Most assists in an NHL season: Connor McDavid joins Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr as only players to hit 100

Bryan Murphy

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Most assists in an NHL season: Connor McDavid joins Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux, Bobby Orr as only players to hit 100 image

Anyone care for an apple? How about 100 of them?

Goals get a majority of the attention in the NHL. Everyone loves to watch the red light go off after sniping top shelf on a goaltender, or after dangling a defender out of their skates. However, coaches and players know that most goals don't happen without the playmaking of teammates, which brings up the importance of assists. 

A skater has not hit triple digits in the assists category for a single season in over 30 years, but that is no longer the case. Oilers superstar Connor McDavid secured assist No. 100 on the 2023-24 campaign to become the first player since 1990-91 to reach that threshold in the NHL. 

McDavid put himself further in the NHL history books with another stellar season, joining elite company in the 100-assists category. 

The crazy part? He may not be the only one to get 100 helpers this season. Lightning star Nikita Kucherov is at 99 assists with one game remaining in the regular season. 

MORE: How Auston Matthews can join NHL greats with 70 goals

McDavid may have hit 100 apples, but who has the most assists in a season? The Sporting News takes a look at that record. 

Who had 100 assists in NHL?

McDavid becomes the fourth player in NHL history to reach 100 assists in a season, joining the likes of Wayne Gretzky, Mario Lemieux and Bobby Orr. 

The Oilers captain's 100 helpers in the 2023-24 season marks the 14th time a player has hit triple digits in the assists department. While Lemieux and Orr each accomplished the feat once in their career, Gretzky pulled it off a jaw-dropping 11 times during his 20 years in the show. They don't call him the Great One for nothing. 

Most assists in a season

Gretzky owns the record for the most assists in a single season. In 1985-86, he dished out 163 helpers, a record that very likely will never be broken. 

The Great One also has the mark for the second-most assists ... and third ... and fourth ... and fifth. In fact, on the top-10 list for the most assists in a season, the legend owns nine of the 10 spots, with just Lemieux sitting in a tie for eighth. 

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Here is a look at all of the 100-assist seasons in the NHL. 

Rank Player Team Season Assists
No. 1 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1985-86 163
No. 2 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1984-85 135
No. 3 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1982-83 125
No. 4 Wayne Gretzky Los Angeles Kings 1990-91 122
No. 5 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1986-87 121
No. 6 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1981-82 120
No. 7 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1983-84 118
No. 8 Mario Lemieux Pittsburgh Penguins 1988-89 114
  Wayne Gretzky Los Angeles Kings 1988-89 114
No. 10 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1987-88 109
  Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1980-81 109
No. 12 Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 1989-90 102
  Bobby Orr Boston Bruins 1970-71 102
No. 14 Connor McDavid Edmonton Oilers 2023-24 100

Bryan Murphy

Bryan Murphy Photo

Bryan Murphy joined The Sporting News in 2022 as the NHL/Canada content producer. Previously he worked for NBC Sports on their national news desk reporting on breaking news for the NFL, MLB, NBA and NHL, in addition to covering the 2020 and 2022 Olympic Games. A graduate of Quinnipiac University, he spent time in college as a beat reporter covering the men’s ice hockey team.