On this date, Mother Nature made her presence felt during one of the most memorable games in National Hockey League history. Also, there was plenty of overtime drama and some coaches who were in need of updating their resumes. The THW time machine is gassed up and ready to take us on our daily journey through the decades to relive all the best from May 20.
Turn Off the Fog Machine
The Buffalo Sabres hosted their first-ever Stanley Cup Final game on May 20, 1975. This should have been a memorable night on its own but it became one of the most unforgettable games in quite some time. The combination of a hot and humid night outside and no air conditioning inside of the Memorial Auditorium caused a thick fog to rise from the playing surface.
The conditions made it impossible to play at times and the game was stopped on multiple occasions to have all the players skate around to try to break up the fog.
The game headed to overtime tied at 4-4, where play was stopped seven different times because of the fog. Finally, at the 18:29 mark, Rene Robert beat goaltender Bernie Parent to give the Sabres a 5-4 victory. They went on to win Game 4 to even the series at 2-2 before ultimately losing to the Flyers in six games.
Overtime Heroes
The Chicago Blackhawks tied an NHL playoff record on May 20, 1992. Jeremy Roenick scored early in overtime to beat the Edmonton Oilers 4-3 in Game 3 of the Campbell Conference Final. The Blackhawks erased an early 2-0 deficit to win their 10th straight game of the postseason. They tied the record for the most consecutive wins in a single postseason set by the 1970 Boston Bruins.
One year later, the Montreal Canadiens set the NHL record for most consecutive overtime playoff wins. Guy Carbonneau’s overtime goal beat the New York Islanders 2-1, on May 20, 1992, in Game 3 of the Wales Conference Final. Vincent Damphousse scored late in regulation to force overtime as the Canadiens took a 3-0 stranglehold on the series.
On May 20, 2002, Chris Drury scored at 2:17 of overtime, the 10th playoff game-winning goal of his career and the third in overtime, as the Colorado Avalanche beat the Detroit Red Wings in Game 2 of the Western Conference Final.
A pair of Red Wings made history in the losing effort. Chris Chelios became the first U.S.-born player to play in 200 Stanley Cup playoff games and Steve Yzerman became just the second player in franchise history to have 100 postseason assists.
The Red Wings were on the losing end of another overtime game on May 20, 2007. This time, the Anaheim Ducks stunned the sold-out crowd at the Joe Louis Arena with a 2-1 overtime victory in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals. Scott Niedermayer tied the game with just 48 seconds left in regulation before Teemu Selanne gives the Ducks a 3-2 series lead with an unassisted goal in the extra time.
Threes were wild on May 20, 2015, at the Amalie Arena. Nikita Kucherov scored at 3:33 of overtime time to give the Tampa Bay Lightning a 6-5 victory over the New York Rangers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Final. The Lightning grabbed a 2-1 series advantage with the goal.
The “come-back cats” were at it again in 2021 when Ryan Lomberg scored the first overtime goal of his postseason career at 5:56 of the extra frame to give the Panthers a 6-5 win and avoid the sweep at the hands of their rivals, the Lightning. It capped off a three-goal comeback that saw goals from Patric Hornqvist and Gustav Forsling in the third period.
The Coaching Carousel
On May 20, 1966, Wren Blair was named the general manager of the expansion Minnesota North Stars, a year and a half before their first NHL game. Blair later was also named their first head coach.
The Flyers fired head coach Terry Simpson, on May 20, 1994, after one season behind the team’s bench. He was eventually replaced by Terry Murray, who took the Flyers to the Stanley Cup Final in 1997.
Speaking of 1997, on May 20, 1997, Ron Wilson was fired by the Ducks. He had been the team’s head coach for the team’s first four NHL seasons. Pierre Page became the team’s second head coach, but he only lasted one season behind the bench.
Odds & Ends
The final game in the history of the World Hockey Association was played on May 20, 1979. The Winnipeg Jest beat the Oilers 7-3 to win the Avco Cup. The Oilers’ Dave Semenko scored the final goal in the history of the WHA.
On May 20, 1988, Wayne Gretzky scored a goal and added two assists to lead the Oilers to a 4-2 win over the Boston Bruins in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final. Gretzky scored three goals and 13 points in the Oilers’ eventual five-game series victory over the Bruins.
Kirk McLean recorded his fifth career playoff shutout on May 20, 1994, to lead the Vancouver Canucks to a 4-0 win over the Toronto Maple Leafs in Game 3 of the Western Conference Final. Pavel Bure scored a pair of goals to lead the offensive charge.
Eric Lindros led the way for the Flyers on May 20, 1997, with the first and only playoff hat trick of his career. His three goals came in a 6-3 win over the Rangers in Game 3 of the Eastern Conference Semifinals.
On May 20, 2000, current St. Louis Blues head coach Craig Berube scored the game-winning goal in the Flyers’ 3-1 win at New Jersey Devils in Game 4 of the Eastern Conference Final. His goal came with just seven minutes left in the third period and his just third goal in 86 playoff games.
The Vegas Golden Knight became the first team since the 1967-68 Blues to make the Stanley Cup Final in their inaugural season on May 20, 2018. Ryan Reaves scored the game-winning goal in a 2-1 victory over the Jets in Game 5 of the Western Conference Final. Marc-Andre Fleury became the first goaltender ever to reach the Final in consecutive seasons with two different teams.
The Golden Knights’ run to the Stanley Cup Final was more impressive than the Blues. For the 1967-68 season, all six expansion teams were all in the West Division, so it was guaranteed that one of them would make the championship series. At the start of the 2017-18 season, very few people picked Vegas to even make the playoffs, let alone make all the way to the Stanley Cup Final.
On May 20, 2021, Kris Letang moved into first in Penguins’ history when it came to playoff points by a defenceman passing Larry Murphy. He did it in a victory too, as his team won 5-4 in Game 3 of their first-round series against the New York Islanders.
Speaking of milestones, Nikita Kucherov of the Tampa Bay Lightning hit one on this date in 2021 too, posting his 100th playoff point (38 goals, 62 assists) in only his 93rd postseason game.
Happy Birthday to You
In all major sports cities, you have players that go beyond being just a star, they become sports royalty. That is the case with Stan Mikita, who was born on this date in 1940, in Chicago. He became a beloved member of the community because of his play on the ice and the great human being he was off of it.
Mikita is still the Blackhawks franchise leader with 926 assists and 1,467 points. He is second to only Bobby Hull with 541 goals. He was a four-time Art Ross Trophy winner and won the Hart and Lady Bing Trophies twice in his Hall of Fame career. The eight-time All-Star was a key member of the Blackhawks’ 1961 Stanley Cup championship team.
Other notable players celebrating birthdays today include Craig Patrick (76), Stu Grimson (57), Bruce Cassidy (57), Jason York (52), Vesa Toskala (45), Kevin Roy (29), Jacob de La Rose (27), and Jack Rathbone (23).
Matthew Zator is a THW freelance writer, media editor, and scout who lives and breathes Vancouver Canucks hockey, the NHL Draft, and prospects in general. He loves talking about young players and their potential. Matthew is a must-read for Canucks fans and fans of the NHL Draft and its prospects. For interview requests or content information, you can follow Matthew through his social media accounts which are listed under his photo at the conclusion of articles like this one about Tyler Motte.
Matthew also hosts The Hockey Writers Prospect Corner on YouTube and is the co-host of The Hockey Writers Podcast & Western Centric Podcast.