1988–89 Chicago Blackhawks season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1988–89
Year:	1988
Team:	Chicago Blackhawks
Conferencerank:	8th
Divisionrank:	4th
Record:	27–41–12
Homerecord:	16–14–10
Roadrecord:	11–27–2
Goalsfor:	297
Goalsagainst:	335
Captain:	Denis Savard (Oct-Mar) Dirk Graham (Mar-May)
Goalsleader:	Steve Larmer (43)
Assistsleader:	Denis Savard (59)
Pointsleader:	Steve Larmer (87)
Pimleader:	Dave Manson (352)
Winsleader:	Alain Chevrier (13)
Gaaleader:	Alain Chevrier (3.51)

The 1988 - 89 Chicago Blackhawks season saw the Blackhawks finish in fourth place in the Norris Division with a record of 27 wins, 41 losses, and 12 ties for 66 points. Chicago did not clinch a postseason berth until the season's final game, needing an overtime goal by Troy Murray against the Toronto Maple Leafs. The Blackhawks proceeded to defeat the higher seeded divisional rivals, the Detroit Red Wings and the St. Louis Blues before falling in the Campbell Conference Finals to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Calgary Flames.

Offseason

The biggest move the Blackhawks made on the ice in the offseason was drafting Boston native Jeremy Roenick with the number 8 pick. Roenick completed his junior year of high school before the draft, and made his NHL debut later that season scoring 18 points in 20 games. The biggest move the Blackhawks made off the ice was GM Bob Pulford replacing Bob Murdoch as Coach with Mike Keenan. The Keenan years resulting in some of the most exciting hockey in Chicago since the Hull/Mikita years - both on the ice (as the Hawks would reach the Stanley Cup Finals in 1992) and off the ice (as Keenan feuded with virtually every star on the team). Forward Denis Savard is named team captain.

NHL Draft

See also: 1988 NHL Entry Draft.

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team
1	8	Jeremy Roenick (C)		Thayer Academy (USHS)
3	50	Trevor Dam (RW)		London Knights (OHL)
4	71	Stefan Elvenes (RW)		Rogle BK (Sweden)
5	92	Joe Cleary (D)		Stratford Cullitons (MetJHL)
6	113	Justin Lafayette (C)		Ferris State University (CCHA)
7	134	Craig Woodcroft (C)		Colgate University (ECAC)
8	155	Jon Pojar (LW)		Roseville High School (USHS-MN)
9	176	Matt Hentges (D)		Edina High School (USHS-MN)
10	197	Daniel Maurice (C)		Chicoutimi Sagueneens (QMJHL)
11	218	Dirk Tenzer (D)		St. Paul's School (USHS-NH)
12	239	Andreas Lupzig (C)		EV Landshut (West Germany)
S	13	Todd Wolf (D)		Colgate University (ECAC)

Regular season

The Blackhawks had several prolongated losing streaks - opening the season by losing seven of the first nine, then losing nine straight from mid-November to mid-December, then finishing the year losing nine of the last 13. The Hawks struggled in shorthanded-situations, allowing the most regular season power play goals in the league, with 122.^[1]

Offensively, Steve Larmer led the team with 43 goals and 87 points. Dennis Savard led the team in assists with 59, and was second in overall points with 82. In January 1988, the Blackhawks acquired Dirk Graham from Minnesota for Curt Fraser, in what would be one of the organization's better trades. Doug Wilson and Dave Manson led the defense in scoring with 62 and 54 points respectively.

In goal, the Blackhawks struggled to find the right netminder. Darren Pang started the season but his 4.38 goals against average resulted in only a 10-11-6 record. The Blackhawks acquired Alain Chevrier from Winnipeg in January 1989 and he fared slightly better with a 3.51 goals against average and a 13-11-2 record. The Hawks were hoping that 1987's first round draft choice Jim Waite would be the answer, but he failed to win a game, ending with a 0-7-1 record and a 5.22 goals against average. By year-end, they were forced to rely on an undrafted rookie named Eddie Belfour who only had a 4-12-3 record, but did have a respectable 3.87 goals against average.

In March, with Denis Savard out of the lineup due to injury, coach Mike Keenan named forward Dirk Graham as the new captain. A role Graham would keep, upon Savard's return.

Record vs. opponents

Schedule and results

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record
1	T	October 6, 1988	2–2 OT	New York Rangers (1988–89)	0–0–1
2	L	October 8, 1988	4–7	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	0–1–1
3	L	October 9, 1988	4–8	Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	0–2–1
4	W	October 12, 1988	10–1	Winnipeg Jets (1988–89)	1–2–1
5	L	October 15, 1988	5–7	@ Hartford Whalers (1988–89)	1–3–1
6	L	October 16, 1988	3–10	Boston Bruins (1988–89)	1–4–1
7	L	October 18, 1988	3–4 OT	@ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	1–5–1
8	L	October 20, 1988	0–2	@ St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	1–6–1
9	L	October 22, 1988	4–7	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89)	1–7–1
10	W	October 25, 1988	7–4	@ Quebec Nordiques (1988–89)	2–7–1
11	L	October 28, 1988	2–5	@ Vancouver Canucks (1988–89)	2–8–1
12	W	October 30, 1988	5–2	@ Edmonton Oilers (1988–89)	3–8–1
13	L	October 31, 1988	3–6	@ Calgary Flames (1988–89)	3–9–1
14	W	November 3, 1988	4–1	Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	4–9–1
15	T	November 5, 1988	5–5 OT	@ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	4–9–2
16	L	November 6, 1988	3–5	Los Angeles Kings (1988–89)	4–10–2
17	T	November 9, 1988	6–6 OT	Montreal Canadiens (1988–89)	4–10–3
18	W	November 11, 1988	6–5 OT	@ Winnipeg Jets (1988–89)	5–10–3
19	T	November 13, 1988	5–5 OT	Quebec Nordiques (1988–89)	5–10–4
20	W	November 16, 1988	3–2	Buffalo Sabres (1988–89)	6–10–4
21	L	November 19, 1988	3–5	@ Montreal Canadiens (1988–89)	6–11–4
22	L	November 20, 1988	4–7	Vancouver Canucks (1988–89)	6–12–4
23	L	November 23, 1988	3–4	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	6–13–4
24	L	November 25, 1988	4–5 OT	@ Buffalo Sabres (1988–89)	6–14–4
25	L	November 26, 1988	2–8	@ Boston Bruins (1988–89)	6–15–4
26	L	November 29, 1988	2–5	@ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	6–16–4
27	L	December 3, 1988	4–6	@ Los Angeles Kings (1988–89)	6–17–4
28	L	December 6, 1988	6–7	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89)	6–18–4
29	L	December 10, 1988	4–6	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89)	6–19–4
30	W	December 11, 1988	5–2	St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	7–19–4
31	W	December 14, 1988	4–3	Hartford Whalers (1988–89)	8–19–4
32	L	December 17, 1988	0–4	@ St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	8–20–4
33	L	December 18, 1988	3–5	New Jersey Devils (1988–89)	8–21–4
34	L	December 21, 1988	3–4	Washington Capitals (1988–89)	8–22–4
35	W	December 23, 1988	7–2	Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	9–22–4
36	L	December 26, 1988	1–4	St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	9–23–4
37	W	December 28, 1988	4–3	Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	10–23–4
38	L	December 31, 1988	1–4	@ New York Rangers (1988–89)	10–24–4
39	T	January 1, 1989	3–3 OT	Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	10–24–5
40	L	January 7, 1989	3–6	@ Washington Capitals (1988–89)	10–25–5
41	W	January 8, 1989	3–2	New York Islanders (1988–89)	11–25–5
42	T	January 11, 1989	2–2 OT	Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	11–25–6
43	L	January 12, 1989	5–6	@ Buffalo Sabres (1988–89)	11–26–6
44	W	January 14, 1989	5–3	@ New York Islanders (1988–89)	12–26–6
45	T	January 16, 1989	2–2 OT	Edmonton Oilers (1988–89)	12–26–7
46	L	January 18, 1989	4–6	New York Rangers (1988–89)	12–27–7
47	W	January 20, 1989	3–2	@ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	13–27–7
48	L	January 21, 1989	2–4	@ St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	13–28–7
49	W	January 24, 1989	4–2	@ Vancouver Canucks (1988–89)	14–28–7
50	W	January 25, 1989	6–3	@ Edmonton Oilers (1988–89)	15–28–7
51	L	January 28, 1989	4–5 OT	@ Calgary Flames (1988–89)	15–29–7
52	W	January 30, 1989	7–1	Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	16–29–7
53	W	February 1, 1989	7–4	Winnipeg Jets (1988–89)	17–29–7
54	W	February 4, 1989	3–1	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	18–29–7
55	L	February 5, 1989	4–5	St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	18–30–7
56	W	February 10, 1989	3–1	New York Islanders (1988–89)	19–30–7
57	L	February 12, 1989	2–6	Los Angeles Kings (1988–89)	19–31–7
58	W	February 14, 1989	4–2	@ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	20–31–7
59	W	February 15, 1989	7–4	Washington Capitals (1988–89)	21–31–7
60	W	February 17, 1989	5–3	@ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	22–31–7
61	T	February 19, 1989	4–4 OT	Montreal Canadiens (1988–89)	22–31–8
62	T	February 22, 1989	5–5 OT	Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	22–31–9
63	L	February 25, 1989	0–5	@ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	22–32–9
64	T	February 26, 1989	4–4 OT	Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	22–32–10
65	W	March 1, 1989	5–1	Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	23–32–10
66	T	March 4, 1989	3–3 OT	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	23–32–11
67	T	March 5, 1989	3–3 OT	St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	23–32–12
68	L	March 8, 1989	5–7	New Jersey Devils (1988–89)	23–33–12
69	L	March 11, 1989	2–7	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89)	23–34–12
70	L	March 12, 1989	5–6	Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89)	23–35–12
71	L	March 14, 1989	2–3	@ St. Louis Blues (1988–89)	23–36–12
72	L	March 16, 1989	1–6	@ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89)	23–37–12
73	W	March 18, 1989	3–1	@ New Jersey Devils (1988–89)	24–37–12
74	W	March 19, 1989	5–3	Detroit Red Wings (1988–89)	25–37–12
75	L	March 22, 1989	2–3	Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89)	25–38–12
76	L	March 25, 1989	3–6	@ Boston Bruins (1988–89)	25–39–12
77	L	March 26, 1989	5–7	Calgary Flames (1988–89)	25–40–12
78	W	March 29, 1989	3–1	Quebec Nordiques (1988–89)	26–40–12
79	L	April 1, 1989	1–6	@ Hartford Whalers (1988–89)	26–41–12
80	W	April 2, 1989	4–3 OT	Toronto Maple Leafs (1988–89)	27–41–12

Player stats

Forwards

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
	80	43	44	87	54
	58	23	59	82	110
	80	33	45	78	89
	79	21	30	51	113
	72	21	19	40	100
	45	21	19	40	69
	43	15	14	29	92
	30	12	13	25	60
	41	7	16	23	20
	20	9	9	18	4
	45	4	12	16	28
	49	4	12	16	62
	75	7	9	16	214
	47	5	11	16	44
	50	6	9	15	164
	66	11	4	15	119
	23	1	2	3	78
	6	1	1	2	0
	7	0	1	1	7
	4	1	0	1	0
	3	0	1	1	4
	6	1	0	1	8
	1	0	0	0	0
	8	0	0	0	23
	2	0	0	0	17
	4	0	0	0	0

Defensemen

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM
	66	15	47	62	69
	79	18	36	54	352
	69	5	19	24	116
	74	2	16	18	84
	57	5	7	12	40
	15	2	4	6	27
	23	3	2	5	63
	68	0	4	4	155
	9	0	2	2	4
	7	1	1	2	6
	11	0	0	0	18
	6	0	0	0	13
	1	0	0	0	2
	7	0	0	0	28

Goaltending

Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals against average

Player	GP	W	L	T	SO	GAA
	27	13	11	2	0	3.51
	35	10	11	6	0	4.38
	23	4	12	3	0	3.87
	1	0	0	0	0	0.00
	11	0	7	1	0	5.22

Playoffs

Despite their awful 27-41-12 record, the Blackhawks made the playoffs by finishing in fourth place in the weak Norris Division after beating the Maple Leafs on the last day of the regular season. After three straight years of first-round defeats in the playoffs, the Blackhawks raised their level of play considerably by stunning the Detroit Red Wings in six games. Denis Savard's 13 points in the series (4 goals and 9 assists) tied a team record shared by Hull and Mikita.

• Norris Division Semi-Finals

Detroit Red Wings vs. Chicago Blackhawks

Date	Away	Score	Home	Score	Notes
April 5		2	Detroit Red Wings	3
April 6	Chicago Blackhawks	5		4	(OT)
April 8		2	Chicago Blackhawks	4
April 9		2	Chicago Blackhawks	3
April 11		4	Detroit Red Wings	6
April 13		1	Chicago Blackhawks	7

Chicago wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 2

• Norris Division Finals

Staying hot in the Norris Division Final, the Hawks beat the St. Louis Blues in five games. Chicago Blackhawks vs. St. Louis Blues

Date	Away	Score	Home	Score
April 18	Chicago Blackhawks	3		1
April 20		4	St. Louis Blues	5
April 22		2	Chicago Blackhawks	5
April 24		2	Chicago Blackhawks	3
April 26	Chicago Blackhawks	4		2

Chicago wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1

• Campbell Conference Finals

After a great playoff run, the Blackhawks Cup dreams ended up in ashes as they were beaten by the eventual Stanley Cup champions Calgary Flames in five games. Denis Savard and Steve Larmer led the team throughout the playoffs averaging more than a point a game. Dave Manson set a team record that still stands with 84 penalty minutes in the playoffs.

Chicago Blackhawks vs. Calgary Flames

Date	Away	Score	Home	Score	Notes
May 2		0	Calgary Flames	3
May 4	Chicago Blackhawks	4		2
May 6	Calgary Flames	5		2
May 8	Calgary Flames	2		1	(OT)
May 10		1	Calgary Flames	3

Calgary wins best-of-seven series 4 games to 1

References

• Blackhawks on Hockey Database

1. Web site: 1988-89 NHL Summary.