1998 Stanley Cup Finals
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1998 Stanley Cup Finals
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The 1998 Stanley Cup Final NHL championship series was contested by the Western Conference champion and defending Stanley Cup champion Detroit Red Wings and the Eastern Conference champion Washington Capitals. It was the 105th year of the Stanley Cup being contested. It was the Capitals' first appearance in a Stanley Cup Final since the franchise's inception in 1974. The Red Wings won the series for the second year in a row, four games to none. It was the Wings' ninth Stanley Cup, and as of 2012[update], this is the last season in which a defending Stanley Cup champion has successfully defended and retained the Stanley Cup, the most recent time when a Final concluded with a sweep, and the most recent time that neither the first nor second seed in either conference's playoffs participated in a Finals. This was also the last time until 2002 that a Stanley Cup final ended after an NBA Finals in the same season had concluded.
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Motivation to win a second straight title
Just six days after sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1997 Final, two of the Red Wings, defenceman Vladimir Konstantinov and team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov were in a limousine wreck and sustained serious brain injuries. Viacheslav Fetisov was also in the limousine but was not seriously injured. The Red Wings subsequently dedicated their 1997-98 season to the two injured members and wore a patch on their jerseys bearing the players' initials. When the Red Wings were presented with the Stanley Cup, they wheeled Konstantinov onto the ice and placed the Cup in his lap. They also took him for a victory lap around the ice rink.
Paths to the Final
For more details on this topic, see 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs.
Detroit defeated the Phoenix Coyotes 4–2, the St. Louis Blues 4–2, and the Dallas Stars 4-2 to advance to the Final.
Washington defeated the Boston Bruins 4–2, the Ottawa Senators 4–1, and the Buffalo Sabres 4–2.
The series
In this series, Capitals Head Coach Ron Wilson became the first person to head coach in both an Olympics and a Stanley Cup Final in the same year, having coached team USA at the Nagano Olympics. Peter Laviolette would join him in this feat in 2006 while with the Carolina Hurricanes during their championship season, having coached the American ice hockey team during the Torino Olympics.
Game one
At home, Detroit took an early lead in the first period and scored two goals within 2 minutes and 14 seconds of each other. The Red Wings were able to hold off a Washington Capitals assault and take the first game of the series with a score of 2-1.
Game two
It looked like the Washington Capitals were going to tie the series with a 4-2 lead in the third period, but after a Detroit goal to make it 4-3, Washington Capitals forward Esa Tikkanen had a shot midway through the third period that would have all but put Detroit away before the venue changed back to Washington's MCI Center, and also would have changed the entire dynamic of the series, but he missed the open net shot. Detroit then rallied late in the third period to tie the game and send it into overtime. Kris Draper scored with 4 minutes left in the first overtime to give the Red Wings a 5-4 victory and a 2-0 lead in the series. This game, along with the first and third games of the series, were all decided by one goal, which indicates a closely contested series, contrary to the lore of the overwhelming and dominating Red Wings sweep that has been portrayed in the press and historical accounts of the series.
Game three
Detroit scored in the first 35 seconds to take an early lead which held up until the third period. The Capitals tied the game midway through the third period but Sergei Fedorov of the Wings scored to give the Wings a three games to none lead in the series.
Game four
In game four, Detroit was dominant throughout to win the game by a score of 4-1 and sweep the series.
| June 9 | Detroit Red Wings | 2–1 | Washington Capitals | Joe Louis Arena | Recap |
| June 11 | Detroit Red Wings | 5–4 | OT | Washington Capitals | Joe Louis Arena | Recap |
| June 13 | Washington Capitals | 1–2 | Detroit Red Wings | MCI Center | Recap |
| June 16 | Washington Capitals | 1–4 | Detroit Red Wings | MCI Center | Recap |
| Detroit wins series 4–0 and Stanley Cup | |
Detroit Red Wings - 1998 Stanley Cup Champions
Roster
- 19 Steve Yzerman (Captain)
- 8 Igor Larionov
- 33 Kris Draper
- 41 Brent Gilchrist
- 91 Sergei Fedorov
- 21 Darryl Laplante†
- 11 Mathieu Dandenault
- 17 Doug Brown
- 14 Brendan Shanahan (A. Capt.)
- 18 Kirk Maltby
- 20 Martin Lapointe
- 22 Mike Knuble
- 25 Darren McCarty
- 26 Joe Kocur
- 13 Vyacheslav Kozlov
- 96 Tomas Holmstrom
- 3 Bob Rouse
- 5 Nicklas Lidstrom (A. Capt.)
- 2 Viacheslav Fetisov
- 15 Dmitri Mironov
- 16 Vladimir Konstantinov
- 27 Aaron Ward
- 34 Jamie Macoun
- 44 Anders Eriksson
- 55 Larry Murphy
- 30 Chris Osgood
- 31 Kevin Hodson
- 34 Norm Maracle†
- Non-players
- Mike Ilitch Sr. (Owner/President/Governor), Marian Ilitch (Owner/Secretary-Treasurer)
- Atanas Ilitch, Christopher Ilitch (Vice Presidents), Denise Ilitch Lites, Ronald Ilitch (Minority Owners)
- Michael Ititch Jr., Lisa Ilitch Murray, Carole Ilitch Trepeck (Minority Owners)
- Jim Devellano (Sr. Vice President), Ken Holland (General Manager),
- Don Waddell (Ass’t General Manager), William Scotty Bowman (Head Coach/Director of Player Personnel)
- Barry Smith, Dave Lewis (Associate Coaches),
- Jim Nill (Director of Player Development/Director of Amateur Scouting), Dan Belise, Mark Howe (Pro Scouts)
- Jim Bedard (Goaltending Consultant), Hakan Andersson (Director of European Scouting)
- Mark Leach, Joe McDonnell, Bruce Haralson (Scout)
- John Wharton (Athletic Trainer), Paul Boyer (Equipment Manager), Tim Abbott (Ass’t Equipment Manager)
- Bob Huddleston (Massage Therapist), Sergei Mnatsakanov (Masseur), Wally Crossman (Dressing Room Assistant)
- Art Mnatsusakanov†, Johnny Remejes†, Mike Vella† (Dressing Room Assistants).
† Name not engraved on Stanley Cup, but included on the Stanley Cup team picture.
Stanley Cup engravings
- Wally Crossman was oldest person engraved on the Stanley Cup at age 87.
- Detroit wanted to included a record 55 names on the Stanley Cup in 1997–98. Following that request NHL decided to limit the number of names to 52 to make sure all names fit on the Cup. Players who play in Stanley Cup Finals, or play at least 41 regular season games for the winning team, must be included on the Cup each year. Other players who do not officially qualify may also be included if requested by the team. There are no rules for which non-players must be included on the Stanley Cup, only a limit on total number of names going on the cup. No player who officially qualifies may be left off to include more non-players.
See also
References
- Diamond, Dan (2000). Total Stanley Cup. NHL.
- Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). Lord Stanley's Cup. Triumph Books. ISBN 1-55168-261.
- Wilborn, Michael (1998). "Red Wings Fans jam Downtown". Washington Post.
| Preceded by Detroit Red Wings 1997 |
Detroit Red Wings Stanley Cup Champions 1998 |
Succeeded by Dallas Stars 1999 |
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