1993 Stanley Cup Finals: A Clash Of Dynasties…Sort Of
In the 1993 Stanley Cup Finals, the league’s greatest franchise and its greatest player met in their own version of a dynastic clash
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The 1990 Edmonton Oilers Win The Stanley Cup Without Wayne Gretzky
The 1990 Edmonton Oilers were sailing in unchartered waters. The trade of Wayne Gretzky, only the franchise icon and the greatest hockey player in history, prior to the 1989 season had been bad enough. Now head coach Glen Sather was also gone. Edmonton had won four of the previous six Stanley Cups, but it seemed unlikely that a group coached by John Muckley and led Mark Messier could make it five.
1989 NHL Playoffs: Gretzky Changes Side & The Calgary Flames Burn Bright
The Calgary Flames were hoisting the Cup, and a run of NHL dynasties that had seen only Montreal, the New York Islanders and Edmonton win the title since 1975 finally ran its course in the 1989 NHL playoffs
The 1988 Edmonton Oilers Find Another Gear At Playoff Time
The 1988 Edmonton Oilers didn’t dominate the regular season in the manner they had been accustomed to since 1983, a year that marked their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals with Wayne Gretzky and was followed up by their first championship a year later. But what the 1988 edition of the Edmonton Oilers did have was an ability to step it up in the playoffs and they added another Cup to their Gretzky-era legac
The 1987 Edmonton Oilers Make Amends And Get Back On Top
An upset bid had derailed Wayne Gretzky’s bid for a third straight Stanley Cup in 1986. Gretzky and the 1987 Edmonton Oilers came out ready to make amends. They did it, but not without a great fight put up by the Philadelphia Flyers in the Finals.
The Edmonton Oilers Dynasty Flames Out In The 1986 NHL Playoffs
By the time the 1986 NHL playoffs rolled around, hockey fans were used to watching dynasties. The Montreal Canadiens won four straight from 1976-79. The New York Islanders did the same from 1980-83. So when the Edmonton Oilers broke through in 1984 and followed it up with a repeat Stanley Cup in 1985, one could be forgiven for the assumption that the Oilers would be next in line to win up to four in a row. Only it didn’t work out that wa
The 1984 Edmonton Oilers: Wayne Gretzky Hoists His First Stanley Cup
The 1984 Edmonton Oilers had the best player in the NHL—Wayne Gretzky might have been only 23 years old, but he won his fifth MVP award in as many seasons in the league. The one thing the Oilers didn’t have coming in was a Stanley Cup. After four years of gradual buildup, Gretzky and the Oilers hoisted the Cup for the first time in 1984.
Two Dynasties Cross Paths At The 1983 Stanley Cup Finals
The New York Islanders had won the previous three Stanley Cups. The Edmonton Oilers had been building toward their own with Wayne Gretzky breaking into the NHL the year the Islander reign began, and winning the Hart Trophy, as league MVP, all three seasons. It was one team that was already a dynasty and another poised to become one. The 1983 Stanley Cup Finals would mark the moment when the crossed paths.
1981 NHL Playoffs: No Doubt It Was The New York Islanders
There weren’t a ton of dramatics in the 1981 NHL playoffs, but the New York Islanders left no doubt who was best, winning their second straight Stanley Cup. The Isles had the league’s best offense, led by All-Star forward Mike Bossy and his 68 goals, and the impeccable passing skills of center Bryan Trottier. Defenseman Denis Potvin was an All-Star and Billy Smith was in net as they led a unit that was fourth-best in the NHL in goals allowed.
The 2003 New Jersey Devils Win A Third Stanley Cup In Nine Years
The New Jersey Devils had grown into one of the NHL’s best franchises. They’d won the Stanley Cup in 1995, sweeping the favored Detroit Red Wings. In 2000, the Devils won another title and in 2001 they reached the Finals before losing to the Colorado Avalanche. Expectations were now high and when 2002 ended in a first-round playoff loss, a coaching change was made, with Pat Burns brought in to run the show for the 2003 New Jersey Devils and put the team back on top.
1977 Montreal Canadiens: The Best Team Of The Dynasty Years
The 1977 Montreal Canadiens had wrested control of the Stanley Cup away from the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1976 Stanley Cup Finals and Montreal had no intention of giving it back. This season was one long coronation for the Canadiens as they dominated the regular season, had the major award winners, and then romped through the playoffs, going 12-2 en route to a second straight Cup.
The 1985 Edmonton Oilers Go Back-To-Back
Once Wayne Gretzky’s Edmonton Oilers figured out how to finish the job and win a Stanley Cup in 1984, the building of a dynasty was a natural second step. The 1985 Edmonton Oilers rolled to the top record in the Campbell Conference (the West) and Gretzky won his seventh MVP award in his seventh season in the league. His 73 goals and 135 assists keyed the best offense in the NHL.