Throughout the annals of the National Hockey League, March 25 has repeatedly marked a day of groundbreaking achievements and significant milestones, spanning both regular season play and the intensity of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. This date notably features one of the most remarkable ‘firsts’ in the league’s history, accomplished by hockey’s most celebrated player. Join us on a journey through time as we revisit the most memorable events that unfolded on March 25.
Gretzky Achieves the Unthinkable
March 25, 1982, witnessed Wayne Gretzky achieve what many believed to be an impossible feat: reaching 200 points in a single season. Entering a game against the Calgary Flames with 199 points, Gretzky secured his place in history early in the first period by assisting Pat Hughes’ goal, becoming the inaugural player to reach this incredible 200-point benchmark. His scoring spree continued that night with another assist in the first period, followed by an NHL record in the second period — two shorthanded goals scored just 27 seconds apart.
‘The Great One’ ultimately concluded that season with an astounding 212 points. This wasn’t a one-off; after a 196-point season, he went on to record three consecutive 200-plus point campaigns: 205 points in 1983-84, 208 in 1984-85, and a career-high 215 in 1985-86. Gretzky stands alone as the only player in NHL history to achieve a 200-point season, with Mario Lemieux coming closest with 199 points in the 1988-89 season.
Historic Stanley Cup Playoff Milestones
On March 25, 1917, Bernie Morris’s six-goal performance propelled the Seattle Metropolitans to a dominant 9-1 victory over the Montreal Canadiens. This historic win secured the Stanley Cup for the Metropolitans, making them the first team from the United States, representing the Pacific Coast Hockey Association, to claim hockey’s ultimate prize.
Seven years later, on March 25, 1924, the Montreal Canadiens shut out the Calgary Tigers 3-0 to clinch the Stanley Cup. Led by legendary goaltender Georges Vezina’s shutout, this marked the Canadiens’ inaugural Stanley Cup triumph since the National Hockey League’s establishment in 1917.
Nick Metz etched his name into Stanley Cup Playoff history on March 25, 1941, by tallying three assists in the second period of the Toronto Maple Leafs’ 7-2 rout of the Boston Bruins in Game 3 of the Semifinals. This made him the first player ever to record three assists in a single postseason game, a night he also capped with a goal.
Two years subsequent, Harvey ‘Busher’ Jackson scored the first shorthanded overtime goal in Stanley Cup Playoff history. This pivotal goal, scored 3 minutes and 20 seconds into overtime, sealed a 3-2 victory for the Bruins against the Canadiens in Game 3 of their Stanley Cup Semifinals series.
March 25, 1954, saw Dickie Moore deliver an exceptional performance for the Canadiens, contributing two goals and four assists in an 8-1 drubbing of the Bruins. His six-point outing established a new record for the most points by a player in a single Stanley Cup Playoff game, a record that stood for 29 years until Wayne Gretzky surpassed it with seven points (four goals) against the Flames in 1983. The current record for most points in a playoff game is eight, shared by Mario Lemieux and Patrik Sundstrom.
Regular-Season Groundbreakers
Alex Delvecchio made his NHL debut on March 25, 1951, as the Detroit Red Wings defeated the Canadiens 5-0. He would go on to become one of the franchise’s all-time greats, accumulating 456 goals and 1,281 points across 1,550 games. Delvecchio was a key member of three Stanley Cup-winning teams and a three-time Lady Byng Trophy recipient. The Red Wings’ victory that night also saw them become the first team to reach 100 points in an NHL season. Much later in his career, on this same date in 1972, Delvecchio joined an exclusive group as the third player in NHL history to reach 1,200 career points, achieving the milestone with a goal and an assist in a 5-3 loss to the St. Louis Blues.
The Canadiens’ 8-4 win over the Chicago Blackhawks on March 25, 1980, yielded two notable NHL firsts. Steve Schutt’s first-period goal marked him as the first player to score against 20 different teams in a single season. Additionally, Pierre Laroche netted two goals to reach the 50-goal mark for the season, becoming the first player in league history to score 50 goals for two different franchises, having previously scored 53 for the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1975-76.
On March 25, 1995, Scotty Bowman became the first coach in NHL history to achieve 900 regular-season victories when his Red Wings triumphed over the Vancouver Canucks. He retired with an astounding 1,244 career wins, a record that remains unsurpassed. Joel Quenneville is the only other coach to reach the 900-win plateau, currently holding the second-highest total with 945 wins and counting.
Blackhawks’ rookie goaltender Kevin Lankinen made franchise history on this date in 2021, recording a 41-save shutout against the Panthers in a 3-0 victory. This made him the first rookie netminder in Chicago’s history to blank an opponent with 40 or more saves.
March 25, 2024, saw Logan Thompson become the first Golden Knights goaltender to successfully stop a penalty shot in overtime. He was also the second netminder this season to achieve this feat, following Montreal’s Sam Montembeault, who saved a Jack Eichel penalty shot on October 30, 2023.
A Significant Day for the Hulls
The legendary Bobby Hull, immortalized with a statue outside Chicago’s United Center, accomplished a significant milestone on March 25, 1962. With a goal against the New York Rangers, Hull became only the third player in NHL history to score 50 goals in a season, joining Maurice Richard and Bernie Geoffrion in this elite club.
A decade later, Hull made more history, this time in the old Boston Garden. He netted a game-tying goal with just 2:26 remaining, becoming only the second player alongside Gordie Howe to reach the 600-career-goal mark. Since then, 18 additional players have joined the prestigious 600-goal club.
On March 25, 1994, Bobby’s son, Brett Hull, secured his fifth consecutive 50-goal season by scoring a hat trick for the Blues in a 5-3 home win against the Dallas Stars. His 21st career hat trick was completed a mere 23 seconds after he registered his 50th goal of the season.
Further Noteworthy Events
Barry Pederson became the fifth rookie in NHL history to score 40 goals on March 25, 1982, contributing to the Boston Bruins’ 5-1 victory over the visiting Buffalo Sabres, their seventh consecutive win against Buffalo at Boston Garden.
On March 25, 1987, Luc Robitaille’s goal and an assist propelled the Los Angeles Kings to a 6-1 win over the Red Wings. This performance brought his season total to 77 points, breaking Larry Murphy’s single-season rookie scoring record for the franchise, set in 1980-81.
A year later, Mario Lemieux delivered two goals and three assists in the Pittsburgh Penguins’ 5-2 triumph over the Canadiens. This elevated his season total to 155 points, moving him past Phil Esposito for the highest single-season point total by any player in NHL history, except for Wayne Gretzky.
Pavel Bure scored twice on March 25, 2000, as the Florida Panthers defeated the Canadiens 4-2. These goals, combined with his brother Valeri’s tallies for the Calgary Flames, brought their season total to 89 goals, breaking the single-season record for siblings previously held by Bobby and Dennis Hull. The Bure brothers concluded the season with 93 combined goals (Pavel 58, Valeri 35). In the same game, Viktor Kozlov set a Panthers team record with his 50th assist of the season.
Still in Florida, on March 25, 2004, Roberto Luongo of the Panthers made 42 saves in a 3-2 loss to the Carolina Hurricanes, pushing his season save total to an NHL-record 2,219. This surpassed the previous record of 2,214 saves set by Felix Potvin of the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1996-97.
Brad Marchand tied the NHL single-season record for overtime goals on March 25, 2018, scoring just 28 seconds into OT to give the Bruins a 2-1 victory over the Minnesota Wild. This was his fifth overtime goal of the season, putting him alongside Steven Stamkos (2011-12), Jonathan Toews (2015-16), and Alex Galchenyuk (2016-17) in this exclusive achievement.
On March 25, 2019, John Tavares scored a career-first four-goal game for the Maple Leafs in a 7-5 home win against the Panthers. His 45 goals for the season broke Eddie Olczyk’s record of 42 (1987-88) for the most goals by a player in his debut season with Toronto.
Mika Zibanejad became the third NHL player to score six points against the same team in one season on March 25, 2021. He achieved a natural hat trick and added three assists in the Rangers’ 8-3 routing of the Flyers, joining Doug Bentley (vs. Rangers, 1942-43) and Joe Malone (vs. Toronto St. Patricks, 1919-20) in this rare feat. Furthermore, he became only the third player ever to record two natural hat tricks against the same opponent in a single season, alongside Thomas Vanek (vs. Lightning, 2007-08) and Peter Bondra (vs. Islanders, 1995-96).
On that same night, Sidney Crosby swiftly reached 1,300 NHL points in his 1,017th game, making him the eighth-fastest player to achieve this milestone. He marked the occasion by contributing three assists in the Penguins’ 4-0 shutout victory over the Sabres.
To conclude a busy day in 2021, Avalanche head coach Jared Bednar secured his 166th victory, surpassing Marc Crawford to claim third place in franchise wins for the Avalanche/Quebec Nordiques. This milestone came during a 5-1 win against the Vegas Golden Knights, where his team scored five goals past Marc-Andre Fleury.
On March 25, 2022, Cale Makar set a new franchise record for goals by a defenseman in a single season, scoring his 23rd and 24th goals to surpass Sandis Ozolinsh.
March 25, 2023, saw the Seattle Kraken reach 88 points, a remarkable increase from their 60 points in their inaugural season. This marked the largest point increase in NHL history between a team’s first and second seasons.
Also on that night, Patrick Kane recorded his 1,233rd point, moving past Phil Housley to become the second-highest scoring United States-born player in NHL history. Mike Modano still holds the top spot with 1,374 points.
On March 25, 2024, Jonathan Marchessault scored his eighth overtime goal for Vegas, surpassing Shea Theodore for the most in Golden Knights franchise history. His winning goal, scored 49 seconds into the extra frame, also ranked as the sixth-fastest overtime goal in team history.
Also on the same night, Anze Kopitar (at 36 years, 214 days old) became the third-oldest active player to achieve a multi-point streak of at least four games, following Alex Ovechkin (four games in 2023-24 at 38 years, 189 days) and Joe Pavelski (four games in 2021-22 at 37 years, 144 days).
Celebrating Birthdays
March 25 is the birthdate for 26 players who have graced at least one NHL game. Among the most notable names are Pat Hughes (71), Ken Wregget (62), Andrei Nikolishin (53), Lance Bouma (36), Brendan Gaunce (32), J.C. Beaudin (29), and the late Bill Barilko and Jean Potvin.