1987–88 New Jersey Devils season

The 1987–88 New Jersey Devils season was the team's sixth season in the National Hockey League since the franchise relocated to New Jersey. The Devils finished fourth in the Patrick Division with a record of 38 wins, 36 losses, and 6 ties for 82 points, garnering the first winning record in the franchise's 14-year history.

1987–88 New Jersey Devils
Division4th Patrick
Conference7th Wales
1987–88 record38–36–6
Goals for295
Goals against296
Team information
General managerLou Lamoriello
CoachDoug Carpenter (Oct-Jan)
Jim Schoenfeld (Jan-Apr)
CaptainKirk Muller
Alternate captainsAaron Broten
Joe Cirella
ArenaBrendan Byrne Arena
Team leaders
GoalsPat Verbeek (46)
AssistsKirk Muller and Aaron Broten (57)
PointsKirk Muller (94)
Penalty minutesKen Daneyko (239)
Plus/minusPat Verbeek (+29)
WinsAlain Chevrier (18)
Goals against averageSean Burke (3.05)

On the final day of the regular season, the Devils were tied with their nemesis, the New York Rangers, for the final playoff spot in the Patrick Division. After New York defeated the Quebec Nordiques 3–0, all eyes were on the Devils, who were playing the Blackhawks in Chicago. The Devils trailed 3–2 midway through the third period, but John MacLean scored to tie the game, and with two minutes left in overtime, he added the winning goal. Although the Rangers and Devils both finished with 82 points, the Devils had two more wins, sending them to the playoffs for the second time in franchise history, but the first time in New Jersey.[1]

The Devils rode the momentum of this victory into a surprisingly deep playoff run, ousting the New York Islanders in six games in the Division Semi-finals and the Washington Capitals in seven games in the Division Finals. They then met the Boston Bruins in the Wales Conference Finals and stretched the series to seven games, but finally fell short in the seventh game (see below).

Offseason

Hoping to light a spark under the team, team owner John McMullen hired Providence College coach and athletic director Lou Lamoriello as team president in April 1987. Lamoriello appointed himself general manager shortly before the 1987–88 season. This move came as a considerable surprise to NHL circles; although Lamoriello had been a college coach for 19 years, he had never played, coached, or managed in the NHL and was almost unknown outside the American college hockey community.

Regular season

On November 25, 1987, Aaron Broten scored just 13 seconds into overtime to give the Devils an 8-7 road win over the Edmonton Oilers.[2] It would prove to be the fastest overtime goal scored during the 1987–88 NHL regular season.[3]

On the last day of the season, Sunday, April 3, 1988, the Devils were scheduled to play the Chicago Blackhawks at Chicago Stadium. Going into the game, the Devils were tied with the New York Rangers with 80 points for the last playoff spot in the Patrick Division. On April 3, the Rangers were scheduled to play the Quebec Nordiques at home. The Rangers shut out the Nordiques, 3-0, to finish their season with 82 points. When the game ended, the Devils-Blackhawks game was still in progress. Both teams skated to a 3-3 tie after 60 minutes. For the Devils to qualify for the playoffs, they would have to score in overtime to get the win and the two points to win the tiebreaker the Rangers. An overtime loss would keep them at 80 points, and a 3-3 tie would move them up only to 81 points, handing the last playoff berth to the Rangers. At 2:21 of the overtime period, John MacLean scored the game-winning goal on a rebound slap-shot past Blackhawks netminder Darren Pang to give the Devils a 4-3 win. Both the Devils and Rangers finished with 82 points. However, since the Devils had two more wins during the regular season, they ended up taking the Patrick Division's 4th playoff spot and thereby sealed the first ever playoff berth for the franchise in New Jersey.

Gary Thorne called MacLean's overtime, playoff-berth-clinching goal on SportsChannel New York:

MacLean...off the boards, Sundstrom, he's alone, Sundstrom...Murray on him, shot...that was deflected, went off the skate of Bob Murray the defenseman. Flipped up by Chicago, not out...kept in by MacLean, good job, MacLean centered Sundstrom. Sundstrom back to the point...Joe Cirella...Cirella got in, Cirella takes a shot, save by Pang, rebound...SCORES!!! THEY DID IT!!! THEY DID IT!!! THE DEVILS MAKE THE PLAYOFFS FOR THE FIRST TIME IN THEIR HISTORY! JOHN MACLEAN THE OVERTIME GOAL! AND THEY WIN IT 4-3!

Season standings

Patrick Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
New York Islanders8039311030826788
Philadelphia Flyers803833929229285
Washington Capitals803833928124985
New Jersey Devils803836629529682
New York Rangers8036341030028382
Pittsburgh Penguins803635931931681

[4]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Sean Burke

Sean Burke was drafted by the New Jersey Devils in the second round of the 1985 NHL Entry Draft. He earned national attention from his international play. He backstopped Canada's junior team to a silver medal in the 1986 World Junior Championships and a fourth-place finish for the national men's team at the 1988 Calgary Olympics.

Burke went from the Olympics to the Devils. He started 11 games for the Devils in the 1987–88 NHL season, including an overtime victory against the Chicago Blackhawks on the final night of the season that qualified the Devils for their first playoff series.

Dubbed a "rookie sensation", Burke helped the Devils go on a playoff roll, defeating the division-leader New York Islanders in the first round in six games and then the Washington Capitals in seven games. Burke was one game away from the Stanley Cup Finals but lost in Game 7 of the Wales Conference finals to the Boston Bruins.

Schedule and results

# R Date Score Opponent Record
1WOctober 9, 19876–3Pittsburgh Penguins (season)1–0–0
2LOctober 10, 19872–5@ Toronto Maple Leafs (season)1–1–0
3WOctober 14, 19873–1Hartford Whalers (season)2–1–0
4WOctober 16, 19874–3Montreal Canadiens (season)3–1–0
5LOctober 17, 19873–4 OT@ Hartford Whalers (season)3–2–0
6WOctober 21, 19875–4@ Pittsburgh Penguins (season)4–2–0
7WOctober 23, 19875–3New York Islanders (season)5–2–0
8LOctober 24, 19871–2@ New York Islanders (season)5–3–0
9WOctober 27, 19874–0Philadelphia Flyers (season)6–3–0
10WOctober 31, 19876–5Edmonton Oilers (season)7–3–0
11LNovember 3, 19873–6@ New York Islanders (season)7–4–0
12WNovember 5, 19875–3St. Louis Blues (season)8–4–0
13WNovember 7, 19874–1Washington Capitals (season)9–4–0
14TNovember 8, 19873–3 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (season)9–4–1
15WNovember 10, 19873–2@ New York Rangers (season)10–4–1
16TNovember 12, 19871–1 OTWinnipeg Jets (season)10–4–2
17LNovember 14, 19874–6Detroit Red Wings (season)10–5–2
18WNovember 18, 19874–3Philadelphia Flyers (season)11–5–2
19WNovember 20, 19875–2Chicago Blackhawks (season)12–5–2
20LNovember 21, 19871–2@ Montreal Canadiens (season)12–6–2
21LNovember 23, 19872–9@ Calgary Flames (season)12–7–2
22WNovember 25, 19878–7 OT@ Edmonton Oilers (season)13–7–2
23LNovember 27, 19872–4@ Vancouver Canucks (season)13–8–2
24TNovember 29, 19872–2 OT@ Los Angeles Kings (season)13–8–3
25WDecember 3, 19874–2St. Louis Blues (season)14–8–3
26LDecember 5, 19872–3@ Quebec Nordiques (season)14–9–3
27TDecember 6, 19871–1 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (season)14–9–4
28WDecember 9, 19872–1Los Angeles Kings (season)15–9–4
29LDecember 11, 19871–5Calgary Flames (season)15–10–4
30LDecember 12, 19873–5@ New York Islanders (season)15–11–4
31LDecember 16, 19873–9@ New York Rangers (season)15–12–4
32LDecember 17, 19874–7Pittsburgh Penguins (season)15–13–4
33WDecember 19, 19873–1@ Minnesota North Stars (season)16–13–4
34LDecember 20, 19871–4@ Winnipeg Jets (season)16–14–4
35WDecember 23, 19876–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (season)17–14–4
36LDecember 26, 19873–5New York Rangers (season)17–15–4
37WDecember 28, 19876–4New York Islanders (season)18–15–4
38LDecember 30, 19873–4Washington Capitals (season)18–16–4
39TJanuary 2, 19881–1 OT@ Hartford Whalers (season)18–16–5
40LJanuary 4, 19883–6Los Angeles Kings (season)18–17–5
41LJanuary 7, 19883–6Vancouver Canucks (season)18–18–5
42WJanuary 9, 19884–3@ Minnesota North Stars (season)19–18–5
43WJanuary 10, 19887–5@ Philadelphia Flyers (season)20–18–5
44LJanuary 13, 19883–5Quebec Nordiques (season)20–19–5
45WJanuary 15, 19887–3Toronto Maple Leafs (season)21–19–5
46LJanuary 16, 19882–4@ New York Islanders (season)21–20–5
47LJanuary 19, 19884–6@ Washington Capitals (season)21–21–5
48LJanuary 21, 19882–3 OTDetroit Red Wings (season)21–22–5
49LJanuary 22, 19883–7@ Buffalo Sabres (season)21–23–5
50LJanuary 25, 19882–5Buffalo Sabres (season)21–24–5
51WJanuary 28, 19886–3Pittsburgh Penguins (season)22–24–5
52WJanuary 29, 19883–2 OTChicago Blackhawks (season)23–24–5
53WFebruary 1, 19885–4@ Calgary Flames (season)24–24–5
54LFebruary 3, 19885–8@ Edmonton Oilers (season)24–25–5
55LFebruary 5, 19881–5@ Vancouver Canucks (season)24–26–5
56LFebruary 7, 19883–6@ Boston Bruins (season)24–27–5
57WFebruary 11, 19884–2Montreal Canadiens (season)25–27–5
58LFebruary 12, 19883–4@ Detroit Red Wings (season)25–28–5
59WFebruary 14, 19887–2@ Toronto Maple Leafs (season)26–28–5
60LFebruary 17, 19883–4Washington Capitals (season)26–29–5
61WFebruary 19, 19886–3New York Rangers (season)27–29–5
62LFebruary 21, 19881–4Boston Bruins (season)27–30–5
63LFebruary 24, 19881–3Winnipeg Jets (season)27–31–5
64LFebruary 26, 19881–2New York Rangers (season)27–32–5
65WFebruary 28, 19888–6Minnesota North Stars (season)28–32–5
66LMarch 1, 19883–5@ Washington Capitals (season)28–33–5
67LMarch 2, 19881–6Washington Capitals (season)28–34–5
68WMarch 5, 19887–6 OT@ Boston Bruins (season)29–34–5
69WMarch 6, 19884–2Philadelphia Flyers (season)30–34–5
70LMarch 8, 19884–7@ New York Rangers (season)30–35–5
71WMarch 12, 19886–5@ Philadelphia Flyers (season)31–35–5
72LMarch 17, 19883–4Quebec Nordiques (season)31–36–5
73WMarch 20, 19884–2@ Washington Capitals (season)32–36–5
74WMarch 24, 19888–2@ St. Louis Blues (season)33–36–5
75TMarch 25, 19882–2 OT@ Buffalo Sabres (season)33–36–6
76WMarch 27, 19887–2New York Rangers (season)34–36–6
77WMarch 29, 19884–0Pittsburgh Penguins (season)35–36–6
78WMarch 31, 19887–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (season)36–36–6
79WApril 2, 19885–2New York Islanders (season)37–36–6
80WApril 3, 19884–3 OT@ Chicago Blackhawks (season)38–36–6

Playoffs

The team made it all the way to the conference finals, but lost to the Boston Bruins in seven games. In that series, after a horrendous Game 3 loss to Boston, head coach Jim Schoenfeld verbally abused referee Don Koharski, screaming obscenities and hollering, "Have another doughnut, you fat pig!" The incident resulted in a suspension for Schoenfeld, which the franchise appealed to the New Jersey Superior Court. This unprecedented appeal to authority outside the NHL gave the Devils a preliminary stay of the coach's suspension. In protest, referee Dave Newell and the assigned linesmen boycotted the next game. After more than an hour's delay, amateur officials were tracked down in the stands and worked the game wearing yellow practice sweaters. To resolve the incident, the NHL suspended Schoenfeld for Game 5. Schoenfeld later admitted he regretted his comments.[5]

Patrick Division semi-finals vs. New York Islanders

Date Away Score Home Score OT
April 6New Jersey3New York4(OT)
April 7New Jersey3New York2
April 9New York0New Jersey 3
April 10New York 5New Jersey4(OT)
April 12New Jersey 4New York2
April 14New York5New Jersey 6

New Jersey wins series 4-2

Patrick Division finals vs. Washington Capitals

Date Away Score Home Score
April 18New Jersey1Washington 3
April 20New Jersey 5Washington2
April 22Washington4New Jersey 10
April 24Washington 4New Jersey1
April 26New Jersey 3Washington1
April 28Washington 7New Jersey2
April 30New Jersey 3Washington2

New Jersey wins series 4-3.

Prince of Wales Conference Finals vs. Boston Bruins

Date Away Score Home Score OT
May 2New Jersey3Boston 5
May 4New Jersey 3Boston2(OT)
May 6Boston 6New Jersey1
May 8Boston1New Jersey 3
May 10New Jersey1Boston 7
May 12Boston3New Jersey 6
May 14New Jersey2Boston 6

New Jersey loses series 3-4.

Player statistics

Forwards

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

Player GP G A Pts PIM
Kirk Muller80375794114
Aaron Broten8026578380
Pat Verbeek73463177227
Patrik Sundström7815365142
John MacLean76231639147
Claude Loiselle68171835121
Mark Johnson5414193314
Doug Sulliman5916143022
Brendan Shanahan6571926131
Doug Brown7014112520
Andy Brickley458142214

Defensemen

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes

Player GP G A Pts PIM
Bruce Driver7415405568
Joe Cirella8083139191
Tom Kurvers565293446
Craig Wolanin7862531170
Jack O'Callahan507192697
Jim Korn5281321140
Randy Velischek51391266
Ken Daneyko805712239

Goaltending

Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

Player GP W L T SO GAA
Alain Chevrier451819313.77
Bob Sauvé341016323.56
Sean Burke13101013.05

Draft picks

Rd # Pick # Player Nat Pos Team (League) Notes
1 2 Brendan Shanahan  Canada LW London Knights (OHL)
2 23 Ricard Persson  Sweden D Leksands IF (Elitserien)
3 44 No third-round pick[6]
4 65 Brian Sullivan  United States RW Springfield Olympics (NEJHL)
5 86 Kevin Dean  United States D Culver Military Academy (Indiana)
6 107 Ben Hankinson  United States RW Edina H.S. (Minnesota)
7 128 Tom Neziol  Canada LW Miami University (CCHA)
8 149 Jim Dowd  United States C Brick Township H.S. (New Jersey) [7]
9 170 John Blessman  Canada D Toronto Marlboros (OHL)
10 191 Pete Fry  Canada G Victoria Cougars (WHL)
11 212 Alain Charland  Canada C Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
12 233 No twelfth-round pick[8]
S10Johnny Walker CanadaLWNorthern Alberta Institute of Technology (CIAU)
S11Jeff Madill CanadaRWOhio State University (CCHA)

References

  1. New Jersey Devils on SportsEcyclopedia
  2. https://www.nytimes.com/1987/11/26/sports/devils-top-oilers-in-overtime-nhl.html
  3. https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1988_games.html
  4. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  5. "Jim Schoenfeld: The Koharski Incident". HockeyDraftCentral.com. Archived from the original on 16 November 2007. Retrieved 21 December 2007.
  6. The Devils traded their 1987 third-round pick (used on Mathieu Schneider) to Montreal for David Maley on June 13, 1987.
  7. First New Jersey native to play for the Devils; scored game-winning goal in Game 2 of the 1995 Stanley Cup Finals against Detroit. Jim Dowd's profile on the official New Jersey Devils site
  8. The Devils traded their 1987 12th-round pick (used on Neil Eisenhut) to Vancouver for Shane Doyle on June 1, 1987. Shane Doyle's career statistics at the Internet Hockey Database.
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