| 1989–90 NHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 5, 1989 – May 24, 1990 |
| Games | 80 |
| Teams | 21 |
| TV partner(s) | CBC,TSN,SRC (Canada) SportsChannel America,NBC[a] (United States) |
| Draft | |
| Top draft pick | Mats Sundin |
| Picked by | Quebec Nordiques |
| Regular season | |
| Presidents' Trophy | Boston Bruins |
| SeasonMVP | Mark Messier (Oilers) |
| Top scorer | Wayne Gretzky (Kings) |
| Playoffs | |
| PlayoffsMVP | Bill Ranford (Oilers) |
| Stanley Cup | |
| Champions | Edmonton Oilers |
| Runners-up | Boston Bruins |
| NHL seasons | |
The1989–90 NHL season was the73rdseason of theNational Hockey League. TheStanley Cup winners were theEdmonton Oilers, who won the best of seven series 4–1 against theBoston Bruins. The championship was the Oilers' fifth Stanley Cup in seven seasons.
The1989 NHL entry draft was held on June 17, at theMet Center inBloomington, Minnesota.Mats Sundin was selected first overall by theQuebec Nordiques.
Wayne Gretzky records his 1,851st point, passing Gordie Howe for the most in NHL history on Oct. 15, 1989.
This season marked the first time that all three New York City area NHL teams, including the New Jersey Devils, made the playoffs in the same season, a feat which has since been repeated thrice more: in the1993–94, the2006–07, and the2022–23 seasons.
Until2017, this was last time theDetroit Red Wings missed the Stanley Cup playoffs.
Sam St. Laurent of the Red Wings became the last goalie to wear a full fiberglass mask during an NHL game.
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston Bruins | 80 | 46 | 25 | 9 | 289 | 232 | 101 |
| Buffalo Sabres | 80 | 45 | 27 | 8 | 286 | 248 | 98 |
| Montreal Canadiens | 80 | 41 | 28 | 11 | 288 | 234 | 93 |
| Hartford Whalers | 80 | 38 | 33 | 9 | 275 | 268 | 85 |
| Quebec Nordiques | 80 | 12 | 61 | 7 | 240 | 407 | 31 |
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York Rangers | 80 | 36 | 31 | 13 | 279 | 267 | 85 |
| New Jersey Devils | 80 | 37 | 34 | 9 | 295 | 288 | 83 |
| Washington Capitals | 80 | 36 | 38 | 6 | 284 | 275 | 78 |
| New York Islanders | 80 | 31 | 38 | 11 | 281 | 288 | 73 |
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 32 | 40 | 8 | 318 | 359 | 72 |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 80 | 30 | 39 | 11 | 290 | 297 | 71 |
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chicago Blackhawks | 80 | 41 | 33 | 6 | 315 | 294 | 88 |
| St. Louis Blues | 80 | 37 | 34 | 9 | 295 | 279 | 83 |
| Toronto Maple Leafs | 80 | 38 | 38 | 4 | 337 | 358 | 80 |
| Minnesota North Stars | 80 | 36 | 40 | 4 | 284 | 291 | 76 |
| Detroit Red Wings | 80 | 28 | 38 | 14 | 288 | 323 | 70 |
| GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calgary Flames | 80 | 42 | 23 | 15 | 348 | 265 | 99 |
| Edmonton Oilers | 80 | 38 | 28 | 14 | 315 | 283 | 90 |
| Winnipeg Jets | 80 | 37 | 32 | 11 | 298 | 290 | 85 |
| Los Angeles Kings | 80 | 34 | 39 | 7 | 338 | 337 | 75 |
| Vancouver Canucks | 80 | 25 | 41 | 14 | 245 | 306 | 64 |
The top four teams in each division qualified for the playoffs. In each round, teams competed in abest-of-seven series (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). In the division semifinals, the fourthseeded team in each division played against the division winner from their division. The other series matched the second and third place teams from the divisions. The two winning teams from each division's semifinals then met in the division finals. The two division winners of each conference then played in the conference finals. The two conference winners then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals.
| Division semifinals | Division finals | Conference finals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A4 | Hartford | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A3 | Montreal | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| A2 | Buffalo | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| A3 | Montreal | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| Prince of Wales Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| P3 | Washington | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| P1 | NY Rangers | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| P4 | NY Islanders | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| P1 | NY Rangers | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| P3 | Washington | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| P2 | New Jersey | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| P3 | Washington | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| A1 | Boston | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Chicago | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N4 | Minnesota | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Chicago | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N2 | St. Louis | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| N2 | St. Louis | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| N3 | Toronto | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| N1 | Chicago | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| Clarence Campbell Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S1 | Calgary | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| S4 | Los Angeles | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S4 | Los Angeles | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S2 | Edmonton | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| S3 | Winnipeg | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| Award | Recipient(s) | Runner(s)-up/Finalists |
|---|---|---|
| Presidents' Trophy (Best regular-season record) | Boston Bruins | Calgary Flames |
| Prince of Wales Trophy (Wales Conference playoff champion) | Boston Bruins | Washington Capitals |
| Clarence S. Campbell Bowl (Campbell Conference playoff champion) | Edmonton Oilers | Chicago Blackhawks |
| Alka-Seltzer Plus-Minus Award (Best plus-minus statistic) | Paul Cavallini(St. Louis Blues) | Stephane Richer(Montreal Canadiens) |
| Art Ross Trophy (Player with most points) | Wayne Gretzky(Los Angeles Kings) | Mark Messier(Edmonton Oilers) |
| Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Perseverance, sportsmanship, and dedication) | Gord Kluzak(Boston Bruins) | N/A |
| Calder Memorial Trophy (Best first-year player) | Sergei Makarov(Calgary Flames) | Mike Modano(Minnesota North Stars) Jeremy Roenick(Chicago Blackhawks) |
| Conn Smythe Trophy (Most valuable player, playoffs) | Bill Ranford(Edmonton Oilers) | N/A |
| Frank J. Selke Trophy (Best defensive forward) | Rick Meagher(St. Louis Blues) | Guy Carbonneau(Montreal Canadiens) Esa Tikkanen(Edmonton Oilers) |
| Hart Memorial Trophy (Most valuable player, regular season) | Mark Messier(Edmonton Oilers) | Ray Bourque(Boston Bruins) Brett Hull(St. Louis Blues) |
| Jack Adams Award (Best coach) | Bob Murdoch(Winnipeg Jets) | Mike Milbury(Boston Bruins) Roger Neilson(New York Rangers) |
| James Norris Memorial Trophy (Best defenceman) | Ray Bourque(Boston Bruins) | Al MacInnis(Calgary Flames) Doug Wilson(Chicago Blackhawks) |
| King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Leadership and humanitarian contribution) | Kevin Lowe(Edmonton Oilers) | N/A |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Sportsmanship and excellence) | Brett Hull(St. Louis Blues) | Wayne Gretzky(Los Angeles Kings) Pat LaFontaine(New York Islanders) |
| Lester B. Pearson Award (Outstanding player) | Mark Messier(Edmonton Oilers) | N/A |
| Vezina Trophy (Best goaltender) | Patrick Roy(Montreal Canadiens) | Andy Moog(Boston Bruins) Daren Puppa(Buffalo Sabres) |
| William M. Jennings Trophy (Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against) | Andy Moog andRejean Lemelin(Boston Bruins) | N/A |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points, PIM = Penalties in minutes, PPG = Powerplay Goals, SHG = Shorthanded Goals, GWG = Game Winning Goals
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | +/- | PPG | SHG | GWG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wayne Gretzky | Los Angeles Kings | 73 | 40 | 102 | 142 | 42 | +8 | 10 | 4 | 4 |
| Mark Messier | Edmonton Oilers | 79 | 45 | 84 | 129 | 79 | +19 | 13 | 6 | 3 |
| Steve Yzerman | Detroit Red Wings | 79 | 62 | 65 | 127 | 79 | -6 | 16 | 7 | 8 |
| Mario Lemieux | Pittsburgh Penguins | 59 | 45 | 78 | 123 | 78 | -18 | 14 | 3 | 4 |
| Brett Hull | St. Louis Blues | 80 | 72 | 41 | 113 | 24 | -1 | 27 | 0 | 12 |
| Bernie Nicholls | Los Angeles Kings/ New York Rangers | 79 | 39 | 73 | 112 | 86 | -9 | 15 | 0 | 1 |
| Pierre Turgeon | Buffalo Sabres | 80 | 40 | 66 | 106 | 29 | +10 | 17 | 1 | 10 |
| Pat LaFontaine | New York Islanders | 74 | 54 | 51 | 105 | 38 | -13 | 13 | 2 | 8 |
| Paul Coffey | Pittsburgh Penguins | 80 | 29 | 74 | 103 | 95 | -25 | 10 | 0 | 3 |
| Joe Sakic | Quebec Nordiques | 80 | 39 | 63 | 102 | 27 | -40 | 8 | 1 | 2 |
| Adam Oates | St. Louis Blues | 80 | 23 | 79 | 102 | 30 | 9 | 6 | 2 | 3 |
Sources: NHL,[2] Quanthockey.com.[3]
GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA =Goals against average; Sv% = Save percentage
| Player | Team | GP | Min | W | L | T | SO | GAA | Sv% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Kirk McLean | Vancouver Canucks | 63 | 3739 | 21 | 30 | 10 | 0 | 3.47 | 88.0 |
| Jon Casey | Minnesota North Stars | 61 | 3407 | 31 | 22 | 4 | 3 | 3.22 | 89.6 |
| Daren Puppa | Buffalo Sabres | 56 | 3241 | 31 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 2.89 | 90.3 |
| Bill Ranford | Edmonton Oilers | 56 | 3107 | 24 | 16 | 9 | 1 | 3.19 | 88.7 |
| Patrick Roy | Montreal Canadiens | 54 | 3173 | 31 | 16 | 5 | 3 | 2.53 | 91.2 |
| Sean Burke | New Jersey Devils | 52 | 2914 | 22 | 22 | 6 | 0 | 3.60 | 88.0 |
| Kelly Hrudey | Los Angeles Kings | 52 | 2860 | 22 | 21 | 6 | 2 | 4.07 | 87.3 |
| Ken Wregget | Philadelphia Flyers | 51 | 2961 | 22 | 24 | 3 | 0 | 3.42 | 89.2 |
| Greg Millen | Quebec Nordiques | 49 | 2900 | 19 | 25 | 5 | 1 | 3.89 | 87.2 |
| Don Beaupre | Washington Capitals | 48 | 2793 | 23 | 18 | 5 | 2 | 3.22 | 89.0 |
Source: Quanthockey.com.[4]
This season would be the last theToronto Maple Leafs would play under the 29 year ownership ofHarold Ballard as a result of his death in April 1990 and the subsequent sale of the franchise.
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1989–90 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1989–90 (listed with their last team):
This was the second season of the league's Canadian national broadcast rights deals withTSN andHockey Night in Canada onCBC. Saturday night regular season games continued to air on CBC, while TSN televised selected weeknight games. Coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs was primarily on CBC, with TSN airing first round all-U.S. series.
This was also the second season of the league's U.S. national broadcast rights dealSportsChannel America, with up to three regular season games a week and coverage of the playoffs. Meanwhile,NBC agreed to televise the All-Star Game, reportedly wanting to test the appeal of hockey.[5]