Normally we’d be in the midst of starting up another hockey season now, but we’re in a different world. Last Word on Hockey is still going to look back at each date’s historical significance to the game. We’ll remember the moments that shaped the sport of hockey that happened on this day. Here’s our look at this date in hockey history for December 1st, featuring Bernie Nicholls.
Today in Hockey History
Bernie Nicholls Has Six Assists, Eight Points
1988: The Los Angeles Kings forward gets six assists and eight points in a 9-3 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs. Nicholls gets team records for assists and points in a single game with the performance. He would also score two goals in the rout of Toronto.
He overshadows a five-assist night by Wayne Gretzky and a hat trick by Dave Taylor. The Haliburton. Ontario finished his career with 475 goals and 1,209 points in 1,127 games.
Other Notable Events
1924: The NHL debuts in the United States when the Boston Bruins beat the Montreal Maroons, 2-1. Smokey Harris and Carson Cooper provide goals in the victory at Boston Arena. It’s the highlight of their season as they go 6-24 in 30 games.
1940: Oh brother, what a game we have. The Chicago Black Hawks beat the New York Rangers, 4-1, in a game that featured four sets of brothers. New York’s Lynn Patrick and Muzz Patrick, and Neil Colville and Mac Colville play against Chicago’s brother combinations of Max Bentley and Doug Bentley, and Bob Carse and Bill Carse.
1960: Detroit Red Wings Gordie Howe gets two assists in a 3-2 loss to Boston. The helpers give Howe an NHL record of 1,091 points (regular season and Stanley Cup Playoffs).
1996: Gretzky becomes the first and only player to reach 3,000 career points in league history. He gets a goal and an assist in the Rangers’ 6-2 win over the Canadiens. These numbers also include post-season points.
1997: Montreal becomes the first NHL team to play 5,000 games when they host the Pittsburgh Penguins. The Pens ruin the party with a 1-0 win.
2014: Arizona Coyotes rookie forward Tobias Rieder scores two shorthanded goals within 58 seconds. Rieder is the first rookie to get a pair of shorthanded markers in a 5-2 win over the Edmonton Oilers.
2018: The New York Islanders rally past the Columbus Blue Jackets, 3-2, for their first win at Nassau Coliseum since 2015. The Isles moved to Brooklyn, but were allowed to split their home games 2o18-19.
2019: Minnesota Wild captain Mikko Koivu plays his 1,000th game and gets an assist and shootout winner. Minnesota beats the Dallas Stars, 3-2.
Happy Birthday to You
1922: Vsevolod Bobrov
1946: Jim McKenny
1979: Ryan Malone
1988: Michael Raffl
1990: Tomas Tatar
1991: Noel Acciari
