2009–10 NHL season

The 2009–10 NHL season was the 92nd season of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the 100th season since the founding of the predecessor National Hockey Association (NHA). It ran from October 1, 2009, including four games in Europe on October 2 and 3—until April 11, 2010, with the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs currently being played, all the way up to early June 2010. A mid-season break from February 15 to 28 occurred to allow participation of NHL players in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Because of the Winter Olympics break, there was no NHL All-Star Game for 2010.

 Regular season 
 Final standings 
 Eastern Conference 

 Western Conference 

 Conference standings 

 Tiebreaking procedures 

Teams are ranked (ordered by how many games they won) at the end of the regular season. The team with the most points is ranked number one. If two or more teams are tied in points, the following method is used to rank the teams:

 The fewer number of games played. This would mean that a team scored more points per game than another team.
 The greater number of games won.
 The greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs. This would be the team that was better than the other team when they played against each other.
 If two teams are tied, and they have not played the same number of home games against the other, then:
 The points earned in the first home game played by the team with more home games do not count.
 If more than two clubs are tied, then:
 The team with the most points earned per game in games among those clubs.
 The "odd" games between those teams do not count.
 The team with the biggest differential between goals for and against for the entire regular season. This would be the team that won their games by the most goals.

 Statistical leaders 
 Scoring leaders 
The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the regular season.

GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes

 Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM  Vancouver Canucks  82  29  83  112  +35  48  Pittsburgh Penguins  81  51  58 109  +15  69  Washington Capitals  72  50  59  109  +45  89  Washington Capitals  82  33  68  101  +37  50  Tampa Bay Lightning  82  51  44  95  -2  38  Tampa Bay Lightning  82  29  65  94  -8  12  Dallas Stars  80  24  67  91  -12  14  San Jose Sharks  79  20  69  89  +17  54  Chicago Blackhawks  82  30  58  88  +16  20  New York Rangers  76  42  44  86  +15  37

 Leading goaltenders 
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the end of the regular season.

GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

 Player Team GP TOI W L OT GA SO SV% GAA  Boston Bruins  45  2,562:11  22  12  5  84  5  .931  1.97  Buffalo Sabres  69  4,047:10  41  18  8  150  5  .929  2.22  New Jersey Devils  77  4,499:01  45  25  6  168  9  .916  2.24  Chicago Blackhawks  39  2,190:28  26  7  4  82  7  .912  2.25  Detroit Red Wings  63  3,740:15  37  15  10  141  3  .924  2.26  Phoenix Coyotes  69  4,084:27  42  20  6  156  8  .920  2.29  Calgary Flames  73  4,235:19  35  28  10  163  4  .920  2.31  New York Rangers  73  4,203:49  35  27  10  167  4  .921  2.38  Montreal Canadiens  45  2,629:56  26  13  5  105  5  .924  2.40  San Jose Sharks  71  4,194:07  44  16  10  170  3  .922  2.43

 Playoffs 

 Playoff seeds 
After the regular season, the standard of 16 teams qualified for the playoffs. The Washington Capitals won the Presidents' Trophy for having the best record in the league, at 121 points. Division champions maintain their relative ranking during the entire playoffs while the remaining teams get reseeded below them after each round.

 Eastern Conference 
 Washington Capitals – Southeast Division and Eastern Conference regular season champions; President's Trophy winners 121 points
 New Jersey Devils – Atlantic Division champions, 103 points
 Buffalo Sabres – Northeast Division champions, 100 points
 Pittsburgh Penguins – 101 points (47 wins)
 Ottawa Senators – 94 points (44 wins)
 Boston Bruins – 91 points (39 wins)
 Philadelphia Flyers – 88 points (41 wins)
 Montreal Canadiens – 88 points (39 wins)

 Western Conference 
 San Jose Sharks – Pacific Division champions and Western Conference regular season champions, 113 points
 Chicago Blackhawks – Central Division champions, 112 points
 Vancouver Canucks – Northwest Division champions, 103 points
 Phoenix Coyotes – 107 points (50 wins)
 Detroit Red Wings – 102 points (44 wins)
 Los Angeles Kings – 101 points (46 wins)
 Nashville Predators – 100 points (47 wins)
 Colorado Avalanche – 95 points (43 wins)

 Playoff bracket 

 NHL awards 
+ 2009–10 NHL awards Award  Recipient(s) Stanley Cup  Chicago Blackhawks Presidents' Trophy  Washington Capitals Prince of Wales Trophy  Philadelphia Flyers Clarence S. Campbell Bowl  Chicago Blackhawks Art Ross Trophy  Henrik Sedin (Vancouver Canucks) Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy  Jose Theodore (Washington Capitals) Calder Memorial Trophy  Tyler Myers (Buffalo Sabres) Conn Smythe Trophy  Jonathan Toews (Chicago Blackhawks) Frank J. Selke Trophy  Pavel Datsyuk (Detroit Red Wings) Hart Memorial Trophy  Henrik Sedin (Vancouver Canucks) Jack Adams Award  Dave Tippett (Phoenix Coyotes) James Norris Memorial Trophy  Duncan Keith (Chicago Blackhawks) King Clancy Memorial Trophy  Shane Doan (Phoenix Coyotes) Lady Byng Memorial Trophy  Martin St. Louis (Tampa Bay Lightning) Ted Lindsay Award  Alexander Ovechkin (Washington Capitals) Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy  Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh Penguins)Steven Stamkos (Tampa Bay Lightning) NHL General Manager of the Year Award  Don Maloney (Phoenix Coyotes) NHL Plus/Minus Award  Jeff Schultz (Washington Capitals) Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award  Tuukka Rask (Boston Bruins) Vezina Trophy  Ryan Miller (Buffalo Sabres) William M. Jennings Trophy  Martin Brodeur (New Jersey Devils) Lester Patrick Trophy  Dave Andrews, Cam Neely, Jack Parker, Jerry York

 Milestones 
 First games 
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 2009–10, listed with their first team:

 John Tavares, New York Islanders
 Matt Duchene, Colorado Avalanche
 Tyler Myers, Buffalo Sabres
 Tyler Bozak, Toronto Maple Leafs

 Last games 
 Keith Tkachuk, St. Louis Blues

 References 

 Other websites 

 NHL.com
 2009–10 NHL season at Hockey Reference 
 2009–10 NHL season at ESPN
 Hockey Database

Category:National Hockey League seasons