Series won and lost in a single moment

[tony d]

1991 Wales final. Boston up 2-0 on Pittsburgh then in Game 3 Cam Neely gets injured, Boston ends up losing the series and the next 4 games. Got to wonder how they do if Neely doesn't get injured.

 

[Michael Farkas]

Have we leaked into "turning points" as opposed to a "series was won"...? Neely, Lidstrom on Cloutier, etc.?

 

[mike14]

Ron Francis' slapper from outside the zone that beat Richter in the 1992 Division Final? Rangers were up 4-2 in the game with 10 mins left, and 2-1 in the series. Pens end up taking the game in OT, win the next 2 games including a 5-1 spanking in game 6, before sweeping their way to a cup

 

[Randy Marsh]

Richards knocks out Krejci in 2010 Game 4. Flyers win games 4-7.

 

[GMR]

Have we leaked into "turning points" as opposed to a "series was won"...? Neely, Lidstrom on Cloutier, etc.?

If you look at the first paragraph the OP wrote, there's a razor thin difference between the two. I've always thought the Wings practically won the series after that Lidstrom goal went in. Everything started to go their way and against Vancouver. Yes, they still had to win that game and three others, but otherwise, you could argue a series is never won until the GWG is scored in the final game........or something like that.

 

[Michael Farkas]

I hear ya, it's tough...I read it more as a "well, that sealed it..." the Lidstrom goal was the spark that started the flame...but it's a thin line, I agree...

One that might qualify, but I think it's a little presumptuous but I did feel really, really good about things thereafter, it's a shame it didn't happen in game 2. But game 1 of the 2017 Stanley Cup Final...the Penguins go like 31 minutes without a shot...come down and Guentzel just beats Rinne with a mid-range wrister late in the 3rd...I'm not sure that out right lost the series for Nashville...but man, that's like a rusty skate boot to the testicles...they had rallied to tie it in that span, the Penguins didn't touch the puck...after Guentzel's goal, Pittsburgh had a firm grip on the series...not a death grip, mind you...but that took a lot of pop out of Nashville's soda...or vice versa...

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Roberge on Hextall was great.

nice, you found it

 

[BenchBrawl]

nice, you found it

Well to be honest it's the first video on google after I typed Roberge Hextall, so it wasn't that hard

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

tbh i don’t count cloutier because the canucks were never going to win that series. other than old man linden and then-playoff virgins the sedins, no one on that team has ever in his life closed out a series without the other team contracting the bubonic plague.

unlike the 93 nordiques i don’t think this is hindsight speaking. i think the whole world knew it was only a matter of time before the 17 hall of famers on detroit had their way with the canucks. clouts, something of a showman, just happened to start off the festivities in spectacular fashion.

 

[Sticks and Pucks]

tbh i don’t count cloutier because the canucks were never going to win that series. other than old man linden and then-playoff virgins the sedins, no one on that team has ever in his life closed out a series without the other team contracting the bubonic plague.

unlike the 93 nordiques i don’t think this is hindsight speaking. i think the whole world knew it was only a matter of time before the 17 hall of famers on detroit had their way with the canucks. clouts, something of a showman, just happened to start off the festivities in spectacular fashion.

Hmm not sure about that. The Canucks were a red hot team going into the playoffs. They were five points behind the number 2 seed. A better start to the season and that's the second best team in the West, better than Colorado. When they were up 2-0, with games 3 and 4 at home, I think a lot of people were picking the Canucks to win the series.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Hmm not sure about that. The Canucks were a red hot team going into the playoffs. They were five points behind the number 2 seed. A better start to the season and that's the second best team in the West, better than Colorado. When they were up 2-0, with games 3 and 4 at home, I think a lot of people were picking the Canucks to win the series.

yes, bertuzzi was the best player in the world from december to april, and that line was ridiculous. but at the end of the day, this was still a one line team with a goalie who'd never won a playoff game before against a team with two hall of famers on every line, two of the ten best defensemen ever, and hasek in net. that detroit team was the superteam to end all superteams and won the regular season by 15 points.

you might be right that there were people who were picking vancouver. but i didn't know any, and i don't see it myself.

 

[Sticks and Pucks]

yes, bertuzzi was the best player in the world from december to april, and that line was ridiculous. but at the end of the day, this was still a one line team with a goalie who'd never won a playoff game before against a team with two hall of famers on every line, two of the ten best defensemen ever, and hasek in net. that detroit team was the superteam to end all superteams and won the regular season by 15 points.

you might be right that there were people who were picking vancouver. but i didn't know any, and i don't see it myself.

Up 2-0, I remember a lot of people in Vancouver picking the Canucks to win at that point. Yes, many of them were probably just cocky bandwagon homers but it wasn't too hard to fathom Vancouver winning at that point. The most likely scenario would be to split games 3 and 4 at home. That would put the Canucks up 3-1. The Red Wings would then have to reel off three wins in a row to win the series which would be no small feat. Down 2-0, I think there was also some talk about whether the Red Wings were going to be able to keep up their regular season success or if they would get tired as they had an aging core with multiple players who had participated in the Olympics as well. But once Cloutier let in that goal from center ice, I think everyone could see the Cinderella story ending.

 

[CharlestownChiefsESC]

Ron Francis' slapper from outside the zone that beat Richter in the 1992 Division Final? Rangers were up 4-2 in the game with 10 mins left, and 2-1 in the series. Pens end up taking the game in OT, win the next 2 games including a 5-1 spanking in game 6, before sweeping their way to a cup

Ughh kills me. Rangers would have won the cup if that didnt happen.

 

[Fenway]

These 2 moments doomed the Bruins in 2013

 

[NyQuil]

In the 2007 Anaheim-Ottawa series, Anaheim's go-ahead goal in Game 4 which put them up 3-1 happened when Phillips broke a stick and had to get off the ice. Redden jumping on had no momentum, and the Ducks scored the game-winning goal on the ensuing odd-man rush.

"Chris Phillips broke a (stick) blade and couldn't stay on, so Wade had to jump on in the middle of a rush and got caught flat-footed.

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(3:23)

If Ottawa had won Game 4 it might have made for a more interesting series.

The same Chris Phillips who managed to score on his own goalie, Ray Emery, in Game 5, after Ottawa had shown signs of life.

 

[double5son10]

1978 Finals, Bruins get Larry Robinson mad.
Going in as overwhelming underdogs and then going down 2-0 in the series the Bruins had in game 3 played the very best hockey game anyone had brought against the Bowman coached dynasty, shutting out the Habs 4-0 (and outshooting them 36-16). They then evened the series by winning the wild game 4 in OT 4-3 (best known for the Jonathan-Bouchard fight, but also for Serge Savard tying the game with Dryden pulled w/ 33 seconds on the clock).
Game 5 in Montreal, with the Bruins dominating the first 5 min. of the opening period, outshooting the Canadiens 7-1 to that point, Rick Smith gets his stick up on Lafleur in a scrum. It doesn't look like much but it was enough to incense Robinson.



As Cherry has stated through the yrs., it was always a mistake to "wake up" Big Bird. This was the prime example of what he meant. 45 seconds after play resumes Robinson famously goes end to end, turns Milbury into a pylon and scores on Cheevers. The Habs dominate from then on, comfortably winning games 5 & 6 by 4-1 scores, and Big Bird wins the ConnSmythe.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Up 2-0, I remember a lot of people in Vancouver picking the Canucks to win at that point. Yes, many of them were probably just cocky bandwagon homers but it wasn't too hard to fathom Vancouver winning at that point. The most likely scenario would be to split games 3 and 4 at home. That would put the Canucks up 3-1. The Red Wings would then have to reel off three wins in a row to win the series which would be no small feat. Down 2-0, I think there was also some talk about whether the Red Wings were going to be able to keep up their regular season success or if they would get tired as they had an aging core with multiple players who had participated in the Olympics as well. But once Cloutier let in that goal from center ice, I think everyone could see the Cinderella story ending.

maybe i'm just conservative. fwiw, i did not believe the red wings were going to lose in '03 until that game four OT goal went in.

 

[pappyline]

Late In the second period of the 7th game of the Stanley cup final in 1971, Chicago had a 2-0 lead over Montreal and were controlling the game. Bobby Hull dinged a shot off the crossbar that would have made the game 3-0. Shortly thereafter Lemaire scored a fluke goal on a floater from center ice that somehow went over Tony Esposito's shoulder. The momentum then switched to Montreal who came back to win 3-2.

 

[c9777666]

Hmm not sure about that. The Canucks were a red hot team going into the playoffs. They were five points behind the number 2 seed. A better start to the season and that's the second best team in the West, better than Colorado. When they were up 2-0, with games 3 and 4 at home, I think a lot of people were picking the Canucks to win the series.

And let’s not forget Detroit the year before had blown a 2-0 series lead in round 1 against the Kings.

Throw in the Presidents Trophy bad voodoo and there was a lot of reason to be nervous about Detroit’s chances.

 

[Tarantula]

72/73 cup finals, game 7, Jaques Lemaire blasting a 60 footer past the home town Hawks goalie, Espo. I believe it was 2- 0 Hawks at that point.

Looks like I had the wrong year, it was just before my time but I recall hearing about it often.

 

[njdevils1982]

bernier boarding major in 2012 game 6 final….kings score 3 on the PP to take a 3-0 lead in the game with 5 minutes to go in the 1st period

everyone knew it was done at that point

 

[MarkusNaslund19]

tbh i don’t count cloutier because the canucks were never going to win that series. other than old man linden and then-playoff virgins the sedins, no one on that team has ever in his life closed out a series without the other team contracting the bubonic plague.

unlike the 93 nordiques i don’t think this is hindsight speaking. i think the whole world knew it was only a matter of time before the 17 hall of famers on detroit had their way with the canucks. clouts, something of a showman, just happened to start off the festivities in spectacular fashion.

I disagree with this. Nothing has happened until it does. At one time every decent team was full of players who were either green or 'hadn't gotten it done" in the playoffs.
Detroit had a team loaded with hall of famers, but that brings with it a lot of pressure. Pressure that compounds, the longer it goes without an outlet. That Cloutier trainwreck goal likely changed the course of Canucks history for the 3 or 4 years after.
If that doesn't go in, there's a great chance that we beat Detroit.

 

[Sticks and Pucks]

I disagree with this. Nothing has happened until it does. At one time every decent team was full of players who were either green or 'hadn't gotten it done" in the playoffs.
Detroit had a team loaded with hall of famers, but that brings with it a lot of pressure. Pressure that compounds, the longer it goes without an outlet. That Cloutier trainwreck goal likely changed the course of Canucks history for the 3 or 4 years after.
If that doesn't go in, there's a great chance that we beat Detroit.

While I agree with the basic premise of your post, I'm not sure how Cloutier not letting in that goal (and presumably the Canucks beat Detroit) would have changed the course of Canucks history for the following few years.

 

[whcanuck]

Cloutier letting in that goal in Game 3.

Yeah that was the one I would have said too. Canucks shocked that stacked Red Wings team in the first two games at the Joe, they're making them sweat really good in game 3 too, then that happens. It's almost like everyone was waiting for something to wake up the mighty Wings, that was it. That was all she wrote for the Canucks.

 

[whcanuck]

I'd argue too that Martin Havlat's tying goal for Chicago against the Canucks in'09 was a big one too. If the Canucks keep that out of the net, they probably go up 3-1 in the series with game 5 and 7 at home! Instead, Havlat scores, Chicago wins in overtime, Luongo and the defense later completely implode in game 6 and the Hawks bounce the Canucks.