1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins season
1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins | |
---|---|
Division | 4th West |
1971–72 record | 26–38–14 |
Goals for | 220 |
Goals against | 250 |
Team information | |
General manager | Red Kelly (Oct–Jan) Jack Riley (Jan–Apr) |
Coach | Red Kelly |
Captain | Vacant |
Alternate captains | Keith McCreary Ken Schinkel Bryan Watson Bob Woytowich (Oct-Jan) |
Team leaders | |
Goals | Greg Polis, Jean Pronovost (30) |
Assists | Syl Apps (44) |
Points | Syl Apps (59) |
Penalty minutes | Bryan Watson (212) |
Wins | Jim Rutherford (17) |
Goals against average | Roy Edwards (2.55) |
The 1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the franchise's fifth season in the National Hockey League. The team finished 26–38–14 and were tied with their cross-state rival Philadelphia Flyers, who had an identical record, for the fourth and final playoff berth in the West Division. The Penguins made the playoffs for the second time in team history, having won the season series 3–2–1 against the Flyers. However, the Penguins were swept by the Chicago Black Hawks in four games in the first round.
Offseason
Regular season
Final standings
GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | DIFF | Pts | ||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Chicago Black Hawks | 78 | 46 | 17 | 15 | 256 | 166 | +90 | 107 |
2 | Minnesota North Stars | 78 | 37 | 29 | 12 | 212 | 191 | +21 | 86 |
3 | St. Louis Blues | 78 | 28 | 39 | 11 | 208 | 247 | −39 | 67 |
4 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 220 | 258 | −38 | 66 |
5 | Philadelphia Flyers | 78 | 26 | 38 | 14 | 200 | 236 | −36 | 66 |
6 | California Golden Seals | 78 | 21 | 39 | 18 | 216 | 288 | −72 | 60 |
7 | Los Angeles Kings | 78 | 20 | 49 | 9 | 206 | 305 | −99 | 49 |
Record vs. opponents
Vs. West Division
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Vs. East Division
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Schedule and results
1971–72 Game log[3] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 5–5–2 (Home: 2–2–1; Road: 3–3–1)
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November: 3–9–0 (Home: 2–3–0; Road: 1–6–0)
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December: 3–7–4 (Home: 3–2–3; Road: 0–5–1)
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January: 1–8–3 (Home: 1–4–2; Road: 0–4–1)
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February: 7–6–0 (Home: 4–2–0; Road: 3–4–0)
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March: 6–3–4 (Home: 5–2–0; Road: 1–1–4)
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April: 1–0–1 (Home: 1–0–0; Road: 0–0–1)
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Legend: = Win = Loss = Tie |
Playoffs
1972 Playoffs | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Round one vs Chicago: 0–4 (Home: 0–2 ; Road: 0–2)
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Legend: = Win = Loss |
Player statistics
- Skaters
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- Goaltenders
Player | GP | W | L | T | GA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jim Rutherford | 40 | 17 | 15 | 5 | 116 | 1 |
Les Binkley | 31 | 7 | 15 | 5 | 98 | 0 |
Roy Edwards | 15 | 2 | 8 | 4 | 36 | 0 |
Total | 26 | 38 | 14 | 250 | 1 |
Player | GP | W | L | GA | SO |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jim Rutherford | 4 | 0 | 4 | 14 | 0 |
Total | 0 | 4 | 14 | 0 |
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
Awards and records
- Val Fonteyne became the first player to play 300 games for the Penguins. He did so in a 1–5 loss to Minnesota on November 16.
- Ken Schinkel became the first player to score 200 points for the Penguins. He did so by recording an assist in a 2–4 loss to Chicago on January 29.
- Bryan Watson became the first player to earn 500 penalty minutes for the Penguins. He did so by receiving 4 PIMs in a 4–2 win over Toronto on February 16.
- Bryan Watson became the first player to earn 200 penalty minutes in one season for the Penguins. He did so by receiving 2 PIMs in a 7–4 win over Vancouver on March 14.
- Jean Pronovost became the first player to score 30 goals in a season for the Penguins. He did so in a 5–4 win over California on March 29.
- Syl Apps Jr. established a new franchise record for highest plus-minus in a season (+18). He broke the previous high of +10 set by Wally Boyer in 1971.
- Val Fonteyne established a career franchise record for games (349). He had led the category since 1969.
- Bob Woytowich set the Penguins career defenseman scoring mark at 93 points. He held the record since 1970.
- Darryl Edestrand became the first defenseman in team history to record 10 goals in a season. He also tied the record for points in a season by a defenseman with 33.
Transactions
The Penguins have been involved in the following transactions during the 1971–72 season:[8]
Trades
September 4, 1971 | To California Golden Seals
cash |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Bill Hicke |
October 3, 1971 | To Vancouver Canucks
Bob Blackburn |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
cash |
October 6, 1971 | To Minnesota North Stars
Dean Prentice |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
cash |
November 22, 1971 | To Detroit Red Wings
Bill Hicke |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
cash |
January 11, 1972 | To Los Angeles Kings
Bob Woytowich |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Al McDonough |
March 4, 1972 | To Buffalo Sabres
Rene Robert |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Eddie Shack |
Player signings
Player | Date | Contract terms |
---|---|---|
Bob Woytowich | September 2, 1971 | Re-signed |
Tim Horton | September 2, 1971 | Re-signed |
Wally Boyer | September 2, 1971 | Re-signed |
Jean Pronovost | September 3, 1971 | Signed |
Dave Burrows | September 8, 1971 | Re-signed |
Rene Robert | September 8, 1971 | Re-signed |
Roy Edwards | September 8, 1971 | Re-signed |
Cam Newton | May 25, 1972 | 1-year contract |
Jim Rutherford | June 1, 1972 | Re-signed |
Bryan Hextall Jr. | June 7, 1972 | Re-signed |
Other
Player | Date | Details |
---|---|---|
Andy Bathgate | July 1, 1971 | Retired |
Roy Edwards | December 30, 1971 | Retired |
Red Kelly | January 29, 1972 | Resigned as GM (remained as head coach) |
Jack Riley | January 29, 1972 | Hired as GM (in addition to president) |
Tim Horton | June 5, 1972 | Lost to Buffalo Sabres in intra-league draft |
Bobby Leiter | June 6, 1972 | Lost to Atlanta Flames in expansion draft |
John Stewart | June 6, 1972 | Lost to Atlanta Flames in expansion draft |
Keith McCreary | June 6, 1972 | Lost to Atlanta Flames in expansion draft |
Draft picks
Pittsburgh Penguins' picks at the 1971 NHL entry draft.[9]
Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 18 | Brian McKenzie | Left Wing | Canada | St. Catharines Black Hawks (OHA) |
3 | 32 | Joe Noris | Center | United States | Toronto Marlboros (OHA) |
4 | 46 | Gerry Methe | Defense | Canada | Oshawa Generals (OHA) |
5 | 60 | Dave Murphy | Goaltender | Canada | University of North Dakota (NCAA) |
6 | 74 | Ian Williams | Right Wing | Canada | Notre Dame (NCAA) |
7 | 88 | Doug Elliott | Defense | Canada | Harvard University (NCAA) |
- Draft notes[10]
- The Pittsburgh Penguins' first-round pick went to the St. Louis Blues as the result of a June 6, 1969, trade that sent Ron Schock, Craig Cameron and a 1972 second round pick to the Penguins in exchange for Lou Angotti and this pick.
- The Pittsburgh Penguins' eighth-round pick went to the Vancouver Canucks as the result of a June 10, 1970, trade that had Vancouver promise to not take certain players in expansion draft for this pick.
References
- ^ "1971–1972 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
- ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
- ^ "1971–72 Pittsburgh Penguins Results and Schedule". hockeyDB.
- ^ "1971–1972 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
- ^ "1971–1972 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
- ^ "1971–1972 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
- ^ "1971–1972 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
- ^ "Hockey Transactions Search Results". Pro Sports Transactions.
- ^ "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". NHL.com. Retrieved February 25, 2013.
- ^ "1971 NHL Entry Draft Pending Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved February 25, 2013.