NHL ’94 “Game of the Night” Bruins @ Sabres “1993 NHL Adams Division Semi Finals” game 4

NHL ’94 “Game of the Night” Bruins @ Sabres “1993 NHL Adams Division Semi Finals” game 4

The 1993 Stanley Cup playoffs the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL) began after the conclusion of the 1992–93 NHL season on April 18 and ended with the Montreal Canadiens defeating the Los Angeles Kings four games to one to win the Stanley Cup on June 9. These playoffs featured an NHL record 28 overtime games, of which the Canadiens set a playoff record for most overtime games won and consecutively in a single postseason with ten. The Canadiens also won 11 consecutive games during the playoffs, tying an NHL record.

The Presidents’ Trophy-winning Pittsburgh Penguins, who had won the Stanley Cup the previous two years, were the favorite to repeat. However, both conferences saw numerous upsets as the third place team in every division reached their respective conference finals. This was the first time since the 1979 NHL-WHA merger that the Edmonton Oilers had missed the playoffs. It was also the first time that longtime Oilers and then-New York Rangers captain Mark Messier had missed the playoffs in his career. This was the only year between 1984 and 1994 that the Boston Bruins and Montreal Canadiens did not face each other in the playoffs. This was the last time that the New York Islanders won a playoff round before 2016. It was also the first time in the post-1967 expansion era that no team with a losing record qualified for the playoffs. Montreal’s Cup championship remains the last time that a Canadian team won the Stanley Cup.

Adams Division

Boston Bruins, Adams Division champions – 109 points
Quebec Nordiques – 104 points
Montreal Canadiens – 102 points
Buffalo Sabres – 86 points

Prince of Wales Conference

(A1) Boston Bruins vs. (A4) Buffalo Sabres
This was the sixth playoff series meeting between the Sabres and Bruins. Boston won all five previous series head-to-head, including last year’s Adams Division Semifinals in seven games. Although Boston had entered the playoffs with the second best record in the entire NHL and the Sabres had the second lowest point total of any playoff team, Buffalo upset the Bruins by sweeping the heavily favored Boston squad. The fourth game saw Brad May’s game-winning goal in overtime, which has become famous in NHL lore thanks to Rick Jeanneret’s “May day!” call. This was the first playoff series victory for Buffalo since defeating Montreal in the 1983 Adams Division Semifinals.

April 18 Buffalo Sabres 5–4 OT Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap
April 20 Buffalo Sabres 4–0 Boston Bruins Boston Garden Recap
April 22 Boston Bruins 3–4 OT Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap
April 24 Boston Bruins 5–6 OT Buffalo Sabres Buffalo Memorial Auditorium Recap
Buffalo wins 4–0