This is an interesting/fascinating series looking back in retrospect.
You had two teams among the NHL’s Final Four that didn’t even finish above .500 (a situation that rarely happens.
Since the 1967 expansion, there have been only three other instances of that happening:
Minnesota/St. Louis (1968, where no West Division expansion team had a winning record)
Vancouver/Chicago 1982 (When the only two Campbell Conference teams above .500, ironically Edmonton and Minnesota, lost in the first round), and
Montreal/Philadelphia 2010 (whom had worse records than a non-playoff Calgary team).
Both teams here in ‘91 did some giant slaying to get there- they each beat a pair of 100-point teams in their respective divisions (Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, Calgary).
Considering how those 4 teams had mostly dominated the Campbell Conference that year, it was a real surprise to see none of them reach the third round.
Edmonton was the grizzled veteran defending champion, long in the tooth in some areas, but high on savvy and experience and knowing how to win.
They had played 13 out of a possible 14 exhausting games in the Smythe, flirting with blowing a 3-1 lead vs. the Flames and a boatload of overtimes with the Kings that probably made it seem like they had played more games.
Their heroes- Esa Tikkanen (a game 7 hat trick vs. Calgary, some big goals vs. the Kings) and Grant Fuhr (he had returned from a suspension and seemed to be playing like the money goalie he had been for years).
Minnesota, meanwhile, was a mostly young team save for Brian Bellows and Bobby Smith (a third veteran, Larry Murphy, was surprisingly traded in December considering he had been a 2nd team All Star in 1990).
The North Stars finished way below .500, but even with a dreadful start were never threatened for a Norris playoff spot by Toronto, and weren’t even the playoff team with the worst record that year (Vancouver finished 3 points below them overall Conference-wise).
The North Stars did however play better after that start (They played .500 hockey from January 1 through the rest of the regular season, which amounted to a hot streak in the old Norris Division) and after the All Star break, lost only 1 of their final 15 home games going into the playoffs.
They were a classic case of a team getting better at the right time.
But what really defined this team was a ridiculously hot power play- 25 goals with the man advantage in the Norris playoffs.
And we saw how that played out- 6 game upsets of the NHL’s top two teams record wise in the Blackhawks and Blues (ironic considering that was the only time those teams didn’t play each other in the playoffs from 1988-1993).
Despite Minnesota peaking at the right time and Edmonton having exhausted itself, many expected the Oilers to find a way to the Cup Finals given their experience, savvy, home ice advantage, and two other key reasons....
But in game 1, Minnesota upended the Northlands jinx with a game 1 road win just as they had done at Chicago/St. Louis. A 3-1 win with..... yup, a power play goal.
Game 2 saw a Petr Klima hat trick for a 7-2 Edmonton win to even the series and many thought the element of surprise might be gone.
In game 3, the North Stars fired back with 7 goals of their own. Grant Fuhr was pulled after giving up 3 first period goals.
But even with that, there was still a feeling that Edmonton wasn’t out of it. They had trailed 2-1 in the 1990 Campbell Conference Finals against Chicago. The ensuing game 4 was one of Mark Messier’s finest hours as an Oiler.
But game 4 would not be a repeat of that.
North Stars 5, Oilers 1.
In game 5, Minnesota jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but Edmonton came back to tie it.
It seemed eerily similar to what had happened the year prior for the Oilers against Winnipeg- lose game 1 at home, salvage a split in game 2, lose games 3-4 on the road, fall behind 2 goals in a potential game 5 elimination game at home, tie the game.
Considering all that, it seemed like savvy experienced Edmonton was ready for a case of deja vu- get the goal, pull off a comeback, ride momentum to another Campbell Conference championship.
But this time, Edmonton did not get the tiebreaking goal.
It was Bobby Smith, the lone holdover from Minnesota’s 1981 Cup Finals team, who did.
Minnesota 3, Edmonton 2.
And that was that.
The Oilers first loss in a conference final. The Norris has actually beaten the Smythe.
The North Stars had beaten the top 2 teams record wise and the defending Stanley Cup champions, all in succession.
The one thing about this series I always found surprising was why the Oilers didn’t make a goalie change to maybe switch momentum.
Fuhr had been pulled in game 3. Ranford had won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1990.
Considering how many times a goalie switch in the middle of a series can have a positive team effect (Cam Ward 2006, Chris Osgood 2008), the time seemed right.
But Muckler didn’t. Fuhr got lit up again in game 4 and, though he played well in game 5, by that point it still might have been the time.
Two questions about this series:
Against Chicago, it was the Blackhawks parade of penalties and Minnesota’s power play production.
Against St. Louis, it was the shadow work by Stewart Gavin and Gaetan Duchesne against Brett Hull and Adam Oates.
What was the Edmonton equivalent of that big key and strategy?
You had two teams among the NHL’s Final Four that didn’t even finish above .500 (a situation that rarely happens.
Since the 1967 expansion, there have been only three other instances of that happening:
Minnesota/St. Louis (1968, where no West Division expansion team had a winning record)
Vancouver/Chicago 1982 (When the only two Campbell Conference teams above .500, ironically Edmonton and Minnesota, lost in the first round), and
Montreal/Philadelphia 2010 (whom had worse records than a non-playoff Calgary team).
Both teams here in ‘91 did some giant slaying to get there- they each beat a pair of 100-point teams in their respective divisions (Chicago, St. Louis, Los Angeles, Calgary).
Considering how those 4 teams had mostly dominated the Campbell Conference that year, it was a real surprise to see none of them reach the third round.
Edmonton was the grizzled veteran defending champion, long in the tooth in some areas, but high on savvy and experience and knowing how to win.
They had played 13 out of a possible 14 exhausting games in the Smythe, flirting with blowing a 3-1 lead vs. the Flames and a boatload of overtimes with the Kings that probably made it seem like they had played more games.
Their heroes- Esa Tikkanen (a game 7 hat trick vs. Calgary, some big goals vs. the Kings) and Grant Fuhr (he had returned from a suspension and seemed to be playing like the money goalie he had been for years).
Minnesota, meanwhile, was a mostly young team save for Brian Bellows and Bobby Smith (a third veteran, Larry Murphy, was surprisingly traded in December considering he had been a 2nd team All Star in 1990).
The North Stars finished way below .500, but even with a dreadful start were never threatened for a Norris playoff spot by Toronto, and weren’t even the playoff team with the worst record that year (Vancouver finished 3 points below them overall Conference-wise).
The North Stars did however play better after that start (They played .500 hockey from January 1 through the rest of the regular season, which amounted to a hot streak in the old Norris Division) and after the All Star break, lost only 1 of their final 15 home games going into the playoffs.
They were a classic case of a team getting better at the right time.
But what really defined this team was a ridiculously hot power play- 25 goals with the man advantage in the Norris playoffs.
And we saw how that played out- 6 game upsets of the NHL’s top two teams record wise in the Blackhawks and Blues (ironic considering that was the only time those teams didn’t play each other in the playoffs from 1988-1993).
Despite Minnesota peaking at the right time and Edmonton having exhausted itself, many expected the Oilers to find a way to the Cup Finals given their experience, savvy, home ice advantage, and two other key reasons....
- Since the NHL went to the at the time Divisional playoff format in 1982, the Smythe Division has never lost a Campbell Final to a Norris Division team, with only 1986 (Calgary/St. Louis) going the 7 game distance. 9 out of 9 times, the Norris Division had failed to reach the Cup Finals.
- Minnesota had not won at Northlands Coliseum since 1980
But in game 1, Minnesota upended the Northlands jinx with a game 1 road win just as they had done at Chicago/St. Louis. A 3-1 win with..... yup, a power play goal.
Game 2 saw a Petr Klima hat trick for a 7-2 Edmonton win to even the series and many thought the element of surprise might be gone.
In game 3, the North Stars fired back with 7 goals of their own. Grant Fuhr was pulled after giving up 3 first period goals.
But even with that, there was still a feeling that Edmonton wasn’t out of it. They had trailed 2-1 in the 1990 Campbell Conference Finals against Chicago. The ensuing game 4 was one of Mark Messier’s finest hours as an Oiler.
But game 4 would not be a repeat of that.
North Stars 5, Oilers 1.
In game 5, Minnesota jumped out to a 2-0 lead, but Edmonton came back to tie it.
It seemed eerily similar to what had happened the year prior for the Oilers against Winnipeg- lose game 1 at home, salvage a split in game 2, lose games 3-4 on the road, fall behind 2 goals in a potential game 5 elimination game at home, tie the game.
Considering all that, it seemed like savvy experienced Edmonton was ready for a case of deja vu- get the goal, pull off a comeback, ride momentum to another Campbell Conference championship.
But this time, Edmonton did not get the tiebreaking goal.
It was Bobby Smith, the lone holdover from Minnesota’s 1981 Cup Finals team, who did.
Minnesota 3, Edmonton 2.
And that was that.
The Oilers first loss in a conference final. The Norris has actually beaten the Smythe.
The North Stars had beaten the top 2 teams record wise and the defending Stanley Cup champions, all in succession.
The one thing about this series I always found surprising was why the Oilers didn’t make a goalie change to maybe switch momentum.
Fuhr had been pulled in game 3. Ranford had won the Conn Smythe Trophy in 1990.
Considering how many times a goalie switch in the middle of a series can have a positive team effect (Cam Ward 2006, Chris Osgood 2008), the time seemed right.
But Muckler didn’t. Fuhr got lit up again in game 4 and, though he played well in game 5, by that point it still might have been the time.
Two questions about this series:
- Do you think Edmonton could have gotten back in the series had they gone to Ranford?
- What was the big key for Minnesota’s series win?
Against Chicago, it was the Blackhawks parade of penalties and Minnesota’s power play production.
Against St. Louis, it was the shadow work by Stewart Gavin and Gaetan Duchesne against Brett Hull and Adam Oates.
What was the Edmonton equivalent of that big key and strategy?
