Yesterday in Hockey History: June 6
Tomorrow in Hockey History: June 8
There was still plenty of hockey played on June 7, and we saw plenty of different Stanley Cup winners, overtime drama, clutch goaltending, and one streak extended while another was snapped. Also, some of the best players in the history of the National Hockey League have received their calls to the Hockey Hall of Fame.
Three Historic Cup Victories
The Detroit Red Wings ended a 42-year championship drought on June 7, 1997. By beating the Philadelphia Flyers 2-1 in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final, they won their first title since 1955. Defenseman Nicklas Lidstrom opened the scoring late in the first half before Darren McCartynchi scored in the second half. The Flyers got a goal from Eric Lindros with 15 seconds left to play, but it was too late for a big comeback.
Goaltender Mike Vernon was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for being the postseason’s most valuable player. He went 16-4 with a 1.76 goals-against average, and a .927 save percentage the year after his first career loss during the 1996 playoffs.
On June 7, 2004, the Tampa Bay Lightning beat the Calgary Flames 2-1 in Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals to win their first championship in franchise history. Ruslan Fedotenko was the hero with a goal in each of the first two periods. The Flames broke even on a power play goal by Craig Conroy midway through the third period, but were unable to score the equalizer.
Brad Richards won the Conn Smythe Trophy after scoring 12 goals and 26 points in 23 games. He had seven power play goals and seven game winners. Captain Dave Andreychuk accepted the Stanley Cup for the first time in his career after playing 22 seasons. He set the record for most games played before winning his first championship with 1,759.
The Washington Capitals beat the Vegas Golden Knights 4-3 on June 7, 2018, in Game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final. The win was their fourth in a row, and tied for the first championship in franchise history. Devante Smith-Pelly tied the game at 3-3 in the third period, before Lars Eller scored to win the trophy. Alex Ovechkin was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for 15 goals and 27 points in 24 games. You got 15th postseason goal in the second half, which set a franchise record for most by any player in a single playoff game.
Closing Big Time
Patrick Roy made league history on June 7, 2001, by leading the Colorado Avalanche to a 4-0 victory over the New Jersey Devils in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals. He made 24 saves to keep the Avalanche’s season alive for a seventh game back in Denver. It was also his 19thth career season shutout, setting a new playoff record. Defenseman Adam Foote was the offensive hero with a goal and two assists.
Five years later, on June 7, 2006, the Carolina Hurricanes beat the Edmonton Oilers 5-0 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final. Cam Ward became the first rookie goaltender since Roy in 1986 to get a shutout in the Finals. Matt Cullen assisted on three goals for the Hurricanes to go up 2-0 in the series.
Americanized Overtime Goals
On June 7, 1993, the Montreal Canadiens beat the Los Angeles Kings 3-2 in overtime in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Finals. John LeClair scored in overtime for the second straight game to give the Canadiens a 3-1 series lead. He became the second player in league history to score overtime goals in consecutive Finals games. Don Raleigh was the first to do so with the New York Rangers in 1950. This was also the Canadiens’ 10th straight overtime win in the playoffs, an NHL record.
Dustin Brown became a hero 21 years later, on June 7, 2014, when the Kings beat the Rangers 5-4 in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals.
Los Angeles entered the third period trailing 4-2 before getting goals by Dwight King and Marian Gaborik to force overtime. Brown won the game at 10:26 of the second overtime period. Amakhosi became the first team to win three games in a row after not leading a single second of play in any of them.
Impressive Hall of Fame Classes
Three different Hall of Fame classes have been announced on this day over the years, and they include famous names. On June 7, 1967, the Hockey Hall of Fame announced the future inductions of Walter “Turk” Broda, Neil Colville, Harry Oliver, and referee Red Storey.
The class of 1972, announced on this day, included two players the Hall of Fame waived its three-year waiting period in Gordie Howe and Jean Beliveau. Bernie Geoffrion, Hap Holmes, Reg “Hooley” Smith, and builder Weston Adams were also part of the impressive class.
Howe came out of retirement to play in the World Hockey Association in 1973 and returned for one final NHL season in 1979-80 with the Hartford Whalers.
On June 7, 1983, the new group of inductees was small with only three players, but it was very good with Bobby Hull, Stan Mikita, and Ken Dryden.
Odds & Ends
Goaltender Jacques Plante announced his retirement on June 7, 1965, after starring in the NHL for 12 seasons with both the Canadiens and Rangers. He came out of retirement three years later and returned to play five more seasons with St. Louis Blues, Toronto Maple Leafs, Boston Bruins, and Oilers in the WHA.
On June 7, 1972, Bob Pulford retired as an active player and was named the new manager of the Kings, where he had played the previous two seasons. He became the sixth coach in the club’s history.
Denis Potvin won the first of his three career Norris Trophies on June 7, 1976, for being the NHL’s top defenseman. He was the first player other than Bobby Orr to win the award in nine years. Bryan Trottier, Potvin’s teammate with the New York Islanders, won the Calder Trophy for being voted the league’s MVP in the 1975-76 season.
The Rangers made a huge comeback on June 7, 1994, beating the Vancouver Canucks 4-2 in Game 4 of the Stanley Cup Final. After falling behind 2-0, defender Brian Leetch got his 10thth The goal of the playoffs is to get New York on the board. He then assisted on all three of the Rangers’ subsequent goals, giving his team a 3-1 lead in the series.
Lindros played his Stanley Cup overtime debut on June 7, 1995, and scored the game-winning goal. The tally, which came at the 4:19 mark, gave the Flyers a 3-2 victory over the Devils in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Finals.
The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim forced a seventh and deciding game on June 7, 2003, beating the New Jersey Devils 5-2 in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final. Steve Rucchin set the tone with two goals in the first half. Paul Kariya also had a big night with a goal and two assists.
The Bruins beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 1–0 on June 7, 2013, in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final, to complete a four-game sweep and advance to the Stanley Cup Final. This is the first time since 1979 that the Penguins have been swept in a postseason series. Their streak of 45 games without a sweep is the second longest in league history. The Canadiens went on a 56-game winning streak between 1953 and 1980.
happy Birthday to you
Mike Modano, arguably the best US-born player in NHL history, was born on June 7, 1970. He played 20 seasons with the Stars organization, four in Minnesota and 16 in Dallas, before one final season with the Red Wings in 2010-11. Modano played in 1,499 regular season games, and his 561 goals and 1,374 points are the most of any player born in the U.S. He also had 58 goals and 146 points in 176 Stanley Cup Playoff games.
Other prominent players born on this day today are Terry O’Reilly (75), Willi Plett (71), Stephane Richer (60), Andrei Kovalenko (56), Milan Lucic (38), Matt Beleskey (38), Michael Stone (36), TJ Brodie (36), Denis Gurianov (29), Victor Mete (28), the late Mail Gustav Gilson (28).
*Originally created by Greg Boysen
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