2005–06 NHL season
The 2005-06 NHL season is the 88th season (originally the 89th season) of the National Hockey League. This is the season after the 2004-05 season which was cancelled due to a labour dispute with the NHL Players Association over the Collective Bargaining Agreement (CBA) between the league and its players.
On July 13, 2005, the NHL and NHLPA jointly announced that they had tentatively agreed to a new collective bargaining agreement which would allow the resumption of hockey for the 2005-06 season. The agreement was voted on July 21 by NHLPA members, and approved by a nearly 7-to-1 margin. The following day, the NHL's board of governors (owners) voted unanimously to approve the new agreement.
A new logo for the NHL was also unveiled, with "NHL" printed in upward-reading letters to project a vibrant, optimistic image, and having silver as the dominant colour to pay homage to the Stanley Cup. [1] American Television will also have a new look. OLN (formerly Outdoor Life Network) will take over broadcasting rights after ESPN decided not to renew their rights on cable television. The network, owned by Comcast, will have Monday and Tuesday night games during the regular season under an exclusivetivity clause prohibiting local telecasts those nights in the two participating teams' markets. NBC returns as the NHL's over-the-air partner after ABC parted ways following the 2003-04 season. They will carry select games on a regional basis starting in January. Comcast high-speed cable internet customers can watch at least 5 games a week over the internet as part of the new TV deal.
Rule changes
For this season, a number of new rules for the 2005-06 season were introduced:
- In case of a tie game, after overtime, there is a shoot out, with three shots per team, and if it is still tied, the shootout becomes sudden death. In preseason games, regardless of the outcome, shootouts were held. This rule will only be in effect for regular-season games. Playoff games will continue with twenty-minute periods until a sudden-death goal is scored.
- Two-line passes are now legal, and a "tag-up" offside rule is now in place, which allows offensive players to leave the offensive zone.
- The size of goaltender equipment was decreased by about 11%. In addition, the only area behind the goal line where a goalie can play the puck is in a new trapezoid-shaped zone directly behind the net. The goalie may still play the puck, forward of the goal line, in the same manner as before.
- The neutral zone became smaller by four feet (1.2 m), while the goal line was moved two feet (0.6 m) closer to the boards.
- If a team ices the puck, they are not allowed to make a line change afterwards. Linesmen were given more discretion when it comes to waving off icing calls when they are accidentaly made as the result of a missed passing attempt.
- Players who instigate a fight in the last five minutes of a game will be given a game misconduct plus a one-game suspension and the coach will be fined $10,000 (US).
The purpose of these new rule changes are, in the minds of the NHL front office, to create a more exciting game and will create more scoring opportunities, and therefore goals.
Regular season
The NHL season began on October 5, as for the first time in the league's history, all of the league's 30 teams played a game on opening night. In the first period of each game, all teams wore a jersey (or "sweater") with a special patch as the league and players association auctioned off those jerseys for the benefit of the Red Cross in both the USA and Canada earmarking the proceeds for Hurricane Katrina victims. The All-Star Game, which would have been in Phoenix this year, will not take place (they will get the 2009 event as a replacement); the league will instead take a break in February so that its players can participate in the 2006 Winter Olympics. The new schedule will feature more intra-division games in order to promote division rivalries. Consequently, there will be whole divisions in the opposite conference that teams will never play in the season. Hurricane Wilma had forced the NHL (among other major league sports) to reschedule some games. The Ottawa Senators-Florida Panthers game scheduled on the weekend of October 22-23 was rescheduled to December 5.
Standings
Last updated: October 21, 2005 at 23:00 EDT
Shaded denotes top 8 teams in each conference (playoff spots)
Eastern Conference
| Atlantic Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:NewYorkRangers 100.png New York Rangers | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 31 | 23 | 11 |
| File:NewJerseyDevils 100.png New Jersey Devils | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 22 | 24 | 8 |
| File:NewYorkIslanders 100.png New York Islanders | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 22 | 26 | 8 |
| File:PhiladelphiaFlyers 100.png Philadelphia Flyers | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 17 | 6 |
| File:PittsburghPenguins 100.png Pittsburgh Penguins | 7 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 20 | 33 | 4 |
| Northeast Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:OttawaSenators 100.png Ottawa Senators | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 11 | 12 |
| File:Montrealcanadienslogo.gif Montreal Canadiens | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 21 | 18 | 10 |
| File:BuffaloSabres 100.png Buffalo Sabres | 7 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 23 | 21 | 10 |
| File:TorontoMapleLeafs 100.png Toronto Maple Leafs | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 32 | 23 | 10 |
| File:BostonBruins 100.png Boston Bruins | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 25 | 30 | 6 |
| Southeast Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:FloridaPanthers 100.png Florida Panthers | 9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 19 | 20 | 10 |
| File:TampaBayLightning 100.png Tampa Bay Lightning | 9 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 24 | 21 | 10 |
| File:CarolinaHurricanes 100.png Carolina Hurricanes | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 24 | 18 | 7 |
| File:WashingtonCapitals 100.png Washington Capitals | 8 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 36 | 6 |
| File:AtlantaThrashers 100.png Atlanta Thrashers | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 17 | 28 | 4 |
Western Conference
| Central Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:DetroitRedWings 100.png Detroit Red Wings | 8 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 30 | 17 | 14 |
| File:NashvillePredators 100.png Nashville Predators | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 23 | 15 | 12 |
| File:StLouisBlues 100.png St. Louis Blues | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 20 | 26 | 5 |
| File:ColumbusBlueJackets 100.png Columbus Blue Jackets | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 15 | 20 | 4 |
| File:ChicagoBlackhawks 100.png Chicago Blackhawks | 7 | 2 | 5 | 0 | 20 | 27 | 4 |
| Northwest Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:VancouverCanucks 100.png Vancouver Canucks | 8 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 29 | 23 | 13 |
| File:MinnesotaWild 100.png Minnesota Wild | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 27 | 14 | 9 |
| File:EdmontonOilers 100.png Edmonton Oilers | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 19 | 24 | 7 |
| File:CalgaryFlames 100.png Calgary Flames | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 20 | 26 | 7 |
| File:ColoradoAvalanche 100.png Colorado Avalanche | 6 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 23 | 22 | 5 |
| Pacific Division | GP | W | L | OTL | GF | GA | PTS |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| File:LosAngelesKings 100.png Los Angeles Kings | 8 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 29 | 21 | 12 |
| File:DallasStars 100.png Dallas Stars | 7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 20 | 25 | 8 |
| File:PhoenixCoyotes 100.png Phoenix Coyotes | 9 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 20 | 23 | 7 |
| File:SanJoseSharks 100.png San Jose Sharks | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 24 | 32 | 7 |
| File:AnaheimMightyDucks 100.png Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 7 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 18 | 23 | 5 |
Scoring leaders
As of October 19, 2005 games
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Jaromir Jagr | New York Rangers | 8 | 7 | 4 | 11 | 12 |
| Simon Gagné | Philadelphia Flyers | 5 | 7 | 3 | 10 | 4 |
| Steve Sullivan | Nashville Predators | 5 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 2 |
| Peter Forsberg | Philadelphia Flyers | 5 | 0 | 10 | 10 | 2 |
| Markus Naslund | Vancouver Canucks | 7 | 6 | 3 | 9 | 2 |
| Daniel Alfredsson | Ottawa Senators | 5 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 0 |
| Martin Rucinsky | New York Rangers | 8 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 4 |
| Marc Savard | Atlanta Thrashers | 6 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 4 |
| Henrik Zetterberg | Detroit Red Wings | 7 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 0 |
| Todd White | Minnesota Wild | 6 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 0 |
Leading goaltenders
As of October 17, 2005 games. Minimum 60 minutes played.
Note: GP = Games Played; Mins = Minutes Played; W = Wins; L = Losses: T = Ties (after overtime); GA = Goals Allowed; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals Against Average
| Player | Team | GP | Mins | W | L | T | GA | SO | Sv% | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yann Danis | Montreal Canadiens | 1 | 60 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1.000 | 0.00 |
| Henrik Lundqvist | New York Rangers | 4 | 243 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 5 | 1 | .950 | 1.23 |
| Jason LaBarbera | Los Angeles Kings | 3 | 180 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | .945 | 1.33 |
| Manny Fernandez | Minnesota Wild | 2 | 123 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | .951 | 1.46 |
| Curtis Joseph | Phoenix Coyotes | 3 | 239 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 1 | .939 | 1.51 |
Stanley Cup playoffs
Stanley Cup finals
NHL awards
See also
- List of Stanley Cup champions
- 2005 NHL Entry Draft
- Ice hockey at the 2006 Winter Olympics
- 2005 in sports
- 2006 in sports
