1998 Stanley Cup Final
The 1998 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's 1997–98 season, and the culmination of the 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs. It 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. The series was the Capitals' first Stanley Cup Final appearance in franchise history. The Red Wings swept the Capitals to repeat as Stanley Cup champions, capturing their ninth Stanley Cup in team history. This also marked the fourth consecutive, and most recent Stanley Cup Final as of 2025 to end in a sweep.
The Red Wings became the fourth team in NHL history to win the Stanley Cup in back-to-back sweeps, joining the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, and New York Islanders, and remain the most recent team to accomplish this feat.
Detroit coach Scotty Bowman won his eighth Stanley Cup in that capacity, tying him with former Canadiens coach Toe Blake for the record of most Cups won by a coach.
Motivation to win a second straight title
Just six days after sweeping the Philadelphia Flyers in the 1997 Finals, Red Wings defenceman Vladimir Konstantinov and masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov sustained serious brain injuries when the limousine in which they were riding crashed. 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 rink.Paths to the Finals
Detroit Red Wings
Detroit advanced to the Finals by defeating the Phoenix Coyotes, St. Louis Blues, and Dallas Stars in six games each.Washington Capitals
Washington defeated the Boston Bruins 4–2, the Ottawa Senators 4–1, and the Buffalo Sabres 4–2.Game summaries
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 while with the Carolina Hurricanes during their championship season, having coached the American ice hockey team during the Torino Olympics.Game 1
At home, Detroit took an early lead in the first period and scored two goals within two minutes and 14 seconds of each other. The Red Wings were able to hold off a Washington assault and take the first game of the series with a score of 2–1.Game 2
It looked as if the Capitals were to tie the series with a 4–2 lead in the third period, but after a Detroit goal to make it 4–3, Capitals forward Esa Tikkanen had ascoring opportunity midway through the third period that would have likely 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 four minutes left in the first overtime to give the Red Wings a 5–4 victory and a 2–0 lead in the series.
Game 3
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 scored to give the Wings a three games to none lead in the series.Game 4
In game four, Detroit was dominant throughout to win the game by a score of 4–1 and sweep the series. Steve Yzerman was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs. When the Cup was awarded, Vladimir Konstantinov was brought onto the ice in his wheelchair and joined the celebration with his team.Team rosters
Bolded years under Finals appearance indicates year won Stanley Cup.Stanley Cup engraving
The 1998 Stanley Cup was presented to Red Wings captain Steve Yzerman by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman following the Red Wings 4–1 win over the Capitals in game fourThe following Red Wings players and staff had their names engraved on the Stanley Cup
'''1997–98 Detroit Red Wings'''
Engraving notes
- Detroit successfully requested an exemption to engrave the names of two players who did not automatically qualify.
- * #16 Vladimir Konstantinov – career ended in a car accident. The Red Wings still recognized him as part of the team and got permission from the league to have his name engraved.
- * #15 Dmitri Mironov – played 66 regular season games for Anaheim before joining Detroit. Played 11 regular season games and 7 playoff games for Detroit.
- Wally Crossman was the oldest person engraved on the Stanley Cup at age 87.
- Detroit wanted to include a record 55 names on the Stanley Cup in 1997–98. Following that request, the NHL decided to limit the number of names to 52 to make sure all names fit on the Cup. No player who officially qualifies may be left off to include more non-players.
- #34 Norm Maracle and #21 Darryl Laplante were on the roster during the Final, but left off the Stanley Cup engraving due to not qualifying. None played in the playoffs. Detroit did not request an exemption to engrave their names. All were included in the team picture.
- Art Mnatsusakanov, Johnny Remejes, and Mike Vella ; were left off the Stanley Cup engraving, but included in the team picture.