1984 Stanley Cup Final


The 1984 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's 1983–84 season, and the culmination of the 1984 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested between the defending Campbell Conference champion Edmonton Oilers and the defending Wales Conference and four-time defending Stanley Cup champion New York Islanders. The upstart Oilers defeated the four-time defending champion Islanders to win their first Stanley Cup in franchise history, becoming the third post-1967 expansion team and first former World Hockey Association team to win the Cup, and also the first team based west of Chicago to win the Cup since the WCHL's Victoria Cougars became the last non-NHL team to win it in.
In the previous year's Stanley Cup Final, the Islanders had swept the Oilers in four straight games. The teams met again in 1984, with the Islanders seeking their fifth consecutive Stanley Cup championship. While both teams had improved on their regular season records from the previous season, Edmonton had progressed more and finished with the best record in the NHL for the first time in their short history. However, it was New York who received home-ice advantage, as they had in since the rules in place since 1982 dictated that home-ice advantage
went to the conference that won the coin toss and in 1984 because the Wales Conference had more points in head-to-head play against the Campbell Conference. It was also the first time that the Finals was played under a 2–3–2 format. This was the third time during the era that the team with the worse record received a home-ice advantage, the other two being the 1968 and 1970. Home-ice advantage reverted to the team with the better record for the following Finals, and the Finals reverted to the former 2–2–1–1–1 format in the Finals after that.
This was the fifth straight Finals of teams that joined the NHL in 1967 or later., the Islanders' four consecutive Cup wins and their appearance in the 1984 Cup Finals is an NHL record of 19 consecutive playoff series wins that currently stands unbroken. The 1984 Finals was the third of nine consecutive Finals contested by a team from Western Canada, second of eight contested by a team from Alberta, and the first of five consecutive Finals to end with the Cup presentation on Alberta ice.
The Oilers became the fastest Canadian-based expansion team to win a major sports title by winning a title in only their fifth NHL season. The feat was eclipsed in 2016 by the Ottawa Redblacks, who won the Grey Cup in their third CFL season.
To date, this is the last time the Islanders have appeared in the Stanley Cup Final, and they currently hold the second longest Finals appearance drought in the league at 40 years, the longest of any American-based team. The only team with a longer Finals appearance drought are the Toronto Maple Leafs, who last made the Finals in 1967.

Paths to the Finals

Edmonton defeated the Winnipeg Jets 3–0, the Calgary Flames 4–3 and the Minnesota North Stars 4–0 to reach the Finals.
New York defeated the New York Rangers 3–2, the Washington Capitals 4–1, and the Montreal Canadiens 4–2 to reach the Finals.

Game summaries

NOTE: In 1981, the NHL realigned it conferences and divisions according to geographical regions. Along with this, it was decided to play the Stanley Cup Final in a 2-3-2 format, with home ice advantage being awarded to the division with the better aggregate record in interdivisional games. This format would be used until 1985, after which the Final would go back to a 2-2-1-1-1 format, with home ice going to the team with the better regular season record.
Grant Fuhr shut out the Islanders in the first game, on Long Island, with Kevin McClelland scoring the game's only goal, but the Islanders won game two 6–1. The series then shifted to Edmonton for three games. In game three, the Islanders had a 2–1 lead in the second period, but Mark Messier scored on an individual effort to tie the game. They proceeded to beat the Islanders 7–2. The Oilers, however, lost Fuhr for games four and five after the Islanders' Pat LaFontaine crashed into Fuhr on the forecheck during game three, and Fuhr was slow to get up. Andy Moog started games four and five. The Oilers won game four by the same score, with Wayne Gretzky scoring his first goal of the Finals. The Oilers then won game five by the score of 5–2 thanks to Gretzky's two first-period goals, and two Duane Sutter penalties. They became the first former WHA team, and the first team from Edmonton, to win the Stanley Cup. Mark Messier was awarded with the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

Broadcasting

The series aired on CBC in Canada and on the USA Network in the United States. CBC's broadcast team consisted of Bob Cole, Dick Irvin Jr., and Gary Dornhoefer. USA's national coverage was blacked out in the New York area due to the local rights to Islanders games in that TV market, with SportsChannel New York airing games one and two, and WOR televising the other three games.

Stanley Cup engraving

The 1984 Stanley Cup was presented to Oilers captain Wayne Gretzky by NHL President John Ziegler following the Oilers 5–2 win over the Islanders in game five.
The following Oilers players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup:
'''1983–84 Edmonton Oilers'''

Non-team personnel

  • Crossed out name of Basil Pocklington

Engraving notes

  • #17 Jari Kurri was the first Finnish born-trained player to win the Stanley Cup.
  • #31 Grant Fuhr was the first black player to win the Stanley Cup.
  • #10 Jaroslav Pouzar was the first Czechoslovakia born-trained player to win the Stanley Cup. Basil Pocklington, father of Oilers owner Peter Pocklington, was initially engraved on the Stanley Cup. He was not directly associated with the team. The NHL subsequently marked out Basil's name on the trophy with X's. A new ring for the Cup was created in 1993, with winners from 1979 to 1991, Basil Pocklington's name was not on it. When the Cup returned to the Hockey Hall of Fame, the abandoned ring had been damaged and could not be put back on the Stanley Cup. The Hockey Hall of Fame had Basil Pocklington's name put on the newly created Stanley Cup ring, then XXX'd out his name again. His was now listed beside his son Peter Pocklington, Owner. On the original rings, he was listed on a line between Peter Pocklington and Glen Sather. Basil's name was not added to the replica Stanley Cup also created in 1993. This is the main way people can tell the Presentation Stanley Cup and Replica Stanley Cup. See 2004 Stanley Cup Final for the other way to tell the cups apart. Basil Pocklington was the only name that was XXX'd out until November 2021, when the Hall of Fame struck the name of 2009–10 Chicago Blackhawks video coach Brad Aldrich due to sexual assault allegations during that season.
  • On the new ring, EDMONTON was misspelt "DDMONTON". An "E" was stamped twice over the first "D" to correct the mistake.

Player notes

  • Each team was required to play 20 players out of a 24-man roster. The Oilers engraved 21 players' names on the Cup, leaving off four players who were dressed in the playoffs. All four players left off the Stanley Cup were awarded a Stanley Cup ring, and are included in the team picture.
  • * #33 Mike Zanier – was dressed for two games in the final. He qualified to be engraved on the Stanley Cup. Edmonton did not include his name because he had not played in the NHL. The only NHL season for Zanier was three games in 1985 with Oilers.
  • * #6 Rick Chartraw – played four games for NY Rangers, 24 for Edmonton, and one playoff game, spending half of the regular season playing in the minors.
  • * #28 Larry Melnyk – played six playoff games, but spent the regular season playing in the minors.
  • * #25 Raimo Summanen – played two games in the regular season and five playoff games. He spent most of the regular season playing in Europe.