# 1987–88 Toronto Maple Leafs season

The 1987–88 Toronto Maple Leafs season saw the Maple Leafs finish in fourth place in the Norris Division with a record of 21 wins, 49 losses, and 10 ties for 52 points. Despite posting the second-worst record in the league, they qualified for the Stanley Cup playoffs on the last day of the season in part due to playing in an extremely weak Norris Division; the division champion Detroit Red Wings were the only team in the division with a winning record. Their .325 winning percentage is the third-worst in franchise history and one of the lowest ever for a playoff qualifier (Across all major North American sports leagues). For an NHL team, their .325 percentage is the worst mark to qualify for the playoffs for a team that played at least 70 games. They lost to the Red Wings in six games in the Division Semi-finals, including an embarrassing 8–0 defeat in Game 4.

## Regular season

The Maple Leafs finished last in power-play goals scored (54), power-play opportunities (347) and power-play percentage (15.56%).

### Final standings

Norris Division :
| | 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 |
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

Norris Division record vs. opponents :
Vs. Campbell Conference
Vs. Norris Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
CHI
DET
MIN
STL
TOR
Total
Chicago
—3–55–2–13–4–15–316–14–2
Detroit
5–3—4–3–14–1–33–3–216–10–6
Minnesota
2–5–13–4–1—2–5–14–1–311–15–6
St. Louis
4–3–11–4–35–2–1—6–1–116–10–6
Toronto
3–53–3–21–4–31–6–1—8–18–6
Vs. Smythe Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
CGY
EDM
LAK
VAN
WIN
Total
Chicago
0–2–12–11–22–11–1–16–7–2
Detroit
1–1–12–12–12–12–0–19–4–2
Minnesota
0–2–10–2–10–31–20–2–11–11–3
St. Louis
1–20–31–22–11–25–10–0
Toronto
0–30–2–11–1–11–1–11–23–9–3
Vs. Wales Conference
Vs. Adams Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
BOS
BUF
HFD
MTL
QUE
Total
Chicago
0–31–21–20–2–10–2–12–11–2
Detroit
2–12–11–21–20–36–9–0
Minnesota
0–31–1–10–31–1–11–23–10–2
St. Louis
2–10–32–11–22–17–8–0
Toronto
1–20–30–30–30–31–14–0
Vs. Patrick Division
1987–88 NHL records
Team
NJD
NYI
NYR
PHI
PIT
WSH
Total
Chicago
0–31–0–20–2–13–01–21–26–9–3
Detroit
3–02–11–1–10–2–12–12–0–110–5–3
Minnesota
0–31–1–11–21–21–20–2–14–12–2
St. Louis
0–30–2–10–31–23–02–0–16–10–2
Toronto
1–23–01–22–11–21–1–19–8–1 :

## Schedule and results

| No. | R | Date | Score | Opponent | Record |
| 1 | W | October 8, 1987 | 7–5 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 1–0–0 |
| 2 | W | October 10, 1987 | 5–2 | New Jersey Devils (1987–88) | 2–0–0 |
| 3 | L | October 14, 1987 | 3–4 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 2–1–0 |
| 4 | L | October 16, 1987 | 2–3 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 2–2–0 |
| 5 | W | October 17, 1987 | 7–4 | Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 3–2–0 |
| 6 | L | October 21, 1987 | 3–10 | Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) | 3–3–0 |
| 7 | L | October 24, 1987 | 4–7 | Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 3–4–0 |
| 8 | W | October 28, 1987 | 5–2 | New York Islanders (1987–88) | 4–4–0 |
| 9 | W | October 29, 1987 | 4–0 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) | 5–4–0 |
| 10 | W | October 31, 1987 | 6–5 | Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 6–4–0 |
| 11 | W | November 4, 1987 | 7–3 | Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) | 7–4–0 |
| 12 | W | November 5, 1987 | 7–6 | @ Boston Bruins (1987–88) | 8–4–0 |
| 13 | L | November 7, 1987 | 3–4 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 8–5–0 |
| 14 | L | November 9, 1987 | 1–3 | @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) | 8–6–0 |
| 15 | L | November 11, 1987 | 2–3 | Boston Bruins (1987–88) | 8–7–0 |
| 16 | W | November 14, 1987 | 6–0 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) | 9–7–0 |
| 17 | L | November 15, 1987 | 4–5 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) | 9–8–0 |
| 18 | L | November 18, 1987 | 3–6 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 9–9–0 |
| 19 | T | November 19, 1987 | 3–3 OT | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 9–9–1 |
| 20 | T | November 21, 1987 | 6–6 OT | Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) | 9–9–2 |
| 21 | W | November 24, 1987 | 4–3 | @ New York Islanders (1987–88) | 10–9–2 |
| 22 | L | November 25, 1987 | 3–5 | @ New York Rangers (1987–88) | 10–10–2 |
| 23 | L | November 28, 1987 | 2–4 | Hartford Whalers (1987–88) | 10–11–2 |
| 24 | L | December 1, 1987 | 2–3 OT | @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 10–12–2 |
| 25 | L | December 3, 1987 | 3–5 | @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) | 10–13–2 |
| 26 | L | December 5, 1987 | 2–5 | @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) | 10–14–2 |
| 27 | W | December 7, 1987 | 5–4 OT | Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 11–14–2 |
| 28 | W | December 12, 1987 | 4–3 | New York Rangers (1987–88) | 12–14–2 |
| 29 | L | December 13, 1987 | 1–5 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 12–15–2 |
| 30 | W | December 15, 1987 | 5–3 | Washington Capitals (1987–88) | 13–15–2 |
| 31 | L | December 18, 1987 | 2–4 | @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) | 13–16–2 |
| 32 | L | December 19, 1987 | 2–6 | Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 13–17–2 |
| 33 | T | December 21, 1987 | 0–0 OT | Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 13–17–3 |
| 34 | W | December 23, 1987 | 5–1 | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 14–17–3 |
| 35 | L | December 26, 1987 | 2–4 | Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) | 14–18–3 |
| 36 | T | December 28, 1987 | 4–4 OT | Washington Capitals (1987–88) | 14–18–4 |
| 37 | L | December 30, 1987 | 1–3 | @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) | 14–19–4 |
| 38 | L | January 2, 1988 | 4–6 | Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) | 14–20–4 |
| 39 | T | January 4, 1988 | 7–7 OT | Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) | 14–20–5 |
| 40 | T | January 6, 1988 | 5–5 OT | Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 14–20–6 |
| 41 | L | January 8, 1988 | 3–7 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 14–21–6 |
| 42 | L | January 10, 1988 | 3–4 | @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) | 14–22–6 |
| 43 | T | January 13, 1988 | 3–3 OT | @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 14–22–7 |
| 44 | L | January 15, 1988 | 3–7 | @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) | 14–23–7 |
| 45 | L | January 16, 1988 | 3–4 | Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) | 14–24–7 |
| 46 | L | January 18, 1988 | 3–4 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 14–25–7 |
| 47 | L | January 21, 1988 | 4–5 | Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) | 14–26–7 |
| 48 | L | January 23, 1988 | 2–3 | Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 14–27–7 |
| 49 | L | January 25, 1988 | 3–11 | Calgary Flames (1987–88) | 14–28–7 |
| 50 | W | January 27, 1988 | 5–2 | Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) | 15–28–7 |
| 51 | T | January 29, 1988 | 3–3 OT | @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 15–28–8 |
| 52 | T | January 30, 1988 | 5–5 OT | Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 15–28–9 |
| 53 | L | February 1, 1988 | 4–5 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 15–29–9 |
| 54 | L | February 4, 1988 | 1–6 | @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) | 15–30–9 |
| 55 | L | February 5, 1988 | 2–5 | @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) | 15–31–9 |
| 56 | L | February 7, 1988 | 2–4 | @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) | 15–32–9 |
| 57 | W | February 11, 1988 | 4–3 | New York Islanders (1987–88) | 16–32–9 |
| 58 | W | February 13, 1988 | 7–4 | Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) | 17–32–9 |
| 59 | L | February 14, 1988 | 2–7 | New Jersey Devils (1987–88) | 17–33–9 |
| 60 | T | February 17, 1988 | 4–4 OT | @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) | 17–33–10 |
| 61 | W | February 19, 1988 | 5–0 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) | 18–33–10 |
| 62 | L | February 20, 1988 | 0–3 | @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) | 18–34–10 |
| 63 | L | February 22, 1988 | 2–4 | @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 18–35–10 |
| 64 | W | February 24, 1988 | 4–2 | Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) | 19–35–10 |
| 65 | L | February 27, 1988 | 2–6 | St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 19–36–10 |
| 66 | L | March 2, 1988 | 3–4 | Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) | 19–37–10 |
| 67 | L | March 3, 1988 | 3–5 | @ Boston Bruins (1987–88) | 19–38–10 |
| 68 | L | March 5, 1988 | 1–10 | Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) | 19–39–10 |
| 69 | L | March 8, 1988 | 2–3 | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 19–40–10 |
| 70 | L | March 9, 1988 | 3–4 | @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 19–41–10 |
| 71 | W | March 12, 1988 | 6–4 | Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) | 20–41–10 |
| 72 | L | March 15, 1988 | 2–3 | @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) | 20–42–10 |
| 73 | L | March 16, 1988 | 2–5 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) | 20–43–10 |
| 74 | L | March 19, 1988 | 3–4 | New York Rangers (1987–88) | 20–44–10 |
| 75 | L | March 22, 1988 | 3–5 | @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) | 20–45–10 |
| 76 | L | March 24, 1988 | 1–7 | @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) | 20–46–10 |
| 77 | L | March 26, 1988 | 2–3 OT | @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) | 20–47–10 |
| 78 | L | March 28, 1988 | 4–6 | Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) | 20–48–10 |
| 79 | L | April 1, 1988 | 3–7 | @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 20–49–10 |
| 80 | W | April 2, 1988 | 5–3 | Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) | 21–49–10 |

## Playoffs

The Toronto Maple Leafs were defeated 4 games to 2 against the Norris Division winning Detroit Red Wings.

## Player statistics
### Regular season
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Eddie Olczyk | C | 80 | 42 | 33 | 75 | 55 | -22 | 14 | 4 | 3 |
| Gary Leeman | RW | 80 | 30 | 31 | 61 | 62 | -6 | 6 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Osborne | LW | 79 | 23 | 37 | 60 | 102 | -3 | 4 | 2 | 0 |
| Al Iafrate | D | 77 | 22 | 30 | 52 | 80 | -21 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| Tom Fergus | C | 63 | 19 | 31 | 50 | 81 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 |
| Russ Courtnall | RW | 65 | 23 | 26 | 49 | 47 | -16 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
| Vincent Damphousse | C | 75 | 12 | 36 | 48 | 40 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Al Secord | LW | 74 | 15 | 27 | 42 | 221 | -21 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Miroslav Frycer | RW | 38 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 41 | 8 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
| Peter Ihnacak | C | 68 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 41 | -6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rick Lanz | D | 75 | 6 | 22 | 28 | 65 | -12 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| Borje Salming | D | 66 | 2 | 24 | 26 | 82 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Todd Gill | D | 65 | 8 | 17 | 25 | 131 | -20 | 1 | 0 | 3 |
| Dale DeGray | D | 56 | 6 | 18 | 24 | 63 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Wendel Clark | LW/D | 28 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 80 | -13 | 4 | 0 | 1 |
| Greg Terrion | LW | 59 | 4 | 16 | 20 | 65 | -6 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Dan Daoust | C | 67 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 57 | -7 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Sean McKenna | RW | 40 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 12 | -11 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Luke Richardson | D | 78 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 90 | -25 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Yaremchuk | C | 16 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 10 | -7 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Blaisdell | RW | 18 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 2 | -5 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Dave Semenko | LW | 70 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 107 | -8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Wregget | G | 56 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 40 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris Kotsopoulos | D | 21 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 19 | -3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Allison | LW | 15 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Allan Bester | G | 30 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Curran | D | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 19 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Marty Dallman | C | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ted Fauss | D | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Stothers | D | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 42 | -6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Leigh Verstraete | RW | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 9 | -2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Wes Jarvis | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Derek Laxdal | RW | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Chris McRae | LW | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 65 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Reese | G | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
| Ken Wregget | 3000 | 56 | 12 | 35 | 4 | 222 | 4.44 | 2 | 1712 | 1490 | .870 |
| Allan Bester | 1607 | 30 | 8 | 12 | 5 | 102 | 3.81 | 2 | 879 | 777 | .884 |
| Jeff Reese | 249 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 17 | 4.10 | 0 | 128 | 111 | .867 |
| Team: | 4856 | 80 | 21 | 49 | 10 | 341 | 4.21 | 4 | 2719 | 2378 | .875 |

### Playoffs
#### Scoring

| Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | PPG | SHG | GWG |
| Eddie Olczyk | C | 6 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 1 |
| Al Iafrate | D | 6 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Tom Fergus | C | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 |
| Todd Gill | D | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 20 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Mark Osborne | LW | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| Borje Salming | D | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Russ Courtnall | RW | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Blaisdell | RW | 6 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Peter Ihnacak | C | 5 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Gary Leeman | RW | 2 | 2 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 |
| Greg Terrion | LW | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Yaremchuk | C | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Daniel Marois | RW | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Al Secord | LW | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Vincent Damphousse | C | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dale DeGray | D | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Allan Bester | G | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Brian Curran | D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 41 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dan Daoust | C | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Miroslav Frycer | RW | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Terry Johnson | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Rick Lanz | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Sean McKenna | RW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Luke Richardson | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Ken Wregget | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |

#### Goaltending

| Player | MIN | GP | W | L | GA | GAA | SO | SA | SV | SV% |
| Allan Bester | 253 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 21 | 4.98 | 0 | 135 | 114 | .844 |
| Ken Wregget | 108 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 11 | 6.11 | 0 | 62 | 51 | .823 |
| Team: | 360 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 32 | 5.32 | 0 | 197 | 165 | .838 |
    Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
    Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

## Transactions

The Maple Leafs have been involved in the following transactions during the 1987-88 season.

### Trades

| September 3, 1987 | To Chicago BlackhawksRick Vaive Steve Thomas Bob McGill | To Toronto Maple LeafsAl Secord Eddie Olczyk |
| September 8, 1987 | To Hartford WhalersBill Root | To Toronto Maple LeafsDave Semenko |
| September 17, 1987 | To Calgary Flames5th round pick in 1988 – Scott Matusovich | To Toronto Maple LeafsDale DeGray |
| December 14, 1987 | To Los Angeles KingsMike Allison | To Toronto Maple LeafsSean McKenna |
| March 8, 1988 | To New York Islanders6th round pick in 1988 – Pavel Gross | To Toronto Maple LeafsBrian Curran |
| June 10, 1988 | To Detroit Red WingsMiroslav Frycer | To Toronto Maple LeafsDarren Veitch |

### Waivers

| October 5, 1987 | To Buffalo SabresKevin Maguire |

### Free agents

| Player | Former Team |
| Mike Blaisdell | Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Mark Kirton | Vancouver Canucks |

## Draft picks

Toronto's draft picks at the 1987 NHL Entry Draft held at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The Maple Leafs attempted to select Grant Paranica in the second round of the 1987 NHL Supplemental Draft, but the claim was ruled invalid since Paranica entered school after age 20 and therefore did not meet eligibility requirements.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 7 | Luke Richardson | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
| 2 | 28 | Daniel Marois | Canada | Verdun Junior Canadiens (QMJHL) |
| 3 | 49 | John McIntyre | Canada | Guelph Platers (OHL) |
| 4 | 71 | Joe Sacco | United States | Medford High School (USHS-MA) |
| 5 | 91 | Mike Eastwood | Canada | Pembroke Lumber Kings (CJAHL) |
| 6 | 112 | Damian Rhodes | United States | Richfield High School (USHS-MN) |
| 7 | 133 | Trevor Jobe | Canada | Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) |
| 8 | 154 | Chris Jensen | United States | Northwood School (USHS-NY) |
| 9 | 175 | Brian Blad | Canada | Belleville Bulls (OHL) |
| 10 | 196 | Ron Bernacci | Canada | Hamilton Steelhawks (OHL) |
| 11 | 217 | Ken Alexander | Canada | Hamilton Steelhawks (OHL) |
| 12 | 238 | Alex Weinrich | United States | North Yarmouth Academy (USHS-ME) |