1988 Stanley Cup Final
The 1988 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's 1987–88 season, and the culmination of the 1988 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested between the [1987–88 1987–88 Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton Oilers season|Edmonton Oilers] and [1987–88 1987–88 Boston Bruins season|Boston Bruins season|Boston Bruins]. The Oilers swept the Bruins to once again repeat as Stanley Cup champions. It was the Oilers’ fourth championship in franchise history.
This was the seventh of nine consecutive Finals contested by a team from Western Canada, sixth of eight by a team from Alberta, and the last of five consecutive Finals to end with the Cup presentation on Alberta ice. The series is remembered for the power failure that occurred during game four at Boston Garden, which caused that game to be suspended. The league decided to replay game four at Northlands Coliseum in Edmonton, at the site, date and time that was originally scheduled for a possible game five. Game four is also the final time that Wayne Gretzky appeared in an Edmonton Oilers uniform as he was traded to Los Angeles just prior to the next season, and the last Stanley Cup he would win as a player.
Paths to the Finals
The Oilers cruised into the Finals with relative ease, losing only two games in the process. They beat the Winnipeg Jets in five games, swept the Calgary Flames, and then beat the Detroit Red Wings in five to win the Clarence S. Campbell Bowl for the fifth time in six years.The Bruins, meanwhile, had a much harder road. It took them six games to knock off the Buffalo Sabres, then beat their longtime rivals the Montreal Canadiens in five games, and then needed the full seven games to beat the New Jersey Devils to claim the Prince of Wales Trophy.
Game summaries
The Finals pitted the Oilers' offensive juggernaut against the Bruins' more balanced team. The Oilers showed their defensive prowess, surrendering just nine goals in the four completed games. Ray Bourque was physical in defending against Gretzky, but that would not ground the "Great One" on his way to claiming his second Conn Smythe Trophy and setting playoff records with 31 assists in just 18 games, and 13 points in the Finals series.Game one
'''Summary'''Game two
'''Summary'''Game three
'''Summary'''Game four (suspended)
Glenn Anderson set a new record for quickest goal from the start of a Finals game when he scored ten seconds into the contest. That record was tied two years later in the third game of the Finals by John Byce who, in a twist, was playing for the Bruins against the Oilers. Fog interfered with the game, requiring stoppages during the second period so that all 40+ players could skate around the ice to clear it away. The Oilers' Craig Simpson scored with 3:23 left in the second period, tying the game at 3–3, then the arena suffered a power failure before the ensuing face-off. The teams were sent to their dressing room until – after a very long delay and no change in the situation – NHL President John Ziegler Jr. announced that the game was suspended. Despite the game being suspended and replayed, Anderson's record is official.Game four was subsequently rescheduled and moved to Edmonton, which was originally set to be the site of a game five if necessary. The Oilers won that game, sweeping the series and winning their fourth Stanley Cup in five years. The NHL announced that, in the unlikely event that the Bruins had managed to win any games, game five would have been played on the original date for game six in Boston, Edmonton would have hosted the rescheduled game six, and then game seven would have been played in Boston as the makeup game; the Bruins did not win a single game, so no part of this plan had to be implemented.
Game four
'''Summary'''Series summary
Boston Bruins vs. Edmonton Oilers| Date | Away | Score | Home | Score | Notes |
| May 18 | Boston Bruins | 1 | Edmonton Oilers | 2 | |
| May 20 | Boston Bruins | 2 | Edmonton Oilers | 4 | |
| May 22 | Edmonton Oilers | 6 | Boston Bruins | 3 | |
| May 24 | Edmonton Oilers | 3 | Boston Bruins | 3 | |
| May 26 | Boston Bruins | 3 | Edmonton Oilers | 6 |
''Edmonton wins best-of-seven series 4–0''
Team rosters
Years indicated in boldface under the "Finals appearance" column signify that the player won the Stanley Cup in the given year.Stanley Cup engraving
The 1988 Stanley Cup was presented to Oilers captain Wayne Gretzky by NHL President John Ziegler following the Oilers 6–3 win over the Bruins in game four.The following Oilers players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup
1987–88 Edmonton Oilers
;Team picture on the ice, after winning a championship
- After the Oilers won the 1988 Stanley Cup, Wayne Gretzky requested a picture on the ice with all the players, and all non-playing members, including management, coaches, trainers, scouts, locker room assistants. The team honoured his request, and it has remained a tradition followed by each Stanley Cup-winning team. The team picture tradition after winning a championship then became a tradition followed by most hockey championship teams at all levels around the world.
Broadcasting
In the United States, this was the final year under ESPN's national three-year deal. Under the U.S. TV contracts that would take effect beginning next season, SportsChannel America would take over as the NHL's American television partner.ESPN's coverage of the 1988 Cup Finals was blacked out locally in the Boston area due to WSBK and NESN's local rights to Bruins games.
In Canada, this was the second and final year that the English-language rights to the Cup Finals was split between the Global-Canwest consortium and the CBC. Global aired games one and two. The CBC aired game three, then both the original and replayed game fours. CBC had the rights to game 5 of the Stanley Cup Final, and Canwest/Global also had the rights to games 6 & 7 of the Stanley Cup Final between Edmonton Oilers and Boston Bruins, which were not necessary.