Which player has the most career penalty minutes in NHL history?

Tiger Williams has the most career penalty minutes in NHL history. The Canadian forward accumulated 3,971 penalty minutes during his NHL regular-season career from 1974 to 1988.

David “Tiger” Williams played for the Toronto Maple Leafs, Vancouver Canucks, Detroit Red Wings, Los Angeles Kings, and Hartford Whalers. He was a productive scorer at times, but became especially famous as an enforcer, a player known for protecting teammates and responding to physical play. His aggressive style produced unusually high penalty totals.

A common source of confusion is whether a statistic includes only regular-season games or also playoff games. Williams remains the leader under the regular-season measure, and his total rises to 4,426 minutes when playoff penalties are included. Those totals are separate from single-season or franchise records.

Williams led the NHL in penalty minutes several times, including 358 in 1987–88, his highest single-season total. His record reflects an era when fighting and intimidation were more common parts of professional hockey than they are today.