The2010–11 NHL season was the94th season of operation (93rdseason of play) of theNational Hockey League (NHL). TheBoston Bruins defeated theVancouver Canucks in theStanley Cup Finals four games to three, being the sixth Cup win in Bruins' franchise history. For the fourth consecutive season, the season started with games in Europe. The58th All-Star Game was held atRBC Center inRaleigh, North Carolina, home arena of theCarolina Hurricanes, on January 30, 2011.

This was the final season of operation for theAtlanta Thrashers, who were sold toTrue North Sports and Entertainment out ofWinnipeg, Manitoba, and moved from Atlanta to Winnipeg to become the "new"Winnipeg Jets. Winnipeg had lost its previous NHL team, also called theWinnipeg Jets, after the1995–96 NHL season toPhoenix, Arizona, and were renamed "Phoenix Coyotes." This was the second time the city ofAtlanta lost an NHL franchise, having previously lost theAtlanta Flames toCalgary,Alberta after the1979–80 season.

On June 23, 2010, the NHL announced that thesalary cap would be increased by US$2.6 million. As a result, the new salary cap ceiling is set at US$59.4 million, while the salary cap floor is US$43.4 million.^[1]

The2010 NHL entry draft took place on June 25–26, 2010, at theStaples Center in Los Angeles, home arena of theLos Angeles Kings.Taylor Hall was selected first overall in the draft by theEdmonton Oilers,Tyler Seguin was picked second by theBoston Bruins andErik Gudbranson was chosen third by theFlorida Panthers.

Tom Golisano,Larry Quinn and Daniel DiPofi, owners of theBuffalo Sabres, sold their franchise toTerrence Pegula during the course of the 2010–11 season. The league approved the sale February 18, 2011.

Prior to the 2010–11 season, the first tie-breaker to separate teams with equal number of points in a conference was the number of games won, no matter how the wins were obtained. Starting in the 2010–11 season, the league made a modification to this rule, stating that the greater number of games won, excluding wins obtained in the shootout, will be ranked higher.^[2][3] The change was made to reward in-play team victories (regulation or overtime) instead of a win obtained via an individual skill contest. This figure will be tracked in an additional column in theofficial league standings calledROW (Regulation and overtime wins). In its first year, the tie-breaker proved critical, giving the 106-point, 47-win (44-ROW)Philadelphia Flyers theAtlantic Division title over the 106-point, 49-win (39-ROW)Pittsburgh Penguins, who were seeded fourth rather than second based on the new rule.^[4]

Prior to the 2010–11 season, the Board of Governors, General Managers and the Competition Committee unanimously agreed to implement a new penalty. An illegal hit to the head is a lateral or blind side hit to an opponent where the head is targeted and/or is the principal point of contact is not permitted. Any player who incurs a total of two game misconducts under this rule shall be suspended automatically for the next game his team plays. For each subsequent game misconduct penalty, the automatic suspension shall be increased by one game. The commissioner of the league can increase the suspension longer due to his discretion.^[5]

• TheCalgary Flames' home arena, Pengrowth Saddledome, was renamedScotiabank Saddledome as part of a new naming rights agreement withScotiabank.^[6]
• ThePhiladelphia Flyers's home arena, the Wachovia Center, was renamed theWells Fargo Center afterWells Fargo acquiredWachovia.
• ThePittsburgh Penguins moved fromMellon Arena toConsol Energy Center, withConsol Energy purchasing the naming rights. The Penguins had played at Mellon Arena, also known as "The Igloo", where the Penguins had played since their inception in1967.^[7]
• TheVancouver Canucks' home arena, General Motors Place, was renamedRogers Arena as part of a new naming rights agreement withRogers Communications.^[8]

Several teams announced plans to change their uniforms in the 2010–11 season.^[9]

TheBuffalo Sabres, as part of their 40th anniversary season, reverted to the classic crossed swords insignia (replacing the infamous "Buffaslug" logo) and a slightly updated uniform based upon the style they wore from 1970 through 1996, when they leftBuffalo Memorial Auditorium and moved down the street to theHSBC Arena with blue and gold trim. The blue version was previously their third jersey for the past three seasons. A new third jersey, also in blue, featured the city's name in white script on the chest, along with "quilted" numbers on the back and a gold nameplate with blue lettering fashioning the look of the AHL's formerBuffalo Bisons.

TheColumbus Blue Jackets unveiled a third jersey November 24^[10] as part of their 10th season celebration. The new jersey made its debut on November 26 when the Blue Jackets hosted theDetroit Red Wings.^[11]

ThePhiladelphia Flyers adopted their2010 NHL Winter Classic white uniforms as their new road uniform and dropped the black third jersey they wore since changing toReebok's "NHL Edge" template.

TheNew York Islanders reverted to the uniforms they made their debut back in 1972–73; their royal blue uniforms were their third jersey for the past two seasons. The road white uniforms are also from the 1972–73 season.

TheNew York Rangers inaugurated a new third jersey. The jersey resembled the one worn by the team in its early years, notably during their Stanley Cup championship years of1928 and1933, but with "NEW YORK" across the jersey, instead of "RANGERS."

TheToronto Maple Leafs unveiled new home and road jerseys on June 14, 2010, seeing the return of the horizontal stripes on the bottom of the jersey and the "veined leaf" logo on both shoulders. The jersey also includes a white collar with string lace-up instead of a V-shaped collar.^[12]

In third jersey items, theCalgary Flames used the third jerseys they debuted in the 2009–10 season onto the Edge template in a retro style from the1988–89 season. After a three-year hiatus, theAnaheim Ducks unveiled a new third jersey on November 26 against theChicago Blackhawks. TheLos Angeles Kings added a throwback purple and gold uniform, withthe original 1967 style of purple, gold and white crown graphic on the jersey front for up to four games, and theDallas Stars swapped designations on their two white jerseys. TheVancouver Canucks, like the Sabres, were celebrating their 40th anniversary and wore replicas of their original 1970–71 white jerseys for several home games as well. Despite the league rules stating that all team jerseys must have nameplates on the back, both the Canucks and Kings were granted permission to wear jerseys without nameplates. The Washington Capitals, the road team in the 2011 Winter Classic, wore their Winter Classic jerseys in a home game vs. the Montreal Canadiens in honor of former CapitalDino Ciccarelli and his 2010 induction to theHockey Hall of Fame.

Every year since 2006,Kraft Foods has sponsored a contest calledKraft Hockeyville, where small Canadian towns compete against each other for the title of Hockeyville. The winning town also gets to host an NHL preseason game in a local arena, as well as hosting an event called the 'Stanley Cup Jamboree'.Dundas, Ontario, a suburb ofHamilton (which itself has been the subject of numerous efforts atpotential National Hockey League expansion) won the 2010 contest, and hosted the pre-season game between theOttawa Senators and theBuffalo Sabres on September 28, 2010.

The six teams going to Europe to open their regular seasons there as part of the NHL Premiere games also played exhibition games against European teams under the banner of NHL Premiere Challenge to close out their pre-seasons, finishing with a 6–1–0 record.^{[13][14][15][16]}

Date	Venue	European team	NHL team	Score
October 2	SAP Arena,Mannheim	Adler	Sharks	2–3 (SO)
October 2	The Odyssey,Belfast	Giants Select	Bruins	1–5
October 4	Ice Palace,Saint Petersburg	SKA	Hurricanes	5–3
October 4	Tampereen jäähalli,Tampere	Ilves	Wild	1–5
October 5	Tipsport Arena,Liberec	Bílí Tygři	Bruins	1–7
October 5	Malmö Arena,Malmö	Redhawks	Blue Jackets	1–4
October 6	Arena Riga,Riga	Dinamo	Coyotes	1–3

A record six teams opened the regular season in Europe, in a series branded the "2010 Compuware NHL Premiere Games."^[14] On October 7–8, 2010, theCarolina Hurricanes and theMinnesota Wild played two games at theHartwall Areena inHelsinki, Finland. The Hurricanes swept the Wild. On October 8–9, 2010, theColumbus Blue Jackets and theSan Jose Sharks played two games at theEricsson Globe inStockholm, Sweden. The two teams split a two-game premiere. On October 9–10, 2010, theBoston Bruins and thePhoenix Coyotes played two games at theO2 Arena inPrague,Czech Republic. The two teams also split a two-game premiere.^[14]

The first Premiere Games goal was scored byMinnesota Wild forwardGuillaume Latendresse.

The regular season also began in North America on October 7 with four additional games. In Canada,CBC'sHockey Night in Canada broadcast a double header featuring four Canadian teams. The first game saw the eastern CanadianOriginal Six-era rivalry rekindled, with theToronto Maple Leafs hosting theMontreal Canadiens. This game was followed by theBattle of Alberta when theCalgary Flames visited theEdmonton Oilers. In the United States, both2010 Stanley Cup Finalists were in action as well on Versus. Besides the previously mentioned Philadelphia Flyers-Pittsburgh Penguins game to openConsol Energy Center, the Stanley Cup championChicago Blackhawks played against theColorado Avalanche atPepsi Center in the nightcap.^[17] The Blackhawks had their home opener two nights later against their Central Division rivals, theDetroit Red Wings, and hoisted their first Stanley Cup championship banner in 49 years in apre-game ceremony.

The first NHL Face-off games goal was scored byTim Brent of the Toronto Maple Leafs.

ThePittsburgh Penguins hosted the 2011 Bridgestone NHL Winter Classic playing theWashington Capitals atHeinz Field on January 1, 2011.^[14] The game was telecast on NBC in the USA and on CBC andRDS in Canada. The Washington Capitals won the game 3–1. The game was originally scheduled to be played at 1 pm. However, rain in Pittsburgh forced the NHL to move the game by seven hours into prime-time at 8 pm.^[18][19][20]

A second outdoor game, the 2011 NHL Heritage Classic, was held in Canada atMcMahon Stadium inCalgary, Alberta, on February 20, 2011, between the Calgary Flames and the Montreal Canadiens.^[14] CBC, RDS and Versus telecasted the game. This was the second outdoor game held in Canada following theHeritage Classic in2003 when the Montreal Canadiens defeated the Edmonton Oilers 4–3 atCommonwealth Stadium inEdmonton, Alberta. The Heritage classic resulted in the Flames defeating the Canadiens 4–0. This event was recorded as the first shutout in any NHL outdoor game.

TheAll-Star Game was played on January 30, 2011, at theRBC Center inRaleigh, North Carolina, the home of theCarolina Hurricanes. A new format to select the teams were introduced: instead of using conferences or player nationalities as in past All-Star Games, teams were selected by captains in a fantasy draft days prior to the game.

CBC hosted its 11th annualHockey Day in Canada event on February 12, 2011, inWhitehorse, Yukon. The network broadcast a triple header of games featuring all six Canadian teams. The Edmonton Oilers hosted the Ottawa Senators, the Toronto Maple Leafs visited the Montreal Canadiens and theVancouver Canucks welcomed the Calgary Flames.^[21]

For the first time ever, the NHL andNBC hosted a Hockey Day in America event on February 20, 2011, featuring eight of the most popular American NHL teams. ThePhiladelphia Flyers defeated theNew York Rangers 4–2, the Washington Capitals defeated the Buffalo Sabres 2–1, the Red Wings defeated theMinnesota Wild 2–1, and the highlight game of the afternoon, a meeting of the last two Stanley Cup champions, as the Penguins were defeated by the Blackhawks 3–2. The event was part of the broaderHockey Weekend Across America organized byUSA Hockey.^[17]

On October 30, 2010, four penalty shot goals were scored on one night for the first time in league history.David Booth,Frans Nielsen,Ryan Callahan andDave Steckel were the scorers.^[22] The previous record was three penalty shot goals in one night. Four penalty shot attempts in one night had occurred previously.

On November 20, 2010, the 50,000th game in the NHL's history was played, counting all regular season and playoff games,^[23] going back to the league'sinaugural season in 1917.

The Vancouver Canucks placed first overall, winning the Presidents' Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs. The Washington Capitals placed first in the Eastern Conference, earning home-ice advantage in the Eastern Conference playoffs.

Note:Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

bold – qualified for playoffs;y – Won division;z – Placed first in conference (and division)
AT – Atlantic Division,NE – Northeast Division,SE – Southeast Division

bold – qualified for playoffs;y – Won division;p – Won President's Trophy (best record in NHL)
CE – Central Division,NW – Northwest Division,PA – Pacific Division

Under NHL rules, first-place teams in each division receive a conference ranking between 1 and 3 regardless of overall points. The Pittsburgh Penguins placed fourth yet had more points than the Boston Bruins, but the Bruins placed first in the Northeast Division to get the third-place ranking.

• Totals do not include six regular-season opening games played in Europe, and two outdoor regular season games.
• The Carolina Hurricanes played the Minnesota Wild atHartwall Areena inHelsinki, Finland.
• The Columbus Blue Jackets played the San Jose Sharks at theEricsson Globe inStockholm, Sweden
• The Boston Bruins played the Phoenix Coyotes atO2 Arena inPrague,Czech Republic.
• The Washington Capitals played the Pittsburgh Penguins outdoors in theWinter Classic atHeinz Field in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
• The Montreal Canadiens played the Calgary Flames outdoors in theHeritage Classic atMcMahon Stadium in Calgary, Alberta.
• As of October 2010, Calgary's Pengrowth Saddledome was renamed Scotiabank Saddledome.^[25]
• As of August 2011, Buffalo's HSBC Arena was renamed First Niagara Center.^[26]
• Following the 2010–11 season, the Atlanta Thrashers relocated and became thenewWinnipeg Jets.
• As of March 15, 2012, the Carolina Hurricanes venue, RBC Center, has been renamed PNC Arena.

In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2–2–1–1–1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). The team withhome ice advantage played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team played at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top eight teams in each conference made the playoffs, with the three division winnersseeded 1–3 based on regular season record, and the five remaining teams seeded 4–8.

The NHL used "re-seeding" instead of a fixed bracket playoff system. During the first three rounds, the highest remaining seed in each conference was matched against the lowest remaining seed, the second-highest remaining seed played the second-lowest remaining seed, and so forth. The higher-seeded team was awarded home ice advantage. The two conference winners then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals, where home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record.

Awards were presented at the NHL Awards ceremony, held inLas Vegas,Nevada, on June 22, 2011. Finalists for voted awards are announced during the playoffs and winners are presented at the award ceremony. Voting concluded immediately after the end of the regular season. ThePresidents' Trophy, thePrince of Wales Trophy andClarence S. Campbell Bowl are not presented at the awards ceremony.^[27][28][29]

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

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

Source: NHL^[30]

The following goaltenders led the league ingoals against average at the end of the regular season while playing at least 1800 minutes.^[31]

GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% =Save percentage; GAA =Goals against average

• Atlanta Thrashers:Craig Ramsay replaced the firedJohn Anderson.
• Columbus Blue Jackets:Scott Arniel became head coach, replacing interimClaude Noel, who had replaced the firedKen Hitchcock on February 3, 2010.
• Edmonton Oilers:Tom Renney replacedPat Quinn, who moved into a role of senior hockey advisor for the team.
• New Jersey Devils:John MacLean replacedJacques Lemaire, who retired.
• St. Louis Blues:Davis Payne returned for a full season after replacingAndy Murray, who was fired on January 2, 2010.
• Philadelphia Flyers:Peter Laviolette returned for a full season after replacingJohn Stevens, who was fired on December 4, 2009.
• Tampa Bay Lightning:Guy Boucher replaced the firedRick Tocchet.

• New Jersey Devils:John MacLean was fired as head coach after a 9–22–2 start.Jacques Lemaire, who had retired (per above), then returned to serve as interim head coach.
• New York Islanders:Jack Capuano replacedScott Gordon after Gordon was fired on November 15, 2010.

The following is a list of notable players who played their first NHL game in 2010–11, listed with their first team:

The following is a list of players of note who played their last NHL game in 2010–11, listed with their team:

• On October 22, 2010, Ottawa Senators forwardDaniel Alfredsson recorded a hat trick, with the third goal being his 1,000th career NHL point. He became the 75th player in league history to record 1,000 points.
• On October 26, Colorado Avalanche defencemanJohn-Michael Liles recorded an assist in his ninth consecutive game to give him the NHL record for longest assist streak for a defenceman from the start of season.
• On October 26, Ottawa Senators defencemanSergei Gonchar participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On October 28, Calgary Flames forwardCraig Conroy participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On November 3, Buffalo Sabres forwardMike Grier participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On November 6, Los Angeles Kings forwardRyan Smyth participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On November 22, Ottawa Senators forwardAlexei Kovalev recorded his 1,000th career NHL point with a goal. He became the 76th player in league history to record 1,000 points, and the thirdRussian born player to do so.
• On November 24, Boston Bruins forwardMark Recchi scored two goals, with the second being his 1,500th career NHL point. He became the 13th player in league history to reach this milestone.
• On December 26, Phoenix Coyotes defencemanEd Jovanovski participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On December 27, Detroit Red Wings goaltenderChris Osgood recorded his 400th NHL win. He became the 10th player in league history to reach this milestone.
• On January 11, 2011, Toronto Maple Leafs coachRon Wilson won his 600th game as an NHL coach. He became the seventh coach in league history to reach this milestone.
• On January 17, San Jose Sharks forwardPatrick Marleau and Dallas Stars forwardJamie Langenbrunner both participated in their 1,000th NHL game in separate contests. Marleau was the third youngest player in NHL history to reach 1,000 games played.
• On February 1, Minnesota Wild forwardAndrew Brunette participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On February 10, New Jersey Devils coachJacques Lemaire won his 600th game as an NHL coach. He became the eighth coach in league history to reach this milestone.
• On February 16, Florida Panthers forwardCory Stillman participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On February 20, Detroit Red Wings forwardTodd Bertuzzi participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On March 20, Phoenix Coyotes defencemanAdrian Aucoin participated in his 1,000th NHL game.
• On April 1, Calgary Flames forwardJarome Iginla scored two goals and added an assist to reach 1,000 career points. He became the 77th player in league history to do so.
• On April 8, San Jose Sharks forwardJoe Thornton recorded his 1,000th career NHL point with a goal. He became the 78th player to reach the milestone and the fourth this season.
• On April 9, Montreal Canadiens coachJacques Martin won his 600th game as an NHL coach. He became the ninth coach in league history to reach this milestone.
• On April 9, Boston Bruins forwardMark Recchi played in his 1,652nd NHL game, surpassingChris Chelios for sole possession of the fourth spot on theNHL's all-time games played list.

This was the third season of the league's Canadian national broadcast rights deals withCBC andTSN. During the regular season, CBC continued to air Saturday nightHockey Night in Canada games while TSN aired games on Wednesdays and other selected weeknights. CBC and TSN then split the first three rounds of the playoffs, selecting the rights to individual series using a draft-like setup. The Stanley Cup Finals aired exclusively on CBC.

This was the sixth and final season of the league's U.S. national broadcast rights deals withNBC andVersus before the two networks reached a new deal in April 2011. Under the previous deal expiring at the end of the 2010–11 season, Versus aired games generally on Monday and Tuesday nights, while NBC had games on selected weekends. During the playoffs, NBC had the rights to air selected weekend games during the first three postseason rounds of the Stanley Cup playoffs, while Versus televised selected first and second round playoff games and all Conference Finals games not aired on NBC. Due to NBC's scheduling, the network broadcast the first two and final three games of the Stanley Cup Finals, while Versus broadcast games 3 and 4.

In January 2011,Comcast, owner of Versus,acquiredNBCUniversal, resulting in the merging of all its sports properties with theNBC Sports division. The merged company then signed a new 10-year, US$2 billion deal with the NHL in April 2011, extending and unifying the broadcast and cable television rights held by NBC and Versus.^[51][52] Notable changes under the new deal included an increase in nationally televised games on Versus (which was to be renamed under the NBC name), a new Thanksgiving Friday game on NBC, holding exclusive rights to all playoff games beginning with the second round (as opposed to the Conference Finals), and plans to broadcast all playoff games (subject toblackouts during the first round) nationally on NBCUniversal channels.^[51][53]

• 2010–11 NHL transactions
• 2010–11 NHL suspensions and fines
• 2010 NHL entry draft
• 2010 in sports
• 2011 in sports
• List of 2010–11 NHL Three Star Awards

• Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011).The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates.ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.

Media related to2010-2011 National Hockey League season at Wikimedia Commons

• 2010–11 NHL season at Hockey Reference

• 2010–11 NHL season
• 2010–11 in Canadian ice hockey by league
• 2010–11 in American ice hockey by league

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