The Score of the Most Lopsided Game in Hockey History Was 92-0

Every fan wants their team to win, but what about the biggest losses in the history of hockey? How badly did a team drop a lead or have a bad day and not score at all? Fresh off the 2024 Stanley Cup where the Florida Panthers beat out the Edmonton Oilers for the cup, I’m looking at the biggest losses in hockey.

Hockey has been played for close to 4,000 years given artwork from ancient civilizations. Who invented it? The answer to that isn’t clear-cut. According to the International Ice H92ockey Federation (IIHF) , the game we all know today dates back to 1876 when two clubs were established and rules were drafted. It was a take on games like bandy and field hockey.

The first documented indoor ice hockey game took place in 1875. It was played by McGill University students at the Victoria Skating Rink. Two years later, the McGill University Hockey Club formed and established rules.

Canada’s Governor-General Sir Frederick Arthur Stanley would donate a silver cup standing three feet high, launching the Stanley Cup tournament . The first Stanley Cup was awarded in 1893, but the NHL wouldn’t form until 1917.

Hockey made its first appearance at 1908’s 4th Olympic Games in London, with six countries competing in Olympic Men’s Hockey. Neither Canada nor the U.S. played in those hockey tournaments.

Of all professional sports, hockey is one I prefer as the rules are easy to follow and scoring is clear cut. I’ve seen some close games and others where there was a complete blowout. Explore these games in my list of the 14 biggest losses in hockey history based on final scores and costly mistakes made during the game that led to the loss. (Also read 20 Things Even Hockey Fans Didn’t Know About the NHL .)

South Korea vs. Thailand: IIHF’s U-18 Asia-Oceania Championships

In Game 13 of the IIHF’s U-18 Championships, South Korea ensured Thailand would be knocked out with a stunning 92 to 0 victory.

• Date: March 21, 1998
• Final Score: 92 to 0

Slovakia vs. Bulgaria: Winter Olympic Pre-Qualifier

Bulgaria and Slovakia’s women’s ice hockey teams competed to land a potential spot in the 2010 Winter Olympics. It ended up being a record-setting game where Slovakia walked away with a tremendous hockey shutout scoring 31, 24, and 27 points in the three periods. Bulgaria never scored.

• Date: September 6, 2008
• Final Score: 82 to 0

Australia vs. New Zealand: IIHF World Hockey Championship

New Zealand wasn’t one of the worst teams to compete in the IIHF’s World Hockey Championship in 1987. However, the team did end up suffering a tremendous blowout with Australia beating them 58 to 0.

• Date: March 14, 1987
• Final Score: 58 to 0

Thailand vs. Kuwait: IIHF U-18 Asian and Oceania Championship

In the opening game of the IIHF’s U-18, Thailand’s win over Kuwait went down as one of the biggest losses in the history of hockey. Kuwait failed to score, and Thailand scored a whopping 57 goals.

• Date: April 23, 2024
• Final Score: 57 to 0

Canada vs. Denmark: IIHF World Amateur Hockey Championship

Denmark had just joined the International Ice Hockey Federation when they were destroyed by Canada’s Sudbury Wolves in the opening game of the World Amateur Ice Hockey Championship. Canada’s 47 goals held a world record until the Australia vs. New Zealand game in 1987.

• Date: February 12, 1949
• Final Score: 47 to 0

Montreal Canadiens vs. Quebec Bulldogs

Generally, it’s not that this game was a blowout. It counts as a big loss as the Bulldogs lost by 13 points to the Canadiens who got the highest score in NHL history. The Canadiens’ Didier Pitre had three unassisted goals, but Newsy Lalonde topped him with four.

• Date: March 3, 1920
• Final Score: 16 to 3

Canada vs. Sweden: IIHF World Women’s Championship

The IIHF launched the World’s Women’s Hockey Championship in 1990, which was a long time coming but also a historic event. That first championship went to Canada with an impressive 15 to 1 win against Sweden.

• Date: March 19, 1990
• Final Score: 15 to 1

Detroit Red Wings vs. New York Rangers

In what remains the biggest NHL blowout, the New York Rangers were pummeled by the Red Wings getting 15 goals. Thirteen of those goals happened in the second and third periods. The score would have been 16 to 0, except the final shot went into the net a fraction of a second after the buzzer. Syd Howe would go down in history for getting a hat trick in the last eight minutes of the game.

• Date: January 23, 1944
• Final Score: 15 to 0

Edmonton Oilers vs. Vancouver Canucks

Seven of the Oilers’ goals happened in the third period in this hockey blowout. Andy Moog’s performance in that game kept 29 pucks from making it into the net, which kept the Canucks from scoring even one point.

• Date: November 8, 1985
• Final Score: 13 to 0

Toronto Maple Leafs vs. Detroit Red Wings

This was another high-scoring win for a team in a regular season. While points were scored in all three periods, including Norm Ullman’s first goal in the first three minutes of the game, seven of the goals happened in the third period.

• Date: January 2, 1971
• Final Score: 13 to 0

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Minnesota North Stars: Stanley Cup Finals

Minnesota hadn’t had the best year, but they were looking for an upset in the Stanley Cup finals. Unfortunately, the team’s hopes were dashed when they failed to score in Game 6 and lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins.

• Date: May 25, 1991
• Final Score: 8 to 0

Los Angeles Kings vs. Edmonton Oilers: Stanley Cup Playoffs

This game goes down as the biggest loss for reasons beyond the score. In Game 3 of the Stanley Cup playoffs, Wayne Gretzky and the Edmonton Oilers were favorites in a match against the Los Angeles Kings. The Oilers quickly got five goals and entered into the third period looking like clear winners. In what’s known as the “Miracle on Manchester,” the Kings scored five goals and ended up winning the game in overtime.

• Date: April 10, 1982
• Final Score: 6 to 5

Poland vs. the Soviet Union: IIHF World Hockey Championship

Going into the opening game of the 1976 World Hockey Championship, the Soviet Union had only lost once. Poland was hosting the game for the first time in 46 years, and the team planned to avoid being shut out. The last time the teams faced up, the Soviet Union won 16 to 1 and was considered unbeatable. Yet, the goal of avoiding a shutout became an unbelievable win for Poland and a devastating loss for the Soviets.

• Date: April 8, 1976
• Final Score: 6 to 4

The United States vs. the Soviet Union: Winter Olympics

The score itself isn’t why this is considered one of the biggest hockey losses, it’s that the U.S. was never favored to win. The U.S. hockey team that made it to the 1980 Winter Olympics was inexperienced and lacked many professional players. The Soviet Union’s team was experienced and made up of mostly professionals. The game got underway with a 2 to 2 tie at the end of the first period. The Soviet Union took the lead in the second period, but the U.S. team came back and won the game in the third period. The game would become known as “The Miracle on Ice.”

• Date: February 22, 1980
• Final Score: 4 to 3

Those are the highest-scoring hockey games or biggest upsets I’ve found while researching the history of NHL and IIHF games. Check out The Most Impressive Individual Scoring Records and discover some of the highest-scoring players in sports history.

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