NHL standings at the end of December 20, 1971
| Eastern Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | SOS | SRS | HOME | ROAD | LAST 10 | STRK | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 New York Rangers |
32 | 21 | 5 | 6 | 48 | 144 | 76 | -0.15 | 1.97 | 12-1-3 | 9-4-3 | 6-2-2 | Tied 1 | ||||||
 Boston Bruins |
30 | 21 | 6 | 3 | 45 | 124 | 70 | -0.13 | 1.67 | 12-3-2 | 9-3-1 | 7-1-2 | Tied 1 | ||||||
 Montreal Canadiens |
30 | 19 | 4 | 7 | 45 | 116 | 67 | -0.21 | 1.42 | 11-0-3 | 8-4-4 | 7-2-1 | Tied 1 | ||||||
 Toronto Maple Leafs |
32 | 15 | 9 | 8 | 38 | 96 | 85 | -0.14 | 0.20 | 8-5-4 | 7-4-4 | 7-3-0 | Won 5 | ||||||
 Detroit Red Wings |
32 | 10 | 16 | 6 | 26 | 86 | 106 | -0.04 | -0.66 | 7-5-1 | 3-11-5 | 4-4-2 | Lost 1 | ||||||
 Vancouver Canucks |
32 | 8 | 20 | 4 | 20 | 73 | 115 | 0.29 | -1.03 | 6-10-2 | 2-10-2 | 3-7-0 | Lost 4 | ||||||
 Buffalo Sabres |
34 | 7 | 21 | 6 | 20 | 86 | 131 | -0.05 | -1.38 | 5-8-2 | 2-13-4 | 3-6-1 | Won 1 | ||||||
| Western Division | |||||||||||||||||||
| GP | W | L | T | PTS | GF | GA | SOS | SRS | HOME | ROAD | LAST 10 | STRK | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Chicago Black Hawks |
33 | 23 | 7 | 3 | 49 | 105 | 55 | -0.19 | 1.32 | 14-0-2 | 9-7-1 | 7-2-1 | Won 6 | ||||||
 Minnesota North Stars |
32 | 19 | 9 | 4 | 42 | 89 | 60 | -0.09 | 0.81 | 10-4-1 | 9-5-3 | 4-5-1 | Tied 1 | ||||||
 California Golden Seals |
33 | 10 | 16 | 7 | 27 | 99 | 130 | 0.19 | -0.75 | 6-7-6 | 4-9-1 | 3-3-4 | Tied 2 | ||||||
 Philadelphia Flyers |
31 | 10 | 16 | 5 | 25 | 68 | 94 | 0.12 | -0.72 | 8-7-3 | 2-9-2 | 3-6-1 | Lost 1 | ||||||
 Pittsburgh Penguins |
33 | 10 | 18 | 5 | 25 | 84 | 99 | 0.12 | -0.34 | 6-6-3 | 4-12-2 | 2-5-3 | Tied 1 | ||||||
 St. Louis Blues |
33 | 9 | 19 | 5 | 23 | 86 | 109 | 0.14 | -0.56 | 6-7-3 | 3-12-2 | 2-7-1 | Lost 5 | ||||||
 Los Angeles Kings |
31 | 7 | 23 | 1 | 15 | 65 | 124 | 0.13 | -1.77 | 4-11-0 | 3-12-1 | 3-7-0 | Won 1 | ||||||