2009–10 NHL season

The 2009–10 NHL season was the 92nd season of the National Hockey League (NHL) and the 100th season since the founding of the predecessor National Hockey Association (NHA). It ran from October 1, 2009, including four games in Europe on October 2 and 3—until April 11, 2010, with the 2010 Stanley Cup playoffs currently being played, all the way up to early June 2010. A mid-season break from February 15 to 28 occurred to allow participation of NHL players in the 2010 Winter Olympics in Vancouver. Because of the Winter Olympics break, there was no NHL All-Star Game for 2010.
Regular season.
Final standings.
Tiebreaking procedures.
Teams are ranked (ordered by how many games they won) at the end of the regular season. The team with the most points is ranked number one. If two or more teams are tied in points, the following method is used to rank the teams:
Statistical leaders.
Scoring leaders.
The following players led the league in points at the conclusion of the regular season.
"GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes"
Leading goaltenders.
The following goaltenders led the league in goals against average at the end of the regular season.
"GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/shootout losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average"
Playoffs.
Playoff seeds.
After the regular season, the standard of 16 teams qualified for the playoffs. The Washington Capitals won the Presidents' Trophy for having the best record in the league, at 121 points. Division champions maintain their relative ranking during the entire playoffs while the remaining teams get reseeded below them after each round.
Milestones.
First games.
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 2009–10, listed with their first team: