1970–71 NHL season

The 1970–71 NHL season was the 54th season of the National Hockey League (NHL). Fourteen teams each played 78 games. The Montreal Canadiens were the Stanley Cup winners as they swept the Chicago Black Hawks in seven games in the final series. The Buffalo Sabres and the Vancouver Canucks made their NHL debuts this season.

Regular season

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

National Hockey League GP W L T Pts GF GA PIM
Boston Bruins 78 57 14 7 121 399 207 1154
New York Rangers 78 49 18 11 109 259 177 952
Montreal Canadiens 78 42 23 13 97 291 216 1271
Toronto Maple Leafs 78 37 33 8 82 248 211 1133
Buffalo Sabres 78 24 39 15 63 217 291 1188
Vancouver Canucks 78 24 46 8 56 229 296 1371
Detroit Red Wings 78 22 45 11 55 209 308 988
West Division GP W L T Pts GF GA PIM
Chicago Black Hawks 78 49 20 9 107 277 184 1280
St. Louis Blues 78 34 25 19 87 223 208 1092
Philadelphia Flyers 78 28 33 17 73 207 225 1060
Minnesota North Stars 78 28 34 16 72 191 223 898
Los Angeles Kings 78 25 40 13 63 239 303 775
Pittsburgh Penguins 78 21 37 20 62 221 240 1079
California Golden Seals 78 20 53 5 45 199 320 937

Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, PTS = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

PLAYER TEAM GP G A PTS PIM
Phil Esposito Boston Bruins 78 76 76 152 71
Bobby Orr Boston Bruins 78 37 102 139 91
John Bucyk Boston Bruins 78 51 65 116 8
Ken Hodge Boston Bruins 78 43 62 105 113
Bobby Hull Chicago Black Hawks 78 44 52 96 32
Norm Ullman Toronto Maple Leafs 73 34 51 85 24
Wayne Cashman Boston Bruins 77 21 58 79 100
John McKenzie Boston Bruins 65 31 46 77 120
Dave Keon Toronto Maple Leafs 76 38 38 76 4
Jean Beliveau Montreal Canadiens 70 25 51 76 40
Fred Stanfield Boston Bruins 75 24 52 76 12

Stanley Cup playoffs

Playoff bracket

Quarter-finals Semi-finals Stanley Cup Final
         
E1 Boston Bruins 3
E3 Montreal Canadiens 4
E3 Montreal Canadiens 4
W4 Minnesota North Stars 2
W2 St. Louis Blues 2
W4 Minnesota North Stars 4
E3 Montreal Canadiens 4
W1 Chicago Black Hawks 3
W1 Chicago Black Hawks 4
W3 Philadelphia Flyers 0
W1 Chicago Black Hawks 4
E2 New York Rangers 3
E2 New York Rangers 4
E4 Toronto Maple Leafs 2

NHL awards

Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: Chicago Black Hawks
Art Ross Trophy: Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: Jean Ratelle, New York Rangers
Calder Memorial Trophy: Gilbert Perreault, Buffalo Sabres
Conn Smythe Trophy: Ken Dryden, Montreal Canadiens
Hart Memorial Trophy: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
James Norris Memorial Trophy: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Johnny Bucyk, Boston Bruins
Lester B. Pearson Award: Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
NHL Plus/Minus Award: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Vezina Trophy: Eddie Giacomin & Gilles Villemure, New York Rangers
Lester Patrick Trophy: William M. Jennings, John B. Sollenberger, Terry Sawchuk

All-Star teams

First team   Position   Second team
Ed Giacomin, New York Rangers G Jacques Plante, Toronto Maple Leafs
Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins D Brad Park, New York Rangers
J.C. Tremblay, Montreal Canadiens D Pat Stapleton, Chicago Black Hawks
Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins C Dave Keon, Toronto Maple Leafs
Ken Hodge, Boston Bruins RW Yvan Cournoyer, Montreal Canadiens
Johnny Bucyk, Boston Bruins LW Bobby Hull, Chicago Black Hawks

References