Plus/minus compares goals for and goals against while the player is on the ice. Higher means the player's team outscored opponents more with him on the ice. Below are the top 619 NHL players ranked by Regular Season Plus Minus for the 1985-86 regular season. For all skaters and goalies across the league, with full stats and sortable rankings, visit the Players page.
| # | Player | Team | +/- |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | M. HoweMark Howe 30YD | 87 | |
| 2 | 86 | ||
| 3 | 71 | ||
| 4 | 61 | ||
| 5 | 46 | ||
| 6 | J. KurriJari Kurri 25YRW | 45 | |
| 7 | D. HunterDave Hunter 27YLW | 39 | |
| 8 | 38 | ||
| 9 | 37 | ||
| 10 | 36 | ||
| 11 | 35 | ||
| 12 | 34 | ||
| 13 | 32 | ||
| 14 | 31 | ||
| 15 | M. BossyMike Bossy 28YRW | 30 | |
| 16 | 30 | ||
| 17 | 30 | ||
| 18 | R. SutterRich Sutter 21YRW | 29 | |
| 19 | 28 | ||
| 20 | 28 | ||
| 21 | 27 | ||
| 22 | 27 | ||
| 23 | 27 | ||
| 24 | 27 | ||
| 25 | 27 | ||
| 26 | S. BozekSteve Bozek 24YLW | 26 | |
| 27 | J. OttoJoel Otto 23YC | 25 | |
| 28 | 25 | ||
| 29 | 25 | ||
| 30 | 25 | ||
| 31 | G. AdamsGreg Adams 25YLW | 24 | |
| 32 | 24 | ||
| 33 | 24 | ||
| 34 | H. LoobHakan Loob 24YRW | 24 | |
| 35 | 23 | ||
| 36 | 22 | ||
| 37 | 22 | ||
| 38 | B. ProppBrian Propp 26YLW | 22 | |
| 39 | 22 | ||
| 40 | 21 | ||
| 41 | 21 | ||
| 42 | 21 | ||
| 43 | 20 | ||
| 44 | 20 | ||
| 45 | 19 | ||
| 46 | 19 | ||
| 47 | 18 | ||
| 48 | 18 | ||
| 49 | 17 | ||
| 50 | 17 |