This Day in Hockey History – May 16, 1996 – Yzerman for the Win

May 16, 2019

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The Detroit Red Wings had just lost the Stanley Cup finals in 1994 and were heavily favored to win in 1995. After all, they ended the season in first place (with 131 points) with second place Colorado Avalanche trailing by 27 points. Somehow though, in the Western Conference semi-finals, Detroit was pushed to the edge of elimination by the St. Louis Blues, the team ranked 14th with 51 fewer points. In Game 7, held May 16, 1996, Captain Steve Yzerman saved his team with a double-overtime goal.

Having won the first two games of the semi-finals, the Red Wings lost three in a row before coming back to win Game 6. With the semi-finals tied at 3-3, 19,000 gathered at Joe Louis Arena for the end of the series. The night started off on an odd note during the national anthem, when a tossed octopus “clipped” signer Englebert Humperdinck. Quite the professional, he “didn’t miss a note.”

By the end of regulation, both Detroit’s Chris Osgood and St. Louis’ Jon Casey had shutouts going. The game went into overtime, but no one got past them in the first session. Still, Captain Yzerman commented, “This was as relaxed an overtime game as I can remember playing, as far as the players were concerned. We just felt we were going to win.” Not only was he correct, but he made it happen.

Finally, at 1:15 into the second, minutes before midnight, Yzerman “skated across the blue line and whistled a 55-foot shot” over Casey’s shoulder. The puck hit the crossbar and bounced into the net. “I don’t usually score that way,” admitted Yzerman. “It’s the kind of goal every player dreams about in his career. Including me.” Unsurprisingly, he was able to keep the puck. Of Yzerman, Detroit owner Mike Ilitch said, “As far as a captain, he’s a total captain. He does it all.” Even the Blues’ coach, Mike Keenan, called Yzerman “the best player in the series.”

This would be the sixth time the Red Wings had finished a decisive playoff game with a 1-0 score. Kris Draper said of his team, “Anyone who doubted the character of this team should think again after tonight.” Detroit advanced to the Western Conference finals to play Colorado. Coach Scotty Bowman warned that they would not win the Cup just because they were the favorites. “You have to do it yourself. It’s in their hands. I told them before the last game, the world’s waiting for the biggest parade in hockey history. The only people who can rain on the parade is yourself. The ones in the dressing room.”

The Red Wings did not make it past the Avalanche, who went on to win the 1996 Stanley Cup. However, they returned for back-to-back championships in 1997 and 1998. Yzerman remained with them through another Cup in 2002. He finally retired in 2006 after 22 seasons (including 20 postseasons) with Detroit.