This Day in Hockey History – June 3, 1993 – Stick to Trick: A Tale of Two Defensemen

If a player only has one hat trick his entire NHL career, what better time than to turn his team’s fortunes during the Stanley Cup finals. If a player has to sit a penalty for having too much curve on his stick, what worse time than when his team had a one-goal lead going into the final two minutes of a Stanley Cup finals game. During Game 2, on June 3, 1993, Los Angeles Kings defenseman Marty McSorley was caught using an illegal stick, and the subsequent Montreal Canadiens power play gave defenseman Eric Desjardins the edge to tie the game and then win it in overtime.

After the Kings won Game 1 (their first ever finals game) with a score of 4-1, they had some confidence towards facing the remainder of the finals. Game 2 took place at Montreal’s Forum for a sellout crowd of 17,959. Desjardins scored the only goal of the first period, but then the Kings came back with Dave Taylor scoring the only goal of the second and Pat Conacher the only tally of the third. Montreal’s coach, Jacques Demers, commented, “We were down 2-1 in the third period but we had something like 40 shots on net and the only reason we were behind was that Kelly Hrudey played like Patrick Roy. He was playing that kind of great game.” Still, based on what then happened, he said, “I thought we played a helluva game.”

With 1:45 remaining in regulation, Demers acted on a tip from his captain, Guy Carbonneau, and called for officials to measure the curve of McSorley’s stick. According to rule 20B, the curve could not exceed half an inch. A move like this could cost Demers’ team a delay-of-game penalty if the he was wrong. “I was surprised when they asked for my stick,” said McSorley. “I was talking to (goaltender Kelly Hrudey) and getting ready for a faceoff in our end when they asked for it.” Upon measurement, McSorley’s Christian 20-20 Excel model indeed curved beyond the legal limit, so referee Kerry Fraser sent him to the sin bin.

McSorley first justified, “I was playing with some new sticks that I got earlier today. Some of them had a bigger curve than I like and I put the torch to them. I should have checked and shaved it down a bit.” He also admitted, “I made a mistake. I usually have one stick in the rack that I know is good, but I got caught up in the emotion of the game and I guess I picked the wrong stick.” In the end, he commented, “You do what you have to do to win. I’m a veteran. I should have known better.”

According to the Montreal Gazette articles, the Canadiens almost chose to check Luc Robitaille’s stick, but he had switched his out as they went into the final four minutes. Apparently, it was typical for players who preferred a greater curve to switch for a more-legal curve as the clock showed five minutes remaining. Montreal center Denis Savard explained, “You cheat because you think it’s going to make you a better player, and Marty decided that stick made him a better player. I’m sure every team in this league has four or five guys who use illegal sticks. It’s all a question of timing.” “It’s unfortunate that it happened to a guy who plays as hard as Marty. I don’t think there’s another guy who wants to win as much as he does,” commented McSorley’s teammate Wayne Gretzky. “[Demers] is a smart coach . . . they have 23 [Stanley Cup] banners for a reason.” Their coach, Barry Melrose, said of Demers’ call, “I don’t believe in winning that way.” However, he also was not very surprised. “This is a pressure-packed place to play. Pressure breeds things like that.” Melrose then ordered that McSorley check all of his sticks before Game 3.

Because of the illegal stick, Montreal had a power play, which they magnified by pulling their goalie, Patrick Roy. With the extra men, Desjardins was able to tie up the score, with only 1:13 remaining in regulation. Of his second goal, Desjardins commented, “You feel good because you know you’re in the game . . . but you don’t know you’re going to score.”

The overtime session lasted less than a minute, only 51 seconds. Desjardins made an attempt on net saying, “I tried hard on my first shot. I had all my weight on it.” He ended up getting the puck back from Benoit Brunet, and Desjardins’ second shot made it past Hrudey. Desjardins was the first defenseman to score a hat trick in any Stanley Cup finals. Thanks to him, the Habs won their eighth consecutive overtime 3-2.

The next two games, held in California, ended the same way. In both, the Canadiens scored the first goals only to have the Kings catch up before regulation ended. Montreal then won each in overtime. Game 6, back at the Forum, had the same score as Game 1 but for opposite teams. The Canadiens’ 4-1 victory gave them the Stanley Cup for the 24th time. They have not returned to the finals since. Having lost the 1992-93 finals, the Kings missed the playoffs for the next four seasons and then could not make it through the conference semi-finals. Finally, at the end of the 2011-12 postseason, Los Angeles won their first ever Stanley Cup championship and then took their second just two seasons later.

Additional Sources:

• Mike Commito, Hockey 365: Daily Stories from the Ice (Toronto: Dundurn, 2018), kindle edition.
• “Habs stick it to Kings,” Montreal Gazette, 4 June 1993, p. A1.
• Red Fisher, “Cup now a best-of-five series,” Montreal Gazette, 4 June 1993, p. C1.
• Michael Farber, “McSorley stick call recalls Cherry’s blunder,” Montreal Gazette, 4 June 1993, pp. C1-C2.
• “L.A. Kings – Canadiens,” Montreal Gazette, 4 June 1993, pp. C2-C3.