Most goals in one NHL playoff game: Where Leon Draisaitl, Joe Pavelski rank in history after four-goal games

Bryan Murphy

Most goals in one NHL playoff game: Where Leon Draisaitl, Joe Pavelski rank in history after four-goal games image

For the second consecutive night, the NHL had a player score all four goals in a losing playoff effort. 

One night after Stars forward Joe Pavelski potted four goals for Dallas, Oilers star Leon Draisaitl did the same on Wednesday. The Edmonton star scored all four tallies for his club in Game 1 against Vegas. 

It marked just the fourth time in NHL history that a player scored all four goals in a playoff loss, joining Pavelski, Ray Ferraro and Denis Savard. It also was the first time there were two, four-goal performances on back-to-back nights in the postseason since 1988 when John Tucker and Tony Hrkac accomplished the feat. 

Draisaitl's four goals weren't good enough to get a Game 1 win, as the Golden Knights defeated the Oilers 6-4 to grab a 1-0 series lead. 

Pavelski put on a show in Game 1 against the Kraken, potting all four goals in Dallas' 5-4 overtime loss to Seattle.

The 38-year-old Pavelski became the oldest player to score four goals in a playoff game. This coming after he missed the last five games in the Stars' first-round series after he was injured on a hit by Wild defenseman Matt Dumba

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The veteran winger was the first player to score four goals in a playoff contest since his former Stars teammate Denis Gurianov lit the lamp four times in a 2020 playoff game against the Flames. 

The four-goal outings by Pavelski and Draisaitl put them in playoff history, but were they the most goals scored in a single playoff game by a player?

The Sporting News has you covered on where Pavelski and Draisaitl rank on the all-time list. 

MORE: Finalists for the 2023 NHL Awards, including the Hart, Norris

Most goals in one NHL playoff game by a player

Pavelski's four-goal performance was the 40th time in NHL playoff history that a player scored at least four goals. Draisaitl's was the 41st. 

While four goals is impressive, both were one shy of tying the all-time mark. The record for most goals in a single postseason game is five, which has been achieved five times. 

Newsy Lalonde, Maurice Richard, Darryl Sittler, Reggie Leach and Mario Lemieux are the five players who have scored five goals in a single playoff game. 

Year Round Player Team Goals
1919 NHL Final Newsy Lalonde Montreal Canadiens 5
1944 Semifinals Maurice Richard Montreal Canadiens 5
1976 Quarterfinals Darryl Sittler Toronto Maple Leafs 5
1976 Semifinals Reggie Leach Philadelphia Flyers 5
1989 Division Finals Mario Lemieux Pittsburgh Penguins 5
1919 Stanley Cup Final Newsy Lalonde Montreal Canadiens 4
1919 Stanley Cup Final Frank Foyston Seattle Metropolitans 4
1922 Stanley Cup Final Babe Dye Toronto St. Patricks 4
1945 Semifinals Maurice Richard Montreal Canadiens 4
1945 Semifinals Carl Liscombe Toronto Maple Leafs 4
1947 Semifinals Billy Reay Montreal Canadiens 4
1948 Semifinals Ted Kennedy Toronto Maple Leafs 4
1955 Stanley Cup Final Ted Lindsay Detroit Red Wings 4
1957 Stanley Cup Final Maurice Richard Montreal Canadiens 4
1969 Quarterfinals Phil Esposito Boston Bruins 4
1977 Quarterfinals Lanny McDonald Toronto Maple Leafs 4
1980 Semifinals Bill Barber Philadelphia Flyers 4
1983 Division Semifinals Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 4
1983 Division Finals Mark Messier Edmonton Oilers 4
1983 Division Finals Wayne Gretzky Edmonton Oilers 4
1983 Conference Finals Glenn Anderson Edmonton Oilers 4
1983 Conference Finals Mike Bossy New York Islanders 4
1985 Division Semifinals Tim Kerr Philadelphia Flyers 4
1985 Conference Finals Jari Kurri Edmonton Oilers 4
1986 Division Semifinals Denis Savard Chicago Blackhawks 4
1987 Division Semifinals Jari Kurri Edmonton Oilers 4
1988 Division Semifinals John Tucker Buffalo Sabres 4
1988 Division Semifinals Tony Hrkac St. Louis Blues 4
1988 Division Finals Mark Johnson New Jersey Devils 4
1992 Division Semifinals Dino Ciccarelli Washington Capitals 4
1992 Conference Finals Kevin Stevens Pittsburgh Penguins 4
1993 Division Semifinals Ray Ferraro New York Islanders 4
1994 Conference Quarterfinals Tony Amonte Chicago Blackhawks 4
1995 Conference Quarterfinals Theo Fleury Calgary Flames 4
2006 Conference Semifinals Joffrey Lupul Anaheim Ducks 4
2010 Conference Semifinals Johan Franzen Detroit Red Wings 4
2017 Second Round Jean-Gabriel Pageau Ottawa Senators 4
2018 First Round Jake Guentzel Pittsburgh Penguins 4
2020 First Round Denis Gurianov Dallas Stars 4
2023 Second Round Joe Pavelski Dallas Stars 4
2023 Second Round Leon Draisaitl Edmonton Oilers 4

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.