2018–19 NHL season

National Hockey League season

The 2018–19 NHL season was the 102nd season of operation (101st season of play) of the National Hockey League. 31 teams competed in an 82-game regular season. The regular season began on October 3, 2018, and ended on April 6, 2019. The 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs began on April 10, 2019, and the Stanley Cup Finals concluded on June 12, 2019, with the St. Louis Blues winning their first Stanley Cup in the Finals over the Boston Bruins in seven games.

2018–19 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationOctober 3, 2018 – June 12, 2019
Number of games82
Number of teams31
TV partner(s)CBC, Sportsnet, TVA Sports (Canada)
NBCSN, NBC, CNBC, USA (United States)
Draft
Top draft pickRasmus Dahlin
Picked byBuffalo Sabres
Regular season
Presidents' TrophyTampa Bay Lightning
Season MVPNikita Kucherov (Lightning)
Top scorerNikita Kucherov (Lightning)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVPRyan O'Reilly (Blues)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsSt. Louis Blues
  Runners-upBoston Bruins
NHL seasons

Standings

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Top 3 (Metropolitan Division)
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 y – Washington Capitals 82 48 26 8 44 278 249 +29 104
2 x – New York Islanders 82 48 27 7 43 228 196 +32 103
3 x – Pittsburgh Penguins 82 44 26 12 42 273 241 +32 100
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division
Top 3 (Atlantic Division)
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 p – Tampa Bay Lightning 82 62 16 4 56 325 222 +103 128
2 x – Boston Bruins 82 49 24 9 47 259 215 +44 107
3 x – Toronto Maple Leafs 82 46 28 8 46 286 251 +35 100
Source: National Hockey League
p – Clinched Presidents' Trophy; x – Clinched playoff spot
Eastern Conference Wild Card
Pos Div Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 ME x – Carolina Hurricanes 82 46 29 7 44 245 223 +22 99
2 ME x – Columbus Blue Jackets 82 47 31 4 45 258 232 +26 98
3 AT Montreal Canadiens 82 44 30 8 41 249 236 +13 96
4 AT Florida Panthers 82 36 32 14 33 267 280 −13 86
5 ME Philadelphia Flyers 82 37 37 8 34 244 281 −37 82
6 ME New York Rangers 82 32 36 14 26 227 272 −45 78
7 AT Buffalo Sabres 82 33 39 10 28 226 271 −45 76
8 AT Detroit Red Wings 82 32 40 10 29 227 277 −50 74
9 ME New Jersey Devils 82 31 41 10 28 222 275 −53 72
10 AT Ottawa Senators 82 29 47 6 29 242 302 −60 64
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot
Top 3 (Central Division)
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 y – Nashville Predators 82 47 29 6 43 240 214 +26 100
2 x – Winnipeg Jets 82 47 30 5 45 272 244 +28 99
3 x – St. Louis Blues 82 45 28 9 42 247 223 +24 99
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot; y – Clinched division
Top 3 (Pacific Division)
Pos Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 z – Calgary Flames 82 50 25 7 50 289 227 +62 107
2 x – San Jose Sharks 82 46 27 9 46 289 261 +28 101
3 x – Vegas Golden Knights 82 43 32 7 40 249 230 +19 93
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot; z – Clinched conference
Western Conference Wild Card
Pos Div Team GP W L OTL ROW GF GA GD Pts
1 CE x – Dallas Stars 82 43 32 7 42 210 202 +8 93
2 CE x – Colorado Avalanche 82 38 30 14 36 260 246 +14 90
3 PA Arizona Coyotes 82 39 35 8 35 213 223 −10 86
4 CE Chicago Blackhawks 82 36 34 12 33 270 292 −22 84
5 CE Minnesota Wild 82 37 36 9 36 211 237 −26 83
6 PA Vancouver Canucks 82 35 36 11 29 225 254 −29 81
7 PA Anaheim Ducks 82 35 37 10 32 199 251 −52 80
8 PA Edmonton Oilers 82 35 38 9 32 232 274 −42 79
9 PA Los Angeles Kings 82 31 42 9 28 202 263 −61 71
Source: National Hockey League
x – Clinched playoff spot

Tie Breakers:
1. Fewer number of games played
2. Greater Regulation + OT Wins (ROW)
3. Greatest number of points earned in head-to-head play (If teams played an uneven number of head-to-head games, the result of the first game on the home ice of the team with the extra home game is discarded.)
4. Greater Goal differential

Playoffs

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Bracket

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In each round, teams compete in a best-of-seven series following a 2–2–1–1–1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). The team with home ice advantage plays at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team is at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top three teams in each division make the playoffs, along with two wild cards in each conference, for a total of eight teams from each conference.

In the First Round, the lower seeded wild card in the conference plays against the division winner with the best record while the other wild card plays against the other division winner, and both wild cards are de facto #4 seeds. The other series match the second and third place teams from the divisions. In the first two rounds, home ice advantage is awarded to the team with the better seed. Thereafter, it is awarded to the team that had more points in the regular season followed by the tie breakers, if necessary.

  First Round Second Round Conference Finals Stanley Cup Finals
                                     
A1 Tampa Bay 0  
WC Columbus 4  
  WC Columbus 2  
 
  A2 Boston 4  
A2 Boston 4
A3 Toronto 3  
  A2 Boston 4  
Eastern Conference
  WC Carolina 0  
M1 Washington 3  
WC Carolina 4  
  WC Carolina 4
 
  M2 NY Islanders 0  
M2 NY Islanders 4
M3 Pittsburgh 0  
  A2 Boston 3
  C3 St. Louis 4
C1 Nashville 2  
WC Dallas 4  
  WC Dallas 3
 
  C3 St. Louis 4  
C2 Winnipeg 2
C3 St. Louis 4  
  C3 St. Louis 4
Western Conference
  P2 San Jose 2  
P1 Calgary 1  
WC Colorado 4  
  WC Colorado 3
 
  P2 San Jose 4  
P2 San Jose 4
P3 Vegas 3  
Legend
  • A1, A2, A3 – The first, second, and third place teams from the Atlantic Division, respectively
  • M1, M2, M3 – The first, second, and third place teams from the Metropolitan Division, respectively
  • C1, C2, C3 – The first, second, and third place teams from the Central Division, respectively
  • P1, P2, P3 – The first, second, and third place teams from the Pacific Division, respectively
  • WC – Wild Card teams


Statistics

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Scoring leaders

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The following players led the league in regular season points at the conclusion of games played on April 6, 2019.[1]

Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM
Nikita Kucherov Tampa Bay Lightning 82 41 87 128 +24 62
Connor McDavid Edmonton Oilers 78 41 75 116 +3 20
Patrick Kane Chicago Blackhawks 81 44 66 110 +2 22
Leon Draisaitl Edmonton Oilers 82 50 55 105 +2 52
Brad Marchand Boston Bruins 79 36 64 100 +15 96
Sidney Crosby Pittsburgh Penguins 79 35 65 100 +18 36
Nathan MacKinnon Colorado Avalanche 82 41 58 99 +20 34
Johnny Gaudreau Calgary Flames 82 36 63 99 +18 24
Steven Stamkos Tampa Bay Lightning 82 45 53 98 +4 37
Aleksander Barkov Florida Panthers 82 35 61 96 –3 8

Leading goaltenders

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The following goaltenders led the league in regular season goals against average at the conclusion of games played on April 6, 2019, while playing at least 1,800 minutes.[2]

Player Team GP TOI W L OTL GA SO SV% GAA
Jordan Binnington St. Louis Blues 32 1,876:25 24 5 1 59 5 .927 1.89
Ben Bishop Dallas Stars 46 2,637:18 27 15 2 87 7 .934 1.98
Robin Lehner New York Islanders 46 2,615:49 25 13 5 93 6 .930 2.13
Thomas Greiss New York Islanders 43 2,293:42 23 14 2 87 5 .927 2.28
Darcy Kuemper Arizona Coyotes 55 3,251:15 27 20 8 126 5 .925 2.33
Jaroslav Halak Boston Bruins 40 2,308:07 22 11 4 90 5 .922 2.34
Petr Mrazek Carolina Hurricanes 40 2,386:51 23 14 3 95 4 .914 2.39
Andrei Vasilevskiy Tampa Bay Lightning 53 3,203:45 39 10 4 128 6 .925 2.40
Pekka Rinne Nashville Predators 56 3,219:44 30 19 4 130 4 .918 2.42
Tuukka Rask Boston Bruins 46 2,635:09 27 13 5 109 4 .912 2.48

NHL awards

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The league's awards will be presented at the NHL Awards ceremony, to be held following the 2019 Stanley Cup playoffs at a site to be determined. Finalists for voted awards are announced during the playoffs and winners are presented at the award ceremony. Voting will conclude immediately after the end of the regular season. The Presidents' Trophy, the Prince of Wales Trophy and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl are not presented at the awards ceremony. The Lester Patrick Trophy is announced during the summer and presented in the fall.

2018–19 NHL awards
Award Recipient(s) Runner(s)-up/Finalists
Stanley Cup St. Louis Blues Boston Bruins
Presidents' Trophy
(Best regular-season record)
Tampa Bay Lightning Calgary Flames
Boston Bruins
Prince of Wales Trophy
(Eastern Conference champion)
Boston Bruins Carolina Hurricanes
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
(Western Conference champion)
St. Louis Blues San Jose Sharks
Art Ross Trophy
(Player with most points)
Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers)
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
(Perseverance, Sportsmanship, and Dedication)
Robin Lehner (New York Islanders) Nick Foligno (Columbus Blue Jackets)
Joe Thornton (San Jose Sharks)[3]
Calder Memorial Trophy
(Best first-year player)
Elias Pettersson (Vancouver Canucks) Jordan Binnington (St. Louis Blues)
Rasmus Dahlin (Buffalo Sabres)[4]
Conn Smythe Trophy
(Most valuable player, playoffs)
Ryan O' Reilly (St. Louis Blues) N/A
Frank J. Selke Trophy
(Defensive forward)
Ryan O'Reilly (St. Louis Blues) Patrice Bergeron (Boston Bruins)
Mark Stone (Ottawa Senators/Vegas Golden Knights)[5]
Hart Memorial Trophy
(Most valuable player, regular season)
Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins)
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers)[6]
Jack Adams Award
(Best coach)
Barry Trotz (New York Islanders) Craig Berube (St. Louis Blues)
Jon Cooper (Tampa Bay Lightning)[7]
James Norris Memorial Trophy
(Best defenseman)
Mark Giordano (Calgary Flames) Brent Burns (San Jose Sharks)
Victor Hedman (Tampa Bay Lightning)[8]
King Clancy Memorial Trophy
(Leadership and humanitarian contribution)
Jason Zucker (Minnesota Wild) Oliver Ekman-Larsson (Arizona Coyotes)
Henrik Lundqvist (New York Rangers)[9]
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
(Sportsmanship and excellence)
Aleksander Barkov (Florida Panthers) Sean Monahan (Calgary Flames)
Ryan O'Reilly (St. Louis Blues)[10]
Ted Lindsay Award
(Outstanding player)
Nikita Kucherov (Tampa Bay Lightning) Patrick Kane (Chicago Blackhawks)
Connor McDavid (Edmonton Oilers)[11]
Mark Messier Leadership Award
(Leadership and community activities)
Wayne Simmonds (Philadelphia Flyers/Nashville Predators) Mark Giordano (Calgary Flames)
Justin Williams (Carolina Hurricanes)[12]
Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy
(Top goal-scorer)
Alexander Ovechkin (Washington Capitals) Leon Draisaitl (Edmonton Oilers)
NHL General Manager of the Year Award
(Top general manager)
Don Sweeney (Boston Bruins) Doug Armstrong (St. Louis Blues)
Don Waddell (Carolina Hurricanes)[13]
Vezina Trophy
(Best goaltender)
Andrei Vasilevskiy (Tampa Bay Lightning) Ben Bishop (Dallas Stars)
Robin Lehner (New York Islanders)[14]
William M. Jennings Trophy
(Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against)
Robin Lehner and Thomas Greiss (New York Islanders) Ben Bishop and Anton Khudobin (Dallas Stars)
Lester Patrick Trophy
(Service to ice hockey in U.S.)
N/A

All-Star teams

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  Position   First Team Second Team Position All-Rookie
G Andrei Vasilevskiy, Tampa Bay Lightning Ben Bishop, Dallas Stars G Jordan Binnington, St. Louis Blues
D Brent Burns, San Jose Sharks John Carlson, Washington Capitals D Rasmus Dahlin, Buffalo Sabres
D Mark Giordano, Calgary Flames Victor Hedman, Tampa Bay Lightning D Miro Heiskanen, Dallas Stars
C Connor McDavid, Edmonton Oilers Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins F Anthony Cirelli, Tampa Bay Lightning
RW Nikita Kucherov, Tampa Bay Lightning Patrick Kane, Chicago Blackhawks F Elias Pettersson, Vancouver Canucks
LW Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals Brad Marchand, Boston Bruins F Brady Tkachuk, Ottawa Senators

Milestones

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First games

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The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game during the 2018–19 season, listed with their first team.

Player Team Notability
Rasmus Dahlin Buffalo Sabres First overall pick in the 2018 Draft
Elias Pettersson Vancouver Canucks 2018–19 Calder Memorial Trophy winner

Last games

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Player Team Notability
Roberto Luongo[15] Florida Panthers William M. Jennings Trophy winner, 489 career games won, over 1,000 career games played, two-time NHL All-Star Team selection, six-time NHL All-Star
Brooks Orpik[16] Washington Capitals Over 1,000 career games played.
Tomas Plekanec[17] Montreal Canadiens Over 1,000 career games played.

References

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  1. "Player Stats: 2018–19 Regular season: All Skaters– Total Points". National Hockey League.
  2. "Player Stats: 2018–19 Regular season: Leading Goalies". National Hockey League.
  3. "Masterton Trophy finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 20, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  4. "Calder Trophy finalists revealed". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 27, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  5. "Selke Trophy finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 18, 2019.
  6. "Hart Trophy finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 28, 2019. Retrieved April 28, 2019.
  7. "Jack Adams Award finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 26, 2019. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  8. "Norris Trophy finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 21, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2019.
  9. "King Clancy finalists reveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 23, 2019. Retrieved April 23, 2019.
  10. "Lady Byng finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 18, 2019. Retrieved April 19, 2019.
  11. "Kane, Kucherov, McDavid finalists for Ted Lindsay Award". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 25, 2019. Retrieved April 27, 2019.
  12. "Messier NHL Leadership Award finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 24, 2019. Retrieved April 25, 2019.
  13. "NHL General Manager of the Year finalists unveiled". May 16, 2019. Retrieved May 16, 2019.
  14. "Vezina Trophy finalists unveiled". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L.P. April 20, 2019. Retrieved April 20, 2019.
  15. Kreiser, John (June 26, 2019). "Luongo announces retirement after 19 NHL seasons". nhl.com. Retrieved June 27, 2019.
  16. "Capitals' Brooks Orpik retiring from NHL". 25 June 2019.
  17. "Plekanec: 'I always wanted to retire as a Montreal Canadien'". Montreal Canadiens. November 9, 2018. Retrieved November 12, 2018.

Other websites

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