2023 NHL statistical year in review

NEVER A DULL MOMENT IN THE NHL

What’s Trending in 2023: Scoring is at a rate of 6.3 goals-per-game in consecutive calendar years for the first time in three decades (6.3 in 2023; 6.4 in 2022, including playoffs), while 574 comeback wins – including 228 third-period rallies – made 2023 one of the most edge-of-your-seat years in the NHL to date.

Jaw-Dropping Rallies in 2023: There were four-goal comeback wins by the Penguins (March 7) , Sharks (Dec. 7) and Coyotes (Dec. 27); the Stars (Dec. 23) became the first team in NHL history to win in regulation after trailing in the final 15 seconds of the third period; the Hurricanes (Jan. 27) and Ducks (Oct. 26) stormed back from multi-goal deficits in the final two minutes of regulation to win; the Blue Jackets (Dec. 14) became the first team in NHL history to win despite surrendering a five-goal, third period lead; the Panthers eliminated the record-setting, Presidents’ Trophy-winning Bruins by rallying from a 3-1 series deficit in the First Round; and March 18 was perhaps the most unpredictable day of 2023 thanks to seven third-period comeback victories (the most in one day in NHL history).

NO CATCHING CONNOR ... OR MACK

Keeping Up with Connor: Oilers captain Connor McDavid paced the NHL with 149 total points in 2023 (129 in regular season, 20 in playoffs), a year in which he became the fifth player in League history to finish as the outright leader in goals, assists and points during a single season and matched the NHL record by claiming four individual awards in one campaign. McDavid became the first player since Wayne Gretzky to finish with the most total points in three straight calendar years.

MacKinnon Marches to 135-Point Year: Avalanche forward Nathan MacKinnon topped all players with 135 regular-season points in 2023, the third straight year a player has accumulated as many (McDavid: 143 in 2022, 157 in 2021; Leon Draisaitl: 135 in 2021). The only other three-year stretch in NHL history with players accumulating 135-plus regular-season points was the 12-year span from 1978 to 1989 (Wayne Gretzky: 10x; Mario Lemieux: 2x; Guy Lafleur: 2x; Marcel Dionne: 1x; and Mike Bossy: 1x). In addition to his point production, MacKinnon’s NHL EDGE numbers are the best in the League as he enters the new year among the top two in 2023-24 for max speed (2nd; 24.05 mph), 22+ mph bursts (1st; 48) and 20+ mph bursts (1st; 323).

WELCOME TO THE SHOW, CONNOR BEDARD

Welcome to The “Connor” Roll: The highlight reel has been full of Connor content in 2023, with rookie Connor Bedard making countless contributions – from his record-setting 23-point performance at the World Junior Championship (7 GP), to his historic sweep the CHL’s three most prestigious awards, to his first-overall selection at the 2023 Upper Deck NHL Draft to his standout start so far in 2023-24. Bedard topped all players with 33 points as a rookie in 2023, while also finishing second in goals as a rookie in 2023 behind Blue Jackets forward Kirill Marchenko (16) who was a rookie last season. Looking ahead to 2024, Bedard can become the third 18-year-old in NHL history to lead his team in scoring at the end of a season – only Sidney Crosby (2005-06) and Steve Yzerman (1983-84) have done so. Bedard also was part of a memorable night in the final two weeks of 2023, scoring a lacrosse-style goal on the same night as “trick shot” specialist Trevor Zegras.

BLUELINERS BROUGHT THE HEAT

High Point Production from the Blueline: Defensemen produced a torrid pace in 2023, a storyline that started with Erik Karlsson becoming the first defenseman in more than 30 years to record a 100-point season (and oldest ever to do so) en route to winning his third Norris Trophy. The “offense from the defense” trend continued into this season as Quinn Hughes and Cale Makar each rank among the top 20 in scoring so far in 2023-24 and finished the calendar year as the two highest scoring defensemen in terms of points-per-game (Makar: 1.28; Hughes: 1.11). Makar’s 1.28 regular-season points-per-game rate in 2023 was the highest by a defenseman in a calendar year since Ray Bourque in 1994 (1.43 P/GP in 37 GP) and the highest by a blueliner who skated in at least 50 games since Bourque in 1991 (1.32 G/GP in 78 GP). Hughes and Makar are both hovering around a 100-point pace for the 2023-24 campaign and could become the first defensemen ever to record 100+ points apiece in the same regular season.

THE YEAR OF THE BRUINS & GOLDEN KNIGHTS

Big Bruins Dominance: The Bruins finished one of the most dominant regular seasons in NHL history in 2023, following the best start ever by a reigning Presidents’ Trophy winner (6-0-0 to start 2023-24), by pacing the NHL with 59 wins and 125 standings points. After concluding 2022 with an overall record 65-20-7 with 137 points, the Bruins (124-35-14, 262 points) set an NHL benchmark for the most regular-season wins and points over a two-year span, besting the Canadiens (118-19-22, 258 points) from 1977 to 1978.

Golden Knights Hit Jackpot: Eight days shy of the seven-year anniversary of Las Vegas officially receiving an NHL franchise, the Golden Knights won their first Stanley Cup and became the seventh-fastest franchise to do so. Jonathan Marchessault captured the Conn Smythe Trophy, finishing the postseason tied for the League lead in goals, and Jack Eichel led all players in points with 6-20—26 in his first-ever trip to the postseason. Mark Stone, who posted a Cup-clinching hat trick, became the first player in the NHL’s modern era (since 1943-44) to serve as a franchise’s first captain and guide them to a championship while wearing the “C.” The team’s success has translated into the 2023-24 campaign as they started with a seven-game winning streak, 12-game point streak (11-0-1) and enter the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic tied for the most points in the Western Conference standings (49).

PUSHING THE PACE WITH NHL EDGE

NHL EDGE Tracking Technology: The League launched the NHL EDGE advanced stats section on NHL.com which helps brings fans closer to the game with more advanced statistics for players and teams. The hardest shot in 2023 was by Panthers defenseman Radko Gudas (101.73 mph) on May 7 in Game 3 of the Second Round against the Maple Leafs and the fastest skating speed recorded was by Lightning forward Brayden Point (24.26 mph) on Feb. 7 against the Sharks. The most distance travelled in a regular-season game that ended in regulation was by Avalanche forward Valeri Nichushkin (4.71 mi) on Dec. 21 against the Senators, while the most miles skated in any period was by Predators defenseman Roman Josi (1.92 mi in 3rd) on March 9 against the Coyotes. NHL EDGE data shows that the top goal-scorer in 2023, Bruins forward David Pastrnak (58 goals), ranks in the 85th percentile or higher in four shot speed categories (70+, 80+, 90+ mph and top speed) – just as he did during the 2022-23 campaign when he scored 61 goals (the most by a Bruins player in 48 years).

MEMORABLE MOMENTS AND MILESTONES

Big Events and an NHL First: The League staged three outdoor games, an All-Star showcase in South Florida, the first-ever NHL games played in the Southern Hemisphere (two preseason contests in Melbourne, Australia), a pair of Kraft Hockeyville contests in community rinks and four regular-season games over four straight days in Stockholm, Sweden.

200+ Records Broken in 2023: The NHL records site saw many updates throughout 2023 as more than 200 records were broken by a skater, goaltender or head coach at either the League or franchise level. Highlights included the Bruins setting a new NHL benchmark for wins (65) and points (135) in a single season; the Kings winning 11 straight road games to start the 2023-24 campaign; and Penguins defenseman Kris Letang returning from the holiday break by posting a five-point period (an NHL record for a defenseman and franchise record for any skater), part of a six-point game.

Many Milestones in 2023: Pittsburgh’s Sidney Crosby and Washington’s Alex Ovechkin both reached the 1,500-point mark while Ottawa’s Claude Giroux, Dallas’ Joe Pavelski and Toronto’s John Tavares each hit 1,000 points. In the final days of 2023, Connor McDavid skated in his 600th NHL game and ranked among the highest scorers in League history at that stage of a career.

GOALS YOU'LL WANT TO WATCH AGAIN ...

From jaw-dropping to awe-inspiring, 2023 saw plenty of eye-catching goals, including three “Michigan” goals - two coming on the same night on Dec. 23 and one by a former Wolverine on its 27th goal anniversary - plenty of “Goal of the Year” candidates in the early goings of 2023-24 and two goalie goals in one calendar for just the second time in NHL history (also 2013).

Linus Ullmark scores a goalie goal
Tristan Jarry scores a goalie goal
Kent Johnson pulls off ‘The Michigan’ on its 27th anniversary
Aleksander Barkov ‘fakes between the legs’ in Conference Finals
Trevor Zegras goes ‘between the legs’ against the Kraken
William Nylander scored a fairytale overtime winner to close NHL Global Series – Sweden
Logan Cooley wowed the crowd in Australia during NHL Global Series
Connor Bedard scores a “Michigan” goal against the Blues
Trevor Zegras returns to the lineup with a lacrosse style goal

BUSINESS IS BOOMING

Record Revenues and Attendance: The business of the NHL was stronger than ever in calendar year 2023, and revenues for the 2023-24 season are projected to exceed $6 billion. Total attendance for the 2022-23 regular season was the highest ever and up 7.9% from 2021-22. NHL teams are playing to 96.3% capacity in 2023-24, the second highest rate at this stage of a season on record (behind 2012-13: 97.2%). Other top hits from 2023 from the business realm include:

There are now 70 corporate partners on the NHL roster, with AstraZeneca, PENN Entertainment (ESPN Bet & theScore Bet), Moosehead Breweries and Kal Tire added in 2023.

After generating over $40M in incremental revenue in 2022-23, Digitally Enhanced Dasherboards (DEDs) won the SBJ’s Sports Breakthrough of the Year award and were nominated for the George Wensel Technical Achievement Award at the 2023 Sports Emmys – where NHL Productions claimed the top honor for Outstanding Edited Event Coverage.

NHL Blast launched on the Roblox platform in April, another step for the NHL in immersive fan experience and connecting with younger fans. In its first four months, NHL Blast hosted nearly 15 million total visits from over 4.5 million unique users driving over one million hours of engagement – higher usage compared to other sports properties’ Roblox experiences at the same stage.

The NHL made history on March 14, in partnership with Disney and ESPN, with a national telecast of the *NHL Big City Greens Classic* – a first-of-its-kind live hockey game animated in real-time (leveraging NHL EDGE technology).

GROWING THE GAME

In its second season, the United by Hockey mobile museum which is currently in Seattle for the 2024 Discover NHL Winter Classic, has visited 14 cities across North America since Oct. 14, 2023. The exhibit crossed the Canada-U.S. border in November and has traveled 9,400 miles this season. To date this season, it has celebrated hockey’s trailblazers and changemakers with nearly 10,000 fans.