The Vancouver Canucks won the 2008-09 NHL Northwest division race on 100 points, 2 points ahead of the Calgary Flames. It came down to the final days: the Vancouver Canucks did not lead for good until April 9, 2009.
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Northwest standings, 2008-09
Team
W
L
OT
PTS
L10
Streak
Vancouver Canucks (VAN)
45
27
10
100
6-3-1
W3
Calgary Flames (CGY)
46
30
6
98
4-6-0
W1
Minnesota Wild (MIN)
40
33
9
89
6-3-1
W3
Edmonton Oilers (EDM)
38
35
9
85
3-7-0
L1
Colorado Avalanche (COL)
32
45
5
69
1-6-3
L1
Final standings.
Turning points
The lead changed hands 18 times.
The Vancouver Canucks trailed by as many as 13 points on January 30, 2009.
The Vancouver Canucks took first place for good on April 9, 2009.
The Calgary Flames won 6 games in a row from October 21, 2008 to November 1, 2008, the longest run of the race.
The Calgary Flames led by 11 points as late as February 14, 2009.
The Vancouver Canucks led by as many as 5 points on November 22, 2008.
The Vancouver Canucks went 11-5-2 from March 6, 2009 to April 9, 2009, turning a deficit of 10 points into a lead of 2 points.
The top two ended the day within two points of each other on 77 of the 163 days played.
The Vancouver Canucks spent 53 of the season's 191 charted days in first place.