1997 Stanley Cup playoffs

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1997 Stanley Cup playoffs
Tournament details
DatesApril 16–June 7, 1997
Teams16
Defending championsColorado Avalanche
Final positions
ChampionsDetroit Red Wings
Runner-upPhiladelphia Flyers
Tournament statistics
Scoring leader(s)Eric Lindros (Flyers) (26 points)
MVPMike Vernon (Red Wings)
← 1996
1998 →

The 1997 Stanley Cup playoffs, the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL), began on April 16, 1997, following the completion of the 1996–97 NHL season. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best-of-seven series for conference quarter-finals, semi-finals and championships, and then the conference champions played a best-of-seven series for the Stanley Cup.

The playoffs ended on June 7, with the Detroit Red Wings defeating the Philadelphia Flyers in a four-game sweep to win their eighth Stanley Cup championship in their history, and their first in 42 years. Red Wings goaltender Mike Vernon was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoff's Most Valuable Player. This was the only time Ray Bourque missed the playoffs in his career. His team, the Boston Bruins, missed the playoffs for the first time since 1967, ending their 29-year consecutive playoffs appearances record.

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

Playoff seeds[edit]

The following teams qualified for the playoffs:

Eastern Conference[edit]

  1. New Jersey Devils, Atlantic Division champions, Eastern Conference regular season champions – 104 points
  2. Buffalo Sabres, Northeast Division champions – 92 points
  3. Philadelphia Flyers – 103 points
  4. Florida Panthers – 89 points
  5. New York Rangers – 86 points
  6. Pittsburgh Penguins – 84 points
  7. Ottawa Senators – 77 points (31 wins, 8 points head-to-head vs. Montreal)
  8. Montreal Canadiens – 77 points (31 wins, 2 points head-to-head vs. Ottawa)

Western Conference[edit]

  1. Colorado Avalanche, Pacific Division champions, Western Conference regular season champions, Presidents' Trophy winners – 107 points
  2. Dallas Stars, Central Division champions – 104 points
  3. Detroit Red Wings – 94 points
  4. Mighty Ducks of Anaheim – 85 points
  5. Phoenix Coyotes – 83 points (38 wins)
  6. St. Louis Blues – 83 points (36 wins)
  7. Edmonton Oilers – 81 points (36 wins)
  8. Chicago Blackhawks – 81 points (34 wins)

Playoff bracket[edit]

Conference quarterfinals Conference semifinals Conference finals Stanley Cup Finals
            
1 New Jersey 4
8 Montreal 1
1 New Jersey 1
5 NY Rangers 4
2 Buffalo 4
7 Ottawa 3
5 NY Rangers 1
Eastern Conference
3 Philadelphia 4
3 Philadelphia 4
6 Pittsburgh 1
2 Buffalo 1
3 Philadelphia 4
4 Florida 1
5 NY Rangers 4
E3 Philadelphia 0
W3 Detroit 4
1 Colorado 4
8 Chicago 2
1 Colorado 4
7 Edmonton 1
2 Dallas 3
7 Edmonton 4
1 Colorado 2
Western Conference
3 Detroit 4
3 Detroit 4
6 St. Louis 2
3 Detroit 4
4 Anaheim 0
4 Anaheim 4
5 Phoenix 3

Conference quarterfinals[edit]

Eastern Conference quarterfinals[edit]

(1) New Jersey Devils vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

Martin Brodeur became the fourth goaltender in league history to score a goal in game one, marking the second time in NHL history that a goaltender had scored a goal in the Stanley Cup playoffs, and the fifth time overall.


April 17 Montreal Canadiens 2–5 New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 04:28 – Brian Rolston (1)
08:07 – pp – Shawn Chambers (1)
Shayne Corson – sh – 05:40
Benoit Brunet (1) – sh – 17:17 		Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 05:19 – Bill Guerin (1)
11:59 – sh – Brian Rolston (2)
19:15 – en – Martin Brodeur (1)
Jocelyn Thibault 30 saves / 34 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 28 saves / 30 shots
April 19 Montreal Canadiens 1–4 New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 05:56 – pp – John MacLean (1)
No scoring Second period 11:29 – pp – John MacLean (2)
15:49 – pp – Bill Guerin (2)
Brian Savage (1) – 14:33 Third period 04:58 – Bobby Carpenter (1)
Jocelyn Thibault 37 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 21 saves / 22 shots
April 22 New Jersey Devils 6–4 Montreal Canadiens Molson Centre Recap  
Patrik Elias (1) – pp – 14:02
Bobby Holik (1) – 19:35 		First period 00:34 – Mark Recchi (1)
17:06 – Scott Thornton (1)
Valeri Zelepukin (1) – 04:58
Valeri Zelepukin (2) – 07:15 		Second period 02:39 – Mark Recchi (2)
Valeri Zelepukin (3) – pp – 07:50
Brian Rolston (3) – sh-en – 19:01 		Third period 04:37 – Saku Koivu (1)
Martin Brodeur 21 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Jocelyn Thibault 21 saves / 26 shots
April 24 New Jersey Devils 3–4 3OT Montreal Canadiens Molson Centre Recap  
Scott Niedermayer (1) – pp – 03:11
Patrik Elias (2) – 11:53 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 07:42 – Mark Recchi (3)
Lyle Odelein (1) – 18:24 Third period 02:41 – Turner Stevenson (1)
05:03 – Mark Recchi (4)
No scoring Third overtime period 07:37 – Patrice Brisebois (1)
Martin Brodeur 37 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Jose Theodore 56 saves / 59 shots
April 26 Montreal Canadiens 0–4 New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 17:32 – Kevin Dean (1)
No scoring Second period 14:17 – pp – Bobby Holik (2)
No scoring Third period 08:01 – sh – John MacLean (3)
11:08 – pp – Lyle Odelein (2)
Jose Theodore 45 saves / 49 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 24 saves / 24 shots
New Jersey won series 4–1


(2) Buffalo Sabres vs. (7) Ottawa Senators[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. This series marked the first appearance of a team representing Ottawa in the Stanley Cup playoffs in 67 years. The most recent team to represent Ottawa prior to this was the original Ottawa Senators, who lost in the Quarterfinal round in 1930.


April 17 Ottawa Senators 1–3 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 14:30 – sh – Brian Holzinger (1)
Daniel Alfredsson (1) – pp – 03:57 Third period 05:08 – Derek Plante (1)
14:09 – pp – Randy Burridge (1)
Ron Tugnutt 23 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Dominik Hasek 22 saves / 23 shots
April 19 Ottawa Senators 3–1 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
Andreas Dackell (1) – 02:48 First period No scoring
Steve Duchesne (1) – pp – 08:37 Second period 09:34 – Randy Burridge (2)
Daniel Alfredsson (2) – pp – 00:18 Third period No scoring
Ron Tugnutt 23 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Dominik Hasek 26 saves / 29 shots
April 21 Buffalo Sabres 3–2 Ottawa Senators Corel Centre Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Randy Burridge (3) – 13:27 Second period 15:31 – pp – Sergei Zholtok (1)
17:41 – pp – Alexei Yashin (1)
Darryl Shannon (1) – 11:51
Dixon Ward (1) – 19:40 		Third period No scoring
Dominik Hasek 15 saves / 16 shots
Steve Shields 11 saves / 12 shots 		Goalie stats Ron Tugnutt 22 saves / 25 shots
April 23 Buffalo Sabres 0–1 OT Ottawa Senators Corel Centre Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
No scoring First overtime period 02:34 – Daniel Alfredsson (3)
Steve Shields 35 saves / 36 shots Goalie stats Ron Tugnutt 17 saves / 17 shots
April 25 Ottawa Senators 4–1 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
Shawn McEachern (1) – 16:14 First period No scoring
Daniel Alfredsson (4) – 01:00 Second period No scoring
Daniel Alfredsson (5) – sh – 00:28
Randy Cunneyworth (1) – 13:56 		Third period 01:19 – Donald Audette (1)
Ron Tugnutt 24 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Steve Shields 22 saves / 26 shots
Andrei Trefilov 4 saves / 4 shots
April 27 Buffalo Sabres 3–0 Ottawa Senators Corel Centre Recap  
Brian Holzinger (2) – 03:25 First period No scoring
Alexei Zhitnik (1) – 07:46 Second period No scoring
Jason Dawe (1) – 15:44 Third period No scoring
Steve Shields 31 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Ron Tugnutt 18 saves / 21 shots
April 29 Ottawa Senators 2–3 OT Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
Shawn McEachern (2) – pp – 10:50 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 16:03 – pp – Donald Audette (2)
Wade Redden (1) – 00:45 Third period 06:29 – Derek Plante (2)
No scoring First overtime period 05:24 – Derek Plante (3)
Ron Tugnutt 28 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Steve Shields 25 saves / 27 shots
Buffalo won series 4–3


(3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (6) Pittsburgh Penguins[edit]

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams; with Philadelphia winning the only previous series in the 1989 Patrick Division Finals in seven games.


April 17 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–5 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
No scoring First period 07:45 – Pat Falloon (1)
No scoring Second period 00:39 – John LeClair (1)
19:28 – pp – Rod Brind'Amour (1)
Jaromir Jagr (1) – 05:00 Third period 08:51 – pp – Eric Lindros (1)
18:17 – Pat Falloon (2)
Ken Wregget 33 saves / 38 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 27 saves / 28 shots
April 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Mario Lemieux (1) – 10:59 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Jaromir Jagr (2) – 04:44 Third period 03:23 – Joel Otto (1)
05:52 – John LeClair (2)
13:40 – Trent Klatt (1)
Ken Wregget 36 saves / 39 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 28 saves /30 shots
April 21 Philadelphia Flyers 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena Recap  
Mikael Renberg (1) – 07:54 First period 07:19 – pp – Jaromir Jagr (3)
16:29 – pp – Jaromir Jagr (4)
Pat Falloon (3) – pp – 10:33
Eric Lindros (2) – 13:46
John LeClair (3) – pp – 19:48 		Second period No scoring
Dainius Zubrus (1) – 18:28 Third period 19:44 – Greg Johnson (1)
Garth Snow 35 saves / 38 shots Goalie stats Ken Wregget 48 saves / 52 shots
April 23 Philadelphia Flyers 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena Recap  
Shjon Podein (1) – 01:45 First period 01:09 – Ian Moran (1)
13:22 – sh – Eddie Olczyk (1)
18:28 – sh – Petr Nedved (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 18:56 – Mario Lemieux (2)
Garth Snow 21 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Ken Wregget 37 saves /38 shots
April 26 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Kevin Hatcher (1) – pp – 05:37
Mario Lemieux (3) – 15:34 		First period 00:14 – Eric Lindros (3)
17:38 – sh – Rod Brind'Amour (2)
18:32 – sh – Rod Brind'Amour (3)
Ron Francis (1) – pp – 02:37 Second period 07:30 – John LeClair (4)
10:28 – Trent Klatt (2)
No scoring Third period 19:55 – en – Vinny Prospal (1)
Ken Wregget 39 saves / 44 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 15 saves / 18 shots
Philadelphia won series 4–1


(4) Florida Panthers vs. (5) New York Rangers[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams. Game 5 was the final playoff game played at Miami Arena.


April 17 New York Rangers 0–3 Florida Panthers Miami Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 06:06 – pp – Johan Garpenlov (1)
13:13 – pp – Kirk Muller (1)
15:07 – Rob Niedermayer (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Richter 25 saves /28 shots Goalie stats John Vanbiesbrouck 34 saves /34 shots
April 20 New York Rangers 3–0 Florida Panthers Miami Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Wayne Gretzky (1) – 13:15
Esa Tikkanen (1) – pp – 14:58 		Second period No scoring
Luc Robitaille (1) – 03:29 Third period No scoring
Mike Richter 31 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats John Vanbiesbrouck 41 saves / 44 shots
April 22 Florida Panthers 3–4 OT New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
No scoring First period 13:12 – Mike Eastwood (1)
17:09 – Luc Robitaille (2)
Johan Garpenlov (2) – pp – 01:16
Ray Sheppard (1) – 02:58
Robert Svehla (1) – pp – 16:32 		Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 19:41 – Luc Robitaille (3)
No scoring First overtime period 16:29 – Esa Tikkanen (2)
John Vanbiesbrouck 41 saves / 45 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 36 saves / 39 shots
April 23 Florida Panthers 2–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
Rob Niedermayer (2) – pp – 13:23 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 03:07 – pp – Wayne Gretzky (2)
06:46 – Wayne Gretzky (3)
09:30 – Wayne Gretzky (4)
David Nemirovsky (1) – 01:40 Third period No scoring
John Vanbiesbrouck 25 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 21 saves / 23 shots
April 25 New York Rangers 3–2 OT Florida Panthers Miami Arena Recap  
Mark Messier (1) – 00:39 First period 14:17 – Mike Hough (1)
Mark Messier (2) – 19:44 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 12:37 – pp – Ray Sheppard (2)
Esa Tikkanen (3) – 12:02 First overtime period No scoring
Mike Richter 38 saves /40 shots Goalie stats John Vanbiesbrouck 30 saves / 33 shots
New York won series 4–1


Western Conference quarterfinals[edit]

(1) Colorado Avalanche vs. (8) Chicago Blackhawks[edit]

This was the second consecutive and second overall playoff meeting between these two teams; with Colorado winning last year's series in six games.


April 16 Chicago Blackhawks 0–6 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 05:54 – Mike Keane (1)
09:23 – pp – Sandis Ozolinsh (1)
12:48 – pp – Peter Forsberg (1)
19:00 – Peter Forsberg (2)
No scoring Second period 16:14 – Mike Ricci (1)
No scoring Third period 05:31 – Claude Lemieux (1)
Jeff Hackett 19 saves / 24 shots
Chris Terreri 13 saves / 14 shots 		Goalie stats Patrick Roy 22 saves / 22 shots
April 18 Chicago Blackhawks 1–3 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
James Black (1) – 17:53 First period 03:53 – Mike Keane (1)
05:06 – Sandis Ozolinsh (2)
No scoring Second period 07:30 – Claude Lemieux (2)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Jeff Hackett 30 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 24 saves / 25 shots
April 20 Colorado Avalanche 3–4 2OT Chicago Blackhawks United Center Recap  
No scoring First period 09:38 – Eric Daze (1)
Keith Jones (1) – 10:59 Second period 13:51 – Tony Amonte (1)
Rene Corbet (1) – 15:25
Claude Lemieux (3) – 17:28 		Third period 04:00 – Eric Daze (2)
No scoring Second overtime period Sergei Krivokrasov (1) – 11:03
Patrick Roy 53 saves / 57 shots Goalie stats Jeff Hackett 48 saves / 51 shots
April 22 Colorado Avalanche 3–6 Chicago Blackhawks United Center Recap  
Keith Jones (2) – 09:31
Joe Sakic (1) – 14:17 		First period 03:34 – Tony Amonte (2)
No scoring Second period 05:53 – Bob Probert (1)
06:57 – Ethan Moreau (1)
10:16 – pp – Bob Probert (2)
17:53 – Steve Dubinsky (1)
Aaron Miller (1) – 16:00 Third period 14:28 – sh-en – Tony Amonte (3)
Patrick Roy 25 saves / 30 shots Goalie stats Jeff Hackett 29 saves / 32 shots
April 24 Chicago Blackhawks 0–7 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 02:53 – pp – Claude Lemieux (4)
09:14 – Mike Keane (3)
16:49 – pp – Valeri Kamensky (1)
No scoring Second period 14:12 – pp – Valeri Kamensky (2)
16:44 – Jon Klemm (1)
No scoring Third period 08:01 – pp – Valeri Kamensky (3)
15:13 – pp – Keith Jones (3)
Jeff Hackett 16 saves / 21 shots
Chris Terreri 12 saves / 14 shots 		Goalie stats Patrick Roy 25 saves / 25 shots
April 26 Colorado Avalanche 6–3 Chicago Blackhawks United Center Recap  
Joe Sakic (2) – pp – 18:37 First period 02:46 – Keith Carney (1)
10:18 – Gary Suter (1)
17:28 – sh – Tony Amonte (4)
Valeri Kamensky (4) – 00:28
Joe Sakic (3) – 15:10 		Second period No scoring
Valeri Kamensky (5) – pp – 08:00
Claude Lemieux (5) – pp – 09:25
Adam Deadmarsh (1) – 17:00 		Third period No scoring
Patrick Roy 21 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Jeff Hackett 23 saves / 29 shots
Colorado won series 4–2


(2) Dallas Stars vs. (7) Edmonton Oilers[edit]

This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams; with the teams splitting the two previous series. They last met in the 1991 Clarence Campbell Conference Final where the Minnesota North Stars defeated Edmonton in five games.


April 16 Edmonton Oilers 3–5 Dallas Stars Reunion Arena Recap  
Todd Marchant (1) – sh – 03:16
Kelly Buchberger (1) – 14:58 		First period 12:24 – Joe Nieuwendyk (1)
12:54 – Jere Lehtinen (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Doug Weight (1) – 06:52 Third period 02:42 – Bob Bassen (1)
17:29 – Mike Modano (1)
18:57 – en – Brent Gilchrist (1)
Curtis Joseph 24 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Andy Moog 20 saves / 23 shots
April 18 Edmonton Oilers 4–0 Dallas Stars Reunion Arena Recap  
Mike Grier (1) – pp – 14:51 First period No scoring
Mariusz Czerkawski (1) – 00:43 Second period No scoring
Boris Mironov (1) – pp – 02:50
Ryan Smyth (1) – 07:07 		Third period No scoring
Curtis Joseph 25 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Andy Moog 17 saves / 21 shots
Arturs Irbe 4 saves / 4 shots
April 20 Dallas Stars 3–4 OT Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Coliseum Recap  
Mike Modano (2) – sh – 04:53
Benoit Hogue (1) – pp – 18:53 		First period No scoring
Joe Nieuwendyk (1) – 08:07 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 16:00 – Doug Weight (2)
17:44 – pp – Andrei Kovalenko (1)
17:56 – Mike Grier (2)
No scoring First overtime period 09:15 – Kelly Buchberger (2)
Andy Moog 37 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Curtis Joseph 39 saves / 42 shots
April 22 Dallas Stars 4–3 Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Coliseum Recap  
Mike Modano (1) – pp – 13:15 First period 10:13 – pp –Andrei Kovalenko (1)
Dave Reid (1) – 02:20 Second period 08:23 – pp – Jason Arnott (1)
Brent Gilchrist (2) – 01:53
Jamie Langenbrunner (1) – 05:31 		Third period 18:47 – Ryan Smyth (2)
Andy Moog 30 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Curtis Joseph 26 saves / 30 shots
April 25 Edmonton Oilers 1–0 2OT Dallas Stars Reunion Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Ryan Smyth (3) – 00:22 Second overtime period No scoring
Curtis Joseph 43 saves / 43 shots Goalie stats Andy Moog 27 saves / 28 shots
April 27 Dallas Stars 3–2 Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Coliseum Recap  
Jere Lehtinen (2) – 03:49 First period 13:25 – Mike Grier (3)
Bob Bassen (2) – 14:43 Second period 19:42 – Mariusz Czerkawski (2)
Mike Modano (4) – 14:42 Third period No scoring
Andy Moog 33 saves / 35 shots Goalie stats Curtis Joseph 38 saves / 41 shots
April 29 Edmonton Oilers 4–3 OT Dallas Stars Reunion Arena Recap  
Rem Murray (1) – 01:45 First period 01:38 – Benoit Hogue (2)
Boris Mironov (2) – pp – 07:24
Andrei Kovalenko (3) – 19:40 		Second period 11:22 – pp – Pat Verbeek (1)
13:27 – Bob Bassen (3)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Todd Marchant (2) – 12:26 First overtime period No scoring
Curtis Joseph 38 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Andy Moog 29 saves / 33 shots
Edmonton won series 4–3


(3) Detroit Red Wings vs. (6) St. Louis Blues[edit]

This was the second consecutive and fifth overall playoff meeting between these two teams; with the teams splitting the four previous series. Detroit won last year's Western Conference Semifinals in seven games. Game three was Craig McTavish's final game and the last NHL game ever with a helmetless player.


April 16 St. Louis Blues 2–0 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
Geoff Courtnall (1) – 12:44
Pierre Turgeon (1) – pp – 19:22 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period No scoring
Grant Fuhr 30 saves / 30 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 25 saves / 27 shots
April 18 St. Louis Blues 1–2 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
Marc Bergevin (1) – 04:24 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 04:05 – sh – Kris Draper (1)
07:09 – Larry Murphy (1)
Grant Fuhr 31 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 22 saves / 23 shots
April 20 Detroit Red Wings 3–2 St. Louis Blues Kiel Center Recap  
Kris Draper (2) – 02:40 First period 17:09 – Brett Hull (1)
Brendan Shanahan (1) – pp – 00:39
Steve Yzerman (1) – pp – 15:22 		Second period 06:36 – pp – Joe Murphy (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 24 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 29 shots
April 22 Detroit Red Wings 0–4 St. Louis Blues Kiel Center Recap  
No scoring First period 05:50 – Geoff Courtnall (2)
18:51 – Pavol Demitra (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 01:10 – pp – Geoff Courtnall (3)
09:23 – Chris Pronger (1)
Mike Vernon 19 saves / 23 shots
Chris Osgood 4 saves / 4 shots 		Goalie stats Grant Fuhr 28 saves / 28 shots
April 25 St. Louis Blues 2–5 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
Al MacInnis (1) – pp – 11:02 First period 03:22 – Steve Yzerman (2)
Jim Campbell (1) – pp – 12:14 Second period 05:02 – pp – Vyacheslav Kozlov (1)
07:58 – Darren McCarty (1)
13:15 – Brendan Shanahan (2)
No scoring Third period 06:32 – pp – Larry Murphy (2)
Grant Fuhr 28 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 19 saves / 21 shots
April 27 Detroit Red Wings 3–1 St. Louis Blues Kiel Center Recap  
Vyacheslav Kozlov (2) – pp – 08:45 First period 02:12 – Brett Hull (2)
Brendan Shanahan (3) – pp – 01:07 Second period No scoring
Kirk Maltby (1) – 08:24 Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 24 saves / 25 shots Goalie stats Grant Fuhr 27 saves / 30 shots
Detroit won series 4–2


(4) Mighty Ducks of Anaheim vs. (5) Phoenix Coyotes[edit]

This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. This was the first time the cities of Anaheim and Phoenix were represented in the Stanley Cup playoffs.


April 16 Phoenix Coyotes 2–4 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
No scoring First period 08:57 – pp – Teemu Selanne (1)
16:01 – Paul Kariya (1)
Jeremy Roenick (1) – 03:27
Keith Tkachuk (1) – pp – 16:48 		Second period 14:15 – Teemu Selanne (2)
No scoring Third period 19:13 – en – Paul Kariya (2)
Nikolai Khabibulin 25 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Guy Hebert 29 saves / 31 shots
April 18 Phoenix Coyotes 2–4 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
Teppo Numminen (1) – pp – 09:23 First period 10:46 – pp – Dmitri Mironov (1)
No scoring Second period 07:03 – pp – J. J. Daigneault (1)
Keith Tkachuk (2) – 03:55 Third period 13:26 – J. J. Daigneault (2)
19:53 – en – Teemu Selanne (3)
Nikolai Khabibulin 31 saves / 35 shots Goalie stats Guy Hebert 36 saves / 38 shots
April 20 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 1–4 Phoenix Coyotes America West Arena Recap  
Paul Kariya (3) – pp – 18:49 First period 01:18 – Darrin Shannon (1)
08:50 – Darrin Shannon
14:01 – Keith Tkachuk (3)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 15:28 – Mike Gartner (1)
Guy Hebert 22 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Nikolai Khabibulin 30 saves / 31 shots
April 22 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 0–2 Phoenix Coyotes America West Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 12:45 – Bob Corkum (1)
19:54 – en – Teppo Numminen (2)
Guy Hebert 23 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Nikolai Khabibulin 32 saves / 32 shots
April 24 Phoenix Coyotes 5–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
Keith Tkachuk (4) – 14:46 First period 17:37 – Teemu Selanne (4)
Jeremy Roenick (2) – 07:17
Teppo Numminen (3) – 09:12 		Second period No scoring
Bob Corkum (2) – 14:10
Keith Tkachuk (5) – en – 19:39 		Third period 06:52 – pp – Teemu Selanne (5)
Nikolai Khabibulin 30 saves / 32 shots Goalie stats Guy Hebert 19 saves / 23 shots
April 27 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 3–2 OT Phoenix Coyotes America West Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Paul Kariya (4) – pp – 06:12
Brian Bellows (1) – 19:01 		Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 09:00 – Darrin Shannon (3)
17:44 – pp – Keith Tkachuk (6)
Paul Kariya (5) – 07:29 First overtime period No scoring
Guy Hebert 19 saves / 21 shots Goalie stats Nikolai Khabibulin 36 saves / 39 shots
April 29 Phoenix Coyotes 0–3 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
No scoring First period 03:11 – Dave Karpa (1)
No scoring Second period 03:12 – Steve Rucchin (1)
08:19 – Joe Sacco (1)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Nikolai Khabibulin 23 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Guy Hebert 31 saves / 31 shots
Anaheim won series 4–3


Conference semifinals[edit]

Eastern Conference semifinals[edit]

(1) New Jersey Devils vs. (5) New York Rangers[edit]

This was the third playoff meeting between these two teams; with New York winning both previous series. They last met in the 1994 Eastern Conference Finals, where New York won in seven games.


May 2 New York Rangers 0–2 New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 13:45 – pp – Scott Niedermayer (2)
No scoring Third period 19:56 – en – John MacLean (4)
Mike Richter 32 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 21 saves / 21 shots
May 4 New York Rangers 2–0 New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
Brian Leetch (1) – pp – 18:21 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Russ Courtnall (1) – en – 19:15 Third period No scoring
Mike Richter 32 saves / 32 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 20 saves / 21 shots
May 6 New Jersey Devils 2–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
Randy McKay (1) – 06:04 First period 03:57 – Wayne Gretzky (5)
05:24 – Esa Tikkanen (4)
Steve Thomas (1) – 07:26 Second period 06:41 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (5)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Martin Brodeur 23 saves / 26 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 33 saves / 35 shots
May 8 New Jersey Devils 0–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
No scoring First period 05:49 – pp – Adam Graves (1)
No scoring Second period 14:36 – Wayne Gretzky (6)
No scoring Third period 19:02 – en – Esa Tikkanen (6)
Martin Brodeur 25 saves / 27 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 35 saves / 35 shots
May 11 New York Rangers 2–1 OT New Jersey Devils Continental Airlines Arena Recap  
Esa Tikkanen (7) – 07:53 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 12:02 – pp – Brian Rolston (4)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Adam Graves (2) – 14:08 First overtime period No scoring
Mike Richter 46 saves / 47 shots Goalie stats Martin Brodeur 29 saves / 31 shots
New York won series 4–1


(2) Buffalo Sabres vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers[edit]

This was the fourth playoff meeting between these two teams; with Philadelphia winning all three previous series. They last met in the 1995 Eastern Conference Quarterfinals, where Philadelphia won in five games.


May 3 Philadelphia Flyers 5–3 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Dan Kordic (1) – 11:23
Mikael Renberg (2) – pp – 19:59 		Second period 05:10 – Michal Grosek (1)
06:00 – Brad May (1)
17:26 – pp – Donald Audette (3)
Rod Brind'Amour (4) – 10:00
Shjon Podein (2) – 19:12
Rod Brind'Amour (5) – en – 19:54 		Third period No scoring
Garth Snow 29 saves / 32 shots Goalie stats Steve Shields 42 saves / 46 shots
May 5 Philadelphia Flyers 2–1 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
Mikael Renberg (3) – 04:47
Chris Therien (1) – 16:49 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 18:18 – Jason Dawe (2)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Garth Snow 29 saves / 30 shots Goalie stats Steve Shields 35 saves / 37 shots
May 7 Buffalo Sabres 1–4 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Darryl Shannon (2) – pp – 14:55 First period 08:18 – pp – Eric Lindros (4)
11:51 – pp – Dale Hawerchuk (1)
18:57 – Rod Brind'Amour (6)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 19:48 – en – Eric Desjardins (1)
Steve Shields 34 saves / 37 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 15 saves / 16 shots
May 9 Buffalo Sabres 5–4 OT Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Donald Audette (2) – pp – 04:27 First period 10:15 – pp – Dainius Zubrus (2)
No scoring Second period 01:03 – Dale Hawerchuk (2)
Derek Plante (4) – pp – 03:34
Michal Grosek (2) – 04:28
Dixon Ward (2) – sh – 11:53 		Third period 05:28 – Trent Klatt (3)
13:26 – Mikael Renberg (4)
Ed Ronan (1) – 06:24 First overtime period No scoring
Steve Shields 39 saves / 43 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 20 saves / 25 shots
May 11 Philadelphia Flyers 6–3 Buffalo Sabres Marine Midland Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
John LeClair (5) – 05:27
Eric Lindros (5) – 08:32
Eric Lindros (6) – 09:13
Dainius Zubrus (3) – 14:51 		Second period 10:07 – Michal Grosek (3)
14:19 – pp – Randy Burridge (4)
19:59 – pp – Randy Burridge (5)
Shjon Podein (3) – 06:00
Dainius Zubrus (4) – en – 19:48 		Third period No scoring
Ron Hextall 21 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Steve Shields 34 saves / 39 shots
Philadelphia won series 4–1


Western Conference semifinals[edit]

(1) Colorado Avalanche vs. (7) Edmonton Oilers[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between the Avalanche and Oilers. The Avalanche defeated the Oilers in five games to return to the Western Conference Finals for the second year in a row.

Both teams would meet again in the first round of next year's playoffs, where the Oilers came back from a 3-1 series deficit to upset the Avalanche in seven games.


May 2 Edmonton Oilers 1–5 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 03:10 – Eric Lacroix (1)
09:08 – Claude Lemieux (6)
Kelly Buchberger (3) – 04:00 Second period 12:28 – Peter Forsberg (3)
16:16 – Sandis Ozolinsh (3)
No scoring Third period 06:39 – pp – Peter Forsberg (4)
Curtis Joseph 32 saves / 37 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 35 saves / 36 shots
May 4 Edmonton Oilers 1–4 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 13:52 – pp – Scott Young (1)
Doug Weight (3) – 04:19 Second period 06:39 – Valeri Kamensky (6)
11:35 – pp – Claude Lemieux (7)
No scoring Third period 09:51 – Rene Corbet (2)
Curtis Joseph 20 saves / 24 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 42 saves / 43 shots
May 7 Colorado Avalanche 3–4 Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Coliseum Recap  
Peter Forsberg (5) – 02:25 First period 03:20 – Kelly Buchberger (4)
19:48 – Jason Arnott (2)
Valeri Kamensky (7) – pp – 07:29
Claude Lemieux (8) – 11:24 		Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 13:57 – Kelly Buchberger (5)
16:15 – Ryan Smyth (4)
Patrick Roy 34 saves / 38 shots Goalie stats Curtis Joseph 21 saves / 24 shots
May 9 Colorado Avalanche 3–2 OT Edmonton Oilers Edmonton Coliseum Recap  
Valeri Kamensky (8) – 03:06 First period No scoring
Sandis Ozolinsh (4) – pp – 18:40 Second period 07:08 – sh – Todd Marchant (3)
12:47 – pp – Ryan Smyth (5)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Claude Lemieux (9) – 08:35 First overtime period No scoring
Patrick Roy 27 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Curtis Joseph 38 saves / 41 shots
May 11 Edmonton Oilers 3–4 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 13:56 – Joe Sakic (4)
Todd Marchant (4) – sh – 09:38
Jason Arnott (3) – 17:52 		Second period 04:56 – Adam Deadmarsh (2)
Andrei Kovalenko (4) – pp – 13:49 Third period 00:35 – Claude Lemieux (10)
18:52 – pp – Adam Deadmarsh (3)
Curtis Joseph 25 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 26 saves / 29 shots
Colorado won series 4–1


(3) Detroit Red Wings vs. (4) Mighty Ducks of Anaheim[edit]

This was the first playoff meeting between the Red Wings and Ducks. The Red Wings swept the Ducks to return to the Western Conference Finals for the third year in a row.

Despite ending in a sweep, three of the four games played required at least one overtime period, the longest being Game 2 which went into triple overtime.


May 2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 1–2 OT Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
Paul Kariya (6) – pp – 19:00 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 11:01 – Sergei Fedorov (1)
No scoring First overtime period 00:59 – Martin Lapointe (1)
Guy Hebert 28 saves / 30 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 19 saves / 20 shots
May 4 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 2–3 3OT Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 04:34 – Steve Yzerman (3)
Jari Kurri (1) – 04:18
Teemu Selanne (6) – 16:53 		Third period 12:14 – Doug Brown (1)
No scoring Third overtime period 01:31 – pp – Vyacheslav Kozlov (3)
Guy Hebert 30 saves / 31 shots
Mikhail Shtalenkov 38 saves / 40 shots 		Goalie stats Mike Vernon 49 saves / 51 shots
May 6 Detroit Red Wings 5–3 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
Vyacheslav Kozlov (4) – pp – 15:47 First period 11:19 – pp – Paul Kariya (7)
12:09 – pp – Teemu Selanne (7)
Igor Larionov (1) – pp – 13:03
Doug Brown (2) – 16:28 		Second period 05:12 – Ted Drury (1)
Sergei Fedorov (2) – 03:34
Vyacheslav Kozlov (5) – 03:58 		Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 20 saves / 23 shots Goalie stats Mikhail Shtalenkov 44 saves / 49 shots
May 8 Detroit Red Wings 3–2 2OT Mighty Ducks of Anaheim Arrowhead Pond of Anaheim Recap  
Doug Brown (3) – 18:25 First period 03:01 – Joe Sacco (2)
No scoring Second period 15:23 – pp – Brian Bellows (2)
Nicklas Lidstrom (1) – 09:09 Third period No scoring
Brendan Shanahan (4) – 17:03 Second overtime period No scoring
Mike Vernon 35 saves / 37 shots Goalie stats Mikhail Shtalenkov 70 saves / 73 shots
Detroit won series 4–0


Conference finals[edit]

See also: NHL conference finals

Eastern Conference final[edit]

(3) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (5) New York Rangers[edit]

This was the tenth playoff meeting between these two teams, with Philadelphia having won five of the nine previous series. Their most recent meeting was in the 1995 Eastern Conference Semifinals which Philadelphia won in four games. The Rangers made their third Conference Final appearance and first since defeating New Jersey in seven games in 1994. Philadelphia made their fifth Conference Final appearance and first since losing to New Jersey in six games in 1995.

New York out shot Philadelphia in Game 1 25–21, but the Flyers ended up winning 3–1. Wayne Gretzky had his second hat-trick of the playoffs in Game 2 as the Rangers edged the Flyers 5–4. With the series tied at 1–1, the two teams moved to Madison Square Garden in New York for Games 3 and 4. This time, it was the Flyers' Eric Lindros who scored a hat-trick as Philadelphia won 6–3. In Game 4, Lindros broke a 2–2 tie with just seven seconds remaining in regulation, and the Flyers won 3–2. The Rangers scored twice in 26 seconds in the first period to take a 2–1 lead. The Flyers scored three unanswered goals and won the game 4–2 and the series 4–1. This was the last playoff game for both Gretzky and Mark Messier, as neither of the players' teams made the post-season for the rest of their careers.


May 16 New York Rangers 1–3 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
No scoring First period 02:28 – Dainius Zubrus (5)
04:39 – pp – Janne Niinimaa (1)
No scoring Second period No scoring
Luc Robitaille (4) – 19:50 Third period 08:34 – Eric Lindros (6)
Mike Richter 18 saves / 21 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 24 saves / 25 shots
May 18 New York Rangers 5–4 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Doug Lidster (1) – 05:09
Wayne Gretzky (7) – pp – 07:35
Wayne Gretzky (8) – pp – 09:34 		First period 04:11 – pp – John LeClair (6)
Wayne Gretzky (9) – 09:30
Mark Messier (3) – 13:45 		Second period 06:45 – Paul Coffey (1)
07:34 – Rod Brind'Amour (7)
15:11 – Shjon Podein (4)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Richter 25 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 5 saves / 10 shots
Ron Hextall 12 saves / 12 shots
May 20 Philadelphia Flyers 6–3 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
Eric Lindros (7) – 07:33
Petr Svoboda (1) – 12:03 		First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Eric Lindros (8) – 06:35
Trent Klatt (4) – 14:59
Rod Brind'Amour (8) – 16:52
Eric Lindros (9) – en – 19:22 		Third period 00:43 – pp – Russ Courtnall (2)
04:02 – Russ Courtnall (3)
14:21 – Wayne Gretzky (10)
Ron Hextall 25 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 19 saves / 24 shots
May 23 Philadelphia Flyers 3–2 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden Recap  
Mikael Renberg (5) – pp – 07:08 First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
John Druce (1) – sh – 16:47
Eric Lindros (10) – pp – 19:53 		Third period 01:41 – sh – Esa Tikkanen (8)
17:52 – Brian Leetch (2)
Ron Hextall 31 saves / 33 shots Goalie stats Mike Richter 39 saves / 42 shots
May 25 New York Rangers 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Alexander Karpovtsev (1) – pp – 12:30
Esa Tikkanen (9) – pp – 12:56 		First period 05:18 – pp – Eric Lindros (11)
15:53 – pp – John LeClair (7)
19:06 – Rod Brind'Amour (9)
No scoring Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 06:43 – Rod Brind'Amour (10)
Mike Richter 25 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Ron Hextall 17 saves / 19 shots
Philadelphia won series 4–1


Western Conference final[edit]

(1) Colorado Avalanche vs. (3) Detroit Red Wings[edit]

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams, with Colorado winning the only previous series. This was a rematch of the previous season's Western Conference Final, which Colorado won in six games. This was Detroit's third straight and fifth overall Conference Finals appearance, while it was Colorado's fourth trip to Conference Final. The rivalry between the two teams was as heated as ever after the events of a brawl during a game on March 26 still fresh.

The Red Wings played a determined Game 1 as Brendan Shanahan broke a scoreless tie at 1:13 of the third period to give Detroit a 1–0 lead. Joe Sakic scored just 27 seconds later and Mike Ricci added another at 6:13 gave Colorado a 2–1 lead that they would not relinquish. In Game 2, Colorado led 2–0 but Detroit pulled to within one on a power-play goal by Igor Larionov at 16:51 of the second period. The Red Wings then went on to score three times in the third period to win 4–2 and tie the series at one game apiece. In Game 3, the Red Wings got two goals from Vyacheslav Kozlov and went on to win 2–1. Detroit also won Game 4, 6–0. Red Wings goaltender Mike Vernon made 19 saves in the shutout and Igor Larionov and Kirk Maltby both scored twice. Detroit now led the series three games to one. Embarrassed and frustrated after such a lopsided loss in Game 4, Colorado came right back in Game 5 with a 6–0 win of their own, with Patrick Roy stopping all 32 shots he faced. Claude Lemieux and Joe Sakic both scored two goals in the victory. In Game 6, the Red Wings looked to close out the series. Sergei Fedorov's goal at 6:11 of the third period gave Detroit a 2–0 lead. Scott Young pulled Colorado to within one on a goal at 14:48, but the Avalanche could not score the equalizer, and Brendan Shanahan sealed the game and series for Detroit with an empty net goal at 19:30.


May 15 Detroit Red Wings 1–2 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period No scoring
Brendan Shanahan (5) – 01:13 Third period 01:40 – Joe Sakic (5)
06:13 – Mike Ricci (2)
Mike Vernon 17 saves / 19 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 34 saves / 35 shots
May 17 Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 18:37 – pp – Scott Young (2)
Igor Larionov (2) – pp – 16:51 Second period 16:09 – Claude Lemieux (11)
Sergei Fedorov (3) – pp – 02:10
Steve Yzerman (4) – 16:00
Darren McCarty (2) – 18:43 		Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 15 saves / 17 shots Goalie stats Patrick Roy 36 saves / 40 shots
May 19 Colorado Avalanche 1–2 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 01:12 – Vyacheslav Kozlov (6)
Joe Sakic (6) – pp – 14:47 Second period No scoring
No scoring Third period 08:20 – Vyacheslav Kozlov (7)
Patrick Roy 26 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 27 saves / 28 shots
May 22 Colorado Avalanche 0–6 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 01:52 – pp – Igor Larionov (3)
07:15 – Igor Larionov (4)
No scoring Second period 12:24 – Vyacheslav Kozlov (8)
16:54 – pp – Sergei Fedorov (4)
19:13 – Kirk Maltby (2)
No scoring Third period 05:25 – Kirk Maltby (3)
Patrick Roy 20 saves / 25 shots
Craig Billington 12 saves / 13 shots 		Goalie stats Mike Vernon 19 saves / 19 shots
May 24 Detroit Red Wings 0–6 Colorado Avalanche McNichols Sports Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 06:46 – Claude Lemieux (12)
11:04 – Claude Lemieux (13)
15:34 – Joe Sakic (7)
No scoring Second period 02:23 – Stephane Yelle (1)
10:57 – Joe Sakic (8)
18:04 – Scott Young (3)
No scoring Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 7 saves / 11 shots
Chris Osgood 15 saves / 17 shots 		Goalie stats Patrick Roy 32 saves / 32 shots
May 26 Colorado Avalanche 1–3 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period No scoring
No scoring Second period 03:29 – Martin Lapointe (2)
Scott Young (4) – 14:48 Third period 06:11 – Sergei Fedorov (5)
19:30 – en – Brendan Shanahan (6)
Patrick Roy 39 saves / 41 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 15 saves / 16 shots
Detroit won series 4–2


Stanley Cup Finals[edit]

Main article: 1997 Stanley Cup Finals

This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. Detroit made their twentieth appearance in the Finals and second in the past three years. Their last appearance was in 1995, where they were upset by the New Jersey Devils in a sweep. Philadelphia made their seventh appearance in the Finals and first since 1987 when they lost to the Edmonton Oilers in seven games. Detroit last won the Stanley Cup in 1955, while Philadelphia last won the Stanley Cup in 1975. The Red Wings swept the Flyers to win their first Stanley Cup since 1955 and eighth overall, ending what was the longest Stanley Cup title drought in the league at that time.

With the loss, the Flyers' record in the Stanley Cup Finals fell to 2-5. The Red Wings would win the Stanley Cup three more times after this in 1998, 2002, and 2008. The 1997 Stanley Cup Finals began a streak of playoff success for Detroit-based teams over their Philadelphia counterparts. After the Red Wings' victory, the NBA's Detroit Pistons would defeat the Philadelphia 76ers in the NBA playoffs in 2003, 2005, and 2008.


May 31 Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Kirk Maltby (4) – sh – 06:38
Joe Kocur (1) – 15:56 		First period 07:37 – pp – Rod Brind'Amour (11)
Sergei Fedorov (6) – 11:41 Second period 17:11 – John LeClair (8)
Steve Yzerman (5) – 00:56 Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 26 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Ron Hextall 26 saves / 30 shots
June 3 Detroit Red Wings 4–2 Philadelphia Flyers CoreStates Center Recap  
Brendan Shanahan (7) – 01:37
Steve Yzerman (6) – pp – 09:22 		First period 17:42 – pp – Rod Brind'Amour (12)
18:58 – pp – Rod Brind'Amour (13)
Kirk Maltby (5) – 02:39 Second period No scoring
Brendan Shanahan (8) – 09:56 Third period No scoring
Mike Vernon 29 saves / 31 shots Goalie stats Garth Snow 24 saves / 28 shots
June 5 Philadelphia Flyers 1–6 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
John LeClair (9) – pp – 07:03 First period 09:03 – pp – Steve Yzerman (7)
11:05 – Sergei Fedorov (7)
19:00 – Martin Lapointe (3)
No scoring Second period 03:12 – pp – Sergei Fedorov (8)
19:17 – Brendan Shanahan (9)
No scoring Third period 01:08 – pp – Martin Lapointe (4)
Ron Hextall 23 saves / 29 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 21 saves / 22 shots
June 7 Philadelphia Flyers 1–2 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena Recap  
No scoring First period 19:27 – Nicklas Lidstrom (2)
No scoring Second period 13:02 – Darren McCarty (3)
Eric Lindros (12) – 19:45 Third period No scoring
Ron Hextall 26 saves / 28 shots Goalie stats Mike Vernon 26 saves / 27 shots
Detroit won series 4–0


Playoff statistics[edit]

Skaters[edit]

These are the top ten skaters based on points.[1]

Player Team GP G A Pts +/– PIM
Eric Lindros Philadelphia Flyers 19 12 14 26 +7 40
Joe Sakic Colorado Avalanche 17 8 17 25 +5 14
Claude Lemieux Colorado Avalanche 17 13 10 23 +7 32
Valeri Kamensky Colorado Avalanche 17 8 14 22 -1 16
Rod Brind'Amour Philadelphia Flyers 19 13 8 21 +9 10
John LeClair Philadelphia Flyers 19 9 12 21 +5 10
Wayne Gretzky New York Rangers 15 10 10 20 +5 2
Sergei Fedorov Detroit Red Wings 20 8 12 20 +5 12
Brendan Shanahan Detroit Red Wings 20 9 8 17 +8 43
Peter Forsberg Colorado Avalanche 14 5 12 17 -6 10

Goaltenders[edit]

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.[2]

Player Team GP W L SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
Martin Brodeur New Jersey Devils 10 5 5 268 19 1.73 .929 2 658:48
Mike Vernon Detroit Red Wings 20 16 4 494 36 1.76 .927 1 1229:12
Ron Tugnutt Ottawa Senators 7 3 4 169 14 1.98 .917 1 424:37
Guy Hebert Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 9 4 4 255 18 2.02 .929 1 533:31
Mike Richter New York Rangers 15 9 6 488 33 2.11 .932 3 938:39

See also[edit]

References[edit]

  1. ^ NHL.com - Skater Stats
  2. ^ NHL.com - Goalie Stats

External links[edit]

Preceded by Stanley Cup playoffs Succeeded by
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