1973–74 NHL season

1973–74 NHL season
League	National Hockey League
Sport	Ice hockey
Duration	October 10, 1973 – May 19, 1974
Number of games	78
Number of teams	16
TV partner(s)	CBC, CTV, SRC (Canada) NBC (United States)
Draft
Top draft pick	Denis Potvin
Picked by	New York Islanders
Regular season
Season champions	Boston Bruins
Season MVP	Phil Esposito (Bruins)
Top scorer	Phil Esposito (Bruins)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVP	Bernie Parent (Flyers)
Stanley Cup
Champions	Philadelphia Flyers
Runners-up	Boston Bruins
NHL seasons
← 1972–73 1974–75 →

The 1973–74 NHL season was the 57th season of the National Hockey League. The Philadelphia Flyers won the Stanley Cup championship, the team's first. The team was the first of the post-1967 teams to win the Cup.

With owner Charles O. Finley unable to find a buyer, the league took over operation of the troubled California Golden Seals in February 1974. Fred Glover then resigned as general manager-coach. Garry Young, who had served as general manager from October 1971 to November 1972, agreed to return. Marshall Johnston, a defenseman for the Seals, retired and took over as coach.

The 1973 NHL Amateur Draft was held on May 15 at the Mount Royal Hotel in Montreal, Quebec. Denis Potvin was selected first overall by the New York Islanders.

The Philadelphia Flyers, who developed the nickname "Broad Street Bullies" because of their physical style of play, dethroned the Chicago Black Hawks as the West Division champions behind the dominant play of Bobby Clarke and Bernie Parent.

The New York Rangers were floundering under new coach Larry Popein and were in danger of missing the playoffs, and Emile Francis took over the coaching reins. The Rangers then improved enough to get into the playoffs.

Tragedy hit the NHL in the early morning hours of February 21 when 44 year-old Buffalo Sabres defenseman Tim Horton was killed in an automobile accident. He had been returning to Buffalo from Toronto at the time.

In the East Division, the Boston Bruins regained the top spot in the East and the league, behind an ongoing offensive juggernaut that saw Bruins' players finish 1–2–3–4 in NHL scoring (Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Ken Hodge, and Wayne Cashman) for the second and most recent time in league history.

East Division^[1]

• v
• t
• e

		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	DIFF	Pts
1	Boston Bruins	78	52	17	9	349	221	+128	113
2	Montreal Canadiens	78	45	24	9	293	240	+53	99
3	New York Rangers	78	40	24	14	300	251	+49	94
4	Toronto Maple Leafs	78	35	27	16	274	230	+44	86
5	Buffalo Sabres	78	32	34	12	242	250	−8	76
6	Detroit Red Wings	78	29	39	10	255	319	−64	68
7	Vancouver Canucks	78	24	43	11	224	296	−72	59
8	New York Islanders	78	19	41	18	182	247	−65	56

West Division^[2]

• v
• t
• e

		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	DIFF	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	78	50	16	12	273	164	+109	112
2	Chicago Black Hawks	78	41	14	23	272	164	+108	105
3	Los Angeles Kings	78	33	33	12	233	231	+2	78
4	Atlanta Flames	78	30	34	14	214	238	−24	74
5	Pittsburgh Penguins	78	28	41	9	242	273	−31	65
6	St. Louis Blues	78	26	40	12	206	248	−42	64
7	Minnesota North Stars	78	23	38	17	235	275	−40	63
8	California Golden Seals	78	13	55	10	195	342	−147	36

The playoffs began on April 9 with the first round, which was played between divisional opponents. The top teams all won their first rounds, with one mild upset, as the third-place New York Rangers defeated the second-place Montreal Canadiens, marking the third straight year that they had defeated the defending Stanley Cup champions in the first round. In the second round, the teams played an inter-divisional round to determine the finalists. The Eastern champion Boston Bruins took on the Western's second-place Chicago Black Hawks, while the Western champion Philadelphia Flyers took on the New York Rangers. Boston won its series in six games to take one Finals spot, while Philadelphia won its series against the New York Rangers in seven games to make the team's first Finals appearance. In doing so, the Flyers became the first-ever post 1967 NHL expansion team to win a playoff series against an Original Six opponent. In the Finals, the Flyers won the series in six games against the Bruins to win not only the franchise's first championship but also to become the first post 1967 NHL expansion team and thus the first non 'Original Six' NHL team to win the Stanley Cup since the Montreal Maroons in 1935.^[3]

Quarterfinals

Semifinals

Stanley Cup Finals

E1

Boston

4

E4

Toronto

0

E1

Boston

4

W2

Chicago

2

W2

Chicago

4

W3

Los Angeles

1

E1

Boston

2

W1

Philadelphia

4

W1

Philadelphia

4

W4

Atlanta

0

W1

Philadelphia

4

E3

NY Rangers

3

E2

Montreal

2

E3

NY Rangers

4

The Boston Bruins finished first in the league with 113 points. The Toronto Maple Leafs finished fourth in the East Division with 86 points. This was the 13th playoff meeting between these two teams. Toronto lead 8–4 in previous meetings. Boston won their most recent meeting in five games in the 1972 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals. Boston won four of the six games in this year's regular season series.

April 10	Toronto Maple Leafs		0–1		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			04:22 – Gregg Sheppard (1)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Doug Favell		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

April 11	Toronto Maple Leafs		3–6		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
Ron Ellis (1) – 14:24 Dave Keon (1) – 19:06		First period			08:56 – Ken Hodge (1) 15:46 – Bobby Schmautz (1)
Darryl Sittler (1) – pp – 15:01		Second period			03:31 – Johnny Bucyk (1) 13:13 – Wayne Cashman (1)
No scoring		Third period			07:34 – pp – Phil Esposito (1) 19:14 – sh – Gregg Sheppard (2)
Doug Favell		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

April 13	Boston Bruins		6–3		Toronto Maple Leafs	Maple Leaf Gardens	Recap
No scoring		First period			08:54 – Bob Neely (1)
Andre Savard (1) – 01:59 Gregg Sheppard (3) – 05:44 Gregg Sheppard (4) – 16:46 Johnny Bucyk (2) – 17:00		Second period			19:30 – Darryl Sittler (2)
Wayne Cashman (2) – 01:22 Bobby Schmautz (2) – 11:42		Third period			02:20 – Eddie Shack (1)
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Ed Johnston

April 14	Boston Bruins		4–3	OT	Toronto Maple Leafs	Maple Leaf Gardens	Recap
Terry O'Reilly (1) – 08:53		First period			14:56 – Ron Ellis (2)
Ken Hodge (2) – 06:51		Second period			08:58 – Norm Ullman (1)
Bobby Orr (1) – pp – 17:34		Third period			18:43 – Inge Hammarstrom (1)
Ken Hodge (3) – 01:27		First overtime period			No scoring
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Doug Favell

Boston won series 4–0

The Montreal Canadiens finished second in the East Division with 99 points. The New York Rangers finished third with 94 points. This was the 11th playoff meeting between these two teams with the teams splitting the ten previous series. They last met in the 1972 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals which New York won in six games. Montreal won four of the six games in this year's regular season series.

April 10	New York Rangers		4–1		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
Steve Vickers (1) -pp – 10:48 Bruce MacGregor (1) – 11:07		First period			No scoring
Dale Rolfe (1) – 02:43		Second period			08:59 – Steve Shutt (1)
Brad Park (1) – 18:11		Third period			No scoring
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Michel Larocque

April 11	New York Rangers		1–4		Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
Bruce MacGregor (2) – 12:51		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			05:03 – Steve Shutt (2) 18:11 – Yvan Cournoyer (1)
No scoring		Third period			11:53 – Yvan Cournoyer (2) 14:51 – Yvan Cournoyer (3)
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Michel Larocque

April 13	Montreal Canadiens		4–2		New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Peter Mahovlich (1) – 03:38 Steve Shutt (3) – pp – 15:03 Yvan Cournoyer (4) – 18:47		First period			No scoring
Yvan Cournoyer (5) – 00:49		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			08:06 – pp – Pete Stemkowski (1) 11:48 – Jean Ratelle (1)
Michel Larocque		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

April 14	Montreal Canadiens		4–6		New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Steve Shutt (4) – 00:46 Peter Mahovlich (2) – pp – 18:37		First period			09:35 – Ron Harris (1)
Frank Mahovlich (1) – 02:56		Second period			04:46 – pp – Rod Gilbert (1) 14:00 – Ted Irvine (1)
Serge Savard (1) – 13:57		Third period			01:18 – Ted Irvine (2) 15:06 – Bruce MacGregor (3) 19:18 – Pete Stemkowski (2)
Michel Larocque		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

April 16	New York Rangers		3–2	OT	Montreal Canadiens	Montreal Forum	Recap
Bruce MacGregor (4) – 12:43		First period			00:49 – Henri Richard (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Bruce MacGregor (5) – 19:44		Third period			05:24 – Murray Wilson (1)
Ron Harris (2) – 04:07		First overtime period			No scoring
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Michel Larocque

April 18	Montreal Canadiens		2–5		New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Henri Richard (2) – 09:15		First period			No scoring
Steve Shutt (5) – 02:07		Second period			08:41 – Bruce MacGregor (6) 09:27 – Bill Fairbairn (1)
No scoring		Third period			11:04 – Jean Ratelle (2) 19:06 – Pete Stemkowski (3) 19:24 – Pete Stemkowski (4)
Michel Larocque		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

New York won series 4–2

The Philadelphia Flyers finished first in the West Division and second in the league with 112 points. The Atlanta Flames finished fourth with 74 points, the lowest points earned by any playoff team in 1974. The Atlanta Flames made their first playoff appearance in their second season after entering the league in the previous year. This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams. The teams split this year's six-game regular season series.

April 9	Atlanta Flames		1–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
No scoring		First period			19:56 – sh – Gary Dornhoefer (1)
No scoring		Second period			13:36 – pp – Tom Bladon (1)
Bob Murray (1) – 09:29		Third period			08:59 – Orest Kindrachuk (1) 12:09 – Orest Kindrachuk (2)
Phil Myre		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

April 11	Atlanta Flames		1–5		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
No scoring		First period			06:01 – Terry Crisp (1)
No scoring		Second period			03:26 – Rick MacLeish (1) 06:20 – Rick MacLeish (2) 18:26 – Rich MacLeish (3)
Rey Comeau (1) – 01:31		Third period			11:52 – pp – Jimmy Watson (1)
Phil Myre		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

April 12	Philadelphia Flyers		4–1		Atlanta Flames	The Omni	Recap
Don Saleski (1) – 02:51 Bobby Clarke (1) – pp – 05:02		First period			No scoring
Rick MacLeish (4) – 13:47		Second period			08:47 – Larry Romanchych (1)
Bill Barber (1) – 02:20		Third period			No scoring
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Dan Bouchard

April 14	Philadelphia Flyers		4–3	OT	Atlanta Flames	The Omni	Recap
No scoring		First period			03:28 – Larry Romanchych (2)
Andre Dupont (1) – 16:48		Second period			05:33 – pp – Jean Lemieux (1) 16:19 – Rey Comeau (2)
Gary Dornhoefer (2) – pp – 01:16 Tom Bladon (2) – pp – 06:34		Third period			No scoring
Dave Schultz (1) – 05:40		First overtime period			No scoring
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Phil Myre

Philadelphia won series 4–0

The Chicago Black Hawks finished second in the West Division with 105 points. The Los Angeles Kings finished third in the West Division with 78 points. This was the first playoff series meeting between these two teams. Chicago won this year's six-game regular season series earning eight of twelve points.

April 10	Los Angeles Kings		1–3		Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
Gene Carr (1) – pp – 09:08		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			11:13 – Darcy Rota (1) 16:51 – Dennis Hull (1)
No scoring		Third period			19:12 – Stan Mikita (1)
Rogie Vachon		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

April 11	Los Angeles Kings		1–4		Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			12:21 – pp – Dick Redmond (1)
Bob Nevin (1) – 04:03		Second period			18:13 – Stan Mikita (2)
No scoring		Third period			03:07 – Dennis Hull (2) 19:27 – Jim Pappin (1)
Rogie Vachon		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

April 13	Chicago Blackhawks		1–0		Los Angeles Kings	The Forum	Recap
Germain Gagnon (1) – 00:40		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Tony Esposito		Goalie stats			Rogie Vachon

April 14	Chicago Blackhawks		1–5		Los Angeles Kings	The Forum	Recap
Dennis Hull (3) – 03:07		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			04:04 – Gene Carr (2)
No scoring		Third period			03:24 – Juha Widing (1) 06:29 – Tom Williams (1) 10:27 – Tom Williams (2) 12:47 – pp – Tom Williams (3)
Mike Veisor		Goalie stats			Gary Edwards

April 16	Los Angeles Kings		0–1		Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			15:23 – Jim Pappin (2)
Rogie Vachon		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

Chicago won series 4–1

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams with Boston winning all three previous series. Boston won their most recent meeting in a four-game sweep in the 1970 Stanley Cup Semifinals. Chicago won this year's five-game regular season series earning seven of ten points.

April 18	Chicago Blackhawks		4–2		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			06:40 – pp – Phil Esposito (2)
Stan Mikita (3) – 03:48 Darcy Rota (2) – 08:12		Second period			No scoring
John Marks (1) – 16:56 Dennis Hull (4) – 19:39		Third period			09:08 – Darryl Edestrand (1)
Tony Esposito		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

April 21	Chicago Blackhawks		6–8		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
Darcy Rota (3) – 09:04 Dale Tallon (1) – pp – 19:15		First period			06:44 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (3) 11:56 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (4)
Dennis Hull (5) – 04:40 Germain Gagnon (2) – pp – 12:38		Second period			01:28 – Terry O'Reilly (2) 17:34 – pp – Johnny Bucyk (5)
Dennis Hull (6) – pp – 05:12 John Marks (2) – 13:52		Third period			02:59 – Phil Esposito (3) 07:56 – Bobby Schmautz (3) 08:40 – Don Marcotte (1) 11:53 – Gregg Sheppard (5)
Tony Esposito		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

April 23	Boston Bruins		3–4	OT	Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
Carol Vadnais (1) – pp – 13:18		First period			No scoring
Gregg Sheppard (6) – 16:39		Second period			03:09 – pp – Bill White (1)
Ken Hodge (4) – pp – 04:53		Third period			11:38 – pp – Stan Mikita (4) 19:18 – Stan Mikita (5)
No scoring		First overtime period			03:48 – Jim Pappin (3)
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

April 25	Boston Bruins		5–2		Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
Gregg Sheppard (7) – 12:07 Ken Hodge (5) – 19:51		First period			10:50 – Pit Martin (1)
Phil Esposito (4) – pp – 10:29 Andre Savard (2) – 14:31		Second period			15:23 – Keith Magnuson (1)
Wayne Cashman (3) – 19:31		Third period			No scoring
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

April 28	Chicago Blackhawks		2–6		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			15:13 – Johnny Bucyk (6)
Cliff Koroll (1) – pp – 06:02		Second period			00:47 – Johnny Bucyk (7) 02:09 – Phil Esposito (5) 03:35 – Dallas Smith (1) 06:50 – Phil Esposito (6) 17:25 – Gregg Sheppard (8)
Pit Martin (2) – pp – 02:25		Third period			No scoring
Tony Esposito Mike Veisor		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

April 30	Boston Bruins		4–2		Chicago Blackhawks	Chicago Stadium	Recap
No scoring		First period			07:16 – Cliff Koroll (2)
Don Marcotte (2) – 05:59 Don Marcotte (3) – 10:05		Second period			No scoring
Gregg Sheppard (9) – 18:11 Phil Esposito (7) – 18:44		Third period			04:18 – pp – Len Frig (1)
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Tony Esposito

Boston won series 4–2

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. New York won this year's five-game regular season series earning six of ten points.

April 20	New York Rangers		0–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
No scoring		First period			19:03 – pp – Rick MacLeish (5)
No scoring		Second period			04:33 – Ross Lonsberry (1) 05:25 – Bill Barber (2)
No scoring		Third period			18:07 – Rick MacLeish (6)
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

April 23	New York Rangers		2–5		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
No scoring		First period			08:13 – pp – Bobby Clarke (2)
Jack Egers (1) – 18:36		Second period			10:37 – Ed Van Impe (1)
Brad Park (2) – pp – 08:10		Third period			07:54 – sh – Ross Lonsberry (2) 16:20 – Rick MacLeish (7) 19:26 – pp – Ross Lonsberry (3)
Ed Giacomin Gilles Villemure		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

April 25	Philadelphia Flyers		3–5		New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Rick MacLeish (8) – pp – 06:57 Andre Dupont (2) – 12:20		First period			14:28 – Bill Fairbairn (2)
Gary Dornhoefer (3) – pp – 11:33		Second period			13:57 – pp – Steve Vickers (2) 18:44 – Vic Hadfield (1)
No scoring		Third period			08:53 – pp – Brad Park (3) 13:14 – Rod Gilbert (2)
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

April 28	Philadelphia Flyers		1–2	OT	New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Joe Watson (1) – 15:32		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			18:13 – pp – Bobby Rousseau (1)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
No scoring		First overtime period			04:20 – Rod Gilbert (3)
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

April 30	New York Rangers		1–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
Pete Stemkowski (5) – 06:16		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			06:49 – Tom Bladon (3) 17:39 – Rick MacLeish (9)
No scoring		Third period			08:05 – Simon Nolet (1) 19:27 – Rick MacLeish (10)
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

May 2	Philadelphia Flyers		1–4		New York Rangers	Madison Square Garden	Recap
Don Saleski (2) – 05:41		First period			16:59 – Brad Park (4)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			04:10 – Ron Harris (3) 05:48 – Ted Irvine (3) 19:39 – Steve Vickers (3)
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Ed Giacomin

May 5	New York Rangers		3–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
Bill Fairbairn (3) – 13:43		First period			14:40 – pp – Rick MacLeish (11)
No scoring		Second period			02:27 – Orest Kindrachuk (3) 11:26 – Gary Dornhoefer (4)
Steve Vickers (4) – 08:49 Pete Stemkowski (6) – 14:43		Third period			09:01 – Gary Dornhoefer (5)
Ed Giacomin		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

Philadelphia won series 4–3

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. The Bruins made their thirteenth Finals appearance; winning in their last appearance in 1972 where they defeated the New York Rangers in six games. The Flyers made their first Finals appearance in their seventh season since entering the league in the 1967–68 NHL season. Boston won this year's five-game regular season series earning seven of ten points. Boston was the prohibitive favorite entering the series.

However, the Philadelphia Flyers stunned the Bruins in six games to become the first non-Original Six team to win the Stanley Cup since 1935 and the first expansion team to do so since the league began expanding in 1967.

May 7	Philadelphia Flyers		2–3		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			12:05 – pp – Wayne Cashman (4) 13:01 – Gregg Sheppard (10)
Orest Kindrachuk (4) – 07:47		Second period			No scoring
Bobby Clarke (3) – 05:32		Third period			19:38 – Bobby Orr (2)
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

May 9	Philadelphia Flyers		3–2	OT	Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			14:24 – Wayne Cashman (5) 17:22 – Phil Esposito (8)
Bobby Clarke (4) – 01:08		Second period			No scoring
Andre Dupont (3) – 19:08		Third period			No scoring
Bobby Clarke (5) – 12:01		First overtime period			No scoring
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

May 12	Boston Bruins		1–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
Johnny Bucyk (8) – 01:03		First period			10:27 – pp – Tom Bladon (4) 15:43 – Terry Crisp (2)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			07:53 – Orest Kindrachuk (5) 14:19 – Ross Lonsberry (4)
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

May 14	Boston Bruins		2–4		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
Phil Esposito (9) – pp – 07:12 Andre Savard (3) – 11:24		First period			04:40 – pp – Rick MacLeish (12) 05:30 – Dave Schultz (2)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			14:25 – Bill Barber (3) 16:40 – Andre Dupont (4)
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

May 16	Philadelphia Flyers		1–5		Boston Bruins	Boston Garden	Recap
No scoring		First period			08:14 – sh – Gregg Sheppard (11)
Bill Clement (1) – 06:04		Second period			12:06 – Bobby Orr (3) 16:55 – Bobby Orr (4)
No scoring		Third period			00:39 – pp – Ken Hodge (6) 18:59 – Don Marcotte (4)
Bernie Parent		Goalie stats			Gilles Gilbert

May 19	Boston Bruins		0–1		Philadelphia Flyers	The Spectrum	Recap
No scoring		First period			14:48 – pp – Rick MacLeish (13)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Gilles Gilbert		Goalie stats			Bernie Parent

Philadelphia won series 4–2

A new award, the Jack Adams for the best coach, was introduced for this season. The first winner was Fred Shero of the Philadelphia Flyers.

1974 NHL awards
Prince of Wales Trophy: (East Division champion, regular season)	Boston Bruins
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: (West Division champion, regular season)	Philadelphia Flyers
Art Ross Trophy: (Top scorer, regular season)	Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: (Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication)	Henri Richard, Montreal Canadiens
Calder Memorial Trophy: (Top first-year player)	Denis Potvin, New York Islanders
Conn Smythe Trophy: (Most valuable player, playoffs)	Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers
Hart Memorial Trophy: (Most valuable player, regular season)	Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
Jack Adams Award: (Best coach)	Fred Shero, Philadelphia Flyers
James Norris Memorial Trophy: (Best defenceman)	Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: (Excellence and sportsmanship)	Johnny Bucyk, Boston Bruins
Lester B. Pearson Award: (Outstanding player, regular season)	Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins
Vezina Trophy: (Goaltender(s) of team(s) with best goaltending record)	Tony Esposito, Chicago Black Hawks and Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers

First team	Position	Second team
Bernie Parent, Philadelphia Flyers	G	Tony Esposito, Chicago Black Hawks
Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins	D	Bill White, Chicago Black Hawks
Brad Park, New York Rangers	D	Barry Ashbee, Philadelphia Flyers
Phil Esposito, Boston Bruins	C	Bobby Clarke, Philadelphia Flyers
Ken Hodge, Boston Bruins	RW	Mickey Redmond, Detroit Red Wings
Rick Martin, Buffalo Sabres	LW	Wayne Cashman, Boston Bruins

Note: GP = Games played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
Phil Esposito	Boston Bruins	78	68	77	145	58
Bobby Orr	Boston Bruins	74	32	90	122	82
Ken Hodge	Boston Bruins	76	50	55	105	43
Wayne Cashman	Boston Bruins	78	30	59	89	111
Bobby Clarke	Philadelphia Flyers	77	35	52	87	113
Rick Martin	Buffalo Sabres	78	52	34	86	38
Syl Apps, Jr	Pittsburgh Penguins	75	24	61	85	37
Darryl Sittler	Toronto Maple Leafs	78	38	46	84	55
Lowell MacDonald	Pittsburgh Penguins	78	43	39	82	14
Brad Park	New York Rangers	78	25	57	82	148
Dennis Hextall	Minnesota North Stars	78	20	62	82	138

Source: NHL.^[4]

Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts

Player	Team	GP	MIN	GA	GAA	W	L	T	SO
Bernie Parent	Philadelphia Flyers	73	4314	136	1.89	47	13	12	12
Tony Esposito	Chicago Black Hawks	70	4143	141	2.04	34	14	21	10
Ross Brooks	Boston Bruins	21	1170	46	2.36	16	3	0	3
Doug Favell	Toronto Maple Leafs	32	1752	79	2.71	14	7	9	0
Wayne Thomas	Montreal Canadiens	42	2410	111	2.76	23	12	5	1
Dan Bouchard	Atlanta Flames	46	2660	123	2.77	19	18	8	5
Rogie Vachon	L.A. Kings	65	3751	175	2.80	28	26	10	5
Michel Larocque	Montreal Canadiens	27	1431	69	2.89	15	8	2	0
Dunc Wilson	Toronto Maple Leafs	24	1412	68	2.89	9	11	3	1
Gilles Gilbert	Boston Bruins	54	3210	158	2.95	34	12	8	6

• Plus-minus leader: Bobby Orr, Boston Bruins

• Boston Bruins: Bep Guidolin
• Buffalo Sabres: Joe Crozier
• Detroit Red Wings: Ted Garvin and Alex Delvecchio
• Montreal Canadiens: Scotty Bowman
• New York Islanders: Al Arbour
• New York Rangers: Larry Popein and Emile Francis
• Toronto Maple Leafs: Red Kelly
• Vancouver Canucks: Phil Maloney

• Atlanta Flames: Bernie Geoffrion
• California Golden Seals: Fred Glover and Marshall Johnston
• Chicago Black Hawks: Billy Reay
• Los Angeles Kings: Bob Pulford
• Minnesota North Stars: Jack Gordon and Parker MacDonald
• Philadelphia Flyers: Fred Shero
• Pittsburgh Penguins: Ken Schinkel and Marc Boileau
• St. Louis Blues: Jean-Guy Talbot and Lou Angotti

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1973–74 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

• Eric Vail, Atlanta Flames
• Tom Lysiak, Atlanta Flames
• Peter McNab, Buffalo Sabres
• Darcy Rota, Chicago Black Hawks
• Blake Dunlop, Minnesota North Stars
• Bob Gainey, Montreal Canadiens
• Michel Larocque, Montreal Canadiens
• Denis Potvin, New York Islanders
• Chico Resch, New York Islanders
• Dave Lewis, New York Islanders
• Al MacAdam, Philadelphia Flyers
• Blaine Stoughton, Pittsburgh Penguins
• John Davidson, St. Louis Blues
• Inge Hammarstrom, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Börje Salming, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Lanny McDonald, Toronto Maple Leafs
• Bob Dailey, Vancouver Canucks
• Dennis Ververgaert, Vancouver Canucks

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1973–74 (listed with their last team):

• Tim Horton, Buffalo Sabres
• Alex Delvecchio, Detroit Red Wings
• Dean Prentice, Minnesota North Stars
• Gump Worsley, Minnesota North Stars
• Frank Mahovlich, Montreal Canadiens
• Jacques Laperriere, Montreal Canadiens
• Barry Ashbee, Philadelphia Flyers
• Orland Kurtenbach, Vancouver Canucks

NOTE: Frank Mahovlich would finish his major professional career in the World Hockey Association.

Hockey Night in Canada on CBC Television televised Saturday night regular season games and Stanley Cup playoff games. HNIC also produced Wednesday night regular season game telecasts for CTV.

This was the second season under the U.S. rights agreement with NBC, airing weekend afternoon regular season games and playoff games.

• List of Stanley Cup champions
• 1973 NHL Amateur Draft
• 1973–74 NHL transactions
• 27th National Hockey League All-Star Game
• National Hockey League All-Star Game
• List of WHA seasons
• Lester Patrick Trophy
• 1973 in sports
• 1974 in sports

• Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, New York: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
• Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
• Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
• Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, Illinois: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.

Notes

• Hockey Database
• NHL.com