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A lot of NHL fans thought that Wayne Gretzky's 894 career-goal record would stand the test of time. All of that remained true until Alex Ovechkin shattered it during his 20th season in 2025. Now, a lot of records seem to be attainable. However, Toronto Maple Leafs' Auston Matthews and Edmonton Oilers' Connor McDavid think that a certain feat by Darryl Sittler would ever be topped.
NHL's single-game scoring record
On February 6, 1976, the Toronto Maple Leafs faced off against the Boston Bruins. Sittler caught fire during that game and dished out six goals and four assists. Those 10 points by the eventual NHL Hall of Fame forward still remain untouched for 50 years. The only people who came close since then were Tom Bladon, Bryan Trottier, Peter Stastny, Anton Stastny, Paul Coffey, Bernie Nicholls, and Sam Gagner. Mario Lemieux and Wayne Gretzky also came close twice but just could not tie the record. All of the names mentioned above? Well, they only ever got to eight goals.
So, it was a no-brainer for McDavid and Matthews to say that no one would ever touch the Maple Leafs legend's record, via Mike Zeisberger of NHL.com.
"I think at a certain point and the game is a blowout, then there's an inevitable let-up that happens from players, to coaching staff to everything. Also, the quality of player today, it's a tough game; tough to get one or two points a night, let alone 10. So, I would say, almost impossible," the Oilers superstar said.
It has also been nearly 14 years since someone had a realistic shot to reach Sittler's single-game scoring feat. In 2012, Gagner popped off for the Oilers as he dished out four assists while notching four goals. Since then, he has been the only person in the 21st century to score eight points.
Matthews knows that the current landscape of the NHL would not allow for the feat to be broken at all. The current Maple Leafs star may think that everyone in the league is talented but no one would surpass that scoring record.
"I think that might be one that lasts for a pretty, pretty long time. It's kind of hard to wrap your head around that, to be honest. I mean, 10 points, right? And six goals? It's like two hat tricks. So, it's really hard to wrap your head around just how incredible that is. I don't think that's getting touched anytime soon," Matthews said.
To this day, the Oilers and Leafs star remain far from reaching this 50-year-old accomplishment. McDavid has only ever six points at most while Matthews settled for five points twice. Will someone else step up and aspire to have this record under their belt or is it going to take more than a century to break?
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