his first full season in the National Hockey League and he remained with the club until a trade seven games into the 1995-96 season sent him to the Colorado Avalanche. Sandis returned to the Sharks for 39 games in 2007-08.

Over his NHL career, Ozolins played 875 regular season games, scoring 167 and assisting on 397 for 564 points. Sandis played another 137 playoff games, adding 90 points. He has been in the Russia based KHL since 2009-10. Ozolins has played for Latvia at the Winter Olympics on three occasions, 2002, 2006 and 2014.