1998 Stanley Cup playoffs

The 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs, the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL), began on April 22, 1998 following the 1997–98 regular season. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-7 series for conference quarterfinals, semifinals and championships, and then the conference champions played a best-of-7 series for the Stanley Cup.

1998 Stanley Cup playoffs

Tournament details
Dates	April 22–June 16, 1998
Teams	16
Defending champions	Detroit Red Wings
Final positions
Champions	Detroit Red Wings
Runner-up	Washington Capitals
Semifinalists	Buffalo Sabres Dallas Stars
Tournament statistics
Scoring leader(s)	Steve Yzerman (Red Wings) (24 points)
MVP	Steve Yzerman (Red Wings)
← 1997 1999 →

The playoffs concluded on June 16 with the Detroit Red Wings winning their second consecutive Stanley Cup championship, defeating the Washington Capitals, who appeared in their very first Finals, in a four-game sweep. Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman was named playoff MVP, and awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy. The 1997–98 Detroit Red Wings were the last team to defend their Stanley Cup Championship until the Pittsburgh Penguins successfully defended their Stanley Cup title in 2017.

In the Eastern Semis, the Buffalo Sabres made history as they became the first team in NHL history to complete a four-game sweep of the Montreal Canadiens on Montreal ice.[1]

For the first time since 1969 the Chicago Blackhawks missed the playoffs. Also, both the Islanders and Rangers missed the playoffs in the same season for the first time.

The Stanley Cup, awarded to the champion of the NHL.

Playoff seeds

The following teams qualified for the playoffs:

Eastern Conference

1. New Jersey Devils, Atlantic Division champions, Eastern Conference regular season champions – 107 points
2. Pittsburgh Penguins, Northeast Division champions – 98 points
3. Philadelphia Flyers – 95 points
4. Washington Capitals – 92 points
5. Boston Bruins – 91 points
6. Buffalo Sabres – 89 points
7. Montreal Canadiens – 87 points
8. Ottawa Senators – 83 points

Western Conference

1. Dallas Stars, Central Division champions, Western Conference regular season champions, Presidents' Trophy winners – 109 points
2. Colorado Avalanche, Pacific Division champions – 95 points
3. Detroit Red Wings – 103 points
4. St. Louis Blues – 98 points
5. Los Angeles Kings – 87 points
6. Phoenix Coyotes – 82 points
7. Edmonton Oilers – 80 points
8. San Jose Sharks – 78 points

Playoff bracket

	Conference Quarterfinals					Conference Semifinals					Conference Finals					Stanley Cup Finals
	1	New Jersey	2			4	Washington	4
	8	Ottawa	4			8	Ottawa	1
	2	Pittsburgh	2							Eastern Conference
	7	Montreal	4
											4	Washington	4
										6	Buffalo	2
	3	Philadelphia	1
	6	Buffalo	4
	4	Washington	4			6	Buffalo	4
	5	Boston	2			7	Montreal	0
																E4	Washington	0
		(Pairings are re-seeded after the first round.)
																W3	Detroit	4
	1	Dallas	4			1	Dallas	4
	8	San Jose	2			7	Edmonton	1
	2	Colorado	3
	7	Edmonton	4
											1	Dallas	2
										3	Detroit	4
	3	Detroit	4
	6	Phoenix	2								Western Conference
	4	St. Louis	4			3	Detroit	4
	5	Los Angeles	0			4	St. Louis	2

• During the first three rounds home ice is determined by seeding number, not position on the bracket. In the Finals the team with the better regular season record has home ice.

Conference Quarterfinals

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

(1) New Jersey Devils vs. (8) Ottawa Senators

April 22	Ottawa Senators		2–1	OT	New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Alexei Yashin (1) – 18:48		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			16:36 – Doug Gilmour (1)
Bruce Gardiner (1) – 05:58		First overtime period			No scoring
Damian Rhodes 28 saves / 29 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 30 saves / 32 shots

April 24	Ottawa Senators		1–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
Chris Murray (1) – 03:38		First period			09:19 – pp – Dave Andreychuk (1)
No scoring		Second period			18:58 – Doug Gilmour (2)
No scoring		Third period			19:19 – en – Doug Gilmour (3)
Damian Rhodes 29 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 27 saves / 28 shots

April 26	New Jersey Devils		1–2	OT	Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Bobby Carpenter (1) – 00:36		Second period			04:56 – pp – Janne Laukkanen (1)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
No scoring		First overtime period			02:47 – pp – Alexei Yashin (2)
Martin Brodeur 21 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Damian Rhodes 30 saves / 31 shots

April 28	New Jersey Devils		3–4		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
Denis Pederson (1) – sh – 06:33		First period			16:20 – Daniel Alfredsson (1)
No scoring		Second period			06:50 – Daniel Alfredsson (2) 16:24 – pp – Jason York (1)
Scott Stevens (1) – 14:04 Doug Gilmour (4) – pp – 18:41		Third period			05:00 – Daniel Alfredsson (3)
Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 28 shots		Goalie stats			Damian Rhodes 31 saves / 34 shots

April 30	Ottawa Senators		1–3		New Jersey Devils	Continental Airlines Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			11:04 – sh – Brian Rolston (1)
No scoring		Second period			08:33 – pp – Lyle Odelein (1)
Igor Kravchuk (1) – 10:38		Third period			11:52 – Doug Gilmour (5)
Damian Rhodes 23 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Martin Brodeur 22 saves / 23 shots

May 2	New Jersey Devils		1–3		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
No scoring		First period			08:28 – pp – Alexei Yashin (3)
Kevin Dean (1) – 05:24		Second period			10:30 – Janne Laukkanen (2)
No scoring		Third period			19:10 – en – Igor Kravchuk (2)
Martin Brodeur 28 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Damian Rhodes 21 saves / 22 shots

Ottawa won series 4–2

(2) Pittsburgh Penguins vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens

April 23	Montreal Canadiens		3–2	OT	Pittsburgh Penguins	Civic Arena	Recap
Martin Rucinsky (1) – pp – 12:15		First period			No scoring
Peter Popovic (1) – 16:44		Second period			07:21 – sh – Brad Werenka (1)
No scoring		Third period			18:22 – Stu Barnes (1)
Benoit Brunet (1) – 18:43		First overtime period			No scoring
Andy Moog 34 saves / 36 shots		Goalie stats			Tom Barrasso 37 saves / 40 shots

April 25	Montreal Canadiens		1–4		Pittsburgh Penguins	Civic Arena	Recap
Vincent Damphousse (1) – pp – 18:29		First period			11:13 – pp – Eddie Olczyk (1)
No scoring		Second period			10:42 – Stu Barnes (2)
No scoring		Third period			01:12 – Stu Barnes (3) 19:03 – en – Ron Francis (1)
Andy Moog 24 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Tom Barrasso 27 saves / 28 shots

April 27	Pittsburgh Penguins		1–3		Montreal Canadiens	Molson Centre	Recap
Jaromir Jagr (1) – 17:10		First period			05:33 – Martin Rucinsky (2)
No scoring		Second period			04:47 – pp – Shayne Corson (1)
No scoring		Third period			09:56 – Shayne Corson (2)
Tom Barrasso 19 saves / 22 shots		Goalie stats			Andy Moog 19 saves / 20 shots

April 29	Pittsburgh Penguins		6–3		Montreal Canadiens	Molson Centre	Recap
Rob Brown (1) – pp – 03:19 Kevin Hatcher (1) – pp – 04:43 Jaromir Jagr (2) – pp – 16:53 Eddie Olczyk (2) – sh – 19:25		First period			06:25 – pp – Vladimir Malakhov (1)
Martin Straka (1) – sh – 02:59		Second period			No scoring
Jaromir Jagr (3) – en – 19:48		Third period			01:48 – Marc Bureau (1) 17:30 – Jonas Hoglund (1)
Tom Barrasso 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Andy Moog 4 saves / 9 shots Jose Theodore 10 saves / 10 shots

May 1	Montreal Canadiens		5–2		Pittsburgh Penguins	Civic Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Patrice Brisebois (1) – 10:33 Shayne Corson (3) – 12:02		Second period			No scoring
Mark Recchi (1) – 01:01 Vincent Damphousse (2) – 18:53 Mark Recchi (2) – en – 19:19		Third period			05:45 – Martin Straka (2) 13:30 – Jaromir Jagr (4)
Andy Moog 32 saves / 34 shots		Goalie stats			Tom Barrasso 24 saves / 28 shots

May 3	Pittsburgh Penguins		0–3		Montreal Canadiens	Molson Centre	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			09:27 – Mark Recchi (3) 14:36 – Jonas Hoglund (2)
No scoring		Third period			06:52 – pp – Saku Koivu (1)
Tom Barrasso 20 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Andy Moog 21 saves / 21 shots

Montreal won series 4–2

(3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) Buffalo Sabres

April 22	Buffalo Sabres		3–2		Philadelphia Flyers	CoreStates Center	Recap
Michal Grosek (1) – 16:50		First period			No scoring
Wayne Primeau (1) – 18:18		Second period			No scoring
Donald Audette (1) – 11:43		Third period			08:29 – Rod Brind'Amour (1) 08:48 – Chris Gratton (1)
Dominik Hasek 22 saves / 24 shots		Goalie stats			Sean Burke 22 saves / 25 shots

April 24	Buffalo Sabres		2–3		Philadelphia Flyers	CoreStates Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			05:24 – Eric Lindros (1)
No scoring		Second period			04:07 – Chris Gratton (2)
Michal Grosek (2) – pp – 02:33 Dixon Ward (1) – 09:22		Third period			16:28 – pp – John LeClair (1)
Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 38 shots		Goalie stats			Sean Burke 25 saves / 27 shots

April 27	Philadelphia Flyers		1–6		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			02:20 – pp – Miroslav Satan (1)
No scoring		Second period			09:37 – Michal Grosek (3) 11:29 – pp – Miroslav Satan (2) 14:20 – sh – Darryl Shannon (1) 15:05 – sh – Brian Holzinger (1)
Dan McGillis (1) – pp – 13:51		Third period			19:23 – Vaclav Varada (1)
Sean Burke 15 saves / 20 shots Ron Hextall 7 saves / 8 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 31 saves / 32 shots

April 29	Philadelphia Flyers		1–4		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			17:37 – Dixon Ward (2) 19:05 – pp – Miroslav Satan (3)
No scoring		Second period			01:38 – pp – Matthew Barnaby (1) 05:16 – pp – Brian Holzinger (2)
Rod Brind'Amour (2) – pp – 05:16		Third period			No scoring
Sean Burke 16 saves / 20 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 44 saves / 45 shots

May 1	Buffalo Sabres		3–2	OT	Philadelphia Flyers	CoreStates Center	Recap
Jason Woolley (1) – pp – 02:29		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			01:49 – Mike Sillinger (1)
Donald Audette (2) – pp – 08:26		Third period			13:08 – pp – Dave Babych (1)
Michal Grosek (4) – pp – 05:40		First overtime period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 37 shots		Goalie stats			Sean Burke 26 saves / 29 shots

Buffalo won series 4–1

(4) Washington Capitals vs. (5) Boston Bruins

April 22	Boston Bruins		1–3		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			16:40 – Brian Bellows (1)
Dmitri Khristich (1) – pp – 06:53		Second period			02:49 – Sergei Gonchar (1)
No scoring		Third period			19:38 – en – Esa Tikkanen (1)
Byron Dafoe 25 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 27 saves / 28 shots

April 24	Boston Bruins		4–3	2OT	Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			04:45 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (2)
No scoring		Second period			03:24 – Calle Johansson (1)
Jason Allison (1) – 00:54 P. J. Axelsson (1) – 06:10 Darren Van Impe (1) – pp – 17:03		Third period			19:23 – Sergei Gonchar (2)
Darren Van Impe (2) – 00:54		Second overtime period			No scoring
Byron Dafoe 25 saves / 28 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 36 saves / 40 shots

April 26	Washington Capitals		3–2	2OT	Boston Bruins	Fleet Center	Recap
Sergei Gonchar (3) – pp – 18:30		First period			No scoring
Sergei Gonchar (4) – 14:15		Second period			19:00 – pp – Kyle McLaren (1)
No scoring		Third period			10:59 – pp – Dmitri Khristich (2)
Joe Juneau (1) – 06:31		Second overtime period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 52 saves / 54 shots		Goalie stats			Byron Dafoe 24 saves / 27 shots

April 28	Washington Capitals		3–0		Boston Bruins	Fleet Center	Recap
Adam Oates (1) – 16:10		First period			No scoring
Adam Oates (2) – pp – 02:42		Second period			No scoring
Ken Klee (1) – 09:14		Third period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 38 saves / 38 shots		Goalie stats			Byron Dafoe 15 saves / 18 shots

May 1	Boston Bruins		4–0		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Sergei Samsonov (1) – 02:20 Jason Allison (2) – pp – 08:54 Rob DiMaio (1) – 18:00		Second period			No scoring
Ray Bourque (1) – pp – 15:10		Third period			No scoring
Byron Dafoe 26 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 26 saves / 30 shots

May 3	Washington Capitals		3–2	OT	Boston Bruins	Fleet Center	Recap
Richard Zednik (1) – 06:54		First period			No scoring
Adam Oates (3) – 06:04		Second period			05:26 – Sergei Samsonov (2)
No scoring		Third period			09:13 – Anson Carter (1)
Brian Bellows (2) – 15:24		First overtime period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 47 saves / 49 shots		Goalie stats			Byron Dafoe 30 saves / 33 shots

Washington won series 4–2

Western Conference Quarterfinals

(1) Dallas Stars vs. (8) San Jose Sharks

April 22	San Jose Sharks		1–4		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
Owen Nolan (1) – pp – 12:40		First period			02:22 – Joe Nieuwendyk (1) 02:59 – Juha Lind (1)
No scoring		Second period			03:30 – pp – Derian Hatcher (1)
No scoring		Third period			19:58 – en – Mike Modano (1)
Mike Vernon 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 21 saves / 22 shots

April 24	San Jose Sharks		2–5		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			01:25 – pp – Jere Lehtinen (1) 19:31 – Derian Hatcher (2)
No scoring		Second period			16:29 – pp – Pat Verbeek (1) 18:26 – pp – Benoit Hogue (1)
Bill Houlder (1) – 07:46 Murray Craven (1) – 19:02		Third period			17:05 – pp – Pat Verbeek (2)
Mike Vernon 10 saves / 14 shots Kelly Hrudey 5 saves / 6 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 18 saves / 20 shots

April 26	Dallas Stars		1–4		San Jose Sharks	San Jose Arena	Recap
Sergei Zubov (1) – pp – 04:16		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			05:06 – John MacLean (1) 06:13 – pp – Owen Nolan (2)
No scoring		Third period			01:04 – pp – Al Iafrate (1) 16:55 – pp – Mike Rathje (1)
Ed Belfour 21 saves / 25 shots		Goalie stats			Mike Vernon 13 saves / 14 shots

April 28	Dallas Stars		0–1	OT	San Jose Sharks	San Jose Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
No scoring		First overtime period			06:31 – Andrei Zyuzin (1)
Ed Belfour 22 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Mike Vernon 26 saves / 26 shots

April 30	San Jose Sharks		2–3		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			19:57 – pp – Mike Modano (2)
John MacLean (2) – pp – 11:26 Ron Sutter (1) – 11:34		Second period			16:29 – Juha Lind (2)
No scoring		Third period			11:08 – Mike Modano (3)
Mike Vernon 23 saves / 26 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 18 saves / 20 shots

May 2	Dallas Stars		3–2	OT	San Jose Sharks	San Jose Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			16:25 – pp – Joe Murphy (1)
Richard Matvichuk (1) – 10:59 Mike Keane (1) – sh – 16:04		Second period			07:51 – Mike Ricci (1)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Mike Keane (2) – 03:43		First overtime period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 19 saves / 21 shots		Goalie stats			Mike Vernon 25 saves / 28 shots

Dallas won series 4–2

(2) Colorado Avalanche vs. (7) Edmonton Oilers

April 22	Edmonton Oilers		3–2		Colorado Avalanche	McNichols Sports Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			15:31 – pp – Peter Forsberg (1)
Bill Guerin (1) – pp – 11:02 Dean McAmmond (1) – 12:22 Boris Mironov (1) – 14:51		Third period			00:17 – Peter Forsberg (2)
Curtis Joseph 25 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Roy 31 saves / 34 shots

April 24	Edmonton Oilers		2–5		Colorado Avalanche	McNichols Sports Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			01:22 – pp – Valeri Kamensky (1) 02:54 – Peter Forsberg (3)
Bill Guerin (2) – pp – 10:53		Second period			11:28 – sh – Joe Sakic (1) 13:23 – pp – Peter Forsberg (4)
Bill Guerin (3) – pp – 15:27		Third period			00:30 – Valeri Kamensky (2)
Curtis Joseph 17 saves / 21 shots Bob Essensa 10 saves / 11 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Roy 25 saves / 27 shots

April 26	Colorado Avalanche		5–4	OT	Edmonton Oilers	Edmonton Coliseum	Recap
Adam Deadmarsh (1) – 03:50 Claude Lemieux (1) – pp – 14:19		First period			No scoring
Adam Deadmarsh (2) – pp – 09:51		Second period			06:50 – Boris Mironov (2) 16:44 – pp – Doug Weight (1)
Claude Lemieux (2) – 02:14		Third period			11:11 – Bill Guerin (4) 12:32 – Kelly Buchberger (1)
Joe Sakic (2) – 15:25		First overtime period			No scoring
Patrick Roy 27 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Curtis Joseph 30 saves / 35 shots

April 28	Colorado Avalanche		3–1		Edmonton Oilers	Edmonton Coliseum	Recap
Peter Forsberg (5) – 18:09		First period			17:52 – pp – Ryan Smyth (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Claude Lemieux (3) – 10:59 Peter Forsberg (6) – en – 19:35		Third period			No scoring
Patrick Roy 26 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Curtis Joseph 22 saves / 24 shots

April 30	Edmonton Oilers		3–1		Colorado Avalanche	McNichols Sports Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			16:20 – Stephane Yelle (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Bill Guerin (5) – pp – 04:25 Mike Grier (1) – 13:11 Mike Grier (2) – en – 19:05		Third period			No scoring
Curtis Joseph 30 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Roy 30 saves / 32 shots

May 2	Colorado Avalanche		0–2		Edmonton Oilers	Edmonton Coliseum	Recap
No scoring		First period			03:10 – Drake Berehowsky (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			10:21 – pp – Boris Mironov (3)
Patrick Roy 21 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Curtis Joseph 31 saves / 31 shots

May 4	Edmonton Oilers		4–0		Colorado Avalanche	McNichols Sports Arena	Recap
Janne Niinimaa (1) – 04:22 Bill Guerin (6) – 19:22		First period			No scoring
Todd Marchant (1) – 08:54		Second period			No scoring
Mats Lindgren (1) – 01:45		Third period			No scoring
Curtis Joseph 31 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Patrick Roy 13 saves / 17 shots

Edmonton won series 4–3

(3) Detroit Red Wings vs. (6) Phoenix Coyotes

April 22	Phoenix Coyotes		3–6		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
Rick Tocchet (1) – 11:27		First period			05:31 – pp – Nicklas Lidstrom (1) 10:36 – Joey Kocur (1) 12:59 – Sergei Fedorov (1)
No scoring		Second period			13:26 – Darren McCarty (1) 16:11 – Joey Kocur (2) 19:50 – Kirk Maltby (1)
Cliff Ronning (1) – 05:15 Bob Corkum (1) – 11:00		Third period			No scoring
Nikolai Khabibulin 17 saves / 22 shots Jimmy Waite 12 saves / 13 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 17 saves / 20 shots

April 24	Phoenix Coyotes		7–4		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
Mike Gartner (1) – pp – 02:34 Keith Tkachuk (1) – 11:00		First period			11:13 – Igor Larionov (1)
Rick Tocchet (2) – 04:39 Jeremy Roenick (1) – sh – 07:13 Jeremy Roenick (2) – sh – 13:24 Keith Tkachuk (2) – 13:51		Second period			13:32 – pp – Mathieu Dandenault (1) 15:10 – Sergei Fedorov (2)
Rick Tocchet (3) – 01:45		Third period			04:05 – Sergei Fedorov (3)
Nikolai Khabibulin 34 saves / 38 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 21 saves / 28 shots

April 26	Detroit Red Wings		2–3		Phoenix Coyotes	America West Arena	Recap
Sergei Fedorov (4) – 00:30 Brendan Shanahan (1) – 01:01		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			00:58 – pp – Rick Tocchet (4) 02:19 – pp – Jeremy Roenick (3) 12:47 – Jeremy Roenick (4)
Chris Osgood 29 saves / 32 shots		Goalie stats			Nikolai Khabibulin 25 saves / 27 shots

April 28	Detroit Red Wings		4–2		Phoenix Coyotes	America West Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			10:07 – pp – Rick Tocchet (5)
Igor Larionov (1) – 03:22 Vyacheslav Kozlov (1) – 06:25 Jamie Macoun (1) – 19:59		Second period			No scoring
Nicklas Lidstrom (2) – 13:59		Third period			18:31 – Shane Doan (1)
Chris Osgood 32 saves / 34 shots		Goalie stats			Nikolai Khabibulin 17 saves / 19 shots Jimmy Waite 18 saves / 20 shots

April 30	Phoenix Coyotes		1–3		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
Rick Tocchet (6) – pp – 13:18		First period			08:54 – Tomas Holmstrom (1) 17:26 – Vyacheslav Kozlov (2)
No scoring		Second period			01:07 – Sergei Fedorov (5)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Jimmy Waite 24 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 17 saves / 18 shots

May 3	Detroit Red Wings		5–2		Phoenix Coyotes	America West Arena	Recap
Steve Yzerman (1) – pp – 15:28		First period			07:03 – pp – Jeremy Roenick (5)
Brendan Shanahan (2) – pp – 03:45 Brendan Shanahan – pp – 14:10 Sergei Fedorov (6) – pp – 18:23		Second period			02:02 – Keith Tkachuk (3)
Brent Gilchrist (1) – 12:20		Third period			No scoring
Chris Osgood 22 saves / 24 shots		Goalie stats			Jimmy Waite 32 saves / 37 shots

Detroit won series 4–2

(4) St. Louis Blues vs. (5) Los Angeles Kings

Game four was the last playoff game at the Great Western Forum.

April 23	Los Angeles Kings		3–8		St. Louis Blues	Kiel Center	Recap
Craig Johnson (1) – 05:00		First period			01:42 – Pavol Demitra (1) 04:42 – pp – Geoff Courtnall (1)
No scoring		Second period			05:46 – pp – Pierre Turgeon (1) 09:17 – Jim Campbell (1) 13:41 – pp – Jim Campbell (2) 15:12 – Pierre Turgeon (2)
Glen Murray (1) – 03:19 Luc Robitaille (1) – 07:05		Third period			00:16 – Brett Hull (1) 01:08 – Pavol Demitra (2)
Stephane Fiset 22 saves / 27 shots Jamie Storr 10 saves / 13 shots		Goalie stats			Grant Fuhr 24 saves / 27 shots

April 25	Los Angeles Kings		1–2		St. Louis Blues	Kiel Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Glen Murray (2) – 07:49		Second period			01:43 – Chris Pronger (1)
No scoring		Third period			11:37 – pp – Jim Campbell (3)
Jamie Storr 25 saves / 27 shots		Goalie stats			Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 27 shots

April 27	St. Louis Blues		4–3		Los Angeles Kings	Great Western Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period			11:01 – Ian Laperriere (1) 19:51 – pp – Yanic Perreault (1)
No scoring		Second period			11:03 – Sean O'Donnell (1)
Pascal Rheaume (1) – pp – 09:59 Brett Hull (2) – pp – 11:03 Pierre Turgeon (3) – pp – 11:59 Terry Yake (1) – pp – 13:06		Third period			No scoring
Grant Fuhr 25 saves / 28 shots		Goalie stats			Jamie Storr 33 saves / 37 shots

April 29	St. Louis Blues		2–1		Los Angeles Kings	Great Western Forum	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Pavol Demitra (3) – 08:05		Second period			No scoring
Craig Conroy (1) – 03:22		Third period			08:00 – Jozef Stumpel (1)
Grant Fuhr 29 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Stephane Fiset 32 saves / 34 shots

St. Louis won series 4–0

Conference Semifinals

Eastern Conference Semifinals

(4) Washington Capitals vs. (8) Ottawa Senators

May 7	Ottawa Senators		2–4		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
Daniel Alfredsson (4) – sh – 12:21		First period			13:17 – Richard Zednik (2)
No scoring		Second period			04:03 – Adam Oates (4)
Andreas Dackell (1) – pp – 07:12		Third period			02:39 – Peter Bondra (1) 04:25 – Brian Bellows (3)
Damian Rhodes 12 saves / 16 shots Ron Tugnutt 7 saves / 7 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 36 saves / 38 shots

May 9	Ottawa Senators		1–6		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Alexei Yashin (4) – 10:50		Second period			09:46 – Brendan Witt (1) 11:14 – Joe Juneau (2) 14:59 – Joe Reekie (1) 18:58 – Richard Zednik (3)
No scoring		Third period			04:43 – pp – Brian Bellows (4) 15:18 – sh – Adam Oates (5)
Ron Tugnutt 12 saves / 18 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 30 saves / 31 shots

May 11	Washington Capitals		3–4		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
Sergei Gonchar (5) – pp – 10:41		First period			5:24 – pp – Daniel Alfredsson (5) 08:17 – Daniel Alfredsson (6) 16:58 – Daniel Alfredsson (7)
Peter Bondra (2) – pp – 01:08 Richard Zednik (4) – 13:49		Second period			10:54 – pp – Alexei Yashin (5)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 30 saves / 34 shots		Goalie stats			Damian Rhodes 14 saves / 17 shots

May 13	Washington Capitals		2–0		Ottawa Senators	Corel Centre	Recap
Sergei Gonchar (6) – sh – 18:30		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Mark Tinordi (1) – en – 19:55		Third period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 36 saves / 36 shots		Goalie stats			Damian Rhodes 9 saves / 10 shots

May 15	Ottawa Senators		0–3		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			02:39 – Joe Juneau (3)
No scoring		Third period			18:34 – pp – Sergei Gonchar (7) 19:42 – en – Calle Johansson (2)
Damian Rhodes 18 saves / 20 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 29 saves / 29 shots

Washington won series 4–1

(6) Buffalo Sabres vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens

May 8	Montreal Canadiens		2–3	OT	Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			02:52 – Brian Holzinger (3) 09:02 – pp – Geoff Sanderson (1)
No scoinrg		Second period			No scoring
Turner Stevenson (1) – 14:16 Vincent Damphousse (3) – 14:26		Third period			No scoring
No scoring		First overtime period			02:37 – Geoff Sanderson (2)
Andy Moog 22 saves / 25 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 46 saves / 48 shots

May 10	Montreal Canadiens		3–6		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Igor Ulanov (1) – 07:18		First period			08:38 – Michal Grosek (5)
Vladimir Malakhov (2) – pp – 04:19 Mark Recchi (4) – 14:44		Second period			02:24 – pp – Donald Audette (3) 15:12 – Dixon Ward (3) 18:27 – Matthew Barnaby (2)
No scoring		Third period			00:13 – Matthew Barnaby (3) 19:11 – en – Matthew Barnaby (4)
Andy Moog 16 saves / 21 shots Jocelyn Thibault 3 saves / 3 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 23 saves / 26 shots

May 12	Buffalo Sabres		5–4	2OT	Montreal Canadiens	Molson Centre	Recap
Curtis Brown (1) – pp – 04:46 Michael Peca (1) – 11:22 Vaclav Varada (2) – 19:12		First period			04:23 – Turner Stevenson (2) 12:16 – Turner Stevenson (3)
Geoff Sanderson (3) – 04:42		Second period			04:21 – Saku Koivu (2) 16:30 – Vladimir Malakhov (3)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Michael Peca (2) – 01:24		Second overtime period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 42 saves / 46 shots		Goalie stats			Jocelyn Thibault 9 saves / 13 shots Jose Theodore 17 saves / 18 shots

May 14	Buffalo Sabres		3–1		Montreal Canadiens	Molson Centre	Recap
Matthew Barnaby (5) – pp – 04:53		First period			No scoring
Donald Audette (4) – 08:41 Miroslav Satan (4) – pp – 10:31		Second period			13:31 – pp – Martin Rucinsky (4)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 37 saves / 38 shots		Goalie stats			Andy Moog 8 saves / 11 shots Jose Theodore 7 saves / 7 shots

Buffalo won series 4–0

Western Conference Semifinals

(1) Dallas Stars vs. (7) Edmonton Oilers

May 7	Edmonton Oilers		1–3		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			03:14 – pp – Sergei Zubov (2) 08:22 – Sergei Zubov (3)
Valeri Zelepukin (1) – 10:34		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			03:32 – Mike Keane (3)
Curtis Joseph 11 saves / 14 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 31 saves / 32 shots

May 9	Edmonton Oilers		2–0		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Doug Weight (2) – pp – 16:06		Second period			No scoring
Rem Murray (1) – en – 19:49		Third period			No scoring
Curtis Joseph 15 saves / 15 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 19 saves / 20 shots

May 11	Dallas Stars		1–0	OT	Edmonton Oilers	Edmonton Coliseum	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Benoit Hogue (2) – 13:07		First overtime period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 28 saves / 28 shots		Goalie stats			Curtis Joseph 27 saves / 28 shots

May 13	Dallas Stars		3–1		Edmonton Oilers	Edmonton Coliseum	Recap
Guy Carbonneau (1) – 08:36		First period			10:13 – Scott Fraser (1)
Benoit Hogue (3) – 13:52		Second period			No scoring
Benoit Hogue (4) – 11:45		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 23 saves / 24 shots		Goalie stats			Curtis Joseph 33 saves / 36 shots

May 16	Edmonton Oilers		1–2		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			19:55 – pp – Derian Hatcher (3)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Bill Guerin (7) – 19:31		Third period			17:34 – Greg Adams (1)
Curtis Joseph 24 saves / 25 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 18 saves / 19 shots

Dallas won series 4–1

(3) Detroit Red Wings vs. (4) St. Louis Blues

May 8	St. Louis Blues		4–2		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
Todd Gill (1) – sh – 03:55		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			14:33 – Martin Lapointe (1)
Jim Campbell (4) – pp – 00:18 Brett Hull (3) – 03:48 Jim Campbell (5) – 10:28		Third period			16:46 – pp – Tomas Holmstrom (2)
Grant Fuhr 27 saves / 29 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 25 saves / 29 shots

May 10	St. Louis Blues		1–6		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
Terry Yake – pp – 09:29		First period			17:13 – pp – Martin Lapointe (2)
No scoring		Second period			09:01 – Nicklas Lidstrom (3) 12:29 – Tomas Holmstrom (3) 18:47 – Steve Yzerman (2)
No scoring		Third period			18:51 – sh-en – Larry Murphy (1) 19:33 – Kirk Maltby (2)
Grant Fuhr 28 saves / 33 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 24 saves / 25 shots

May 12	Detroit Red Wings		3–2	2OT	St. Louis Blues	Kiel Center	Recap
Darren McCarty (2) – 03:10		First period			09:15 – pp – Al MacInnis (1)
Tomas Holmstrom (4) – 01:36		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			19:05 – Al MacInnis (2)
Brendan Shanahan (4) – 11:12		Second overtime period			No scoring
Chris Osgood 33 saves / 35 shots		Goalie stats			Grant Fuhr 42 saves / 45 shots

May 14	Detroit Red Wings		5–2		St. Louis Blues	Kiel Center	Recap
Brendan Shanahan (5) – pp – 09:20		First period			No scoring
Joey Kocur (3) – 00:54		Second period			01:16 – Jim Campbell (6) 19:53 – Pierre Turgeon (4)
Vyacheslav Kozlov (3) – 01:12 Sergei Fedorov (7) – sh – 08:05 Sergei Fedorov (8) – 19:14		Third period			No scoring
Grant Fuhr 19 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 26 saves / 28 shots

May 17	St. Louis Blues		3–1		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Geoff Courtnall (2) – 01:44 Mike Eastwood (1) – 02:58 Todd Gill (2) – pp – 09:21		Second period			11:03 – sh – Martin Lapointe (3)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Grant Fuhr 29 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 20 saves / 23 shots Kevin Hodson 0 saves / 0 shots

May 19	Detroit Red Wings		6–1		St. Louis Blues	Kiel Center	Recap
Darren McCarty (3) – 12:08 Doug Brown (1) – pp – 14:29		First period			No scoring
Martin Lapointe (4) – pp – 05:03 Martin Lapointe (5) – 07:56		Second period			No scoring
Tomas Holmstrom (5) – 05:53 Steve Yzerman (3) – pp – 09:40		Third period			14:35 – pp – Jim Campbell (7)
Chris Osgood 30 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Grant Fuhr 20 saves / 25 shots Jamie McLennan 3 saves / 4 shots

Detroit won series 4–2

Conference Finals

See also: NHL Conference Finals

Eastern Conference Final

(4) Washington Capitals vs. (6) Buffalo Sabres

May 23	Buffalo Sabres		2–0		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Michal Grosek (6) – 00:31 Miroslav Satan (5) – 01:55		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 19 saves / 19 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 18 saves / 20 shots

May 25	Buffalo Sabres		2–3	OT	Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
Vaclav Varada (3) – 19:02		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			19:55 – pp – Peter Bondra (3)
Matthew Barnaby (6) – pp – 19:03		Third period			14:06 – Joe Juneau (4)
No scoring		First overtime period			03:01 – Todd Krygier (1)
Dominik Hasek 36 saves / 39 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 31 saves / 33 shots

May 28	Washington Capitals		4–3	OT	Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Peter Bondra (4) – 04:57 Richard Zednik (5) – pp – 10:27		First period			14:59 – pp – Donald Audette (5)
Richard Zednik (6) – pp – 16:17		Second period			02:08 – Matthew Barnaby (7) 12:12 – Brian Holzinger (4)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Peter Bondra (5) – 09:37		First overtime period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 26 saves / 30 shots

May 30	Washington Capitals		2–0		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Craig Berube (1) – 02:34 Joe Juneau (5) – sh – 13:38		Third period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 30 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 17 saves / 19 shots

June 2	Buffalo Sabres		2–1		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
Darryl Shannon (2) – 06:33		First period			16:29 – pp – Andrei Nikolishin (1)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Jason Woolley (2) – 15:34		Third period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 34 saves / 35 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 14 saves / 16 shots

June 4	Washington Capitals		3–2	OT	Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Esa Tikkanen (3) – 13:26		Second period			13:04 – Michael Peca (3)
Peter Bondra (6) – pp – 14:01		Third period			07:40 – Paul Kruse (1)
Joe Juneau (6) – 06:24		First overtime period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 39 saves / 41 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 38 shots

Washington won series 4–2

Western Conference Final

(1) Dallas Stars vs. (3) Detroit Red Wings

May 24	Detroit Red Wings		2–0		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Vyacheslav Kozlov (4) – pp – 00:57 Martin Lapointe (6) – 13:38		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Chris Osgood 14 saves / 14 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 21 saves / 23 shots

May 26	Detroit Red Wings		1–3		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			05:56 – Bob Bassen (1)
Vyacheslav Kozlov (5) – 12:59		Second period			11:12 – Greg Adams (2)
No scoring		Third period			19:50 – en – Guy Carbonneau (2)
Chris Osgood 20 saves / 22 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 27 saves / 28 shots

May 29	Dallas Stars		3–5		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			05:50 – Brent Gilchrist (2) 12:43 – pp – Nicklas Lidstrom (4)
Jere Lehtinen (2) – 13:13		Second period			04:13 – Nicklas Lidstrom (5) 05:33 – Jamie Macoun (2)
Jere Lehtinen (3) – 04:39 Mike Modano (4) – 07:34		Third period			15:55 – Martin Lapointe (7)
Ed Belfour 15 saves / 20 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 31 saves / 34 shots

May 31	Dallas Stars		2–3		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			07:02 – sh – Kirk Maltby (3) 12:10 – pp – Steve Yzerman (4)
Pat Verbeek (3) – 14:31		Second period			No scoring
Sergei Zubov (4) – pp – 00:55		Third period			11:30 – Vyacheslav Kozlov (6)
Ed Belfour 20 saves / 23 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 28 saves / 30 shots

June 3	Detroit Red Wings		2–3	OT	Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
Tomas Holmstrom (6) – pp – 19:17		First period			14:16 – Mike Keane (4)
Igor Larionov (3) – 03:40		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			18:35 – Guy Carbonneau (3)
No scoring		First overtime period			00:46 – Jamie Langenbrunner (1)
Chris Osgood 33 saves / 36 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 18 saves / 20 shots

June 5	Dallas Stars		0–2		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			06:20 – sh – Larry Murphy (2)
No scoring		Second period			01:48 – Sergei Fedorov (9)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 29 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 26 saves / 26 shots

Detroit won series 4–2

Stanley Cup Finals

Main article: 1998 Stanley Cup Finals

This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. Detroit made their twenty-first and second consecutive Finals appearance, while Washington made their first Finals appearance in their twenty-fourth season. Until 2017 this was the last time that the Stanley Cup was successfully defended by the previous year's champion and as of 2019, this is the most recent sweep in the Finals.

June 9	Washington Capitals		1–2		Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			14:04 – Joe Kocur (4) 16:18 – Nicklas Lidstrom (6)
Richard Zednik (7) – 15:57		Second period			No scoring
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Olaf Kolzig 29 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 16 saves / 17 shots

June 11	Washington Capitals		4–5	OT	Detroit Red Wings	Joe Louis Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			07:49 – Steve Yzerman (5)
Peter Bondra (7) – 01:51 Chris Simon (1) – 06:11 Adam Oates (6) – 11:03		Second period			No scoring
Joe Juneau (7) – pp – 07:05		Third period			06:37 – sh – Steve Yzerman (6) 08:08 – Martin Lapointe (8) 15:46 – Doug Brown (2)
No scoring		First overtime period			15:24 – Kris Draper (1)
Olaf Kolzig 55 saves / 60 shots		Goalie stats			Chris Osgood 29 saves / 33 shots

June 13	Detroit Red Wings		2–1		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
Tomas Holmstrom (7) – 00:35		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Sergei Fedorov (10) – 15:09		Third period			10:35 – pp – Brian Bellows (5)
Chris Osgood 17 saves / 18 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 32 saves / 34 shots

June 16	Detroit Red Wings		4–1		Washington Capitals	MCI Center	Recap
Doug Brown (3) – pp – 10:30		First period			No scoring
Martin Lapointe (9) – 02:26 Larry Murphy (3) – pp – 11:46		Second period			07:49 – Brian Bellows (6)
Doug Brown (4) – pp – 01:32		Third period			No scoring
Chris Osgood 30 saves / 31 shots		Goalie stats			Olaf Kolzig 34 saves / 38 shots

Detroit won series 4–0

Playoff statistics

Skaters

These are the top ten skaters based on points.[2]

Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts	+/–	PIM
Steve Yzerman	Detroit Red Wings	22	6	18	24	+10	22
Sergei Fedorov	Detroit Red Wings	22	10	10	20	0	12
Tomas Holmstrom	Detroit Red Wings	22	7	12	19	+9	16
Nicklas Lidstrom	Detroit Red Wings	22	6	13	19	+12	8
Joe Juneau	Washington Capitals	21	7	10	17	+6	8
Adam Oates	Washington Capitals	21	6	11	17	+8	8
Martin Lapointe	Detroit Red Wings	21	9	6	15	+6	20
Larry Murphy	Detroit Red Wings	22	3	12	15	+12	2
Vyacheslav Kozlov	Detroit Red Wings	22	6	8	14	+4	10
Mike Modano	Dallas Stars	17	4	10	14	+4	12

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.[3]

Player	Team	GP	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
Ed Belfour	Dallas Stars	17	10	7	399	31	1.79	.922	1	1039:02
Curtis Joseph	Edmonton Oilers	12	5	7	319	23	1.93	.928	3	715:52
Olaf Kolzig	Washington Capitals	21	12	9	740	44	1.95	.941	4	1351:04
Byron Dafoe	Boston Bruins	6	2	4	159	14	1.99	.912	1	421:59
Dominik Hasek	Buffalo Sabres	15	10	5	514	32	2.03	.938	1	947:55

See also

• 1997–98 NHL season

References

1. "N.H.L.: PLAYOFFS; Buffalo Completes Sweep". May 15, 1998. Retrieved February 19, 2019.
2. NHL.com - Skater Stats
3. NHL.com - Goalie Stats

Preceded by 1997 Stanley Cup playoffs	Stanley Cup Champions	Succeeded by 1999 Stanley Cup playoffs