1988 Stanley Cup playoffs
| Tournament details | |
|---|---|
| Dates | April 6–May 26, 1988 |
| Teams | 16 |
| Defending champions | Edmonton Oilers |
| Final positions | |
| Champions | Edmonton Oilers |
| Runner-up | Boston Bruins |
The 1988 Stanley Cup playoffs, the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL), began on April 6, after the conclusion of the 1987–88 NHL season. It concluded on May 26, with the defending champion Edmonton Oilers defeating the Boston Bruins to win their second straight Stanley Cup and fourth in five years.
The Presidents' Trophy winning Calgary Flames had home ice advantage during the playoffs thanks in part to Edmonton's struggles without Wayne Gretzky, who missed a 16 games due to injury. The Oilers, who had won the Cup in three of the previous four seasons, were still thought to have a good chance at repeating with Gretzky's return. The clash between the Flames and Oilers in the Smythe Division Final was highly anticipated.
The New Jersey Devils made the playoffs for the first time since their move from Denver, winning in overtime at Chicago Stadium on the season's final day to edge the New York Rangers for the Patrick Division's fourth spot. This was only the second time they made the playoffs including their Colorado and Kansas City days.
The 1988 playoffs most notable moment was the cancellation of game four of the finals in Boston after fog issues, a result of high heat and the subsequent building power outage resulted in the game being canceled outright with the result not counting, yet the league retained player stats from the game. The series would move directly on to Edmonton. Gretzky would go on to set NHL playoff records with 31 assists in 18 games and 13 points in the Stanley Cup Finals.
Playoff seeds
The following teams qualified for the playoffs:
Prince of Wales Conference
Adams Division
- Montreal Canadiens, Adams Division champions, Prince of Wales Conference regular season champions – 103 points
- Boston Bruins – 94 points
- Buffalo Sabres – 85 points
- Hartford Whalers – 77 points
Patrick Division
- New York Islanders, Patrick Division champions – 88 points
- Washington Capitals – 85 points (38 wins, 9 points head-to-head vs. Philadelphia)
- Philadelphia Flyers – 85 points (38 wins, 5 points head-to-head vs. Washington)
- New Jersey Devils – 82 points
Clarence Campbell Conference
Norris Division
- Detroit Red Wings, Norris Division champions – 93 points
- St. Louis Blues – 76 points
- Chicago Blackhawks – 69 points
- Toronto Maple Leafs – 52 points (the lowest point total for any playoff qualifier, minimum 70 games played)
Smythe Division
- Calgary Flames, Smythe Division champions, Clarence Campbell Conference regular season champions, Presidents' Trophy winners – 105 points
- Edmonton Oilers – 99 points
- Winnipeg Jets – 77 points
- Los Angeles Kings – 68 points
Playoff bracket
| Division Semifinals | Division Finals | Conference Finals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A4 | Hartford | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Montreal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A3 | Buffalo | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Prince of Wales Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| P4 | New Jersey | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| P1 | NY Islanders | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| P4 | New Jersey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| P4 | New Jersey | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| P2 | Washington | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| P2 | Washington | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| P3 | Philadelphia | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Boston | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Detroit | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N4 | Toronto | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Detroit | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N2 | St. Louis | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| N2 | St. Louis | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Chicago | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Detroit | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| Clarence Campbell Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Calgary | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S4 | Los Angeles | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Calgary | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S3 | Winnipeg | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Division Semifinals
Prince of Wales Conference
(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (A4) Hartford Whalers
This was the third playoff series between these two teams. Montreal won both previous meetings, including their most recent meeting in seven games in the 1986 Adams Division Finals. Montreal was the best team in the Wales Conference during the regular season.
| April 6 | Hartford Whalers | 3–4 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Randy Ladouceur (1) – 07:59 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 02:54 – Shayne Corson (1) 04:48 – Bobby Smith (1) | ||||||
| Dave Babych (1) – 00:56 Ron Francis (1) – pp – 03:10 |
Third period | 05:43 – pp – Chris Chelios (1) 09:50 – Stephane Richer (1) | ||||||
| Mike Liut 22 saves / 24 shots Richard Brodeur 9 saves / 11 shots |
Goalie stats | Patrick Roy 21 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Hartford Whalers | 3–7 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Lindsay Carson (1) – 09:47 Kevin Dineen (1) – 14:15 |
First period | 05:30 – Brian Skrudland (1) 13:37 – Chris Chelios (2) | ||||||
| Scot Kleinendorst (1) – 12:52 | Second period | 02:39 – Gilles Thibaudeau (1) 10:59 – Claude Lemieux (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 09:05 – Bobby Smith (2) 10:55 – Gilles Thibaudeau (2) 11:43 – Kjell Dahlin (1) | ||||||
| Richard Brodeur 21 saves / 28 shots | Goalie stats | Patrick Roy 28 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Montreal Canadiens | 4–3 | Hartford Whalers | Hartford Civic Center | Recap | |||
| Stephane Richer (2) – pp – 09:21 | First period | 02:06 – Stew Gavin (1) | ||||||
| Craig Ludwig (1) – 08:33 Mike McPhee (1) – 09:32 Ryan Walter (1) – pp – 13:52 |
Second period | 06:31 – pp – Sylvain Cote (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 06:34 – pp – Carey Wilson (1) | ||||||
| Patrick Roy 30 saves / 33 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Liut 23 saves / 27 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Montreal Canadiens | 5–7 | Hartford Whalers | Hartford Civic Center | Recap | |||
| Stephane Richer (3) – 03:22 | First period | 04:17 – Dean Evason (1) 08:29 – Dave Babych (2) | ||||||
| Stephane Richer (4) – 13:17 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bobby Smith (3) – pp – 04:06 Ryan Walter (2) – pp – 05:02 Gilles Thibaudeau (3) – pp – 19:30 |
Third period | 00:59 – Dave Babych (3) 11:20 – Kevin Dineen (2) 14:23 – Stew Gavin (2) 17:05 – pp – Kevin Dineen (3) 17:54 – Scott Young (1) | ||||||
| Patrick Roy 36 saves / 43 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Liut 26 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Hartford Whalers | 3–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Kevin Dineen (4) – 10:01 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Carey Wilson (2) – 05:40 | Second period | 06:11 – Mike McPhee (2) | ||||||
| Ron Francis (2) – 19:44 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Richard Brodeur 22 saves / 23 shots | Goalie stats | Brian Hayward 26 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| April 14 | Montreal Canadiens | 2–1 | Hartford Whalers | Hartford Civic Center | Recap | |||
| Stephane Richer (5) – 09:15 Stephane Richer (6) – 17:59 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 18:57 – pp – Ray Ferraro (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Brian Hayward 19 saves / 20 shots | Goalie stats | Richard Brodeur 23 saves / 25 shots | ||||||
| Montreal won series 4–2 | |
(A2) Boston Bruins vs (A3) Buffalo Sabres
This was the third playoff series between these two teams. Boston won both prior meetings. They last met in the 1983 Adams Division Finals, in which Boston won in seven games.
| April 6 | Buffalo Sabres | 3–7 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| Phil Housley (1) – pp – 11:16 | First period | 09:27 – pp – Glen Wesley (1) | ||||||
| Pierre Turgeon (1) – pp – 14:43 | Second period | 03:16 – Ray Bourque (1) 11:38 – sh – Steve Kasper (1) 12:35 – sh – Gord Kluzak (1) | ||||||
| Pierre Turgeon (2) – pp – 16:14 | Third period | 03:27 – Tom McCarthy (1) 03:55 – Bob Sweeney (1) 08:45 – Michael Thelven (1) | ||||||
| Tom Barrasso 22 saves / 28 shots Daren Puppa 3 saves / 4 shots |
Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 21 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Buffalo Sabres | 1–4 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 12:19 – pp – Ken Linseman (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 02:13 – Bruce Shoebottom (1) | ||||||
| Mike Foligno (1) – 04:16 | Third period | 05:35 – pp – Glen Wesley (1) 09:38 – pp – Craig Janney (1) | ||||||
| Tom Barrasso 33 saves / 37 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 25 saves / 26 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Boston Bruins | 2–6 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| Craig Janney (2) – 14:48 | First period | 09:16 – pp – John Tucker (1) | ||||||
| Glen Wesley (1) – pp – 10:58 | Second period | 06:15 – Mike Foligno (2) 17:37 – John Tucker (2) 18:39 – John Tucker (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 09:14 – pp – John Tucker (4) 14:01 – Mike Foligno (3) | ||||||
| Andy Moog 24 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Tom Barrasso 22 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Boston Bruins | 5–6 | OT | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | ||
| Bob Joyce (1) – 07:33 | First period | 02:29 – pp – Pierre Turgeon (3) | ||||||
| Keith Crowder (1) – 03:36 | Second period | 16:33 – Dave Andreychuk (1) | ||||||
| Rick Middleton (1) – 11:58 Cam Neely (1) – 13:48 Cam Neely (2) – 18:27 |
Third period | 00:16 – pp – John Tucker (5) 07:33 – Pierre Turgeon (4) 14:01 – Phil Housley (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 05:32 – pp – John Tucker (6) | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 31 saves / 37 shots | Goalie stats | Daren Puppa 26 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Buffalo Sabres | 4–5 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 01:58 – Steve Kasper (2) 12:28 – sh – Rick Middleton (2) | ||||||
| Christian Ruuttu (1) – pp – 00:54 Dave Andreychuk (2) – pp – 06:42 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| John Tucker (7) – 11:13 Ray Sheppard (1) – pp – 16:58 |
Third period | 01:10 – Ken Linseman (2) 06:05 – Tom McCarthy (2) 14:16 – Rick Middleton (3) | ||||||
| Daren Puppa 27 saves / 32 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 18 saves / 22 shots | ||||||
| April 14 | Boston Bruins | 5–2 | Buffalo Sabres | Buffalo Memorial Auditorium | Recap | |||
| Bob Sweeney (2) – 06:28 Bob Joyce (2) – pp – 13:13 Willi Plett (1) – 13:40 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ken Linseman (3) – 12:19 | Second period | 00:44 – Mikael Andersson (1) | ||||||
| Ken Linseman (4) – 19:26 | Third period | 11:31 – Christian Ruuttu (2) | ||||||
| Andy Moog 22 saves / 24 shots | Goalie stats | Tom Barrasso 26 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| Boston won series 4–2 | |
(P1) New York Islanders vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils
This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. This was the first time that a team representing the state of New Jersey qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs. This was the first ever playoff series victory for the Scouts/Rockies/Devils franchise. This would be the last playoff series until the 2019 Eastern Conference First Round that the Islanders held home-ice advantage.
| April 6 | New Jersey Devils | 3–4 | OT | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 05:44 – pp – Mikko Makela (1) | ||||||
| Craig Wolanin (1) – 07:49 | Second period | 01:09 – pp – Denis Potvin (1) | ||||||
| David Maley (1) – 12:05 John MacLean (1) – pp – 18:04 |
Third period | 06:58 – pp – Pat LaFontaine (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 06:11 – Pat LaFontaine (2) | ||||||
| Sean Burke 29 saves / 33 shots | Goalie stats | Kelly Hrudey 28 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | New Jersey Devils | 3–2 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| John MacLean (2) – 09:22 Claude Loiselle (1) – sh – 16:17 |
Second period | 06:25 – Tomas Jonsson (1) | ||||||
| Mark Johnson (1) – pp – 05:56 | Third period | 04:19 – pp – Gerald Diduck (1) | ||||||
| Bob Sauve 24 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Kelly Hrudey 13 saves / 16 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | New York Islanders | 0–3 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 06:21 – Ken Daneyko (1) 18:33 – Mark Johnson (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 04:28 – Mark Johnson (3) | ||||||
| Kelly Hrudey 14 saves / 17 shots | Goalie stats | Sean Burke 31 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | New York Islanders | 5–4 | OT | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | ||
| No scoring | First period | 07:52 – pp – Bruce Driver (1) 12:40 – pp – John MacLean (3) | ||||||
| Alan Kerr (1) – 18:49 | Second period | 16:50 – Doug Brown (1) | ||||||
| Brent Sutter (1) – 11:30 Brad Lauer (1) – 14:53 Pat LaFontaine (3) – 18:30 |
Third period | 19:48 – John MacLean (4) | ||||||
| Brent Sutter (2) – sh – 15:07 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Kelly Hrudey 24 saves / 28 shots | Goalie stats | Sean Burke 33 saves / 38 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | New Jersey Devils | 4–2 | New York Islanders | Nassau Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Bruce Driver (2) – pp – 05:40 | First period | 08:10 – Pat LaFontaine (4) | ||||||
| Craig Wolanin (2) – pp – 03:26 Pat Conacher (1) – sh – 13:12 Aaron Broten (1) – 17:40 |
Second period | 13:44 – pp – Tomas Jonsson (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Sean Burke 33 saves / 35 shots | Goalie stats | Kelly Hrudey 26 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| April 14 | New York Islanders | 5–6 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 08:41 – sh – Doug Brown (2) 19:54 – pp – Pat Verbeek (1) | ||||||
| Brad Lauer (2) – 04:03 | Second period | 02:16 – pp – Mark Johnson (4) 06:22 – pp – Bruce Driver (3) 12:23 – Patrik Sundstrom (1) | ||||||
| Dale Henry (1) – sh – 07:38 Steve Konroyd (1) – sh – 08:46 Brad Lauer (3) – 10:04 Randy Wood (1) – 12:40 |
Third period | 06:18 – pp – Patrik Sundstrom (2) | ||||||
| Kelly Hrudey 26 saves / 32 shots | Goalie stats | Sean Burke 22 saves / 27 shots | ||||||
| New Jersey won series 4–2 | |
(P2) Washington Capitals vs. (P3) Philadelphia Flyers
This was the second playoff series between these two teams. Washington won the only previous meeting in a three-game sweep in the 1984 Patrick Division Semifinals.
Washington overcame a 3–1 series deficit to advance to the Patrick Division Finals for the third time in five years. Game seven ended when Dale Hunter scored at 5:57 of the first overtime period to complete the Capitals' comeback.
| April 6 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4–2 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Peter Zezel (1) – 05:17 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Peter Zezel (2) – 05:11 | Second period | 12:05 – pp – Michal Pivonka (1) | ||||||
| Dave Poulin (1) – pp – 09:21 Murray Craven (1) – 19:42 |
Third period | 05:27 – pp – Dale Hunter (1) | ||||||
| Ron Hextall 35 saves / 37 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 27 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4–5 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Mark Howe (1) – 05:32 Dave Brown (1) – 07:59 |
First period | 00:47 – Kevin Hatcher (1) 18:36 – Bobby Gould (1) | ||||||
| Peter Zezel (3) – 10:49 | Second period | 11:10 – Stephen Leach (1) 18:06 – sh – Peter Sundstrom (1) | ||||||
| Brian Propp (1) – 15:55 | Third period | 06:12 – Kelly Miller (1) | ||||||
| Ron Hextall 23 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 31 saves / 35 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Washington Capitals | 3–4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| Dale Hunter (2) – 11:49 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (1) – pp – 16:30 |
First period | 00:40 – Brian Propp (2) | ||||||
| Kevin Hatcher (2) – 14:10 | Second period | 03:08 – pp – Ilkka Sinisalo (1) 12:12 – Dave Poulin (2) 15:26 – Kjell Samuelsson (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Pete Peeters 25 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Ron Hextall 14 saves / 17 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Washington Capitals | 4–5 | OT | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | ||
| Michal Pivonka (2) – 13:06 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (2) – 18:36 |
First period | 09:04 – Ilkka Sinisalo (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mike Gartner (1) – 00:55 Dale Hunter (3) – 03:04 |
Third period | 10:53 – Mark Howe (2) 15:08 – Brian Propp (3) 19:07 – Kjell Samuelsson (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 01:18 – Murray Craven (2) | ||||||
| Clint Malarchuk 25 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Ron Hextall 18 saves / 22 shots Mark Laforest 4 saves / 4 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Philadelphia Flyers | 2–5 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Ilkka Sinisalo (3) – 14:09 | First period | 10:50 – Mike Ridley (1) 11:26 – Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (3) | ||||||
| Doug Crossman (1) – pp – 10:48 | Second period | 05:19 – Kevin Hatcher (3) 09:00 – sh – Bobby Gould (2) 17:10 – Michal Pivonka (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ron Hextall 20 saves / 24 shots Mark Laforest 7 saves / 8 shots |
Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 31 saves / 33 shots | ||||||
| April 14 | Washington Capitals | 7–2 | Philadelphia Flyers | Spectrum | Recap | |||
| Mike Ridley (2) – pp – 05:12 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Dave Christian (1) – 00:25 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (4) – pp – 02:39 Kevin Hatcher (4) – pp – 03:17 Michal Pivonka (4) – pp – 16:10 |
Second period | 12:44 – Ilkka Sinisalo (4) 17:17 – pp – Rick Tocchet (1) | ||||||
| Bobby Gould (3) – sh – 02:37 Kelly Miller (2) – 10:02 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Pete Peeters 24 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Ron Hextall 21 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| April 16 | Philadelphia Flyers | 4–5 | OT | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | ||
| Tim Kerr (1) – pp – 17:36 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Brian Propp (4) – 01:35 Mark Howe (3) – 02:59 |
Second period | 06:42 – Garry Galley (1) 08:02 – Kelly Miller (3) 17:54 – Kevin Hatcher (5) | ||||||
| Brad Marsh (1) – 06:21 | Third period | 05:19 – pp – Dale Hunter (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | First overtime period | 05:57 – Dale Hunter (5) | ||||||
| Ron Hextall 35 saves / 40 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 29 saves / 33 shots | ||||||
| Washington won series 4–3 | |
Clarence Campbell Conference
(N1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (N4) Toronto Maple Leafs
This was the 22nd playoff series between these two teams. Toronto led 11–10 in previous playoff meetings. This was a rematch of the previous year's Norris Division Finals, which Detroit won in seven games.
Game six in Maple Leaf Gardens was future Hall of Famer Borje Salming's final playoff game in the NHL.
| April 6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 6–2 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Gary Leeman (1) – pp – 04:38 Borje Salming (1) – 14:31 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 06:52 – Adam Oates (1) | ||||||
| Mark Osborne (1) – 07:35 Eddie Olczyk (1) – 10:04 Gary Leeman (2) – pp – 16:43 Al Iafrate (1) – 17:41 |
Third period | 08:35 – pp – Lee Norwood (1) | ||||||
| Allan Bester 25 saves / 27 shots | Goalie stats | Glen Hanlon 18 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 2–6 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Russ Courtnall (1) – 05:43 Eddie Olczyk (2) – 07:54 |
First period | 03:57 – pp – Gerard Gallant (1) 04:22 – Petr Klima (1) 07:31 – Petr Klima (2) 10:22 – Doug Halward (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 17:39 – pp – Petr Kilma (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 05:43 – James Nill (1) | ||||||
| Ken Wregget 21 saves / 24 shots Allan Bester 6 saves / 9 shots |
Goalie stats | Glen Hanlon 21 saves / 23 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Detroit Red Wings | 6–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Bob Probert (1) – 01:44 James Nill (2) – sh – 05:16 |
First period | 17:29 – Mike Blaisdell (1) | ||||||
| Adam Oates (2) – pp – 03:57 Petr Klima (4) – 15:30 James Nill (3) – 16:52 Petr Kilma (5) – sh – 19:36 |
Second period | 05:16 – Russ Courtnall (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 02:25 – Al Secord (1) | ||||||
| Greg Stefan 32 saves / 35 shots | Goalie stats | Allan Bester 29 saves / 35 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Detroit Red Wings | 8–0 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Adam Oates (3) – pp – 09:33 Dave Barr (1) – pp – 14:59 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Gerard Gallant (2) – 12:06 John Chabot (1) – 15:15 James Nill (4) – 17:11 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bob Probert (2) – 03:16 James Nill (5) – 04:42 Brent Ashton (1) – 05:08 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Glen Hanlon 21 saves / 21 shots | Goalie stats | Ken Wregget 30 saves / 38 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 6–5 | OT | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | ||
| Eddie Olczyk (3) – sh – 03:44 Daniel Marois (1) – 12:28 |
First period | 04:31 – Mel Bridgman (1) 07:53 – Adam Oates (4) | ||||||
| Al Iafrate (2) – pp – 05:30 Eddie Olczyk (4) – pp – 09:57 Tom Fergus (1) – 19:59 |
Second period | 11:29 – pp – Adam Oates (5) 12:04 – Petr Klima (6) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 03:19 – pp – John Chabot (2) | ||||||
| Eddie Olczyk (5) – 00:34 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Allan Bester 31 saves / 36 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Stefan 13 saves / 16 shots Glen Hanlon 4 saves / 7 shots | ||||||
| April 14 | Detroit Red Wings | 5–3 | Toronto Maple Leafs | Maple Leaf Gardens | Recap | |||
| Mel Bridgman (2) – 06:16 Bob Probert (3) – pp – 09:34 |
First period | 03:39 – pp – Al Iafrate (3) | ||||||
| Dave Barr (2) – pp – 14:29 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Shawn Burr (1) – 00:40 Darren Veitch (1) – pp – 07:27 |
Third period | 06:37 – sh – Tom Fergus (2) 15:59 – pp – Todd Gill (1) | ||||||
| Greg Stefan 20 saves / 22 shots Sam St. Laurent 6 saves / 7 shots |
Goalie stats | Allan Bester 23 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| Detroit won series 4–2 | |
(N2) St. Louis Blues vs. (N3) Chicago Blackhawks
This was the fifth playoff series between the Blackhawks and Blues. Chicago won all four previous meetings, including their most recent meeting 3–1 in the 1983 Norris Division Semifinals.
| April 6 | Chicago Blackhawks | 1–4 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 12:52 – pp – Gino Cavallini (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 16:32 – pp – Brett Hull (1) | ||||||
| Troy Murray (1) – pp – 16:45 | Third period | 03:00 – Gordie Roberts (1) 07:04 – pp – Brett Hull (2) | ||||||
| Darren Pang 20 saves / 24 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Millen 25 saves / 26 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Chicago Blackhawks | 2–3 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Dirk Graham (1) – 14:09 | First period | 13:34 – pp – Greg Paslawski (1) 19:27 – Doug Gilmour (1) | ||||||
| Rick Vaive (1) – pp – 10:42 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 03:09 – Brett Hull (3) | ||||||
| Bob Mason 28 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Millen 21 saves / 23 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | St. Louis Blues | 3–6 | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 04:51 – pp – Rick Vaive (2) 05:16 – Steve Thomas (1) 16:13 – Denis Savard (1) | ||||||
| Bernie Federko (1) – pp – 00:17 Gaston Gingras (1) – 13:48 |
Second period | 04:15 – Denis Savard (2) 16:39 – pp – Bob Murray (1) | ||||||
| Paul Cavallini (1) – sh – 18:12 | Third period | 07:24 – Denis Savard (3) | ||||||
| Greg Millen 23 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Darren Pang 42 saves / 45 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | St. Louis Blues | 6–5 | Chicago Blackhawks | Chicago Stadium | Recap | |||
| Tony Hrkac (1) – 02:47 | First period | 04:51 – pp – Steve Larmer (1) 06:39 – Everett Sanipass (1) | ||||||
| Brett Hull (4) – 11:08 Doug Gilmour (2) – pp – 14:13 Tony Hrkac (2) – pp – 19:55 |
Second period | 07:21 – pp – Rick Vaive (3) 16:48 – Everett Sanipass (2) | ||||||
| Tony Hrkac (3) – 05:54 Tony Hrkac (4) – sh – 15:15 |
Third period | 01:11 – pp – Rick Vaive (4) | ||||||
| Greg Millen 29 saves / 34 shots | Goalie stats | Darren Pang 29 saves / 35 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Chicago Blackhawks | 3–5 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Denis Savard (4) – sh – 09:52 | First period | 07:54 – pp – Brian Benning (1) 11:22 – pp – Tony Hrkac (5) 17:06 – pp – Brett Hull (5) | ||||||
| Rick Vaive (5) – 13:27 Rick Vaive (6) – pp – 14:36 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 00:15 – Brett Hull (6) 08:13 – Gino Cavallini (2) | ||||||
| Darren Pang 21 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Millen 18 saves / 21 shots | ||||||
| St. Louis won series 4–1 | |
(S1) Calgary Flames vs. (S4) Los Angeles Kings
This was the third playoff series between these two teams, but the first since the Flames relocated from Atlanta. Los Angeles won both previous meetings, including their most recent meeting 2–1 in the 1977 Preliminary Round.
| April 6 | Los Angeles Kings | 2–9 | Calgary Flames | Olympic Saddledome | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 06:00 – Lanny McDonald (1) 08:07 – Al MacInnis (1) 09:36 – Joel Otto (1) 14:42 – pp – Hakan Loob (1) | ||||||
| Jimmy Carson (1) – 07:21 Dave Taylor (1) – pp – 14:49 |
Second period | 02:54 – Joel Otto (2) 10:37 – Joe Mullen (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 10:07 – pp – Joe Nieuwendyk (1) 13:19 – Gary Roberts (1) 15:02 – Hakan Loob (2) | ||||||
| Roland Melanson 41 saves / 50 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Vernon 15 saves / 17 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Los Angeles Kings | 4–6 | Calgary Flames | Olympic Saddledome | Recap | |||
| Dave Taylor (2) – pp – 15:13 | First period | 05:06 – pp – Paul Reinhart (1) 09:49 – Joe Mullen (2) | ||||||
| Jimmy Carson (2) – 15:34 Chris Kontos (1) – 19:17 |
Second period | 03:24 – pp – Joel Otto (3) 04:45 – Tim Hunter (1) | ||||||
| Paul Fenton (1) – 16:47 | Third period | 09:33 – pp – John Tonelli (1) 19:26 – sh – Gary Suter (1) | ||||||
| Glenn Healy 29 saves / 34 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Vernon 23 saves / 27 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Calgary Flames | 2–5 | Los Angeles Kings | The Forum | Recap | |||
| Colin Patterson (1) – sh – 13:58 | First period | 12:42 – Jimmy Carson (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 04:38 – pp – Bernie Nicholls (1) 15:15 – pp – Luc Robitaille (1) | ||||||
| Dana Murzyn (1) – 07:31 | Third period | 00:46 – Bobby Carpenter (1) 14:08 – pp – Jimmy Carson (4) | ||||||
| Mike Vernon 21 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Glenn Healy 28 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Calgary Flames | 7–3 | Los Angeles Kings | The Forum | Recap | |||
| Hakan Loob (3) – sh – 01:29 Brad McCrimmon (1) – pp – 04:56 Gary Roberts (2) – 10:50 |
First period | 12:13 – Dave Taylor (3) 13:10 – pp – Luc Robitaille (2) | ||||||
| Tim Hunter (2) – 14:35 Hakan Loob (4) – 16:05 |
Second period | 08:12 – pp – Steve Duchesne (1) | ||||||
| Lanny McDonald (2) – 00:19 Hakan Loob (5) – 08:41 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mike Vernon 22 saves / 25 shots | Goalie stats | Glenn Healy 27 saves / 34 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Los Angeles Kings | 4–6 | Calgary Flames | Olympic Saddledome | Recap | |||
| Jay Wells (1) – 11:06 | First period | 04:01 – pp – Hakan Loob (6) 18:22 – pp – Al MacInnis (2) | ||||||
| Bernie Nicholls (2) – 02:45 | Second period | 03:38 – Paul Reinhart (2) | ||||||
| Paul Fenton (2) – pp – 16:10 Jimmy Carson (5) – 18:18 |
Third period | 01:57 – Hakan Loob (7) 02:32 – Tim Hunter (3) 09:03 – Ric Nattress (1) | ||||||
| Glenn Healy 23 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Vernon 26 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| Calgary won series 4–1 | |
(S2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (S3) Winnipeg Jets
This was the fifth playoff series between the Jets and Oilers. Edmonton won all four previous meetings. This was a rematch of the previous year's Smythe Division Finals, which Edmonton won in a four-game sweep.
| April 6 | Winnipeg Jets | 4–7 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Dale Hawerchuk (1) – pp – 06:29 | First period | 17:56 – Mark Messier (1) | ||||||
| Steve Rooney (1) – 19:12 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ray Neufeld (1) – 01:55 Doug Smail (1) – 18:33 |
Third period | 00:27 – pp – Glenn Anderson (1) 04:09 – Jari Kurri (1) 06:10 – Glenn Anderson (2) 06:20 – Craig Simpson (1) 13:39 – pp – Charlie Huddy (1) 14:47 – Glenn Anderson (3) | ||||||
| Daniel Berthiaume 26 saves / 33 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 22 saves / 26 shots | ||||||
| April 7 | Winnipeg Jets | 2–3 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 05:26 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (1) | ||||||
| Peter Taglianetti (1) – 02:23 Paul MacLean (1) – pp – 14:44 |
Second period | 12:49 – Kevin McClelland (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 18:55 – Craig Simpson (2) | ||||||
| Daniel Berthiaume 30 saves / 33 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 21 saves / 23 shots | ||||||
| April 9 | Edmonton Oilers | 4–6 | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 07:30 – Fredrik Olausson (1) 09:44 – pp – Thomas Steen (1) 18:00 – sh – Andrew McBain (1) | ||||||
| Normand Lacombe (1) – 04:28 Craig Simpson (3) – 07:26 Mark Messier (2) – sh – 08:46 Mike Krushelnyski (1) – 13:58 |
Second period | 09:54 – pp – Ray Neufeld (2) 13:22 – sh – Randy Gilhen (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 19:23 – Laurie Boschman (1) | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 28 saves / 33 shots | Goalie stats | Daniel Berthiaume 27 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 10 | Edmonton Oilers | 5–3 | Winnipeg Jets | Winnipeg Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 09:16 – pp – Dave Ellett (1) 13:23 – Andrew McBain (2) | ||||||
| Craig Simpson (4) – 07:18 Jari Kurri (2) – pp – 18:44 Charlie Huddy (2) – pp – 19:22 |
Second period | 01:52 – pp – Paul MacLean (2) | ||||||
| Normand Lacombe (2) – 06:47 Jari Kurri (3) – pp – 16:38 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 32 saves / 35 shots | Goalie stats | Daniel Berthiaume 25 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| April 12 | Winnipeg Jets | 2–6 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 09:07 – pp – Mark Messier (3) 17:37 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (2) | ||||||
| Dale Hawerchuk (2) – pp – 18:04 Dale Hawerchuk (3) – 18:28 |
Second period | 09:36 – pp – Jari Kurri (4) 11:59 – pp – Mark Messier (4) 15:43 – Wayne Gretzky (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 18:39 – Jari Kurri (5) | ||||||
| Daniel Berthiaume 21 saves / 27 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 23 saves / 25 shots | ||||||
| Edmonton won series 4–1 | |
Division Finals
Prince of Wales Conference
(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (A2) Boston Bruins
This was the 23rd playoff series between these two teams. Montreal led 20–2 in previous playoff series meetings. This was the fifth year in a row that these team met in the playoffs. Montreal had defeated Boston in the Division Semifinals the four previous seasons.
This was Boston's first playoff series victory against Montreal since the 1943 Stanley Cup Semifinals. Boston had lost the previous 18 playoff series between these two teams, an NHL record for most consecutive playoff series defeats to one team.
| April 18 | Boston Bruins | 2–5 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 03:33 – Kjell Dahlin (2) 08:52 – sh – Mike McPhee () | ||||||
| Bob Joyce (3) – 16:47 | Second period | 05:17 – Claude Lemieux (2) 15:43 – Claude Lemieux (3) | ||||||
| Randy Burridge (1) – 07:05 | Third period | 14:39 – Stephane Richer (7) | ||||||
| Andy Moog 24 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Brian Hayward 20 saves / 22 shots | ||||||
| April 20 | Boston Bruins | 4–3 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bob Sweeney (3) – 03:50 Ray Bourque (2) – 09:07 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Moe Lemay (1) – 01:32 Cam Neely (3) – 09:45 |
Third period | 09:01 – Mike McPhee (4) 12:56 – John Kordic (1) 18:07 – Larry Robinson (1) | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 27 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Brian Hayward 10 saves / 14 shots Patrick Roy 0 saves / 0 shots | ||||||
| April 22 | Montreal Canadiens | 1–3 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 04:07 – Moe Lemay (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 19:13 – sh – Bob Sweeney (4) | ||||||
| Chris Chelios (3) – 16:18 | Third period | 01:46 – Gord Kluzak (2) | ||||||
| Patrick Roy 32 saves / 35 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 22 saves / 23 shots | ||||||
| April 24 | Montreal Canadiens | 0–2 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 11:25 – Rick Middleton (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 19:40 – Gord Kluzak (3) | ||||||
| Patrick Roy 22 saves / 23 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 22 saves / 22 shots | ||||||
| April 26 | Boston Bruins | 4–1 | Montreal Canadiens | Montreal Forum | Recap | |||
| Steve Kasper (3) – 10:20 Cam Neely (4) – 14:09 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Steve Kasper (4) – 10:02 | Second period | 14:35 – John Kordic (2) | ||||||
| Cam Neely (5) – 04:06 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 28 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Patrick Roy 24 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| Boston won series 4–1 | |
(P2) Washington Capitals vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils
This was the first playoff series between these two teams.
Patrik Sundström's eight-point effort in game three (3 goals, 5 assists) set a new Stanley Cup playoff record for most points in a single game.
| April 18 | New Jersey Devils | 1–3 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 07:18 – Mike Ridley (3) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 03:29 – pp – Larry Murphy (1) 16:48 – Scott Stevens (1) | ||||||
| Tom Kurvers (1) – 09:49 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Sean Burke 28 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 33 saves / 34 shots | ||||||
| April 20 | New Jersey Devils | 5–2 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Aaron Broten (2) – pp – 09:37 | First period | 13:15 – Mike Ridley (4) | ||||||
| Aaron Broten (3) – 03:02 Aaron Broten (4) – pp – 05:23 Pat Verbeek (2) – 18:14 |
Second period | 17:45 – pp – Larry Robinson (2) | ||||||
| Patrik Sundstrom (3) – pp – 12:49 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Sean Burke 28 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 25 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| April 22 | Washington Capitals | 4–10 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| Dave Christian (2) – pp – 18:22 | First period | 10:37 – pp – Mark Johnson (5) 15:07 – pp – Mark Johnson (6) | ||||||
| Larry Murphy (3) – 06:51 Mike Gartner (2) – 09:50 Larry Murphy (4) – 13:57 |
Second period | 00:57 – Patrik Sundstrom (4) 02:01 – sh – Claude Loiselle (2) 11:39 – Anders Carlsson (1) 15:33 – Doug Brown (3) 19:45 – Patrik Sundstrom (5) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 02:59 – Mark Johnson (7) 09:47 – pp – Mark Johnson (8) 14:14 – Patrik Sundstrom (6) | ||||||
| Clint Malarchuk 14 saves / 21 shots Pete Peeters 7 saves / 10 shots |
Goalie stats | Sean Burke 28 saves / 32 shots | ||||||
| April 24 | Washington Capitals | 4–1 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| Dave Christian (3) – 03:55 Peter Sundstrom (2) – 11:02 |
First period | 03:12 – pp – Tom Kurvers (2) | ||||||
| Dave Christian (4) – 09:11 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Dale Hunter (6) – pp – 08:45 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Pete Peeters 11 saves / 12 shots Clint Malarchuk 13 saves / 13 shots |
Goalie stats | Sean Burke 27 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 26 | New Jersey Devils | 3–1 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Kirk Muller (1) – 16:36 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Tom Kurvers (3) – pp – 06:54 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Kirk Muller (2) – 13:26 | Third period | 10:24 – Mike Ridley (5) | ||||||
| Bob Sauve 28 saves / 29 shots | Goalie stats | Clint Malarchuk 28 saves / 31 shots | ||||||
| April 28 | Washington Capitals | 7–2 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| Mike Ridley (6) – 06:40 Dale Hunter (7) – pp – 13:07 Stephen Leach (2) – 17:03 |
First period | 00:18 – Claude Loiselle (3) | ||||||
| Yvon Corriveau (1) – 10:43 Dave Christian (5) – 17:48 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Kelly Miller (4) – sh – 05:25 Mike Gartner (3) – pp – 18:32 |
Third period | 07:21 – David Maley (2) | ||||||
| Pete Peeters 25 saves / 27 shots | Goalie stats | Sean Burke 13 saves / 18 shots Bob Sauve 11 saves / 13 shots | ||||||
| April 30 | New Jersey Devils | 3–2 | Washington Capitals | Capital Centre | Recap | |||
| Kirk Muller (3) – 00:14 Claude Loiselle (4) – 12:01 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 15:21 – Grant Ledyard (1) 19:54 – Garry Galley (2) | ||||||
| John MacLean (5) – 13:49 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Sean Burke 30 saves / 32 shots | Goalie stats | Pete Peeters 23 saves / 26 shots | ||||||
| New Jersey won series 4–3 | |
Clarence Campbell Conference
(N1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (N2) St. Louis Blues
This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. St. Louis won the only previous meeting 3–1 in the 1984 Norris Division Semifinals.
| April 19 | St. Louis Blues | 4–5 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Mark Hunter (1) – pp – 10:54 Brett Hull (7) – pp – 13::47 |
First period | 01:48 – James Nill (6) 02:31 – Shawn Burr (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 08:34 – Steve Chiasson (1) | ||||||
| Mark Hunter (2) – 03:01 Gino Cavallini (3) – 13:32 |
Third period | 06:08 – Shawn Burr (3) 07:46 – Gerard Gallant (3) | ||||||
| Greg Millen 17 saves / 22 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Stefan 15 saves / 19 shots | ||||||
| April 21 | St. Louis Blues | 0–6 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 07:00 – Petr Klima (7) 10:17 – pp – Steve Chiasson (2) 15:45 – Gerard Gallant (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 19:41 Petr Klima (8) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 10:24 – pp – Petr Klima (9) 18:52 – Brent Ashton (2) | ||||||
| Greg Millen 12 saves / 18 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Stefan 19 saves / 19 shots | ||||||
| April 23 | Detroit Red Wings | 3–6 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Adam Oates (6) – 04:12 Bob Probert (4) – 17:58 |
First period | 00:26 – Gino Cavallini (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 01:03 – Tony McKegney (1) 12:19 – pp – Tony Hrkac (6) 14:19 – Tony McKegney (2) | ||||||
| Dave Barr (3) – 19:33 | Third period | 07:12 – Doug Gilmour (3) 10:33 – pp – Gino Cavallini (5) | ||||||
| Greg Stefan 29 saves / 35 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Millen 25 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| April 25 | Detroit Red Wings | 3–1 | St. Louis Blues | St. Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Gerard Gallant (5) – 14:33 Petr Klima (10) – 17:21 |
First period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 19:40 – pp – Tony McKegney (3) | ||||||
| Gerard Gallant (6) – 09:53 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Glen Hanlon 27 saves / 28 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Millen 17 saves / 20 shots | ||||||
| April 27 | St. Louis Blues | 3–4 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 17:22 – pp – Lee Norwood (2) | ||||||
| Herb Raglan (1) – 01:29 Bernie Federko (2) – pp – 07:02 |
Second period | 11:18 – pp – Bob Probert (5) | ||||||
| Steve Bozek (1) – 04:04 | Third period | 05:42 – John Chabot (3) 17:35 – Tim Higgins (1) | ||||||
| Greg Millen 27 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Greg Stefan 13 saves / 16 shots | ||||||
| Detroit won series 4–1 | |
(S1) Calgary Flames vs. (S2) Edmonton Oilers
This was the fourth playoff series meeting between these two teams. Edmonton won two of the previous three meetings. Calgary won the most recent meeting in seven games in the 1986 Smythe Division Finals.
In the Battle of Alberta the Oilers would claim the first sweep of the playoffs. In game two Wayne Gretzky scored the overtime winning goal short-handed.
| April 19 | Edmonton Oilers | 3–1 | Calgary Flames | Olympic Saddledome | Recap | |||
| Mark Messier (5) – pp – 11:49 | First period | 13:59 – pp – Brad McCrimmon (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Jari Kurri (6) – 13:23 Wayne Gretzky (2) – 16:18 |
Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 27 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Vernon 16 saves / 19 shots | ||||||
| April 21 | Edmonton Oilers | 5–4 | OT | Calgary Flames | Olympic Saddledome | Recap | ||
| Mark Messier (6) – pp – 13:49 | First period | 07:23 – Lanny McDonald (3) 11:26 – pp – Al MacInnis (3) | ||||||
| Charlie Huddy (3) – 11:20 Wayne Gretzky (3) – pp – 13:18 |
Second period | 03:56 – pp – Rob Ramage (1) | ||||||
| Jari Kurri (7) – 16:01 | Third period | 04:03 – Tim Hunter (4) | ||||||
| Wayne Gretzky (4) – sh – 07:54 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 30 saves / 34 shots | Goalie stats | Mike Vernon 30 saves / 35 shots | ||||||
| April 23 | Calgary Flames | 2–4 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Hakan Loob (8) – sh – 03:11 | First period | 09:23 – pp – Steve Smith (1) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 08:54 – Charlie Huddy (4) 17:10 – pp – Glenn Anderson (4) | ||||||
| Joe Nieuwendyk (2) – 06:46 | Third period | 09:04 – Jari Kurri (8) | ||||||
| Mike Vernon 18 saves / 22 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 21 saves / 23 shots | ||||||
| April 25 | Calgary Flames | 4–6 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 09:27 – pp – Mark Messier (7) 15:31 – Craig Simpson (5) | ||||||
| Craig Coxe (1) – 10:39 Dana Murzyn (2) – 12:45 Joe Nieuwendyk (3) – 15:35 |
Second period | 04:31 – Wayne Gretzky (5) 06:39 – Esa Tikkanen (3) 14:23 – Dave Hannan (1) | ||||||
| John Tonelli (2) – pp – 16:09 | Third period | 10:40 – Glenn Anderson (5) | ||||||
| Rick Wamsley 6 saves / 8 shots Mike Vernon 5 saves / 9 shots |
Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 30 shots | ||||||
| Edmonton won series 4–0 | |
Conference Finals
Prince of Wales Conference Final
(A2) Boston Bruins vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils
This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.
This series featured the infamous confrontation between Devils coach Jim Schoenfeld and referee Don Koharski after Game 3, when, during an argument in the tunnel after the game, Koharski tripped and fell, accusing Schoenfield of pushing him. Schoenfield famously responded, "Good, 'cause you fell you fat pig!" Then, he yelled "Have another doughnut! Have another doughnut!" The incident has since become part of NHL lore.[1]
Schoenfeld was suspended by NHL president John Ziegler for Game four, but the Devils received an injunction from the New Jersey Supreme Court, allowing Schoenfeld to coach the fourth game.[1] In protest, the officials scheduled to work that game in the Meadlowands refused to take the ice, forcing the NHL to scramble for amateur officials to call the game.[2][3] The injunction was lifted, the league conducted a proper hearing, Schoenfeld served his suspension during Game five in the Boston Garden, and the League officials returned to work.[4][5]
| May 2 | New Jersey Devils | 3–5 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 08:48 – Glen Wesley (1) | ||||||
| Tom Kurvers (4) – 11:26 Jack O'Callahan (1) – 13:45 |
Second period | 02:38 – Steve Kasper (5) 09:40 – pp – Craig Janney (3) | ||||||
| Tom Kurvers (5) – pp – 02:48 | Third period | 05:56 – Ray Bourque (3) 16:05 – Ken Linseman (5) | ||||||
| Bob Sauve 25 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 25 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| May 4 | New Jersey Devils | 3–2 | OT | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | ||
| Pat Verbeek (3) – pp – 11:38 Aaron Broten (5) – pp – 16:20 |
First period | 04:38 – pp – Keith Crowder (2) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 16:36 – pp – Bob Joyce (4) | ||||||
| Doug Brown (4) – 17:46 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Sean Burke 39 saves / 41 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 30 saves / 33 shots | ||||||
| May 6 | Boston Bruins | 6–1 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Ken Linseman (6) – pp – 01:05 Bob Joyce (5) – pp – 02:03 Lyndon Byers (1) – 02:18 Gord Kluzak (4) – 10:52 Ken Linseman (7) – 17:05 |
Second period | 14:58 – pp – Brendan Shanahan (1) | ||||||
| Tom McCarthy (3) – 13:05 | Third period | No scoring | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 23 saves / 24 shots | Goalie stats | Bob Sauve 17 saves / 20 shots Sean Burke 8 saves / 11 shots | ||||||
| May 8 | Boston Bruins | 1–3 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 10:47 – David Maley (3) 11:32 – Pat Verbeek (4) | ||||||
| Cam Neely (6) – pp – 12:31 | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 04:04 – Tom Kurvers (6) | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 15 saves / 18 shots | Goalie stats | Sean Burke 33 saves / 34 shots | ||||||
| May 10 | New Jersey Devils | 1–7 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| Brendan Shanahan (2) – 18:05 | First period | 12:12 – pp – Michael Thelven (2) 17:24 – pp – Craig Janney (4) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 06:15 – Keith Crowder (3) 08:41 – Bob Joyce (6) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 03:28 – Bob Joyce (7) 09:05 – pp – Ken Linseman (8) 09:29 – Bob Sweeney (5) | ||||||
| Sean Burke 24 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 24 saves / 25 shots | ||||||
| May 12 | Boston Bruins | 3–6 | New Jersey Devils | Brendan Byrne Arena | Recap | |||
| Willi Plett (2) – 01:57 | First period | 15:40 – Mark Johnson (9) 18:15 – Mark Johnson (10) | ||||||
| Bob Sweeney (6) – pp – 07:24 Michael Thelven (3) – 14:17 |
Second period | 11:03 – Doug Brown (5) 17:12 – John MacLean (6) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 02:45 – Pat Conacher (2) 17:30 – pp – Patrik Sundstrom (7) | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 8 saves / 13 shots Andy Moog 14 saves / 15 shots |
Goalie stats | Sean Burke 26 saves / 29 shots | ||||||
| May 14 | New Jersey Devils | 2–6 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 08:59 – pp – Craig Janney (5) 11:59 – Moe Lemay (3) | ||||||
| John MacLean (7) – 15:28 | Second period | 02:57 – Rick Middleton (5) | ||||||
| Kirk Muller (4) – 03:41 | Third period | 12:05 – Craig Janney (6) 13:19 – Cam Neely (7) 19:36 – sh – Ken Linseman (9) | ||||||
| Sean Burke 25 saves / 30 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 17 saves / 19 shots | ||||||
| Boston won series 4–3 | |
Clarence Campbell Conference Final
(S2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (N1) Detroit Red Wings
This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams and was a rematch of the previous year's Clarence Campbell Conference Final which Edmonton won in five games.
| May 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 1–4 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 07:30 – pp – Jari Kurri (9) | ||||||
| Brent Ashton (3) – 14:17 | Second period | 01:11 – Randy Gregg (1) 15:54 – pp – Craig Simpson (6) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 02:07 – Esa Tikkanen (1) | ||||||
| Greg Stefan 28 saves / 32 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 15 saves / 16 shots | ||||||
| May 5 | Detroit Red Wings | 3–5 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| John Chabot (4) – 02:03 | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Mel Bridgman (3) – 15:20 Brent Ashton (4) – pp – 17:41 |
Second period | 05:24 – pp – Mark Messier (8) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 00:48 – Mark Messier (9) 01:18 – Jari Kurri (10) 05:01 – pp – Craig Simpson (7) 19:41 – Wayne Gretzky (6) | ||||||
| Glen Hanlon 10 saves / 14 shots Greg Stefan 9 saves / 9 shots |
Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 25 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| May 7 | Edmonton Oilers | 2–5 | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | |||
| Wayne Gretzky (7) – pp – 04:47 | First period | 11:57 – pp – Brent Ashton (5) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 16:32 – Brent Ashton (6) 19:44 – pp – Bob Probert (6) | ||||||
| Wayne Gretzky (8) – pp – 01:10 | Third period | 17:37 – Dave Barr (4) 18:33 – Mel Bridgman (4) | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Glen Hanlon 23 saves / 25 shots | ||||||
| May 9 | Edmonton Oilers | 4–3 | OT | Detroit Red Wings | Joe Louis Arena | Recap | ||
| Craig Simpson (8) – 15:22 | First period | 19:21 – pp – Adam Oates (7) | ||||||
| Jari Kurri (11) – 00:23 Glenn Anderson (6) – pp – 04:03 |
Second period | 10:25 – pp – Bob Probert (7) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 13:13 – pp – Bob Probert (8) | ||||||
| Jari Kurri (12) – 11:02 | First overtime period | No scoring | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 20 saves / 23 shots | Goalie stats | Glen Hanlon 24 saves / 28 shots | ||||||
| May 11 | Detroit Red Wings | 4–8 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Brent Ashton (7) – sh – 04:19 | First period | 00:47 – Craig Simpson (9) 08:08 – Craig Simpson (10) | ||||||
| Dave Barr (5) – 00:41 | Second period | 05:55 – Mark Messier (10) 14:36 – Mike Krushelnyski (2) 15:00 – Keith Acton (1) 18:02 – pp – Jari Kurri (13) | ||||||
| Adam Oates (8) – 01:33 Steve Yzerman (1) – 04:13 |
Third period | 14:49 – Mike Krushelnyski (3) 19:08 – Wayne Gretzky (9) | ||||||
| Greg Stefan 25 saves / 32 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 20 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| Edmonton won series 4–1 | |
Stanley Cup Finals
This was the first Finals meeting between these two teams.
The original game four is well known for the high heat resulting in fog that interfered with the game and a subsequent power outage that caused the game to be canceled at 16:37 of the second period. The game results didn't count, but players were able to retain their stats counting towards their playoff records, as per NHL rules. The series moved on to Edmonton, thus allowing the Oilers to win the Cup at home at Northlands Coliseum and complete the sweep.
| May 18 | Boston Bruins | 1–2 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | No scoring | ||||||
| Cam Neely (8) – 13:15 | Second period | 01:56 – pp – Wayne Gretzky (10) | ||||||
| No scoring | Third period | 01:15 – Keith Acton (2) | ||||||
| Andy Moog 20 saves / 22 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 13 saves / 14 shots | ||||||
| May 20 | Boston Bruins | 2–4 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| No scoring | First period | 15:57 – pp – Glenn Anderson (7) 19:30 – pp – Mark Messier (11) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Bob Joyce (8) – 00:35 Ken Linseman (10) – 03:16 |
Third period | 11:21 – Wayne Gretzky (11) 19:53 – Jari Kurri (14) | ||||||
| Rejean Lemelin 28 saves / 31 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 10 saves / 12 shots | ||||||
| May 22 | Edmonton Oilers | 6–3 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| Kevin McClelland (2) – 16:18 | First period | 02:46 – Randy Burridge (2) | ||||||
| Esa Tikkanen (5) – pp – 10:25 Glenn Anderson (9) – 12:57 |
Second period | No scoring | ||||||
| Esa Tikkanen (6) – 01:32 Craig Simpson (11) – 10:28 Esa Tikkanen (7) – 19:40 |
Third period | 04:19 – Moe Lemay (4) 14:02 – pp – Cam Neely (9) | ||||||
| Grant Fuhr 25 saves / 28 shots | Goalie stats | Rejean Lemelin 19 saves / 24 shots | ||||||
| May 24 | Edmonton Oilers | 3–3 | Boston Bruins | Boston Garden | Recap | |||
| Glenn Anderson (9) – 00:10 Esa Tikkanen (8) – pp – 15:33 |
First period | 16:56 – Greg Hawgood (1) | ||||||
| Craig Simpson (12) – pp – 16:37 | Second period | 06:12 – sh – Glen Wesley (5) 07:37 – pp – Glen Wesley (6) | ||||||
| Third period | ||||||||
| Grant Fuhr 18 saves / 21 shots | Goalie stats | Andy Moog 16 saves, 19 shots | ||||||
| May 26 | Boston Bruins | 3–6 | Edmonton Oilers | Northlands Coliseum | Recap | |||
| Steve Kasper (6) – 00:43 Ken Linseman (11) – pp – 09:44 |
First period | 06:07 – Normand Lacombe (3) 15:03 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (9) | ||||||
| No scoring | Second period | 06:38 – Mike Krushelnyski (4) 09:44 – pp – Wayne Gretzky (12) 19:58 – Craig Simpson (13) | ||||||
| Steve Kasper (7) – 06:35 | Third period | 01:21 – Esa Tikkanen (10) | ||||||
| Andy Moog 20 saves / 26 shots | Goalie stats | Grant Fuhr 16 saves / 19 shots | ||||||
| Edmonton won series 4–0 | |
Player statistics
Skaters
These are the top ten skaters based on points.[6]
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | +/– | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Gretzky | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 12 | 31 | 43 | +9 | 16 |
| Mark Messier | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 11 | 23 | 34 | +9 | 29 |
| Jari Kurri | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 14 | 17 | 31 | +15 | 12 |
| Esa Tikkanen | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 10 | 17 | 27 | +2 | 72 |
| Ken Linseman | Boston Bruins | 23 | 11 | 14 | 25 | +4 | 56 |
| Glenn Anderson | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 9 | 16 | 25 | +5 | 49 |
| Bob Probert | Detroit Red Wings | 16 | 8 | 13 | 21 | +8 | 51 |
| Ray Bourque | Boston Bruins | 23 | 3 | 18 | 21 | +16 | 26 |
| Adam Oates | Detroit Red Wings | 16 | 8 | 12 | 20 | -2 | 6 |
| Patrik Sundstrom | New Jersey Devils | 18 | 7 | 13 | 20 | +7 | 14 |
Goaltenders
This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage, with at least 420 minutes played. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded.[7]
| Player | Team | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rejean Lemelin | Boston Bruins | 17 | 11 | 6 | 428 | 45 | 2.64 | .895 | 1 | 1024:27 |
| Grant Fuhr | Edmonton Oilers | 19 | 16 | 2 | 470 | 55 | 2.91 | .883 | 0 | 1135:37 |
| Glen Hanlon | Detroit Red Wings | 8 | 4 | 3 | 170 | 22 | 3.07 | .871 | 1 | 430:37 |
| Pete Peeters | Washington Capitals | 12 | 7 | 5 | 325 | 34 | 3.12 | .895 | 0 | 652:49 |
| Patrick Roy | Montreal Canadiens | 8 | 3 | 4 | 217 | 24 | 3.36 | .889 | 0 | 428:57 |
See also
Further reading
References
- ^ a b "Schoenfeld Is Penalized". The New York Times. May 7, 1988. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ Finn, Robin (May 9, 1988). "Suspension of Devils' Coach Causes Uproar, Delays Game". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ "Off-ice officials took the ice in 1988". NHL.com. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ "Schoenfeld Gets Suspension, Fine : New Jersey Coach Penalized for Altercation With Official". Los Angeles Times. May 11, 1988. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ Finn, Robin (May 11, 1988). "Schoenfeld Upset By League Decision". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 1, 2021.
- ^ NHL.com - Skater Stats
- ^ NHL.com - Goalie Stats
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Playoffs not held in 2005 due to an unresolved lockout | |
