NHL: Detroit Red Wings Are Historically Streaking

The Detroit Red Wings’ single season home-winning streak is at 23 and counting. Every home win from here on out sets the new bar for the longest consecutive home-winning streak in NHL history.

To put this streak into perspective, the Red Wings have won 90 percent of their home games, thus far (23 of 26). The previous record was a mere 21-consecutive home victories that had been accomplished by both the 1929-30 Boston Bruins and the 1975-76 Philadelphia Flyers. 

The next streak the Red Wings will look to break is the streak for most-consecutive home games in which a point was gained. In other words, most-consecutive home games without a regulation loss. This record was set by the 1976-77 Montreal Canadiens that went a staggering 34-consecutive home games without a regulation loss.

Should their streak continue the Red Wings would actually have a chance to surpass this record streak in the last week of the regular season. 

Not surprisingly, the Red Wings franchise also set the bar for consecutive-road victories by winning 12 straight away from the Joe Louis Arena, during the 2005-06 season. The Red Wings are finding the road games a bit peskier this season—with a road-record hovering around .500. 

While the Red Wings’ streak is certainly impressive, the streak by which all winning streaks are measured is the most-consecutive overall-wins streak. The record for this streak is 17, set by the 1992-93 Presidents Trophy winning Pittsburgh Penguins.  

That streak occurred in the spring of 1993 and spanned over a time period from March 9 to April 14, which was the last day of the regular season. It was that day that the streak came to an end, and the Penguins tied the New Jersey Devils. 

While the Penguins didn't win that final game, they did end the season without losing a regulation game in 18-consecutive games. While that is a very respectable streak, the longest streak in the history of the NHL is nearly double that. Yes, the longest-consecutive overall streak without a regulation loss is an astonishing 35 games—nearly half the season—set by the 1979-80 Philadelphia Flyers. During those 35 games the Flyers racked up 25 wins and 10 ties. 

On the other end of the spectrum, are the streaks of futility. Some of these streaks are actually more remarkable than the winning streaks referenced above. Take for instance, the 1980-81 Winnipeg Jets. 

That season the Jets went on a 30-game winless streak that set the bar, or the floor, for NHL futility—which still stands today. They were only able to muster seven ties within those 30 games, losing the other 23. 

Perhaps equally remarkable, was the streak that the 1992-93 Ottawa Senators put together in setting the NHL record for most-consecutive road losses. The team lost an almost inconceivable 38-consecutive road games and only won one—yes one—road game the entire season.

This was the inaugural season for the Senators, where they also set a then-record streak for consecutive-home losses with 11—but this record was later broken by the 2003-04 Pittsburgh Penguins, when they lost 14-straight home games. 

The 2011-12 Red Wings are certainly having a polar opposite season than those 2003-04 Penguins had, but the one thing both of these teams will have in common is that they both will live in infamy in the record books. Well, until some other team goes historically streaking.