On a roll: streaks make hockey memorable, and we rank some of the best��and worst��in the sport's history

YOU WIN SOME, AND THEN YOU some more. Or you lose a whole lot, then flop again and again. That's the nature of sports, particularly in hockey, where streaks are a memorable--or forgettable--feature of the game. Hockey Digest decided to take a look at the NHL's best strings and most brutal slides, its most famous and most infamous streaks. Here are 18:

BEST INDIVIDUAL STREAKS

1. Gretzky wins eight consecutive Hart trophies

Certainly the Most Valuable Player award can be a subjective honor. It will be debated forever just what makes someone an MVP--is it best player overall, or most important to his team, or what?

With Gretzky, there was no doubt From 1979-80, his first year in the league as a callow teen, until 1988, when Mario Lemieux won it, Gretzky owned the Hart. His eight straight--he would win nine overall--were five more than anyone else ever strung together.

Gretzky also collected 10 Art Ross trophies as leading points scorer in the league, and five Lady Byngs.

2. Grefzky has 13 consecutive 100-point or more seasons

The greatness of The Great One was comprised of a melding of physical and mental skills, an uncanny understanding of every situation on the ice, and amazing consistency. Nothing speaks louder to that consistency than his ability to rock up big numbers year after year after year

For 13 seasons, Gretzky scored at least 121 points. The 121 was the lowest total, and it came in the final season of the streak, when No. 99 missed six games.

Otherwise, his numbers ranged from 137 in his first NHL season to the phenomenal 212 in 1981-82 that still stands as the one-season record and probably will stand forever.

Granted the hockey in that era was far different from anything we've seen in years or likely will see again. But still, Gretzky was more dominant in his sport than any other athlete, and his string of shattering the century mark is one of the greatest statistical achievements in all sports.

3. Gretzky has point in 51 successive games

Getting tired of No. 99 yet? Not us. Opponents must have been very weary of the Oilers' star in 1983-84 when he put together an incredible streak of 51 straight games with at least one point

The string began with the opener against Toronto and stretched through October, November, December and nearly all of January.

By the time Gretzky's tear ended at 51 contests, he's scored 61 goals and 92 assists. It was almost unbelievable when Markus Mattson of Los Angeles ended the streak at Edmonton on Jan. 28, 1984. The Kings won 4-2, but at the end of the game, the Edmonton fans gave a rousing ovation to Gretzky for his amazing work.

He had two eight-pointers, a seven-point night, a six-pointer, and eight five-point games.

4. Boucher gets five consecutive shutouts

This might be the most surprising record streak in league history, because Boucher is not an All-Star. In fact, he's barely been a starter for most of his five seasons and very accurately could be categorized as a journeyman.

But from Dec. 27, 2003 until Jan. 11, 2004, Boucher was simply unbeatable. He went 332 minutes and 1 second without allowing a goal, breaking the mark of Montreal's Bill Durnan in 1949. And Durnan was a Hall of Famer.

And when he was beaten, he was not at fault. He had 146 consecutive saves when Randy Robitaille's shot deflected off Phoenix defenseman David Tanabe and into the net in a 1-1 tie with Atlanta.

Boucher began his streak in a 3-1 loss to Nashville on opening night for the Coyotes' new arena in Glendale, Ariz. He then made 21 saves in a 4-0 victory over Los Angeles; stopped 35 shots on his 27th birthday in a 6-0 win at Dallas; made 26 saves in beating Carolina 3-0; and had 27 stops in a 3-0 win at Washington.

Then he beat Minnesota 2-0 with 21 saves to set the mark at 325:45.

5. Orr wins eight Norris trophies

Other players have had long spans of winning awards, including Gretzky, of course, as noted above. But few, if any, were as unequaled in what they did or had the impact of Orr during his 1968-75 run of Norrises.

Orr not only was the game's best defenseman, he was its most dynamic player. He changed the way blueliners performed. He made the term offensive defenseman part of the lexicon. He controlled the puck, the pace and, usually, the outcome with more impact that almost anyone in hockey. Ever.

6. Lemieux goes 46 games with a point

This streak almost gets buried by Gretzky's 51-gamer, which is ludicrous because Lemieux came within five nights of equaling Gretzky's performance. In 1989-90, Super Mario had 39 goals and 103 points in his streak, which began on Halloween and extended through Feb. 11.

During his skein, Lemieux had far fewer really big nights, and 16 times he had just one point. But he had a point. And he did it with a far less accomplished group than Gretzky did.

BEST TEAM STREAKS

1. Montreal wins five titles in a row

The Canadiens won five consecutive Stanley Cups (1956-60), and did so in the six-team NHL where there never was an easy game and even the worst club was a challenge. While Montreal's subsequent string of four titles (1976-79) was very impressive--as was the Islanders' four championships (1980-83)--both of those were achieved in a more watered-down league.

Not so for Les Habs of the '50s. They had to beat opponents led by the likes of Gordie Howe, Ted Lindsay and Alex Delvecchio (Detroit); Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita and Glenn Hall (Chicago); Frank Mahovlich, Tim Horton and Johnny Bower (Toronto); Fern Flaman and Don McKenney (Boston); and Andy Bathgate (New York).

But with a roster filled with future Hall of Famers--Maurice Richard, Jean Beliveau, Jacques Plante, Doug Harvey, Bert Olmstead, Bernie Geoffrion, Henri Richard, Dickie Moore--the Canadiens made history. They won 10 straight series, with none of the finals going seven games and only one lasting six.

Oh, yeah, the Canadiens also played in every Cup final from 1951-60.

2. Philadelphia goes 35 games without a loss.

Although the Flyers took championships in 1974 and '75, their best and deepest roster might have been on the 1979-80 club. From Oct. 14 until Jan. 6, the Flyers went an unfathomable 25-0-10. Yes, for nearly half the season, Philadelphia did not lose a game.

And no, that is not a home unbeaten streak. That is everywhere on the way to a 48-12-20 record.

Amazingly, those Flyers did not win the Stanley Cup, losing to the Islanders in a six-game final.

3. Penguins win 17 in a row.

For one month, from Match 9 through April 10, 1993, the Penguins skated off the ice winners. Seventeen times they took the ice and all 17 outcomes were positive.

They weren't beating slouches, either. Of the 17 contests, 10 were against playoff teams. They won close ones (five one-goal decisions) and routs, scoring nine goals once and 10 goals twice in the streak. They outscored the opposition 96-48. Yes, double.

The string ended in the season finale, a 6-6 tie with the Devils. And, like the 1980 Flyers, the streaking Pens didn't win-the Cup.

4. Canadiens win 10 consecutive OT games in playoffs.

Without some overtime magic, the Canadiens wouldn't have come close to winning their most recent championship. Montreal, which finished sixth in the overall standings, captured 10 consecutive OT games in the 1993 playoffs.

They took two from Quebec in the opening round; three against Buffalo in the quarterfinals; two vs. the Islanders in the semis; and three more against the Kings in the Cup finals. After losing the series opener to Los Angeles, Montreal won three consecutive overtime encounters.

5. St. Louis making playoffs 25 consecutive seasons.

It isn't the longest string--Boston had 29 and Chicago 28--but these are the Blues, a franchise not exactly overflowing with Hall of Fame talent.

Imagine being able to count on your club qualifying for the postseason through one-quarter century. The Blues haven't won the Stanley Cup or even made the finals since 1970, but from 1980 through this season, the Blues have given St. Louis fans a taste of the best and most demanding championship tournament around.

6. Oilers have four 40-goal scorers (at least) in four consecutive seasons.

There are so many ways to pay tribute to the offensive juggernaut in Edmonton. The five Stanley Cups in seven playoffs is the most obvious.

But here's one that really pinpoints how potent the Oilers were: from 1982-86, a span of four seasons, they had four players score at least 40 goals.

Wayne Gretzky, naturally, did it each of those seasons, as did Jari Kurri and Glenn Anderson. In 1982-83, Mark Messier also managed the feat. Defenseman Paul Coffey did it in 1983-84 and 1985-86, while Mike Krushelnyski joined the club in 1984-85.

WORST TEAM STREAKS

1. Capitals have two stinkers in one season.

The 1974-75 Washington Capitals were among the worst teams in NHL history. They entered the league with a roster of has-beens, never-will-bes and who-wants-to-remembers. They won eight games, lost 67, tied five, allowed 446 goals and scored 181.

During that horrendous season, the Capitals set two ignominious marks: consecutive losses with 17, and longest road losing streak, 37. The latter record was broken 18 years later by Ottawa.

2. Jets never get off ground.

One year after leaving the WHA for the NHL the Winnipeg Jets went 30 games without a win (0-23-7). The 1980-81 Jets would finish 9-57-14, earning them the top pick in the draft, which they converted into Dale Hawerchuk. The next season, Winnipeg finished .500 and made the playoffs.

During that 30-game funk, which ended with a 5-4 win against the Colorado Rockies, the Jets had a 10-game losing streak and a five-gamer. They were outscored 162-89.

3. Blackhawks blanked for three weeks.

We're going way back here, but it's worth it--except to any Blackhawks fan who actually can remember February 1929. During that month, the Hawks were shut out in eight consecutive games. They actually lost just six of them, getting two 0-0 ties.

That season, Chicago was blanked a remarkable 20 times in 44 games. Vic Ripley led the team with 11 goals and 13 points.

4. Barons streak into oblivion.

Among the blackest marks in NHL expansion annals was the folding of the Cleveland Barons/California Seals after the 1977-78 campaign. In the final six seasons of its existence, the franchise finished dead last. At no time in those years did the Seals/Barons win more than 27 games or come closer than 17 points of climbing out of the cellar.

5. Rangers don't make playoffs for seven successive seasons.

They outspend everyone. They bring in every superstar they can find, from the under-motivated (Jaromir Jagr) to the washed up (Eric Lindros) to the aged (Mark Messier for a second turn). They hire the most successful coach-GM of the 1980s, Glen Sather.

And then the Rangers go from 1997-98 to the present without making the playoffs. Very ugly.

6. Blackhawks lose 16 in a row in postseason.

Sure, you can argue that at least Chicago got into the playoffs. Once there, however, from 1975 through 1980, the Hawks fell 16 straight times. The streak began with a 6-2 loss to Buffalo. The Hawks were swept by Montreal in '76; lost two straight in a preliminary round to the Islanders in '77; four in a row to Boston in '78; and another four to the Islanders in '79. In 1980, Chicago beat St. Louis to open the postseason.

The current Rangers probably would take such a streak.

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