List of NHL players with 500 consecutive games played

For ice hockey players in the National Hockey League (NHL), playing 500 consecutive regular season games is considered a highly significant achievement. This is often referred to as an "iron man streak".

Murray Murdoch, the first player to achieve the feat

As of the completion of the 2019–20 NHL season — the 102nd regular season of play of the NHL — a total of 25 different players had played at least 500 consecutive regular season games in their NHL career, making it one of the most exclusive 500-clubs in the NHL.

The first player to play 500 consecutive games was Murray Murdoch, who played his 500th consecutive game during the 1936–37 season, the 20th season of the NHL. Doug Jarvis currently holds the record for most consecutive games played with 964, never missing a regular season game in his NHL career (1975–87). Glenn Hall is the only goaltender to play 500 or more consecutive games (1955–62), and Henrik Sedin is the only European player to do so (2004–14).

Several streaks ended for unusual reasons, unlike injuries. Steve Larmer's streak ended in 1993 due to a contract dispute. Along with former record holder Johnny Wilson (1952–60), they are the only players on the list who had their streaks end due to financial reasons. Andrew Cogliano's run (2007–18) ended at 830 because of a controversial two-game suspension. If the suspension is overturned at any point, the streak was at 929 games at the time of his injury (not counting the two games missed to suspension). Part of the players did not continue, remaining a healthy scratch or being sent to the minors.

There are currently four players with active streaks: Keith Yandle, Patrick Marleau, Phil Kessel, and Brent Burns. Burns is the most recent member of the 500 consecutive game club, playing his 500th game on December 3, 2019. Providing that the length of schedule does not change and there are no further work stoppages, Yandle, Marleau, and Kessel could possibly pass Jarvis' record during the 2021–22 season.

500 consecutive games played

This is a list of the 25 NHL players who have played at least 500 consecutive regular season games in their NHL career (updated to include games played on March 11, 2020).

Legend

  active streak

( ) denotes games played in current season

(C) streak is from the start of their career

Rank Name Games Start End Notes
1 Doug Jarvis 964 (C) October 8, 1975[1] October 10, 1987[2] Never missed a game in his career. Broke Garry Unger's record by playing in his 915th NHL game on December 26, 1986.[3]
2 Garry Unger 914 February 24, 1968 December 21, 1979 Streak ended when Unger was benched by Atlanta Flames coach Al MacNeil.[4]
3 Steve Larmer 884 October 6, 1982[5] April 15, 1993[5] Did not miss a game during 11 years with the Blackhawks.[6] Streak ended as a result of a contract dispute.[7]
4 Keith Yandle 866 March 26, 2009 active Last game missed was on March 22, 2009, while playing for the Phoenix Coyotes (game 73 for the team). He played the last 9 games of that season and, to date, every game since. Yandle also played 84 games in 2014–15 due to a mid-season trade.
5 Patrick Marleau 854 April 9, 2009 active Last game missed was on April 7, 2009 while playing for the San Jose Sharks (game 80 for the team). He played the last 2 games of that season and, to date, every game since. Marleau did not play the opening few games of the 2019–20 season, but he signed an NHL contract with the San Jose Sharks on October 9, 2019, meaning he did not miss 4 games that the San Jose Sharks had previously played, while Marleau was an unrestricted free agent and games were not counted for him.
6 Phil Kessel 844 November 3, 2009 active Last game missed was on October 31, 2009, while playing for the Toronto Maple Leafs (game 12 for the team). He played the last 70 games of that season and, to date, every game since.
7 Andrew Cogliano 830 (C) October 4, 2007 January 13, 2018 Consecutive games streak ended as a result of a two-game suspension. The NHL Department of Player Safety later ruled that Cogliano hit Kings' forward Adrian Kempe with a "high, forceful hit", after Kempe had completed a pass.[8]
8 Craig Ramsay 776 March 27, 1973 February 10, 1983 Dave Lewis ripped a slap shot off Ramsay's left foot, afterwards Ramsay was not in the lineup for the next game.[9]
9 Jay Bouwmeester 737 March 6, 2004 November 22, 2014 Streak ended as a result of a lower body injury, believed to be from stepping on a crack on the ice.[10]
10 Henrik Sedin 679 March 21, 2004 January 18, 2014 Missed game as a result of a finger injury. At the time of the completion, Sedin's streak was the sixth longest streak in NHL history.[11]
11 Andy Hebenton 630 (C) October 7, 1955 March 22, 1964 Was the first player to break Johnny Wilson's consecutive games played record. Hebenton's streak ended as a result of being sent to the minors. After being sent to the minors, Hebenton never played in the NHL again. Hebenton's consecutive game streak (including the minor leagues) was 1062 games, which included 216 games prior to his time in the NHL and an additional 216 games after his NHL career. His career streak came to end as a result of attending his father's funeral.[12]
12 Karl Alzner 622 October 8, 2010 April 7, 2018 Alzner's streak started at the beginning of the 2010–11 season. He did not play in the last game of the 2009–10 season while playing for the Washington Capitals. Streak ended as a result of being a healthy scratch for the opening game of the 2018–19 season on October 3, 2018, while playing for the Montreal Canadiens.[13]
13 Johnny Wilson 580 February 10, 1952 March 20, 1960 Played eight consecutive seasons of 70 games along with the final 20 games of the 1951–52 NHL season. Streak ended as a result of a contract dispute. At the time of the completion, Wilson's streak was the longest in NHL history.[14]
14 Billy Harris 576 October 7, 1972 November 28, 1979 Harris played the first 576 games in Islanders history. On November 30, 1979, he was made a healthy scratch by Al Arbour on the 20th game of the season, ending his streak.[15]
15 Mark Recchi 570 October 4, 1991 December 11, 1998 Streak ended due to a case of pneumonia that Recchi had been fighting for several weeks. Recchi said in an interview that he no longer had the energy and the best way to help the team was to rest.[16]
16 Danny Grant 566 December 4, 1968[17] December 19, 1975 Streak ended as a result of a torn right thigh muscle that required surgery.[18]
17 Alex Delvecchio 548 December 13, 1956 November 11, 1964 Delvecchio was accidentally struck by a Red Kelly shot. He suffered a hairline fracture of the jaw, but missed only two games.[19][20]
18 Brendan Morrison 542 February 27, 2000 December 12, 2007 Morrison's streak ended as a result of wrist surgery. He had injured his wrist in the preseason but had continued to play through the pain. At the time of completion, Morrison's streak was the eleventh longest streak in NHL history.[21]
19 Brent Burns 541 November 21, 2013[22] Active Burns' streak started on November 21, 2013 when he returned from facial injuries. He played his 500th consecutive NHL game against the Washington Capitals on December 3, 2019. Burns is the fourth defenseman to play 500 consecutive games and is first player to play 500 consecutive games while playing both forward and defense.[23]
20 Craig MacTavish 519 October 12, 1986 January 2, 1993 Streak ended as a result of a lower back strain. At the time of its completion, it was the second-longest active streak in the league.[24]
21 Brad Boyes 513 (C) October 5, 2005 November 23, 2011 Streak ended as a result of a lower body injury.[25]
22 (tie) Andrew Brunette 509 January 2, 2002 February 19, 2009 Brunette appeared to injure his knee in a game in January and aggravated the injury several weeks later, causing his streak to end at 509 games.[26]
22 (tie) John Marks 509 October 27, 1973 December 30, 1979 On December 16, 1979, Marks set a new all-time record, previously held by Murray Murdoch.
24 Murray Murdoch 508 (C) November 16, 1926 March 21, 1937 First player in NHL history to play 500 consecutive games.[6]
25 Glenn Hall (G) 502 October 6, 1955 November 7, 1962 Streak ended on November 7, 1962, game 13 of the 1962–63 season. Hall's streak ended when he was fastening the toe strap on his skate and suddenly "feeling his back go out". Including playoffs, Hall played a total of 551 consecutive games.[27]

Active players approaching 500 consecutive games

This is a list of the players who have played at least 400 consecutive regular season games in their NHL career and will be approaching the 500 consecutive game mark within the next year (updated to include games played on March 11, 2020).

Legend

( ) denotes games played in current season

Rank Name Games Start End Notes
1 Dmitry Orlov 413 March 8, 2014 Active Last game missed was on March 6, 2014, while playing for the Washington Capitals (game 66 for the team). He played the last 16 games of that season and, to date, every game since.

References
  1. "Jarvis, The Iron Man". Archived from the original on 2012-05-12. Retrieved 2018-12-15.
  2. ChicagoTribune.com: Jarvis' Record Streak Ends At 964 Games, October 12, 1987
  3. Patrick Johnston (2007-04-24). "One game at a time: 31 years on, Canucks coach Doug Jarvis' Iron Man streak still stands". The Province.
  4. "Legends of Hockey -- NHL Player Search -- Player -- Garry Unger".
  5. "Legends Of Hockey: Steve Donald Larmer". Hockey Hall Of Fame.
  6. Erik Karlsson among longest games-played streaks in NHL history, March 31, 2017
  7. Tim Wharnsby (January 13, 2017). "Steve Larmer: I Have No Regrets". NHLPA.
  8. "Andrew Cogliano suspended 2 games, snapping his ironman streak at 830". CBC.ca. Retrieved March 10, 2018.
  9. "Craig Ramsay: The Sabres Ironman". Retrieved June 22, 2019.
  10. Josh Cooper (November 23, 2014). "Jay Bouwmeester's 'Iron Man' streak ends at 737 straight games". Yahoo.com.
  11. Kevin Woodley (January 21, 2014). "Henrik Sedin's ironman streak ends". NHL.com.
  12. Joe Pelletier (February 7, 2007). "New York Rangers Legends: Andy Hebenton". New York Rangers Legends.
  13. "'They're never easy decisions': Habs to sit Alzner, Plekanec". TSN. October 3, 2018. Retrieved October 3, 2018.
  14. Richard Goldstein (January 2, 2012). "Johnny Wilson, N.H.L. Star, Dies at 82; Held Consecutive-Game Record". New York Times.
  15. Charlie Husher (November 19, 2017). "November 30, 1979: Al Arbour makes Billy Harris a historic healthy scratch". Lighthouse Hockey.
  16. CBS Sportsline Staff (December 12, 1998). "Iron Man Streak Ends For Recchi". CBS Sports. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  17. "Dallas Stars' History". Canoe.ca.
  18. Stan Fischler. "Detroit Red Wings: Greatest Moments and Players". Skyhorse Publishing. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  19. "50 Years Ago in Hockey – Mahovlich Mystery Continues". Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  20. "Alex Delvecchio: The NHL's True Ironman?". Retrieved June 26, 2019.
  21. AP (December 12, 2007). "EWrist injury ends Morrison's ironman streak at 542 games". NHL.com. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  22. https://thehockeynews.com/news/article/as-marleau-prepares-to-continue-games-played-streak-who-are-the-nhls-active-ironmen
  23. Curtis Pashelka (December 4, 2019). "Sharks' Brent Burns set to reach rare milestone for a defenseman". Marin Independent Journal. Retrieved December 4, 2019.
  24. "Edmonton Oilers history: Craig MacTavish's consecutive games-played streak ends at 518 games". Edmonton Journal. January 3, 1993. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  25. CBS Sportsline Staff (November 23, 1993). "Ironman Brad Boyes "out for a period of time"". NBC Sports. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  26. John Shipley (February 20, 2009). "Andrew Brunette's iron man streak ends at 509 games". Twin Cities Pioneer Press. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
  27. E.M. Swift (October 27, 1992). "Iron Man Of The Ice". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved December 15, 2018.
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