1988 Stanley Cup playoffs

Playoff seeds

The top four teams in each division qualified for the playoffs, as follows:

Prince of Wales Conference

Adams Division

1. Montreal Canadiens, Adams Division champions, Prince of Wales Conference regular season champions – 103 points
2. Boston Bruins – 94 points
3. Buffalo Sabres – 85 points
4. Hartford Whalers – 77 points

Patrick Division

1. New York Islanders, Patrick Division champions – 88 points
2. Washington Capitals – 85 points (38 wins, 9 points head-to-head vs. Philadelphia)
3. Philadelphia Flyers – 85 points (38 wins, 5 points head-to-head vs. Washington)
4. New Jersey Devils – 82 points (38 wins)

Clarence Campbell Conference

Norris Division

1. Detroit Red Wings, Norris Division champions – 93 points
2. St. Louis Blues – 76 points
3. Chicago Blackhawks – 69 points
4. Toronto Maple Leafs – 52 points (the lowest point total for any playoff qualifier, minimum 70 games played)

Smythe Division

1. Calgary Flames, Smythe Division champions, Clarence Campbell Conference regular season champions, Presidents' Trophy winners – 105 points
2. Edmonton Oilers – 99 points
3. Winnipeg Jets – 77 points
4. Los Angeles Kings – 68 points

Playoff bracket

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.

In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2–2–1–1–1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). Home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record, and played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary); the other team then played at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary).

An exception to the 2–2–1–1–1 format was made during this year's Stanley Cup Finals after a power outage forced the cancellation of the original game four (see below).

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Division semifinals

Prince of Wales Conference

(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (A4) Hartford Whalers

This was the third playoff series between these two teams. Montreal won both previous meetings, including their most recent meeting in seven games in the 1986 Adams Division Finals. Montreal was the best team in the Wales Conference during the regular season.

|1-1-1 =Randy Ladouceur (1) – 07:59 |1-1-2 =No scoring |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =02:54 – Shayne Corson (1) 04:48 – Bobby Smith (1) |1-3-1 =Dave Babych (1) – 00:56 Ron Francis (1) – pp – 03:10 |1-3-2 =05:43 – pp – Chris Chelios (1) 09:50 – Stephane Richer (1) |goalie1-1 =Mike Liut 22 saves / 24 shots Richard Brodeur 9 saves / 11 shots |goalie1-2 =Patrick Roy 21 saves / 24 shots

|2-1-1 =Lindsay Carson (1) – 09:47 Kevin Dineen (1) – 14:15 |2-1-2 =05:30 – Brian Skrudland (1) 13:37 – Chris Chelios (2) |2-2-1 =Scot Kleinendorst (1) – 12:52 |2-2-2 =02:39 – Gilles Thibaudeau (1) 10:59 – Claude Lemieux (1) |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =09:05 – Bobby Smith (2) 10:55 – Gilles Thibaudeau (2) 11:43 – Kjell Dahlin (1) |goalie2-1 =Richard Brodeur 21 saves / 28 shots |goalie2-2 =Patrick Roy 28 saves / 31 shots

|3-1-1 =02:06 – Stew Gavin (1) |3-1-2 =Stephane Richer (2) – pp – 09:21 |3-2-1 =06:31 – pp – Sylvain Cote (1) |3-2-2 =Craig Ludwig (1) – 08:33 Mike McPhee (1) – 09:32 Ryan Walter (1) – pp – 13:52 |3-3-1 =06:34 – pp – Carey Wilson (1) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Mike Liut 23 saves / 27 shots |goalie3-2 =Patrick Roy 30 saves / 33 shots

|4-1-1 =04:17 – Dean Evason (1) 08:29 – Dave Babych (2) |4-1-2 =Stephane Richer (3) – 03:22 |4-2-1 =No scoring |4-2-2 =Stephane Richer (4) – 13:17 |4-3-1 =00:59 – Dave Babych (3) 11:20 – Kevin Dineen (2) 14:23 – Stew Gavin (2) 17:05 – pp – Kevin Dineen (3) 17:54 – Scott Young (1) |4-3-2 =Bobby Smith (3) – pp – 04:06 Ryan Walter (2) – pp – 05:02 Gilles Thibaudeau (3) – pp – 19:30 |goalie4-1 =Mike Liut 26 saves / 31 shots |goalie4-2 =Patrick Roy 36 saves / 43 shots

|5-1-1 =Kevin Dineen (4) – 10:01 |5-1-2 =No scoring |5-2-1 =Carey Wilson (2) – 05:40 |5-2-2 =06:11 – Mike McPhee (2) |5-3-1 =Ron Francis (2) – en – 19:44 |5-3-2 =No scoring |goalie5-1 =Richard Brodeur 22 saves / 23 shots |goalie5-2 =Brian Hayward 26 saves / 28 shots

|6-1-1 =No scoring |6-1-2 =Stephane Richer (5) – 09:15 Stephane Richer (6) – 17:59 |6-2-1 =18:57 – pp – Ray Ferraro (1) |6-2-2 =No scoring |6-3-1 =No scoring |6-3-2 =No scoring |goalie6-1 =Richard Brodeur 23 saves / 25 shots |goalie6-2 =Brian Hayward 19 saves / 20 shots

(A2) Boston Bruins vs (A3) Buffalo Sabres

This was the third playoff series between these two teams. Boston won both prior meetings. They last met in the 1983 Adams Division Finals, in which Boston won in seven games.

|1-1-1 =Phil Housley (1) – pp – 11:16 |1-1-2 =09:27 – pp – Glen Wesley (1) |1-2-1 =Pierre Turgeon (1) – pp – 14:43 |1-2-2 =03:16 – Ray Bourque (1) 11:38 – sh – Steve Kasper (1) 12:35 – sh – Gord Kluzak (1) |1-3-1 =Pierre Turgeon (2) – pp – 16:14 |1-3-2 =03:27 – Tom McCarthy (1) 03:55 – Bob Sweeney (1) 08:45 – Michael Thelven (1) |goalie1-1 =Tom Barrasso 22 saves / 28 shots Daren Puppa 3 saves / 4 shots |goalie1-2 =Rejean Lemelin 21 saves / 24 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =12:19 – pp – Ken Linseman (1) |2-2-1 =No scoring |2-2-2 =02:13 – Bruce Shoebottom (1) |2-3-1 =Mike Foligno (1) – 04:16 |2-3-2 =05:35 – pp – Glen Wesley (1) 09:38 – pp – Craig Janney (1) |goalie2-1 =Tom Barrasso 33 saves / 37 shots |goalie2-2 =Rejean Lemelin 25 saves / 26 shots

|3-1-1 =09:16 – pp – John Tucker (1) |3-1-2 =Craig Janney (2) – 14:48 |3-2-1 =06:15 – Mike Foligno (2) 17:37 – John Tucker (2) 18:39 – John Tucker (3) |3-2-2 =Glen Wesley (1) – pp – 10:58 |3-3-1 =09:14 – pp – John Tucker (4) 14:01 – Mike Foligno (3) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Tom Barrasso 22 saves / 24 shots |goalie3-2 =Andy Moog 24 saves / 30 shots

|4-1-1 =02:29 – pp – Pierre Turgeon (3) |4-1-2 =Bob Joyce (1) – 07:33 |4-2-1 =16:33 – Dave Andreychuk (1) |4-2-2 =Keith Crowder (1) – 03:36 |4-3-1 =00:16 – pp – John Tucker (5) 07:33 – Pierre Turgeon (4) 14:01 – Phil Housley (2) |4-3-2 =Rick Middleton (1) – 11:58 Cam Neely (1) – 13:48 Cam Neely (2) – 18:27 |4-4-1 =05:32 – pp – John Tucker (6) |4-4-2 =No scoring |goalie4-1 =Daren Puppa 26 saves / 31 shots |goalie4-2 =Rejean Lemelin 31 saves / 37 shots

|5-1-1 =No scoring |5-1-2 =01:58 – Steve Kasper (2) 12:28 – sh – Rick Middleton (2) |5-2-1 =Christian Ruuttu (1) – pp – 00:54 Dave Andreychuk (2) – pp – 06:42 |5-2-2 =No scoring |5-3-1 =John Tucker (7) – 11:13 Ray Sheppard (1) – pp – 16:58 |5-3-2 =01:10 – Ken Linseman (2) 06:05 – Tom McCarthy (2) 14:16 – Rick Middleton (3) |goalie5-1 =Daren Puppa 27 saves / 32 shots |goalie5-2 =Rejean Lemelin 18 saves / 22 shots

|6-1-1 =No scoring |6-1-2 =Bob Sweeney (2) – 06:28 Bob Joyce (2) – pp – 13:13 Willi Plett (1) – 13:40 |6-2-1 =00:44 – Mikael Andersson (1) |6-2-2 =Ken Linseman (3) – 12:19 |6-3-1 =11:31 – Christian Ruuttu (2) |6-3-2 =Ken Linseman (4) – en – 19:26 |goalie6-1 =Tom Barrasso 26 saves / 30 shots |goalie6-2 =Andy Moog 22 saves / 24 shots

(P1) New York Islanders vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils

This was the first and to date only playoff series between these two teams. This was the first time that a team representing the state of New Jersey qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs. This was the first ever playoff series victory for the Scouts/Rockies/Devils franchise. This would be the last playoff series until the 2019 Eastern Conference First Round that the Islanders held home-ice advantage.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =05:44 – pp – Mikko Mäkelä (1) |1-2-1 =Craig Wolanin (1) – 07:49 |1-2-2 =01:09 – pp – Denis Potvin (1) |1-3-1 =David Maley (1) – 12:05 John MacLean (1) – pp – 18:04 |1-3-2 =06:58 – pp – Pat LaFontaine (1) |1-4-1 =No scoring |1-4-2 =06:11 – Pat LaFontaine (2) |goalie1-1 =Sean Burke 29 saves / 33 shots |goalie1-2 =Kelly Hrudey 28 saves / 31 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =No scoring |2-2-1 =John MacLean (2) – 09:22 Claude Loiselle (1) – sh – 16:17 |2-2-2 =06:25 – Tomas Jonsson (1) |2-3-1 =Mark Johnson (1) – pp – 05:56 |2-3-2 =04:19 – pp – Gerald Diduck (1) |goalie2-1 =Bob Sauve 24 saves / 26 shots |goalie2-2 =Kelly Hrudey 13 saves / 16 shots

|3-1-1 =No scoring |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =06:21 – Ken Daneyko (1) 18:33 – Mark Johnson (2) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =04:28 – Mark Johnson (3) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Sean Burke 31 saves / 31 shots |goalie3-2 =Kelly Hrudey 14 saves / 17 shots

|4-1-1 =07:52 – pp – Bruce Driver (1) 12:40 – pp – John MacLean (3) |4-1-2 =No scoring |4-2-1 =16:50 – Doug Brown (1) |4-2-2 =Alan Kerr (1) – 18:49 |4-3-1 =19:48 – John MacLean (4) |4-3-2 =Brent Sutter (1) – 11:30 Brad Lauer (1) – 14:53 Pat LaFontaine (3) – 18:30 |4-4-1 =No scoring |4-4-2 =Brent Sutter (2) – sh – 15:07 |goalie4-1 =Sean Burke 33 saves / 38 shots |goalie4-2 =Kelly Hrudey 24 saves / 28 shots

|5-1-1 =Bruce Driver (2) – pp – 05:40 |5-1-2 =08:10 – Pat LaFontaine (4) |5-2-1 =Craig Wolanin (2) – pp – 03:26 Pat Conacher (1) – sh – 13:12 Aaron Broten (1) – 17:40 |5-2-2 =13:44 – pp – Tomas Jonsson (2) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =No scoring |goalie5-1 =Sean Burke 33 saves / 35 shots |goalie5-2 =Kelly Hrudey 26 saves / 30 shots

|6-1-1 =08:41 – sh – Doug Brown (2) 19:54 – pp – Pat Verbeek (1) |6-1-2 =No scoring |6-2-1 =02:16 – pp – Mark Johnson (4) 06:22 – pp – Bruce Driver (3) 12:23 – Patrik Sundstrom (1) |6-2-2 =Brad Lauer (2) – 04:03 |6-3-1 =06:18 – pp – Patrik Sundstrom (2) |6-3-2 =Dale Henry (1) – sh – 07:38 Steve Konroyd (1) – sh – 08:46 Brad Lauer (3) – 10:04 Randy Wood (1) – 12:40 |goalie6-1 =Sean Burke 22 saves / 27 shots |goalie6-2 =Kelly Hrudey 26 saves / 32 shots

(P2) Washington Capitals vs. (P3) Philadelphia Flyers

This was the second playoff series between these two teams. Washington won the only previous meeting in a three-game sweep in the 1984 Patrick Division Semifinals.

Washington overcame a 3–1 series deficit to advance to the Patrick Division Finals for the third time in five years. Game seven ended when Dale Hunter scored at 5:57 of the first overtime period to complete the Capitals' comeback.

|1-1-1 =Peter Zezel (1) – 05:17 |1-1-2 =No scoring |1-2-1 =Peter Zezel (2) – 05:11 |1-2-2 =12:05 – pp – Michal Pivonka (1) |1-3-1 =Dave Poulin (1) – pp – 09:21 Murray Craven (1) – en – 19:42 |1-3-2 =05:27 – pp – Dale Hunter (1) |goalie1-1 =Ron Hextall 35 saves / 37 shots |goalie1-2 =Pete Peeters 27 saves / 30 shots

|2-1-1 =Mark Howe (1) – 05:32 Dave Brown (1) – 07:59 |2-1-2 =00:47 – Kevin Hatcher (1) 18:36 – Bobby Gould (1) |2-2-1 =Peter Zezel (3) – 10:49 |2-2-2 =11:10 – Stephen Leach (1) 18:06 – sh – Peter Sundstrom (1) |2-3-1 =Brian Propp (1) – 15:55 |2-3-2 =06:12 – Kelly Miller (1) |goalie2-1 =Ron Hextall 23 saves / 28 shots |goalie2-2 =Pete Peeters 31 saves / 35 shots

|3-1-1 =00:40 – Brian Propp (2) |3-1-2 =Dale Hunter (2) – 11:49 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (1) – pp – 16:30 |3-2-1 =03:08 – pp – Ilkka Sinisalo (1) 12:12 – Dave Poulin (2) 15:26 – Kjell Samuelsson (1) |3-2-2 =Kevin Hatcher (2) – 14:10 |3-3-1 =No scoring |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Ron Hextall 14 saves / 17 shots |goalie3-2 =Pete Peeters 25 saves / 29 shots

|4-1-1 =09:04 – Ilkka Sinisalo (2) |4-1-2 =Michal Pivonka (2) – 13:06 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (2) – 18:36 |4-2-1 =No scoring |4-2-2 =No scoring |4-3-1 =10:53 – Mark Howe (2) 15:08 – Brian Propp (3) 19:07 – Kjell Samuelsson (2) |4-3-2 =Mike Gartner (1) – 00:55 Dale Hunter (3) – 03:04 |4-4-1 =01:18 – Murray Craven (2) |4-4-2 =No scoring |goalie4-1 =Ron Hextall 18 saves / 22 shots Mark Laforest 4 saves / 4 shots |goalie4-2 =Clint Malarchuk 25 saves / 30 shots

|5-1-1 =Ilkka Sinisalo (3) – 14:09 |5-1-2 =10:50 – Mike Ridley (1) 11:26 – Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (3) |5-2-1 =Doug Crossman (1) – pp – 10:48 |5-2-2 =05:19 – Kevin Hatcher (3) 09:00 – sh – Bobby Gould (2) 17:10 – Michal Pivonka (3) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =No scoring |goalie5-1 =Ron Hextall 20 saves / 24 shots Mark Laforest 7 saves / 8 shots |goalie5-2 =Pete Peeters 31 saves / 33 shots

|6-1-1 =No scoring |6-1-2 =Mike Ridley (2) – pp – 05:12 |6-2-1 =12:44 – Ilkka Sinisalo (4) 17:17 – pp – Rick Tocchet (1) |6-2-2 =Dave Christian (1) – 00:25 Bengt-Ake Gustafsson (4) – pp – 02:39 Kevin Hatcher (4) – pp – 03:17 Michal Pivonka (4) – pp – 16:10 |6-3-1 =No scoring |6-3-2 =Bobby Gould (3) – sh – 02:37 Kelly Miller (2) – 10:02 |goalie6-1 =Ron Hextall 21 saves / 28 shots |goalie6-2 =Pete Peeters 24 saves / 26 shots

|7-1-1 =Tim Kerr (1) – pp – 17:36 |7-1-2 =No scoring |7-2-1 =Brian Propp (4) – 01:35 Mark Howe (3) – 02:59 |7-2-2 =06:42 – Garry Galley (1) 08:02 – Kelly Miller (3) 17:54 – Kevin Hatcher (5) |7-3-1 =Brad Marsh (1) – 06:21 |7-3-2 =05:19 – pp – Dale Hunter (4) |7-4-1 =No scoring |7-4-2 =05:57 – Dale Hunter (5) |goalie7-1 =Ron Hextall 35 saves / 40 shots |goalie7-2 =Pete Peeters 29 saves / 33 shots

Clarence Campbell Conference

(N1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (N4) Toronto Maple Leafs

This was the 22nd playoff series between these two teams. Toronto led 11–10 in previous playoff meetings. This was a rematch of the previous year's Norris Division Finals, which Detroit won in seven games.

Game six in Maple Leaf Gardens was future Hall of Famer Borje Salming's final playoff game in the NHL.

|1-1-1 =Gary Leeman (1) – pp – 04:38 Borje Salming (1) – 14:31 |1-1-2 =No scoring |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =06:52 – Adam Oates (1) |1-3-1 =Mark Osborne (1) – 07:35 Eddie Olczyk (1) – 10:04 Gary Leeman (2) – pp – 16:43 Al Iafrate (1) – 17:41 |1-3-2 =08:35 – pp – Lee Norwood (1) |goalie1-1 =Allan Bester 25 saves / 27 shots |goalie1-2 =Glen Hanlon 18 saves / 24 shots

|2-1-1 =Russ Courtnall (1) – 05:43 Eddie Olczyk (2) – 07:54 |2-1-2 =03:57 – pp – Gerard Gallant (1) 04:22 – Petr Klima (1) 07:31 – Petr Klima (2) 10:22 – Doug Halward (1) |2-2-1 =No scoring |2-2-2 =17:39 – pp – Petr Kilma (3) |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =05:43 – James Nill (1) |goalie2-1 = Allan Bester 6 saves / 9 shots Ken Wregget 21 saves / 24 shots |goalie2-2 =Glen Hanlon 21 saves / 23 shots

|3-1-1 =17:29 – Mike Blaisdell (1) |3-1-2 =Bob Probert (1) – 01:44 James Nill (2) – sh – 05:16 |3-2-1 =05:16 – Russ Courtnall (2) |3-2-2 =Adam Oates (2) – pp – 03:57 Petr Klima (4) – 15:30 James Nill (3) – 16:52 Petr Kilma (5) – sh – 19:36 |3-3-1 =02:25 – Al Secord (1) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Allan Bester 29 saves / 35 shots |goalie3-2 =Greg Stefan 32 saves / 35 shots

|4-1-1 =No scoring |4-1-2 =Adam Oates (3) – pp – 09:33 Dave Barr (1) – pp – 14:59 |4-2-1 =No scoring |4-2-2 =Gerard Gallant (2) – 12:06 John Chabot (1) – 15:15 James Nill (4) – 17:11 |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =Bob Probert (2) – 03:16 James Nill (5) – 04:42 Brent Ashton (1) – 05:08 |goalie4-1 =Ken Wregget 30 saves / 38 shots |goalie4-2 =Glen Hanlon 21 saves / 21 shots

|5-1-1 =Eddie Olczyk (3) – sh – 03:44 Daniel Marois (1) – 12:28 |5-1-2 =04:31 – Mel Bridgman (1) 07:53 – Adam Oates (4) |5-2-1 =Al Iafrate (2) – pp – 05:30 Eddie Olczyk (4) – pp – 09:57 Tom Fergus (1) – 19:59 |5-2-2 =11:29 – pp – Adam Oates (5) 12:04 – Petr Klima (6) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =03:19 – pp – John Chabot (2) |5-4-1 =Eddie Olczyk (5) – 00:34 |5-4-2 =No scoring |goalie5-1 =Allan Bester 31 saves / 36 shots |goalie5-2 =Greg Stefan 13 saves / 16 shots Glen Hanlon 4 saves / 7 shots

|6-1-1 =03:39 – pp – Al Iafrate (3) |6-1-2 =Mel Bridgman (2) – 06:16 Bob Probert (3) – pp – 09:34 |6-2-1 =No scoring |6-2-2 =Dave Barr (2) – pp – 14:29 |6-3-1 =06:37 – sh – Tom Fergus (2) 15:59 – pp – Todd Gill (1) |6-3-2 =Shawn Burr (1) – 00:40 Darren Veitch (1) – pp – 07:27 |goalie6-1 =Allan Bester 23 saves / 28 shots |goalie6-2 =Greg Stefan 20 saves / 22 shots Sam St. Laurent 6 saves / 7 shots

(N2) St. Louis Blues vs. (N3) Chicago Blackhawks

This was the fifth playoff series between the Blackhawks and Blues. Chicago won all four previous meetings, including their most recent meeting 3–1 in the 1983 Norris Division Semifinals.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =12:52 – pp – Gino Cavallini (1) |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =16:32 – pp – Brett Hull (1) |1-3-1 =Troy Murray (1) – pp – 16:45 |1-3-2 =03:00 – Gordie Roberts (1) 07:04 – pp – Brett Hull (2) |goalie1-1 =Darren Pang 20 saves / 24 shots |goalie1-2 =Greg Millen 25 saves / 26 shots

|2-1-1 =Dirk Graham (1) – 14:09 |2-1-2 =13:34 – pp – Greg Paslawski (1) 19:27 – Doug Gilmour (1) |2-2-1 =Rick Vaive (1) – pp – 10:42 |2-2-2 =No scoring |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =03:09 – Brett Hull (3) |goalie2-1 =Bob Mason 28 saves / 31 shots |goalie2-2 =Greg Millen 21 saves / 23 shots

|3-1-1 =04:51 – pp – Rick Vaive (2) 05:16 – Steve Thomas (1) 16:13 – Denis Savard (1) |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =04:15 – Denis Savard (2) 16:39 – pp – Bob Murray (1) |3-2-2 =Bernie Federko (1) – pp – 00:17 Gaston Gingras (1) – 13:48 |3-3-1 =07:24 – Denis Savard (3) |3-3-2 =Paul Cavallini (1) – sh – 18:12 |goalie3-1 =Darren Pang 42 saves / 45 shots |goalie3-2 =Greg Millen 23 saves / 29 shots

|4-1-1 =04:51 – pp – Steve Larmer (1) 06:39 – Everett Sanipass (1) |4-1-2 =Tony Hrkac (1) – 02:47 |4-2-1 =07:21 – pp – Rick Vaive (3) 16:48 – Everett Sanipass (2) |4-2-2 =Brett Hull (4) – 11:08 Doug Gilmour (2) – pp – 14:13 Tony Hrkac (2) – pp – 19:55 |4-3-1 =01:11 – pp – Rick Vaive (4) |4-3-2 =Tony Hrkac (3) – 05:54 Tony Hrkac (4) – sh – 15:15 |goalie4-1 =Darren Pang 29 saves / 35 shots |goalie4-2 =Greg Millen 29 saves / 34 shots

|5-1-1 =Denis Savard (4) – sh – 09:52 |5-1-2 =07:54 – pp – Brian Benning (1) 11:22 – pp – Tony Hrkac (5) 17:06 – pp – Brett Hull (5) |5-2-1 =Rick Vaive (5) – 13:27 Rick Vaive (6) – pp – 14:36 |5-2-2 =No scoring |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =00:15 – Brett Hull (6) 08:13 – Gino Cavallini (2) |goalie5-1 =Darren Pang 21 saves / 26 shots |goalie5-2 =Greg Millen 18 saves / 21 shots

(S1) Calgary Flames vs. (S4) Los Angeles Kings

This was the third playoff series between these two teams, but the first since the Flames relocated from Atlanta. Los Angeles won both previous meetings, including their most recent meeting 2–1 in the 1977 Preliminary Round.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =06:00 – Lanny McDonald (1) 08:07 – Al MacInnis (1) 09:36 – Joel Otto (1) 14:42 – pp – Hakan Loob (1) |1-2-1 =Jimmy Carson (1) – 07:21 Dave Taylor (1) – pp – 14:49 |1-2-2 =02:54 – Joel Otto (2) 10:37 – Joe Mullen (1) |1-3-1 =No scoring |1-3-2 =10:07 – pp – Joe Nieuwendyk (1) 13:19 – Gary Roberts (1) 15:02 – Hakan Loob (2) |goalie1-1 =Roland Melanson 41 saves / 50 shots |goalie1-2 =Mike Vernon 15 saves / 17 shots

|2-1-1 =Dave Taylor (2) – pp – 15:13 |2-1-2 =05:06 – pp – Paul Reinhart (1) 09:49 – Joe Mullen (2) |2-2-1 =Jimmy Carson (2) – 15:34 Chris Kontos (1) – 19:17 |2-2-2 =03:24 – pp – Joel Otto (3) 04:45 – Tim Hunter (1) |2-3-1 =Paul Fenton (1) – 16:47 |2-3-2 =09:33 – pp – John Tonelli (1) 19:26 – sh – en – Gary Suter (1) |goalie2-1 =Glenn Healy 29 saves / 34 shots |goalie2-2 =Mike Vernon 23 saves / 27 shots

|3-1-1 =12:42 – Jimmy Carson (3) |3-1-2 =Colin Patterson (1) – sh – 13:58 |3-2-1 =04:38 – pp – Bernie Nicholls (1) 15:15 – pp – Luc Robitaille (1) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =00:46 – Bobby Carpenter (1) 14:08 – pp – Jimmy Carson (4) |3-3-2 =Dana Murzyn (1) – 07:31 |goalie3-1 =Glenn Healy 28 saves / 30 shots |goalie3-2 =Mike Vernon 21 saves / 26 shots

|4-1-1 =12:13 – Dave Taylor (3) 13:10 – pp – Luc Robitaille (2) |4-1-2 =Hakan Loob (3) – sh – 01:29 Brad McCrimmon (1) – pp – 04:56 Gary Roberts (2) – 10:50 |4-2-1 =08:12 – pp – Steve Duchesne (1) |4-2-2 =Tim Hunter (2) – 14:35 Hakan Loob (4) – 16:05 |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =Lanny McDonald (2) – 00:19 Hakan Loob (5) – 08:41 |goalie4-1 =Glenn Healy 27 saves / 34 shots |goalie4-2 =Mike Vernon 22 saves / 25 shots

|5-1-1 =Jay Wells (1) – 11:06 |5-1-2 =04:01 – pp – Hakan Loob (6) 18:22 – pp – Al MacInnis (2) |5-2-1 =Bernie Nicholls (2) – 02:45 |5-2-2 =03:38 – Paul Reinhart (2) |5-3-1 =Paul Fenton (2) – pp – 16:10 Jimmy Carson (5) – 18:18 |5-3-2 =01:57 – Hakan Loob (7) 02:32 – Tim Hunter (3) 09:03 – Ric Nattress (1) |goalie5-1 =Glenn Healy 23 saves / 29 shots |goalie5-2 =Mike Vernon 26 saves / 30 shots

(S2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (S3) Winnipeg Jets

This was the fifth playoff series between the Jets and Oilers. Edmonton won all four previous meetings. This was a rematch of the previous year's Smythe Division Finals, which Edmonton won in a four-game sweep. In Game 3, the Jets snapped a 16-game playoff losing streak to the Oilers.

|1-1-1 =Dale Hawerchuk (1) – pp – 06:29 |1-1-2 =17:56 – Mark Messier (1) |1-2-1 =Steve Rooney (1) – 19:12 |1-2-2 =No scoring |1-3-1 =Ray Neufeld (1) – 01:55 Doug Smail (1) – 18:33 |1-3-2 =00:27 – pp – Glenn Anderson (1) 04:09 – Jari Kurri (1) 06:10 – Glenn Anderson (2) 06:20 – Craig Simpson (1) 13:39 – pp – Charlie Huddy (1) 14:47 – Glenn Anderson (3) |goalie1-1 =Daniel Berthiaume 26 saves / 33 shots |goalie1-2 =Grant Fuhr 22 saves / 26 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =05:26 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (1) |2-2-1 =Peter Taglianetti (1) – 02:23 Paul MacLean (1) – pp – 14:44 |2-2-2 =12:49 – Kevin McClelland (1) |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =18:55 – Craig Simpson (2) |goalie2-1 =Daniel Berthiaume 30 saves / 33 shots |goalie2-2 =Grant Fuhr 21 saves / 23 shots

|3-1-1 =07:30 – Fredrik Olausson (1) 09:44 – pp – Thomas Steen (1) 18:00 – sh – Andrew McBain (1) |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =09:54 – pp – Ray Neufeld (2) 13:22 – sh – Randy Gilhen (1) |3-2-2 =Normand Lacombe (1) – 04:28 Craig Simpson (3) – 07:26 Mark Messier (2) – sh – 08:46 Mike Krushelnyski (1) – 13:58 |3-3-1 =19:23 – en – Laurie Boschman (1) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Daniel Berthiaume 27 saves / 31 shots |goalie3-2 =Grant Fuhr 28 saves / 33 shots

|4-1-1 =09:16 – pp – Dave Ellett (1) 13:23 – Andrew McBain (2) |4-1-2 =No scoring |4-2-1 =01:52 – pp – Paul MacLean (2) |4-2-2 =Craig Simpson (4) – 07:18 Jari Kurri (2) – pp – 18:44 Charlie Huddy (2) – pp – 19:22 |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =Normand Lacombe (2) – 06:47 Jari Kurri (3) – pp – 16:38 |goalie4-1 =Daniel Berthiaume 25 saves / 30 shots |goalie4-2 =Grant Fuhr 32 saves / 35 shots

|5-1-1 =No scoring |5-1-2 =09:07 – pp – Mark Messier (3) 17:37 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (2) |5-2-1 =Dale Hawerchuk (2) – pp – 18:04 Dale Hawerchuk (3) – 18:28 |5-2-2 =09:36 – pp – Jari Kurri (4) 11:59 – pp – Mark Messier (4) 15:43 – Wayne Gretzky (1) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =18:39 – Jari Kurri (5) |goalie5-1 =Daniel Berthiaume 21 saves / 27 shots |goalie5-2 =Grant Fuhr 23 saves / 25 shots

Division finals

Prince of Wales Conference

(A1) Montreal Canadiens vs. (A2) Boston Bruins

This was the 23rd playoff series between these two teams. Montreal led 20–2 in previous playoff series meetings. This was the fifth year in a row that these team met in the playoffs. Montreal had defeated Boston in the Division Semifinals the four previous seasons.

This was Boston's first playoff series victory against Montreal since the 1943 Stanley Cup Semifinals. Boston had lost the previous 18 playoff series between these two teams, an NHL record for most consecutive playoff series defeats to one team. This was the first of three consecutive series between these two teams that ended in five games (with the winner of all three series making it to the Stanley Cup Finals).

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =03:33 – Kjell Dahlin (2) 08:52 – sh – Mike McPhee () |1-2-1 =Bob Joyce (3) – 16:47 |1-2-2 =05:17 – Claude Lemieux (2) 15:43 – Claude Lemieux (3) |1-3-1 =Randy Burridge (1) – 07:05 |1-3-2 =14:39 – Stephane Richer (7) |goalie1-1 =Andy Moog 24 saves / 29 shots |goalie1-2 =Brian Hayward 20 saves / 22 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =No scoring |2-2-1 =Bob Sweeney (3) – 03:50 Ray Bourque (2) – 09:07 |2-2-2 =No scoring |2-3-1 =Moe Lemay (1) – 01:32 Cam Neely (3) – 09:45 |2-3-2 =09:01 – Mike McPhee (4) 12:56 – John Kordic (1) 18:07 – Larry Robinson (1) |goalie2-1 =Rejean Lemelin 27 saves / 30 shots |goalie2-2 =Brian Hayward 10 saves / 14 shots Patrick Roy 0 saves / 0 shots

|3-1-1 =04:07 – Moe Lemay (2) |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =19:13 – sh – Bob Sweeney (4) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =01:46 – Gord Kluzak (2) |3-3-2 =Chris Chelios (3) – 16:18 |goalie3-1 =Rejean Lemelin 22 saves / 23 shots |goalie3-2 =Patrick Roy 32 saves / 35 shots

|4-1-1 =No scoring |4-1-2 =No scoring |4-2-1 =11:25 – Rick Middleton (4) |4-2-2 =No scoring |4-3-1 =19:40 – en – Gord Kluzak (3) |4-3-2 =No scoring |goalie4-1 =Rejean Lemelin 22 saves / 22 shots |goalie4-2 =Patrick Roy 22 saves / 23 shots

|5-1-1 =Steve Kasper (3) – 10:20 Cam Neely (4) – 14:09 |5-1-2 =No scoring |5-2-1 =Steve Kasper (4) – 10:02 |5-2-2 =14:35 – John Kordic (2) |5-3-1 =Cam Neely (5) – 04:06 |5-3-2 =No scoring |goalie5-1 =Rejean Lemelin 28 saves / 29 shots |goalie5-2 =Patrick Roy 24 saves / 28 shots

(P2) Washington Capitals vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils

This was the first playoff series between these two teams.

Patrik Sundstrom's eight-point effort in game three (3 goals, 5 assists) set a new Stanley Cup playoff record for most points in a single game.

In game seven, the Capitals rallied from a 2–0 deficit with two goals in the second period, but John MacLean scored the game-winning goal for the Devils with 6:11 left in the third period to send them to the conference finals for the first time in franchise history.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =07:18 – Mike Ridley (3) |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =03:29 – pp – Larry Murphy (1) 16:48 – Scott Stevens (1) |1-3-1 =Tom Kurvers (1) – 09:49 |1-3-2 =No scoring |goalie1-1 =Sean Burke 28 saves / 31 shots |goalie1-2 =Pete Peeters 33 saves / 34 shots

|2-1-1 =Aaron Broten (2) – pp – 09:37 |2-1-2 =13:15 – Mike Ridley (4) |2-2-1 =Aaron Broten (3) – 03:02 Aaron Broten (4) – pp – 05:23 Pat Verbeek (2) – 18:14 |2-2-2 =17:45 – pp – Larry Robinson (2) |2-3-1 =Patrik Sundstrom (3) – pp – 12:49 |2-3-2 =No scoring |goalie2-1 =Sean Burke 28 saves / 30 shots |goalie2-2 =Pete Peeters 25 saves / 30 shots

|3-1-1 =10:37 – pp – Mark Johnson (5) 15:07 – pp – Mark Johnson (6) |3-1-2 =Dave Christian (2) – pp – 18:22 |3-2-1 =00:57 – Patrik Sundstrom (4) 02:01 – sh – Claude Loiselle (2) 11:39 – Anders Carlsson (1) 15:33 – Doug Brown (3) 19:45 – Patrik Sundstrom (5) |3-2-2 =Larry Murphy (3) – 06:51 Mike Gartner (2) – 09:50 Larry Murphy (4) – 13:57 |3-3-1 =02:59 – Mark Johnson (7) 09:47 – pp – Mark Johnson (8) 14:14 – Patrik Sundstrom (6) |3-3-2 =No scoring |goalie3-1 =Sean Burke 28 saves / 32 shots |goalie3-2 =Clint Malarchuk 14 saves / 21 shots Pete Peeters 7 saves / 10 shots

|4-1-1 =03:12 – pp – Tom Kurvers (2) |4-1-2 =Dave Christian (3) – 03:55 Peter Sundstrom (2) – 11:02 |4-2-1 =No scoring |4-2-2 =Dave Christian (4) – 09:11 |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =Dale Hunter (6) – pp – 08:45 |goalie4-1 =Sean Burke 27 saves / 31 shots |goalie4-2 =Pete Peeters 11 saves / 12 shots Clint Malarchuk 13 saves / 13 shots

|5-1-1 =Kirk Muller (1) – 16:36 |5-1-2 =No scoring |5-2-1 =Tom Kurvers (3) – pp – 06:54 |5-2-2 =No scoring |5-3-1 =Kirk Muller (2) – 13:26 |5-3-2 =10:24 – Mike Ridley (5) |goalie5-1 =Bob Sauve 28 saves / 29 shots |goalie5-2 =Clint Malarchuk 28 saves / 31 shots

|6-1-1 =00:18 – Claude Loiselle (3) |6-1-2 =Mike Ridley (6) – 06:40 Dale Hunter (7) – pp – 13:07 Stephen Leach (2) – 17:03 |6-2-1 =No scoring |6-2-2 =Yvon Corriveau (1) – 10:43 Dave Christian (5) – 17:48 |6-3-1 =07:21 – David Maley (2) |6-3-2 =Kelly Miller (4) – sh – 05:25 Mike Gartner (3) – pp – 18:32 |goalie6-1 =Sean Burke 13 saves / 18 shots Bob Sauve 11 saves / 13 shots |goalie6-2 =Pete Peeters 25 saves / 27 shots

|7-1-1 =Kirk Muller (3) – 00:14 Claude Loiselle (4) – 12:01 |7-1-2 =No scoring |7-2-1 =No scoring |7-2-2 =15:21 – Grant Ledyard (1) 19:54 – Garry Galley (2) |7-3-1 =John MacLean (5) – 13:49 |7-3-2 =No scoring |goalie7-1 =Sean Burke 30 saves / 32 shots |goalie7-2 =Pete Peeters 23 saves / 26 shots

Clarence Campbell Conference

(N1) Detroit Red Wings vs. (N2) St. Louis Blues

This was the second playoff series meeting between these two teams. St. Louis won the only previous meeting 3–1 in the 1984 Norris Division Semifinals.

Detroit defeated St Louis in five games. Tim Higgins scored with 2:25 left in the third period of the series-clinching game five to send Detroit to the conference finals.

|1-1-1 =Mark Hunter (1) – pp – 10:54 Brett Hull (7) – pp – 13::47 |1-1-2 =01:48 – James Nill (6) 02:31 – Shawn Burr (2) |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =08:34 – Steve Chiasson (1) |1-3-1 =Mark Hunter (2) – 03:01 Gino Cavallini (3) – 13:32 |1-3-2 =06:08 – Shawn Burr (3) 07:46 – Gerard Gallant (3) |goalie1-1 =Greg Millen 17 saves / 22 shots |goalie1-2 =Greg Stefan 15 saves / 19 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =07:00 – Petr Klima (7) 10:17 – pp – Steve Chiasson (2) 15:45 – Gerard Gallant (4) |2-2-1 =No scoring |2-2-2 =19:41 Petr Klima (8) |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =10:24 – pp – Petr Klima (9) 18:52 – Brent Ashton (2) |goalie2-1 =Greg Millen 12 saves / 18 shots |goalie2-2 =Greg Stefan 19 saves / 19 shots

|3-1-1 =00:26 – Gino Cavallini (4) |3-1-2 =Adam Oates (6) – 04:12 Bob Probert (4) – 17:58 |3-2-1 =01:03 – Tony McKegney (1) 12:19 – pp – Tony Hrkac (6) 14:19 – Tony McKegney (2) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =07:12 – Doug Gilmour (3) 10:33 – pp – Gino Cavallini (5) |3-3-2 =Dave Barr (3) – 19:33 |goalie3-1 =Greg Millen 25 saves / 28 shots |goalie3-2 =Greg Stefan 29 saves / 35 shots

|4-1-1 =No scoring |4-1-2 =Gerard Gallant (5) – 14:33 Petr Klima (10) – 17:21 |4-2-1 =19:40 – pp – Tony McKegney (3) |4-2-2 =No scoring |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =Gerard Gallant (6) – 09:53 |goalie4-1 =Greg Millen 17 saves / 20 shots |goalie4-2 =Glen Hanlon 27 saves / 28 shots

|5-1-1 =No scoring |5-1-2 =17:22 – pp – Lee Norwood (2) |5-2-1 =Herb Raglan (1) – 01:29 Bernie Federko (2) – pp – 07:02 |5-2-2 =11:18 – pp – Bob Probert (5) |5-3-1 =Steve Bozek (1) – 04:04 |5-3-2 =05:42 – John Chabot (3) 17:35 – Tim Higgins (1) |goalie5-1 =Greg Millen 27 saves / 31 shots |goalie5-2 =Greg Stefan 13 saves / 16 shots

(S1) Calgary Flames vs. (S2) Edmonton Oilers

This was the fourth playoff series meeting between these two teams. Edmonton won two of the previous three meetings. Calgary won the most recent meeting in seven games in the 1986 Smythe Division Finals.

In the Battle of Alberta the Oilers would claim the first sweep of the playoffs. In game two Wayne Gretzky scored the overtime winning goal short-handed.

|1-1-1 =Mark Messier (5) – pp – 11:49 |1-1-2 =13:59 – pp – Brad McCrimmon (2) |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =No scoring |1-3-1 =Jari Kurri (6) – 13:23 Wayne Gretzky (2) – 16:18 |1-3-2 =No scoring |goalie1-1 =Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 27 shots |goalie1-2 =Mike Vernon 16 saves / 19 shots

|2-1-1 =Mark Messier (6) – pp – 13:49 |2-1-2 =07:23 – Lanny McDonald (3) 11:26 – pp – Al MacInnis (3) |2-2-1 =Charlie Huddy (3) – 11:20 Wayne Gretzky (3) – pp – 13:18 |2-2-2 =03:56 – pp – Rob Ramage (1) |2-3-1 =Jari Kurri (7) – 16:01 |2-3-2 =04:03 – Tim Hunter (4) |2-4-1 =Wayne Gretzky (4) – sh – 07:54 |2-4-2 =No scoring |goalie2-1 =Grant Fuhr 30 saves / 34 shots |goalie2-2 =Mike Vernon 30 saves / 35 shots

|3-1-1 =09:23 – pp – Steve Smith (1) |3-1-2 =Hakan Loob (8) – sh – 03:11 |3-2-1 =08:54 – Charlie Huddy (4) 17:10 – pp – Glenn Anderson (4) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =09:04 – Jari Kurri (8) |3-3-2 =Joe Nieuwendyk (2) – 06:46 |goalie3-1 =Grant Fuhr 21 saves / 23 shots |goalie3-2 =Mike Vernon 18 saves / 22 shots

|4-1-1 =09:27 – pp – Mark Messier (7) 15:31 – Craig Simpson (5) |4-1-2 =No scoring |4-2-1 =04:31 – Wayne Gretzky (5) 06:39 – Esa Tikkanen (3) 14:23 – Dave Hannan (1) |4-2-2 =Craig Coxe (1) – 10:39 Dana Murzyn (2) – 12:45 Joe Nieuwendyk (3) – 15:35 |4-3-1 =10:40 – Glenn Anderson (5) |4-3-2 =John Tonelli (2) – pp – 16:09 |goalie4-1 =Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 30 shots |goalie4-2 =Rick Wamsley 6 saves / 8 shots Mike Vernon 5 saves / 9 shots

Conference finals

Prince of Wales Conference final

(A2) Boston Bruins vs. (P4) New Jersey Devils

This was the first playoff meeting between these two teams.

This series featured the infamous confrontation between Devils coach Jim Schoenfeld and referee Don Koharski after Game 3, when, during an argument in the tunnel after the game, Koharski tripped and fell, accusing Schoenfield of pushing him. Schoenfield famously responded, "Good, 'cause you fell you fat pig!" Then, he yelled "Have another doughnut! Have another doughnut!" The incident has since become part of NHL lore.

Schoenfeld was suspended by NHL president John Ziegler for Game 4, but the Devils received an injunction from the New Jersey Supreme Court, allowing Schoenfeld to coach the fourth game. In protest, the officials scheduled to work that game in the Meadlowands refused to take the ice, forcing the NHL to scramble for amateur officials to call the game. The injunction was lifted, the league conducted a proper hearing, Schoenfeld served his suspension during Game 5 in the Boston Garden, and the League officials returned to work.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =08:48 – Glen Wesley (1) |1-2-1 =Tom Kurvers (4) – 11:26 Jack O'Callahan (1) – 13:45 |1-2-2 =02:38 – Steve Kasper (5) 09:40 – pp – Craig Janney (3) |1-3-1 =Tom Kurvers (5) – pp – 02:48 |1-3-2 =05:56 – Ray Bourque (3) 16:05 – Ken Linseman (5) |goalie1-1 =Bob Sauve 25 saves / 30 shots |goalie1-2 =Rejean Lemelin 25 saves / 28 shots

|2-1-1 =Pat Verbeek (3) – pp – 11:38 Aaron Broten (5) – pp – 16:20 |2-1-2 =04:38 – pp – Keith Crowder (2) |2-2-1 =No scoring |2-2-2 =No scoring |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =16:36 – pp – Bob Joyce (4) |2-4-1 =Doug Brown (4) – 17:46 |2-4-2 =No scoring |goalie2-1 =Sean Burke 39 saves / 41 shots |goalie2-2 =Rejean Lemelin 30 saves / 33 shots

|3-1-1 =No scoring |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =14:58 – pp – Brendan Shanahan (1) |3-2-2 =Ken Linseman (6) – pp – 01:05 Bob Joyce (5) – pp – 02:03 Lyndon Byers (1) – 02:18 Gord Kluzak (4) – 10:52 Ken Linseman (7) – 17:05 |3-3-1 =No scoring |3-3-2 =Tom McCarthy (3) – 13:05 |goalie3-1 =Bob Sauve 17 saves / 20 shots Sean Burke 8 saves / 11 shots |goalie3-2 =Rejean Lemelin 23 saves / 24 shots

|4-1-1 =10:47 – David Maley (3) 11:32 – Pat Verbeek (4) |4-1-2 =No scoring |4-2-1 =No scoring |4-2-2 =Cam Neely (6) – pp – 12:31 |4-3-1 =04:04 – Tom Kurvers (6) |4-3-2 =No scoring |goalie4-1 =Sean Burke 33 saves / 34 shots |goalie4-2 =Rejean Lemelin 15 saves / 18 shots

|5-1-1 =Brendan Shanahan (2) – 18:05 |5-1-2 =12:12 – pp – Michael Thelven (2) 17:24 – pp – Craig Janney (4) |5-2-1 =No scoring |5-2-2 =06:15 – Keith Crowder (3) 08:41 – Bob Joyce (6) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =03:28 – Bob Joyce (7) 09:05 – pp – Ken Linseman (8) 09:29 – Bob Sweeney (5) |goalie5-1 =Sean Burke 24 saves / 31 shots |goalie5-2 =Rejean Lemelin 24 saves / 25 shots

|6-1-1 =15:40 – Mark Johnson (9) 18:15 – Mark Johnson (10) |6-1-2 =Willi Plett (2) – 01:57 |6-2-1 =11:03 – Doug Brown (5) 17:12 – John MacLean (6) |6-2-2 =Bob Sweeney (6) – pp – 07:24 Michael Thelven (3) – 14:17 |6-3-1 =02:45 – Pat Conacher (2) 17:30 – pp – Patrik Sundstrom (7) |6-3-2 =No scoring |goalie6-1 =Sean Burke 26 saves / 29 shots |goalie6-2 =Rejean Lemelin 8 saves / 13 shots Andy Moog 14 saves / 15 shots

|7-1-1 =No scoring |7-1-2 =08:59 – pp – Craig Janney (5) 11:59 – Moe Lemay (3) |7-2-1 =John MacLean (7) – 15:28 |7-2-2 =02:57 – Rick Middleton (5) |7-3-1 =Kirk Muller (4) – 03:41 |7-3-2 =12:05 – Craig Janney (6) 13:19 – Cam Neely (7) 19:36 – sh – en – Ken Linseman (9) |goalie7-1 =Sean Burke 25 saves / 30 shots |goalie7-2 =Rejean Lemelin 17 saves / 19 shots

Clarence Campbell Conference final

(S2) Edmonton Oilers vs. (N1) Detroit Red Wings

This was the second playoff meeting between these two teams and was a rematch of the previous year's Clarence Campbell Conference Final which Edmonton won in five games.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =07:30 – pp – Jari Kurri (9) |1-2-1 =Brent Ashton (3) – 14:17 |1-2-2 =01:11 – Randy Gregg (1) 15:54 – pp – Craig Simpson (6) |1-3-1 =No scoring |1-3-2 =02:07 – Esa Tikkanen (1) |goalie1-1 =Greg Stefan 28 saves / 32 shots |goalie1-2 =Grant Fuhr 15 saves / 16 shots

|2-1-1 =John Chabot (4) – 02:03 |2-1-2 =No scoring |2-2-1 =Mel Bridgman (3) – 15:20 Brent Ashton (4) – pp – 17:41 |2-2-2 =05:24 – pp – Mark Messier (8) |2-3-1 =No scoring |2-3-2 =00:48 – Mark Messier (9) 01:18 – Jari Kurri (10) 05:01 – pp – Craig Simpson (7) 19:41 – en – Wayne Gretzky (6) |goalie2-1 =Glen Hanlon 10 saves / 14 shots Greg Stefan 9 saves / 9 shots |goalie2-2 =Grant Fuhr 25 saves / 28 shots

|3-1-1 =11:57 – pp – Brent Ashton (5) |3-1-2 =Wayne Gretzky (7) – pp – 04:47 |3-2-1 =16:32 – Brent Ashton (6) 19:44 – pp – Bob Probert (6) |3-2-2 =No scoring |3-3-1 =17:37 – Dave Barr (4) 18:33 – Mel Bridgman (4) |3-3-2 =Wayne Gretzky (8) – pp – 01:10 |goalie3-1 =Glen Hanlon 23 saves / 25 shots |goalie3-2 =Grant Fuhr 26 saves / 31 shots

|4-1-1 =19:21 – pp – Adam Oates (7) |4-1-2 =Craig Simpson (8) – 15:22 |4-2-1 =10:25 – pp – Bob Probert (7) |4-2-2 =Jari Kurri (11) – 00:23 Glenn Anderson (6) – pp – 04:03 |4-3-1 =13:13 – pp – Bob Probert (8) |4-3-2 =No scoring |4-4-1 =No scoring |4-4-2 =Jari Kurri (12) – 11:02 |goalie4-1 =Glen Hanlon 24 saves / 28 shots |goalie4-2 =Grant Fuhr 20 saves / 23 shots

|5-1-1 =Brent Ashton (7) – sh – 04:19 |5-1-2 =00:47 – Craig Simpson (9) 08:08 – Craig Simpson (10) |5-2-1 =Dave Barr (5) – 00:41 |5-2-2 =05:55 – Mark Messier (10) 14:36 – Mike Krushelnyski (2) 15:00 – Keith Acton (1) 18:02 – pp – Jari Kurri (13) |5-3-1 =Adam Oates (8) – 01:33 Steve Yzerman (1) – 04:13 |5-3-2 =14:49 – Mike Krushelnyski (3) 19:08 – en – Wayne Gretzky (9) |goalie5-1 =Greg Stefan 25 saves / 32 shots |goalie5-2 =Grant Fuhr 20 saves / 24 shots

Stanley Cup Finals

Main article: 1988 Stanley Cup Finals

This was the first Finals meeting between these two teams.

The original Game 4 is well known for the high heat resulting in fog that interfered with the game and a subsequent power outage that caused the game to be canceled at 16:37 of the second period. The game results didn't count, but players were able to retain their stats counting towards their playoff records, as per NHL rules. The series moved on to Edmonton, thus allowing the Oilers to win the Cup at home at Northlands Coliseum and complete the four game sweep.

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =No scoring |1-2-1 =Cam Neely (8) – 13:15 |1-2-2 =01:56 – pp – Wayne Gretzky (10) |1-3-1 =No scoring |1-3-2 =01:15 – Keith Acton (2) |goalie1-1 =Andy Moog 20 saves / 22 shots |goalie1-2 =Grant Fuhr 13 saves / 14 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =15:57 – pp – Glenn Anderson (7) 19:30 – pp – Mark Messier (11) |2-2-1 =No scoring |2-2-2 =No scoring |2-3-1 =Bob Joyce (8) – 00:35 Ken Linseman (10) – 03:16 |2-3-2 =11:21 – Wayne Gretzky (11) 19:53 – en – Jari Kurri (14) |goalie2-1 =Rejean Lemelin 28 saves / 31 shots |goalie2-2 =Grant Fuhr 10 saves / 12 shots

|3-1-1 =02:46 – Randy Burridge (2) |3-1-2 =Kevin McClelland (2) – 16:18 |3-2-1 =No scoring |3-2-2 =Esa Tikkanen (5) – pp – 10:25 Glenn Anderson (9) – 12:57 |3-3-1 =04:19 – Moe Lemay (4) 14:02 – pp – Cam Neely (9) |3-3-2 =Esa Tikkanen (6) – 01:32 Craig Simpson (11) – 10:28 Esa Tikkanen (7) – 19:40 |goalie3-1 =Rejean Lemelin 19 saves / 24 shots |goalie3-2 =Grant Fuhr 25 saves / 28 shots

|4-1-1 =16:56 – Greg Hawgood (1) |4-1-2 =Glenn Anderson (9) – 00:10 Esa Tikkanen (8) – pp – 15:33 |4-2-1 =06:12 – sh – Glen Wesley (5) 07:37 – pp – Glen Wesley (6) |4-2-2 =Craig Simpson (12) – pp – 16:37 |4-3-1 = |4-3-2 = |goalie4-1 =Andy Moog 16 saves, 19 shots |goalie4-2 =Grant Fuhr 18 saves / 21 shots

|5-1-1 =Steve Kasper (6) – 00:43 Ken Linseman (11) – pp – 09:44 |5-1-2 =06:07 – Normand Lacombe (3) 15:03 – pp – Esa Tikkanen (9) |5-2-1 =No scoring |5-2-2 =06:38 – Mike Krushelnyski (4) 09:44 – pp – Wayne Gretzky (12) 19:58 – Craig Simpson (13) |5-3-1 =Steve Kasper (7) – 06:35 |5-3-2 =01:21 – Esa Tikkanen (10) |goalie5-1 =Andy Moog 20 saves / 26 shots |goalie5-2 =Grant Fuhr 16 saves / 19 shots

Player statistics

Skaters

These are the top ten skaters based on points.

Goaltenders

This is a combined table of the top five goaltenders based on goals against average and the top five goaltenders based on save percentage, with at least 420 minutes played. The table is sorted by GAA, and the criteria for inclusion are bolded.

References

before = 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs | after = 1989 Stanley Cup playoffs | title = Stanley Cup playoffs | years = |

References

1. "Fewest & Most Games Needed to Win Stanley Cup".
2. (May 7, 1988). "Schoenfeld Is Penalized". The New York Times.
3. Finn, Robin. (May 9, 1988). "Suspension of Devils' Coach Causes Uproar, Delays Game". The New York Times.
4. "Off-ice officials took the ice in 1988".
5. (May 11, 1988). "Schoenfeld Gets Suspension, Fine : New Jersey Coach Penalized for Altercation With Official".
6. Finn, Robin. (May 11, 1988). "Schoenfeld Upset By League Decision". The New York Times.
7. [http://www.nhl.com/stats/player?reportType=season&seasonFrom=19871988&seasonTo=19871988&gameType=3&filter=gamesPlayed,gte,1&sort=points,goals,assists NHL.com - Skater Stats]
8. [http://www.nhl.com/stats/player?report=goaliesummary&reportType=season&seasonFrom=19871988&seasonTo=19871988&gameType=3&filter=gamesPlayed,gte,1&sort=goalsAgainstAverage NHL.com - Goalie Stats]