1986–87 Chicago Blackhawks season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1986–87
Year:	1986
Team:	Chicago Blackhawks
Record:	29–37–14
Homerecord:	18–13–9
Roadrecord:	11–24–5
Conferencerank:	6th
Divisionrank:	3rd
Coach:	Bob Pulford
Goalsfor:	290
Goalsagainst:	310
Goalsleader:	Denis Savard (40)
Assistsleader:	Steve Larmer (56)
Pointsleader:	Denis Savard (90)
Plusminusleader:	Steve Larmer (18)
Pimleader:	Al Secord (196)
Winsleader:	Bob Sauvé (19)
Gaaleader:	Bob Sauvé (3.60)
Prev Season:	1985–86

The 1986–87 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 61st season of operation of the Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League.

Offseason

The 1986–87 Chicago Blackhawks were coming off a year in which they won the Norris Division then somehow got swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Toronto Maple Leafs.

At the 1986 NHL Entry Draft, the Blackhawks selected forward Everett Sanipass with their first round, 14th overall pick. Sanipass played with the Verdun Junior Canadiens of the QMJHL in the 1985–86 season, scoring 28 goals and 94 points in 67 games, while amassing 320 penalty minutes, sixth highest total in the league. Other notable players selected by the team were defenseman Frantisek Kucera and center Mike Hudson.

On August 27, the Blackhawks signed defenseman Gary Nylund to a three-year contract worth approximately $620,000.^[1] Nylund, who would turn 23 years old early in the season, appeared in 79 games with the Toronto Maple Leafs in 1985–86, scoring two goals and 18 points while accumulating 180 penalty minutes. In 10 playoff games, he had two assists. The Blackhawks then sent Ken Yaremchuk, Jerome Dupont and their fourth round draft pick in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft to the Maple Leafs as compensation for signing Nylund.

Due to a back injury, defenseman Behn Wilson would miss the entire 1986–87 season.

Forward Tom Lysiak, who had been with the club since 1979, announced his retirement during the off-season.

Regular season

The Hawks struggled to start the season, posting a record of 4–12–5 in their first 21 games, as the club was fighting with the Minnesota North Stars for the fourth and final playoff position in the Norris Division. The Blackhawks would continue to slide to a record of 8-17-6 after 31 games, putting them in last place. The team broke out of their season-long slump, winning nine of their next 12 games, putting their record to 17–20–6, and into a tie for first place in the Norris Division with 40 points. The Blackhawks would continue to hover just under the .500 mark, peaking at two games under with a 27–29–10 record following a four-game winning streak in March, sitting in second place in the division. A late-season slump brought the Hawks' final record to 29–37–14, earning 72 points and third place in the division, as they qualified for the post-season for the 18th consecutive season. Their 72 points were their lowest total since the 1983–84 when the Hawks finished with 68 points.

Offensively, Chicago was led by Denis Savard, who in 70 games, scored 40 goals and 90 points. Wayne Presley, in his first full NHL season, broke out with 32 goals, which was the second-highest total on the team, while earning 61 points in 80 games. Steve Larmer had 28 goals, 84 points, and a team-high +20 rating in 80 games. Troy Murray scored 28 goals and 71 points in 77 games. Al Secord managed to score 29 goals and 58 points in 77 games while leading the Hawks with 196 penalty minutes, and Eddie Olczyk had a disappointing season by his standards, scoring 16 goals and 51 points in 79 games.

On defense, Doug Wilson led the way with 16 goals and 48 points in 69 games. Bob Murray scored six goals and 44 points in 79 games, while newcomer, Gary Nylund had seven goals and 27 points, as well as 190 penalty minutes, in 80 games.

In goal, Bob Sauve played the majority of the minutes, going 19–19–5 with a 3.59 GAA and a .894 save percentage, while earning the only shutout the club had during the season in 46 games. Murray Bannerman backed him up, and had a 9–18–8 record with a 4.14 GAA and a .873 save percentage in 39 games.

Record vs. opponents

Schedule and results

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Game winning/tying goal	Record
1	W	October 9, 1986	3–2	New York Islanders (1986–87)		1–0–0
2	L	October 11, 1986	3–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		1–1–0
3	L	October 12, 1986	1–4	Pittsburgh Penguins (1986–87)		1–2–0
4	T	October 15, 1986	5–5 OT	New York Rangers (1986–87)		1–2–1
5	L	October 18, 1986	2–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		1–3–1
6	L	October 19, 1986	5–8	Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		1–4–1
7	L	October 21, 1986	1–9	@ Edmonton Oilers (1986–87)		1–5–1
8	T	October 24, 1986	2–2 OT	@ Vancouver Canucks (1986–87)		1–5–2
9	W	October 26, 1986	8–4	@ Winnipeg Jets (1986–87)		2–5–2
10	L	October 28, 1986	1–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		2–6–2
11	L	October 29, 1986	2–5	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		2–7–2
12	W	November 1, 1986	6–5	@ Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		3–7–2
13	L	November 2, 1986	3–7	@ St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		3–8–2
14	W	November 5, 1986	4–2	Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		4–8–2
15	L	November 8, 1986	2–3	@ Washington Capitals (1986–87)		4–9–2
16	T	November 9, 1986	4–4 OT	St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		4–9–3
17	T	November 12, 1986	2–2 OT	Washington Capitals (1986–87)		4–9–4
18	L	November 15, 1986	3–4	@ St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		4–10–4
19	L	November 16, 1986	3–7	Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		4–11–4
20	T	November 19, 1986	4–4 OT	Los Angeles Kings (1986–87)		4–11–5
21	L	November 20, 1986	1–5	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1986–87)		4–12–5
22	W	November 23, 1986	5–3	New Jersey Devils (1986–87)		5–12–5
23	L	November 26, 1986	2–5	@ Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		5–13–5
24	W	November 28, 1986	6–5 OT	@ Edmonton Oilers (1986–87)		6–13–5
25	L	November 29, 1986	4–5	@ Calgary Flames (1986–87)		6–14–5
26	W	December 2, 1986	4–2	@ Vancouver Canucks (1986–87)		7–14–5
27	L	December 4, 1986	1–4	@ Calgary Flames (1986–87)		7–15–5
28	L	December 6, 1986	2–7	@ Los Angeles Kings (1986–87)		7–16–5
29	W	December 10, 1986	6–3	Buffalo Sabres (1986–87)		8–16–5
30	T	December 13, 1986	4–4 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		8–16–6
31	L	December 14, 1986	3–7	Vancouver Canucks (1986–87)		8–17–6
32	W	December 17, 1986	5–1	Winnipeg Jets (1986–87)		9–17–6
33	W	December 20, 1986	6–2	@ Boston Bruins (1986–87)		10–17–6
34	W	December 21, 1986	7–4	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		11–17–6
35	L	December 23, 1986	1–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		11–18–6
36	W	December 26, 1986	8–6	St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		12–18–6
37	W	December 28, 1986	7–5	Washington Capitals (1986–87)		13–18–6
38	W	December 30, 1986	5–3	@ New York Islanders (1986–87)		14–18–6
39	L	December 31, 1986	2–5	@ Buffalo Sabres (1986–87)		14–19–6
40	W	January 3, 1987	3–2	@ Hartford Whalers (1986–87)		15–19–6
41	L	January 4, 1987	1–4	Calgary Flames (1986–87)		15–20–6
42	W	January 7, 1987	6–4	Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		16–20–6
43	W	January 11, 1987	5–3	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		17–20–6
44	L	January 14, 1987	1–3	New Jersey Devils (1986–87)		17–21–6
45	L	January 17, 1987	2–3	@ Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		17–22–6
46	L	January 18, 1987	3–5	Quebec Nordiques (1986–87)		17–23–6
47	T	January 21, 1987	5–5 OT	Philadelphia Flyers (1986–87)		17–23–7
48	L	January 23, 1987	3–4	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1986–87)		17–24–7
49	L	January 24, 1987	1–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1986–87)		17–25–7
50	L	January 26, 1987	2–3	Montreal Canadiens (1986–87)		17–26–7
51	W	January 28, 1987	5–0	Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		18–26–7
52	T	January 31, 1987	4–4 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		18–26–8
53	W	February 1, 1987	6–4	Edmonton Oilers (1986–87)		19–26–8
54	W	February 4, 1987	5–4	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		20–26–8
55	L	February 7, 1987	1–4	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1986–87)		20–27–8
56	L	February 8, 1987	4–7	@ Buffalo Sabres (1986–87)		20–28–8
57	W	February 15, 1987	6–4	Quebec Nordiques (1986–87)		21–28–8
58	L	February 17, 1987	4–5	Hartford Whalers (1986–87)		21–29–8
59	W	February 19, 1987	5–2	New York Rangers (1986–87)		22–29–8
60	W	February 21, 1987	6–3	@ Hartford Whalers (1986–87)		23–29–8
61	T	February 22, 1987	2–2 OT	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		23–29–9
62	T	February 25, 1987	3–3 OT	Montreal Canadiens (1986–87)		23–29–10
63	W	February 28, 1987	2–1	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1986–87)		24–29–10
64	W	March 1, 1987	6–1	Los Angeles Kings (1986–87)		25–29–10
65	W	March 4, 1987	3–2	Winnipeg Jets (1986–87)		26–29–10
66	W	March 7, 1987	4–3	@ New Jersey Devils (1986–87)		27–29–10
67	L	March 8, 1987	5–6	New York Islanders (1986–87)		27–30–10
68	L	March 11, 1987	2–3	St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		27–31–10
69	T	March 14, 1987	4–4 OT	@ Boston Bruins (1986–87)		27–31–11
70	L	March 15, 1987	2–4	Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		27–32–11
71	T	March 17, 1987	3–3 OT	@ Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		27–32–12
72	W	March 18, 1987	6–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		28–32–12
73	L	March 21, 1987	0–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		28–33–12
74	L	March 22, 1987	3–5	@ New York Rangers (1986–87)		28–34–12
75	T	March 25, 1987	4–4 OT	St. Louis Blues (1986–87)		28–34–13
76	L	March 28, 1987	4–5	@ Quebec Nordiques (1986–87)		28–35–13
77	L	March 29, 1987	6–8	Boston Bruins (1986–87)		28–36–13
78	T	April 1, 1987	4–4 OT	Minnesota North Stars (1986–87)		28–36–14
79	L	April 4, 1987	1–3	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		28–37–14
80	W	April 5, 1987	5–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1986–87)		29–37–14

Playoffs

Detroit Red Wings 4, Chicago Blackhawks 0

The Blackhawks opened the 1987 Stanley Cup playoffs against the Detroit Red Wings. The Red Wings finished the 1986–87 season with a record of 34–36–10, earning 78 points and second place in the Norris Division, which was six more points than the third place Blackhawks.

The series opened at Joe Louis Arena in Detroit as Bob Sauve got the nod in goal. The Red Wings opened the scoring early in the first period on a goal by Petr Klima, and they would extend their lead to 2–0 after a goal by Darren Veitch before the first intermission. After a scoreless second period, Bob Murray got the Blackhawks to within one after scoring midway through the third period. The Red Wings Shawn Burr then scored just a little over two minutes later, as Detroit held on for a 3–1 victory.

In the second game, the Red Wings again scored early, as Gerard Gallant scored only 37 seconds into the game, giving the Wings a 1–0 lead. Joey Kocur extended the Detroit lead to 2-0 midway through the period. In the second period, Steve Yzerman made it 3-0 for the Red Wings before Marc Bergevin replied for the Blackhawks, cutting the Wings lead to 3–1. Detroit restored their three-goal lead on a Shawn Burr goal, making it 4-1 for the Red Wings after two periods. In the third period, Adam Oates capped off the scoring for Detroit, as they cruised their way to a 5–1 victory and a 2–0 series lead. The Red Wings defence held the Blackhawks to only 15 shots in the game.

The series moved to Chicago Stadium for the third game of the series. In the first period, the Red Wings again opened the scoring, as Steve Yzerman beat goaltender Bob Sauve, giving Detroit a 1–0 lead 5:28 into the game. A minute later, the Red Wings Mel Bridgman made it 2–0. Bridgman added another goal in the final minute of the period, as the Wings took a 3–0 lead. The Blackhawks scored the only goal of the second period, as Denis Savard scored 2:23 into the period, cutting the Wings lead to 3-1 heading into the third. Only 21 seconds into the third period, the Hawks Curt Fraser scored, as the Hawks were within a goal, down 3–2. Late in the period, Ed Olczyk scored the tying goal, as the Hawks sent the game into overtime. In the extra period, the Wings Shawn Burr scored his third goal in three games, as Detroit defeated Chicago 4–3, and took a 3–0 series lead.

The Blackhawks stayed with Bob Sauve in goal for the fourth game, and for the fourth time in the series, the Wings scored first, as Brent Ashton scored midway through the first period for a 1-0 Red Wings lead. In the second period, Mel Bridgman scored only 35 seconds into the period, as Detroit took a 2–0 lead in the game. Wayne Presley got the Blackhawks on the board with a goal at 9:26 of the period, however, the Red Wings Dave Barr scored 41 seconds later, restoring Detroit's two-goal lead. In the third period, the Hawks fired 18 shots at Red Wings goaltender Greg Stefan, however, they could not score, and the game finished with the Wings winning 3–1, and sweeping the series 4 games to 0. Stefan was the star of the game for the Red Wings, making 46 saves.

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Game Winning Goal	Record
1	L	April 8, 1987	1–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		0–1
2	L	April 9, 1987	1–5	@ Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		0–2
3	L	April 11, 1987	3–4 OT	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		0–3
4	L	April 12, 1987	1–3	Detroit Red Wings (1986–87)		0–4

Player stats

Regular season

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
	C	70	40	50	90	108	15	7	0	7
	RW	80	28	56	84	22	20	10	0	4
	C	77	28	43	71	59	14	4	2	3
	RW	80	32	29	61	114	-18	7	0	4
	LW	77	29	29	58	196	-20	5	0	3
	C	79	16	35	51	119	-4	2	1	2
	LW	75	25	25	50	182	5	3	0	2
	D	69	16	32	48	36	15	7	1	1
	D	79	6	38	44	80	-9	4	0	1
	RW	51	13	19	32	6	19	0	0	0
	D	80	7	20	27	190	-9	2	0	0
	D	73	4	23	27	86	5	2	0	0
	RW	58	8	15	23	33	11	0	0	0
	C	71	6	12	18	81	-7	0	0	0
	RW	73	8	9	17	19	-8	0	0	1
	C	52	5	12	17	34	-3	0	0	1
	LW	44	8	6	14	16	-3	1	0	0
	D	66	4	10	14	66	4	0	0	0
	D	48	1	13	14	59	10	1	0	0
	C	39	3	6	9	6	-9	0	0	0
	D	63	1	8	9	146	-2	0	0	0
	LW	7	1	3	4	2	3	0	0	0
	G	46	0	4	4	6	0	0	0	0
	C	22	1	2	3	6	1	0	1	0
	G	39	0	1	1	4	0	0	0	0
	LW	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	D	2	0	0	0	0	-1	0	0	0
	RW	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	G	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
	2660	46	19	19	5	159	3.59	1	1497	1338	.894
	2059	39	9	18	8	142	4.14	0	1122	980	.873
	155	3	1	0	1	7	2.71	0	90	83	.922
Team:	4874	80	29	37	14	308	3.79	1	2709	2401	.886

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
	LW	2	1	1	2	10	-1	0	0	0
	C	4	1	1	2	4	1	0	0	0
	D	4	0	2	2	11	-1	0	0	0
	RW	4	0	2	2	4	2	0	0	0
	D	3	1	0	1	2	-1	0	0	0
	D	4	1	0	1	4	-2	0	0	0
	RW	4	1	0	1	9	-2	0	0	0
	C	4	1	0	1	12	-3	0	0	0
	D	4	0	1	1	6	-1	0	0	0
	RW	4	0	1	1	0	-1	0	0	0
	C	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	RW	4	0	0	0	2	-2	0	0	0
	C	4	0	0	0	0	-1	0	0	0
	D	3	0	0	0	10	-2	0	0	0
	C	4	0	0	0	5	-3	0	0	0
	D	2	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
	G	4	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	LW	4	0	0	0	21	-2	0	0	0
	C	4	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
	LW	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	LW	3	0	0	0	0	-4	0	0	0
	D	4	0	0	0	0	-2	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
	245	4	0	4	15	3.67	0	136	121	.890
Team:	245	4	0	4	15	3.67	0	136	121	.890

^[2]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1986 NHL Entry Draft held at the Montreal Forum in Montreal.

Round		Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	14	Everett Sanipass		Verdun Junior Canadiens (QMJHL)
2	35	Mark Kurzawski		Windsor Compuware Spitfires (OHL)
4	77	Frantisek Kucera		Sparta Prague (Czechoslovakia)
5	98	Lonnie Loach		Guelph Platers (OHL)
6	119	Mario Doyon		Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
7	140	Mike Hudson		Sudbury Wolves (OHL)
8	161	Marty Nanne		University of Minnesota (WCHA)
9	182	Geoff Benic		Windsor Compuware Spitfires (OHL)
10	203	Glenn Lowes		Toronto Marlboros (OHL)
11	224	Chris Thayer		Kent School (USHS-CT)
12	245	Sean Williams		Oshawa Generals (OHL)
S2	17	Dave Randall		Northern Michigan University (CCHA)

See also

• 1986–87 NHL season

References

2. 1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks Yearbook (official team publication)

External links

• Web site: 1986–87 Chicago Blackhawks Games. Hockey-reference.com . https://web.archive.org/web/20160312020017/http://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/CHI/1987_games.html. 2016-03-12. live. 2016-05-03 .

Notes and References

1. Web site: Hockey Transactions Search Results.
2. Web site: hockey-reference.com . 2009-06-16 . 1986-87 Chicago Blackhawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com.