THIS DATE IN NHL HISTORY: May 7
1972: Bobby Orr supplies the offense for the Bruins in a 3-2 victory against the New York Rangers in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final at Madison Square Garden. Orr scores two goals in the first period and sets up Don Marcotte’s shorthanded goal late in the second. The three-point game gives Orr 22 points, breaking his single-season NHL record for defensemen of 20 set in 1970.
1983: Mike Bossy carries the New York Islanders back to the Stanley Cup Final by scoring four goals in a series-clinching 8-4 victory against the Boston Bruins at Nassau Coliseum in Game 6 of the Wales Conference Final.
Bossy takes advantage of a misplay by Boston goaltender Pete Peeters to score an easy goal in the first period, then puts on a one-man show to blow the game open in the second. He makes it 4-2 by beating Peeters with a slap shot 59 seconds into the period, completes his hat trick at 5:51 and scores again at 10:03 to give the three-time defending Cup champions a 6-3 lead.
Bossy finishes the series with nine goals and sets a Stanley Cup Playoff record by scoring the winning goal in each of New York’s four victories.
1985: The Edmonton Oilers stay unbeaten in the 1985 playoffs and set a postseason record when they defeat the Chicago Blackhawks 7-3 in Game 2 of the Campbell Conference Final at Northlands Coliseum. The victory is the 12th straight for Edmonton, at the time the longest winning streak in Stanley Cup Playoff history. Jari Kurri scores three times for the Oilers, with two coming during their four-goal third period.
1993: Wayne Gretzky makes history twice in the Los Angeles Kings’ 7-4 victory against the Vancouver Canucks in Game 3 of the Smythe Division Final. Gretzky scores twice in the third period to become the first NHL player with 100 goals in the Stanley Cup Playoffs. His unassisted goal early in the period gives Los Angeles a 5-2 lead and proves to be the game-winner. It’s his 19th game-winning goal in the playoffs, moving him past the previous record-holder, Maurice Richard of the Montreal Canadiens.
2000: Andy Delmore becomes the first rookie defenseman to score three goals in a playoff game. His hat trick helps the Philadelphia Flyers to a 6-3 victory against the visiting Pittsburgh Penguins in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals. Delmore scores once in each period. His five goals in the series are the most by a rookie defenseman; he scores only one more playoff goal in his NHL career.
2010: Mark Recchi scores two goals for the Bruins in their 5-4 overtime loss to the Flyers in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final at Wells Fargo Center. At 42 years and 93 days, Recchi becomes the oldest NHL player to score multiple goals in a playoff game.
2012: Brad Richards scores the tying goal with 7.6 seconds left in the third period and Marc Staal scores 1:35 into overtime to give the Rangers a 3-2 victory against the Washington Capitals in Game 5 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals at Madison Square Garden. Richards ties the game when he scores off a scramble; Staal’s goal is a long shot that deflects off a Washington defender and goes past goalie Braden Holtby. It’s the first playoff game to have a team score the tying goal in the last 10 seconds of the third period, then score the game-winner within the first two minutes of overtime.
