Which NHL player scored the league’s first goal in the 1917–18 season?

Dave Ritchie scored the NHL’s first goal in the league’s inaugural 1917–18 season.

Ritchie scored for the Montreal Wanderers against the Toronto Arenas on December 19, 1917, at Montreal Arena. The Wanderers won that game 10–9, and Ritchie finished with two goals.

The NHL was formed in November 1917 after a dispute among owners in the National Hockey Association. Its first games were played in December, with four teams beginning the new league: Montreal Canadiens, Montreal Wanderers, Ottawa Senators, and Toronto Arenas.

Ritchie is often overshadowed by Joe Malone, who scored five goals in that same opening night and became the season’s leading scorer. Malone’s performance is a separate record; Ritchie’s distinction is scoring the first goal in NHL history.