The Largest Margin Of Victory In NHL History

During the second World War, several NHL players were called into active duty leaving some teams short handed for the hockey season.  In 1944, the New York Rangers were especially bad.

The team went winless in the first 15 games, won just 6 games the entire season, and were victims of blow-out scores on several occasions.

Goaltender Ken McAuley amassed a record Goals Against Average of 6.24, giving up 310 Goals in just 50 Games. Surprisingly, the 23 year-old McAuley played all 50 games that season and was even brought back the following season, where he played 48 games for the Rangers.

The Relentless Red Wings

The Detroit Red were on the giving end of some of those beatings, outscoring the Rangers by a total of 67-26 in the 10 games they played against each other that year. Of all the games, it was one that took place on January 23, 1944 that has withstood the test of time and remains in the NHL record books.  On that night the most lopsided game in history took place as the Detroit Red Wings beat the New York Rangers 15-0.

Don Cherry would not have approved of the sportsmanship, or lack thereof, displayed during this game.  The Red Wings scored five goals in the final six minutes of the game, running the score from an already 10-0 shelling to the final total of 15-0.  Red Wing forward Syd Howe scored a hat trick in the final six minutes of the game. Howe, throwing some salt in an already gaping wound, scored 6 more goals in 12-2 drubbing of the Rangers just a week later.

Not surprisingly, the New York Rangers did not win another game that season.  They would miss the playoffs for the next four years, and made the post season just twice in the following 11 years.

Do you think we’ll ever see a more lopsided game in the National Hockey League?

Source:Hockey Reference