The best performances by rookies in the NHL playoffs

We kick off our list with an underrated Canadiens winger who won a Stanley Cup with the team in 1924. However, Cleghorn made quite the first impression with the Habs as a rookie, when he scored 21 regular-season goals in 1918-19. That level of production carried over to the playoffs that season, when Cleghorn scored nine times in 10 postseason contests. The playoff run was highlighted by a Game 2 hat trick during Montreal’s 5-3 win at Ottawa in the opening series. 

McCool played just two seasons in the NHL, but that brief stay was quite memorable. Fresh off a stint in the Canadian military, McCool recorded what remains an NHL rookie playoff-record four shutouts, while going 8-5-0 with a 2.23 goals-against average and helping Toronto win the 1945 Stanley Cup. McCool posted a shutout in each of the first three games of the Cup Final versus Detroit that season, and after the Red Wings stormed back to tie the series with three straight wins, stood tall in a 2-1, Game 7 victory.

Returning to the Canadiens, Dryden’s performance during the 1971 playoffs essentially made him an instant franchise legend. Dryden made his NHL debut in March of that season and posted a 1.65 goals-against average to win all six games he played down the stretch. Dryden then got the call — over Rogie Vachon — in the playoffs, where he helped the Canadiens get past the defending-champion Boston Bruins in seven first-round games. But Dryden truly earned star status while posting a 2.25 goals-against-average in the final nine games of those playoffs — the last two versus Minnesota and the seven-game triumph over Chicago in the Stanley Cup Final. Dryden’s 12 playoff wins from ’71 are tied for sixth in NHL history.

Entering the 2023-24 playoffs, Maloney was one of four rookies to record 20 or more points in a single playoff. In fact, the longtime Ranger and current President of Hockey Operations for the Calgary Flames was the first to do so. After registering 26 points in 28 regular-season contests during the 1978-79 campaign, Maloney recorded seven goals and 13 assists — fourth-most among all rookies — in 18 playoff games as the Rangers reached the Stanley Cup Final, where they lost to Montreal in five games. 

A member of the famed 1980 gold medal-winning, “Miracle on Ice” United States Olympic hockey team, Christoff played just five seasons in the NHL. However, his most successful run came over three seasons for his home-state North Stars, including 12 points in 14 playoff games the same year he helped the U.S. win gold. During his first full NHL season of 1980-81, Christoff had 39 points in 56 regular-season games, and then recorded eight goals and eight assists while helping Minnesota reach the Stanley Cup Final. Five of those goals came on the power play, tying for most by a rookie in the playoffs.

We noted that the aforementioned Steve Christoff is tied for the most power-play goals by a rookie in a single playoff. Sharing that honor is his former teammate Dino Ciccarelli, who at age 21, and with 32 NHL games under his belt entering the 1981 playoffs, set a rookie single-postseason record with 14 goals through 19 games. The Hall of Famer also added seven assists for 21 playoff points — tied for the most by a rookie in league history — while pacing Minnesota to the Stanley Cup Final, where it lost to the New York Islanders in five games.

With brothers Peter and Anton in tow, Marian Stastny helped the Nordiques reach the Wales Conference final. Though that proved to be the end of the line for Quebec, Marian posted 17 points in 16 playoff games, following a standout rookie campaign where he recorded a career-high 89 regular-season points. At the time, Stastny’s 14 assists during the 1982 postseason were a standalone record, and remain tied for the most in a single playoffs.

Flatley was expected to be a star for the Islanders, and while that might not be how his career can be described, he played parts of 14 NHL seasons, totaling 170 goals and 340 assists. And Islanders fans are still probably talking about Flatley’s breakout rookie-playoff performance from 1984, when he totaled nine goals and six assists in 21 games, even though New York’s quest for a fifth-straight Stanley Cup triumph was ended by the Edmonton Oilers in the Final.

Hockey fans were officially introduced to the potential greatness of MacInnis during the 1984 playoffs. Though the Flames failed to get past the second round, the future Norris Trophy winner recorded 12 assists — tied for fifth by a rookie in a single playoffs — and two goals (both on the power play) in 11 playoff games. He totaled all but two of those 14 points in the final six games of Calgary’s second-round series against rival Edmonton, which went the seven-game distance. 

To Canadiens fans of a certain age (or of the hardcore variety), Penney’s name is right up there with the icons of the franchise. As the 1984 playoffs approached, Montreal coach Jacques Lemaire wasn’t happy with the play of his regular netminders Rick Wamsley and Richard Sevigny. So, Penney was called up to debut in March, and promptly allowed 19 goals while losing all four of his starts. However, Penney got the nod in the playoffs, where he went 9-6-0 with a brilliant 2.21 goals-against average and three shutouts as Montreal beat Boston and Quebec before losing to the four-time defending-champion New York Islanders in six games of the Wales Conference final. 

Unlike the aforementioned Ken Dryden, the 20-year-old Roy already established himself during his rookie regular season of 1985-86, but became a downright Canadiens legend during the playoffs that season. In his first postseason experience, Roy was simply stellar while posting a 1.93 goals-against-average, .923 save percentage, a shutout and a then-league-record 15 wins en route to helping Montreal win the Stanley Cup. The effort also earned Roy the first of his three Conn Smythe Trophies as the playoffs’ most valuable player.

We just touched on Patrick Roy’s memorable performance in helping the Canadiens win the 1986 Stanley Cup, but teammate Claude Lemieux had himself a pretty good playoff run` as well. Entering these playoffs, Lemieux had two goals in 19 career games since debuting in 1983-84. However, he broke out in the ’86 postseason, scoring 10 times and adding six assists in 20 games. That goal total, which included four of the game-winning variety, ranks fifth for a rookie in a single playoffs.

Perhaps Hextall’s postseason success was a given considering how well he played as a rookie during the 1986-87 season. Considered to be the last great netminder to play for the Flyers, Hextall recorded 37 regular-season wins as a rookie in 1986-87, then registered another 15 during 26 playoff contests in that campaign. In addition, Hextall had a superb 2.76 goals-against-average and notched two shutouts during a postseason run that culminated with a Game 7 loss to Edmonton in the Stanley Cup Final.

One of the greatest Blackhawks and American-born players of all time, Roenick cut his postseason teeth in 10 games during the 1989 playoffs. However, his rookie status was still intact one season later, when he totaled 66 points in his first full NHL campaign. Then Roenick truly took off during Chicago’s run to the conference final. In 20 games during the 1990 playoffs, Roenick registered 11 goals — tied for third among rookies for a single season — and seven assists before the Blackhawks were eliminated by Edmonton.

The great Martin Brodeur played in four regular-season games and a playoff contest for New Jersey in 1991-92. He then won the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie for posting 27 wins and a 2.40 goals-against-average during the 1993-94 regular season. During the playoffs in ’94, Brodeur was even better with a stellar 1.95 goals-against-average and .928 save percentage to his name, all` while helping the Devils reach the Eastern Conference final, where they lost to the rival New York Rangers in seven games. 

When it comes to rookie goaltending seasons, there aren’t many better than the one Ward enjoyed. While solid during the 2005-06 regular season, winning 14 games in 28 appearances, Ward was a major reason the Hurricanes made their impressive run to the franchise’s first Stanley Cup triumph that playoff. He registered a 2.14 goals-against-average and .920 save percentage while tying an NHL playoff record with 15 wins by a rookie goaltender, at the time, and two shutouts. Ward went 10-3-0 with a 1.85 GAA in 13 home playoff appearances en route to winning the Conn Smythe Trophy. 

Coming over from Detroit during the 2009-10 campaign, Leino totaled 11 points in 55 regular-season games between the Red Wings and Flyers. However, when the playoffs rolled around, Leino enjoyed the breakout moment of his career, notching 21 points to tie for the most by a rookie in a single playoffs. In helping the Flyers make a surprising run to the Stanley Cup Final, Leino totaled seven goals, while also matching the rookie playoff mark by recording 14 assists, in 17 games. Leino recorded nine of those points in the six games of that Cup Final versus Chicago.

Love him or hate him, there’s no real in-between when it comes to Marchand. What most NHL fans should agree upon is that he can play the game quite well. Marchand’s introduction to the playoffs was highly impressive. He recorded 11 goals, five of which came in the final five games of Boston’s 2011 Stanley Cup Final triumph over Vancouver. He also posted eight assists during his 25 playoff games in 2011. Marchand’s 19 points from the 2011 postseason rank fifth among all rookies. 

Murray was stellar, while recognized as a rookie twice during his career. He won nine of 13 starts with a 2.00 goals-against average during the 2015-16 regular season, then went 15-6-0 with a 2.08 GAA and .923 save percentage during the playoffs, when the Penguins won the Stanley Cup. A season later, his first full campaign in the NHL, Murray won a career-high 32 games, but sat behind Marc-Andre Fleury early during the 2017 playoffs. Still, Murray was on top of his game in the second season. Replacing Fleury during that postseason, Murray went 7-4=3-0 with a 1.70 goals-against average and stopped all 51 shots in posting back-to-back shutouts (he totaled three in those playoffs) in Games 5 and 6 against Nashville to secure a second-straight Stanley Cup for Pittsburgh.

It was a sad day for Penguins fans when Guentzel was traded to Carolina during the 2023-24 season. However, they will always have the memories of his sensational rookie season, when he helped lead the franchise to its most recent Stanley Cup triumph. Guentzel recorded 33 points in 40 regular-season contests in 2016-17, then tied the NHL rookie single-season playoff record with 21. That included 13 postseason goals, which rank second for a rookie, and included a hat trick in Game 3 of Pittsburgh’s first-round series with Columbus. 

Binnington was called up by the Blues in December 2018, and won 24 times in 32 appearances — while posting a ridiculous 1.89 goals-against average — the rest of the regular season. Now, Binnington wasn’t nearly as dominant in the playoffs, but he did set the NHL rookie record with 16 postseason wins and had a 2.46 GAA. He allowed eight goals in the final four games of the Stanley Cup Final, which St. Louis won in seven games over the favored Boston Bruins.

The 2020 playoffs were pretty special for rookie defensemen. After recording 50 points in 57 COVID-shortened, regular-season games to win the Calder Trophy as the league’s top rookie, Makar didn’t slip during the postseason. In 15 playoff games, Makar recorded four goals and 11 assists for the Avalanche, who fell short of their Cup-winning goal. Makar’s 15-point total ranks second among NHL rookie defensemen for a single-season playoff tournament. 

Thought the aforementioned Cale Makar’s 2020 postseason was on point? Hughes was even better during the same playoff campaign. Like Makar, Hughes had an expected successful rookie campaign with 45 assists and 53 points in 68 regular-season contests. In the playoffs, Hughes set NHL rookie records for a defenseman with 14 assists and 16 points over a 17-game span. That single-playoff assist total also tied the record by a rookie at any position in league history.

Sticking with the 2020 playoffs, no NHL rookie has played more games during a single postseason than Gurianov’s 27, while helping the Stars reach the Stanley Cup Final. After recording 29 points in his first full NHL season of 2019-20, Gurianov continued to turn heads in the playoffs with nine goals and eight assists. This was highlighted by a club-record four-goal, one-assist performance during Dallas’ series-clinching, 7-3 Game 6 victory against Calgary in the first round.

After Vitek Vanecek allowed nine goals as New Jersey dropped the first two games of its opening series against the rival New York Rangers, then-Devils coach Lindy Ruff turned to the rookie Schmid. All the Swiss netminder did was post a 1.38 goals-against average, .951 save percentage and two shutouts in the next five games to help New Jersey rally for a series victory. Now, Schmid didn’t enjoy the same success against Carolina (4.23 GAA) in the next round, as New Jersey lost the series in five. However, he still left his mark by helping take down the hated Rangers.