| 1974–75 NHL season | |
| League | National Hockey League |
|---|---|
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 9, 1974 – May 27, 1975 |
| Number of games | 80 |
| Number of teams | 18 |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Greg Joly |
| Picked by | Washington Capitals |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Season MVP | Bobby Clarke (Flyers) |
| Top scorer | Bobby Orr (Bruins) |
| Playoffs | |
The 1974–75 NHL season was the 58th season of the National Hockey League. Two new teams, the Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts were added, increasing the number of teams to 18. To accommodate the new teams, the NHL re-organized its divisional structure and playoff format. The regular season was expanded to 80 games per team (which would be the case until 1992–93). The Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup for the second consecutive year.
Final standings[]
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold
Prince of Wales Conference[]
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Buffalo Sabres | 80 | 49 | 16 | 15 | 354 | 240 | 113 |
| Boston Bruins | 80 | 40 | 26 | 14 | 345 | 245 | 94 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 80 | 31 | 33 | 16 | 280 | 309 | 78 |
| California Golden Seals | 80 | 19 | 48 | 13 | 212 | 316 | 51 |
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Canadiens | 80 | 47 | 14 | 19 | 374 | 225 | 113 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 80 | 42 | 17 | 21 | 269 | 185 | 105 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 37 | 28 | 15 | 326 | 289 | 89 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 23 | 45 | 12 | 259 | 335 | 58 |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 8 | 67 | 5 | 181 | 446 | 21 |
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
Clarence Campbell Conference[]
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 51 | 18 | 11 | 293 | 181 | 113 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 37 | 29 | 14 | 319 | 276 | 88 |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 33 | 25 | 22 | 264 | 221 | 88 |
| Atlanta Flames | 80 | 34 | 31 | 15 | 243 | 233 | 83 |
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Vancouver Canucks | 80 | 38 | 32 | 10 | 271 | 254 | 86 |
| St. Louis Blues | 80 | 35 | 31 | 14 | 269 | 267 | 84 |
| Chicago Black Hawks | 80 | 37 | 35 | 8 | 268 | 241 | 82 |
| Minnesota North Stars | 80 | 23 | 50 | 7 | 221 | 341 | 53 |
| Kansas City Scouts | 80 | 15 | 54 | 11 | 184 | 328 | 41 |
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF = Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
Playoffs[]
With the new conference and division structure, the 1975 playoffs used a new format. The playoffs were expanded from eight to twelve teams with the top three teams in each division qualifying for the playoffs. The first place teams in each division earned a first round bye, while the second and third place teams were seeded 1–8 based on their regular season record and played a best-of-three series. The four division winners then joined the four preliminary series winners in the quarterfinals, and they were again re-seeded 1–8 based on regular season record. This re-seeding took place again in the semifinals, with the teams seeded 1–4. Proponents of this re-seeding state that it makes the regular season more important by rewarding teams with better records with potentially easier matchups. In addition, it avoids the potential issue of two lower seeded teams (who may have pulled early round upsets) playing each other in the next round while two higher seeded teams are playing each other (as is possible in a "bracketed" playoff format like in the NBA). The biggest beneficiary of this format was the Vancouver Canucks, who were ninth overall in the regular season but received a first-round bye for winning the relatively weak Smythe Division. Unfortunately for Vancouver, the fact that the Quarterfinals was seeded without regard to their first place divisional finish meant they had to face another division champion in the second round, the Norris-winning Montreal Canadiens, who defeated Vancouver four games to one. The team that suffered the most from the new format, the Los Angeles Kings, had the fourth best overall record but had to play in the risky mini series where they were upset by the twelfth-seeded Toronto Maple Leafs two games to one.
Playoff seeds[]
The twelve teams that qualified for the playoffs are ranked 1–12 based on regular season points.
Note: Only teams that qualified for the playoffs are listed here.
- Philadelphia Flyers, Patrick Division champions, Clarence Campbell Conference regular season champions – 113 points (51 wins)
- Buffalo Sabres, Adams Division champions, Prince of Wales Conference regular season champions – 113 points (49 wins)
- Montreal Canadiens, Norris Division champions – 113 points (47 wins)
- Los Angeles Kings – 105 points
- Boston Bruins – 94 points
- Pittsburgh Penguins – 89 points
- New York Rangers – 88 points (37 wins)
- New York Islanders – 88 points (33 wins)
- Vancouver Canucks, Smythe Division champions – 86 points
- St. Louis Blues – 84 points
- Chicago Black Hawks – 82 points
- Toronto Maple Leafs – 78 points
Playoff bracket[]
| Preliminary Round | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Stanley Cup Finals | |||||||||||||||
| 1 | Philadelphia | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Toronto | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Los Angeles | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 8 | Toronto | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Philadelphia | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 4 | NY Islanders | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Pittsburgh | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 6 | St. Louis | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
| 4 | Pittsburgh | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
| 5 | NY Islanders | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 4 | NY Rangers | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 5 | NY Islanders | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 1 | Philadelphia | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Buffalo | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Buffalo | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Chicago | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Boston | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
| 7 | Chicago | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 2 | Buffalo | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Montreal | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
| 3 | Montreal | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
| 6 | Vancouver | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
- Division winners earned a bye to the Quarterfinals
- Teams were re-seeded based on regular season record after the Preliminary and Quarterfinal rounds
Preliminary Round[]
(1) Los Angeles Kings vs. (8) Toronto Maple Leafs[]
The Los Angeles Kings entered the Preliminary round as the top seed (and fourth seed overall) earning 105 points during the regular season. The Toronto Maple Leafs earned 78 points during the regular season and entered the Preliminary round as the eighth seed (and twelfth seed overall). This was the first playoff series between these two teams. Los Angeles won this year's season series earning 9 of 10 points during the regular season.
| April 8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–3 | OT | Los Angeles Kings | The Forum | Recap | ||
| Blaine Stoughton (1) – 15:40 | First period | 14:31 – Bob Berry (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gene Carr (1) – 16:25 | Third period | 18:30 – Ron Ellis (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 08:53 – Mike Murphy (1) | ||||||
| Gord McRae | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| April 10 | Los Angeles Kings | 2–3 | OT | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 10:25 – Darryl Sittler (1) | ||||||
| Mike Murphy (2) – pp – 10:45 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mike Murphy (3) – pp – 04:05 | Third period | 08:45 – Dave Dunn (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 10:19 – Blaine Stoughton (2) | ||||||
| Rogie Vachon | Goalie stats | Gord McRae | ||||||
| April 11 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–1 | Los Angeles Kings | The Forum | Recap | |||
| George Ferguson (1) – 04:55 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Inge Hammarstrom (1) – 14:34 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 13:09 – Don Kozak (1) | ||||||
| Gord McRae | Goalie stats | Rogie Vachon | ||||||
| Toronto won series 2–1 | |
(2) Boston Bruins vs. (7) Chicago Black Hawks[]
The Boston Bruins entered the Preliminary round as the second seed (and fifth seed overall) earning 94 points during the regular season. The Chicago Black Hawks earned 82 points during the regular season and entered the Preliminary round as the seventh seed (and eleventh seed overall). This was the fifth playoff series between these two teams, with Boston winning all four previous meetings. They last met in the 1974 Stanley Cup Semifinals where Boston won in six games. The teams split this year's regular season series.
| April 8 | Chicago Blackhawks | 2–8 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 08:38 – Johnny Bucyk (1) 15:03 – Carol Vadnais (1) 15:12 – Andre Savard (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 10:39 – Phil Esposito (1) 16:01 – Gregg Sheppard (1) 16:50 – Gregg Sheppard (2) | ||||||
| Dick Redmond (1) – pp – 04:20 John Marks (1) – 19:59 |
Third period | 01:29 – pp – Phil Esposito (2) 11:03 – Phil Esposito (3) | ||||||
| Tony Esposito, Michel Dumas | Goalie stats | Gilles Gilbert | ||||||
| April 10 | Boston Bruins | 3–4 | OT | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 03:15 – Ivan Boldirev (1) 14:37 – pp – Stan Mikita (1) | ||||||
| Don Marcotte (1) – 04:35 Ken Hodge (1) – pp – 13:32 |
Second period | 15:39 – Dale Tallon (1) | ||||||
| Bobby Orr (1) – sh – 01:31 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 07:33 – Ivan Boldirev (2) | ||||||
| Gilles Gilbert | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito | ||||||
| April 11 | Chicago Blackhawks | 6–4 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| Keith Magnuson (1) – 01:26 Cliff Koroll (1) – pp – 19:13 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| J.P. Bordeleau (1) – 02:27 Cliff Koroll (2) – pp – 15:34 John Marks (2) – 18:24 |
Second period | 07:16 – Bobby Schmautz (1) 09:32 – Hank Nowak (1) 18:58 – Gregg Sheppard (3) | ||||||
| J.P. Bordeleau (2) – 11:27 | Third period | 15:55 – Phil Esposito (4) | ||||||
| Tony Esposito | Goalie stats | Gilles Gilbert | ||||||
| Chicago won series 2–1 | |
(3) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (6) St. Louis Blues[]
The Pittsburgh Penguins entered the Preliminary round as the third seed (and sixth seed overall) earning 89 points during the regular season. The St. Louis Blues earned 84 points during the regular season and entered the Preliminary round as the sixth seed (and tenth seed overall). This was the second playoff series between these two teams, with St. Louis winning the only previous meeting. They last met in the 1970 Stanley Cup Semifinals where St. Louis won in six games. The teams split this year's regular season series.
| April 8 | St. Louis Blues | 3–4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Civic Arena | Recap | |||
| Claude Larose (1) – 12:21 Wayne Merrick (1) – pp – 17:19 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 19:45 – Bob Kelly (1) | ||||||
| Garry Unger (1) – 00:54 | Third period | 03:45 – Chuck Arnason (1) 09:57 – pp – Chuck Arnason (2) 17:29 – Pierre Larouche (1) | ||||||
| John Davidson | Goalie stats | Gary Inness | ||||||
| April 10 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 5–3 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Jean Pronovost (1) – 05:16 Ron Stackhouse (1) – pp – 17:56 |
First period | 03:12 – pp – Red Berenson (1) 09:57 – Bill Collins (1) | ||||||
| Syl Apps Jr. (1) – pp – 14:47 | Second period | 11:26 – Larry Sacharuk (1) | ||||||
| Colin Campbell (1) – sh – 04:33 Vic Hadfield (1) – 16:12 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gary Inness | Goalie stats | Ed Johnston | ||||||
| Pittsburgh won series 2–0 | |
(4) New York Rangers vs. (5) New York Islanders[]
The New York Rangers entered the Preliminary round as the fourth seed (and seventh seed overall) earning 88 points during the regular season, winning the tie-breaker with the New York Islanders in wins (37 to 33). The New York Islanders earned 88 points during the regular season and entered the Preliminary round as the fifth seed (and eighth seed overall), losing the tie-breaker with the New York Rangers in wins (37 to 33). This was the first playoff series between these two teams. The Rangers won this year's season series earning 7 of 12 points during the regular season.
| April 8 | New York Islanders | 3–2 | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 08:11 – Brad Park (1) 19:25 – Pete Stemkowski (1) | ||||||
| Billy Harris (1) – pp – 05:00 Jean Potvin (1) – 11:51 Clark Gillies (1) – 13:30 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Ed Giacomin | ||||||
| April 10 | New York Rangers | 8–3 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Jean Ratelle (1) – pp – 03:29 Bill Fairbairn (1) – pp – 06:10 Bill Fairbairn (2) – sh – 07:01 Ron Harris (1) – 10:56 |
First period | 08:29 – pp – J.P. Parise (1) | ||||||
| Steve Vickers (1) – 02:20 Jerry Butler (1) – 09:58 Walt Tkaczuk (1) – 17:51 |
Second period | 17:15 – Bert Marshall (1) | ||||||
| Rod Gilbert (1) – 02:37 | Third period | 05:34 – Jean Potvin (2) | ||||||
| Gilles Villemure | Goalie stats | Chico Resch, Billy Smith | ||||||
| April 11 | New York Islanders | 4–3 | OT | New York Rangers | Madison Square Garden | Recap | ||
| Clark Gillies (2) – 16:00 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Denis Potvin (1) – pp – 08:26 Denis Potvin (2) – sh – 12:51 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 04:44 – Bill Fairbairn (3) 13:27 – pp – Bill Fairbairn (4) 13:42 – Steve Vickers (2) | ||||||
| J.P. Parise (2) – 00:11 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Billy Smith | Goalie stats | Gilles Villemure, Ed Giacomin | ||||||
| New York Islanders won series 2–1 | |
Quarterfinals[]
(1) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (8) Toronto Maple Leafs[]
The Philadelphia Flyers entered the playoffs as the defending Stanley Cup champions, the Patrick Division champions, the Clarence Campbell Conference regular season champions, and the first seed overall earning 113 points during the regular season, winning the tie-breaker over both Buffalo and Montreal in total wins. The Toronto Maple Leafs were seeded eighth in the Quarterfinals as the lowest remaining seed in the playoffs and qualified for the Quarterfinals by defeating the Los Angeles Kings in the Preliminary round. This was the first playoff series between these two teams. Philadelphia won this year's season series earning 7 of 8 points during the regular season.
| April 13 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 3–6 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 05:50 – pp – Rick MacLeish (1) 10:21 – Rick MacLeish (2) | ||||||
| Tiger Williams (1) – pp – 11:40 Blaine Stoughton (3) – pp – 18:56 Darryl Sittler (2) – pp – 19:31 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 09:25 – Bill Barber (1) 11:46 – Reggie Leach (1) 12:02 – Jimmy Watson (1) 19:53 – Rick MacLeish (3) | ||||||
| Gord McRae | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| April 15 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0–3 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 03:35 – pp – Andre Dupont (1) 04:36 – Terry Crisp (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 05:12 – Terry Crisp (2) | ||||||
| Gord McRae | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| April 17 | Philadelphia Flyers | 2–0 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Gary Dornhoefer (1) – 03:08 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rick MacLeish (4) – 01:59 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Gord McRae | ||||||
| April 19 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4–3 | OT | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | ||
| Reggie Leach (2) – 03:38 Reggie Leach (3) – pp – 15:48 |
First period | 02:47 – Blaine Stoughton (4) 11:17 – pp – Ron Ellis (2) | ||||||
| Bill Barber (2) – 08:22 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 13:23 – Ron Ellis (3) | ||||||
| Andre Dupont (2) – 01:45 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Gord McRae | ||||||
| Philadelphia won series 4–0 | |
(2) Buffalo Sabres vs. (7) Chicago Black Hawks[]
The Buffalo Sabres entered the playoffs as the Adams Division champions, the Prince of Wales Conference regular season champions, and the second seed overall earning 113 points during the regular season, losing the tie-breaker to Philadelphia while winning the same tie-breaker over Montreal. The Chicago Black Hawks were seeded seventh in the Quarterfinals as the second lowest remaining seed in the playoffs and qualified for the Quarterfinals by defeating the Boston Bruins in the Preliminary round. This was the first playoff series between these two teams. Buffalo won three of the four games in this year's regular season series.
| April 13 | Chicago Blackhawks | 1–4 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 02:11 – Danny Gare (1) 14:35 – Gilbert Perrault (1) 17:25 – Fred Stanfield (1) | ||||||
| Ivan Boldirev (3) – 14:22 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 18:30 – pp – Richard Martin (1) | ||||||
| Tony Esposito | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins | ||||||
| April 15 | Chicago Blackhawks | 1–3 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| Stan Mikita (2) – 00:51 | First period | 01:35 – Danny Gare (2) 09:59 – Rick Dudley (1) 15:09 – pp – Rick Dudley (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Tony Esposito | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins | ||||||
| April 17 | Buffalo Sabres | 4–5 | OT | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | ||
| Richard Martin (2) – pp – 05:00 Gilbert Perreault (2) – pp – 11:57 |
First period | 01:26 – Grant Mulvey (1) 05:20 – pp – Ivan Boldirev (4) 14:43 – Dick Redmond (2) | ||||||
| Don Luce (1) – 08:37 | Second period | 15:38 – Cliff Koroll (3) | ||||||
| Jim Schoenfeld (1) – pp – 08:23 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 02:31 – Stan Mikita (3) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito | ||||||
| April 20 | Buffalo Sabres | 6–2 | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 14:17 – Grant Mulvey (2) | ||||||
| Peter McNab (1) – 00:30 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Jim Lorentz (1) – 00:17 Richard Martin (3) – pp – 01:47 Rene Robert (1) – 05:42 Danny Gare (3) – 10:51 Gilbert Perreault (3) – pp – 14:59 |
Third period | 08:35 – Phil Russell (1) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Tony Esposito | ||||||
| April 22 | Chicago Blackhawks | 1–3 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| Pit Martin (1) – 18:51 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 18:48 – Craig Ramsay (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 01:16 – Rene Robert (2) 15:54 – Jim Lorentz (2) | ||||||
| Tony Esposito | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins | ||||||
| Buffalo won series 4–1 | |
(3) Montreal Canadiens vs. (6) Vancouver Canucks[]
The Montreal Canadiens entered the playoffs as the Norris Division champions, and the third seed overall earning 113 points during the regular season, losing the tie-breaker to both Philadelphia and Buffalo in total wins. The Vancouver Canucks earned 86 points during the regular season and entered the playoffs as the Smythe Division champions. The Canucks were seeded sixth in the Quarterfinals as the third lowest remaining seed in the playoffs and qualified for the Quarterfinals by winning their division. This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. Montreal swept all four games in this year's regular season series. This series also marked the first appearance of a team representing Vancouver in the Stanley Cup playoffs in 51 years. The most recent team to represent Vancouver prior to this was the Vancouver Maroons who lost to the Montreal Canadiens in the 1924 Stanley Cup Semifinals.
| April 13 | Vancouver Canucks | 2–6 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Paulin Bordeleau (1) – 15:40 Gerry O'Flaherty (1) – 17:24 |
First period | 09:02 – Guy Lapointe (1) 12:17 – pp – Guy Lapointe (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 09:29 – Guy Lafleur (1) 13:34 – pp – Yvan Cournoyer (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 11:04 – Guy Lafleur (2) 17:21 – Steve Shutt (1) | ||||||
| Ken Lockett | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| April 15 | Vancouver Canucks | 2–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gerry O'Flaherty (2) – 15:08 | Second period | 12:39 – Doug Risebrough (1) | ||||||
| Garry Monahan (1) – 13:46 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gary Smith | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| April 17 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–1 | Vancouver Canucks | Pacific Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 03:15 – John Gould (1) | ||||||
| Jimmy Roberts (1) – 03:56 Bob Gainey (1) – 15:06 Jacques Lemaire (1) – 19:28 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Guy Lafleur (3) – pp – 06:34 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ken Dryden | Goalie stats | Gary Smith | ||||||
| April 19 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–0 | Vancouver Canucks | Pacific Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Guy Lafleur (4) – 04:06 Yvan Cournoyer (2) – 16:38 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Peter Mahovlich (1) – 07:35 Serge Savard (1) – 14:17 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ken Dryden | Goalie stats | Gary Smith | ||||||
| April 22 | Vancouver Canucks | 4–5 | OT | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | ||
| John Gould (2) – pp – 05:32 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Paulin Bordeleau (2) – pp – 05:45 Andre Boudrias (1) – 10:38 |
Second period | 01:40 – Peter Mahovlich (2) 04:21 – Yvan Cournoyer (3) | ||||||
| Bob Dailey (1) – 05:36 | Third period | 08:09 – Peter Mahovlich (3) 10:54 – Guy Lapointe (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 17:06 – Guy Lafleur (5) | ||||||
| Gary Smith | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| Montreal won series 4–1 | |
(4) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (5) New York Islanders[]
The Pittsburgh Penguins entered the Quarterfinals as the fourth seed and they qualified for this round by defeating the St. Louis Blues in the Preliminary round. The New York Islanders were seeded fifth in the Quarterfinals and qualified for this round by defeating the New York Rangers in the Preliminary round. This was the first playoff series between these two teams. The teams split this year's regular season series. After trailing the series 3–0, the Islanders rallied to win four straight games and take the series. They became the second North American professional sports team (after the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs) to accomplish such a feat.
| April 13 | New York Islanders | 4–5 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Civic Arena | Recap | |||
| Andre St. Laurent (1) – 16:05 | First period | 02:05 – sh – Vic Hadfield (2) 10:59 – Ron Stackhouse (2) 14:52 – Pete Laframboise (1) | ||||||
| Bob Bourne (1) – pp – 12:10 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| J.P. Parise (3) – pp – 06:52 J.P. Parise (4) – 17:47 |
Third period | 00:36 – Bob Kelly (2) 04:44 – Dave Burrows (1) | ||||||
| Billy Smith | Goalie stats | Gary Inness | ||||||
| April 15 | New York Islanders | 1–3 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Civic Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 00:24 – Jean Pronovost (2) 09:30 – Lowell MacDonald (1) | ||||||
| Clark Gillies (3) – 15:34 | Third period | 14:51 – Lowell MacDonald (2) | ||||||
| Billy Smith | Goalie stats | Gary Inness | ||||||
| April 17 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 6–4 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Jean Pronovost (3) – 04:12 Bob Kelly (3) – 07:26 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bob Kelly (4) – 03:25 | Second period | 07:26 – sh – Ed Westfall (1) | ||||||
| Vic Hadfield (3) – 10:31 Syl Apps Jr. (2) – 18:15 Lowell MacDonald (3) – 19:48 |
Third period | 01:17 – Jude Drouin (1) 17:41 – Bert Marshall (2) 19:08 – Jude Drouin (2) | ||||||
| Gary Inness | Goalie stats | Billy Smith | ||||||
| April 20 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 1–3 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 03:48 – pp – Andre St. Laurent (2) | ||||||
| Bob Kelly (5) – pp – 08:18 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 06:16 – Clark Gillies (4) 06:55 – J.P. Parise (5) | ||||||
| Gary Inness | Goalie stats | Chico Resch | ||||||
| April 22 | New York Islanders | 4–2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Civic Arena | Recap | |||
| Billy Harris (2) – pp – 02:11 Ralph Stewart (1) – 05:24 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ed Westfall (2) – pp – 11:47 | Second period | 08:14 – Vic Hadfield (4) | ||||||
| Jude Drouin (3) – 19:30 | Third period | 17:06 – Lowell MacDonald (4) | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Gary Inness | ||||||
| April 24 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 1–4 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Pierre Larouche (2) – 04:56 | Second period | 04:07 – Ralph Stewart (2) 15:16 – Garry Howatt (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 19:34 – Ed Westfall (3) 19:59 – Garry Howatt (2) | ||||||
| Gary Inness | Goalie stats | Chico Resch | ||||||
| April 26 | New York Islanders | 1–0 | Pittsburgh Penguins | Civic Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ed Westfall (4) – 14:42 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Gary Inness | ||||||
| New York won series 4–3 | |
Semifinals[]
(1) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (4) New York Islanders[]
This was the first playoff series between these two teams. The Flyers won this year's season series earning eight of twelve points during the regular season. After becoming the second North American professional sports team to win a best-of-seven series after trailing 3–0 in the previous round against the Penguins, the Islanders almost accomplished the same feat in this round. However, the Flyers firmly defeated them in game seven to preserve the series win.
| April 29 | New York Islanders | 0–4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 06:04 – Don Saleski (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 02:39 – Bill Barber (3) 18:19 – sh – Bobby Clarke (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 01:34 – pp – Rick MacLeish (5) | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Wayne Stephenson | ||||||
| May 1 | New York Islanders | 4–5 | OT | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | ||
| Denis Potvin (3) – pp – 05:34 | First period | 03:13 – Gary Dornhoefer (2) 07:38 – Reggie Leach (4) 09:50 – pp – Tom Bladon (1) | ||||||
| J.P. Parise (6) – pp – 12:22 | Second period | 00:58 – Bill Barber (4) | ||||||
| J.P. Parise (7) – 13:46 Denis Potvin (4) – 14:00 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 02:56 – Bobby Clarke (2) | ||||||
| Billy Smith | Goalie stats | Wayne Stephenson | ||||||
| May 4 | Philadelphia Flyers | 1–0 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Reggie Leach (5) – 00:30 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Chico Resch | ||||||
| May 7 | Philadelphia Flyers | 3–4 | OT | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 04:58 – pp – Ed Westfall (5) | ||||||
| Ross Lonsberry (1) – 17:24 Rick MacLeish (6) – 19:21 |
Second period | 05:29 – Gerry Hart (1) 12:49 – pp – Ralph Stewart (3) | ||||||
| Rick MacLeish (7) – 04:48 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 01:53 – Jude Drouin (4) | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Chico Resch | ||||||
| May 8 | New York Islanders | 5–1 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| J.P. Parise (8) – pp – 14:19 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Billy Harris (3) – 14:23 Jude Drouin (5) – 17:35 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bobby Nystrom (1) – 10:51 Garry Howatt (3) – 18:23 |
Third period | 15:10 – Bob Kelly (1) | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| May 11 | Philadelphia Flyers | 1–2 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Ross Lonsberry (2) – 01:42 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 16:15 – pp – Denis Potvin (5) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 03:42 – Gerry Hart (2) | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Chico Resch | ||||||
| May 13 | New York Islanders | 1–4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| Jude Drouin (6) – pp – 05:02 | First period | 00:19 – Gary Dornhoefer (3) 02:27 – pp – Rick MacLeish (8) 07:11 – pp – Rick MacLeish (9) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 18:52 – Rick MacLeish (10) | ||||||
| Chico Resch | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| Philadelphia won series 4–3 | |
(2) Buffalo Sabres vs. (3) Montreal Canadiens[]
This was the second playoff series between these two teams, with Montreal winning the only previous meeting. They last met in the 1973 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals where Montreal won in six games. Buffalo won this year's season series earning nine of ten points during the regular season.
| April 27 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–6 | OT | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | ||
| Guy Lapointe (4) – pp – 00:32 Guy Lafleur (6) – 18:29 |
First period | 05:12 – pp – Richard Martin (4) 11:22 – Rene Robert (3) 18:07 – Rick Dudley (3) | ||||||
| Guy Lapointe (5) – sh – 06:44 Yvan Cournoyer (4) – pp – 10:57 |
Second period | 18:15 – Gilbert Perreault (4) | ||||||
| Jacques Lemaire (2) – 19:36 | Third period | 04:20 – Jim Lorentz (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 04:42 – Danny Gare (4) | ||||||
| Ken Dryden | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins, Roger Crozier | ||||||
| April 29 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–4 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 17:20 – Don Luce (2) | ||||||
| Yvon Lambert (1) – pp – 11:22 | Second period | 09:53 – Jim Lorentz (4) | ||||||
| Henri Richard (1) – 09:00 | Third period | 01:27 – Craig Ramsay (2) 19:50 – Danny Gare (5) | ||||||
| Ken Dryden | Goalie stats | Roger Crozier | ||||||
| May 1 | Buffalo Sabres | 0–7 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 01:38 – pp – Peter Mahovlich (4) 18:56 – Guy Lafleur (7) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 17:33 – Jacques Lemaire (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 01:24 – Yvon Lambert (2) 08:51 – Doug Risebrough (2) 14:55 – pp – Guy Lafleur (8) 15:22 – Guy Lafleur (9) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins, Roger Crozier | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| May 3 | Buffalo Sabres | 2–8 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Don Luce (3) – sh – 06:42 | First period | 07:59 – Bob Gainey (2) 19:21 – pp – Jacques Lemaire (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 12:51 – pp – Guy Lafleur (10) 15:30 – Yvon Lambert (3) | ||||||
| Jerry Korab (1) – 10:28 | Third period | 03:08 – pp – Guy Lafleur (11) 06:34 – pp – Yvon Lambert (4) 08:48 – pp – Guy Lapointe (6) 17:52 – Glen Sather (1) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| May 6 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–5 | OT | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | ||
| Jacques Lemaire (5) – 02:51 Yvan Cournoyer (5) – 19:53 |
First period | 02:18 – Craig Ramsay (3) 08:37 – Fred Stanfield (2) 17:03 – pp – Gilbert Perreault (5) | ||||||
| Doug Risebrough (3) – 08:40 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Jimmy Roberts (2) – 03:10 | Third period | 14:35 – pp – Craig Ramsay (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 05:56 – Rene Robert (4) | ||||||
| Ken Dryden | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins | ||||||
| May 8 | Buffalo Sabres | 4–3 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Craig Ramsay (5) – sh – 02:05 Richard Martin (5) – 08:51 Peter McNab (2) – 12:48 |
First period | 09:48 – Peter Mahovlich (5) | ||||||
| Jim Lorentz (5) – 09:33 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 08:05 – Guy Lafleur (12) 18:55 – Peter Mahovlich (6) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Ken Dryden | ||||||
| Buffalo won series 4–2 | |
Stanley Cup Finals[]
This was the Philadelphia Flyers' second consecutive Stanley Cup Finals appearance and second overall. In the previous year's Stanley Cup Finals, the Flyers defeated the Boston Bruins in six games. This was the Buffalo Sabres' first Stanley Cup Finals appearance in their fifth season. This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. The Buffalo Sabres won this year's regular season series earning seven of eight points.
In the first Stanley Cup Finals matchup between two expansion teams, The Philadelphia Flyers beat the Buffalo Sabres four games to two for their second consecutive Stanley Cup.
| May 15 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Richard Martin (6) – pp – 11:07 | Third period | 03:42 – Bill Barber (5) 07:29 – pp – Ross Lonsberry (3) 11:41 – pp – Bobby Clarke (3) 19:02 – Bill Barber (6) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| May 18 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–2 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 08:24 – Reggie Leach (6) | ||||||
| Jerry Korab (2) – 02:18 | Third period | 06:43 – pp – Bobby Clarke (4) | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| May 20 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4–5 | OT | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | ||
| Gary Dornhoefer (4) – 00:39 Don Saleski (2) – 03:09 Rick MacLeish (11) – 14:13 |
First period | 11:46 – Danny Gare (6) 12:03 – Richard Martin (7) | ||||||
| Reggie Leach (7) – 14:30 | Second period | 00:29 – Don Luce (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 09:56 – Bill Hajt (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 18:29 – Rene Robert (5) | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins, Roger Crozier | ||||||
| May 22 | Philadelphia Flyers | 2–4 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| Andre Dupont (3) – 11:28 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ross Lonsberry (4) – 04:20 | Second period | 03:46 – pp – Jerry Korab (3) 10:07 – pp – Gilbert Perreault (6) 15:07 – Jim Lorentz (6) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 19:28 – Danny Gare (7) | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Gerry Desjardins | ||||||
| May 25 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–5 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 03:12 – Dave Schultz (1) 12:31 – Gary Dornhoefer (5) 12:50 – Bob Kelly (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 01:55 – pp – Reggie Leach (8) 09:56 – Dave Schultz (2) | ||||||
| Don Luce (5) – 14:02 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gerry Desjardins | Goalie stats | Bernie Parent | ||||||
| May 27 | Philadelphia Flyers | 2–0 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bob Kelly (3) – 00:11 Bill Clement (1) – 17:13 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bernie Parent | Goalie stats | Roger Crozier | ||||||
| Philadelphia won series 4–2 | |
See Also[]
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- 1974 NHL amateur draft
- 1974 NHL Expansion Draft
- 28th National Hockey League All-Star Game
- National Hockey League All-Star Game
- List of WHA seasons
- 1974 in sports
- 1975 in sports
References[]
- (2000) in Diamond, Dan: Total Hockey. Kingston, NY: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
- (2011) The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
- (2000) Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd.. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
- (2003) The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International Inc.. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
- Notes
External links[]
| 1974–75 NHL season by team | |
|---|---|
| Patrick | Atlanta • NY Islanders • NY Rangers • Philadelphia |
| Adams | Boston • Buffalo • California • Toronto |
| Norris | Detroit • Los Angeles • Montreal • Pittsburgh • Washington |
| Smythe | Chicago • Kansas City • Minnesota • St. Louis • Vancouver |
| See also | 1974 NHL Amateur Draft • All-Star Game • 1975 Stanley Cup Finals |
| NHL Seasons |
|---|
|
1970-71 | 1971-72 | 1972-73 | 1973-74 | 1974-75 | 1975-76 | 1976-77 | 1977-78 | 1978-79 |
| National Hockey League | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| |||||||||
| Structure | Playoffs (Streaks • Droughts • All-time playoff series) • Conference Finals • Finals |
|---|---|
| Annual events | Seasons • Stanley Cup (Champions • Winning players • Traditions and anecdotes) • Presidents' Trophy • All-Star Game • Draft • Awards • All-Star Teams |
| Players | List of players • Association • Retired jersey numbers • Captains |
| History | Lore • Organizational changes :: • Defunct teams • NHA • Original Six • 1967 Expansion • WHA Merger • Lockouts |
| Others | Outdoor games (Winter Classic • Heritage Classic • Stadium Series) • Potential expansion • Hall of Fame (Members) • Rivalries • Arenas • Rules • Fighting • Violence : International games • Kraft Hockeyville • Collective bargaining agreement • Television and radio coverage |
| Category • 2022–23 Season • 2023–24 Season • 2024–25 Season | |