The 1989–90 NHL season was the 73rd season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup winners were the Edmonton Oilers, who won the best of seven series 4–1 against the Boston Bruins. The championship was the Oilers' fifth Stanley Cup in seven seasons.

1989–90 NHL season
LeagueNational Hockey League
SportIce hockey
DurationOctober 5, 1989 – May 24, 1990
Number of games80
Number of teams21
TV partner(s)CBC, TSN, SRC (Canada)
SportsChannel America, NBC[a] (United States)
Draft
Top draft pickMats Sundin
Picked byQuebec Nordiques
Regular season
Presidents' TrophyBoston Bruins
Season MVPMark Messier (Oilers)
Top scorerWayne Gretzky (Kings)
Playoffs
Playoffs MVPBill Ranford (Oilers)
Stanley Cup
ChampionsEdmonton Oilers
  Runners-upBoston Bruins
NHL seasons

Entry draft

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The 1989 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 17, at the Met Center in Bloomington, Minnesota. Mats Sundin was selected first overall by the Quebec Nordiques.

Regular season

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This season marked the first time that all three New York City area NHL teams, including the New Jersey Devils, made the playoffs in the same season, a feat which has since been repeated thrice more: in the 1993–94, the 2006–07, and the 2022–23 seasons.

Until 2017, this was last time the Detroit Red Wings missed the Stanley Cup playoffs.

Sam St. Laurent of the Red Wings became the last goalie to wear a full fiberglass mask during an NHL game.

Final standings

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Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes

Prince of Wales Conference

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Adams Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Boston Bruins 80 46 25 9 289 232 101
Buffalo Sabres 80 45 27 8 286 248 98
Montreal Canadiens 80 41 28 11 288 234 93
Hartford Whalers 80 38 33 9 275 268 85
Quebec Nordiques 80 12 61 7 240 407 31

[1]

Patrick Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
New York Rangers 80 36 31 13 279 267 85
New Jersey Devils 80 37 34 9 295 288 83
Washington Capitals 80 36 38 6 284 275 78
New York Islanders 80 31 38 11 281 288 73
Pittsburgh Penguins 80 32 40 8 318 359 72
Philadelphia Flyers 80 30 39 11 290 297 71

[1]

Clarence Campbell Conference

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Norris Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Blackhawks 80 41 33 6 315 294 88
St. Louis Blues 80 37 34 9 295 279 83
Toronto Maple Leafs 80 38 38 4 337 358 80
Minnesota North Stars 80 36 40 4 284 291 76
Detroit Red Wings 80 28 38 14 288 323 70

[1]

Smythe Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Calgary Flames 80 42 23 15 348 265 99
Edmonton Oilers 80 38 28 14 315 283 90
Winnipeg Jets 80 37 32 11 298 290 85
Los Angeles Kings 80 34 39 7 338 337 75
Vancouver Canucks 80 25 41 14 245 306 64

[1]

Playoffs

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Bracket

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The top four teams in each division qualified for the playoffs. In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). In the division semifinals, the fourth seeded team in each division played against the division winner from their division. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. The two winning teams from each division's semifinals then met in the division finals. The two division winners of each conference then played in the conference finals. The two conference winners then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals.

Division semifinals Division finals Conference finals Stanley Cup Finals
            
A1 Boston 4
A4 Hartford 3
A1 Boston 4
A3 Montreal 1
A2 Buffalo 2
A3 Montreal 4
A1 Boston 4
Prince of Wales Conference
P3 Washington 0
P1 NY Rangers 4
P4 NY Islanders 1
P1 NY Rangers 1
P3 Washington 4
P2 New Jersey 2
P3 Washington 4
A1 Boston 1
S2 Edmonton 4
N1 Chicago 4
N4 Minnesota 3
N1 Chicago 4
N2 St. Louis 3
N2 St. Louis 4
N3 Toronto 1
N1 Chicago 2
Clarence Campbell Conference
S2 Edmonton 4
S1 Calgary 2
S4 Los Angeles 4
S4 Los Angeles 0
S2 Edmonton 4
S2 Edmonton 4
S3 Winnipeg 3

Awards

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1989–90 NHL awards
Award Recipient(s) Runner(s)-up/Finalists
Stanley Cup Edmonton Oilers Boston Bruins
Presidents' Trophy
(Best regular-season record)
Boston Bruins Calgary Flames
Prince of Wales Trophy
(Wales Conference playoff champion)
Boston Bruins Washington Capitals
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl
(Campbell Conference playoff champion)
Edmonton Oilers Chicago Blackhawks
Alka-Seltzer Plus-Minus Award
(Best plus-minus statistic)
Paul Cavallini (St. Louis Blues) Stéphane Richer (Montreal Canadiens)
Art Ross Trophy
(Player with most points)
Wayne Gretzky (Los Angeles Kings) Mark Messier (Edmonton Oilers)
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy
(Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication)
Gord Kluzak (Boston Bruins) N/A
Calder Memorial Trophy
(Best first-year player)
Sergei Makarov (Calgary Flames) Mike Modano (Minnesota North Stars)
Jeremy Roenick (Chicago Blackhawks)
Conn Smythe Trophy
(Most valuable player, playoffs)
Bill Ranford (Edmonton Oilers) N/A
Frank J. Selke Trophy
(Best defensive forward)
Rick Meagher (St. Louis Blues) Guy Carbonneau (Montreal Canadiens)
Esa Tikkanen (Edmonton Oilers)
Hart Memorial Trophy
(Most valuable player, regular season)
Mark Messier (Edmonton Oilers) Ray Bourque (Boston Bruins)
Brett Hull (St. Louis Blues)
Jack Adams Award
(Best coach)
Bob Murdoch (Winnipeg Jets) Mike Milbury (Boston Bruins)
Roger Neilson (New York Rangers)
James Norris Memorial Trophy
(Best defenceman)
Ray Bourque (Boston Bruins) Al MacInnis (Calgary Flames)
Doug Wilson (Chicago Blackhawks)
King Clancy Memorial Trophy
(Leadership and humanitarian contribution)
Kevin Lowe (Edmonton Oilers) N/A
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy
(Sportsmanship and excellence)
Brett Hull (St. Louis Blues) Wayne Gretzky (Los Angeles Kings)
Pat LaFontaine (New York Islanders)
Lester B. Pearson Award
(Outstanding player)
Mark Messier (Edmonton Oilers) N/A
Vezina Trophy
(Best goaltender)
Patrick Roy (Montreal Canadiens) Andy Moog (Boston Bruins)
Daren Puppa (Buffalo Sabres)
William M. Jennings Trophy
(Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against)
Andy Moog and Réjean Lemelin (Boston Bruins) N/A

All-Star teams

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First team   Position   Second team
Patrick Roy, Montreal Canadiens G Daren Puppa, Buffalo Sabres
Ray Bourque, Boston Bruins D Paul Coffey, Pittsburgh Penguins
Al MacInnis, Calgary Flames D Doug Wilson, Chicago Blackhawks
Mark Messier, Edmonton Oilers C Wayne Gretzky, Los Angeles Kings
Brett Hull, St. Louis Blues RW Cam Neely, Boston Bruins
Luc Robitaille, Los Angeles Kings LW Brian Bellows, Minnesota North Stars

Player statistics

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Scoring leaders

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Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes, PPG = Powerplay Goals, SHG = Shorthanded Goals, GWG = Game Winning Goals

Player Team GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Wayne Gretzky Los Angeles Kings 73 40 102 142 42 +8 10 4 4
Mark Messier Edmonton Oilers 79 45 84 129 79 +19 13 6 3
Steve Yzerman Detroit Red Wings 79 62 65 127 79 -6 16 7 8
Mario Lemieux Pittsburgh Penguins 59 45 78 123 78 -18 14 3 4
Brett Hull St. Louis Blues 80 72 41 113 24 -1 27 0 12
Bernie Nicholls Los Angeles Kings/
New York Rangers
79 39 73 112 86 -9 15 0 1
Pierre Turgeon Buffalo Sabres 80 40 66 106 29 +10 17 1 10
Pat LaFontaine New York Islanders 74 54 51 105 38 -13 13 2 8
Paul Coffey Pittsburgh Penguins 80 29 74 103 95 -25 10 0 3
Joe Sakic Quebec Nordiques 80 39 63 102 27 -40 8 1 2
Adam Oates St. Louis Blues 80 23 79 102 30 9 6 2 3

Sources: NHL,[2] Quanthockey.com.[3]

Leading goaltenders

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GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average; Sv% = Save percentage

Player Team GP Min W L T SO GAA Sv%
Kirk McLean Vancouver Canucks 63 3739 21 30 10 0 3.47 88.0
Jon Casey Minnesota North Stars 61 3407 31 22 4 3 3.22 89.6
Daren Puppa Buffalo Sabres 56 3241 31 16 6 1 2.89 90.3
Bill Ranford Edmonton Oilers 56 3107 24 16 9 1 3.19 88.7
Patrick Roy Montreal Canadiens 54 3173 31 16 5 3 2.53 91.2
Sean Burke New Jersey Devils 52 2914 22 22 6 0 3.60 88.0
Kelly Hrudey Los Angeles Kings 52 2860 22 21 6 2 4.07 87.3
Ken Wregget Philadelphia Flyers 51 2961 22 24 3 0 3.42 89.2
Greg Millen Quebec Nordiques 49 2900 19 25 5 1 3.89 87.2
Don Beaupre Washington Capitals 48 2793 23 18 5 2 3.22 89.0

Source: Quanthockey.com.[4]

Coaches

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Patrick Division

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Adams Division

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Norris Division

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Smythe Division

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Milestones

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This season would be the last the Toronto Maple Leafs would play under the 29 year ownership of Harold Ballard as a result of his death in April 1990 and the subsequent sale of the franchise.

Debuts

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The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1989–90 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):

Last games

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The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1989–90 (listed with their last team):

Broadcasting

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This was the second season of the league's Canadian national broadcast rights deals with TSN and Hockey Night in Canada on CBC. Saturday night regular season games continued to air on CBC, while TSN televised selected weeknight games. Coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs was primarily on CBC, with TSN airing first round all-U.S. series.

This was also the second season of the league's U.S. national broadcast rights deal SportsChannel America, with up to three regular season games a week and coverage of the playoffs. Meanwhile, NBC agreed to televise the All-Star Game, reportedly wanting to test the appeal of hockey.[5]

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ NBC only televised the All-Star Game.

References

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  • Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, NY: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
  • Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
  • Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
  • Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
Notes
  1. ^ a b c d Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  2. ^ Dinger 2011, p. 153.
  3. ^ "1989-90 Stats". Quanthockey.com. Retrieved February 5, 2012.
  4. ^ 1989-90 NHL Goalie Leaders | QuantHockey.com
  5. ^ Jim Sarni (January 19, 1990). "NHL All-star Game Gets A Network Shot". Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel. Archived from the original on February 22, 2014. Retrieved August 6, 2019.
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