1990–91 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1990–91 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the Penguins 24th season in the NHL, and they were coming off of a disappointing 1989–90 season, having finished one point behind the New York Islanders for the final playoff spot in the Patrick Division, failing to qualify for post-season play for the seventh time in eight seasons. The Penguins placed first in their division, third-overall in the Wales Conference, on the way to the first-ever Stanley Cup championship for the team. Seven players and three off-ice staff members from the 1990-91 team have been elected to the Hockey Hall of Fame.

1990–91 Pittsburgh Penguins
Stanley Cup champions
Wales Conference champions
Patrick Division champions
Division	1st Patrick
Conference	3rd Wales
1990–91 record	41–33–6
Home record	25–12–3
Road record	16–21–3
Goals for	342 (2nd)
Goals against	305 (18th)
Team information
General manager	Craig Patrick
Coach	Bob Johnson
Captain	Mario Lemieux
Alternate captains	Paul Coffey Bob Errey Randy Hillier
Arena	Civic Arena
Average attendance	15,927
Team leaders
Goals	Mark Recchi and Kevin Stevens (40)
Assists	Mark Recchi (73)
Points	Mark Recchi (113)
Penalty minutes	Kevin Stevens (133)
Wins	Tom Barrasso (27)
Goals against average	Tom Barrasso (3.59)

Off-season

In the off-season, General Manager Craig Patrick, who finished the previous season coaching the club, would name Bob Johnson as the new head coach of the Penguins. Patrick also named Scotty Bowman as his director of player development and recruitment. Johnson had previously been the head coach of the Calgary Flames from 1982 to 1987. The team also acquired veteran Bryan Trottier, who helped lead the New York Islanders to four-straight Stanley Cups from 1980 to 1983, to help out with his leadership abilities.

Pre-season

1990–91 Preseason Game Log: 4–0–1 (Home: 1–0–1; Road: 3–0–0)
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Tie

Regular season

The Penguins would begin the season without Mario Lemieux, as he would miss the first half of the season recovering from a back injury that he suffered in a game against the New York Rangers on February 14, 1990, which caused him to miss the remainder of the 1989–90 season.

Pittsburgh would begin the season slow, and in their opening 31 games, the team had a 12–16–3, good for 27 points, and nine points out of a playoff spot. As the season progressed, the team began playing better, had Lemieux return to the lineup, and Patrick would make some trades, acquiring defenseman Larry Murphy from the Minnesota North Stars and Scott Young from the Hartford Whalers. The Penguins eventually came into playoff contention, and on March 4, when the team had a 32–30–4 record, sitting in third place in the Division, the club pulled off a blockbuster deal with the Whalers, trading John Cullen, Zarley Zalapski and Jeff Parker to Hartford for Ron Francis, Ulf Samuelsson, and Grant Jennings. The deal helped the Penguins finish the season off 9–3–2, and win their first ever Division championship, finishing three points ahead of the second place New York Rangers.

With Lemieux missing the majority of the season due to his back injury, Mark Recchi stepped up and had a breakout season, scoring a team-high 40 goals and 73 assists for 113 points. Kevin Stevens would tie Recchi for the team lead in goals with 40, and add 46 assists for 86 points. Rookie Jaromir Jagr had a solid season, scoring 27 goals and earning 57 points, while Lemieux recorded 19 goals and 45 points in only 26 games. Paul Coffey led the defense with 93 points in 76 games. The 342 goals the Penguins scored was the second-highest toal in the League, only two goals less than the Calgary Flames.

In goal, Tom Barrasso had the majority of playing time, winning a team high 27 games and posting a 3.59 goals against average (GAA), along with one shutout. Frank Pietrangelo appeared in 25 games, finishing with a 10–11–1 record and a 3.94 GAA.

Season standings

Patrick Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Pittsburgh Penguins	80	41	33	6	342	305	88
New York Rangers	80	36	31	13	297	265	85
Washington Capitals	80	37	36	7	258	258	81
New Jersey Devils	80	32	33	15	272	264	79
Philadelphia Flyers	80	33	37	10	252	267	76
New York Islanders	80	25	45	10	223	290	60

[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.

Wales Conference[2]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Boston Bruins	ADM	80	44	24	12	299	264	100
2	Montreal Canadiens	ADM	80	39	30	11	273	249	89
3	Pittsburgh Penguins	PTK	80	41	33	6	342	305	88
4	New York Rangers	PTK	80	36	31	13	297	265	85
5	Washington Capitals	PTK	80	37	36	7	258	258	81
6	Buffalo Sabres	ADM	80	31	30	19	292	278	81
7	New Jersey Devils	PTK	80	32	33	15	272	264	79
8	Philadelphia Flyers	PTK	80	33	37	10	252	267	76
9	Hartford Whalers	ADM	80	31	38	11	238	276	73
10	New York Islanders	PTK	80	25	45	10	223	290	60
11	Quebec Nordiques	ADM	80	16	50	14	236	354	46

Divisions: PTK – Patrick, ADM – Adams

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

1990–91 Schedule
October: 6–6–1 (Home: 3–3–0 ; Road: 3–3–1), 13 Points # Oct Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 1 5 8:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 7–4 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 1–0–0 2 2 7 7:35 PM New Jersey Devils 4–7 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 2–0–0 4 3 9 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 St. Louis Blues St. Louis Arena 2–1–0 4 4 11 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 Chicago Blackhawks Chicago Stadium 2–2–0 4 5 13 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–4 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 3–2–0 6 6 16 7:35 PM Philadelphia Flyers 5–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 3–3–0 6 7 19 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–4 OT Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 3–3–1 7 8 20 7:35 PM New York Rangers 4–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 3–4–1 7 9 23 7:35 PM Montreal Canadiens 5–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 3–5–1 7 10 25 7:35 PM Quebec Nordiques 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 4–5–1 9 11 27 7:45 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–7 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 4–6–1 9 12 28 7:35 PM New York Islanders 3–8 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 5–6–1 11 13 30 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–2 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 6–6–1 13
November: 5–6–1 (Home: 3–4–0 ; Road: 2–2–1), 11 Points # Nov Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 14 3 7:35 PM New York Rangers 1–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 7–6–1 15 15 6 7:35 PM Calgary Flames 5–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 8–6–1 17 16 8 7:35 PM St. Louis Blues 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 8–7–1 17 17 10 7:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–3 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden 8–7–2 18 18 13 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Minnesota North Stars Met Center 9–7–2 20 19 14 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–4 Winnipeg Jets Winnipeg Arena 10–7–2 22 20 17 10:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–2 OT Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum 10–8–2 22 21 21 7:35 PM Philadelphia Flyers 5–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 10–9–2 22 22 23 8:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–7 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 10–10–2 22 23 24 7:35 PM Washington Capitals 2–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 11–10–2 24 24 27 7:35 PM Edmonton Oilers 7–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 11–11–2 24 25 29 7:35 PM Hartford Whalers 6–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 11–12–2 24
December: 10–6–1 (Home: 6–3–1 ; Road: 4–3–0), 21 Points # Dec Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 26 1 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Minnesota North Stars Met Center 11–13–2 24 27 3 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 9–4 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 12–13–2 26 28 5 7:35 PM Washington Capitals 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 12–14–2 26 29 7 7:35 PM Vancouver Canucks 2–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 12–14–3 27 30 8 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Hartford Whalers Hartford Civic Center 12–15–3 27 31 11 7:35 PM Chicago Blackhawks 4–1 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 12–16–3 27 32 13 7:35 PM New Jersey Devils 5–9 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 13–16–3 29 33 14 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium 14–16–3 31 34 16 7:35 PM Detroit Red Wings 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 15–16–3 33 35 18 7:35 PM Winnipeg Jets 2–9 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 16–16–3 35 36 20 7:35 PM Minnesota North Stars 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 17–16–3 37 37 22 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 18–16–3 39 38 23 7:35 PM New York Islanders 4–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 18–17–3 39 39 26 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 7–3 Washington Capitals Capital Centre 19–17–3 41 40 28 7:35 PM Detroit Red Wings 0–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 20–17–3 43 41 29 8:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens 20–18–3 43 42 31 6:05 PM St. Louis Blues 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 21–18–3 45
January: 7–4–0 (Home: 5–1–0 ; Road: 2–3–0), 14 Points # Jan Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 43 3 7:35 PM New York Rangers 7–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 21–19–3 45 44 5 1:35 PM New Jersey Devils 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 22–19–3 47 45 6 7:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Montreal Canadiens Montreal Forum 22–20–3 47 46 8 7:35 PM Edmonton Oilers 1–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 23–20–3 49 47 10 7:35 PM Calgary Flames 1–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 24–20–3 51 48 15 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 24–21–3 51 49 17 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–5 OT Toronto Maple Leafs Maple Leaf Gardens 25–21–3 53 50 22 7:35 PM New Jersey Devils 3–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 26–21–3 55 51 26 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 6–5 Quebec Nordiques Colisée de Québec 27–21–3 57 52 29 7:35 PM Washington Capitals 2–3 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 28–21–3 59 53 31 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 28–22–3 59
February: 4–7–1 (Home: 4–0–0 ; Road: 0–7–1), 9 Points # Feb Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 54 2 1:35 PM Boston Bruins 2–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 29–22–3 61 55 3 7:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Boston Bruins Boston Garden 29–23–3 61 56 8 8:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–6 Winnipeg Jets Winnipeg Arena 29–24–3 61 57 11 9:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–7 Edmonton Oilers Northlands Coliseum 29–25–3 61 58 14 7:35 PM New York Islanders 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 30–25–3 63 59 16 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 30–26–3 63 60 19 7:35 PM Buffalo Sabres 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 31–26–3 65 61 21 7:35 PM Toronto Maple Leafs 4–11 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 32–26–3 67 62 22 7:45 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–5 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 32–27–3 67 63 24 1:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–5 OT Washington Capitals Capital Centre 32–27–4 68 64 26 10:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–8 Los Angeles Kings Great Western Forum 32–28–4 68 65 27 10:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Vancouver Canucks Pacific Coliseum 32–29–4 68
March: 9–4–2 (Home: 4–1–2 ; Road: 5–3–0), 20 Points # Mar Time (ET) Visitor Score Home Location Record Points 66 1 9:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 2–6 Calgary Flames Olympic Saddledome 32–30–4 68 67 5 7:35 PM Vancouver Canucks 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 33–30–4 70 68 7 7:35 PM Los Angeles Kings 2–3 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 34–30–4 72 69 9 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 5–2 Hartford Whalers Hartford Civic Center 35–30–4 74 70 10 5:05 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 New York Islanders Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum 36–30–4 76 71 12 7:35 PM Montreal Canadiens 4–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 36–30–5 77 72 16 1:35 PM Quebec Nordiques 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 37–30–5 79 73 17 1:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–2 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 38–30–5 81 74 19 7:45 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 4–5 New Jersey Devils Brendan Byrne Arena 38–31–5 81 75 21 7:35 PM New York Rangers 4–5 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 39–31–5 83 76 23 1:35 PM Chicago Blackhawks 7–5 Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 39–32–5 83 77 26 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–1 Philadelphia Flyers The Spectrum 40–32–5 85 78 27 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 7–4 Detroit Red Wings Joe Louis Arena 41–32–5 87 79 30 1:35 PM Philadelphia Flyers 4–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins Civic Arena 41–32–6 88 80 31 7:35 PM Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 New York Rangers Madison Square Garden (IV) 41–33–6 88
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Tie

Playoffs

Division Semifinals

In the playoffs, the Penguins would open up against the New Jersey Devils, who finished the year in fourth place in the Division, nine points behind Pittsburgh. The teams split the opening two games in Pittsburgh, and then split the two games in New Jersey, before the Devils won Game 5 at Civic Arena to take a 3–2 series lead back home. The Penguins responded with a hard-fought 4–3 victory in Game 6 to bring it back home for Game 7, where Pittsburgh completed the comeback with a 4–0 shutout to win the series.

Division Finals

Up next was the Washington Capitals, and Washington would surprise the Penguins with a 4–2 victory in the opening game, though Pittsburgh tied the series in Game 2 with a 7–6 overtime victory. The Pens would go into Washington for Games 3 and 4, and post back-to-back 3–1 wins to go up 3–1 in the series, and finish off Washington in the fifth game to clinch the series and advance to the Conference Finals for the first time in team history.

Conference Finals

The Penguins next opponent was the Boston Bruins, the defending Wales Conference champions, and the Bruins, who finished with 100 points, had home ice for the series. Boston would take control of the series early by winning the opening two games in Boston, however, the Penguins responded by winning the next two in Pittsburgh to even up the series. Pittsburgh would return to Boston for the fifth game, and surprise the Bruins with a 7–2 victory, going up 3–2 in the series and returning home for the sixth game. The Penguins finished off Boston 5–3 in the sixth game, winning the Prince of Wales Trophy and going to the Stanley Cup finals for the first time in team history.

Stanley Cup Finals

Pittsburgh faced the surprising Minnesota North Stars in the Stanley Cup Finals. While the North Stars had a 27–39–14 record during the regular season, they had been red hot in the playoffs, defeating the Presidents' Trophy winners Chicago Blackhawks, the St. Louis Blues and the defending Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers to reach the Finals. Minnesota would continue their hot streak with a 5–4 victory in Game 1, but the Penguins tied the series in Game 2 as the series shifted from Pittsburgh to Minnesota. The North Stars won Game 3 with solid goaltending, but the Penguins rebounded in Game 4 to tie the series as it returned to Pittsburgh. Game 5 was a close, hard-fought game, with the Penguins winning 6–4 to take a 3–2 series lead, and in Game 6, Pittsburgh would defeat the North Stars 8–0 to win the series, and the first-ever Stanley Cup in club history. Mario Lemieux, recording 44 points in 23 games, won the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP.

Playoff log

1991 Stanley Cup playoffs
Patrick Division semi-finals vs No. 4 New Jersey Devils: 4–3 (Home: 2–2; Road: 2–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT PIT goals NJ goals Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 3 New Jersey 3–1 Pittsburgh Lemieux Šťastný (2), Boschman Barrasso (0–1) 16,164 0–1 2 April 5 New Jersey 4–5 Pittsburgh 8:52 Stevens, Coffey, Bourque, Loney, Jagr MacLean (2), Shanahan, Kasatonov Barrasso (1–1) 16,164 1–1 3 April 7 Pittsburgh 4–3 New Jersey Recchi, Errey, Mullen, Recchi Shanahan (2), Brown Barrasso (2–1) 16,899 2–1 4 April 9 Pittsburgh 1–4 New Jersey Lemieux Lemieux, Šťastný, MacLean, Lemieux Barrasso (2–2) 16,552 2–2 5 April 11 New Jersey 4–2 Pittsburgh Francis, Murphy MacLean, Driver, Lemieux, Brown (en) Barrasso (2–3) 16,164 2–3 6 April 13 Pittsburgh 4–3 New Jersey Stevens (2), Jagr, Francis MacLean, Weinrich, Lemieux Pietrangelo (1–0) 19,040 3–3 7 April 15 New Jersey 0–4 Pittsburgh Hrdina, Lemieux, Hrdina, Coffey Pietrangelo (2-0) 16,164 4–3
Patrick Division finals vs No. 3 Washington Capitals: 4–1 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–0) # Date Visitor Score Home OT PIT goals WSH goals Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 April 17 Washington 4–2 Pittsburgh Murphy, Lemieux Johansson, Hatcher, Iafrate, Miller (en) Pietrangelo (1–2) 16,164 0–1 2 April 19 Washington 6–7 Pittsburgh 9:10 Bourque, Mullen, Recchi (2), Stevens, Gilhen, Stevens Hunter, Druce, Ridley, Ciccarelli (2), Johansson Pietrangelo (2–2) 16,164 1–1 3 April 21 Pittsburgh 3–1 Washington Lemieux, Stevens, Trottier Ciccarelli Barrasso (3–3) 18,130 2–1 4 April 23 Pittsburgh 3–1 Washington Recchi, Stevens, Bourque Bergland Barrasso (4–3) 17,867 3–1 5 April 25 Washington 1–4 Pittsburgh Mullen, Francis, Jagr, Recchi (en) Tippett Barrasso (5–3) 16,164 4–1
Wales Conference finals vs No. 1 Boston Bruins: 4–2 (Home: 3–0; Road: 1–2) # Date Visitor Score Home OT PIT goals BOS goals Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 May 1 Pittsburgh 3–6 Boston Mullen, Stevens, Errey Janney, Neely, Sweeney, Neely, Christian, Bourque Barrasso (5–4) 14,448 0–1 2 May 3 Pittsburgh 4–5 Boston 8:14 Stevens, Lemieux, Recchi, Lemieux Neely, Wesley, Bourque, Janney, Ruzicka Barrasso (5–5) 14,448 0–2 3 May 5 Boston 1–4 Pittsburgh Stevens, Francis, Jennings, Lemieux Bourque Barrasso (6–5) 16,164 1–2 4 May 7 Boston 1–4 Pittsburgh Errey, Mullen, Lemieux, Stevens Christian Barrasso (7–5) 16,164 2–2 5 May 9 Pittsburgh 7–2 Boston Stevens, Lemieux, Trottier, Stevens, Stanton, Murphy, Samuelsson Sweeney, Janney Barrasso (8–5) 14,448 3–2 6 May 11 Boston 3–5 Pittsburgh Murphy, Bourque, Roberts, Recchi, Lemieux (en) Neely, Hodge, Jr., Sweeney Barrasso (9–5) 16,164 4–2
Stanley Cup Finals vs No. 4 Minnesota North Stars: 4–2 (Home: 2–1; Road: 2–1) # Date Visitor Score Home OT PIT goals MIN goals Decision Attendance Series Recap 1 May 15 Minnesota 5–4 Pittsburgh Samuelsson, Lemieux, Young, Mullen Broten, Dahlen, Bureau, Broten, Smith Barrasso (9–6) 16,164 0–1 2 May 17 Minnesota 1–4 Pittsburgh Errey, Stevens, Lemieux, Stevens Modano Barrasso (10–6) 16,164 1–1 3 May 19 Pittsburgh 1–3 Minnesota Bourque Gagner, Smith, Duchesne Barrasso (10–7) 15,378 1–2 4 May 21 Pittsburgh 5–3 Minnesota Stevens, Francis, Lemieux, Trottier, Bourque (en) Gagner, Propp, Modano Barrasso (11–7) 15,378 2–2 5 May 23 Minnesota 4–6 Pittsburgh Lemieux, Stevens, Recchi (2), Francis, Loney Broten, Gagner, Dahlen, Gagner Pietrangelo (3–2) 16,164 3–2 6 May 25 Pittsburgh 8–0 Minnesota Samuelsson, Lemieux, Mullen, Errey, Francis, Mullen, Paek, Murphy Barrasso (11–7) 15,378 4–2
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Playoff series win

• Scorer of game-winning goal in italics

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular Season[3] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Mark Recchi 78 40 73 113 0 48 John Cullen^‡ 65 31 63 94 0 83 Paul Coffey 76 24 69 93 –18 128 Kevin Stevens 80 40 46 86 –1 133 Jaromír Jágr 80 27 30 57 –4 42 Zarley Zalapski^‡ 66 12 36 48 15 59 Mario Lemieux 26 19 26 45 8 30 Bob Errey 79 20 22 42 11 115 Joe Mullen 47 17 22 39 9 6 Phil Bourque 78 20 14 34 7 106 Bryan Trottier 52 9 19 28 5 24 Larry Murphy^† 44 5 23 28 2 30 Scott Young^† 43 11 16 27 3 33 Randy Gilhen 72 15 10 25 3 51 Paul Stanton 75 5 18 23 11 40 Jiří Hrdina^† 37 6 14 20 –2 13 Tony Tanti^‡ 46 6 12 18 1 44 Rob Brown^‡ 25 6 10 16 0 31 Troy Loney 44 7 9 16 10 85 Gordie Roberts^† 61 3 12 15 18 70 Barry Pederson 46 6 8 14 2 21 Peter Taglianetti^† 39 3 8 11 16 93 Ron Francis^† 14 2 9 11 0 21 Jim Johnson^‡ 24 0 5 5 –3 23 Ulf Samuelsson^† 14 1 4 5 4 37 Grant Jennings^† 13 1 3 4 2 26 Randy Hillier 31 2 2 4 –3 32 Chris Dahlquist^‡ 22 1 2 3 0 30 Jay Caufield 23 1 1 2 –2 71 Jamie Leach 7 2 0 2 –1 0 Jeff Daniels 11 0 2 2 0 2 Brad Aitken^‡ 6 0 1 1 –2 25 Ken Priestlay 2 0 1 1 0 0 Jim Paek 3 0 0 0 2 9 Gord Dineen 9 0 0 0 –4 6 Jim Kyte^‡ 1 0 0 0 0 2 Total 342 590 932 — 1,569

Playoffs[4] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Mario Lemieux 23 16 28 44 14 16 Mark Recchi 24 10 24 34 6 33 Kevin Stevens 24 17 16 33 14 53 Larry Murphy 23 5 18 23 17 44 Ron Francis 24 7 10 17 13 24 Joe Mullen 22 8 9 17 17 4 Jaromír Jágr 24 3 10 13 2 6 Phil Bourque 24 6 7 13 6 16 Paul Coffey 12 2 9 11 –1 6 Scott Young 17 1 6 7 1 2 Bryan Trottier 23 3 4 7 –1 49 Bob Errey 24 5 2 7 5 29 Ulf Samuelsson 20 3 2 5 7 34 Troy Loney 24 2 2 4 –3 41 Jiří Hrdina 14 2 2 4 1 6 Gordie Roberts 24 1 2 3 13 63 Paul Stanton 22 1 2 3 6 24 Peter Taglianetti 19 0 3 3 7 49 Grant Jennings 13 1 1 2 3 16 Randy Gilhen 16 1 0 1 –4 14 Jim Paek 8 1 0 1 2 2 Randy Hillier 8 0 0 0 1 24 Total 95 157 252 — 555

Goaltenders

Regular Season[5]

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Tom Barrasso	48	2753:51	27	16	3	165	3.59	1579	0.896	1	0	5	40
Frank Pietrangelo	25	1310:35	10	11	1	86	3.94	714	0.880	0	0	1	24
Wendell Young	18	772:57	4	6	2	52	4.04	428	0.879	0	0	1	0
Total		4837:23	41	33	6	303	3.76	2721	0.889	1	0	7	64

Playoffs[6]

Player	GP	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Tom Barrasso	20	1175:23	12	7	0	51	2.82	629	0.919	1	0	1	2
Frank Pietrangelo	5	287:42	4	1	0	15	2.80	148	0.899	1	0	1	2
Total		1463:05	16	8	0	66	2.71	777	0.915	2	0	2	4

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

Awards and records

• Mario Lemieux became the first person to score 500 assists for the Penguins. He did so in a 5–7 loss to Edmonton on February 11.
• Paul Coffey established a franchise record for assists (278) and points (376) by a defenseman. He broke the previous records of 277 assists and 343 points, both held by Ron Stackhouse.

Awards

Player	Award
Phil Bourque	Baz Bastien Memorial "Good Guy" Award
Randy Gilhen	Unsung Hero Award
Jaromir Jagr	Michel Briere Memorial Rookie of the Year Award NHL All-Rookie Team
Mario Lemieux	Donadeo Sullivan Pittsburgh Penguins Masterton Nominee Conn Smythe Trophy
Mark Recchi	Bowser Pontiac Leading Point Scorer Award Murray Hill Jewelers Player's Player Award Booster Club Award Foodland Most Valuable Player Award
Kevin Stevens	NHL Second All-Star Team

Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1990–91 season:[7]

Trades

June 16, 1990	To Calgary Flames: 1990 second round pick (#26–Nicolas Perreault)	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Joe Mullen
October 27, 1990	To St. Louis Blues: Future considerations (1992 eleventh round pick (#259–Wade Salzman))	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Gordie Roberts
December 11, 1990	To Minnesota North Stars: Jim Johnson Chris Dahlquist	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Larry Murphy Peter Taglianetti
December 13, 1990	To Calgary Flames: Jim Kyte	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Jiri Hrdina
December 21, 1990	To Hartford Whalers: Rob Brown	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Scott Young
March 4, 1991	To Hartford Whalers: John Cullen Zarley Zalapski Jeff Parker	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Ron Francis Ulf Samuelsson Grant Jennings
March 5, 1991	To Edmonton Oilers: Brad Aitken	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Kim Issel
March 5, 1991	To Buffalo Sabres: Tony Tanti	To Pittsburgh Penguins: Rights to Ken Priestlay

Free agents

Player	Acquired from	Lost to	Date
Alain Chevrier		Detroit Red Wings	July 5, 1990
Bryan Trottier	New York Islanders		July 20, 1990
Richard Zemlak		Calgary Flames	November 9, 1990
Jeff Parker	Winnipeg Jets		February 5, 1991

Signings

Player	Date	Contract terms
Paul Coffey	October 24, 1990	Multi-year contract

Other

Name	Date	Details
Rod Buskas	October 1, 1990	Lost to Los Angeles Kings in waiver draft
Randy Gilhen	May 30, 1991	Lost in expansion draft (Minnesota North Stars)
Greg Carval	June 21, 1991	Acquired in supplemental draft

Draft picks

Pittsburgh Penguins' picks at the 1990 NHL Entry Draft.[8]

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1	5	Jaromir Jagr	Right Wing	Czechoslovakia	HC Kladno (Czechoslovakia)
3	61^[a]	Joe Dziedzic	Left Wing	United States	Edison High School (USHS–MN)
4	68	Chris Tamer	Defense	United States	University of Michigan (CCHA)
5	89	Brian Farrell	Left Wing	United States	Avon Old Farms (USHS–CT)
6	107^[b]	Ian Moran	Defense	United States	Belmont Hill School (USHS–MA)
6	110	Denis Casey	Goaltender	Canada	Colorado College (WCHA)
7	130^[c]	Mika Valila	Center	Sweden	Tappara (Finland)
7	131	Ken Plaquin	Defense	Canada	Michigan Tech (WCHA)
7	145^[d]	Patrick Neaton	Defense	United States	University of Michigan (CCHA)
8	152	Petteri Koskimaki	Center	Finland	Boston University (Hockey East)
9	173	Ladislav Karabin	Left Wing	Slovakia	Slovan Bratislava (Czechoslovakia)
10	194	Timothy Fingerhut	Left Wing	United States	Canterbury High School (USHS–CT)
11	215	Michael Thompson	Right Wing	Canada	Michigan State University (CCHA)
12	236	Brian Bruininks	Defense	United States	Colorado College (WCHA)
S	5	Joe Dragon	Center	Canada	Cornell University (ECAC)
S	9	Savo Mitrovic	Center	Yugoslavia	University of New Hampshire (Hockey East)

Draft notes[9]

• The Pittsburgh Penguins' second-round pick went to the Calgary Flames as the result of a June 16, 1990, trade that sent Joe Mullen to the Penguins in exchange for this pick.
• The Pittsburgh Penguins' third-round pick went to the Philadelphia Flyers as the result of a September 1, 1989, trade that sent Wendell Young and a seventh-round pick to the Penguins in exchange for this pick.
• ^a The Buffalo Sabres' third-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a November 12, 1988, trade that sent Doug Bodger and Darrin Shannon to the Sabres in exchange for Tom Barrasso and this pick.
• ^b The Vancouver Canucks' sixth-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of an October 24, 1989, trade that sent Rod Buskas to the Canucks in exchange for this pick.
• ^c The Philadelphia Flyers' seventh-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of a September 1, 1989, trade that sent a third-round pick to the Flyers in exchange for Wendell Young and this pick.
• ^d The Buffalo Sabres' seventh-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as a result of an October 3, 1988, trade that sent Wayne Van Dorp to the Sabres in exchange for this pick.

Pittsburgh Penguins 1991 Stanley Cup champions

Players

  Centres

• 66 Mario Lemieux (Captain)
• 9 Ron Francis
• 10 Barry Pederson
• 15 Randy Gilhen
• 19 Bryan Trottier
• 38 Jiri Hrdina
• 18 Ken Priestlay†

  Wingers

• 7 Joe Mullen
• 8 Mark Recchi
• 12 Bob Errey (A. Capt.) (also played center)
• 16 Jay Caufield#
• 24 Troy Loney
• 25 Kevin Stevens
• 29 Phil Bourque
• 34 Scott Young (also played center)
• 68 Jaromir Jagr
• 18 Jeff Daniels†
• 20 Jamie Leach†

  Defencemen

• 2 Jim Paek
• 3 Grant Jennings
• 5 Ulf Samuelsson
• 22 Paul Stanton
• 23 Randy Hillier (A. Capt.)
• 28 Gordie Roberts
• 32 Peter Taglianetti
• 55 Larry Murphy
• 77 Paul Coffey (A. Capt.)
• 5 Gord Dineen†

  Goaltenders

• 1 Wendell Young
• 30 Bruce Racine†† (dressed for 4 playoff games, did not play)
• 35 Tom Barrasso
• 40 Frank Pietrangelo

• †† Goalie Wendell Young missed the first three rounds with an injury. Tom Barrasso also missed the last two games of Round 1 and first two games of Round 2 while injured. Bruce Racine was called up from the minors to serve as back-up to Frank Pietrangelo. Racine's name was left off the Stanley Cup because he had not played in the NHL – in fact, Racine never played for Pittsburgh. His only NHL experience came in 1995–96 for the St. Louis Blues. Racine was included in the team picture, and does have a 1991 Stanley Cup ring.
• † 4 more players were included on the 1991 Stanley Cup picture, but were not engraved on the Cup. They did not play in the playoffs or qualify to be on the Cup.

Coaching and administrative staff

• Edward J. DeBartolo Sr. (Chairman/Owner)
• Marie Denise DeBartolo York (President/Owner)
• Paul Martha (Vice President), Craig Patrick (Vice President/General Manager)
• Scotty Bowman (Director of Player Development-Recruitment), Bob Johnson (Head Coach)
• Rick Kehoe, Rick Paterson, Barry Smith (Assistant Coaches)
• Gilles Meloche (Goaltending Coach/Scout)
• Steve Latin (Equipment Manager), Skip Thayer (Trainer)
• John Welday (Strength-Conditioning Coach), Greg Malone (Head Scout)

Stanley Cup engraving

• Bob Johnson became the second American-born head coach to win the Stanley Cup. Bill Stewart was the first in 1938 with the Chicago Blackhawks.
• Barry Pederson (C) did not play a single game in the 1991 playoffs, but his name got engraved on the Stanley Cup and got a Stanley Cup ring, because he played 46 games during the season.
• Jay Caufield spent the whole 1990–91 season with Pittsburgh. He played only 23 regular season games and did not dress in the playoffs. His name was engraved on the Stanley Cup due to the team's petition, even though he did not qualify.

Farm teams

The IHL's Muskegon Lumberjacks finished in fourth place in the East Division with a record of 38-40-5. They lost to the Kalamazoo Wings in the first round of the playoffs 4-1.

The East Coast Hockey League's Knoxville Cherokees won the Henry Brabham Cup as the team with the league's most outstanding record (46-13-5). They were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Louisville Icehawks. Don Jackson was named coach of the year, Stan Drulia was named league MVP and was leading scorer, and Dan Gauthier was the league rookie of the year.

Media affiliates

Radio

Flagship station	Play-by-play	Color commentator	Studio host
KDKA-AM 1020 (main) WDVE-FM 102.5 (backup)	Mike Lange	Paul Steigerwald

Some of the games broadcast on WDVE because of KDKA-AM's broadcast conflict with the Pittsburgh Pirates.

Television

Local TV	Play-by-play	Color commentator
KDKA-TV 2 KBL	Mike Lange	Paul Steigerwald

References

1. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
2. "1990–1991 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved June 30, 2014.
3. "1990–1991 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
4. "1990–1991 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
5. "1990–1991 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
6. "1990–1991 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL.
7. "Hockey Transactions Search Results". ProSportsTransactions.
8. "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". NHL.com. Retrieved July 15, 2012.
9. "1990 NHL Entry Draft Pending Transactions". Pro Sports Transactions. Retrieved July 15, 2012.

• National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007

External links

• Player stats at Hockey Database
• Game log at NHL Reference