1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks season
The 1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 62nd season of operation of the Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League.
1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks | |
---|---|
Division | 3rd Norris |
1987–88 record | 30–41–9 |
Goals for | 284 |
Goals against | 328 |
Team information | |
General manager | Bob Pulford |
Coach | Bob Murdoch |
Captain | Vacant |
Alternate captains | Keith Brown Steve Larmer Troy Murray Denis Savard |
Offseason
The 1987–88 Chicago Black Hawks were coming off a year in which they finished third in the Norris Division and were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Red Wings. The Blackawks made several moves in the offseason with GM Bob Pulford replacing himself as coach with Bob Murdoch and trading young star Eddie Olczyk and aging star Al Secord to the Toronto Maple Leafs for wingers Rick Vaive and Steve Thomas and defenseman Bob McGill. Goaltender Bob Mason was the summer's big free agent signing. Though relatively untested at the NHL level, Mason was in demand after an impressive performance in the 1987 playoffs. In addition to Mason, the team signed Ed Belfour who had just backstopped the University of North Dakota to the NCAA championship, and used their number one pick in the June draft to select Jimmy Waite from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Blackhawks regular goaltenders from the previous season, veterans Murray Bannerman and Bob Sauve, never played another regular season game for Chicago. The Blackhawks also acquired Duane Sutter from the New York Islanders in exchange for a 2nd round pick in the 1988 NHL Entry Draft.
Regular season
The Blackhawks were a streaky team - winning five in row in October, followed by 7 straight without a win, then won five of the next seven, then lost eight straight. The up and down season ended on the down with the Hawks going winless in their last eight games of the season. The team's fortunes were greatly hampered by injuries, with regulars Doug Wilson, Keith Brown, Steve Thomas, Wayne Presley, Duane Sutter, Bob Murray and Behn Wilson all missing considerable playing time. They would finish the season 30-41-9 (69 Points) - good for 3rd Place in the Norris Division.
Offensively, the Blackhawks were again led by Denis Savard, who had an outstanding season leading the team in scoring for the seventh year in a row with team highs of 44 goals, 87 assists and 131 points (which ranked third in the league behind Lemieux and Gretzky). Steve Larmer was again second in points with 41 goals and 48 assists. Offseason acquisition Rick Vaive was second in goals with 43, and mid-season addition, Dirk Graham had 37 points in his half-season with the Hawks. On defense, Doug Wilson again led the club with 32 points (in just 27 games), with Keith Brown leading in the club in plus/minus with +5. Gary Nylund led the team in penalty minutes with 208.
In goal, rookie Darren Pang took over in the net with a 3.48 GAA and a 17-23-1 record in 45 games. Bob Mason was relegated to the bench more and more as the season wore on and finished with a 4.15 GAA and 13-18-8 record in 41 games.
Final standings
GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 41 | 28 | 11 | 322 | 269 | 93 |
St. Louis Blues | 80 | 34 | 38 | 8 | 278 | 294 | 76 |
Chicago Blackhawks | 80 | 30 | 41 | 9 | 284 | 328 | 69 |
Toronto Maple Leafs | 80 | 21 | 49 | 10 | 273 | 345 | 52 |
Minnesota North Stars | 80 | 19 | 48 | 13 | 242 | 349 | 51 |
[1]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.
Schedule and results
Playoffs
The Hawks faced Brett Hull and the St. Louis Blues, who finished second in the Norris. After the Blackhawks had been swept two years in a row in the first round, they opened the series in St Louis by getting swept by scores of 4-1 and 3-2. The series moved to the Chicago Stadium where the Hawks would break their playoff losing streak with a 6-3 victory. The winning ways did not last though, as the Hawks would drop the next two games - 6-5 and 5-3.
No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Game Winning Goal | Record |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | L | April 6, 1988 | 1-4 | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | Brett Hull | 0-1 |
2 | L | April 7, 1988 | 2-3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | Brett Hull | 0-2 |
3 | W | April 9, 1988 | 6–3 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | Denis Savard | 1-2 |
4 | L | April 10, 1988 | 5-6 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | Tony Hrkac | 1-3 |
4 | L | April 12, 1988 | 3-5 | @ St. Louis Blues (1987-88) | Brett Hull | 1-4 |
Player stats
Regular season
- Scoring
Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Denis Savard | C | 80 | 44 | 87 | 131 | 95 | 4 | 14 | 7 | 6 |
Steve Larmer | RW | 80 | 41 | 48 | 89 | 42 | -5 | 21 | 7 | 0 |
Rick Vaive | RW | 76 | 43 | 26 | 69 | 108 | -20 | 19 | 0 | 6 |
Troy Murray | C | 79 | 22 | 36 | 58 | 96 | -17 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
Dirk Graham | W | 42 | 17 | 19 | 36 | 32 | 4 | 6 | 1 | 2 |
Doug Wilson | D | 27 | 8 | 24 | 32 | 28 | -17 | 6 | 1 | 1 |
Brian Noonan | RW | 77 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 44 | -27 | 3 | 0 | 2 |
Behn Wilson | D | 58 | 6 | 23 | 29 | 166 | -19 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Steve Thomas | LW | 30 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 40 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 3 |
Bob Murray | D | 62 | 6 | 20 | 26 | 44 | -7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Wayne Presley | RW | 42 | 12 | 10 | 22 | 52 | -13 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
Steve Ludzik | C | 73 | 6 | 15 | 21 | 40 | -14 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Everett Sanipass | LW | 57 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 126 | -9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Gary Nylund | D | 76 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 208 | -9 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dan Vincelette | LW | 69 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 109 | -15 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Duane Sutter | RW | 37 | 7 | 9 | 16 | 70 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
Bruce Cassidy | D | 21 | 3 | 10 | 13 | 6 | -3 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Bob McGill | D | 67 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 131 | -19 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Mike Stapleton | C | 53 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 59 | -10 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Curt Fraser | LW | 27 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 57 | -13 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
Trent Yawney | D | 15 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 15 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
Rik Wilson | D | 14 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Keith Brown | D | 24 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 45 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Glen Cochrane | D | 73 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 204 | -7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Marc Bergevin | D | 58 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 85 | -19 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dave Manson | D | 54 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 185 | -12 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Darren Pang | G | 45 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
David Mackey | LW | 23 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 71 | -14 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
Jim Playfair | D | 12 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 21 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Bill Watson | RW | 9 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | -5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Mark LaVarre | RW | 18 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 25 | -8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Bob Mason | G | 41 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Bill Gardner | C | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 2 | -1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Kent Paynter | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Goaltending
Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Darren Pang | 2548 | 45 | 17 | 23 | 1 | 163 | 3.84 | 0 | 1501 | 1338 | .891 |
Bob Mason | 2312 | 41 | 13 | 18 | 8 | 160 | 4.15 | 0 | 1353 | 1193 | .882 |
Team: | 4860 | 80 | 30 | 41 | 9 | 323 | 3.99 | 0 | 2854 | 2531 | .887 |
Playoffs
- Scoring
Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Rick Vaive | RW | 5 | 6 | 2 | 8 | 38 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
Denis Savard | C | 5 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
Steve Larmer | RW | 5 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Bob Murray | D | 5 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | -1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Trent Yawney | D | 5 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dirk Graham | W | 4 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Steve Thomas | LW | 3 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Everett Sanipass | LW | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Keith Brown | D | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | -3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Troy Murray | C | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 8 | -4 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Steve Ludzik | C | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Glen Cochrane | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Mark LaVarre | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dave Manson | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Bob Mason | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Bob McGill | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Brian Noonan | RW | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Gary Nylund | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Darren Pang | G | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Wayne Presley | RW | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Mike Rucinski | C | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Duane Sutter | RW | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | -1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Dan Vincelette | LW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Behn Wilson | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
- Goaltending
Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Darren Pang | 240 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 18 | 4.50 | 0 | 130 | 112 | .862 |
Bob Mason | 60 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 3.00 | 0 | 31 | 28 | .903 |
Team: | 300 | 5 | 1 | 4 | 21 | 4.20 | 0 | 161 | 140 | .870 |
Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;
Draft picks
Chicago's draft picks at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft held at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.
Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club Team (League) |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 8 | Jimmy Waite | Canada | Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL) |
2 | 29 | Ryan McGill | Canada | Swift Current Broncos (WHL) |
3 | 50 | Cam Russell | Canada | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
3 | 60 | Mike Dagenais | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
5 | 92 | Ulf Sandstrom | Sweden | Modo Hockey (Sweden) |
6 | 113 | Mike McCormick | United States | Richmond Sockeyes (BCJHL) |
7 | 134 | Stephen Tepper | United States | Westborough High School (USHS-MA) |
8 | 155 | John Reilly | United States | Phillips Andover Academy (USHS-MA) |
9 | 176 | Lance Werness | United States | Burnsville High School (USHS-MN) |
10 | 197 | Dale Marquette | Canada | Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL) |
11 | 218 | Bill LaCouture | United States | Natick High School (USHS-MA) |
12 | 239 | Mike Lappin | United States | Northwood School (USHS-NY) |
See also
References
- Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
- "1987-88 Chicago Blackhawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-16.
2. 1988-89 Chicago Blackhawks Yearbook (official team publication)
External links
- "1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks Games". Hockey-reference.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-11. Retrieved 2016-05-03.