What Is The Longest Hockey Game Ever? NHL Games History

Top 10 longest NHL overtime games is Detroit Red Wings at Montreal Maroons, Boston Bruins at Toronto Maple Leafs, Philadelphia Flyers at Florida Penguins, and so on.

The regular season of the National Hockey League has a single overtime period of 5 minutes. However, multiple overtime periods of 20 minutes each can be accessed in the playoffs.

The longest match with an overtime is the same as the longest postseason match. Thus, the top 10 longest NHL playoff games are as follows:

• Wings at Maroons, 1-0
• Bruins at Maple Leafs, 0-1
• Philadelphia Flyers at Penguins, 2-1
• Jackets at Lightning, 2-3
• Mighty Ducks of Anaheim at Stars, 4-3
• Panthers at Hurricanes, 3-2
• Penguins at Washington Capitals, 3-2
• Stars at Canucks, 4-5
• Maple Leafs at Wings, 3-2
• Sharks at Stars, 1-2

The list of longest NHL playoff games includes the 3-2 play between Florida Panthers and Carolina Hurricanes at the PNC Arena on 19 May 2023.

Both teams entered the OT (overtime) period with a tie of 2 goals each. In the last few minutes of the first period, Seth Jarvis scored the first goal for Canes.

Panthers slid the puck into the net twice in the second period. Aleksander Barkov and Carter Verhaeghe scored a goal each for their team.

During the third period, Stefan Noesen of Canes secured a goal ending the game in a tie. The overtime ensued and it lasted for 4 periods until Matthew Tkachuk of the Panthers hit the puck into the net.

Longest NHL playoff game New York Islanders

The longest NHL playoff game New York Islanders lasted 128 minutes and 47 seconds. The game against Washington Capitals featured 4 overtime periods.

It occurred during game 7 of the Division Semifinals of the 1987 Stanley Cup Championship. It was hosted by the Capitals on 18 April 1987 in their home arena.

The overtime period lasted for 68 minutes and 47 seconds. Pat LaFontaine slid the puck into the net in the fourth period securing a 3-2 win for the Islanders.

Longest Shift In NHL History

The longest shift in NHL history is recorded by Jack Hughes of the New Jersey Devils in 2022 which spanned 6 minutes and 2 seconds.

A shift is the duration that a player or a line spends on the ice. Lines refer to a group of players that act either in forward or defense to support the team.

The sport consists of 3 forwards and 2 defensemen in a line. Each ice hockey team typically has 4 lines of forward and 3 pairs of defense for a game.

Since ice hockey is a physically tiring sport, the lines and athletes are frequently changed to maintain game intensity. However, the one player to spend the most time on ice is Jack.

In the match between Devils and the Islanders, he made a 6:02 shift. Despite his effort in the final round of the game, Devils faced a 6-4 loss.

Longest Power Play In NHL History

The longest power play in NHL history spanned 9 minutes and was accessed in March 2021. It occurred in a play between Avalanche and Golden Knights.

The game became chaotic when Avalanche started leading the game. Goaltender Philipp Grubauer made multiple saves for the team and the Knights got restless.

Ryan Reaves of the Knights could not control himself when Philipp made a save in between the match. He poured his rage upon Colorado's defenseman Ryan Graves.

Reaves pressed his body over Graves on the ice until a referee broke the fight. Ryan unlocked a penalty of 9 minutes and the result came in Avalanche's favor.  

Longest Shootout In NHL

The longest shootout in NHL lasted 20 rounds between the Panthers and the Capitals. The game ended when Nick Bjugstad scored.

Derek MacKenzie scored a goal on behalf of the Panthers in the first period. In the second period, Troy Brouwer of Capitas tucked the rubber disc into the net.

The competition got tough and no one scored in the 3rd round. The game went for a five-minute overtime with no conclusion. Finally, shootouts ensued to determine a winner.

Each team scored 5 points until the 19th round and the game was tied. During the 20th shootout, Capital missed the shot but Panthers landed the puck in the net securing a win.

Previously, the record was held by the Capitals and Rangers in a game on 26 November 2005. The Rangers won the match by scoring a winning goal in the 15th round.

Longest NHL point streak in a season is held by legendary Wayne Gretzky. Gretzky recorded 51 point streak in the 1983-84 season.

Point streak is the number of consecutive games where a player has secured at least one point(either a goal or assist). The most point streak in the NHL career is secured by Joe Malone.

Paul Coffey is the record holder of most point streaks in a season by a defenseman. For the rookie, Paul Statsny is ranked first with 20-point streaks in a season.

Longest Losing Streak In NHL History

Washinton Capitals and San Jose Sharks have the longest losing streak in NHL history since they lost 17 games in a row in a season.

The Capitals recorded their streak in the 1974-75 season while Sharks made the record in 1992-93. It resembles that the team was weak and vulnerable during those times.

Both teams also hold the record for the most losing streak while playing in their home arena. Ottawa Senators hold the most streaks while playing on the road in a season.

In 1992-93, the Senators lost in 38 consecutive games while playing at other team's arenas. They are followed by the Capitals with 37 road-losing streaks.

Longest Iron Man Streak NHL

Longest Iron Man Streak NHL is recorded by Phil Kessel. Kessel appeared in 1,064 consecutive games during the regular season of the NHL.

Iron Man streak is awarded to the player who has participated in 500 consecutive regular season games. 28 athletes have recorded the streak so far.

Kessel is followed by Keith Yandle and Doug Jarvis with 989 and 964 straight appearances. Besides Phil, Andrew Cogliano and Brent Burns are the active players who have made up the list.

Glenn Hall recorded the lowest Iron Man streak by playing 503 regular season games consecutively from 6 October 1955 to 7 November 1962.

Longest Winning Streak NHL Goalie

The longest winning streak NHL goalie Gerry Cheevers record is still standing. Cheevers made it in 32 games during the 1972 season.

Four players are credited for the longest victory streak of 14 games. They are Tiny Thompson, Tom Barrasso, Jonas Hiller, and Sergei Bobrovsky.

The record of Thompson of the Boston Bruins is the oldest and dates back to the 1929-30 season. The latest one was made by Bobrovsky in the 2016-17 season. 

Ross Brooks is the rookie to have the most winning streaks in a season. He led the team to win 12 consecutive games in the 1973-74 season.