# 1987–88 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1987–88 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the Penguins' 21st season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Penguins improved on their previous season, and finished with a winning record for the first time since the 1978–79 season. Nevertheless, the Penguins again did not qualify for the playoffs, actually finishing last in a tightly contested Patrick Division despite earning only seven fewer points than the division champion New York Islanders.

## Regular season

The Penguins were involved in one of the closest playoff races in NHL history, as they competed down the stretch with the New Jersey Devils and the New York Rangers for the final playoff spot in the Patrick Division. Despite two hefty losses to New Jersey in the last two weeks of the season, the Penguins gave themselves hope with a 7–6 overtime win against the Washington Capitals in their penultimate game of the season. On the last day of the season, the Penguins defeated the Hartford Whalers 4–2 and moved ahead of New York and New Jersey. However, this position was temporary as the Rangers shut out Quebec, 3–0, eliminating the Penguins. The Devils had the last laugh as they beat the Chicago Blackhawks 4–3 in overtime on a goal by John MacLean to claim the fourth and final Patrick Division playoff spot, ahead of both the Rangers and Penguins.
The Penguins finished the regular season 1st in power-play opportunities (500), power-play opportunities against (507), power-play goals against (120) and short-handed goals allowed (19).

### Final standings

Patrick Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 39 | 31 | 10 | 308 | 267 | 88 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 38 | 33 | 9 | 292 | 292 | 85 |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 38 | 33 | 9 | 281 | 249 | 85 |
| New Jersey Devils | 80 | 38 | 36 | 6 | 295 | 296 | 82 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 36 | 34 | 10 | 300 | 283 | 82 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 36 | 35 | 9 | 319 | 316 | 81 |
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.

### Record vs. opponents

Patrick Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Patrick Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
NJD
NYI
NYR
PHI
PIT
WSH
Total
New Jersey
—3–43–45–0–26–12–519–14–2
N.Y. Islanders
4–3—2–2–33–3–12–4–14–2–115–14–6
N.Y. Rangers
4–32–2–3—3–3–12–3–22–513–16–6
Philadelphia
0–5–23–3–13–3–1—5–22–4–113–17–5
Pittsburgh
1–64–2–13–2–22–5—5–1–115–16–4
Washington
5–22–4–15–24–2–11–5–1—17–15–3
Vs. Adams Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
HFD
MTL
QUE
Total
New Jersey
1–20–2–11–1–12–10–34–9–2
N.Y. Islanders
2–12–12–10–32–18–7–0
N.Y. Rangers
2–10–32–11–1–12–17–7–1
Philadelphia
2–13–02–10–1–22–0–19–3–3
Pittsburgh
0–2–12–0–12–12–13–09–4–2
Washington
2–10–2–12–11–1–12–17–6–2
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
CHI
DET
MIN
STL
TOR
Total
New Jersey
3–00–33–03–02–111–4–0
N.Y. Islanders
0–1–21–21–1–12–0–10–34–7–4
N.Y. Rangers
2–0–11–1–12–13–02–110–3–2
Philadelphia
0–32–0–12–12–11–27–7–1
Pittsburgh
2–11–22–10–32–17–8–0
Washington
2–10–2–12–0–10–2–11–1–15–6–4
Vs. Smythe Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
CGY
EDM
LAK
VAN
WIN
Total
New Jersey
1–22–11–1–10–30–2–14–9–2
N.Y. Islanders
2–12–13–03–02–112–3–0
N.Y. Rangers
1–21–20–32–12–0–16–8–1
Philadelphia
0–31–23–02–13–09–6–0
Pittsburgh
2–0–10–31–0–21–21–25–7–3
Washington
1–22–12–13–01–29–6–0 :

## Schedule and results

1987–88 Schedule :
October
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
1Oct 8Pittsburgh Penguins4–4 OTNew York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)0–0–11
2Oct 9Pittsburgh Penguins3–6New Jersey DevilsIzod Center0–1–11
3Oct 13Buffalo Sabres3–8Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena1–1–13
4Oct 15New York Rangers6–6 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena1–1–24
5Oct 17Pittsburgh Penguins2–3Montreal CanadiensMontreal Forum1–2–24
6Oct 18Pittsburgh Penguins2–3Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum1–3–24
7Oct 21New Jersey Devils5–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena1–4–24
8Oct 23Pittsburgh Penguins2–5Detroit Red WingsJoe Louis Arena1–5–24
9Oct 24Buffalo Sabres3–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena2–5–26
10Oct 27Los Angeles Kings4–4 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena2–5–37
11Oct 29Toronto Maple Leafs4–0Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena2–6–37
12Oct 31Pittsburgh Penguins5–4 OTQuebec NordiquesQuebec Coliseum3–6–39 :
November
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
13Nov 3Philadelphia Flyers1–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena4–6–311
14Nov 5Pittsburgh Penguins4–2New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum5–6–313
15Nov 7Pittsburgh Penguins1–4Boston BruinsBoston Garden5–7–313
16Nov 11Washington Capitals2–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena6–7–315
17Nov 12Pittsburgh Penguins2–5Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum6–8–315
18Nov 14New York Rangers2–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena7–8–317
19Nov 17Pittsburgh Penguins4–6Vancouver CanucksPacific Coliseum7–9–317
20Nov 20Pittsburgh Penguins1–4Edmonton OilersNorthlands Coliseum7–10–317
21Nov 21Pittsburgh Penguins4–4 OTCalgary FlamesScotiabank Saddledome7–10–418
22Nov 25Quebec Nordiques4–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena8–10–420
23Nov 27Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Washington CapitalsCapital Centre9–10–422
24Nov 28Washington Capitals5–5 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena9–10–523 :
December
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
25Dec 2New York Islanders7–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena9–11–523
26Dec 5Vancouver Canucks3–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena10–11–525
27Dec 9Calgary Flames2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena11–11–527
28Dec 11New York Islanders4–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena12–11–529
29Dec 12Pittsburgh Penguins2–5St. Louis BluesThe Checkerdome12–12–529
30Dec 15Philadelphia Flyers5–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena12–13–529
31Dec 17Pittsburgh Penguins7–4New Jersey DevilsIzod Center13–13–531
32Dec 19New York Rangers3–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena14–13–533
33Dec 20Pittsburgh Penguins8–4New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)15–13–535
34Dec 23New Jersey Devils6–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena15–14–535
35Dec 26Detroit Red Wings3–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–14–537
36Dec 27Pittsburgh Penguins3–3 OTBuffalo SabresBuffalo Memorial Auditorium16–14–638
37Dec 29Boston Bruins4–4 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–14–739 :
January
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
38Jan 1Pittsburgh Penguins3–5Washington CapitalsCapital Centre16–15–739
39Jan 2Pittsburgh Penguins2–3New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum16–16–739
40Jan 5Los Angeles Kings4–4 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–16–840
41Jan 7Boston Bruins3–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–17–840
42Jan 9Pittsburgh Penguins4–5 OTHartford WhalersXL Center16–18–840
43Jan 10Pittsburgh Penguins5–7Detroit Red WingsJoe Louis Arena16–19–840
44Jan 12New York Islanders5–5 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–19–941
45Jan 15Philadelphia Flyers5–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–20–941
46Jan 16Pittsburgh Penguins4–3Toronto Maple LeafsMaple Leaf Gardens17–20–943
47Jan 19Pittsburgh Penguins6–4New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum18–20–945
48Jan 20Pittsburgh Penguins8–3Chicago BlackhawksChicago Stadium19–20–947
49Jan 23Pittsburgh Penguins4–3 OTMontreal CanadiensMontreal Forum20–20–949
50Jan 25Edmonton Oilers6–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena20–21–949
51Jan 27Winnipeg Jets4–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena20–22–949
52Jan 28Pittsburgh Penguins3–6New Jersey DevilsIzod Center20–23–949
53Jan 30Chicago Blackhawks2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena21–23–951 :
February
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
54Feb 2Washington Capitals2–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena22–23–953
55Feb 4Minnesota North Stars0–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena23–23–955
56Feb 6Hartford Whalers4–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena24–23–957
57Feb 7Pittsburgh Penguins3–6New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)24–24–957
58Feb 13Pittsburgh Penguins7–5Los Angeles KingsThe Forum25–24–959
59Feb 17Pittsburgh Penguins0–5Vancouver CanucksPacific Coliseum25–25–959
60Feb 19Pittsburgh Penguins3–7Edmonton OilersNorthlands Coliseum25–26–959
61Feb 21St. Louis Blues5–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena25–27–959
62Feb 23Winnipeg Jets4–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena25–28–959
63Feb 25Pittsburgh Penguins1–2New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)25–29–959
64Feb 28Pittsburgh Penguins5–7Chicago BlackhawksChicago Stadium25–30–959 :
March
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
65Mar 1Minnesota North Stars3–8Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena26–30–961
66Mar 5New York Islanders3–8Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena27–30–963
67Mar 7Pittsburgh Penguins5–4Calgary FlamesScotiabank Saddledome28–30–965
68Mar 10Pittsburgh Penguins4–6St. Louis BluesThe Checkerdome28–31–965
69Mar 12Pittsburgh Penguins3–6Minnesota North StarsMet Center28–32–965
70Mar 13Pittsburgh Penguins5–4Winnipeg JetsWinnipeg Arena29–32–967
71Mar 16Toronto Maple Leafs2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena30–32–969
72Mar 19Philadelphia Flyers0–7Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena31–32–971
73Mar 20Pittsburgh Penguins2–4Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum31–33–971
74Mar 23Washington Capitals1–7Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena32–33–973
75Mar 25Montreal Canadiens2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena33–33–975
76Mar 27Pittsburgh Penguins6–3Quebec NordiquesQuebec Coliseum34–33–977
77Mar 29Pittsburgh Penguins0–4New Jersey DevilsIzod Center34–34–977
78Mar 31New Jersey Devils7–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena34–35–977 :
April
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
79Apr 2Pittsburgh Penguins7–6 OTWashington CapitalsCapital Centre35–35–979
80Apr 3Hartford Whalers2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena36–35–981 :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Mario Lemieux | 77 | 70 | 98 | 168 | 23 | 92 |
| Dan Quinn | 70 | 40 | 39 | 79 | –8 | 50 |
| Randy Cunneyworth | 71 | 35 | 39 | 74 | 13 | 141 |
| Paul Coffey | 46 | 15 | 52 | 67 | –1 | 93 |
| Doug Bodger | 69 | 14 | 31 | 45 | –4 | 103 |
| Rob Brown | 51 | 24 | 20 | 44 | 8 | 56 |
| Dave Hunter$^†$ | 59 | 11 | 18 | 29 | 8 | 77 |
| Charlie Simmer | 50 | 11 | 17 | 28 | 6 | 24 |
| Jock Callander | 41 | 11 | 16 | 27 | –13 | 45 |
| Craig Simpson$^‡$ | 21 | 13 | 13 | 26 | 5 | 34 |
| Ville Sirén | 58 | 1 | 20 | 21 | 14 | 62 |
| Dave McLlwain | 66 | 11 | 8 | 19 | –1 | 40 |
| Troy Loney | 65 | 5 | 13 | 18 | –3 | 151 |
| Phil Bourque | 21 | 4 | 12 | 16 | 3 | 20 |
| Dan Frawley | 47 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 0 | 152 |
| Jim Johnson | 55 | 1 | 12 | 13 | –4 | 87 |
| Randy Hillier | 55 | 1 | 12 | 13 | –6 | 144 |
| Rod Buskas | 76 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 6 | 206 |
| Zarley Zalapski | 15 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 10 | 7 |
| Steve Gotaas | 36 | 5 | 6 | 11 | –11 | 45 |
| Moe Mantha Jr.$^‡$ | 21 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 6 | 23 |
| Chris Dahlquist | 44 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 3 | 69 |
| Bob Errey | 17 | 3 | 6 | 9 | 6 | 18 |
| Mark Kachowski | 38 | 5 | 3 | 8 | 1 | 126 |
| Wilf Paiement | 23 | 2 | 6 | 8 | –4 | 39 |
| Chris Kontos$^‡$ | 36 | 1 | 7 | 8 | –3 | 12 |
| Dave Hannan$^‡$ | 21 | 4 | 3 | 7 | –2 | 23 |
| Kevin Stevens | 16 | 5 | 2 | 7 | –6 | 8 |
| Perry Ganchar$^†$ | 30 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 0 | 36 |
| Dwight Mathiasen | 23 | 0 | 6 | 6 | –7 | 14 |
| Bryan Erickson$^†$ | 11 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| Wayne Van Dorp | 25 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 2 | 75 |
| Chris Joseph$^‡$ | 17 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 12 |
| Norm Schmidt | 5 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 1 | 0 |
| Brad Aitken | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| Lee Giffin | 19 | 0 | 2 | 2 | –2 | 9 |
| Todd Charlesworth | 6 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 2 |
| Scott Gruhl | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Warren Young | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –4 | 15 |
| Dave Goertz | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 2 |
| Pat Mayer | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| Jimmy Mann | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 53 |
| Total | Total | 319 | 518 | 837 | — | 2,169 |

### Goaltenders

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | TOI | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
| Steve Guenette | 19 | 1091:05 | 12 | 7 | 0 | 61 | 3.35 | 582 | 0.895 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
| Frank Pietrangelo | 21 | 1202:47 | 9 | 11 | 0 | 80 | 3.99 | 599 | 0.866 | 1 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Gilles Meloche | 27 | 1390:26 | 8 | 9 | 5 | 95 | 4.10 | 720 | 0.868 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Patrick Riggin | 22 | 1168:55 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 76 | 3.90 | 579 | 0.869 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 12 |
| Total | Total | 4853:13 | 36 | 35 | 9 | 312 | 3.86 | 2480 | 0.874 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 16 |
$^†$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 player to score 60 goals in a season for the Penguins. He did so in a 2–4 loss to Philadelphia on March 20.
* Lemieux became the first player to score 150 points in a season for the Penguins. He did so in a 7–1 win over Washington on March 23.
* Lemieux became the first player to score 160 points in a season for the Penguins. He did so in a 6–3 win over Quebec on March 27.
* Lemieux became the first player to score 70 goals in a season for the Penguins. He did so in a 4–2 win over Hartford on April 3.
* Lemieux established a new franchise record for goals (70), assists (98) and points (168) in a season. He held the previous high in all three categories.

## Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1987–88 season:

### Trades

| November 24, 1987 | To Edmonton Oilers Dave Hannan Chris Joseph Moe Mantha Craig Simpson | To Pittsburgh Penguins Paul Coffey Dave Hunter Wayne Van Dorp |
| December 17, 1987 | To Montreal Canadiens future considerations (1988 3rd round pick) | To Pittsburgh Penguins Perry Ganchar future considerations (1988 3rd round pick) |
| February 4, 1988 | To Los Angeles Kings Chris Kontos future considerations (1988 6th round pick) | To Pittsburgh Penguins Bryan Erickson |

### Additions and subtractions

Additions :
| Player | Former team | Via |
| Jimmy Mann | Quebec Nordiques | free agency (1987-06-16) |
| Pat Mayer | Muskegon Lumberjacks (IHL) | free agency (1987-07-10) |
| Jock Callander | St. Louis Blues | free agency (1987-07-31) |
| Mark Kachowski | Flint Spirits (IHL) | free agency (1987-08-31) |
| Wilf Paiement | Buffalo Sabres | free agency (1987-09-10) |
| Charlie Simmer | Boston Bruins | Waiver Draft (1987-10-05) |
| Scott Gruhl | Muskegon Lumberjacks (IHL) | free agency (1987-12-14) |
Subtractions :
| Player | New team | Via |
| John Chabot | Detroit Red Wings | free agency (1987-06-25) |
| Neil Belland | Lukko (SM-liiga) | free agency |
| Kevin LaVallee | Innsbrucker EV (Austria) | free agency |
| Terry Ruskowski | Minnesota North Stars | free agency (1987-07) |
| Dwight Schofield | Winnipeg Jets | free agency (1987-07) |
| Mike Blaisdell | Toronto Maple Leafs | free agency (1987-07-10) |

## Draft picks

| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 5 | Chris Joseph | Defense | Canada | Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
| 2 | 26 | Richard Tabaracci | Goaltender | Canada | Cornwall Royals (OHL) |
| 3 | 47 | Jamie Leach | Right wing | United States | Hamilton Steelhawks (OHL) |
| 4 | 68 | Risto Kurkinen | Left wing | Finland | JyP HT Jyvaskyla (FNL) |
| 5 | 89 | Jeff Waver | Defense | Canada | Hamilton Steelhawks (OHL) |
| 6 | 110 | Shawn McEachern | Left wing | United States | Matignon H.S. (Massachusetts) |
| 7 | 131 | James Bodden | Center | Canada | Chatham (SOJHL) |
| 8 | 152 | Jiri Kucera | Right wing | Czechoslovakia | Dukla Jihlava (Czech) |
| 9 | 173 | Jack MacDougall | Right wing | United States | New Prep School (Massachusetts) |
| 10 | 194 | Daryn McBride | Center | Canada | U. of Denver (NCAA) |
| 11 | 215 | Mark Carlson | Left wing | United States | (Philadelphia Jrs.) |
| 12 | 236 | Ake Lilljebjorn | Goaltender | Sweden | Brynäs IF Gävle (SEL) |
| S1 | 5 | Dan Shea | Left wing | United States | Boston College (Hockey East) |
| S2 | 9 | John Leonard | Defense | United States | Bowdoin College (NESCAC) |