Start date 1991 | Number of teams 22 Number of games 80 | |
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Duration October 3, 1991 – June 1, 1992 Similar |
1991 1992 nhl stanley cup playoffs pens again video recap part 1 of 6
The 1991–92 NHL season was the 75th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Pittsburgh Penguins repeated as Stanley Cup champions, winning a best of seven series four games to none against the Chicago Blackhawks.
Contents
- 1991 1992 nhl stanley cup playoffs pens again video recap part 1 of 6
- League business
- Throwback uniforms
- Regular season
- Final standings
- Wales Conference
- Campbell Conference
- Stanley Cup Finals
- Scoring leaders
- Leading goaltenders
- Debuts
- Last games
- References
League business
As mentioned above, 1991–92 was the 75th anniversary season for the NHL. Accordingly, all players wore a patch on their uniforms depicting the NHL 75th anniversary logo for this season.
This was the first season for the San Jose Sharks, the first expansion team in the NHL since 1979. The birth of the Sharks returned NHL hockey to the San Francisco Bay Area after the California Golden Seals had relocated to Cleveland, Ohio in 1976.
This was also the last season for John Ziegler as NHL President. He would be succeeded by Gil Stein, who held the position for one year before being replaced by Gary Bettman.
A new rule was added in which the final minute of every period is measured in tenths of a second, unlike whole seconds as in past seasons.
Throwback uniforms
As part of the NHL's 75th anniversary celebration, and taking cues from Major League Baseball's "Turn Back The Clock" uniform program, throwback uniforms were worn by Original Six teams for select games, and throwbacks were also worn for the All-Star Game.
The uniform styles that were worn include:
The throwback uniforms would influence future seasons in the NHL, as several teams adopted throwbacks as alternate jerseys. The National Football League and National Basketball Association would follow the NHL's lead, with teams wearing throwbacks to celebrate their leagues' 75th and 50th anniversaries, respectively.
Regular season
New York Rangers defenseman Brian Leetch became the fifth, and last as of 2016, defenseman to score 100 points in a season. He finished the season with 102 points and captured the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the league's best defenseman. The Rangers ended the season with 105 points, winning the Presidents' Trophy as the top regular-season team in the NHL. It was the first time the Rangers had topped the league since 1942.
For the first time, the NHL finished play in the month of June. A primary reason for this was the 10-day NHL strike, the first work stoppage in league history, that started on April 1. The games that were supposed to be played during the strike were not canceled, but rescheduled and made up when play resumed on April 12.
For the first time in his NHL career, Wayne Gretzky failed to finish in the top two in scoring. The Pittsburgh Penguins' Kevin Stevens became only the third person in NHL history to outscore Gretzky in the regular season (Marcel Dionne tied Gretzky in Wayne's rookie year, but had more goals, and Mario Lemieux won the Art Ross Trophy over Gretzky in 1988 and 1989).
Final standings
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against
Wales Conference
P - Clinched Presidents Trophy
Divisions: ADM – Adams, PAT – Patrick
p – Clinched Presidents' Trophy
bold – Qualified for playoffs
Campbell Conference
Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe
bold – Qualified for playoffs
Stanley Cup Finals
The series was held between the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins and the Clarence Campbell Conference champion Chicago Blackhawks. The Penguins won in four games, three out of four won by a one-goal margin. Mario Lemieux of Pittsburgh won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the playoffs' MVP.
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
Leading goaltenders
Note: GP = Games Played; TOI = Time On Ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average
Debuts
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1991–92 (listed with their first team):
Last games
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1991–92 (listed with their last team):