# 1980–81 New York Islanders season

The 1980–81 New York Islanders season was the ninth season in the franchise's history. It involved winning the Stanley Cup.

## Offseason
### NHL Draft

New York's draft picks at the 1980 NHL Entry Draft held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 17 | Brent Sutter | Canada | Red Deer Rustlers (AJHL) |
| 2 | 38 | Kelly Hrudey | Canada | Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL) |
| 3 | 59 | Dave Simpson | Canada | London Knights (OHA) |
| 4 | 68 | Monty Trottier | Canada | Billings Bighorns (WHL) |
| 4 | 80 | Greg Gilbert | Canada | Toronto Marlboros (OMJHL) |
| 5 | 101 | Ken Leiter | United States | Michigan State University (WCHA) |
| 6 | 122 | Dan Revell | Canada | Oshawa Generals (OMJHL) |
| 7 | 143 | Mark Hamway | United States | Michigan State University (WCHA) |
| 8 | 164 | Morey Gare | Canada | Penticton Knights (BCJHL) |
| 9 | 185 | Peter Steblyk | Canada | Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL) |
| 10 | 206 | Glenn Johannesen | Canada | Red Deer Rustlers (AJHL) |

## Regular season

* January 24, 1981 – In a victory over the Quebec Nordiques, Mike Bossy became the second player in NHL history to score 50 goals in 50 games.

### Season standings

Patrick Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 48 | 18 | 14 | 355 | 260 | 110 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 41 | 24 | 15 | 313 | 249 | 97 |
| Calgary Flames | 80 | 39 | 27 | 14 | 329 | 298 | 92 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 30 | 36 | 14 | 312 | 317 | 74 |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 26 | 36 | 18 | 286 | 317 | 70 |
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
League standings :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | p – New York Islanders | PTK | 80 | 48 | 18 | 14 | 355 | 260 | 110 |
| 2 | x – St. Louis Blues | SMY | 80 | 45 | 18 | 17 | 352 | 281 | 107 |
| 3 | y – Montreal Canadiens | NRS | 80 | 45 | 22 | 13 | 332 | 232 | 103 |
| 4 | Los Angeles Kings | NRS | 80 | 43 | 24 | 13 | 337 | 290 | 99 |
| 5 | x – Buffalo Sabres | ADM | 80 | 39 | 20 | 21 | 327 | 250 | 99 |
| 6 | Philadelphia Flyers | PTK | 80 | 41 | 24 | 15 | 313 | 249 | 97 |
| 7 | Calgary Flames | PTK | 80 | 39 | 27 | 14 | 329 | 298 | 92 |
| 8 | Boston Bruins | ADM | 80 | 37 | 30 | 13 | 316 | 272 | 87 |
| 9 | Minnesota North Stars | ADM | 80 | 35 | 28 | 17 | 291 | 263 | 87 |
| 10 | Chicago Black Hawks | SMY | 80 | 31 | 33 | 16 | 304 | 315 | 78 |
| 11 | Quebec Nordiques | ADM | 80 | 30 | 32 | 18 | 314 | 318 | 78 |
| 12 | Vancouver Canucks | SMY | 80 | 28 | 32 | 20 | 289 | 301 | 76 |
| 13 | New York Rangers | PTK | 80 | 30 | 36 | 14 | 312 | 317 | 74 |
| 14 | Edmonton Oilers | SMY | 80 | 29 | 35 | 16 | 328 | 327 | 74 |
| 15 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NRS | 80 | 30 | 37 | 13 | 302 | 345 | 73 |
| 16 | Toronto Maple Leafs | ADM | 80 | 28 | 37 | 15 | 322 | 367 | 71 |
| 17 | Washington Capitals | PTK | 80 | 26 | 36 | 18 | 286 | 317 | 70 |
| 18 | Hartford Whalers | NRS | 80 | 21 | 41 | 18 | 292 | 372 | 60 |
| 19 | Colorado Rockies | SMY | 80 | 22 | 45 | 13 | 258 | 344 | 57 |
| 20 | Detroit Red Wings | NRS | 80 | 19 | 43 | 18 | 252 | 339 | 56 |
| 21 | Winnipeg Jets | SMY | 80 | 9 | 57 | 14 | 246 | 400 | 32 |
Divisions: ADM – Adams, NRS – Norris, PTK – Patrick, SMY – Smythe
bold – The top 16 teams in the league qualified for the playoffs, regardless of division or conference. x – Won division; y – Won Conference (and division); p – Won Presidents' Trophy (and conference and division)

### Record vs. opponents

Patrick Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Patrick Division
1980–81 NHL records
Team
CGY
NYI
NYR
PHI
WSH
Total
Calgary
—1−1−22−1−12−23−18−5−3
N.Y. Islanders
1−1−2—2−21−2−14−08−5−3
N.Y. Rangers
1−2−12−2—1−1−22−26−7−3
Philadelphia
2−22−1−11−1−2—2−27−6−3
Washington
1−30−42−22−2—5−11−0
Vs. Smythe Division
1980–81 NHL records
Team
CHI
COL
EDM
STL
VAN
WIN
Total
Calgary
0−1−31−32−1−12−23−13−0−111−8−5
N.Y. Islanders
4−03−12−0−22−0−23−13−0−117−2−5
N.Y. Rangers
2−1−11−32−1−10−42−1−13−110−11−3
Philadelphia
1−1−24−02−23−0−11−2−13−114−6−4
Washington
1−1−23−0−12−1−10−2−21−1−23−0−110−5−9
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Adams Division
1980–81 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
MIN
QUE
TOR
Total
Calgary
3−11−2−12−21−1−22−29−8−3
N.Y. Islanders
2−22−22−0−23−13−112−6−2
N.Y. Rangers
2−21−2−11−1−21−1−22−27−8−5
Philadelphia
2−20−2−22−1−11−2−10−2−25−9−6
Washington
1−2−10−2−20−3−10−43−14−12−4
Vs. Norris Division
1980–81 NHL records
Team
DET
HFD
LAK
MTL
PIT
Total
Calgary
2−1−13−13−11−2−12−1−111−6−3
N.Y. Islanders
4−02−0−22−22−1−11−2−111−5−4
N.Y. Rangers
1−2−13−11−31−2−11−2−17−10−3
Philadelphia
3−13−0−14−01−2−14−015−3−2
Washington
2−1−13−11−2−10−2−21−2−17−8−5 :

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | W | October 11, 1980 | 5–2 | Boston Bruins (1980–81) | 1–0–0 |
| 2 | W | October 12, 1980 | 2–1 | @ Washington Capitals (1980–81) | 2–0–0 |
| 3 | T | October 14, 1980 | 5–5 | St. Louis Blues (1980–81) | 2–0–1 |
| 4 | W | October 16, 1980 | 6–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1980–81) | 3–0–1 |
| 5 | T | October 18, 1980 | 5–5 | Edmonton Oilers (1980–81) | 3–0–2 |
| 6 | T | October 19, 1980 | 3–3 | @ Hartford Whalers (1980–81) | 3–0–3 |
| 7 | L | October 21, 1980 | 3–6 | Vancouver Canucks (1980–81) | 3–1–3 |
| 8 | L | October 23, 1980 | 2–4 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1980–81) | 3–2–3 |
| 9 | L | October 25, 1980 | 1–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1980–81) | 3–3–3 |
| 10 | L | October 26, 1980 | 2–5 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1980–81) | 3–4–3 |
| 11 | W | October 28, 1980 | 6–4 | Montreal Canadiens (1980–81) | 4–4–3 |
| 12 | L | November 1, 1980 | 3–7 | Los Angeles Kings (1980–81) | 4–5–3 |
| 13 | W | November 4, 1980 | 6–4 | Detroit Red Wings (1980–81) | 5–5–3 |
| 14 | W | November 6, 1980 | 4–2 | @ Boston Bruins (1980–81) | 6–5–3 |
| 15 | W | November 8, 1980 | 7–3 | Chicago Black Hawks (1980–81) | 7–5–3 |
| 16 | T | November 11, 1980 | 6–6 | Minnesota North Stars (1980–81) | 7–5–4 |
| 17 | W | November 12, 1980 | 4–2 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1980–81) | 8–5–4 |
| 18 | W | November 15, 1980 | 4–1 | Buffalo Sabres (1980–81) | 9–5–4 |
| 19 | W | November 17, 1980 | 2–1 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1980–81) | 10–5–4 |
| 20 | W | November 18, 1980 | 7–2 | @ St. Louis Blues (1980–81) | 11–5–4 |
| 21 | W | November 20, 1980 | 5–0 | Hartford Whalers (1980–81) | 12–5–4 |
| 22 | W | November 22, 1980 | 6–4 | New York Rangers (1980–81) | 13–5–4 |
| 23 | T | November 25, 1980 | 4–4 | Winnipeg Jets (1980–81) | 13–5–5 |
| 24 | W | November 27, 1980 | 4–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1980–81) | 14–5–5 |
| 25 | W | November 29, 1980 | 5–1 | Detroit Red Wings (1980–81) | 15–5–5 |
| 26 | W | November 30, 1980 | 7–3 | @ Quebec Nordiques (1980–81) | 16–5–5 |
| 27 | W | December 2, 1980 | 5–1 | Colorado Rockies (1980–81) | 17–5–5 |
| 28 | L | December 4, 1980 | 3–4 | @ Colorado Rockies (1980–81) | 17–6–5 |
| 29 | L | December 6, 1980 | 3–5 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1980–81) | 17–7–5 |
| 30 | W | December 7, 1980 | 5–3 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1980–81) | 18–7–5 |
| 31 | W | December 10, 1980 | 3–2 | @ Edmonton Oilers (1980–81) | 19–7–5 |
| 32 | T | December 13, 1980 | 4–4 | @ Calgary Flames (1980–81) | 19–7–6 |
| 33 | W | December 14, 1980 | 5–4 | @ Winnipeg Jets (1980–81) | 20–7–6 |
| 34 | W | December 16, 1980 | 6–2 | Winnipeg Jets (1980–81) | 21–7–6 |
| 35 | W | December 20, 1980 | 5–2 | Quebec Nordiques (1980–81) | 22–7–6 |
| 36 | W | December 21, 1980 | 9–0 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1980–81) | 23–7–6 |
| 37 | T | December 23, 1980 | 2–2 | Calgary Flames (1980–81) | 23–7–7 |
| 38 | T | December 27, 1980 | 5–5 | @ Hartford Whalers (1980–81) | 23–7–8 |
| 39 | W | December 30, 1980 | 9–3 | Colorado Rockies (1980–81) | 24–7–8 |
| 40 | L | January 2, 1981 | 1–3 | @ New York Rangers (1980–81) | 24–8–8 |
| 41 | W | January 3, 1981 | 8–1 | Hartford Whalers (1980–81) | 25–8–8 |
| 42 | W | January 6, 1981 | 6–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1980–81) | 26–8–8 |
| 43 | L | January 7, 1981 | 3–7 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1980–81) | 26–9–8 |
| 44 | L | January 10, 1981 | 2–3 | Boston Bruins (1980–81) | 26–10–8 |
| 45 | W | January 11, 1981 | 4–2 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1980–81) | 27–10–8 |
| 46 | W | January 13, 1981 | 6–3 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1980–81) | 28–10–8 |
| 47 | W | January 17, 1981 | 6–4 | Washington Capitals (1980–81) | 29–10–8 |
| 48 | W | January 20, 1981 | 5–0 | Calgary Flames (1980–81) | 30–10–8 |
| 49 | W | January 22, 1981 | 3–0 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1980–81) | 31–10–8 |
| 50 | W | January 24, 1981 | 7–4 | Quebec Nordiques (1980–81) | 32–10–8 |
| 51 | L | January 26, 1981 | 3–5 | Buffalo Sabres (1980–81) | 32–11–8 |
| 52 | W | January 28, 1981 | 6–4 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1980–81) | 33–11–8 |
| 53 | L | January 31, 1981 | 1–5 | @ Quebec Nordiques (1980–81) | 33–12–8 |
| 54 | L | February 1, 1981 | 3–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1980–81) | 33–13–8 |
| 55 | W | February 3, 1981 | 8–1 | Los Angeles Kings (1980–81) | 34–13–8 |
| 56 | L | February 4, 1981 | 3–9 | @ New York Rangers (1980–81) | 34–14–8 |
| 57 | T | February 7, 1981 | 5–5 | Minnesota North Stars (1980–81) | 34–14–9 |
| 58 | L | February 12, 1981 | 3–5 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1980–81) | 34–15–9 |
| 59 | T | February 14, 1981 | 1–1 | St. Louis Blues (1980–81) | 34–15–10 |
| 60 | L | February 17, 1981 | 5–8 | Toronto Maple Leafs (1980–81) | 34–16–10 |
| 61 | W | February 21, 1981 | 6–3 | Chicago Black Hawks (1980–81) | 35–16–10 |
| 62 | W | February 23, 1981 | 4–1 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1980–81) | 36–16–10 |
| 63 | L | February 25, 1981 | 4–11 | @ Calgary Flames (1980–81) | 36–17–10 |
| 64 | W | February 27, 1981 | 5–1 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1980–81) | 37–17–10 |
| 65 | W | February 28, 1981 | 2–1 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1980–81) | 38–17–10 |
| 66 | T | March 3, 1981 | 8–8 | Edmonton Oilers (1980–81) | 38–17–11 |
| 67 | W | March 7, 1981 | 3–1 | Vancouver Canucks (1980–81) | 39–17–11 |
| 68 | W | March 11, 1981 | 6–3 | @ Winnipeg Jets (1980–81) | 40–17–11 |
| 69 | W | March 12, 1981 | 5–0 | @ Edmonton Oilers (1980–81) | 41–17–11 |
| 70 | T | March 14, 1981 | 3–3 | Philadelphia Flyers (1980–81) | 41–17–12 |
| 71 | T | March 17, 1981 | 3–3 | Montreal Canadiens (1980–81) | 41–17–13 |
| 72 | W | March 20, 1981 | 5–3 | @ Colorado Rockies (1980–81) | 42–17–13 |
| 73 | W | March 22, 1981 | 6–2 | @ Chicago Black Hawks (1980–81) | 43–17–13 |
| 74 | W | March 24, 1981 | 5–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1980–81) | 44–17–13 |
| 75 | T | March 28, 1981 | 4–4 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1980–81) | 44–17–14 |
| 76 | W | March 29, 1981 | 5–4 | @ Washington Capitals (1980–81) | 45–17–14 |
| 77 | L | March 31, 1981 | 1–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1980–81) | 45–18–14 |
| 78 | W | April 2, 1981 | 2–1 | New York Rangers (1980–81) | 46–18–14 |
| 79 | W | April 4, 1981 | 4–1 | Washington Capitals (1980–81) | 47–18–14 |
| 80 | W | April 5, 1981 | 7–3 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1980–81) | 48–18–14 |

## Player statistics

Regular season :
Scoring :
| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Mike Bossy | RW | 79 | 68 | 51 | 119 | 32 | 37 | 28 | 2 | 10 |
| Bryan Trottier | C | 73 | 31 | 72 | 103 | 74 | 49 | 9 | 2 | 5 |
| Clark Gillies | LW | 80 | 33 | 45 | 78 | 99 | 26 | 9 | 0 | 3 |
| Bob Bourne | C | 78 | 35 | 41 | 76 | 62 | 34 | 9 | 7 | 5 |
| Denis Potvin | D | 74 | 20 | 56 | 76 | 104 | 38 | 9 | 0 | 4 |
| Anders Kallur | RW | 78 | 36 | 28 | 64 | 32 | 25 | 7 | 6 | 4 |
| Stefan Persson | D | 80 | 9 | 52 | 61 | 82 | 24 | 6 | 0 | 2 |
| Butch Goring | C | 78 | 23 | 37 | 60 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 1 | 1 |
| John Tonelli | LW | 70 | 20 | 32 | 52 | 57 | 8 | 2 | 0 | 3 |
| Bob Nystrom | RW | 79 | 14 | 30 | 44 | 145 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Steve Tambellini | C | 61 | 19 | 17 | 36 | 17 | -12 | 2 | 0 | 4 |
| Wayne Merrick | C | 71 | 16 | 15 | 31 | 30 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Garry Howatt | LW | 70 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 174 | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Duane Sutter | RW | 23 | 7 | 11 | 18 | 26 | -8 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Dave Langevin | D | 75 | 1 | 16 | 17 | 122 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Morrow | D | 80 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 20 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Lorimer | D | 73 | 1 | 12 | 13 | 77 | 45 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gord Lane | D | 60 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 124 | -6 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Hector Marini | RW | 14 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 39 | 9 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Billy Carroll | C | 18 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Jean Potvin | D | 18 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 25 | -4 | 2 | 0 | 1 |
| Brent Sutter | C | 3 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Lorne Henning | C | 9 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 24 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike McEwen | D | 13 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chico Resch | G | 32 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roland Melanson | G | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Billy Smith | G | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Goaltending :
| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO |
| Billy Smith | 2363 | 41 | 22 | 10 | 8 | 129 | 3.28 | 2 |
| Chico Resch | 1817 | 32 | 18 | 7 | 5 | 93 | 3.07 | 3 |
| Roland Melanson | 620 | 11 | 8 | 1 | 1 | 32 | 3.10 | 0 |
| Team: | 4800 | 80 | 48 | 18 | 14 | 254 | 3.17 | 5 |
Playoffs :
Scoring :
| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Mike Bossy | RW | 18 | 17 | 18 | 35 | 4 | 9 | 0 | 3 |
| Bryan Trottier | C | 18 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 34 | 4 | 2 | 1 |
| Denis Potvin | D | 18 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
| Butch Goring | C | 18 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 |
| Wayne Merrick | C | 18 | 6 | 12 | 18 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Clark Gillies | LW | 18 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 28 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike McEwen | D | 17 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| John Tonelli | LW | 16 | 5 | 8 | 13 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Bob Nystrom | RW | 18 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 20 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Billy Carroll | C | 18 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Bob Bourne | C | 14 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 19 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Hector Marini | RW | 9 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Anders Kallur | RW | 12 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| Ken Morrow | D | 18 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Gord Lane | D | 12 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 32 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Bob Lorimer | D | 18 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 27 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Stefan Persson | D | 7 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Duane Sutter | RW | 12 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave Langevin | D | 18 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 25 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Garry Howatt | LW | 8 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Billy Smith | G | 17 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Lorne Henning | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Roland Melanson | G | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Goaltending :
| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO |
| Billy Smith | 994 | 17 | 14 | 3 | 42 | 2.54 | 0 |
| Roland Melanson | 92 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3.91 | 0 |
| Team: | 1086 | 18 | 15 | 3 | 48 | 2.65 | 0 |
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals  MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts;

## Playoffs
### Stanley Cup Finals

New York Islanders vs. Minnesota North Stars
| Date | Visitors | Score | Home | Score |
| May 12 | Minnesota | 3 | New York | 6 |
| May 14 | Minnesota | 3 | New York | 6 |
| May 17 | New York | 7 | Minnesota | 5 |
| May 19 | New York | 2 | Minnesota | 4 |
| May 21 | Minnesota | 1 | New York | 5 |

## Awards and records

* Butch Goring, Conn Smythe Trophy