Number retired Mar. 11, 2000
Referred to by many as the "heart and soul" of the Washington Capitals, Dale Hunter was well respected for his dedication to the game. His 19 season in the NHL, 1,407 regular-season games and 186 playoff games serve as testimony to that dedication. At the time of his retirement following the 1998-99 season, only seven players in NHL history had appeared in more total games.
Hunter left the game having firmly etched his name in the Capitals' record book. In regular-season play he finished his career ranked first in penalty minutes (2,003), second in games played (872), tied for second in power-play goals (72), third in assists (375), third in points (556), tied for fifth in game-winning goals (29) and tied for eighth in goals (181). He retired leading the franchise in virtually every category: games played (100), goals (25), assists (47), points (72), power-play goals (11) and penalty minutes (372).
Perhaps Hunter summed up his contributions best at his retirement ceremony March 11, 2000, when he said, "I'm not a Wayne Gretzky. I just tried to give my all every night. That work ethic is what the Caps have always been about."
| SEASON | TEAM | GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG | S | S% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NHL TOTALS | 1,407 | 323 | 697 | 1,020 | 98 | 3,565 | 92 | 10 | 41 | 2,045 | 15.8 | |
| 1987-1988 | CAPITALS | 79 | 22 | 37 | 59 | 7 | 240 | 11 | 0 | 1 | 126 | 17.5 |
| 1988-1989 | CAPITALS | 80 | 20 | 37 | 57 | -3 | 219 | 9 | 0 | 3 | 138 | 14.5 |
| 1989-1990 | CAPITALS | 80 | 23 | 39 | 62 | 17 | 233 | 9 | 1 | 6 | 123 | 18.7 |
| 1990-1991 | CAPITALS | 76 | 16 | 30 | 46 | -22 | 234 | 9 | 0 | 2 | 106 | 15.1 |
| 1991-1992 | CAPITALS | 80 | 28 | 50 | 78 | -2 | 205 | 13 | 0 | 4 | 110 | 25.4 |
| 1992-1993 | CAPITALS | 84 | 20 | 59 | 79 | 3 | 198 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 120 | 16.7 |
| 1993-1994 | CAPITALS | 52 | 9 | 29 | 38 | -4 | 131 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 61 | 14.8 |
| 1994-1995 | CAPITALS | 45 | 8 | 15 | 23 | -4 | 101 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 73 | 11.0 |
| 1995-1996 | CAPITALS | 82 | 13 | 24 | 37 | 5 | 112 | 4 | 0 | 3 | 128 | 10.2 |
| 1996-1997 | CAPITALS | 82 | 14 | 32 | 46 | -2 | 125 | 3 | 0 | 5 | 110 | 12.7 |
| 1997-1998 | CAPITALS | 82 | 8 | 18 | 26 | 1 | 103 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 82 | 9.8 |
| 1998-1999 | CAPITALS | 50 | 0 | 5 | 5 | -7 | 102 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 | 0.0 |
| SEASON | TEAM | GP | G | A | P | +/- | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG | S | S% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| NHL TOTALS | 186 | 42 | 76 | 118 | -1 | 729 | 13 | 2 | 7 | 152 | ||
| 1987-1988 | CAPITALS | 14 | 7 | 5 | 12 | 2 | 98 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 29.2 |
| 1988-1989 | CAPITALS | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 3 | 29 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| 1989-1990 | CAPITALS | 15 | 4 | 8 | 12 | -1 | 61 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 30.8 |
| 1990-1991 | CAPITALS | 11 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 2 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 6.2 |
| 1991-1992 | CAPITALS | 7 | 1 | 4 | 5 | -1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 6.2 |
| 1992-1993 | CAPITALS | 6 | 7 | 1 | 8 | -7 | 35 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 18 | 38.9 |
| 1993-1994 | CAPITALS | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | -2 | 14 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 | 0.0 |
| 1994-1995 | CAPITALS | 7 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 24 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 30.8 |
| 1995-1996 | CAPITALS | 6 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 4 | 24 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 7.1 |
| 1997-1998 | CAPITALS | 21 | 0 | 4 | 4 | -1 | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 10.0 |
