1992 Stanley Cup Finals

The 1992 Stanley Cup Finals was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1991–92 season, and the culmination of the 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Prince of Wales Conference and defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins and the Clarence Campbell Conference champion Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks were appearing in their first Finals since 1973. After the Blackhawks jumped to an early 4–1 lead in the first game of the series, Mario Lemieux and the Penguins came back to win the game, sweep the series in four games, and win their second consecutive and second overall Stanley Cup. It was the 99th year of the Stanley Cup, and the first to extend into the month of June. It was the last final for Chicago Stadium as it closed in 1994.

1992 Stanley Cup Finals
1234 Total
Pittsburgh Penguins 5316 4
Chicago Blackhawks 4105 0
* – overtime period(s)
Location(s)Pittsburgh: Civic Arena (1, 2)
Chicago: Chicago Stadium (3, 4)
CoachesPittsburgh: Scotty Bowman
Chicago: Mike Keenan
CaptainsPittsburgh: Mario Lemieux
Chicago: Dirk Graham
National anthemsPittsburgh: Christina Aguilera[1]
Chicago: Wayne Messmer
DatesMay 26 – June 1
MVPMario Lemieux (Penguins)
Series-winning goalRon Francis (7:59, third, G4)
NetworksCBC (Canada-English)
SRC (Canada-French)
SportsChannel America (United States)
KBL (Pittsburgh area, games 1, 2)
KDKA (Pittsburgh area, games 3, 4)
SportsChannel Chicago (Chicago area)
AnnouncersBob Cole, Harry Neale and Dick Irvin, Jr. (CBC)
Claude Quenneville and Gilles Tremblay (SRC)
Jiggs McDonald and Bill Clement (SC America)
Mike Lange and Paul Steigerwald (KBL and KDKA)
Pat Foley and Dale Tallon (SC Chicago)

Paths to the Finals
Further information: 1992 Stanley Cup playoffs

Pittsburgh defeated the Washington Capitals 4–3, the New York Rangers 4–2, and the Boston Bruins 4–0.

Chicago had to defeat their three biggest rivals, first the St. Louis Blues 4–2, then their long-time Original Six rival Detroit Red Wings 4–0, and then, the Edmonton Oilers 4–0.

With their co-tenants at Chicago Stadium, the Bulls, coached by Phil Jackson and led by Michael Jordan, playing in (and winning) the NBA Finals, it was an opportunity for both the Blackhawks and the Bulls to help the city of Chicago become the first city to have both NHL and NBA championships in the same year.[2] (New York also had this opportunity in 1994, when the Knicks and Rangers made the finals in their respective sport; however, the result was the same, albeit a reversal of Chicago's ending, as the Rangers won their first Stanley Cup since 1940, and the Knicks lost, with both of those series going the full seven games.)

Chicago set an NHL playoff record in winning 11 games in a row to reach the finals.

Pittsburgh had won seven in a row entering the finals and swept Chicago in four games to tie Chicago's record. Pittsburgh then extended the playoff winning streak record to 14 with wins in the first three games against the New Jersey Devils in the following season's first playoff round.

Game summaries

The Penguins were led by captain Mario Lemieux, coach Scotty Bowman, and goaltender Tom Barrasso. The Blackhawks were led by captain Dirk Graham, head coach Mike Keenan and goaltender Ed Belfour. They also made history in having the first Russian-born player to have a chance to get their name on the Stanley Cup in Igor Kravchuk.[3]

Mario Lemieux won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP for the second consecutive year, becoming only the second player in NHL history to do so: Bernie Parent had won it when the Philadelphia Flyers won the Cup in the consecutive years of 1974 and 1975.

Although the series ended in a sweep for Pittsburgh, all four of its games were closely contested, with the largest margin of victory occurring in Pittsburgh’s 3–1 win in Game 2. The other three games, which were all one-goal affairs, featured a Pittsburgh rally from being down three goals (Game 1), a 1–0 game (Game 3), and a high-scoring Game 4 (which was the first NHL game played in the month of June).

Game 1

In the opening game of the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals, the Pittsburgh Penguins overcame deficits of 3–0 in the first period and 4–1 halfway through the second period to win by a score of 5–4. This was the first victory from a three-goal deficit in the Finals since 1944

Six minutes into the game, the Blackhawks' forecheck drew a penalty against Pittsburgh. Right off the subsequent face-off, Chris Chelios scored the first goal of the Stanley Cup Finals on a wrist shot. After surviving a Pittsburgh powerplay, the Blackhawks' aggressive offensive-zone strategy would lead to two more Blackhawks goals within a 26-second window. First, Michel Goulet converted a takeaway on the boards in the Penguins' zone to make it 2–0, then Dirk Graham scored on a rebound with the shot by Chelios. Pittsburgh got on the board after Igor Kravchuk got penalized for holding and Phil Bourque scored on a wraparound after Blackhawks goalkeeper Ed Belfour lost his stick. Chicago subsequently extended their lead to 4–1 via a two-on-one breakaway from Steve Larmer to Brent Sutter, who beat Tom Barrasso under his left leg. Just as their powerplay from Chicago's too-many-men penalty expired, Rick Tocchet deflected a shot from Paul Stanton into the Chicago net. Then, on the Penguins' next rush, Kevin Stevens drew several Blackhawks on him, which gave Mario Lemieux room to bank the puck off the Ed Belfour's leg, decreasing the deficit to 4–3. After fifteen minutes in the third, the Penguins would equalize the score. Aided by a pick on a Pittsburgh defender by Shawn McEachern, Jaromir Jagr deked around three Penguins, charging into the crease starting from the boards, and beat Belfour on a backhand shot to tie the game at 4–4 with 4:55 remaining in the third period. After both Mike Hudson for the Blackhawks and Lemieux for the Penguins drew penalties while charging the offensive zone against two opposing defenders, almost exactly two minutes apart, the game seemed poised to go into overtime with Pittsburgh playing with a one-man advantage. However, on an offensive-zone face-off to start the Pittsburgh powerplay, Mario Lemieux charged the Blackhawks' net from the weak side and put a rebound off a shot by Larry Murphy past Belfour. Pittsburgh's first lead of the game thus came with thirteen seconds remaining in the game. The Penguins held off the Blackhawks to win Game 1 5–4.[4]

Game 2

In Game 2, nearly ten minutes into the game, Bob Errey scored the first goal for Pittsburgh shorthanded. In the second period, after denying Lemieux his scoring chance, Bryan Marchment trailed the subsequent play into the Pittsburgh zone and then won a physical battle against Larry Murphy. On a seemingly broken play he put the puck past Tom Barrasso into the Pittsburgh goal to tie the game at 1–1. However, Marchment was called for an elbow check and Mario Lemieux scored on a one timer set up by Rick Tocchet, 43 seconds into the ensuing powerplay. Two-and-a-half minutes later, Brian Marchment, who had been the catalyst for Chicago's lone goal, was beaten on the boards by Rick Tocchet. Tocchet again fed Lemieux in the slot, and another one timer extended the Pittsburgh lead to 3–1. The Penguins then limited the Blackhawks shots to four in the third period to take Game 2 3–1.[5]

Game 3

In Game 3, the Blackhawks put up more offensive pressure on the Penguins. Pittsburgh's goalie instead shut out the Blackhawks stopping all 27 shots in the three periods. The lone goal came from Kevin Stevens putting his team into a 3–0 series lead.[6]

Game 4

After the series saw a total of just one goal over the course of 86 minutes of hockey spanning from the second period of Game 2 to the early moments of Game 4, the two teams erupted for an 11-goal outburst in Game 4. There were four goals scored in the first seven minutes of the game, and five in the first eleven, with the first period ending with a score of 3–3. The lasting image of the opening stanza was perhaps the sea of hats on the ice after Blackhawks captain Dirk Graham recorded a hat trick by accounting for all three of Chicago's goals. Pittsburgh's goals were scored by Jaromir Jagr after Ed Belfour turned over the puck behind his goal; by Kevin Stevens on a one-handed backhand wrist shot that was deemed "stoppable" by TV analyst Bill Clement (and sparked the change in goal);[7] and by Mario Lemieux on a rebound off a shot from Larry Murphy, which had been set up by Lemieux. Graham scored his hat trick to answer each of these goals on a rebound off his own backhand shot and two one-timers after he was left alone at the Pittsburgh crease in both instances. There were two goals scored in the second period – one on each side – to make the score 4–4. Pittsburgh's tally came just 58 seconds into the period, when Rick Tocchet was left alone after the Blackhawks neglected to defend the area near the crease. With less than five minutes to go in the second period, the Blackhawks immediately scored a goal to tie the game for the fourth time, when Jeremy Roenick deflected a shot by Brian Noonan off Murphy's leg. The proverbial floodgates would, however, open almost exactly five minutes into the final period, when the Penguins scored twice in just over three minutes. At first, a shoulder check by Mario Lemieux against Chris Chelios behind the Chicago goal set up a wrist shot by Larry Murphy through traffic, which went past Hasek for a 5–4 Pittsburgh lead. Then Ron Francis converted a slapshot in a two-on-one situation to give Pittsburgh its first two-goal lead of the game. Chicago would come closer once more, when Jeremy Roenick scored at the 11:18 mark to make it 6–5 Pittsburgh after Larry Murphy tripped behind his own goal, just over three minutes after the second Pittsburgh goal of the period. Just a minute later, Chris Chelios hit the goal post, and the Roenick-Chelios pair would also sustain pressure in the final minute of the game with Chicago playing with an empty net. Overall however, Pittsburgh still controlled most stretches of these final eight minutes, as they didn't have trouble getting out of their zone. Pittsburgh finished the game 6–5 earning their second Stanley Cup. Mario Lemieux was given the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs.[8]

Statistical summary

While the 1992 Stanley Cup Finals, on paper, appear to have been lopsided, ending in a 4–0 series sweep for Pittsburgh, each individual game was closely contested.[9] As a matter of fact, despite winning all the games, Pittsburgh led by as many as two goals for only a total of 28 minutes – with 24 1/2 of these minutes occurring at the end of Game 2[10] (when Pittsburgh was leading 3–1). To put it in different terms: 212 of 240 minutes of hockey were played within a one-goal window or had the losing team, Chicago, up by more than one goal (which was the case for 23 minutes in Game 1[11]).

Both teams recorded almost the same amount of shots on goal, with Pittsburgh's 113 averaging for one more per game than Chicago's 109 (28.3 vs. 27.3). In each of the first three games, the home team (Pittsburgh twice, Chicago once) outshot the visiting team by at least five, while the shots on goal were even in Game 4[12].

While both teams had an equal amount of powerplay opportunities (16), Pittsburgh had a decisive advantage on special teams: The Penguins scored four powerplay goals – succeeding in such situations in three of the four games – as opposed to Chicago, which mustered only one powerplay goal. Coincidentally, that lone Chicago tally on a one-man advantage was the very first goal of the series (occurring six minutes into Game 1). In their 15 remaining powerplays, the Blackhawks were not only shut out but also yielded a short-handed goal to Pittsburgh (the first goal in Game 2, which Pittsburgh ended up winning, 3–1).

Individually, Mario Lemieux led all players with five goals scored (four of which came in the first two games), on his way to being awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy. Dirk Graham led Chicago with four goals (with three coming on his Game 4 hat trick). Jeremy Roenick is the only other Blackhawk to score more than once (tallying two goals), whereas Rick Tocchet, Kevin Stevens, and Jaromir Jagr all scored twice for Pittsburgh.

Rick Tocchet led all players in assists with six, recording at least one in every game. Chris Chelios led Chicago with four assists (two each in games 1 and 4).

Chicago was more balanced in the plus-minus statistic, with every player ending up in a range from +2 to –2, whereas Pittsburgh defenders Jim Paek and Kjell Samuelsson both went +4, while Larry Murphy and Gordie Roberts went –3 and –4, respectively.

While Chicago had entered the series on an eleven-game winning streak, Pittsburgh ended it on such a mark, adding the four consecutive finals victories to its streak of seven games.

Broadcasting

In Canada, the series was televised in English on the CBC and in French on SRC.

In the United States, this was the last Stanley Cup Finals to air nationally on SportsChannel America. ESPN would pick up the national U.S. contract for the next season.

SportsChannel America's national coverage was blacked out in the Chicago and Pittsburgh areas due to the local rights to Blackhawks and Penguins games in those respective TV markets. SportsChannel Chicago aired the games in Chicago. In Pittsburgh, KBL televised games one and two while KDKA aired games three and four.

Team rosters

Years indicated in boldface under the "Finals appearance" column signify that the player won the Stanley Cup in the given year.

Chicago Blackhawks
# Nat Player Position Hand Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
30 Ed Belfour G L 1988–89 Carman, Manitoba first
4 Keith Brown D R 1979 Corner Brook, Newfoundland and Labrador first
22 Rob Brown RW L 1991–92 Kingston, Ontario first (did not play)
25 Rod Buskas D R 1991–92 Wetaskiwin, Alberta first (did not play)
7 Chris Chelios – A D R 1990–91 Chicago, Illinois third (1986, 1989)
14 Greg Gilbert LW L 1988–89 Mississauga, Ontario fourth (1982, 1983, 1984)
16 Michel Goulet LW L 1989–90 Péribonka, Quebec first
33 Dirk Graham – C RW R 1987–88 Regina, Saskatchewan first
23 Stu Grimson LW L 1990–91 Vancouver, British Columbia first
31 Dominik Hasek G L 1983 Pardubice, Czechoslovakia first
34 Tony Horacek LW L 1991–92 Vancouver, British Columbia first (did not play)
11 Tony Hrkac C L 1991–92 Thunder Bay, Ontario first (did not play)
20 Mike Hudson C L 1986 Guelph, Ontario first
3 Igor Kravchuk D L 1991 Ufa, Soviet Union first
6 Frantisek Kucera D L 1983 Prague, Czechoslovakia first (did not play)
28 Steve Larmer – A RW L 1980 Peterborough, Ontario first
15 Brad Lauer LW L 1991–92 Humboldt, Saskatchewan first (did not play)
26 Jocelyn Lemieux RW L 1989–90 Mont-Laurier, Quebec first
2 Bryan Marchment D L 1991–92 Scarborough, Ontario first
32 Stephane Matteau LW L 1991–92 Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec first
19 Dean McAmmond C L 1991 Grande Cache, Alberta first (did not play)
19 Brian Noonan RW R 1983 Boston, Massachusetts first
44 Mike Peluso LW L 1990–91 Pengilly, Minnesota first
27 Jeremy Roenick C R 1988 Boston, Massachusetts first
8 Cam Russell D L 1987 Halifax, Nova Scotia first
5 Steve Smith D L 1991–92 Glasgow, Scotland fourth (1987, 1988, 1990)
12 Brent Sutter C R 1991–92 Viking, Alberta fifth (1981, 1982, 1983, 1984)

Pittsburgh Penguins
# Nat Player Position Hand Acquired Place of birth Finals appearance
35 Tom Barrasso G R 1988–89 Boston, Massachusetts second (1991)
29 Phil Bourque LW L 1983–84 Chelmsford, Massachusetts second (1991)
14 Jock Callander RW R 1987–88 Regina, Saskatchewan first (did not play)
16 Jay Caufield RW R 1988–89 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania second (1991) (did not play)
6 Jeff Chychrun D R 1991–92 LaSalle, Quebec first (did not play)
43 Jeff Daniels LW L 1990–91 Oshawa, Ontario first (did not play)
12 Bob Errey – A LW L 1983 Montreal, Quebec second (1991)
10 Ron Francis C L 1990–91 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario second (1991)
38 Jiri Hrdina C L 1990–91 Prague, Czechoslovakia third (1989, 1991)
68 Jaromir Jagr RW L 1990 Kladno, Czechoslovakia second (1991)
3 Grant Jennings D L 1990–91 Hudson Bay, Saskatchewan second (1991)
20 Jamie Leach RW R 1991–92 Winnipeg, Manitoba first (did not play)
66 Mario Lemieux – C C R 1984 Montreal, Quebec second (1991)
24 Troy Loney LW L 1982 Bow Island, Alberta second (1991)
15 Shawn McEachern LW L 1987 Waltham, Massachusetts first
34 Dave Michayluk RW L 1991–92 Wakaw, Saskatchewan first (did not play)
7 Joe Mullen RW R 1990–91 New York, New York fourth (1986, 1989, 1991)
55 Larry Murphy D R 1989–90 Scarborough, Ontario second (1991)
45 Mike Needham RW R 1991–92 Calgary, Alberta first (did not play)
2 Jim Paek D L 1985 Seoul, South Korea second (1991)
18 Ken Priestlay C L 1990–91 Vancouver, British Columbia first (did not play)
28 Gordie Roberts D L 1990–91 Detroit, Michigan third (1981, 1991)
23 Kjell Samuelsson D R 1991–92 Tingsryd, Sweden second (1987)
5 Ulf Samuelsson D L 1990–91 Fagersta, Sweden second (1991)
22 Paul Stanton D R 1985 Boston, Massachusetts second (1991)
25 Kevin Stevens LW L 1983–84 Brockton, Massachusetts second (1991)
32 Peter Taglianetti D L 1990–91 Framingham, Massachusetts second (1991) (did not play)
92 Rick Tocchet RW R 1991–92 Scarborough, Ontario third (1985, 1987)
19 Bryan Trottier – A C L 1990–91 Val Marie, Saskatchewan seventh (1980, 1981, 1982, 1983, 1984, 1991)
31 Ken Wregget G L 1991–92 Brandon, Manitoba first
1 Wendell Young G L 1988–89 Halifax, Nova Scotia second (1991) (did not play)

Pittsburgh Penguins – 1992 Stanley Cup champions

Players

Coaching and administrative staff

Stanley Cup engraving
  • Mike Needham* did not play in any regular season games for Pittsburgh (played in the minors), but played in five playoff games (one playoff game in the conference finals, but not in the Finals). His name was engraved on the Stanley Cup, even though he did not qualify.
  • Jeff Daniels* played in two regular season games for Pittsburgh, spent the rest of the regular season in the minors, but was recalled during the playoffs. His name was also engraved on the Stanley Cup, even though he did not qualify.
  • Ken Priestlay† played in 49 regular season games and was sent to the minors at the trade deadline, but rejoined the team late in the playoffs. Priestlay was also included on the Stanley Cup even though he played in the minors during the playoffs. Pittsburgh included a record 31 players on the Stanley Cup in 1992.
  • Bob Johnson, head coach of the Penguins in the 1990–91 season and for their 1991 championship, died on November 26, 1991, of cancer. The NHL allowed the 1991–92 Penguins to have his name engraved on the Cup.

Pierre McGuire, Les Binkley, John Gill, Charlie Hodge, Ralph Cox were with the team as Scouts in 1990–91, but names were not included on the Stanley Cup that year. All five members have two Stanley Cup rings with Pittsburgh. Team Doctor Charles Burke won cups with Pittsburgh in 1991 and 1992, but his name was left off the Stanley Cup.

Aftermath

The Penguins won a league record 17-straight games en route to the Presidents' Trophy in the 1992–93 season, despite Mario Lemieux missing much of the season to Hodgkin's lymphoma. However, they lost in the Patrick Division final to the New York Islanders.

The Blackhawks, however, got swept in the first round to the St. Louis Blues, 4-0. The Blackhawks would not return to the Stanley Cup Finals until 2010, when they defeated the Penguins' cross-state rivals, the Philadelphia Flyers, in six games.

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gollark: :banhammer:
gollark: I need to figure out some way to mute Clyde.
gollark: :ping: :pong:
gollark: :bot:

See also

Notes
  1. Anderson, Kyle (January 24, 2011). "WHEN CHRISTINA AGUILERA PERFORMS THE NATIONAL ANTHEM, PITTSBURGH TEAMS WIN CHAMPIONSHIPS". MTV News. Retrieved March 3, 2017.
  2. Wilbon, Michael (May 27, 1992). "Chicago's the Winning City With Blackhawks and Bulls". The Washington Post. p. B03. Certainly you've wondered by now how many times teams from the same city have won NBA and NHL championships in the same season. None...This will be the first. Chicago: City of Champions.
  3. First Russians win Cup - Because It's The Cup on YouTube
  4. "Chicago Blackhawks - Pittsburgh Penguins - May 26, 1992". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L. P. May 26, 1992. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  5. "Chicago Blackhawks - Pittsburgh Penguins - May 28, 1992". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L. P. May 28, 1992. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  6. "Pittsburgh Penguins - Chicago Blackhawks - May 30, 1992". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L. P. May 30, 1992. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  7. NHL 1992 Stanley Cup Finals - Pittsburgh Penguins at Chicago Blackhawks - Game 4 Full Game. YouTube.com. emoneypitt. June 1, 1992. Retrieved June 9, 2020.
  8. "Pittsburgh Penguins - Chicago Blackhawks - June 1, 1992". NHL.com. NHL Enterprises, L. P. June 1, 1992. Retrieved June 26, 2020.
  9. Series summary Hockey Reference. Retrieved June 11, 2020.
  10. Game 2 boxscore Hockey Reference. Retrieved June 8, 2020.
  11. Game 1 boxscore Hockey Reference. Retrieved June 7, 2020.
  12. Game 4 boxscore Hockey Reference. Retrieved June 10, 2020.

References
  • Diamond, Dan (2000). Total Stanley Cup. NHL.
  • Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). Lord Stanley's Cup. Bolton, Ont.: Fenn Pub. pp. 12, 50. ISBN 978-1-55168-261-7.
  • NHL (1991). National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 1991–92.
Preceded by
Pittsburgh Penguins
1991		 Pittsburgh Penguins
Stanley Cup Champions
1992		 Succeeded by
Montreal Canadiens
1993
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