The 1974-75 NHL season was the 58th season of the National Hockey League. Eighteen teams each played 80 games. With the addition of two new teams, the Washington Capitals and Kansas City Scouts, the NHL bumped up the number of games from 78 to 80 and split the previously two-division league into four divisions and two conferences.
Because the new conferences and divisions had little to do with North American geography, geographical references were also removed. The East Division became the Prince of Wales Conference and consisted of the Adams Division and Norris Division and the West Division became the Clarence Campbell Conference and consisted of the Patrick Division and Smythe Division. The Patrick and Norris Divisions changed conferences with one another following the 1980-81 season. This further expansion was considered by many ill-fated, and with the World Hockey Association continuing to drain talent away, the Capitals had the worst season ever recorded in the history of major professional hockey, and the third worst in the postwar era the following season, while the Scouts the following season would have the fifth worst record of the postwar era.
Pre-season[]
The first set of exhibition games between the NHL and WHA were held. The NHL was victorious in the series, winning 5 and losing 2 games.
September 26, 1974: Houston Aeros 5, St. Louis Blues 3
September 28, 1974: Philadelphia Flyers 4, New England Whalers 2
September 29, 1974: Atlanta Flames 3, Winnipeg Jets 1
October 5, 1974: San Diego Mariners 4, California Golden Seals 3
October 6, 1974: Minnesota North Stars 5, Toronto Toros 3
October 6, 1974: Vancouver Canucks 4, Edmonton Oilers 3
October 6, 1974: Pittsburgh Penguins 5, Cleveland Crusaders 3
Regular Season[]
At 8:22 of the first period of the Boston-Minnesota game on January 4, 1975, Dave Forbes checked Henry Boucha into the boards in the North Stars corner. Boucha took exception and suckered punched Forbes. A melee ensued which quickly died down. Terry O'Reilly was deemed to be the third man in and was given a game misconduct. Boucha and Forbes were each given seven penalty minutes and both went to the box without any overt animosity. However, as soon as their penalties expired and they took to the ice, Forbes butt ended Boucha in the face, fracturing his eye socket. Another melee ensued but quickly ended as the extend of Boucha's injury was realized. Bleeding profusely, Boucha was stretchered off. When the dust settled, Boston was short handed for ten minutes, which they killed off. The Bruins went on to win 8-0, scoring a short handed goal and seven power plays goals, an NHL record. Forbes was given a ten game suspension and charged with aggravated assault. His trail ended in a hung jury. Forbes and the Bruins settled a civil case by paying Boucha in excess of one million dollars. Boucha made a comeback, playing the next season for the Kansas City Scouts and the Minnesota Fighting Saints of the WHA but with his vision permanently affected, he retired from pro hockey.
For the first time ever in the National Hockey League, there was a three-way tie for first place overall. The respective divisional leaders of the Norris, Patrick, and Adams all had 113 points. The Vancouver Canucks, which had been playing in the original East Division since they debuted in the league were moved over to the Campbell Conference and lead the way in the Smythe Division with a comparatively meager 86 points.
Final Standings[]
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against, PIM = Penalties in minutes
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.
Scoring Leaders[]
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bobby Orr | Boston Bruins | 80 | 46 | 89 | 135 | 101 |
Phil Esposito | Boston Bruins | 79 | 61 | 66 | 127 | 62 |
Marcel Dionne | Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 47 | 74 | 121 | 14 |
Guy Lafleur | Montreal Canadiens | 70 | 53 | 66 | 119 | 37 |
Pete Mahovlich | Montreal Canadiens | 80 | 35 | 82 | 117 | 64 |
Bobby Clarke | Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 27 | 89 | 116 | 125 |
Rene Robert | Buffalo Sabres | 74 | 40 | 60 | 100 | 75 |
Rod Gilbert | New York Rangers | 76 | 36 | 61 | 97 | 22 |
Gilbert Perreault | Buffalo Sabres | 68 | 39 | 57 | 96 | 36 |
Rick Martin | Buffalo Sabres | 68 | 52 | 43 | 95 | 72 |
Leading Goaltenders[]
Note: GP = Games played; Min – Minutes Played; GA = Goals Against; GAA = Goals Against Average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts
Player | Team | GP | MIN | GA | GAA | W | L | T | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Bernie Parent | Philadelphia Flyers | 68 | 4041 | 137 | 2.03 | 44 | 14 | 10 | 12 |
Rogatien Vachon | L.A. Kings | 54 | 3239 | 121 | 2.24 | 27 | 14 | 13 | 6 |
Gary Edwards | L.A. Kings | 27 | 1561 | 61 | 2.34 | 15 | 3 | 8 | 3 |
Chico Resch | N.Y. Islanders | 25 | 1432 | 59 | 2.47 | 12 | 7 | 5 | 3 |
Roger Crozier | Buffalo Sabres | 23 | 1260 | 55 | 2.62 | 17 | 2 | 1 | 3 |
Ken Dryden | Montreal Canadiens | 56 | 3320 | 149 | 2.69 | 30 | 9 | 16 | 4 |
Tony Esposito | Chicago Black Hawks | 71 | 4219 | 193 | 2.74 | 34 | 30 | 7 | 6 |
Billy Smith | N.Y. Islanders | 58 | 3368 | 156 | 2.78 | 21 | 18 | 17 | 3 |
Dan Bouchard | Atlanta Flames | 40 | 2400 | 111 | 2.78 | 20 | 15 | 5 | 3 |
Phil Myre | Atlanta Flames | 40 | 2400 | 114 | 2.85 | 14 | 16 | 10 | 5 |
Stanley Cup Playoffs[]
All dates in 1975
The playoffs were expanded from 8 to 12 teams with the top 3 teams in each division qualifying for the playoffs. The first place teams in each division earned a first round bye, while the 2nd and 3rd place teams were seeded 1-8 based on their regular season record and played a best 2 out of 3 "mini-series." The four division winners then joined the 4 mini series winners in the quarter finals, and they were again re-seeded 1-8 based on regular season record. This re-seeding would take place again in the semi finals, and continues to this day in the current playoff format. 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 National Basketball Association.
With the new conference and division structure, the 1975 Stanley Cup playoffs used a new format. Twelve teams qualified for the post-season. The four division winners from the regular season received byes to the quarterfinal round. The next two teams in each division (eight teams total) were ranked according to their regular season point totals, with the highest ranked team playing against the lowest ranked team, and so on, in a best-of-three preliminary round. The four preliminary round winners and four division winners were re-ranked for the subsequent round. The biggest beneficiary of this format was the Vancouver Canucks, who were 9th in the regular season but received a first-round bye for winning the relatively weak Smythe Division. Unfortunately for Vancouver, the fact that the second round 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 4–1. The team that suffered the most from the new format, the Los Angeles Kings, had the 4th best overall record but had to play in the risky mini series where they were upset by the 12th-seeded Toronto Maple Leafs 2–1.
Finals[]
- Philadelphia Flyers beat the Buffalo Sabres 4–2 for their second consecutive Stanley Cup. The
Playoff Bracket[]
Preliminary Round | Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | |||||||||||||||
1 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | Los Angeles Kings | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
8 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | New York Islanders | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
7 | St. Louis Blues | 0 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 3 | ||||||||||||||||
5 | New York Islanders | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | New York Rangers | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | New York Islanders | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
1 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | Buffalo Sabres | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | Buffalo Sabres | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
7 | Chicago Black Hawks | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
4 | Boston Bruins | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
5 | Chicago Black Hawks | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
2 | Buffalo Sabres | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | Montreal Canadiens | 2 | ||||||||||||||||
3 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | ||||||||||||||||
6 | Vancouver Canucks | 1 | ||||||||||||||||
- Division winners earned a bye to the Quarterfinals.
- Teams re-seeded based on regular season record after the Preliminary and Quarterfinal rounds.
NHL Awards[]
Prince of Wales Trophy: | Buffalo Sabres |
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: | Philadelphia Flyers |
Art Ross Memorial Trophy: | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: | Don Luce, Buffalo Sabres |
Calder Memorial Trophy: | Eric Vail, Atlanta Flames |
Conn Smythe Trophy: | Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers |
Hart Memorial Trophy: | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers |
Jack Adams Award: | Bob Pulford, Los Angeles Kings |
James Norris Memorial Trophy: | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: | Marcel Dionne, Detroit Red Wings |
Lester B. Pearson Award: | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
NHL Plus/Minus Award: | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins |
Vezina Trophy: | Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers |
Lester Patrick Trophy: | Donald M. Clark, William L. Chadwick, Thomas N. Ivan |
All-Star Teams[]
First Team | Position | Second Team |
---|---|---|
Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers | G | Rogie Vachon, Los Angeles Kings |
Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins | D | Guy Lapointe, Montreal Canadiens |
Denis Potvin, New York Islanders | D | Borje Salming, Toronto Maple Leafs |
Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers | C | Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins |
Guy Lafleur, Montreal Canadiens | RW | Rene Robert, Buffalo Sabres |
Rick Martin, Buffalo Sabres | LW | Steve Vickers, New York Rangers |
Debuts[]
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1974-75 (listed with their first team):
- Guy Chouinard, Atlanta Flames
- Danny Gare, Buffalo Sabres
- Charlie Simmer, California Golden Seals
- Wilf Paiement, Kansas City Scouts
- Clark Gillies, New York Islanders
- Bob Bourne, New York Islanders
- Rick Middleton, New York Rangers
- Ron Greschner, New York Rangers
- Bob MacMillan, New York Rangers
- Pierre Larouche, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Tiger Williams, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Harold Snepsts, Vancouver Canucks
Last Games[]
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1974-75 (listed with their last team):
- Murray Oliver, Minnesota North Stars
- Henri Richard, Montreal Canadiens
- Bobby Rousseau, New York Rangers
- Ted Harris, Philadelphia Flyers
- Eddie Shack, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Norm Ullman, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Doug Mohns, Washington Capitals
Gallery[]
Video[]
Two videos of the two fights between Dave Forbes and Henry Boucha which led to Boucha's eye injury on January 4, 1975.
Nearly 20 minutes of highlights of the March 16, 1975 Canucks-Black Hawks game. Gary Smith is concussed during a goal by Phil Russell and leaves the game to be replaced by Ken Lockett.
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
References[]
NHL Seasons |
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1970-71 | 1971-72 | 1972-73 | 1973-74 | 1974-75 | 1975-76 | 1976-77 | 1977-78 | 1978-79 |
National Hockey League | |||||||||
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|
Structure | Playoffs (Streaks • Droughts • All-time playoff series) • Conference Finals • Finals |
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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 • 2020–21 Season • 2021–22 Season • 2022–23 Season |
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 |