This Day in Hockey History – May 22, 2002 – Hasek’s Helper

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Playoff hockey is nothing if not full of tension as opposing players do their best to eliminate each other. The teams are often so close in skill and defense that more than one game has gone to extra time.

“The difference between these teams? As thin as a puck. As tight as the best two teams in hockey can be,” wrote Red Wings beat writer Bob Wojnowski in The Times Herald of Port Huron, Michigan.

The teams? The Detroit Red Wings and the Colorado Avalanche. The game? Game three of the Western division semifinals of the 2002 Stanley Cup Playoffs.

“This was the hockey we expected all along. The goalies, Dominik Hasek and Patrick Roy, made their belated arrivals. The defenses finally showed up. And, oh yes, the tension here, in full force,” Wojnowski continued.

These two teams were as close to each other as possible in competition. This was the third of what would be a seven-game series. Of the periods played through that third game, in regulation the teams were tied or differed by a single goal in eight of the nine periods. Some battles are like that, and game three saw the teams tied as time ran out in regulation.

What wasn’t close during the game on May 22nd, was the number of shots each goaltender saw during the game and close to 13 minutes of overtime. For the Red Wings’ Hasek, he faced only 21 shots, of which he stopped all but one. Meanwhile Colorado’s Roy saw 42 shots. He failed to stop one during regulation, and he also failed to stop the one in overtime that would give the Red Wings the win and see them lead the series 2-1.

The overtime goal for the Red Wings was scored by Fredrik Olausson, who hadn’t scored a playoff goal in more than a decade. His last playoff goal having come on April 18, 1992, when Olausson played for the Winnipeg Jets and they were playing against the Vancouver Canucks. Because of that feat, his goal overshadowed a historical moment.

Hasek had stopped five shots during the overtime period, which included consecutive ones by both Riku Hahl and Joe Sakic from the left circle.

However, in clearing a loose puck out to center to Steve Yzerman, Hasek set up the goal that gave the Red Wings the game. Yzerman saw Olausson and got the puck to him and Olausson found the back of the net.

Hasek’s assist on the goal marked the first time ever that a goaltender had an assist on an overtime goal in the playoffs.

Additional Sources:

• Bob Wojnowski, “Federov must take control if Wings hope to win series,” The Times Herald (Port Huron, Michigan), May 23, 2002, pp. 1C, 5C.
• Daily Press (Newport News, Virginia), May 23, 2002, p. B3.
• Mike Commito, Hockey 365, Daily Stories from the Ice, Kindle edition.