About This Quiz
Since the NHL was founded in 1917, the NHL has grown from Canada's passion to a worldwide sport. In 2019, seventeen different countries were represented in the league. Not surprisingly, almost half the players are from Canada. However, you may be surprised to hear that even Australia has a player in the league (Nathan Walker).
From 1942-1967, there were only six teams in the NHL, which were colloquially known as the "Original Six." All six of those teams are still in the league, but 25 other squads join them. Before the 2021 season, the NHL will become a 32 team league with the addition of Seattle.Â
There are tons of hockey trivia challenges out there that ask you the same basic questions, like "Who has the record for most goals in a season?" But let's face it, if you've ever watched an NHL game, you probably already know the answer to that.
You may think you're a true hockey fan, but we've selected some tough questions that are going to push your knowledge to limit. We think you'd be lucky to get even 11 questions correct. Think you can do better than that? Prove it to us by starting this quiz now!
Love them or hate them, the Canadiens have been the most dominant team in the league in the last hundred years. They won the Stanley Cup five years in a row from 1956-1960, and 16 years later they went on another streak of 4 straight cups.
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There have been six players in the NHL to wear number 99. Joe Lamb was the first starting in 1934. It's unlikely anybody will ever wear number 99 again after it was retired in the year 2000.
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After the Brooklyn Americans disbanded in 1942, the league was reduced to six teams known as the Original Six. The NHL didn't expand again until 1967 when six more teams were added, and the league will add its 32nd team in Seattle before the 2021 season.
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Sid "the Kid" Crosby was touted as a future star since he was 13. He started his midget league hockey career at the age of 14 against 15-17-year-olds and scored a total of 217 points during the regular season and playoffs. Not surprisingly, he was drafted number one overall when he turned 18.
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The Capitals may be one of the most recent Stanley Cup championships, but they've only won one cup in their franchise history. Their only other appearance in the Stanley Cup final was in 1998 when they lost to the Red Wings.
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In 1991, Fleury scored three goals in the same game while shorthanded. Twenty-eight years later, nobody has accomplished this feat again. Two of his goals came a mere eight seconds apart from each other.
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The Seattle Metropolitans were never part of the NHL, but they did win the Stanley Cup. Before the NHL was the NHL, the winner of the Pacific Coast Hockey Association played the winner of the National Hockey Association (NHA). Seattle beat the NHA champion, the Montreal Canadiens in 1917.
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This line's name came from both their ability to offensively control the ice and physical size — All three players were well over six foot and 230 lbs. The line broke up after 1997 when Renberg was traded for Chis Gratton.
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Helmets became mandatory in 1979 for players entering the league, but players already in the NHL were allowed to play helmetless. Seventeen years later, MacTavish retired, still helmetless.
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Scotty Bowman was an active NHL coach for 35 years from 1967 to 2002. Besides holding the record for highest winning percentage, he also holds the record for the coach with the most Stanley Cups (nine).
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Mario Lemieux stopped Gretzky's streak of eight straight MVP awards in 1987-1988 when the Canadian center took home the prize. Gretzky would win the MVP again in the next season before passing the torch to Mark Messier.
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Gretzky overshadowed Mark Messier for most of his career, but he put up numbers that rank him near the top of the all-time list. He retired in 2004 with 694 goals and 1,193 assists.
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When a player like Bobby Hull comes along, it's hard to imagine that his son is going to be equally or more successful. However, Brett Hull became one of five players to ever score 50 goals in 50 games or less. They're the only father and son to each score more than 50 goals in a season.
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Even to this day, Bobby Orr is the only defensemen to win a scoring title, and he did it twice. Not surprisingly, he also holds the record for most points in a season for a defenseman with 139.
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Patrick Kane started his career with a bang in 2007-2008 with a 72 point season and Rookie of the Year award. He would later go on to set a career high in points in 2015-2016 with 106. He led the league that season.
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Grant had a career highlighted by his defensive awards including winning a Vezina and Jennings award. However, in the 1983-1984 season, he helped set up 14 goals. He never scored a goal himself but retired with 37 assists.
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Dominik Hasek arrived in Buffalo when Grant Fuhr was there wearing the number 31. Hasek decided to switch to number 39, and now he's considered the best player to ever wear that number.
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If you're a true Sharks fan, you'll be happy to know that the fog goal horn sound used at the stadium is available for download as a cell phone ring tone. Maybe if enough people download it, it will help the Sharks rally toward their first cup!
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The Jack Adams award is given to the coach of the year. The 2017-2018 winner was Gerard Gallant for his role in taking the Golden Knights to the NHL final in their first season with a hodgepodge of players unprotected by other teams.
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There have been 14 goalies who have scored in the NHL. The last time a goalie scored in the NHL was in the 2013-2014 season when Mike Smith scored against the Detroit Red Wings on October 19th.
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As amazing as it is that Henri Richard won 11 Stanley Cups, it's even more impressive that he managed to win all 11 with the same team. Henri's cup run ran from 1956 to 1973 with the Montreal Canadiens.
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Phil Housley played more than two decades in the NHL without winning a Stanley Cup. He split his career (1,495 games) between nine teams, starting with the Sabers and ending with the Maple Leafs.
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I guess you could say that the Maple Leafs are in a bit of a dry spell. With the recent addition of John Tavares and a young core, there could be a cup coming to Toronto soon. Hopefully, it's not another 50 years ...
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The Blue Jackets have been in the NHL for 17 seasons. They've made it to the playoffs four times, but only once have they made it past the first round. Their highest regular season finish was third in the West.
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Martin Brodeur finished his career with 125 shutouts, putting him 22 above the next highest (Terry Sawchuk). He recorded his highest shutout total in 2006-2007 with 12. He recorded at least one shutout every full year he was in the league.
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Tiger Williams recorded a staggering 3,966 penalty minutes. On one hand, he was a good enough hockey player to play in the league for 16 seasons. On the other hand, he spent almost 40 complete days in the sin bin.
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Jaromir Jagr is number two on the all-time points list, despite playing in the KHL and Czech hockey league intermediately throughout his career. He may be number two, but he had the number one mullet in the 90s.
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Pavel Bure is one of the greatest scorers to play in the NHL. After scoring 34 goals in his rookie season, he finished with two straight 60 goal seasons. He spent much of his career injured and was out of the league by age 31.
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Selanne had arguably the most dominant season of any rookie in NHL history. He scored an incredible 76 goals in 1992-1993 with the Jets. He would never score more goals in a season but still had a long and successful career.
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Chris Chelios came into the league in the league in 1981-1982 and wouldn't leave until 2009-2010 in his age-48 season. He is the second oldest player to play in the NHL behind the great Gordie Howe.
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Connor McDavid is the youngest permanent captain in the NHL. However, Brian Bellows served as an interim captain for the North Stars during the 1984 season when he was 19 years old.
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The Pittsburg Penguins last won the Stanley Cup in the 2015-2016 season and the 2016-2017 season. The Penguins have been one of the most successful franchises in the league since drafting Sidney Crosby.
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Glen Hanlon may have let up the first goal of Gretzky's career, but he certainly wouldn't be the last. Before Gretzky retired, he would net another 893 goals en route to becoming the top scorer in NHL history.
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Ovechkin is probably the only active player who has a chance at breaking Gretzky's all-time goal record. After the 2019 season, he sits at 658 goals, putting him roughly 240 away from the Great One.
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There's not a living person with a memory of the NHA, but it played an essential role in the creation of the NHL. During the early seasons, there was hostility between the owners.
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The first All-Star game was on October 13, 1947 in Toronto at Maple Leaf Gardens. At this game, the Toronto Maple Leafs played an All-Star team of players from the rest of the league.
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Plante won the Vezina award in five straight seasons from 1956 to 1960. His streak came to an end the next season, but he didn't have to wait long before adding another trophy to his cabinet in 1962 and a final one in 1969.
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The Islanders didn't come into existence until the year 1972. However, they found quick success in the league and won their first Stanley Cup in the 1979-1980 season. They would follow it with three more consecutive cups.
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A standard NHL net is six feet wide. That may seem like plenty of room to slip a puck by the goalie. However, when you add a net-minder who's over six feet tall and wearing pads, it doesn't leave as much room as you may think.
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Wayne Gretzky wanted to wear number 9 when he played junior hockey with the Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds. However, the number was already taken, so he ended up selecting number 99. As they say, the rest is history.
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