The St. Louis Blues won the 1986-87 NHL Norris division race on 79 points, 1 point ahead of the Detroit Red Wings. It came down to the final days: the St. Louis Blues did not lead for good until April 5, 1987.
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Norris standings, 1986-87
Team
W
L
T
PTS
L10
Streak
St. Louis Blues (STL)
32
33
15
79
5-4-1
W3
Detroit Red Wings (DET)
34
36
10
78
3-6-1
L3
Chicago Blackhawks (CHI)
29
37
14
72
2-5-3
W1
Minnesota North Stars (MNS)
30
40
10
70
1-7-2
L1
Toronto Maple Leafs (TOR)
32
42
6
70
4-6-0
L1
Final standings.
Turning points
The lead changed hands 11 times.
The St. Louis Blues trailed by as many as 9 points on January 23, 1987.
The St. Louis Blues took first place for good on April 5, 1987.
The Minnesota North Stars won 6 games in a row from November 22, 1986 to December 4, 1986, the longest run of the race.
The Detroit Red Wings led by 8 points as late as March 22, 1987.
The St. Louis Blues went 8-6-1 from November 8, 1986 to December 9, 1986, turning a deficit of 6 points into a lead of 4 points.
The top two ended the day within two points of each other on 89 of the 145 days played.
Five teams held first place.
The St. Louis Blues spent 16 of the season's 179 charted days in first place.