1984–85 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1984–85 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's eighteenth in the National Hockey League. It marked the debut of Mario Lemieux for the Penguins.

1984–85 Pittsburgh Penguins
Division	6th Patrick
Conference	11th Wales
1984–85 record	24–51–5
Goals for	276
Goals against	385
Team information
General manager	Eddie Johnston
Coach	Bob Berry
Captain	Mike Bullard
Alternate captains	None
Arena	Pittsburgh Civic Arena
Average attendance	10,018
Team leaders
Goals	Mario Lemieux (43)
Assists	Mario Lemieux (57)
Points	Mario Lemieux (100)
Penalty minutes	Gary Rissling (209)
Wins	Denis Herron (10)
Goals against average	Roberto Romano (4.42)
← 1983–84 1985–86 →

Background

Lemieux debuted with the Penguins on October 11, 1984, in a game against the Boston Bruins; he scored a goal with his very first NHL shot during his first shift.^[1] Later that season, Lemieux played in the NHL All-Star Game and became the first rookie to be named the All-Star Game's Most Valuable Player.

Despite missing seven games during the season, Lemieux scored one hundred points and won the Calder Memorial Trophy as the rookie of the year.

Offseason

Before the 1984 NHL Entry Draft, Lemieux announced he wanted to play for whoever drafted him.^[2] He and his agent were deadlocked with the Penguins and could not negotiate a contract. Because of this, when the Penguins called his name as the first overall draft pick, he did not shake general manager Eddie Johnston's hand or don the Penguins jersey, as is NHL tradition. He claimed he was upset about the contract negotiation, and said that "Pittsburgh doesn't want [him] bad enough."^[3]

Even though the draft was held in Montreal, more than three thousand fans viewed the broadcast in Pittsburgh's Civic Arena. In contrast, a typical Penguins game drew fewer than seven thousand fans.^[4] Lemieux's actions upset many fans and led to accusations of arrogance and aloofness.^[5]

After the draft, Johnston signed Lemieux to a two-year contract for $600,000, plus a $150,000 bonus for signing.^[3] Although Lemieux wore the jersey #27 during his time with the Laval Voisins, he wanted to adopt Wayne Gretzky's #99 when he entered the NHL; however, his agent advised him to create his own identity. In response, Lemieux turned #99 upside down and landed on #66, which stayed with him throughout his career.

Regular season

Season standings

Patrick Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Philadelphia Flyers	80	53	20	7	348	241	113
Washington Capitals	80	46	25	9	322	240	101
New York Islanders	80	40	34	6	345	312	86
New York Rangers	80	26	44	10	295	345	62
New Jersey Devils	80	22	48	10	264	346	54
Pittsburgh Penguins	80	24	51	5	276	385	53

^[6]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

Patrick Division record vs. opponents

Vs. Wales Conference Vs. Patrick Division 1984–85 NHL records^[7] Team NJD NYI NYR PHI PIT WSH Total New Jersey — 3−2−2 2−5 2−5 5−2 2−4−1 14−18−3 N.Y. Islanders 2−3−2 — 4−3 3−3−1 5−2 3−4 17−15−3 N.Y. Rangers 5−2 3−4 — 0−7 4−3 2−5 14−21−0 Philadelphia 5−2 3−3−1 7−0 — 5−2 5−1−1 25−8−2 Pittsburgh 2−5 2−5 3−4 2–5 — 0−6−1 9−25−1 Washington 4−2−1 4−3 5−2 1–5−1 6−0–1 — 20−13−2 Vs. Adams Division 1984–85 NHL records Team BOS BUF HFD MTL QUE Total New Jersey 0−3 0−3 0−3 1−1−1 1−1−1 2−11−2 N.Y. Islanders 1−2 2−1 1−1−1 1−2 0−3 5−9−1 N.Y. Rangers 0−1−2 1−1−1 0−1−2 0−2−1 1−2 2−7−6 Philadelphia 2−1 1−1−1 2−0−1 1−2 1−1−1 7−5−3 Pittsburgh 1−2 0−2−1 1−2 1−2 0−3 3−11−1 Washington 2−1 1−2 1−2 1−1−1 2−1 7−7−1 Vs. Campbell Conference Vs. Norris Division 1984–85 NHL records Team CHI DET MIN STL TOR Total New Jersey 0−3 1−1−1 1−1−1 0−2−1 3−0 5−7−3 N.Y. Islanders 3−0 2−1 1−1−1 3−0 2−1 11−3−1 N.Y. Rangers 0−3 1−2 1−2 2−0−1 2−0−1 6−7−2 Philadelphia 2−1 2−0−1 3−0 3−0 2−1 12−2−1 Pittsburgh 1−2 1−1−1 1−2 1−2 2−1 6−8−1 Washington 3−0 2−1 2−0−1 2−0−1 2−0−1 11−1−3 Vs. Smythe Division 1984–85 NHL records Team CGY EDM LAK VAN WIN Total New Jersey 0−2−1 1−2 0−3 0−3 0−2−1 1−12−2 N.Y. Islanders 1−2 0−2−1 2−1 2−1 2−1 7−7−1 N.Y. Rangers 0−2−1 1−1−1 1−2 2−1 0−3 4−9−2 Philadelphia 2−1 3−0 1−1−1 3−0 0−3 9−5−1 Pittsburgh 2−0−1 1−1−1 0−3 2−1 1−2 6−7−2 Washington 2−1 0−1−2 2−1 3−0 1−2 8−5−2

Schedule and results

1984–85 Schedule
October: 5–4–0 (Home: 4–1–0 ; Road: 1–3–0), 10 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 1 Oct 11 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Boston Bruins Boston Garden 0–1–0 0 2 Oct 13 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum 0–2–0 0 3 Oct 17 Vancouver Canucks 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 1–2–0 2 4 Oct 20 Philadelphia Flyers 1–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 2–2–0 4 5 Oct 21 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 2–3–0 4 6 Oct 24 New Jersey Devils 5–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 2–4–0 4 7 Oct 27 Montreal Canadiens 5–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 3–4–0 6 8 Oct 30 Detroit Red Wings 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 4–4–0 8 9 Oct 31 Pittsburgh Penguins 7–6 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 5–4–0 10
November: 1–8–3 (Home: 0–4–3 ; Road: 1–4–0), 5 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 10 Nov 3 New York Rangers 7–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 5–5–0 10 11 Nov 6 Edmonton Oilers 3–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 5–5–1 11 12 Nov 8 St. Louis Blues 6–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 5–6–1 11 13 Nov 10 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 5–7–1 11 14 Nov 14 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 OT Winnipeg Jets Winnipeg Arena 6–7–1 13 15 Nov 16 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–7 Vancouver Canucks Pacific Coliseum 6–8–1 13 16 Nov 17 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–5 Los Angeles Kings The Forum 6–9–1 13 17 Nov 21 Washington Capitals 3–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 6–9–2 14 18 Nov 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–9 Hartford Whalers Hartford Civic Center 6–10–2 14 19 Nov 24 New Jersey Devils 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 6–11–2 14 20 Nov 27 Buffalo Sabres 2–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 6–11–3 15 21 Nov 29 Chicago Black Hawks 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 6–12–3 15
December: 8–5–1 (Home: 6–1–0 ; Road: 2–4–1), 17 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 22 Dec 1 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 6–13–3 15 23 Dec 2 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–9 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 6–14–3 15 24 Dec 5 St. Louis Blues 4–7 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 7–14–3 17 25 Dec 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 OT New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 8–14–3 19 26 Dec 8 Calgary Flames 4–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 9–14–3 21 27 Dec 12 New York Islanders 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 10–14–3 23 28 Dec 15 Pittsburgh Penguins 5–2 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens 11–14–3 25 29 Dec 19 New Jersey Devils 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 11–15–3 25 30 Dec 21 Philadelphia Flyers 2–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 12–15–3 27 31 Dec 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–5 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 12–16–3 27 32 Dec 26 New York Islanders 5–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 13–16–3 29 33 Dec 28 Hartford Whalers 0–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 14–16–3 31 34 Dec 29 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–10 Quebec Nordiques Colisée de Québec 14–17–3 31 35 Dec 31 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–4 OT Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena 14–17–4 32
January: 4–8–1 (Home: 3–3–0 ; Road: 1–5–1), 9 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 36 Jan 2 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens 15–17–4 34 37 Jan 4 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–7 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 15–18–4 34 38 Jan 5 Quebec Nordiques 8–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 15–19–4 34 39 Jan 9 Vancouver Canucks 4–7 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 16–19–4 36 40 Jan 12 Edmonton Oilers 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 17–19–4 38 41 Jan 16 Washington Capitals 5–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 17–20–4 38 42 Jan 17 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–6 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 17–21–4 38 43 Jan 19 Chicago Black Hawks 4–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–21–4 40 44 Jan 21 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–7 Winnipeg Jets Winnipeg Arena 18–22–4 40 45 Jan 23 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Minnesota North Stars Met Center 18–23–4 40 46 Jan 25 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–6 OT Calgary Flames Olympic Saddledome 18–23–5 41 47 Jan 26 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Edmonton Oilers Northlands Coliseum 18–24–5 41 48 Jan 30 Toronto Maple Leafs 6–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–25–5 41
February: 2–10–0 (Home: 1–6–0 ; Road: 1–4–0), 4 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 49 Feb 2 New York Islanders 4–0 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–26–5 41 50 Feb 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 18–27–5 41 51 Feb 9 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 18–28–5 41 52 Feb 10 Los Angeles Kings 4–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–29–5 41 53 Feb 14 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 Chicago Black Hawks Chicago Stadium 18–30–5 41 54 Feb 16 Quebec Nordiques 8–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–31–5 41 55 Feb 18 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–8 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 18–32–5 41 56 Feb 20 Calgary Flames 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 19–32–5 43 57 Feb 22 New York Rangers 8–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 19–33–5 43 58 Feb 23 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–1 Minnesota North Stars Met Center 20–33–5 45 59 Feb 25 Minnesota North Stars 5–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 20–34–5 45 60 Feb 27 Winnipeg Jets 6–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 20–35–5 45
March: 4–12–0 (Home: 3–3–0 ; Road: 1–9–0), 8 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 61 Mar 2 New York Rangers 4–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 21–35–5 47 62 Mar 3 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–7 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 21–36–5 47 63 Mar 5 Pittsburgh Penguins 0–6 Los Angeles Kings The Forum 21–37–5 47 64 Mar 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–5 St. Louis Blues St. Louis Arena 21–38–5 47 65 Mar 9 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–5 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden 22–38–5 49 66 Mar 10 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–11 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 22–39–5 49 67 Mar 13 Boston Bruins 7–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 22–40–5 49 68 Mar 16 New York Rangers 0–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 23–40–5 51 69 Mar 17 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Hartford Whalers Hartford Civic Center 23–41–5 51 70 Mar 19 Philadelphia Flyers 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 23–42–5 51 71 Mar 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 23–43–5 51 72 Mar 24 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–7 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 23–44–5 51 73 Mar 26 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 23–45–5 51 74 Mar 27 New Jersey Devils 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 24–45–5 53 75 Mar 30 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–6 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 24–46–5 53 76 Mar 31 Montreal Canadiens 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 24–47–5 53
April: 0–4–0 (Home: 0–2–0 ; Road: 0–2–0), 0 Points # Date Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 77 Apr 2 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 24–48–5 53 78 Apr 3 Detroit Red Wings 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 24–49–5 53 79 Apr 6 Washington Capitals 7–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 24–50–5 53 80 Apr 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–7 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 24–51–5 53
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Tie

Playoffs

The Penguins failed to qualify for the playoffs for the third consecutive year, and finished last in the Prince of Wales Conference with 53 points, the second-worst in the NHL.

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular Season^[8] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Mario Lemieux 73 43 57 100 –35 54 Warren Young 80 40 32 72 –20 174 Doug Shedden 80 35 32 67 –51 30 Mike Bullard 68 32 31 63 –43 75 Wayne Babych 65 20 34 54 –7 35 John Chabot^† 67 8 45 53 –37 12 Moe Mantha Jr. 71 11 40 51 –35 54 Doug Bodger 65 5 26 31 –24 67 Andy Brickley 45 7 15 22 –14 10 Randy Hillier 45 2 19 21 –12 56 Kevin McCarthy 64 9 10 19 –20 30 Gary Rissling 56 10 9 19 –6 209 Troy Loney 46 10 8 18 –11 59 Mitch Lamoureux 62 10 8 18 –9 53 Mark Taylor^‡ 47 7 10 17 –7 19 Dave Hannan 30 6 7 13 –8 43 Bruce Crowder 26 4 7 11 –9 23 Joe McDonnell 40 2 9 11 –19 20 Todd Charlesworth 67 1 8 9 –23 31 Rod Buskas 69 2 7 9 –21 191 Roger Belanger 44 3 5 8 –13 32 Bryan Maxwell 44 0 8 8 –23 57 Greg Fox 26 2 5 7 –6 26 Ron Flockhart^‡ 12 0 5 5 4 4 Arto Javanainen 14 4 1 5 1 2 Jim McGeough^† 14 0 4 4 –4 4 Pat Boutette^‡ 14 1 3 4 –5 24 Jim Hamilton 11 2 1 3 –6 0 Wally Weir^† 14 0 3 3 1 34 Bob Errey 16 0 2 2 –8 7 Rick Kehoe 6 0 2 2 0 0 Steve Gatzos 6 0 2 2 –6 2 Greg Hotham 11 0 2 2 –3 4 Petteri Lehto 6 0 0 0 –4 4 Bob Geale 1 0 0 0 –1 2 Marty McSorley 15 0 0 0 –3 15 Mike Rowe 6 0 0 0 –7 7 Tom O'Regan 1 0 0 0 –1 0 Total 276 457 733 — 1,469

Goaltenders

Regular Season^[9]

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO
Denis Herron	42	2193:00	10	22	3	170	4.65	1362	0.875	1
Roberto Romano	31	1629:00	9	17	2	120	4.42	974	0.877	1
Michel Dion	10	553:00	3	6	0	43	4.67	316	0.864	0
Brian Ford	8	457:00	2	6	0	48	6.30	292	0.836	0
Total		4832:00	24	51	5	381	4.73	2944	0.871	2

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

Awards and records

• Mario Lemieux established a new franchise rookie record for goals (43), assists (57) and points (100). He topped the previous highs held by Pierre Larouche (37 assists, 68 points) and Mike Bullard (36 goals).
• Rick Kehoe established a career franchise record for points (636). He had led the category since 1984.
• Mario Lemieux, Calder Memorial Trophy
• Mario Lemieux, NHL All-Rookie Team
• Warren Young, NHL All-Rookie Team

Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1984–85 season:

Trades

October 15, 1984	To Boston Bruins 1985 4th round pick	To Pittsburgh Penguins Randy Hillier
November 9, 1984	To Montreal Canadiens Ron Flockhart	To Pittsburgh Penguins John Chabot
November 16, 1984	To Hartford Whalers Pat Boutette	To Pittsburgh Penguins rights to Ville Siren
December 6, 1984	To Quebec Nordiques Tom Thornbury	To Pittsburgh Penguins Brian Ford
March 12, 1985	To Washington Capitals Mark Taylor	To Pittsburgh Penguins Jim McGeough

Additions and subtractions

Additions Player Former team Via Petteri Lehto TPS Turku (SM-liiga) free agency (1984-07) Wayne Babych St. Louis Blues Waiver Draft (1984-10-09) Bruce Crowder Boston Bruins Waiver Draft (1984-10-09) Joe McDonnell Edmonton Oilers free agency (1984-12-30) Wally Weir Hartford Whalers waivers (1985-03-01)

Subtractions Player New team Via Paul Gardner Washington Capitals free agency (1984-07-17) Darren Lowe WEV Wien (Austria) free agency Vincent Tremblay Buffalo Sabres free agency (1985-03-07)

Draft picks

See also: List of Pittsburgh Penguins draft picks

The 1984 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 9, 1984, in Montreal.^[10]

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	1	Mario Lemieux	Center	Canada	Laval Voisins (QMJHL)
1	9	Doug Bodger	Defense	Canada	Kamloops Junior Oilers (WHL)
1	16	Roger Belanger Jr.	Center	Canada	Kingston Canadians (OHL)
4	64	Mark Teevens	Right Wing	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
5	85	Arto Javanainen	Right Wing	Finland	Assat Pori (FNL)
7	127	Tom Ryan	Defense	United States	Newton North H.S. (Massachusetts)
9	169	John Del Col	Left Wing	Canada	Toronto Marlboros (OHL)
10	189	Steve Hurt	Right Wing	United States	Hill-Murray H.S. (Minn.)
11	210	Jim Steen	Center	United States	Moorhead H.S. (Minn.)
12	230	Mark Ziliotto	Left Wing	Canada	Streetsville Jr. B (OHA)

References

• Player stats on Hockey Database
• Game log on NHL Reference

Notes

1. "Mario Lemieux Retires". TSN. Retrieved September 21, 2007.
2. Christopher, Matt (December 1, 2002) [2002]. On the Ice With... Mario Lemieux. Little, Brown and Company. p. 3. ISBN 0-316-13799-5. Retrieved September 21, 2007.
3. Christopher, 23.
4. Christopher, 21.
5. Deacon, James (April 8, 1996). . Maclean's Magazine. Archived from the original on October 15, 2007. Retrieved September 19, 2007.
6. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 152. ISBN 9781894801225.
7. "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
8. "1984–1985 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
9. "1984–1985 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
10. "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". NHL.