Although the sporting world is known to have its fair share of sporting rivalries, there are few sports that take this to the extreme that the NHL does. In fact, when it comes to sporting conflicts, there are few sports leagues anywhere in the world that are as defined by historic sporting rivalries as the NHL is.
Travis Konecny #11 of the Philadelphia Flyers scores as the Pittsburgh Penguins players swarm the net.
Despite evolving into a highly modern sports league over time, with millions of fans and generating billions of dollars in revenue, the NHL has not been able to escape its pugilistic reputation.
Perhaps these rivalries are simply a natural result of the rules of hockey itself, which under Rule 56 in the 1922 NHL official rule book makes an allowance for “fisticuffs” as a normal part of the game. Although not currently accepted as part of the game in such formal terms, referees are nevertheless given fairly wide latitude in what sort of penalties they impose for fights, and more generally, how in-game fighting is managed.
Despite fighting now being technically a rule violation – although not necessarily always strictly enforced – inter-team rivalries have continued to flourish throughout the history of the NHL, many of which have roots all the way back to the formation of the league itself.
Interestingly, some changes to the format the league will take this year look set to rekindle some of these older rivalries. With travel restrictions across Canada still in place, all seven Canadian franchises had to be put in one division for this coming season, meaning the Bruins won’t be in the same division as the Leafs, Canadiens or the Ottawa Senators.
This slight change in format looks set to rekindle some of the most historic NHL rivalries. And if looking to identify some possible betting lines with a view towards maximizing any NHL betting bonuses this season, this is definitely something to take into consideration!
Evidently, then, inter-team rivalries are part of what has helped to maintain hockey as Canada’s sport of choice. But what are some of the most well-established NHL rivalries?
Toronto Maple Leafs vs Ottawa Senators
For Ottawa hockey fans, 1992 was an important year. It not only saw Ottawa receiving its new NHL franchise in the Ottawa Senators, but perhaps most importantly,
Frederik Andersen #31 of the Toronto Maple Leafs react to the goal by Travis Konecny #11 of the Philadelphia Flyers
it gave birth to a rivalry that would come to animate hockey fans in the region for years to come. The establishment of the Ottawa Senators meant that Ontario was no longer the exclusive domain of the Toronto Maple Leafs; there was a new kid on the block and he was out to make a name for himself!
These early years also saw both teams really beginning to hit their stride, with both teams consistently finishing at the top of their divisional leagues. This natural rivalry was intensified following meetings in the playoffs in three consecutive seasons, all of which were won by the Leafs. The now infamous Tucker/Neil bench scene came in 2002-03, which only added further fuel to the fire. Since then, fans of both teams have continued to encourage this decades-old rivalry!
Boston Bruins vs Montreal Canadiens
With roots stretching all the way back to 1924, when the two teams met for the first time, the Bruins and the Canadiens definitely have some history between them. Since then, the rivalry has been kept very much alive, with the recent move of coach Claude Julien from one team to the other adding to this.
Tuukka Rask #40 of the Boston Bruins makes a pad save in front of his teammates Patrice Bergeron #37 and David Krejci #46 of the Boston Bruins as Philadelphia Flyers Joel Farabee #86 and James van Riemsdyk #25 look for the rebound.
Having met numerous times in the regular season and the playoffs, with a total of 34 playoff matchups to date, the Bruins and the Canadiens are extremely familiar with each other at this stage. Over time, this has resulted in bench brawls, coach and player poaching, and fan fights.
Montreal Canadiens vs Toronto Maple Leafs
By far the oldest rivalry in the NHL belongs to the Canadiens and the Maple Leafs. Originally, the rivalry was simply a natural result of the competition between two major Canadian cities that provided two of the original six NHL teams.
Carey Price #31 of the Montreal Canadiens
Over time, however, the rivalry between the two has intensified, with the Canadiens and the Leafs facing each other on 15 different occasions in the playoffs. Perhaps most importantly, perhaps, they faced each other five times in Stanley Cup finals before they were placed in the same division.
True to style, this team rivalry has seen its fair share of bloodshed over the years, with bench brawls, in-game fights and fan rivalry very much par for the course at this stage. Perhaps the most infamous of these related to Grabovski’s biting of Pacioretty during a 2013 matchup. And despite some arguably disappointing performances by the Leafs in the 2010s, this does not seem to have dampened the rivalry between the two. As the saying goes: there’s life in this old dog yet!
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