On May 1, 1992, with a 3-1 victory over the Washington Capitals in Game 7 of the Patrick Division Semi-Finals, the Pittsburgh Penguins moved on to the next round to face the New York Rangers in the Patrick Division Finals.
With their victory in game seven of the 1992 Patrick Division Semi-Finals, the Pittsburgh Penguins became the 11th team in NHL history to rally back from a 3-1 deficit to win a series. It was also the first time in their 25-year existence the team mounted such a comeback.
Here is a look back at the Penguins wins from the series.
Two and no
After dropping the first two games on the road, the Penguins needed a big win at home to stay alive in the series and avoid going down three games to none.
The main catalyst for the Capitals success was goaltender Don Beaupre, who made 65 saves and limited Pittsburgh to three goals in two games.
Game 3
Mario Lemieux missed game one with a shoulder injury and sat out the final two periods of game two if the Penguins were going to make a comeback in the series, Lemieux needed to be the one to light the fuse.
Judging by his performance in game three, Lemieux looked like a man determined to pull Pittsburgh out of the depths all by himself.
With three goals and six points, Lemieux factored in on every goal in the Penguins 6-4 win in game three.
Lemieux earned the second-highest single-game point total of his career in the playoffs and registered his second career playoff hat-trick.
Game 5
The story of game 5 was Pittsburgh’s ability to limit the Capitals to 23 shots.
Washington took a 3-1 series led with a 7-2 win in Game 4, so the Penguins margin for error was nill. In the previous four games, Washington averaged five goals and 33 shots.
Leading the Penguins new defensive strategy was Lemieux, who help the team limit the Capitals to four shots in the second period.
Lemieux put three shots on goal and earned an assist on Larry Murphy‘s game-winning-powerplay goal.
Pittsburgh took game five by a score of 5-2 and earned their second win of the series narrowing Washington’s lead to one game.
Almost Gone
Game 6
Lemieux returned to his dominant form in game 6 of the series, mounting his second-most impressive assault on the Capitals net, scoring two goals and five points.
Kevin Stevens set the team record for most shots in a playoff game with 12 (almost all assisted by Lemieux), surpassing the previous record of 11 held by Paul Coffey. Stevens scored two goals and four points in the game.
Evgeni Malkin and James Neal hold the modern-day record with 10 shots each. Malkin hit the mark four times (three times in 2013 and once in 2008) and Neal did it on one occasion (2012).
The Penguins took the game by a score of 6-4 and tied the series up at three games apiece.
Game 7
The series returned to Washington for the final game of the series.
Pittsburgh again deployed a highly structured defensive game that choked the natural zone up and limited the Capitals opportunities to 18 shots.
Lemieux, Jagr, and Joe Mullen provided the offense and helped Pittsburgh claim a 3-1 win and set themselves up for the Patrick Division Final vs. the New York Rangers.
What are some of your memories from this Pittsburgh Penguins series?
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