May 24 NHL HISTORY
1980: A dynasty begins when Bob Nystrom scores 7:11 into overtime to lift the New York Islanders to a 5-4 victory against the Philadelphia Flyers at Nassau Coliseum in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. The eighth-year franchise wins the first of four consecutive championships.
Lorne Henning’s pass sends John Tonelli and Nystrom in on a 2-on-1 break. Tonelli’s perfect pass finds Nystrom, whose backhand chip past goaltender Pete Peeters gives New York the win after the Flyers force overtime by scoring two third-period goals.
“I just did the thing we had done in practice over and over and over again, go to the net,” Nystrom said. “[Tonelli] feathered a nice pass to me and all I did was deflect it.”
It’s a disappointing end for the Flyers after finishing first in the regular season with 116 points and setting an NHL record by going 35 games without a loss (25-0-10) during one stretch. The Islanders, the regular-season champions in 1978-79, finish with 91 points. They are the first (and only) modern-era team to finish 25 or more points behind their opponent in the Final and win the Cup.
1986: The Montreal Canadiens win the Stanley Cup for the first time since 1979 by defeating the Calgary Flames 4-3 at the Saddledome in Game 5 of the Final. Bobby Smith’s goal midway through the third period gives Montreal a 4-1 lead and proves to be the Cup-winner when Steve Bozak and Joe Mullen score for Calgary. Rookie goaltender Patrick Roy makes 30 saves for the victory and wins the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
1988: A power outage knocks out the lights at the Boston Garden 16:37 into the second period in Game 4 of the Final, with the Boston Bruins and Edmonton Oilers tied 3-3. After efforts to restore power prove fruitless, NHL President John Ziegler cites League by-laws and announces that though the scoring totals will count, the game will be replayed, if necessary, in Boston at the end of the series as Game 7. The series continues two nights later in Edmonton.
1990: The Edmonton Oilers win the Cup for the fifth time in seven seasons by defeating the Bruins 4-1 at Boston Garden in Game 5 of the Final. Glenn Anderson and Craig Simpson score in the second period for the Oilers, and third-period goals by Steve Smith and Joe Murphy put the game away before Boston’s Lyndon Byers breaks up Bill Ranford’s shutout bid with 3:30 to play. Ranford wins the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.
1994: The Vancouver Canucks advance to the Cup Final for the second time in their history when Greg Adams’ goal 14 seconds into the second overtime gives them a 4-3 win against the Toronto Maple Leafs at Pacific Coliseum in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final. The Canucks trail 3-0 after the first period, tie the game with three goals in the second and get the win when Adams beats Felix Potvin on the first shift of the second overtime. It’s Vancouver’s first trip to the Final since 1982.
2011: Exactly 17 years after the Vancouver Canucks advance to the Final with a double-overtime victory, they do it again. This time, defenseman Kevin Bieksa scores at 10:18 of the second OT to give the Canucks a 3-2 victory against the San Jose Sharks at Rogers Arena in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final. Vancouver’s Ryan Kesler ties the game 2-2 by scoring with 13.2 seconds remaining in the third period, and Roberto Luongo makes 54 saves before Bieksa takes advantage of a strange carom off the glass and beats Antti Niemi for the winner.
2013: James Neal scores three goals to lead the Pittsburgh Penguins to a series-clinching 6-2 victory against the Ottawa Senators at Consol Energy Center in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. It’s the first series-clinching win at home for the Penguins since 2009. Neal finishes the series with nine points, including five goals in Games 4 and 5. It’s the first trip to the conference finals for the Penguins since 2009, when they go on to win the Stanley Cup.
