Whalers opened the season on the road at Madison Square Garden against the New York Rangers on October 11, as Sylvain Turgeon scored two goals in a 4–4 tie. Two nights later, the Whalers hosted the Boston Bruins in front of a sellout crowd of 14,817. Risto Siltanen was the hero for Hartford, as he scored the overtime winner in a 3–2 victory. After losing their next game, on the road against the Boston Bruins, the Whalers won three games in a row, improving their record to 4–1–1, before heading out for a four-game western road trip. The Whalers split the four game road trip, opening with two losses against the Calgary Flames and Winnipeg Jets, before rebounding with wins over the Minnesota North Stars and Chicago Black Hawks. The Whalers finished the month of October with a loss to the Quebec Nordiques on Halloween night. Overall, Hartford earned a record of 6–4–1 as the club earned 13 points. Hartford sat in a tie for first place in the Adams Division with the Montreal Canadiens. November Hartford began November with a blowout loss, losing 8–1 to the Buffalo Sabres on November 2. The next night, the Whalers tied the Sabres 4–4 on home ice during the second game of their home and home series. Four nights later, on November 7, the Whalers were shutout for the first time of the season, losing 3–0 to the Winnipeg Jets, dropping their overall record to 6–6–2. On November 10, Greg Millen stopped all 28 shots he faced, as the Whalers earned their first shutout of the season, defeating the Quebec Nordiques 1–0. Following this victory, the Whalers lost their next three games, including a 7–0 loss to the Chicago Black Hawks. During this slump, on November 16, the Whalers acquired forward Pat Boutette from the Pittsburgh Penguins for Ville Siren. Boutette had previously played with the Whalers from 1979 to 1981. At the time of the trade, Boutette had a goal and four points in 14 games with the Penguins. The Whalers ended their three-game losing skid with a 9–3 victory over the Pittsburgh Penguins on November 22, as Mark Johnson and Greg Malone each scored two goals. Following a 4–4 against the Philadelphia Flyers, Hartford dropped their final two games of the month. Hartford struggled to a 2–7–2 record during November, bringing their overall record to 8–11–3 through their first 19 games.