Division 5th Adams Goals for 261 General Manager Larry Pleau | 1982–83 record 19–54–7 Goals against 403 | |
Coach Larry Kish (12–32–5)
John Cunniff (3–9–1)
Larry Pleau (4–13–1) | ||
October
The Whalers opened the 1982–83 season on the road against the Montreal Canadiens at the Montreal Forum on October 6. Hartford took a 1-0 lead in the game after Pierre Larouche scored the Whalers first goal of the season, however, the Canadiens came back and won the game 2-1.
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Three nights later, Hartford had their home opener, played against the Boston Bruins in front of 12,430 fans at the Civic Center. The Whalers took an early 3-0 lead, however, the Bruins staged a comeback, and won the game 5-4. The next night, the Whalers earned their first point of the season, a 4-4 tie against the Buffalo Sabres.
After the Whalers winless streak was extended to four games after a tie against the Edmonton Oilers, the team finally won their first game of the season on October 16 against the Vancouver Canucks 6-5. Pierre Larouche led the way for the Whalers, as he scored a hat trick in the victory.
Hartford would struggle for the rest of the month, earning only one more victory, as the club posted a 2-6-2 record in October, earning six points, and was in last place in the Adams Division, five points behind the Buffalo Sabres for the fourth and final playoff position.
November
The Whalers would get off to a slow start in November, losing three of their first four games, before winning consecutive games for the first time all season, defeating the Quebec Nordiques 7-5 and the St. Louis Blues 5-2.
Following the two game winning streak, the team would end the month of November on a six-game winless skid (0-5-1), which included a humiliating 8-0 loss to the Boston Bruins on November 27.
The Whalers ended the month with a 3-8-1 record in 12 games, and a 5-14-3 record on the season, remaining in last place in the Adams Division, 13 points behind the Quebec Nordiques for fourth place.
December
After dropping their first two games of the month, and extending their overall winless streak to eight games (0-7-1), the Whalers finally earned a victory, defeating the New York Rangers 5-2 at the Civic Center. Two nights later, the Whalers were blown out against the Montreal Canadiens, losing 11-2.
After their blowout loss to Montreal, the Whalers rebounded in their next game, defeating the Canadiens by a 7-4 score, which started a five-game unbeaten streak (4-0-1). On December 17, the Whalers Mike Veisor stopped all 33 shots he faced against the Winnipeg Jets in a 2-0 Hartford win.
The shutout win against the Jets was the Whalers last victory of the month, as the team lost their next five games, before earning a tie against the Washington Capitals in their final game of December.
The Whalers had a 5-8-2 record in 15 games in December, bringing their overall season record to 10-22-5, earning 25 points, and in the cellar of the Adams Division, as Hartford was 15 points behind the fourth place Quebec Nordiques.
January
The Whalers losing ways continued into January, as the club lost their first six games of the month, extending their winless streak to 12 games (0-11-1). On January 13, the Whalers won their first game in nearly a month, as they defeated the Montreal Canadiens 4-2 at the Civic Center. Two nights later, the club extended their winning streak to two, as Hartford beat the New Jersey Devils 2-1, with goaltender Greg Millen making 29 saves for the win.
Following a 4-2 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks on January 23, the Whalers fired head coach Larry Kish, and replaced him with Larry Pleau. Kish led the Whalers to a 12-32-5 record in 49 games.
Under Pleau, the Whalers won their first game, 5-2 against the Quebec Nordiques, ending their four-game losing streak, followed by a 2-2 tie against the Winnipeg Jets to finish the month of January.
The Whalers finished the month with a 3-10-1 record in 14 games, and an overall record of 13-32-6, getting 32 points, and were now 22 points behind the fourth place Quebec Nordiques for the last playoff spot in the Adams Division.
February
Hartford started off February on a sour note, as they lost 12-3 against the Quebec Nordiques, setting a club record for goals allowed in a game. That loss was the first in a four-game losing streak. The Whalers snapped their losing streak with a 4-2 win over the defending Stanley Cup champions, the New York Islanders on the road. Hartford's Mark Johnson was the star of the game, as he recorded a hat trick.
The Whalers won their next game, a 5-3 decision over the Toronto Maple Leafs to extend their winning streak to two. After a loss against the Los Angeles Kings by a 5-2 score, Hartford would defeat the Montreal Canadiens 4-1, posting a 3-1-0 record in their past four games.
The team then lost their final five games of the month, including a loss by an 11-3 score to the New York Rangers on February 23.
Hartford had another losing month, going 3-10-0 in 13 games, falling to 16-42-6 for the season, earning 38 points, and 28 points behind the Quebec Nordiques for the fourth and final playoff position in the Adams Division.
March/April
After dropping their first three games of March, the Whalers replaced head coach Larry Pleau with John Cunniff. Pleau coached the Whalers to a 4-13-1 record in 18 games.
In his first game as the Whalers head coach, Cunniff lost to the Edmonton Oilers 9-4, a game in which Wayne Gretzky scored a hat trick and an assist for four points. In his next game against the New Jersey Devils, the Whalers shutout the Devils by a 3-0 score, as Greg Millen made 23 saves, earning his first win as a head coach.
Wins would be scarce for Hartford for the rest of the season, as the team went 2-8-1 in their remaining 11 games, finishing the season with a 19-54-7 record, earning a franchise season low 45 points. The Whalers finished in last place in the Adams Division, 35 points the Quebec Nordiques for the fourth and final playoff position.
Final standings
Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
Draft picks
Hartford's draft picks from the 1982 NHL Entry Draft which was held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec, on June 9, 1982.