Famous First-Round Upsets in the NHL

Author:
SI Staff
Publish date:
Apr 29, 2013

Famous First-Round Upsets in the NHL

2012: Kings oust Canucks

By the end of the series, Vancouver's cornerstone goaltender, Roberto Luongo, was on the bench as the eighth-seeded Kings took care of the Presidents' Trophy-winners in five games. Behind the stellar goaltending of Jonathan Quick, Los Angeles became the 10th No. 8 seed to eliminate a No. 1 since the NHL went to its current playoff format in 1994. The defeat marked a second straight disappointing playoff exit for Luongo and Vancouver, who blew a three-games-to-two lead in the 2011 Stanley Cup Final against Boston.

2012: Flyers light up Pens

Yes, it was only a well-regarded five-seed (Philadelphia) knocking off a No. 4 (Pittsburgh), but the Penguins were the consensus Stanley Cup favorite and how they lost was shocking. With a healthy Sidney Crosby, Hart Trophy candidated Evgeni Malkin, and an 18-4-1 stretch run, the Pens' defense and goaltending suddenly collapsed as they fell into an 0-3 hole by surrendering 20 goals to the relentless Flyers. After rallying to win Games 4 (with a 10-3 explosion) and 5 (by 3-2), Pittsburgh goalie Marc-Andre Fleury was strafed for five goals in a 5-1 elimination loss.

2010: Habs capsize Caps

The Capitals' first Presidents' Trophy made them Stanley Cup favorites, and cocky, too. "His arm was shaking when he drank water," Alex Ovechkin said of Canadiens goalie Jaroslav Halak after the Caps won Game 2 with a comeback blitz. "So, he's nervous. He knows all the pressure is on him and that's a good sign for us." Famous last words. Pulled in Game 3, Halak returned to make 53 often spectacular saves in Game 6 and 41 in Montreal's 2-1 win in Game 7. The Caps' formidable power play went 1-for-33 in the series as Montreal became the first eighth-seed to overcome a three games-to-one deficit in the current playoff format.

2009: Ducks sink Sharks

Since the current conference-based playoff format began in 1994, there have been several shocking first-round upsets, including eight top seeds falling. Most recent was yet another galling and disappointing early exit for Presidents' Trophy-winner San Jose, who saw their Cup hopes dashed by a plucky Ducks team that rode goalie Jonas Hiller's two shutouts and a fight-filled finale to a six-game triumph.

2006: Oilers stun Red Wings

The upstart, eighth-seeded Oilers, with journeyman Dwayne Roloson between the pipes, began their unlikely march to the 2006 Stanley Cup Final by taking down the Presidents Trophy-winning Red Wings in six games. Three of the Oilers' four wins were by one goal.

2003: Ducks down Red Wings

The Wings, who have suffered their share of opening-round misfortune during the past 14 years, were swept by the seventh-seeded Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, who eventually reached the Cup Final on the wings of J-S Giguere's airtight goaltending. Making his playoff debut, Giguere (1.24 GAA) stymied the defending Cup champs as the Ducks won all four games by one goal.

2002: Canadiens bag Bruins

The 29th postseason meeting of the storied Original Six rivals saw eighth-seeded Montreal up its dominance to 22-7 with a six-game ouster of the surprise Eastern Conference champs. The Habs were sparked by the return of center Saku Koivu, left, from a season-long battle with cancer, the stellar goaltending of Jose Theodore, and the desire to avenge the concussion and broken nose suffered by Richard Zednik when he was leveled by Boston's Kyle McLaren in Game 4.

2001: Maple Leafs sweep Senators

The second-seeded Senators rolled to 109 regular-season points, but getting over the playoff hump once again proved maddeningly elusive against the seventh-seed, 90-point Maple Leafs. Toronto netminder Curtis Joseph did not allow his first goal until the final four minutes of Game 3 as the Sens were swept. It was their third consecutive first-round loss.

2001: Kings crown Red Wings

The unlikely Kings of comeback lost the first two games and were trailing 3-0 in Game 4 before rallying to win in overtime. Detroit netminder Chris Osgood failed to stem the tide thereafter, and the seventh-seeded Kings buried the Wings on two goals by Adam Deadmarsh, left, the second at 4:48 of OT in Game 6.

2000: Sharks bite Blues

The Presidents Trophy-winners (114 points) were expected to make quick work of the Sharks (87), but instead dug themselves into a 3-games-to-1 pit that they could not escape, even after chasing immortal San Jose netminder Steve Shields in Game 6. Owen Nolan's 65-foot goal late in the first period of Game 7 portended St. Louis' doom.

1999: Penguins ice Devils

The Eastern Conference champions found themselves in a dogfight and had to battle out of a two-games-to-one hole. The Devils seemed to be back in command before Jaromir Jagr scored the tying goal at 17:48 of the third period in Game 6 and won it with a tally at 8:59 of overtime. The Penguins locked up the decisive game with a three-goal blitz in the second period, winning it 4-2.

1998: Senators shock Devils

Continuing a string of postseason frustration that began after their first Stanley Cup in 1995, the Eastern Conference-champion Devils were ousted in six games by an eight-seed team that finished the regular season with 14 fewer wins. For Alexei Yashin's Senators, it was the first playoff series win in their six-year history. ''They're an average team that played great,'' Devils defenseman Scott Stevens, right, lamented. ''We're an above-average team that played poorly.''

1997: Oilers shoot down Stars

Still building toward their 1999 Stanley Cup, the second-seeded Stars (104 points) suffered a bitter seven-game setback at the hands of the Oilers, who were making their first playoff appearance after a four-year absence. Curtis Joseph sparkled in net for Edmonton, who got the series-winning goal from Todd Marchant, inset left, in overtime.

1994: Sharks sink Red Wings

A third-season expansion team that had staggered to a mindbogglingly bad 11-71-2 mark the previous year, the Sharks stunned Steve Yzerman's proud Wings, who had scored a league-leading 356 goals and were expected by many to win the Cup. Arturs Irbe, the little Sharks netminder (5-8, 190), came up huge as San Jose took advantage of Detroit miscues to win in seven games.

1982: Kings shock Oilers

The high-powered Oilers (Wayne Gretzky scored 92 goals that season as Edmonton went 48-17-15) were huge favorites in their best-of-five series against Marcel Dionne (left) and the Kings, who finished fourth in their division at 24-41-15. The Kings stole Game 1, but lost a wild shootout, 10-8, in Game 2. The next match, in Los Angeles, became known as the Miracle on Manchester after the Kings stormed out of a 5-0 hole in the third period to tie the game with five seconds remaining. At 2:35 of overtime, rookie forward Daryl Evans beat Oilers goalie Grant Fuhr (right) to give LA the win. Though the Oilers squared the series in Game 4, the Kings pulled off the stunning upset with a 7-4 win the next night.The high-powered Oilers (Wayne Gretzky scored 92 goals that season) were huge favorites against Marcel Dionne (left) and the Kings, who did what. The Kings stole Game 1 of the best-of-five series, but lost a wild shootout, 10-8, in Game 2. The next match, in Los Angeles, became known as the Miracle on Manchester after the Kings stormed out of a 5-0 hole in the third period to win