1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks season

1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks
Campbell Conference champions
Division	2nd Norris
Conference	3rd Campbell
1991–92 record	36–29–15
Home record	23–9–8
Road record	13–20–7
Goals for	257
Goals against	236
Team information
General manager	Mike Keenan
Coach	Mike Keenan
Captain	Dirk Graham
Alternate captains	Chris Chelios Steve Larmer
Arena	Chicago Stadium
Team leaders
Goals	Jeremy Roenick (53)
Assists	Jeremy Roenick (50)
Points	Jeremy Roenick (103)
Penalty minutes	Mike Peluso (408)
Plus/minus	Chris Chelios (+24)
Wins	Ed Belfour (21)
Goals against average	Dominik Hasek (2.60)

The 1991–92 Chicago Blackhawks season saw the Blackhawks finish second in the Norris Division with a record of 36 wins, 29 losses, and 15 ties for 87 points. They defeated the St. Louis Blues in six games in the Division Semi-finals and swept the first-place Detroit Red Wings in the Division Finals. After sweeping the Edmonton Oilers in the Campbell Conference Finals, the Blackhawks met the defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins in the Stanley Cup Finals. However, Chicago's luck ran out against Pittsburgh, as the Penguins swept them in four straight games to capture their second straight Stanley Cup championship.

Off-season

Following the Blackhawks implosion in the first round of the 1991 playoffs, it was no surprise Mike Keenan made some major changes. The off-season saw the Blackhawks make a series of trades that parted ways with Doug Wilson, Troy Murray, Dave Manson, Wayne Presley, Adam Creighton, Steve Thomas and Greg Millen. In return the Hawks added Brent Sutter, Steve Smith, Bryan Marchment and Brad Lauer.

NHL Draft

See also: 1991 NHL Entry Draft

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	22	Dean McAmmond	Center	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
2	39	Mike Pomichter	Center	United States	Springfield Olympics (NEJHL)
2	44	Jamie Matthews	Center	Canada	Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
3	66	Bobby House	Right wing	Canada	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
4	71	Igor Kravchuk	Defense	Soviet Union	CSKA Moscow (USSR)
4	88	Zac Boyer	Right wing	Canada	Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
5	110	Maco Balkovec	Defense	Canada	Merritt Centennials (BCHL)
6	112	Kevin St. Jacques	Left wing	Canada	Lethbridge Broncos (WHL)
6	132	Jacques Auger	Defense	Canada	University of Wisconsin (WCHA)
7	154	Scott Kirton	Right wing	Canada	Powell River Paper Kings (BCHL)
8	176	Roch Belley	Goaltender	Canada	Niagara Falls Thunder (OHL)
9	198	Scott MacDonald	Defense	United States	Choate Rosemary Hall (USHS-CT)
10	220	Alexander Andrievsky	Right wing	Soviet Union	Dynamo Moscow (USSR)
11	242	Mike Larkin	Defense	United States	Rice Memorial High School (USHS-MA)
12	264	Scott Dean	Defense	United States	Lake Forest High School (USHS-IL)
S	28	Dan Gravelle	Left wing	Canada	Merrimack College (Hockey East)

Regular season

Following their Presidents' Cup level play the prior year, the 1991-92 regular season was disappointing second-place finish with only 87 points (19 less than the prior year). The Blackhawks did, however, make the playoffs for their 23 consecutive season. The Blackhawks had the most power-play opportunities in the NHL, with 467.

Offensively, the Hawks were led by center Jeremy Roenick in goals (53), assists (50) and scoring (103). This was Roenick's first of three straight 100 point seasons. Steve Larmer was second on the team in goals (29) and points (74). Chris Chelios was second on the team in assists (47) and tied with Steve Smith for the lead in goals (9) by a defenseman. Mike Peluso only played in 63 games, but was able to accumulate 408 minutes in the penalty box breaking Dave Manson's record.

Ed Belfour's multiple trophy season the year before virtually continued into the 1991–92 season despite being a contract holdout to begin the season. He also missed a brief spell in the second half of the season for personal reasons. This enabled Dominik Hasek to show flashes of the brilliance that would later define his Hall of Fame career. Hasek earned All-Rookie honors with a 10–4–1 record and a 2.60 GGA, while Belfour was 21–18–10 with a 2.70 GGA. The Hawks tried to get former first-rounder Jimmy Waite going during Belfour's holdout absence, however he could only produce a 4–7–4 record and a 3.69 GGA. Raymond LeBlanc, the ex-Team USA goalie, played one game in net, allowing only one goal in a win versus the San Jose Sharks.

Final standings

Norris Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Detroit Red Wings	80	43	25	12	320	256	98
Chicago Blackhawks	80	36	29	15	257	236	87
St. Louis Blues	80	36	33	11	279	266	83
Minnesota North Stars	80	32	42	6	246	278	70
Toronto Maple Leafs	80	30	43	7	234	294	67

Campbell Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Detroit Red Wings	NRS	80	43	25	12	320	256	98
2	Vancouver Canucks	SMY	80	42	26	12	285	250	96
3	Chicago Blackhawks	NRS	80	36	29	15	257	236	87
4	Los Angeles Kings	SMY	80	35	31	14	287	296	84
5	St. Louis Blues	NRS	80	36	33	11	279	266	83
6	Edmonton Oilers	SMY	80	36	34	10	295	297	82
7	Winnipeg Jets	SMY	80	33	32	15	251	244	81
8	Calgary Flames	SMY	80	31	37	12	296	305	74
9	Minnesota North Stars	NRS	80	32	42	6	246	278	70
10	Toronto Maple Leafs	NRS	80	30	43	7	234	294	67
11	San Jose Sharks	SMY	80	17	58	5	219	359	39

Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe
bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record
1	T	October 3, 1991	3–3 OT	Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	0–0–1
2	L	October 5, 1991	2–4	@ Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	0–1–1
3	L	October 6, 1991	2–4	New Jersey Devils (1991–92)	0–2–1
4	W	October 10, 1991	7–6	Vancouver Canucks (1991–92)	1–2–1
5	W	October 12, 1991	7–2	@ Washington Capitals (1991–92)	2–2–1
6	W	October 13, 1991	7–3	San Jose Sharks (1991–92)	3–2–1
7	W	October 17, 1991	4–2	Edmonton Oilers (1991–92)	4–2–1
8	T	October 19, 1991	4–4 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	4–2–2
9	L	October 20, 1991	1–4	St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	4–3–2
10	T	October 22, 1991	4–4 OT	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1991–92)	4–3–3
11	L	October 24, 1991	2–5	Calgary Flames (1991–92)	4–4–3
12	W	October 26, 1991	4–2	@ Hartford Whalers (1991–92)	5–4–3
13	L	October 27, 1991	3–6	Boston Bruins (1991–92)	5–5–3
14	W	October 31, 1991	4–3	New York Islanders (1991–92)	6–5–3
15	L	November 2, 1991	3–4	@ Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	6–6–3
16	T	November 3, 1991	4–4 OT	Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	6–6–4
17	W	November 7, 1991	4–2	Quebec Nordiques (1991–92)	7–6–4
18	L	November 9, 1991	2–4	@ Montreal Canadiens (1991–92)	7–7–4
19	W	November 10, 1991	3–0	Hartford Whalers (1991–92)	8–7–4
20	W	November 14, 1991	3–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	9–7–4
21	T	November 16, 1991	2–2 OT	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	9–7–5
22	W	November 17, 1991	5–1	St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	10–7–5
23	L	November 19, 1991	1–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	10–8–5
24	L	November 22, 1991	0–2	@ Buffalo Sabres (1991–92)	10–9–5
25	L	November 27, 1991	2–6	@ Edmonton Oilers (1991–92)	10–10–5
26	L	November 29, 1991	2–5	@ Vancouver Canucks (1991–92)	10–11–5
27	L	December 1, 1991	2–3 OT	@ Winnipeg Jets (1991–92)	10–12–5
28	W	December 5, 1991	6–2	Los Angeles Kings (1991–92)	11–12–5
29	W	December 7, 1991	5–2	@ New York Islanders (1991–92)	12–12–5
30	W	December 8, 1991	7–2	Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	13–12–5
31	L	December 10, 1991	3–5	@ Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	13–13–5
32	T	December 14, 1991	1–1 OT	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1991–92)	13–13–6
33	T	December 15, 1991	4–4 OT	Philadelphia Flyers (1991–92)	13–13–7
34	W	December 19, 1991	6–4	Montreal Canadiens (1991–92)	14–13–7
35	T	December 21, 1991	1–1 OT	@ New Jersey Devils (1991–92)	14–13–8
36	W	December 22, 1991	5–2	St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	15–13–8
37	L	December 26, 1991	1–3	@ St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	15–14–8
38	T	December 27, 1991	3–3 OT	Winnipeg Jets (1991–92)	15–14–9
39	L	December 29, 1991	4–6	Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	15–15–9
40	L	December 31, 1991	2–6	@ Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	15–16–9
41	L	January 2, 1992	3–4	New York Rangers (1991–92)	15–17–9
42	W	January 4, 1992	4–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	16–17–9
43	W	January 5, 1992	5–2	Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	17–17–9
44	W	January 9, 1992	2–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	18–17–9
45	L	January 10, 1992	2–6	@ Winnipeg Jets (1991–92)	18–18–9
46	W	January 12, 1992	4–2	Washington Capitals (1991–92)	19–18–9
47	T	January 14, 1992	1–1 OT	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1991–92)	19–18–10
48	W	January 16, 1992	4–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	20–18–10
49	W	January 23, 1992	4–2	Quebec Nordiques (1991–92)	21–18–10
50	W	January 25, 1992	2–0	@ Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	22–18–10
51	W	January 27, 1992	4–3 OT	@ Calgary Flames (1991–92)	23–18–10
52	W	January 29, 1992	4–3	@ Edmonton Oilers (1991–92)	24–18–10
53	L	January 30, 1992	1–4	@ Vancouver Canucks (1991–92)	24–19–10
54	L	February 1, 1992	0–2	@ Los Angeles Kings (1991–92)	24–20–10
55	L	February 5, 1992	2–5	@ San Jose Sharks (1991–92)	24–21–10
56	W	February 8, 1992	3–1	@ St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	25–21–10
57	T	February 13, 1992	2–2 OT	Los Angeles Kings (1991–92)	25–21–11
58	T	February 16, 1992	5–5 OT	Calgary Flames (1991–92)	25–21–12
59	T	February 20, 1992	4–4 OT	New Jersey Devils (1991–92)	25–21–13
60	L	February 22, 1992	1–2	@ Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	25–22–13
61	W	February 23, 1992	4–2	St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	26–22–13
62	L	February 25, 1992	1–4	@ New York Rangers (1991–92)	26–23–13
63	W	February 27, 1992	4–2	Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	27–23–13
64	L	February 29, 1992	5–6 OT	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	27–24–13
65	W	March 1, 1992	3–1	@ Buffalo Sabres (1991–92)	28–24–13
66	T	March 5, 1992	4–4 OT	New York Islanders (1991–92)	28–24–14
67	W	March 7, 1992	2–1	@ Boston Bruins (1991–92)	29–24–14
68	W	March 8, 1992	4–0	Boston Bruins (1991–92)	30–24–14
69	W	March 10, 1992	5–1	San Jose Sharks (1991–92)	31–24–14
70	L	March 11, 1992	1–7	@ New York Rangers (1991–92)	31–25–14
71	L	March 15, 1992	3–4	Pittsburgh Penguins (1991–92)	31–26–14
72	W	March 19, 1992	4–1	Minnesota North Stars (1991–92)	32–26–14
73	W	March 21, 1992	3–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	33–26–14
74	L	March 22, 1992	2–6	Buffalo Sabres (1991–92)	33–27–14
75	W	March 26, 1992	5–4 OT	@ Quebec Nordiques (1991–92)	34–27–14
76	W	March 28, 1992	3–1	@ Hartford Whalers (1991–92)	35–27–14
77	W	March 29, 1992	5–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1991–92)	36–27–14
78	T	March 31, 1992	3–3 OT	@ Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	36–27–15
79	L	April 12, 1992	1–2	Detroit Red Wings (1991–92)	36–28–15
80	L	April 14, 1992	3–5	@ St. Louis Blues (1991–92)	36–29–15

Player statistics

Skaters

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
Jeremy Roenick	80	53	50	103	+23	98
Steve Larmer	80	29	45	74	+10	65
Michel Goulet	75	22	41	63	+20	69
Chris Chelios	80	9	47	56	+24	245
Brent Sutter	61	18	32	50	-5	30
Dirk Graham	80	17	30	47	-5	89

Goaltenders

Note: GP = Games played; TOI = Time on ice (minutes); W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime losses; GA = Goals against; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	OT	GA	SO	SV%	GAA

Playoffs

The Blackhawks began the playoffs against their rival the St. Louis Blues. After splitting the first two in Chicago, the Hawks would go on the road and lose a thriller in double-OT to find themselves down 1–2. The Blackhawks would win the last three games to close out the Blues in six games, and started a playoff winning streak

Apr 18, 1992 - CHI 3-STL 1

Apr 20, 1992 - CHI 3-STL 5

Apr 22, 1992 - STL 5-CHI 4 (OT)

Apr 24, 1992 - STL 3-CHI 5

Apr 26, 1992 - CHI 6-STL 4

Apr 28, 1992 - STL 1-CHI 2

The Blackhawks then took on the Detroit Red Wings, and kept the winning streak going by sweeping the Red Wings to advance to the Campbell Conference Finals

May 2, 1992 - DET 1-CHI 2

May 4, 1992 - DET 1-CHI 3

May 6, 1992 - CHI 5-DET 4

May 8, 1992 - CHI 1-DET 0

Conference finals

In the Conference Final, the Blackhawks faced the Edmonton Oilers for the fourth time in ten years. The Oilers had won all three previous matchups in 1983, 1985, and 1990. But this time around, with many of the players from the Oilers dynasty long gone, the Blackhawks kept their playoff winning streak going sweeping Edmonton in four games. The Blackhawks totally dominated the Oilers, outscoring them 21–8. The streak now reached 11 games (all with Belfour in net setting a Hawks playoff record for consecutive playoff wins by a goalie). The Hawks would be in the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time since 1973.

Campbell Conference

Chicago vs. Edmonton
Date	Away	Home
May 16	Edmonton 2	8 Chicago
May 18	Edmonton 2	4 Chicago
May 20	Chicago 4	3 Edmonton	OT
May 22	Chicago 5	1 Edmonton
Chicago wins series 4–0 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl

Stanley Cup finals

The Blackhawks were facing Mario Lemieux and the defending champion Pittsburgh Penguins, who also swept their way into the Finals beating the Bruins. Lemieux proved to be too much for the Hawks, sweeping them en route to his second Conn Smythe Trophy.

Pittsburgh vs. Chicago
Date	Away	Score	Home	Score
Tue, May 26	Chicago	4	Pittsburgh	5
Thu, May 28	Chicago	1	Pittsburgh	3
Sat, May 30	Pittsburgh	1	Chicago	0
Mon, June 1	Pittsburgh	6	Chicago	5
Pittsburgh wins series 4–0 and Stanley Cup

Impact on the NBA Finals

See also: 1992 NBA Finals

The Chicago Bulls were in the NBA Finals in 1992, but were successful as they repeated as NBA champions, defeating the Portland Trail Blazers in six games. This was the only year that both the Bulls and the Blackhawks reached their respective league's finals in the same year.

Awards and records

• Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
• Dominik Hasek, NHL All-Rookie Team

All-Star Game

• Ed Belfour, Starter, Clarence Campbell Conference
• Chris Chelios, Starter, Clarence Campbell Conference
• Jeremy Roenick, Reserve, Clarence Campbell Conference

References

Sources

• Blackhawks on Hockey Database