1972-73 NHL season facts for kids
The 1972–73 NHL season was the 56th season for the National Hockey League. Sixteen teams played 78 games each. This season was special because a new hockey league, the World Hockey Association (WHA), started up. It was the first time since 1926 that the NHL had a big rival. The WHA had 12 new teams, and many of them were in the same cities as NHL teams.
To compete with the WHA, the NHL quickly added two new teams: the New York Islanders and the Atlanta Flames. They did this to make sure the WHA couldn't use the new sports arenas in those cities.
The WHA made a big splash by signing famous player Bobby Hull. The Chicago Black Hawks even sued, saying it broke their player contract rules. Other star players like Bernie Parent, J.C. Tremblay, Ted Green, Gerry Cheevers, and Johnny McKenzie also joined the WHA. When the new NHL teams picked their players, eleven Islanders players left to join the WHA. The California Golden Seals also lost eight important players because of issues with their team owner and the new league.
Contents
Regular Season Highlights
The 1972–73 regular season was full of exciting games. Teams played to earn enough points to make it to the playoffs.
Team Standings
Here's how the teams finished in their divisions. The teams in bold made it to the playoffs.
- GP: Games Played (how many games the team played)
- W: Wins (how many games the team won)
- L: Losses (how many games the team lost)
- T: Ties (how many games ended in a tie)
- Pts: Points (teams get points for wins and ties)
- GF: Goals For (how many goals the team scored)
- GA: Goals Against (how many goals were scored against the team)
- PIM: Penalties in Minutes (how many penalty minutes the team had)
| East Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 52 | 10 | 16 | 120 | 329 | 184 | 783 |
| Boston Bruins | 78 | 51 | 22 | 5 | 107 | 330 | 235 | 1097 |
| New York Rangers | 78 | 47 | 23 | 8 | 102 | 297 | 208 | 765 |
| Buffalo Sabres | 78 | 37 | 27 | 14 | 88 | 257 | 219 | 940 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 86 | 265 | 243 | 893 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 78 | 27 | 41 | 10 | 64 | 247 | 279 | 716 |
| Vancouver Canucks | 78 | 22 | 47 | 9 | 53 | 233 | 339 | 943 |
| New York Islanders | 78 | 12 | 60 | 6 | 30 | 170 | 347 | 881 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 42 | 27 | 9 | 93 | 284 | 225 | 864 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 85 | 296 | 256 | 1756 |
| Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 30 | 11 | 85 | 254 | 230 | 881 |
| St. Louis Blues | 78 | 32 | 34 | 12 | 76 | 233 | 251 | 1195 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 32 | 37 | 9 | 73 | 257 | 265 | 866 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 31 | 36 | 11 | 73 | 232 | 245 | 888 |
| Atlanta Flames | 78 | 25 | 38 | 15 | 65 | 191 | 239 | 852 |
| California Golden Seals | 78 | 16 | 46 | 16 | 48 | 213 | 323 | 840 |
Top Scorers
These players scored the most points during the regular season. Points are from goals and assists.
- GP: Games Played
- G: Goals
- A: Assists
- Pts: Points (Goals + Assists)
- PIM: Penalties in Minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Phil Esposito | Boston Bruins | 78 | 55 | 75 | 130 | 87 |
| Bobby Clarke | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 37 | 67 | 104 | 80 |
| Bobby Orr | Boston Bruins | 63 | 29 | 72 | 101 | 99 |
| Rick MacLeish | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 50 | 50 | 100 | 69 |
| Jacques Lemaire | Montreal Canadiens | 77 | 44 | 51 | 95 | 16 |
| Jean Ratelle | New York Rangers | 78 | 41 | 53 | 94 | 12 |
| Mickey Redmond | Detroit Red Wings | 76 | 52 | 41 | 93 | 24 |
| John Bucyk | Boston Bruins | 78 | 40 | 53 | 93 | 12 |
| Frank Mahovlich | Montreal Canadiens | 78 | 38 | 55 | 93 | 51 |
| Jim Pappin | Chicago Black Hawks | 76 | 41 | 51 | 92 | 82 |
Stanley Cup Playoffs
The Stanley Cup playoffs are a tournament where the best teams from the regular season play each other. They compete to win the Stanley Cup, one of the oldest and most famous trophies in sports.
Playoff Path to the Cup
Here's how the teams battled it out in the playoffs:
| Quarterfinals | Semifinals | Finals | |||||||||||
| E1 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | |||||||||||
| E4 | Buffalo Sabres | 2 | |||||||||||
| E1 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | |||||||||||
| W2 | Philadelphia Flyers | 1 | |||||||||||
| W2 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4 | |||||||||||
| W3 | Minnesota North Stars | 2 | |||||||||||
| E1 | Montreal Canadiens | 4 | |||||||||||
| W1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 2 | |||||||||||
| W1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 4 | |||||||||||
| W4 | St. Louis Blues | 1 | |||||||||||
| W1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 4 | |||||||||||
| E3 | New York Rangers | 1 | |||||||||||
| E2 | Boston Bruins | 1 | |||||||||||
| E3 | New York Rangers | 4 | |||||||||||
The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup this season! They beat the Chicago Black Hawks in the final series.
NHL Awards and Honors
Many players and teams received special awards for their great performance during the season.
| Prince of Wales Trophy: | Montreal Canadiens |
| Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: | Chicago Black Hawks |
| Art Ross Memorial Trophy: | Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins (for most points) |
| Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: | Lowell MacDonald, Pittsburgh Penguins (for perseverance and sportsmanship) |
| Calder Memorial Trophy: | Steve Vickers, New York Rangers (for best rookie player) |
| Conn Smythe Trophy: | Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens (for most valuable player in the playoffs) |
| Hart Memorial Trophy: | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers (for most valuable player to his team) |
| James Norris Memorial Trophy: | Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins (for best defenseman) |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: | Gilbert Perreault, Buffalo Sabres (for sportsmanship and gentlemanly conduct) |
| Lester B. Pearson Award: | Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins (for most outstanding player, voted by players) |
| NHL Plus/Minus Award: | Jacques Laperriere, Montreal Canadiens (for best plus/minus rating) |
| Vezina Trophy: | Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens (for best goaltender) |
| Lester Patrick Trophy: | Walter L. Bush, Jr. (for contributions to hockey in the United States) |
All-Star Teams
The best players at each position were chosen for the First and Second All-Star Teams.
| First Team | Position | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens | G | Tony Esposito, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins | D | Brad Park, New York Rangers |
| Guy Lapointe, Montreal Canadiens | D | Bill White, Chicago Black Hawks |
| Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins | C | Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers |
| Mickey Redmond, Detroit Red Wings | RW | Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens |
| Frank Mahovlich, Montreal Canadiens | LW | Dennis Hull, Chicago Black Hawks |
