1970–71 NHL season
| 1970–71 NHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 9, 1970 – May 18, 1971 |
| Number of games | 78 |
| Number of teams | 14 |
| Regular season | |
| Season champions | Boston Bruins |
| Season MVP | Bobby Orr (Bruins) |
| Top scorer | Phil Esposito (Bruins) |
| Playoffs | |
| Playoffs Playoffs MVP | Ken Dryden (Canadiens) |
| Stanley Cup | |
| Champions | Montreal Canadiens |
| Runners-up | Chicago Black Hawks |
The 1970–71 NHL season was the 54th season of the National Hockey League. Two new teams, the Buffalo Sabres and Vancouver Canucks made their debuts and were both put into the East Division. The Chicago Black Hawks were moved to the West Division. The Montreal Canadiens won the Stanley Cup by beating the Black Hawks in seven games in the finals.
The NHL added two expansion teams in Buffalo and Vancouver.
At the beginning of the season, the Oakland Seals were renamed California Golden Seals.
From this season through the 2002–03 season, teams wore their white jerseys at home and their colored jerseys on the road.
For 1970–71 the NHL went to a balanced schedule, with each team playing each other team 6 times, three at home and three on the road, without regard to divisional alignment. Nevertheless, playoff qualification was determined entirely by divisional standings with the top four teams in each division qualifying.
This season saw a marked increase in goal scoring, especially by the Boston Bruins, who shattered dozens of scoring records as they set the mark for most goals by a team (399) by nearly a hundred over the previous record holder. They also set records for most victories (57) and points (121). Phil Esposito set records for most goals in a season with 76 and for most points with 152. Defenceman Bobby Orr won his second consecutive Hart Trophy and set a new record for assists with 102. The Bruins also had the four league leading scorers, the first time in history this was achieved (the only other time being by the Bruins in 1974), and seven of the top eleven leading scorers, the only time in NHL history this has ever been achieved. They had 6 of the top 8 scorers in the league. Furthermore, the Bruins set marks for the highest scoring single season marks at every position: center (Esposito), left wing (Johnny Bucyk with 116), right wing (Ken Hodge with 105) and defense (Orr), as well as for a forward line (Esposito centering Wayne Cashman and Hodge).
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