# 1979–80 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1979–80 Pittsburgh Penguins season was their 13th in the National Hockey League.

## Regular season

The Penguins changed their team colors from two-tone blue to Black and Gold in January. This move was done in part to honor the other two professional teams in Pittsburgh (the Steelers and Pirates) both of whom won their respective championships in 1979. The Boston Bruins initially challenged the change in colors as the new scheme closely matched their own. However, as the original NHL franchise in Pittsburgh, the Pirates, had nearly the same colors from their inception while the Bruins wore brown and yellow sweaters, NHL president John Ziegler Jr. eventually denied the Bruins claim. The new Pittsburgh jerseys were debuted on January 30 against the visiting St. Louis Blues.

### Division standings

Norris Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| Montreal Canadiens | 80 | 47 | 20 | 13 | 328 | 240 | 107 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 80 | 30 | 36 | 14 | 290 | 313 | 74 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 30 | 37 | 13 | 251 | 303 | 73 |
| Hartford Whalers | 80 | 27 | 34 | 19 | 303 | 312 | 73 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 26 | 43 | 11 | 268 | 306 | 63 |
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 – Philadelphia Flyers | PTK | 80 | 48 | 12 | 20 | 327 | 254 | 116 |
| 2 | y – Buffalo Sabres | ADM | 80 | 47 | 17 | 16 | 318 | 201 | 110 |
| 3 | x – Montreal Canadiens | NRS | 80 | 47 | 20 | 13 | 328 | 240 | 107 |
| 4 | Boston Bruins | ADM | 80 | 46 | 21 | 13 | 310 | 234 | 105 |
| 5 | New York Islanders | PTK | 80 | 39 | 28 | 13 | 281 | 247 | 91 |
| 6 | Minnesota North Stars | ADM | 80 | 36 | 28 | 16 | 311 | 253 | 88 |
| 7 | x – Chicago Black Hawks | SMY | 80 | 34 | 27 | 19 | 241 | 250 | 87 |
| 8 | New York Rangers | PTK | 80 | 38 | 32 | 10 | 308 | 284 | 86 |
| 9 | Atlanta Flames | PTK | 80 | 35 | 32 | 13 | 282 | 269 | 83 |
| 10 | St. Louis Blues | SMY | 80 | 34 | 34 | 12 | 266 | 278 | 80 |
| 11 | Toronto Maple Leafs | ADM | 80 | 35 | 40 | 5 | 304 | 327 | 75 |
| 12 | Los Angeles Kings | NRS | 80 | 30 | 36 | 14 | 290 | 313 | 74 |
| 13 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NRS | 80 | 30 | 37 | 13 | 251 | 303 | 73 |
| 14 | Hartford Whalers | NRS | 80 | 27 | 34 | 19 | 303 | 312 | 73 |
| 15 | Vancouver Canucks | SMY | 80 | 27 | 37 | 16 | 256 | 281 | 70 |
| 16 | Edmonton Oilers | SMY | 80 | 28 | 39 | 13 | 301 | 322 | 69 |
| 17 | Washington Capitals | PTK | 80 | 27 | 40 | 13 | 261 | 293 | 67 |
| 18 | Detroit Red Wings | NRS | 80 | 26 | 43 | 11 | 268 | 306 | 63 |
| 19 | Quebec Nordiques | ADM | 80 | 25 | 44 | 11 | 248 | 313 | 61 |
| 20 | Winnipeg Jets | SMY | 80 | 20 | 49 | 11 | 214 | 314 | 51 |
| 21 | Colorado Rockies | SMY | 80 | 19 | 48 | 13 | 234 | 308 | 51 |
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

Norris Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1979–80 NHL records
Team
DET
HFD
LAK
MTL
PIT
Total
Detroit
—1–2–10–3–10–3–12–23–10–3
Hartford
2–1–1—2–1–10–1–32–1–16–4–6
Los Angeles
3–0–11–2–1—0–41–1–25–7–4
Montreal
3–0–11–0–34–0—2–1–110–1–5
Pittsburgh
2–21–2–11–1–21–2–1—5–7–4
Vs. Adams Division
1979–80 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
MIN
QUE
TOR
Total
Detroit
1–2–11–32–1–12–1–10–46–11–3
Hartford
1–2–11–30–41–1–22–25–12–3
Los Angeles
1–2–10–3–12–0–23–13–0–19–6–5
Montreal
3–11–1–23–12–1–13–112–5–3
Pittsburgh
2–20–41–32–22–27–13–0
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Patrick Division
1979–80 NHL records
Team
ATL
NYI
NYR
PHI
WSH
Total
Detroit
1–2–13–11–30–3–12–1–17–10–3
Hartford
3–11–31–2–10–2–21–2–16–10–4
Los Angeles
1–2–11–2–11–30–41–34–14–2
Montreal
3–0–10–3–13–0–12–1–12–1–110–5–5
Pittsburgh
2–1–11–0–32–20–3–13–18–7–5
Vs. Smythe Division
1979–80 NHL records
Team
CHI
COL
EDM
STL
VAN
WIN
Total
Detroit
1−31−32−1–11−2−12−23−110−12−2
Hartford
1–1–22−1−12–1–12–21−1−22−210−8−6
Los Angeles
3−0−14−01−2−11−32−21−2−112−9−3
Montreal
2−23−13−12−22−23−115−9−0
Pittsburgh
0−2–22−21−31−2–12−1–14−010−10−4 :

## Schedule and results

1979–80 Schedule :
October: 4–4–1 (home: 3–1–1; road: 1–3–0), 9 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
1Oct 10Winnipeg Jets2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,752)1–0–02
2Oct 13Hartford Whalers3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,623)1–0–13
3Oct 14Pittsburgh Penguins4–1Boston BruinsBoston Garden (9,494)2–0–15
4Oct 17Los Angeles Kings5–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (4,815)2–1–15
5Oct 20Washington Capitals1–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (7,629)3–1–17
6Oct 21Pittsburgh Penguins3–6New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV) (17,425)3–2–17
7Oct 24Pittsburgh Penguins3–7Buffalo SabresBuffalo Memorial Auditorium (16,433)3–3–17
8Oct 25Pittsburgh Penguins5–8Montreal CanadiensMontreal Forum (15,969)3–4–17
9Oct 31Colorado Rockies2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (4,173)4–4–19 :
November: 5–4–3 (home: 3–1–2; road: 2–3–1), 13 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
10Nov 3Atlanta Flames3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,543)4–4–210
11Nov 7Montreal Canadiens3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (9,064)4–4–311
12Nov 10Boston Bruins6–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (12,208)4–5–311
13Nov 11Pittsburgh Penguins4–1New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV) (17,419)5–5–313
14Nov 15Pittsburgh Penguins3–3Los Angeles KingsThe Forum (7,698)5–5–414
15Nov 16Pittsburgh Penguins2–5Vancouver CanucksPacific Coliseum (15,127)5–6–414
16Nov 18Pittsburgh Penguins3–2Winnipeg JetsWinnipeg Arena (12,668)6–6–416
17Nov 21St. Louis Blues2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (11,547)7–6–418
18Nov 23Pittsburgh Penguins1–4Atlanta FlamesOmni Coliseum (13,081)7–7–418
19Nov 24New York Rangers3–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (11,629)8–7–420
20Nov 28Quebec Nordiques2–7Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,396)9–7–422
21Nov 30Pittsburgh Penguins5–7Hartford WhalersSpringfield Civic Center (7,627)9–8–422 :
December: 5–3–7 (home: 3–1–3; road: 2–2–4), 17 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
22Dec 1Colorado Rockies4–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (12,051)10–8–424
23Dec 5Vancouver Canucks3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (7,511)10–8–525
24Dec 7Pittsburgh Penguins5–3Washington CapitalsCapital Centre (7,652)11–8–527
25Dec 8Chicago Black Hawks3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (10,284)11–8–628
26Dec 11Pittsburgh Penguins3–3St. Louis BluesThe Checkerdome (8,605)11–8–729
27Dec 12New York Islanders3–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,036)11–8–830
28Dec 15Pittsburgh Penguins3–3New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (14,995)11–8–931
29Dec 16Pittsburgh Penguins1–4Quebec NordiquesQuebec Coliseum (10,279)11–9–931
30Dec 19Pittsburgh Penguins0–0Chicago Black HawksChicago Stadium (8,215)11–9–1032
31Dec 20Pittsburgh Penguins1–1Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum (17,077)11–9–1133
32Dec 22New York Rangers4–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (11,587)11–10–1133
33Dec 26Detroit Red Wings4–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (11,243)12–10–1135
34Dec 28Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Atlanta FlamesOmni Coliseum (9,133)13–10–1137
35Dec 29Atlanta Flames2–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (10,416)14–10–1139
36Dec 31Pittsburgh Penguins2–4Minnesota North StarsMet Center (11,475)14–11–1139 :
January: 5–10–0 (home: 3–5–0; road: 2–5–0), 10 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
37Jan 2Montreal Canadiens3–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (13,309)15–11–1141
38Jan 3Pittsburgh Penguins4–3New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum (14,580)16–11–1143
39Jan 5Buffalo Sabres5–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (15,583)16–12–1143
40Jan 7Pittsburgh Penguins5–9Toronto Maple LeafsMaple Leaf Gardens (16,485)16–13–1143
41Jan 9Vancouver Canucks2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,784)17–13–1145
42Jan 12Chicago Black Hawks3–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (13,825)17–14–1145
43Jan 16Toronto Maple Leafs4–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (9,002)18–14–1147
44Jan 17Pittsburgh Penguins1–7Hartford WhalersSpringfield Civic Center (7,627)18–15–1147
45Jan 19Edmonton Oilers5–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (12,896)18–16–1147
46Jan 23Pittsburgh Penguins3–4Edmonton OilersNorthlands Coliseum (15,423)18–17–1147
47Jan 24Pittsburgh Penguins1–4Colorado RockiesMcNichols Sports Arena (7,615)18–18–1147
48Jan 26Boston Bruins6–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (16,033)18–19–1147
49Jan 27Pittsburgh Penguins5–3Boston BruinsBoston Garden (13,131)19–19–1149
50Jan 30St. Louis Blues4–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (12,345)19–20–1149
51Jan 31Pittsburgh Penguins3–4Detroit Red WingsJoe Louis Arena (14,432)19–21–1149 :
February: 4–7–0 (home: 3–2–0; road: 1–5–0), 8 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
52Feb 2Philadelphia Flyers4–0Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (16,033)19–22–1149
53Feb 7Pittsburgh Penguins0–9Buffalo SabresBuffalo Memorial Auditorium (16,433)19–23–1149
54Feb 9Minnesota North Stars5–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (13,011)19–24–1149
55Feb 10Pittsburgh Penguins2–3Chicago Black HawksChicago Stadium (12,272)19–25–1149
56Feb 13Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Toronto Maple LeafsMaple Leaf Gardens (16,485)20–25–1151
57Feb 16Pittsburgh Penguins1–8Montreal CanadiensMontreal Forum (17,075)20–26–1151
58Feb 17Pittsburgh Penguins5–6Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum (17,077)20–27–1151
59Feb 20Detroit Red Wings5–7Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,077)21–27–1153
60Feb 23Quebec Nordiques1–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (14,116)22–27–1155
61Feb 24Pittsburgh Penguins0–2Quebec NordiquesQuebec Coliseum (10,227)22–28–1155
62Feb 27Winnipeg Jets2–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,977)23–28–1157 :
March: 6–7–2 (home: 4–2–1; road: 2–5–1), 14 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
63Mar 2New York Islanders0–0Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (14,879)23–28–1258
64Mar 3Pittsburgh Penguins1–5St. Louis BluesThe Checkerdome (12,752)23–29–1258
65Mar 5Toronto Maple Leafs5–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (8,925)23–30–1258
66Mar 8Edmonton Oilers4–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (10,660)24–30–1260
67Mar 9Pittsburgh Penguins2–6Detroit Red WingsJoe Louis Arena (12,819)24–31–1260
68Mar 11Philadelphia Flyers4–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (9,972)24–32–1260
69Mar 12Los Angeles Kings2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (9,294)25–32–1262
70Mar 15Minnesota North Stars2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (10,426)26–32–1264
71Mar 18Pittsburgh Penguins3–4Minnesota North StarsMet Center (10,797)26–33–1264
72Mar 21Pittsburgh Penguins2–9Edmonton OilersNorthlands Coliseum (15,423)26–34–1264
73Mar 23Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Winnipeg JetsWinnipeg Arena (12,377)27–34–1266
74Mar 25Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Vancouver CanucksPacific Coliseum (12,998)28–34–1268
75Mar 27Pittsburgh Penguins2–2Los Angeles KingsThe Forum (9,781)28–34–1369
76Mar 28Pittsburgh Penguins0–5Colorado RockiesMcNichols Sports Arena (11,610)28–35–1369
77Mar 30Washington Capitals0–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (9,638)29–35–1371 :
April: 1–2–0 (home: 1–1–0; road: 0–1–0), 2 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocation (Attendance)RecordPoints
78Apr 1Pittsburgh Penguins2–6Washington CapitalsCapital Centre (15,821)29–36–1371
79Apr 2Hartford Whalers4–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (11,491)30–36–1373
80Apr 5Buffalo Sabres9–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena (12,397)30–37–1373 :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

## Playoffs
### Preliminary round vs. Boston

* Boston won series 3–2

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Rick Kehoe | 79 | 30 | 30 | 60 | –3 | 4 |
| Greg Malone | 51 | 19 | 32 | 51 | 4 | 46 |
| George Ferguson | 73 | 21 | 28 | 49 | 0 | 36 |
| Orest Kindrachuk | 52 | 17 | 29 | 46 | 4 | 63 |
| Peter Lee | 74 | 16 | 29 | 45 | –13 | 20 |
| Gary McAdam | 78 | 19 | 22 | 41 | –17 | 63 |
| Rod Schutt | 73 | 18 | 21 | 39 | –8 | 43 |
| Gregg Sheppard | 76 | 13 | 24 | 37 | –22 | 20 |
| Randy Carlyle | 67 | 8 | 28 | 36 | –23 | 45 |
| Ross Lonsberry | 76 | 15 | 18 | 33 | –4 | 36 |
| Ron Stackhouse | 78 | 6 | 27 | 33 | 16 | 36 |
| Pat Hughes | 76 | 18 | 14 | 32 | –38 | 78 |
| Russ Anderson | 76 | 5 | 22 | 27 | 11 | 150 |
| Nick Libett | 78 | 14 | 12 | 26 | –19 | 14 |
| Paul Marshall | 46 | 9 | 12 | 21 | –2 | 9 |
| Mario Faubert | 49 | 5 | 13 | 18 | –19 | 31 |
| Dale Tallon | 32 | 5 | 9 | 14 | –4 | 18 |
| Kim Davis | 24 | 3 | 7 | 10 | –7 | 43 |
| Bob Stewart$^†$ | 65 | 3 | 7 | 10 | –27 | 52 |
| Tom Bladon | 57 | 2 | 6 | 8 | –25 | 35 |
| Mark Johnson | 17 | 3 | 5 | 8 | –4 | 4 |
| Kim Clackson | 45 | 0 | 3 | 3 | –8 | 166 |
| Jim Hamilton | 10 | 2 | 0 | 2 | –6 | 0 |
| Blair Chapman$^‡$ | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 251 | 398 | 649 | – | 1,012 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Rick Kehoe | 5 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Johnson | 5 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 |
| Ross Lonsberry | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
| George Ferguson | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| Gary McAdam | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 9 |
| Rod Schutt | 5 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Bob Stewart | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Russ Anderson | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 |
| Nick Libett | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Gregg Sheppard | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Peter Lee | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Bladon | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Ron Stackhouse | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 18 |
| Mario Faubert | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Randy Carlyle | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| Dale Tallon | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Kim Clackson | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 37 |
| Pat Hughes | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 |
| Kim Davis | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Paul Marshall | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 14 | 22 | 36 | – | 121 |

### Goaltenders

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | W | L | T | GA | SO |
| Gregory Millen | 44 | 18 | 18 | 7 | 157 | 2 |
| Robert Holland | 34 | 10 | 17 | 6 | 126 | 1 |
| Nick Ricci | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 14 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 30 | 37 | 13 | 297 | 3 |
Playoffs :
| Player | GP | W | L | T | GA | SO |
| Gregory Millen | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 2 | 3 | 0 | 21 | 0 |
$^†$Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only. $^‡$Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

## Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1979–80 season:

### Trades

| August 30, 1979 | To Montreal Canadiens Denis Herron 1982 2nd round pick (Jocelyn Gauvreau) | To Pittsburgh Penguins Rob Holland Pat Hughes |
| November 13, 1979 | To St. Louis Blues Blair Chapman | To Pittsburgh Penguins Bob Stewart |

### Additions and subtractions

Additions :
| Player | Former team | Via |
Subtractions :
| Player | New team | Via |
| Wayne Bianchin | Edmonton Oilers | Expansion Draft (1979-06-13) |
| Colin Campbell | Edmonton Oilers | Expansion Draft (1979-06-13) |
| John Flesch | Colorado Rockies | free agency (1980-01-30) |

## Draft picks

The 1979 NHL Entry Draft was held on August 9, 1979, in Montreal.
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 2 | 31 | Paul Marshall | Left wing | Canada | Brantford Alexanders (OHA) |
| 3 | 52 | Bennett Wolf | Defense | Canada | Kitchener Rangers (OHA) |
| 4 | 73 | Brian Cross | Defense | Canada | Brantford Alexanders (OHA) |
| 5 | 94 | Nick Ricci | Goaltender | Canada | Niagara Falls Flyers (OHA) |
| 6 | 115 | Marc Chorney | Defense | Canada | U. of North Dakota (NCAA) |