List of NHL seasons

This is a list of seasons of the National Hockey League (NHL), a professional ice hockey league, since its inception in 1917. The list also includes the seasons of the National Hockey Association (NHA), the predecessor organization of the NHL, which had several teams that would continue play in the NHL.

Only two franchises, Montreal and Toronto, still exist from the founding of the league. The Quebec Bulldogs, which suspended after the last NHA season, returned to play in the third NHL season, although they were considered founding members of the NHL. The team would be moved by the league to Hamilton, and eventually dissolved by the league in 1925. The original Ottawa Senators would continue in the league until 1935, where, after one season in St. Louis, the franchise was dissolved by the league.

The list is sub-divided using the same eras as the series of articles on the History of the National Hockey League.

Championship format

Like predecessor leagues, the champion of the NHA league since its founding was the team with the best regular season record, with a playoff only used if more than one team had the best win-loss record. This changed in 1917 with the invention of the split-season, whereby the champion became the winner of the annual playoff. The NHL continued the split-season and playoff format upon the winding up of the NHA organization. Except for the 1919–20 season, where there was no playoff because Ottawa won both halves of the season, the champion of the NHL has been the playoff champion.

The NHA champion was awarded the O'Brien Cup. This was continued by the NHL. Until 1927, the NHL champion was awarded the O'Brien Cup, supplemented by the Prince of Wales Trophy, starting in 1925. To win the Stanley Cup, the NHL champion had to play off in a "world's series" with the champion of the Pacific Coast or Western hockey leagues. After 1927, the NHL playoff champion was awarded the Stanley Cup, while the O'Brien Cup and Prince of Wales Trophy were reused as division championship and playoff runner-up awards.

National Hockey Association

Further information: List of pre-NHL seasons

Hockey seasons traditionally started in January and ended in March until the 1910–11 season which was the first to start before the new year. The 1911–12 season saw the elimination of the rover position, reducing number of skaters per side to six. The 1916–17 season saw the introduction of the split schedule, an innovation attributed to Toronto NHA owner Eddie Livingstone. The NHA champion was awarded the O'Brien Cup, donated by the O'Brien family.

Notes

^ 1. All champion teams are also Stanley Cup champions unless marked.
^ 2. The league did not use tiebreakers to determine the top record. The two teams played off to determine the championship.
^ 3. Toronto and Battalion did not participate in the second half.
^ 4. No Finals prior to 1914; Stanley Cup awarded to league winners and defended on a challenge basis.

Early years

The NHL started with three of the six NHA clubs (minus Quebec, minus the two Toronto franchises) and a Toronto franchise run by the Toronto Arena Co., leasing the players of the Toronto Blueshirts. Almost immediately after starting the season, the Wanderers folded, leaving three teams to complete the season. The same three teams returned for 1918–19 before Quebec 'returned' for 1919–20, moving to Hamilton the following year. The same four-team configuration lasted until 1924–25 when the Montreal Maroons and the Boston Bruins joined the league. Expansion into other cities followed, lasting until the 1930s, when several teams folded.

Notes

^ 1.	All champion teams are also Stanley Cup champions unless marked.
^ 5.	Wanderers withdrew after six games (four completed, two forfeited).
^ 6.	The Quebec Bulldogs started play.
^ 7.	No playoffs.
^ 8.	The Montreal Maroons and Boston Bruins started play.
^ 9.	The New York Americans and Pittsburgh Pirates started play. Hamilton Tigers dissolved.
^ 10.	The Chicago Black Hawks, Detroit Cougars and New York Rangers started play.
^ 11.	The Ottawa Senators and Philadelphia Quakers suspended operations for the season.
^ 12.	The Ottawa Senators resumed play.
^ 13.	The St. Louis Eagles were dissolved.
^ 14.	The Montreal Maroons were dissolved.

Original Six era

Prior to the 1942–43 season, the New York Americans suspended operations. This reduced the number of teams to six, starting the 'Original Six' era. During the Original Six era, the NHL played in a single six-team division. Each season, four of the six teams qualified for the playoffs to determine the Stanley Cup and NHL champion.

Expansion years

Since 1967, the league re-organized several times as it grew. In 1967, the league played in two divisions, with the playoff winner of each division playing off for the NHL championship. As the league grew the league changed its championship format to allow cross-over seeding, then changed to a division-based championship, leading to conference-based championship, with conference champions playing off for the Stanley Cup. In 1985, the Presidents' Trophy was inaugurated to reward the team with the top regular season record, irrespective of division or conference.

Notes

^ 15.	The California Seals, Los Angeles Kings, Philadelphia Flyers, Pittsburgh Penguins, Minnesota North Stars and St. Louis Blues started play.
^ 16.	The Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks started play.
^ 17.	The Atlanta Flames and New York Islanders started play.
^ 18.	The Kansas City Scouts and Washington Capitals started play.
^ 19.	The Cleveland Barons merge with the Minnesota North Stars.
^ 20.	The Edmonton Oilers, Hartford Whalers, Quebec Nordiques and Winnipeg Jets join the NHL.
^ 21.	The San Jose Sharks started play.

Current era

In 1993, coinciding with the naming of Gary Bettman as commissioner, the league re-organized into the Eastern and Western Conferences, with two divisions each, organized along geographical lines. The playoff format was changed to provide conference champions without divisional playoff champions. A new round of expansion began. By 2000–01, the number of teams increased to 30 and the number of divisions increased to six. This era has seen two seasons where the seasons were changed due to labour disputes between the NHL and the players' union. The 1994–95 season was shortened to just 48 games, and the 2004–05 season's games were cancelled entirely. According to the 2011 NHL Guide and Record Book, the NHL includes the 2004–05 season in its count of seasons. For example, the 2011 NHL Guide lists the Tampa Bay Lightning as entering their 19th 'NHL Season', although a count of the Lightning's seasons of play would determine the 2010–11 season to be their 18th season of play.^[1]

Notes

^ 1. Season shortened due to lockout.

All-time top regular season record holders

This table lists the number of times that NHL/NHA teams had the top regular season record of a season. Defunct teams denoted in italics.

Total	Team	Most recent
24	Montreal Canadiens	1992-93
18	Detroit Red Wings	2007–08
12	Boston Bruins	1989–90
10	Ottawa Senators (original)	1926–27
6	Toronto Maple Leafs	1962–63
3	Chicago Blackhawks	1990–91
3	Edmonton Oilers	1986–87
3	New York Islanders	1981–82
3	New York Rangers	1993–94
3	Philadelphia Flyers	1984–85
2	Calgary Flames	1988–89
2	Colorado Avalanche	2000–01
2	Dallas Stars	1998–99
2	Quebec Bulldogs	1912–13
1	Buffalo Sabres	2006–07
1	Hamilton Tigers	1924–25
1	Montreal Wanderers	1910
1	Ottawa Senators	2002–03
1	Pittsburgh Penguins	1991-92
1	San Jose Sharks	2008–09
1	St. Louis Blues	1999–2000
1	Toronto Blueshirts	1913–14
1	Vancouver Canucks	2010–11
1	Washington Capitals	2009–10

See also

• List of Stanley Cup champions
• History of organizational changes in the NHL
• List of WHA seasons

References

• "National Hockey League". hockeydb.com. http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/leagues/141.html. Retrieved August 26, 2010.
• Ralph, Dinger, ed (2010). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-19-5.

Notes