April 10: Kings make history with 'Miracle on Manchester'

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: April 10
1982:The Los Angeles Kings pull off the greatest comeback in the history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs. In a game known forever after as the "Miracle on Manchester," they rally from five goals down in the third period to
defeat the Edmonton Oilers 6-5
in overtime in Game 3 of the Smythe Division Semifinals.

The Oilers, in their third NHL season, set a League record by scoring 417 goals in 80 games; as division champs, they are huge favorites against the Kings, who barely qualify for the playoffs after finishing 24-41 with 15 ties. Los Angeles shocks the Oilers by winning Game 1 in Edmonton, but the Oilers regroup and win Game 2, then grab a 5-0 lead entering the third period of Game 3 at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
Defenseman
Jay Wells
ends
Grant Fuhr
's shutout bid at 2:46, and
Doug Smith
makes it 5-2 at 5:58. The Kings get a glimmer of hope when
Charlie Simmer
scores at 14:38, and defenseman
Mark Hardy
cuts the margin to 5-4 at 15:59. With the Kings swarming the Oilers and the Forum crowd behind them, Los Angeles scores the tying goal when
Steve Bozek
bangs a rebound past Fuhr with five seconds remaining in the third period.
The end comes 2:35 into overtime, when Smith wins a faceoff back to rookie
Daryl Evans
, whose slap shot beats Fuhr for perhaps the most amazing win in playoff history.
"It was just close your eyes and hope it hits the net," Evans tells the Los Angeles Times 30 years later. "It found a hole over Grant Fuhr's shoulder.
MORE MOMENTS:
1934:The Chicago Blackhawks, in their eighth NHL season, win the Stanley Cup for the first time by
defeating the Detroit Red Wings 1-0 in overtime
of Game 4 of the best-of-5 Final at Chicago Stadium.
Charlie Gardiner
gets the shutout and
Mush March
scores the Cup-winning goal at 30:05 of overtime. It is the final NHL game for Gardiner, who dies of a brain hemorrhage two months later.
1956:The Montreal Canadiens complete the first of their record run of five straight Stanley Cup championships by
defeating Detroit 3-1
at the Forum in Game 5 of the Final.
Jean Beliveau
scores Montreal's first goal and assists on goals by
Maurice Richard
and
Bernie Geoffrion
.
Jacques Plante
makes 25 saves, allowing only a third-period goal by
Alex Delvecchio
. The Canadiens win the second of 10 consecutive playoff series; they do not lose another one until 1961.
1982:The Vancouver Canucks win a playoff series for the first time since entering the NHL in 1970, completing a sweep of the Calgary Flames with a 3-1 victory at Stampede Corral in Game 3 of the best-of-5 Smythe Division Semifinals. Thomas Gradin scores twice for the Canucks, who defeat the Los Angeles Kings and Chicago Blackhawks before losing to the New York Islanders in the Cup Final.
1988:
Brent Sutter
scores the second shorthanded overtime goal in Stanley Cup Playoff history to give the Islanders a
5-4 victory
against the New Jersey Devils in Game 4 of the Patrick Division Semifinals at Brendan Byrne Arena in East Rutherford, New Jersey. Sutter scores his second goal of the game at 15:07 of OT to even the series at 2-2, but the Devils rebound with victories in Games 5 and 6 to eliminate the Islanders and win a playoff series for the first time in their history.
1990:The Los Angeles Kings set a playoff record when three players have hat tricks in a
12-4 victory against the Calgary Flames
in Game 4 of the Smythe Division Semifinals at the Forum in Inglewood, California.
Dave Taylor
,
Tony Granato
and
Tomas Sandstrom
each scores three goals on three shots.
1991:Gretzky becomes the all-time leading playoff goal-scorer when he gets the 93rd of his career in the Kings'
6-1 win
against the Vancouver Canucks at Pacific Coliseum. He surpasses longtime Edmonton Oilers linemate
Jari Kurri
, who scores many of his 92 playoff goals on feeds from Gretzky. Defenseman
Steve Duchene
becomes the first player in Kings history to score on a penalty shot during a playoff game.
1993: The Pittsburgh Penguins extend their NHL-record winning streak to 17 games by
defeating the New York Rangers 4-2
at the Civic Arena.
Dave Tippett
has a goal and an assist for the Penguins.
On the same night, the first-year Ottawa Senators end their NHL-record 38-game road losing streak with a
5-3 win against the Islanders
at Nassau Coliseum.
Laurie Boschman
gets the second and third goals of his third NHL hat trick in the final minute of the third period for the win.
1996: The
Red Wings defeat the Winnipeg Jets 5-2
at Joe Louis Arena for their 60th victory of the season, tying the NHL record set by Montreal in 1976-77. Five players score goals and
Chris Osgood
makes 12 saves. The Red Wings win their final two regular-season games to pass the Canadiens and finish with 62 victories, still the single-season record.
1999:The Toronto Maple Leafs tie a single-season team record with their 44th win,
9-1 against the visiting Florida Panthers
.
Steve Sullivan
scores four goals and
Steve Thomas
has one goal and four assists for the Maple Leafs, who equal the team record set in 1992-93.
2003:
Jean-Sebastien Giguere
of the Anaheim Ducks sets a record for goaltenders in their playoff debut by making 63 saves. He holds off the defending Stanley Cup champion Red Wings until
Paul Kariya
scores at 43:18 of overtime to give the Ducks a
2-1 victory
at Joe Louis Arena in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals. Giguere makes 20 saves in the first overtime, becoming the first goalie to face that many shots in an extra period since the 1967 expansion.

On the same night,
Dwayne Roloson
makes 39 saves and the Minnesota Wild score three goals in a span of 4:22 during the second period to win the first playoff game in their history,
defeating the Colorado Avalanche 4-2
at Pepsi Center in Game 1 of the Western Conference Quarterfinals.
2006:
Jonathan Cheechoo
becomes the first 50-goal scorer in the history of the San Jose Sharks history when he beats
David Leneveu
of the Phoenix Coyotes at 11:47 of the second period. He gets No. 51 just 44 seconds later, and it proves to be his team-record 10th game-winner of the season in
San Jose's 3-2 victory
at Glendale Arena.
2011:The Blackhawks barely avoid becoming the fourth defending Stanley Cup champion to miss the playoffs the following season. The Blackhawks end their season with a
4-3 loss to Detroit
at United Center, but the
Dallas Stars lose 5-3
to the Wild at Xcel Energy Center a few hours later when a regulation or overtime win would have put them into the playoffs ahead of the Blackhawks.
2016:The Anaheim Ducks clinch their fourth straight Pacific Division title with a
2-0 victory against the Washington Capitals
at Verizon Center. The Ducks win the division after being 16 points out of first place at the halfway point of the season. They go 34-10-5 after the Christmas break. Anaheim also becomes the first team since the 1984-85 Islanders to finish with the NHL's best power play (23.2 percent) and penalty kill (87.2 percent).