Maple Leafs legend Darryl Sittler reflects on 10-point game as 50th anniversary approaches

“My late wife Wendy had kept her tickets from that game, so I have those which is pretty special, and a program from that night,” he said.

Sittler’s 10-point performance came on February 7th, 1976 against the Boston Bruins, where he tallied six goals and four assists. Considering the amount of offensive talent the league has seen since then, it’s incredible how long the record has stood, especially for Sittler, who thought he would’ve been beat long ago.

“I guess when it first happened, I never realized the magnitude or how long it would last,” Sittler said. “I often felt in the late 70s, early 80s when Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux were having their careers, getting 200 points a year, I thought they were the guys to break it. They both had eight a few times.”

In addition to Gretzky and Lemieux, who both had two eight-point games, nine players have hit that marker, but that’s the closest any have been to Sittler’s double-digit total. Now with a major anniversary of that game coming up, Sittler shared what it means to be still be recognized for the achievement, and teased some of the upcoming celebrations.

“Here we are, 50 years coming up. I was proud to do it in a Leafs uniform against an original six team in the Boston Bruins,” he said. “It’s nice, a lot of people obviously weren’t around 50 years ago, but it’s nice to bring it to the limelight. There’s been a lot of nice things happen between now and then, and to continue to celebrate and be recognized is important. The Leafs are doing a nice gesture in brinfing the guys who played with me in that game in in late January for a game. It’ll be nice to catch up with all of them.”

The Maple Leafs are set to honour Sittler and the 50th anniversary of his record-setting game on January 27th, when Toronto faces the Buffalo Sabres for their final home game before February’s Olympic break.