Most consecutive losses in NHL: What are the longest losing streaks in history?

In the NHL, losing can arrive quietly, then grow impossible to escape. Certain seasons spiraled beyond bad luck, turning nightly defeats into historic stretches that reshaped franchises and lingered long after the final buzzer.

Some extended skids weren’t always the result of a single flaw. Injuries, thin rosters, expansion growing pains and organizational missteps often converged, creating moments where losses became part of the routine.

The league’s longest losing streaks now live as cautionary tales, remembered not just for their length but for what followed. Within those numbers lie turning points, rebuilds, and chapters that helped define NHL history.

Which teams have the longest losing streaks in NHL history?

The record books point to two franchises tied at the top for futility. Both the 1974–75 Washington Capitals and the 1992–93 San Jose Sharks endured 17 straight losses, marking the longest losing streaks in NHL regular-season history.

Drew Stafford #21 of the Buffalo Sabres in 2014 (Source: Sean Rudyk/Getty Images)

Those stretches came during formative years for each club, when roster instability and performance struggles compounded night after night. For the Capitals, the skid unfolded as a brutal winter stretch that defined an otherwise difficult inaugural era.

In San Jose, expansion-era growing pains were on full display, with a young Sharks roster unable to find consistency despite flashes of effort. These lengthy droughts now stand as stark reminders of the challenges new or rebuilding teams face in a league where parity can be unforgiving.

More recently, the Buffalo Sabres experienced a 14-game run without a win in the 2014–15 season. Even as game designs, skill levels and structures have changed, the persistence of prolonged losing streaks shows how difficult it can be to halt a downward spiral once it starts.