Revenge
1984 Stanley Cup Final, Game 5, May 19, 1984.
Edmonton 5, NY Islanders 2

Despite all of the goal-scoring records, the Edmonton Oilers had not earned the respect of the National Hockey League. Although the team had the sport’s most-watched player in Wayne Gretzky, the franchise had yet to lay claim on hockey’s most-coveted prize, the Stanley Cup.

The Oilers were the NHL’s flashiest team, but experts still hailed the New York Islanders as the League’s top club. The Isles had won four Stanley Cups in a row, including a sweep of the Oilers in the 1983 final that saw New York outscore Edmonton 17-6 in the series. The Islanders were led by legends like scoring forwards Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier, defensive stalwart Denis Potvin and goaltender Billy Smith. Over the last few seasons, the Islanders showed the Oilers what it would take to win the Cup.

Coming into the 1984 final, the Islanders had won nine championship series games in a row, and had just swept both the 1982 and 1983 finals. That year, the Islanders held home ice advantage in the series, which appeared to favour New York. However, the NHL decided to tinker with the finals format that season, creating a Stanley Cup schedule that mirrored that of the National Basketball Association or baseball’s World Series. After the teams played their first two games in Uniondale, N.Y., the series would shift to Northlands Coliseum for three games and then back to New York for another two, if necessary. The Oilers knew that if they could get at least a split at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum, they would have the advantage of three straight games at home.

The Oilers plan of splitting the games in New York worked based on the team's defence. Grant Fuhr out-dueled Smith in a 1-0 Game 1 victory that saw enforcer Kevin McClelland become the unlikely winning goal hero. The Oilers showed the mighty Islanders that they could be beat.  In game 2, the New York Islanders stormed back with a 6-1 win, and Islanders fans were confident, chanting "Drive for Five" as the teams left for Edmonton.  However, by splitting the series, the Oilers had gained confidence from their New York trip and prepared to play inspired hockey in front of the home fans.

Games 3 and 4 of the series were a rout. The Oilers' stronger offence bombarded Smith, and Edmonton took home a pair of 7-2 wins.  With game 5 in Edmonton, the Oilers could take the Cup on home ice.

Many Edmontonians were already celebrating after the first two periods of Game 5. The Oilers dominated, and were up by a decisive 4-0 margin after two periods. But the defending champions came out with new fire in the third. Their young sniper Pat LaFontaine scored two goals in quick succession to put the game back into doubt.

"The first thing that sticks out in my mind from that first Stanley Cup was the team that we beat," recalled Oilers’ defender Lee Fogolin. "The Islanders were such a great team and they were great champions. They had a never-say-die attitude and playing against them, you could never trust any lead you had. In the deciding game, we were up 4-0 after two periods, and they changed their game for the third period. All of a sudden, they score two quick goals and I remember Kevin (Lowe) looking at me on the bench and saying, ‘Holy s---.’"

Although the Islanders pushed for another goal, Oilers’ goalie Andy Moog, who alternated with Fuhr throughout the playoffs, would not relent. Finally, with less than a minute left in the game, forward Dave Lumley got hold of a loose puck in the Oilers’ end and fired into the empty Islanders’ net.  The Oilers clinched the Cup.

Mark Messier, who netted eight goals and added 18 assists in 19 playoff games, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the MVP of the playoffs. And, as NHL president John Ziegler handed the Stanley Cup to Oilers’ captain Wayne Gretzky, the boys from Edmonton sent a message to the world: the old dynasty was over, and a new one is beginning.

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