Today In NHL History - Hextall Fights Felix Potvin

On November 10th in 1996, Ron Hextall of the Philadelphia Flyers skated the length of the ice to engage netminder Felix Potvin when a melee broke out at the end of a match against the Toronto Maple Leafs.

Hextall was met with a willing and able opponent who quickly bloodied the Flyer backstop with a serious of blows to the left eye. Not surprisingly, the Philadelphia feed (below) hailed Hextall's win while Toronto commentators (further below) praised Potvin's performance.


The highlights clearly show the damage inflicted by Potvin on the NHL's single-season penalty minute record holder for goalies, a fact Toronto enforcer Tie Domi was happy to share with Hextall from the bench.

Philadelphia beat Toronto that night by a score of 3-1.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Lindbergh's Car Crash

On November 10th in 1985, Flyers goalie Pelle Lindbergh crashed his Porsche into a wall at 5:37am returning from an evening of team celebration with a blood alcohol level of .24%. The 26 year-old Vezina winner never regained consciousness and was removed from life support the next day upon his father's arrival from Sweden. Despite his death, the popular Swede topped fan voting for the 1986 NHL All-Star Game marking the first time a deceased player was selected for a North American team sport All-Star roster. Though Philadelphia never officially retired Lindbergh's 31, no Flyer has worn the number since.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Linden Trade (WAS-VAN)

On November 10th in 2001, the Vancouver Canucks acquired former captain Trevor Linden and a second round draft pick (Denis Grot) in exchange for a first round pick in 2002 (Boyd Gordon) and a third rounder in 2003.

Linden would skate for six more seasons with the team that took him second overall in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft surpassing several franchise milestones before announcing his retirement on June 11, 2008, exactly two decades from the day Canucks GM Pat Quinn first called his name.

On April 9, 2014, exactly six years one day after his final NHL game, Linden was named President of Hockey Operations for the Vancouver Canucks, the day after Mike Gillis was relieved of the role.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Kovalchuk's Shootout Miss

On November 10th in 2010, New Jersey Devils star forward Ilya Kovalchuk fabulously flubbed a fourth round shootout attempt against Jhonas Enroth giving the Buffalo Sabres a 5-4 victory in Lindy Ruff's 1,000th game behind the Buffalo bench. The $100 million dollar man's miscue sealed his squad's fate as the league's worst through the first fifth of the NHL's 93rd offering, with only 4 wins and 10 points in 16 games. Since joining the Devils, the premier pick from the 2001 NHL Draft has been a healthy scratch and managed a modest 3 goals, 5 assists, and minus 7 rating in 15 games.

Two nights later, however, Koval-choke redeemed himself, drawing a Dustin Penner tripping penalty in overtime and scoring the winner on the ensuing powerplay, leading the Devils to a 4-3 win over the Edmonton Oilers and their first home win in eight attempts this season.
From zero to hero in 48 hours. What a difference a game makes.

That's today in NHL history.