On December 17th, hockey history has seen numerous memorable moments, milestones, and significant achievements.

In 1935, five New York Rangers players, Frank Boucher, Bill Cook, Fred "Bun" Cook, Ivan Johnson, and Murray Murdock, all celebrated their 500th NHL game while hosting the Montreal Canadiens. The game ended in a 1-1 draw.

The Montreal Canadiens saw Bob Perreault become the eighth goalie in NHL history to record a shutout in his debut game in 1955, with a 5-0 victory against the Chicago Blackhawks. Perreault played six games in the NHL, all during the 1955-56 season.

December 17, 1957, marked one of the largest trades in NHL history at the time. The Detroit Red Wings sent four players to the Chicago Blackhawks, and four Blackhawks players went to Detroit. The Red Wings ultimately had a better season, finishing with 70 points compared to the Blackhawks' 55. Dennis Hull of the Detroit Red Wings scored his 300th career goal on December 17, 1977, in a 3-2 road win against the St. Louis Blues.

On Dec. 17, 1977, rookie defenseman Barry Beck of the Colorado Rockies scored a hat trick and added an assist in a 5-1 victory over the Minnesota North Stars. Also on this day, the Hartford Whalers defeated the Winnipeg Jets 2-0, earning their first NHL shutout away from home, with Mike Veisor in net.

Wayne Gretzky had a remarkable performance on December 17, 1983, with one goal and five assists in an 8-1 victory for the Edmonton Oilers over the Quebec Nordiques. Later, on December 17, 1986, Gretzky again dominated the Nordiques, scoring four goals, including a natural hat trick, in a 5-3 Oilers win. This was the 41st hat trick in Gretzky's NHL career.

Glenn Resch secured his 26th and final career shutout on December 17, 1983, making 42 saves in the New Jersey Devils' first road shutout in franchise history. In 1988, Bryan Murray became the 17th NHL coach to reach 300 career wins. Doug Wilson reached 700 career NHL points on December 17, 1989, with a goal and two assists in the first period of the Blackhawks' 6-5 win over the Oilers.

Ray Bourque became the third player in NHL history to record 1,100 assists on December 17, 1999, in a Bruins' 3-1 win against the Atlanta Thrashers. Byron Dafoe also earned his 100th career victory in the same game.

Erik Gustafsson became the third defenseman in Capitals history to score a regular season hat trick on December 17, 2022.