# 1986–87 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1986–87 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the Penguins' 20th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Penguins did not qualify for the playoffs.

## Regular season

Despite a strong start at the beginning of the season, the Penguins managed to find themselves unqualified for the playoffs for the fifth straight year.

### Final standings

Patrick Division :
| | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 46 | 26 | 8 | 310 | 245 | 100 |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 38 | 32 | 10 | 285 | 278 | 86 |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 35 | 33 | 12 | 279 | 281 | 82 |
| New York Rangers | 80 | 34 | 38 | 8 | 307 | 323 | 76 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 30 | 38 | 12 | 297 | 290 | 72 |
| New Jersey Devils | 80 | 29 | 45 | 6 | 293 | 368 | 64 |
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
1986–87 NHL records
Team
NJD
NYI
NYR
PHI
PIT
WSH
Total
New Jersey
—2–54–32–4–14–31–613–21–1
N.Y. Islanders
5–2—3–3–13–45–0–22–3–218–12–2
N.Y. Rangers
3–43–3–1—4–33–2–24–317–15–3
Philadelphia
4–2–14–33–4—4–1–25–1–120–11–4
Pittsburgh
3–40–5–22–3–21–4–2—4–310–19–6
Washington
6–13–2–23–41–5–13–4—16–16–3
Vs. Adams Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
HFD
MTL
QUE
Total
New Jersey
1–1–11–21–1–11–20–1–24–7–4
N.Y. Islanders
0–2–11–1–11–21–1–12–15–7–3
N.Y. Rangers
2–12–10–30–2–12–16–8–1
Philadelphia
2–12–11–22–0–12–0–19–4–2
Pittsburgh
1–22–0–10–31–1–13–07–6–2
Washington
1–1–11–21–23–00–2–16–7–2
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
CHI
DET
MIN
STL
TOR
Total
New Jersey
1–22–11–22–11–27–8–0
N.Y. Islanders
1–22–13–01–1–12–19–5–1
N.Y. Rangers
1–1–11–21–1–11–21–1–15–7–3
Philadelphia
2–0–12–11–23–01–1–19–4–2
Pittsburgh
2–11–23–01–0–21–28–5–2
Washington
1–1–12–0–12–0–12–0–12–19–2–4
Vs. Smythe Division
1986–87 NHL records
Team
CGY
EDM
LAK
VAN
WIN
Total
New Jersey
1–21–21–22–0–10–35–9–1
N.Y. Islanders
0–2–10–2–11–21–21–1–13–9–2
N.Y. Rangers
1–20–32–0–12–11–26–8–1
Philadelphia
1–22–11–22–12–18–7–0
Pittsburgh
1–21–21–21–0–21–25–8–2
Washington
1–22–10–33–01–1–17–7–1 :

## Schedule and results

1986–87 Schedule :
October: 8–3–0 (home: 6–1–0; road: 2–2–0), 16 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
1Oct 9Washington Capitals4–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena1–0–02
2Oct 11New York Rangers5–6 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena2–0–04
3Oct 12Pittsburgh Penguins4–1Chicago BlackhawksChicago Stadium3–0–06
4Oct 14Los Angeles Kings3–4 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena4–0–08
5Oct 17Pittsburgh Penguins7–3Buffalo SabresBuffalo Memorial Auditorium5–0–010
6Oct 18New Jersey Devils4–8Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena6–0–012
7Oct 22Buffalo Sabres4–5 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena7–0–014
8Oct 23Pittsburgh Penguins3–5Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum7–1–014
9Oct 25Philadelphia Flyers2–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena8–1–016
10Oct 28Pittsburgh Penguins2–5Hartford WhalersXL Center8–2–016
11Oct 29New Jersey Devils8–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena8–3–016 :
November: 5–5–4 (home: 2–1–0; road: 3–4–2), 14 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
12Nov 1Pittsburgh Penguins3–3 OTSt. Louis BluesThe Checkerdome8–3–117
13Nov 4Vancouver Canucks2–2 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena8–3–218
14Nov 8Pittsburgh Penguins4–2Minnesota North StarsMet Center9–3–220
15Nov 9Pittsburgh Penguins1–2Detroit Red WingsJoe Louis Arena9–4–220
16Nov 12Boston Bruins1–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena10–4–222
17Nov 14Pittsburgh Penguins4–5New Jersey DevilsIzod Center10–5–222
18Nov 15Quebec Nordiques2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena11–5–224
19Nov 18Pittsburgh Penguins1–3Winnipeg JetsWinnipeg Arena11–6–224
20Nov 20Pittsburgh Penguins5–2Calgary FlamesScotiabank Saddledome12–6–226
21Nov 22Pittsburgh Penguins5–4Washington CapitalsCapital Centre13–6–228
22Nov 25Pittsburgh Penguins1–5New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum13–7–228
23Nov 26New York Islanders3–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena13–8–228
24Nov 29New York Rangers5–5 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena13–8–329
25Nov 30Pittsburgh Penguins2–2 OTNew York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)13–8–430 :
December: 2–7–3 (home: 2–4–1; road: 0–3–2), 7 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
26Dec 5Edmonton Oilers4–2Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena13–9–430
27Dec 6Minnesota North Stars2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena14–9–432
28Dec 10Calgary Flames6–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena14–10–432
29Dec 12Toronto Maple Leafs3–8Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena15–10–434
30Dec 13Pittsburgh Penguins2–3 OTToronto Maple LeafsMaple Leaf Gardens15–11–434
31Dec 17Pittsburgh Penguins0–3Los Angeles KingsThe Forum15–12–434
32Dec 20Philadelphia Flyers6–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena15–13–434
33Dec 22Pittsburgh Penguins4–4 OTMontreal CanadiensMontreal Forum15–13–535
34Dec 23Pittsburgh Penguins3–4 OTNew York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum15–14–535
35Dec 26Pittsburgh Penguins3–3 OTBuffalo SabresBuffalo Memorial Auditorium15–14–636
36Dec 27New York Islanders3–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena15–14–737
37Dec 30New York Rangers5–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena15–15–737 :
January: 4–8–1 (home: 3–2–0; road: 1–6–1), 9 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
38Jan 1Pittsburgh Penguins3–4 OTWashington CapitalsCapital Centre15–16–737
39Jan 3Montreal Canadiens3–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena16–16–739
40Jan 7Washington Capitals2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena17–16–741
41Jan 9Pittsburgh Penguins2–3Washington CapitalsCapital Centre17–17–741
42Jan 13Pittsburgh Penguins3–3 OTNew York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum17–17–842
43Jan 14Winnipeg Jets4–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena17–18–842
44Jan 17Pittsburgh Penguins2–4Boston BruinsBoston Garden17–19–842
45Jan 18Detroit Red Wings1–0Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena17–20–842
46Jan 21Pittsburgh Penguins5–10Los Angeles KingsThe Forum17–21–842
47Jan 23Pittsburgh Penguins6–0Vancouver CanucksPacific Coliseum18–21–844
48Jan 24Pittsburgh Penguins2–4Edmonton OilersNorthlands Coliseum18–22–844
49Jan 27Washington Capitals5–7Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena19–22–846
50Jan 29Pittsburgh Penguins3–5Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum19–23–846 :
February: 4–7–2 (home: 2–4–1; road: 2–3–1), 10 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
51Feb 1Hartford Whalers8–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena19–24–846
52Feb 5Pittsburgh Penguins5–6Boston BruinsBoston Garden19–25–846
53Feb 7Chicago Blackhawks1–4Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena20–25–848
54Feb 8Pittsburgh Penguins2–1 OTNew Jersey DevilsIzod Center21–25–850
55Feb 14Vancouver Canucks3–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena21–25–951
56Feb 15Pittsburgh Penguins1–4New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)21–26–951
57Feb 17Calgary Flames3–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena21–27–951
58Feb 19Pittsburgh Penguins4–4 OTPhiladelphia FlyersThe Spectrum21–27–1052
59Feb 21New Jersey Devils6–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena21–28–1052
60Feb 22Pittsburgh Penguins4–2New York RangersMadison Square Garden (IV)22–28–1054
61Feb 24Edmonton Oilers2–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena23–28–1056
62Feb 26Pittsburgh Penguins4–5New York IslandersNassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum23–29–1056
63Feb 28Chicago Blackhawks2–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena23–30–1056 :
March: 5–8–2 (home: 2–3–2; road: 3–5–0), 12 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
64Mar 1St. Louis Blues5–5 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena23–30–1157
65Mar 3Pittsburgh Penguins8–1Quebec NordiquesQuebec Coliseum24–30–1159
66Mar 5Pittsburgh Penguins2–7Toronto Maple LeafsMaple Leaf Gardens24–31–1159
67Mar 7Pittsburgh Penguins7–3Minnesota North StarsMet Center25–31–1161
68Mar 8Pittsburgh Penguins5–3Winnipeg JetsWinnipeg Arena26–31–1163
69Mar 10New York Islanders6–3Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena26–32–1163
70Mar 12Quebec Nordiques3–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena27–32–1165
71Mar 14New York Rangers3–2 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena27–33–1165
72Mar 18St. Louis Blues4–5Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena28–33–1167
73Mar 20Pittsburgh Penguins3–4Washington CapitalsCapital Centre28–34–1167
74Mar 22Pittsburgh Penguins1–3Philadelphia FlyersThe Spectrum28–35–1167
75Mar 24Philadelphia Flyers3–3 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena28–35–1268
76Mar 28Pittsburgh Penguins4–5Hartford WhalersXL Center28–36–1268
77Mar 29Montreal Canadiens4–1Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena28–37–1268
78Mar 31Pittsburgh Penguins3–5New Jersey DevilsIzod Center28–38–1268 :
April: 2–0–0 (home: 2–0–0; road: 0–0–0), 4 Points
#DateVisitorScoreHomeLocationRecordPoints
79Apr 2New Jersey Devils2–6Pittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena29–38–1270
80Apr 4Detroit Red Wings3–4 OTPittsburgh PenguinsCivic Arena30–38–1272 :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

## Player statistics
### Skaters

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | G | A | Pts | +/− | PIM |
| Mario Lemieux | 63 | 54 | 53 | 107 | 13 | 57 |
| Dan Quinn$^†$ | 64 | 28 | 43 | 71 | 14 | 40 |
| Randy Cunneyworth | 79 | 26 | 27 | 53 | 14 | 142 |
| Craig Simpson | 72 | 26 | 25 | 51 | 11 | 57 |
| Terry Ruskowski | 70 | 14 | 37 | 51 | 8 | 145 |
| Doug Bodger | 76 | 11 | 38 | 49 | 6 | 52 |
| Moe Mantha Jr. | 62 | 9 | 31 | 40 | –6 | 44 |
| John Chabot | 72 | 14 | 22 | 36 | –7 | 8 |
| Bob Errey | 72 | 16 | 18 | 34 | –5 | 46 |
| Jim Johnson | 80 | 5 | 25 | 30 | –6 | 116 |
| Kevin LaVallee | 33 | 8 | 20 | 28 | –2 | 4 |
| Dan Frawley | 78 | 14 | 14 | 28 | –10 | 218 |
| Dave Hannan | 58 | 10 | 15 | 25 | –2 | 56 |
| Willy Lindström | 60 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 9 | 6 |
| Ville Sirén | 69 | 5 | 17 | 22 | 8 | 50 |
| Warren Young | 50 | 8 | 13 | 21 | –5 | 103 |
| Rod Buskas | 68 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 2 | 123 |
| Ron Duguay$^‡$ | 40 | 5 | 13 | 18 | –8 | 30 |
| Chris Kontos | 31 | 8 | 9 | 17 | –6 | 6 |
| Troy Loney | 23 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 0 | 22 |
| Randy Hillier | 55 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 12 | 97 |
| Mike Bullard$^‡$ | 14 | 2 | 10 | 12 | –5 | 17 |
| Dwight Schofield | 25 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 4 | 59 |
| Norm Schmidt | 20 | 1 | 5 | 6 | –8 | 4 |
| Jim McGeough | 11 | 1 | 4 | 5 | –5 | 8 |
| Phil Bourque | 22 | 2 | 3 | 5 | –2 | 32 |
| Mitch Wilson | 17 | 2 | 1 | 3 | –3 | 83 |
| Mike Blaisdell | 10 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 2 |
| Lee Giffin | 8 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 0 |
| Chris Dahlquist | 19 | 0 | 1 | 1 | –2 | 20 |
| Dwight Mathiasen | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | –1 | 2 |
| Neil Belland | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Alain Lemieux | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –1 | 0 |
| Todd Charlesworth | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Rowe | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –2 | 0 |
| Carl Mokosak | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | –4 | 4 |
| Total | Total | 297 | 497 | 794 | — | 1,653 |

### Goaltenders

Regular Season :
| Player | GP | TOI | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO |
| Gilles Meloche | 43 | 2343:00 | 13 | 19 | 7 | 134 | 3.43 | 1123 | 0.881 | 0 |
| Roberto Romano$^‡$ | 25 | 1438:00 | 9 | 11 | 2 | 87 | 3.63 | 713 | 0.878 | 0 |
| Patrick Riggin$^†$ | 17 | 988:00 | 8 | 6 | 3 | 55 | 3.34 | 465 | 0.882 | 0 |
| Steve Guenette | 2 | 113:00 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 8 | 4.25 | 54 | 0.852 | 0 |
| Total | Total | 4882:00 | 30 | 38 | 12 | 284 | 3.49 | 2355 | 0.879 | 0 |
$^†$Denotes player acquired mid-season. 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 established a new franchise record for goals in a season with 54, besting the previous high of 53 held by Pierre Larouche (1976).

## Transactions

The Penguins were involved in the following transactions during the 1986–87 season:

### Trades

| October 3, 1986 | To Buffalo Sabres cash | To Pittsburgh Penguins Craig Muni |
| October 8, 1986 | To Washington Capitals cash | To Pittsburgh Penguins Dwight Schofield |
| October 9, 1986 | To Detroit Red Wings cash | To Pittsburgh Penguins Warren Young |
| November 12, 1986 | To Calgary Flames Mike Bullard | To Pittsburgh Penguins Dan Quinn |
| January 21, 1987 | To New York Rangers Ron Duguay | To Pittsburgh Penguins Chris Kontos |
| February 6, 1987 | To Boston Bruins Roberto Romano | To Pittsburgh Penguins Pat Riggin |
| May 29, 1987 | To Detroit Red Wings Warren Young | To Pittsburgh Penguins cash |

### Additions and subtractions

Additions :
| Player | Former team | Via |
| Carl Mokosak | Philadelphia Flyers | free agency (1986-07-23) |
| Mitch Wilson | New Jersey Devils | free agency (1986-07-24) |
| Kevin LaVallee | St. Louis Blues | free agency (1986-09-13) |
| Neil Belland | Vancouver Canucks | free agency (1986-09-29) |
| Alain Lemieux | Quebec Nordiques | free agency (1986-12) |
Subtractions :
| Player | New team | Via |
| Tom Roulston | EC Salzburg (Austria) | free agency |
| Mitch Lamoureux | Philadelphia Flyers | free agency (1986-06-30) |
| Andy Brickley | New Jersey Devils | free agency (1986-07-08) |
| Tom O'Regan | Detroit Red Wings | free agency (1986-09-29) |

## Draft picks

The 1986 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 21, 1986, in Montreal.
| Round | # | Player | Pos | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 4 | Zarley Zalapski | Defense | Canada | Canadian National Team (Intl) |
| 2 | 25 | Dave Capuano | Left wing | United States | Mount St. Charles H.S. (R.I.) |
| 3 | 46 | Brad Aitken | Left wing | Canada | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) |
| 4 | 67 | Robert Brown | Right wing | Canada | Kamloops Blazers (WHL) |
| 5 | 88 | Sandy Smith | Right wing | United States | Brainerd H.S. (Minn.) |
| 6 | 109 | Jeff Daniels | Left wing | Canada | Oshawa Generals (OHL) |
| 7 | 130 | Doug Hobson | Defense | Canada | Prince Albert Raiders (WHL) |
| 8 | 151 | Steve Rohlik | Left wing | United States | Hill-Murray H.S. (Minn.) |
| 9 | 172 | Dave McLlwain | Center | Canada | North Bay Centennials (OHL) |
| 10 | 193 | Kelly Cain | Center | Canada | London Knights (OHL) |
| 11 | 214 | Stan Drulia | Right wing | United States | Belleville Bulls (OHL) |
| 12 | 235 | Robert Wilson | Defense | Canada | Sudbury Wolves (OHL) |
| S1 | 3 | Jeff Lamb | Forward | United States | University of Denver (WCHA) |
| S2 | 7 | Randy Taylor | Defense | Canada | Harvard University (ECAC) |