1999 Stanley Cup Final

Background

This was the third meeting between teams from Dallas and Buffalo for a major professional sports championship. This previously occurred in two Super Bowls in 1993 and 1994.

Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo entered the playoffs as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. They first swept the second seeded Ottawa Senators, then defeated the sixth seeded Boston Bruins in six games, and then defeated the fourth seeded Toronto Maple Leafs in five games to advance to the Finals. This was Buffalo's first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 1975, in which they fell to the Philadelphia Flyers in six games. The Sabres also became the second seventh seeded team to reach the Finals after the Vancouver Canucks did so in 1994.

Dallas Stars

Dallas entered the playoffs as the Presidents' Trophy winner for the second consecutive season as they clinched the best record in the NHL once again. They swept the eighth seeded Edmonton Oilers, then defeated the fifth seeded St. Louis Blues in six games, and the second seeded Colorado Avalanche in seven games to advance to the Finals. The Stars became the first team from the Deep South to reach the Stanley Cup Final.

Game summaries

|1-1-1 =No scoring |1-1-2 =10:17 – pp – Brett Hull (6) |1-2-1 =No scoring |1-2-2 =No scoring |1-3-1 =Stu Barnes (5) – 08:33 Wayne Primeau (3) – pp – 13:37 |1-3-2 =19:11 – Jere Lehtinen (8) |1-4-1 =Jason Woolley (4) – 15:30 |1-4-2 =No scoring |goalie1-1 =Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 37 shots |goalie1-2 =Ed Belfour 21 saves / 24 shots

|2-1-1 =No scoring |2-1-2 =No scoring |2-2-1 =Michael Peca (5) – pp – 07:27 |2-2-2 =18:26 – Jamie Langenbrunner (10) |2-3-1 =Alexei Zhitnik (4) – pp – 05:36 |2-3-2 =04:25 – Craig Ludwig (1) 17:10 – Brett Hull (7) 19:34 – en – Derian Hatcher (1) |goalie2-1 =Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 30 shots |goalie2-2 =Ed Belfour 19 saves / 21 shots

|3-1-1 =No scoring |3-1-2 =No scoring |3-2-1 =07:51 – Stu Barnes (6) |3-2-2 =Joe Nieuwendyk (10) – 15:33 |3-3-1 =No scoring |3-3-2 =Joe Nieuwendyk (11) – 09:35 |goalie3-1 =Dominik Hasek 27 shots / 29 saves |goalie3-2 =Ed Belfour 11 saves / 12 shots

|4-1-1 =08:09 – Geoff Sanderson (4) |4-1-2 =Jere Lehtinen (9) – pp – 10:14 |4-2-1 =07:37 – Dixon Ward (7) |4-2-2 =No scoring |4-3-1 =No scoring |4-3-2 =No scoring |goalie4-1 =Dominik Hasek 30 saves / 31 shots |goalie4-2 =Ed Belfour 16 saves / 18 shots

|5-1-1 =No scoring |5-1-2 =No scoring |5-2-1 =No scoring |5-2-2 =02:23 – pp – Darryl Sydor (3) |5-3-1 =No scoring |5-3-2 =15:21 – Pat Verbeek (3) |goalie5-1 =Dominik Hasek 19 saves / 21 shots |goalie5-2 =Ed Belfour 23 saves / 23 shots

|6-1-1 =No scoring |6-1-2 =Jere Lehtinen (10) – 08:09 |6-2-1 =18:21 – Stu Barnes (7) |6-2-2 =No scoring |6-3-1 =No scoring |6-3-2 =No scoring |6-4-1 =No scoring |6-4-2 =Brett Hull (8) – 14:51 |goalie6-1 =Dominik Hasek 48 saves / 50 shots |goalie6-2 =Ed Belfour 53 saves / 54 shots

Game 1

|1-1-1=No scoring |1-1-2=10:17 – Hull (Modano, Lehtinen) PP |1-2-1=No scoring |1-2-2=No scoring |1-3-1=Barnes (Juneau, Smehlik) – 08:33 Primeau (Zhitnik, Smehlik) PP – 13:37 |1-3-2=19:11 – Lehtinen (Modano, Zubov) |1-4-1=Woolley (Brown) – 15:30 |1-4-2=No scoring |goalie1-1 =Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 37 shots |goalie1-2 =Ed Belfour 21 saves / 24 shots The opening game was in Dallas and it was the visiting Buffalo Sabres who struck first, winning 3–2 in overtime. Dallas led 1–0 on a power play goal by Brett Hull, but Stu Barnes and Wayne Primeau scored 5:04 apart in the third to give Buffalo a 2–1 lead. Jere Lehtinen tied the game in the final minute of the third period, but Jason Woolley scored at 15:30 of overtime to give the Sabres the series lead.

Game 2

|1-1-1=No scoring |1-1-2=No scoring |1-2-1=Peca (Woolley, Satan) PP – 07:22 |1-2-2=18:26 – Langenbrunner (Matvichuk, Nieuwendyk) |1-3-1=Zhitnik PP – 05:36 |1-3-2=04:25 – Ludwig (Skrudland) 17:10 – Hull (Hrkac, Chambers) 19:34 – Hatcher (Zubov) EN |goalie1-1 =Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 30 shots |goalie1-2 =Ed Belfour 19 saves / 21 shots With three seconds left in the period, Dallas center Mike Modano tripped Buffalo goaltender Dominik Hasek, and a number of scrums broke out as time expired. Dallas winger Joe Nieuwendyk fought Buffalo center Brian Holzinger in the circle to the right of Hasek. These were the first fighting majors in three years in the final round, and it was also Nieuwendyk's first fighting major in five years in either the playoffs or regular season.

After the scoreless opening period, the teams traded goals in the middle frame. Craig Ludwig's first goal in 102 playoff games gave Dallas its first lead of the game in the third period, but Alexei Zhitnik tied it 71 seconds later. Brett Hull scored on a slap shot, a one-timer on a pass from Tony Hrkac, from the top of the circle to Hasek's left with 2:50 remaining in the game, but Buffalo had an excellent chance to tie the game with Derian Hatcher being assessed a high-sticking minor 19 seconds later. During the power play, Buffalo pulled Hasek for a 6-on-4 attacking advantage, but the Stars were able to kill the penalty, and Hatcher scored an empty-netter just three seconds after emerging from the penalty box. The empty net goal sealed the win for Dallas, and evened the series at one game apiece. Mike Modano left the game with approximately ten minutes to play after suffering a broken wrist.

Game 3

|1-1-1=No scoring |1-1-2=No scoring |1-2-1=Nieuwendyk (Reid, Langenbrunner) – 15:33 |1-2-2=07:51 – Barnes (Smehlik, Holzinger) |1-3-1=Nieuwendyk (Langenbrunner, Reid) – 09:35 |1-3-2=No scoring |goalie1-1 =Ed Belfour 11 saves / 12 shots |goalie1-2 =Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 29 shots The series shifted to Buffalo for games three and four. It was the visiting Dallas Stars turn to win one on the road, winning 2–1. With Modano hampered by his wrist injury, and Hull leaving the game with a groin injury, Joe Nieuwendyk's two goals, including his sixth game-winner of the playoffs, led Dallas to the win.

Game 4

|1-1-1=Lehtinen (Modano, Hatcher) PP – 10:14 |1-1-2=08:09 – Sanderson |1-2-1=No scoring |1-2-2=07:37 – Ward |1-3-1=No scoring |1-3-2=No scoring |goalie1-1 =Ed Belfour 16 saves / 18 shots |goalie1-2 =Dominik Hasek 30 saves / 31 shots Facing a two games to one deficit in the series, the Sabres came through with a 2–1 victory on Dixon Ward's game-winning goal in the second period.

Game 5

|1-1-1=No scoring |1-1-2=No scoring |1-2-1=No scoring |1-2-2=02:23 – Sydor (Modano, Zubov) PP |1-3-1=No scoring |1-3-2=15:21 – Verbeek (Matvichuk, Modano) |goalie1-1 =Dominik Hasek 19 saves / 21 shots |goalie1-2 =Ed Belfour 23 saves / 23 shots With the series tied at two games apiece and returning to Dallas, Ed Belfour made 23 saves to shut out the Sabres, and move Dallas within one win of the Stanley Cup.

Game 6

|1-1-1=Lehtinen (Modano, Ludwig) – 08:09 |1-1-2=No scoring |1-2-1=No scoring |1-2-2=18:21 – Barnes (Primeau, Zhitnik) |1-3-1=No scoring |1-3-2=No scoring |1-4-1=Hull (Lehtinen, Modano) – 14:51 |1-4-2=No scoring |goalie1-1 =Ed Belfour 53 saves / 54 shots |goalie1-2 =Dominik Hasek 48 saves / 50 shots The series shifted back to Marine Midland Arena for Game 6, where the Dallas Stars would seek their first Stanley Cup, while the Buffalo Sabres would fight for a win to extend the series to a seventh and final game.

Dallas, which allowed the first goal in the earlier two games played at Marine Midland Arena, took a 1–0 lead on one of its few scoring chances in the first period when Lehtinen scored his tenth goal of the playoffs at 8:09. The Sabres tied the game with their first goal since the third period of game four when Barnes' wrist shot eluded Belfour with 1:39 to play in the second period.

The game remained tied at one through the third period and the first two overtime periods, despite several chances by both teams to score. At 14:51 of the third overtime period, Brett Hull scored to end the series and win Dallas their first Stanley Cup. Joe Nieuwendyk was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs.

It was the longest Cup-winning game in Finals history, and the second-longest Finals game overall, after game one of the 1990 Stanley Cup Final, which ended at 15:13 of the third overtime.

Hull's series-ending goal

In the third overtime, Jere Lehtinen took a shot from the left circle that was deflected by Brett Hull but stopped by Dominik Hasek. Hull was not in the crease for the first shot. The rebound came near Hull's left skate, which Hull used to kick the puck to his stick, which was just outside the crease. His left skate entered the crease just before his second shot went in and ended the series.

None of the Sabres players or coaches questioned the legality of the goal in the immediate aftermath. It was not until league commissioner Gary Bettman was on the ice to hand out the trophies that Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff returned to his bench and began screaming at Bettman to explain why the goal had not been reviewed. In the Sabres' locker room, players who had seen the replays were infuriated. Hasek recalled, "My first reaction was 'Let's get back on the ice.' But it's 2 o'clock in the morning and I look at everyone and it's like, 'I'm already out of my pants. It's impossible.'"

The NHL had sent a private memo out earlier in the season with a clarification to the in-the-crease rule. The memo stated that if a player was in control of the puck, a skate could be in the crease even if the puck was not, and a goal in that circumstance would count. NHL Director of Officiating Bryan Lewis said after the game that the goal had been reviewed, just as every goal that season had been, and the officials in the video review booth had determined that since Hull was deemed to have been in possession of the puck throughout the play, he was allowed to shoot and score a goal, even though one skate had entered the crease before the puck.

Among Sabres fans, both the game and the play itself are often simply referred to as "No Goal".

Team rosters

Bolded years under Finals appearance indicates year won Stanley Cup.

Dallas Stars

Buffalo Sabres

Stanley Cup engraving

The 1999 Stanley Cup was presented to Stars captain Derian Hatcher by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman following the Stars 2–1 triple overtime win over the Sabres in game six.

1998–99 Dallas Stars

• 3 Craig Ludwig (A)
• 5 Darryl Sydor
• 17 Brent Severyn ‡
• 24 Richard Matvichuk
• 56 Sergei Zubov (A)
• 27 Shawn Chambers
• 10 Brian Skrudland
• 18 Derek Plante ‡
• 21 Guy Carbonneau
• 25 Joe Nieuwendyk (A)
• 41 Tony Hrkac*
• 49 Jon Sim
• 12 Mike Keane
• 14 Dave Reid
• 15 Jamie Langenbrunner
• 16 Pat Verbeek
• 22 Brett Hull
• 26 Jere Lehtinen
• 29 Grant Marshall †
• 33 Benoit Hogue
• 20 Ed Belfour |player-notes=
• • Played both centre and wing.
• † Did not play or dress in the Final.
• ‡ Exemption granted to engrave the name of a player who did not automatically qualify. |non-players=
• Thomas O. Hicks (Chairman/Owner/Governor), Jim Lites (President), Bob Gainey (Vice President/General Manager)
• Doug Armstrong (Asst. General Manager), Craig Button (Director of Player Personnel), Ken Hitchcock (Head Coach)
• Doug Jarvis (Asst. Coach), Rick Wilson (Asst. Coaches), Rick McLaughlin (Vice President-Chief Financial Officer), Jeff Cogen (Vice President-Marketing & Promotions)
• Bill Strong (Vice President-Marketing & Broadcasting), Tim Bernhardt (Director-Amateur Scouting), Doug Overton (Director-Pro Scouting)
• Bob Gernader (Chief Scout), Stu McGregor (Western Scout), Dave Suprenant (Medical Trainer)
• Dave Smith (Equipment Manager), Rick Matthews (Asst. Equipment Manager), Jean-Jacque McQueen (Strength-Conditioning Coach)
• Rick St. Croix (Goaltending Consultant), Dan Stuchal (Director of Team Services), Larry Kelly (Director of Public Relations)}}

Engraving notes

• #18 Derek Plante (C) played in 10 regular season games and 8 playoff games for Dallas, previously 41 regular season games for Buffalo. #17 Brent Severyn (D) played in 30 regular season games, missing 22 due to injuries. He spent the entire season with Dallas. They did not play (both healthy scratches) in the Final. As they did not automatically qualify, Dallas successfully requested an exemption to engrave their names.
• Mike Modano and Shawn Chambers were the only players on the roster that had played for the Minnesota North Stars. Chambers left the Stars in summer of 1991 for Washington. He joined Tampa Bay in summer of 1992. Chambers won the Stanley Cup first year in New Jersey in 1995, before rejoining the Stars in summer of 1997. Modano was part of the Stars franchise for the first 20 years of his NHL career.
• #37 Brad Lukowich (D – 14 regular season games and 8 playoff games) and #6 Doug Lidster (D – 7 regular season games and 4 playoff games) were on the roster during the Final, but left off the Stanley Cup engraving due to not qualifying. They were included in the team picture and received Stanley Cup rings.
• Leon Friedrich (Video Coordinator), Craig Lowery (Trainer Asst.), Doug Warner (Equipment Asst.) were left off the Stanley Cup engraving, but included in team picture and received Stanley Cup rings.

Broadcasting

In Canada, the series was televised on CBC. In the United States, this was fifth and final year in which coverage of the Cup Finals was split between Fox and ESPN. Fox aired games one, two, and five; while ESPN had games three, four, and six. Had there been a game seven, it would have aired on Fox. Under the U.S. TV contracts that would take effect beginning next season, ABC would take over for Fox as the NHL's network television partner.

Notes

References

References

1. George, Thomas. (January 31, 1994). "SUPER BOWL XXVIII; It's Fourth-and-Heartbreak as the Bills Lose One More".
2. "Stars Win Stanley Cup in a Thriller". Washington Post.
3. (10 April 2012). "Five Most Controversial Goals in NHL Playoff History". Bleacher Report.
4. (18 June 2019). "20 years later, Sabres' No Goal drama is 'huge disappointment' for Hasek". Buffalo News.
5. (5 November 2009). "Most memorable moment of Brett Hull's career still tainted for some". The Canadian Press.
6. (2011). "Go to the Net: Eight Goals That Changed the Game". Doubleday Canada.
7. (1 April 2020). "Buffalo sports' greatest what-ifs: What if 'No Goal' was really no goal?". Buffalo News.
8. (19 June 2019). "'No goal' will never go away for Sabres fans". WGRZ.
9. (19 June 2019). "Twenty years beyond No Goal game: Where did you watch it?". Buffalo News.
10. "1999 Stanley Cup Final schedule".