1970–71 Boston Bruins season

1970–71 Boston Bruins
East Division champions
Division1st East
1970–71 record57–14–7
Home record33–4–2
Road record24–10–5
Goals for399
Goals against207
Team information
General managerMilt Schmidt
CoachTom Johnson
CaptainVacant
Alternate captainsPhil Esposito
Ted Green
Ed Westfall
ArenaBoston Garden
Team leaders
GoalsPhil Esposito (76)
AssistsBobby Orr (102)
PointsPhil Esposito (152)
Penalty minutesDon Awrey (141)
WinsEddie Johnston (30)
Goals against averageEddie Johnston (2.52)

The 1970–71 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 47th season in the NHL. As defending champions, Boston set many NHL records. They earned 57 wins and 121 points, surpassing the previous records set by the 1968–69 Montreal Canadiens. They also scored 399 goals to shatter their own record set in 1968–69, and their goal differential of +192 surpassed the previous record set by the 1943–44 Montreal Canadiens as well. The NHL's top four scorers (Phil Esposito, Bobby Orr, Johnny Bucyk, and Ken Hodge), each with over 100 points, were all Bruins; previously, there had only been four players in the history of the NHL with 100-point seasons, and no other NHL franchise has ever produced the top four scorers in a season (the Bruins replicated the feat in 1973–74). With 76 goals and 152 points, Esposito broke Bobby Hull's single season record for goals, as well as his own single season points record, both set in 1968–69. Finally, with 102 assists, Orr broke the single season record for most assists that he set the previous year.

However, the team's unprecedented offence was shut down by rookie goaltender Ken Dryden, who guided the Montreal Canadiens to a seven-game upset against the Bruins in the first round of the playoffs.

All of the Bruins' aforementioned records have since been broken:

  • The Montreal Canadiens earned 58 wins and 127 points in 1975–76. The Bruins reclaimed the record in 2023 with 65 wins and 135 points, beating the aforementioned Canadiens in 2022-23
  • Montreal earned a goal differential of +216 in 1976–77.
  • Wayne Gretzky scored 109 assists and 164 points in 1980–81.
  • Gretzky scored 92 goals while the Edmonton Oilers scored 417 total goals in 1981–82.

Offseason

  • Bobby Orr signed the NHL's first one million dollar contract (to be paid out over five years).[1]

NHL Draft

See also: 1970 NHL amateur draft
Round Overall Player
1 3 Reggie Leach
1 4 Rick MacLeish
1 9 Ron Plumb
1 13 Bob Stewart
2 27 Dan Bouchard
3 41 Ray Brownlee
4 55 Gord Davies
5 69 Bob Roselle
6 83 Murray Wing
7 96 Glenn Siddall

Regular season

The 1970–71 Bruins set an NHL record by having 10 different skaters score 20 goals or more in a season.[2] The record was broken by the 1977–78 Bruins when they had 11 different skaters with 20 goals or more.

Playoffs

The postseason ended quickly for the Bruins as they lost in the opening round to the Montreal Canadiens and their rookie goaltender Ken Dryden in a seven-game upset.

Season standings

East Division[3]
GP W L T GF GA DIFF Pts
1 78 57 14 7 399 207 +192 121
2 New York Rangers 78 49 18 11 259 177 +82 109
3 Montreal Canadiens 78 42 23 13 291 216 +75 97
4 Toronto Maple Leafs 78 37 33 8 248 211 +37 82
5 Buffalo Sabres 78 24 39 15 217 291 −74 63
6 Vancouver Canucks 78 24 46 8 229 296 −67 56
7 Detroit Red Wings 78 22 45 11 209 308 −99 55

Record vs. opponents


Schedule and results

1970–71 regular season[5]
October
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
1 W October 11, 1970 7–3 Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 1–0–0
2 W October 14, 1970 8–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 2–0–0
3 W October 16, 1970 5–1 @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) 3–0–0
4 W October 18, 1970 5–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 4–0–0
5 T October 22, 1970 3–3 Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 4–0–1
6 W October 25, 1970 4–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 5–0–1
7 L October 29, 1970 3–5 @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 5–1–1
8 W October 31, 1970 6–0 New York Rangers (1970–71) 6–1–1
November
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
9 W November 1, 1970 5–0 Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 7–1–1
10 L November 5, 1970 0–2 St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 7–2–1
11 T November 7, 1970 2–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 7–2–2
12 W November 8, 1970 6–1 Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 8–2–2
13 W November 10, 1970 6–3 Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 9–2–2
14 L November 14, 1970 2–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 9–3–2
15 L November 15, 1970 1–2 California Golden Seals (1970–71) 9–4–2
16 W November 18, 1970 8–4 @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 10–4–2
17 W November 21, 1970 5–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 11–4–2
18 W November 22, 1970 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 12–4–2
19 T November 24, 1970 5–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 12–4–3
20 W November 26, 1970 3–2 Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 13–4–3
21 T November 28, 1970 3–3 @ New York Rangers (1970–71) 13–4–4
22 W November 29, 1970 4–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 14–4–4
December
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
23 L December 2, 1970 3–4 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 14–5–4
24 T December 3, 1970 4–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 14–5–5
25 W December 5, 1970 4–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 15–5–5
26 W December 6, 1970 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 16–5–5
27 W December 10, 1970 8–2 Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 17–5–5
28 W December 12, 1970 1–0 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 18–5–5
29 W December 13, 1970 6–2 Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 19–5–5
30 W December 16, 1970 6–4 Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 20–5–5
31 W December 19, 1970 7–1 @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 21–5–5
32 W December 20, 1970 7–2 Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 22–5–5
33 W December 23, 1970 2–1 @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 23–5–5
34 W December 25, 1970 8–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 24–5–5
35 L December 26, 1970 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 24–6–5
36 W December 30, 1970 6–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 25–6–5
January
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
37 W January 1, 1971 9–4 @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 26–6–5
38 W January 3, 1971 5–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 27–6–5
39 W January 7, 1971 6–4 Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 28–6–5
40 L January 9, 1971 3–4 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 28–7–5
41 W January 10, 1971 7–4 California Golden Seals (1970–71) 29–7–5
42 W January 14, 1971 9–5 Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 30–7–5
43 L January 16, 1971 2–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 30–8–5
44 W January 17, 1971 9–1 Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 31–8–5
45 W January 23, 1971 6–2 Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 32–8–5
46 W January 24, 1971 4–2 Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 33–8–5
47 T January 27, 1971 2–2 @ New York Rangers (1970–71) 33–8–6
48 W January 28, 1971 6–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 34–8–6
49 W January 31, 1971 6–0 St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 35–8–6
February
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
50 W February 3, 1971 7–3 Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 36–8–6
51 W February 6, 1971 4–3 Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 37–8–6
52 T February 7, 1971 4–4 Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 37–8–7
53 W February 9, 1971 6–3 New York Rangers (1970–71) 38–8–7
54 W February 11, 1971 5–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 39–8–7
55 W February 14, 1971 5–1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 40–8–7
56 L February 16, 1971 4–5 @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 40–9–7
57 W February 19, 1971 5–0 @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) 41–9–7
58 L February 20, 1971 4–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 41–10–7
59 W February 23, 1971 6–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 42–10–7
60 W February 25, 1971 8–3 Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 43–10–7
61 W February 28, 1971 4–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 44–10–7
March
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
62 W March 2, 1971 6–0 @ Minnesota North Stars (1970–71) 45–10–7
63 W March 4, 1971 7–0 California Golden Seals (1970–71) 46–10–7
64 W March 6, 1971 6–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1970–71) 47–10–7
65 W March 7, 1971 4–1 St. Louis Blues (1970–71) 48–10–7
66 W March 10, 1971 8–1 @ California Golden Seals (1970–71) 49–10–7
67 W March 11, 1971 7–2 @ Los Angeles Kings (1970–71) 50–10–7
68 W March 13, 1971 6–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1970–71) 51–10–7
69 W March 16, 1971 11–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 52–10–7
70 W March 18, 1971 7–3 Detroit Red Wings (1970–71) 53–10–7
71 W March 20, 1971 5–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1970–71) 54–10–7
72 L March 21, 1971 5–7 Buffalo Sabres (1970–71) 54–11–7
73 L March 24, 1971 1–2 @ Chicago Black Hawks (1970–71) 54–12–7
74 L March 27, 1971 3–6 New York Rangers (1970–71) 54–13–7
75 L March 28, 1971 1–2 @ New York Rangers (1970–71) 54–14–7
76 W March 31, 1971 6–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 55–14–7
April
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
77 W April 3, 1971 8–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1970–71) 56–14–7
78 W April 4, 1971 7–2 Montreal Canadiens (1970–71) 57–14–7

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

Quarterfinals: (E1) Boston Bruins vs. (E3) Montreal Canadiens

April 7 Boston Bruins 3–1 Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden
April 8 Boston Bruins 5–7 Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden
April 10 Montreal Canadiens 3–1 Boston Bruins Montreal Forum
April 11 Montreal Canadiens 2–5 Boston Bruins Montreal Forum
April 13 Boston Bruins 7–3 Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden
April 15 Montreal Canadiens 8–3 Boston Bruins Montreal Forum
April 18 Boston Bruins 2–4 Montreal Canadiens Boston Garden
Montreal won series 4–3

Player statistics

Regular season

= Indicates league leader
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Phil Esposito C 78 76 76 152 71 71 25 1 16
Bobby Orr D 78 37 102 139 91 124 5 3 5
John Bucyk LW 78 51 65 116 8 36 22 0 5
Ken Hodge RW 78 43 62 105 113 71 4 0 7
Wayne Cashman LW 77 21 58 79 100 59 4 0 3
John McKenzie RW 65 31 46 77 120 27 11 0 3
Fred Stanfield LW 75 24 52 76 12 32 8 0 3
Derek Sanderson C 71 29 34 63 130 39 1 6 0
Ed Westfall D/RW 78 25 34 59 48 58 0 7 5
Wayne Carleton LW 69 22 24 46 44 35 0 0 5
Dallas Smith D 73 7 38 45 68 94 0 2 1
Ted Green D 78 5 37 42 60 37 0 0 0
Don Marcotte LW 75 15 13 28 30 20 0 6 2
Don Awrey D 74 4 21 25 141 40 0 0 1
Rick Smith D 67 4 19 23 44 30 0 0 1
Mike Walton C 22 3 5 8 10 11 0 0 0
Reggie Leach RW 23 2 4 6 0 7 0 0 0
Garnet Bailey LW 36 0 6 6 44 4 0 0 0
Eddie Johnston G 38 0 1 1 6 0 0 0 0
Ivan Boldirev C 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Gerry Cheevers G 40 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Danny Schock LW 6 0 0 0 0 −1 0 0 0
Bill Speer D 1 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO
Eddie Johnston 2280 38 30 6 2 96 2.53 4
Gerry Cheevers 2400 40 27 8 5 109 2.72 3
Team: 4680 78 57 14 7 205 2.63 7

Playoffs

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG
Bobby Orr D 7 5 7 12 25 1 1 1
Phil Esposito C 7 3 7 10 6 2 0 0
Fred Stanfield LW 7 3 4 7 0 1 0 0
John Bucyk LW 7 2 5 7 0 0 0 0
Ken Hodge RW 7 2 5 7 6 0 0 0
Wayne Cashman LW 7 3 2 5 15 0 0 1
John McKenzie RW 7 2 3 5 22 1 0 1
Derek Sanderson C 7 2 1 3 13 0 0 0
Ed Westfall D/RW 7 1 2 3 2 0 1 0
Dallas Smith D 7 0 3 3 26 0 0 0
Mike Walton C 5 2 0 2 19 1 0 0
Ted Green D 7 1 0 1 25 0 0 0
Don Awrey D 7 0 0 0 17 0 0 0
Garnet Bailey LW 1 0 0 0 10 0 0 0
Wayne Carleton LW 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Gerry Cheevers G 6 0 0 0 4 0 0 0
Eddie Johnston G 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Reggie Leach RW 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Don Marcotte LW 4 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Rick Smith D 6 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO
Gerry Cheevers 360 6 3 3 21 3.50 0
Eddie Johnston 60 1 0 1 7 7.00 0
Team: 420 7 3 4 28 4.00 0

[6]

Note:
Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards and records

References

  1. ^ Numbelievable!, p.79, Michael X. Ferraro and John Venziano, Triumph Books, 2007, Chicago, Illinois, ISBN 978-1-57243-990-0
  2. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p.174, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  3. ^ "1970–1971 Division Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". National Hockey League.
  4. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  5. ^ "1970-71 Boston Bruins Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved April 3, 2025.
  6. ^ "1970-71 Boston Bruins Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 9, 2009.
  7. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p.222, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  8. ^ National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 187, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
  9. ^ a b National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 183, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, ISBN 0-920445-98-5
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