1992 Stanley Cup Finals

The 1992 Stanley Cup Final NHL championship series was contested by the Prince of Wales Conference and defending Stanley Cup champion Pittsburgh Penguins and the Clarence Campbell Conference champion Chicago Blackhawks. The Blackhawks were making their first appearance in the Final since 1973. The Penguins swept the series in four games to win their second-straight and second-overall Cup win. It was the 99th year of the Stanley Cup.
==Paths to the Final==
Pittsburgh defeated the Washington Capitals 4–3, the New York Rangers 4–2, and the Boston Bruins 4–0. Chicago had to defeat the St. Louis Blues 4–2, the Detroit Red Wings 4–0, and the Edmonton Oilers 4–0. Chicago set an NHL playoff record in winning 11 games in a row to reach the finals. Pittsburgh had won seven in a row entering the finals and swept Chicago in four games to tie Chicago's record. Pittsburgh then extended the record to 14 with three wins against New Jersey the following season before finally losing.
==The series==
The Penguins were led by captain Mario Lemieux, coach Scotty Bowman, and goaltender Tom Barrasso. The Blackhawks were led by captain Dirk Graham, coach Mike Keenan, and goaltender Ed Belfour.
Mario Lemieux captured the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP for the second consecutive year, becoming only the second player in NHL history to do so.
The Chicago Bulls, led by Michael Jordan, were in the 1992 NBA Finals at the same time the Blackhawks were in the finals. They defeated the Portland Trail Blazers in six. For Keenan, this is the first of two times in three years he would be part of a concurrent finals series in hockey and basketball taking place in the same city. He would be part of it again when he coached the New York Rangers to their first Stanley Cup in 54 years two years later.
==Pittsburgh Penguins 1992 Stanley Cup champions==
== Aftermath ==
The Penguins could not keep their Stanley Cup streak going the following season as they were defeated in the second round in seven games by the New York Islanders. The North Stars, on the other hand, failed to qualify for the playoffs the following year. Also, it was the North Stars last season in Minnesota before moving to Dallas, where they would become the current Dallas Stars. 
==Notes==
==References==
* 
* Podnieks, Andrew; Hockey Hall of Fame (2004). Lord Stanley's Cup. Triumph Books, 12, 50. ISBN 1–55168–261–3.
* National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 1991–92: by NHL, 1991
Category:1992 in hockey
Category:Stanley Cup
Category:Chicago Blackhawks
Category:Pittsburgh Penguins