The 1991 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1990–91 season, and the culmination of the 1991 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Pittsburgh Penguins and the Minnesota North Stars. It was the Penguins' first Final series appearance and their first Stanley Cup victory. This is the first and only (to date) Stanley Cup Final to feature two teams from the expansion group of 1967. It was Minnesota's second Final series appearance, and their last before the franchise's relocation to Dallas two years later. It was also the first time since that an American franchise would win the Stanley Cup. This was the first all-American finals since , which also featured the North Stars in their first appearance.

This was also the first final since not to feature either of the two Alberta-based teams, the Calgary Flames or the Edmonton Oilers, and the first since not contested by a team from Western Canada, or Canada overall.

The Finals and the NHL season ended on May 25, marking the last time to date that the Stanley Cup playoffs ended before the month of June.

This series brought together four North Stars who were teammates on the other North Stars team to reach the Finals: Neal Broten, Curt Giles, and Bobby Smith for Minnesota, and Gordie Roberts for Pittsburgh.

The Penguins players had a decided edge in Finals experience, with four players having won a Stanley Cup. Bryan Trottier (who won four with the New York Islanders in , , , and ), Paul Coffey (who won three with the Edmonton Oilers in , , and ), Jiri Hrdina and Joe Mullen (both with the Calgary Flames in ). On the other hand, Bobby Smith was the only North Star player that had won a Stanley Cup, having won with the Montreal Canadiens in . Overall, the North Stars had six players with previous Finals appearances, compared to the Penguins five.

Paths to the Finals

Minnesota defeated the first-place overall Chicago Blackhawks 4–2, the second-place overall St. Louis Blues 4–2, and the defending Cup champion Edmonton Oilers 4–1 to advance to the Finals. The North Stars became the first American team and first Norris Division team to win the Campbell Conference since the league re-aligned the divisions and adopted a divisional-based playoff format in 1981.

Pittsburgh defeated the New Jersey Devils 4–3, the Washington Capitals 4–1 and the Boston Bruins 4–2.

Game summaries Pittsburgh centre Mario Lemieux, despite missing a game due to a back injury, recorded 12 points in 5 games to lead all scorers in the series. He was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy for his postseason efforts.

Lemieux scored one of the most famous goals in NHL history during the second period of game two. Receiving the puck in the Penguins' end of the ice, Lemieux skated solo into the North Stars' zone facing two defensemen (Shawn Chambers and Neil Wilkinson) as well as goaltender Jon Casey. Lemieux skirted the puck through the legs of Chambers, skated around him, baited goaltender Casey to commit left (Lemieux's right), then switched the puck to his backhand side and slid the puck into the net (before crashing into the net himself). A brief video of the goal has since been featured on Stanley Cup promotional advertisements by the NHL.

Game one

Neal Broten scored two goals in a back and forth game one for the North Stars, as did his teammate Bobby Smith, including the game-winning goal early in the third period to gave Minnesota a 5–4 victory and a 1–0 lead in the series. Scoring summaryPeriodTeamGoalAssist(s)TimeScore1stPITUlf Samuelsson (2)Ron Francis (8)03:451–0 PITMNSNeal Broten (7)Unassisted06:321–1 MNSUlf Dahlen (1)Bobby Smith (7) and Shawn Chambers (6)09:492–1 MNS2ndPITMario Lemieux (12) – shRon Francis (9)03:542–2 MNSMarc Bureau (3) – shStewart Gavin (8)06:533–2 MNSPITScott Young (1) – ppLarry Murphy (10) and Jaromir Jagr (6)07:433–3MNSNeal Broten (8)Mike Modano (11)17:014–3 MNS3rdMNSBobby Smith (7)Ulf Dahlen (5)01:395–3 MNSPITJoe Mullen (6)Jaromir Jagr (7) and Scott Young (6)10:355–4 MNS Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st MNS Brian Propp Slashing 04:17 2:00 PIT Troy Loney Elbowing 13:46 2:00 MNS Shawn Chambers Hooking 12:32 2:00 MNS Mark Tinordi High-sticking 13:45 2:00 PIT Mark Recchi Interference 15:02 2:00 MNS Basil McRae Unsportsmanlike conduct 18:13 2:00 MNS Marc Bureau High-sticking 19:39 2:00 2nd PIT Gordie Roberts Interference 02:01 2:00 MNS Jim Johnson Slashing 05:58 2:00 MNS Marc Bureau Holding 10:25 2:00 PIT Paul Stanton Hooking 19:11 2:00 3rd PIT Grant Jennings Cross-checking 04:08 2:00 MNS Jon Casey Slashing 08:25 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total 9 12 8 29 17 11 10 38

Game two

Mario Lemieux scored one of the most famous goals in NHL history during the second period of game two. Receiving the puck in the Penguins' end of the ice, Lemieux skated solo into the North Stars' zone facing two defensemen (Shawn Chambers and Neil Wilkinson) as well as goaltender Jon Casey. Lemieux skirted the puck through the legs of Chambers, skated around him, baited goaltender Casey to commit left (Lemieux's right), then switched the puck to his backhand side and slid the puck into the net (before crashing into the net himself). A brief video of the goal has since been featured on Stanley Cup promotional advertisements by the NHL. Late in the third period, Pittsburgh defenseman Gordie Roberts received a major penalty for spearing and was ejected from the game. The Penguins went on to win the game 4–1, with goaltender Tom Barrasso stopping 39 of 40 shots, and Kevin Stevens scoring two goals. Scoring summaryPeriodTeamGoalAssist(s)TimeScore1stPITBob Errey (4) – shPeter Taglianetti (1)14:261–0 PITPITKevin Stevens (14) – ppMario Lemieux (22) and Larry Murphy (11)19:102–0 PIT2ndMNSMike Modano (7) – ppShawn Chambers (7) and Jon Casey (1)00:552–1 PITPITMario Lemieux (13)Phil Bourque (6)15:043–1 PITPITKevin Stevens (15)Joe Mullen (5) and Larry Murphy (12)16:324–1 PIT3rdNone Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st PIT Ron Francis Hooking 01:07 2:00 PIT Bob Errey Boarding 09:08 2:00 PIT Mark Recchi Cross-checking 13:06 2:00 PIT Ulf Samuelsson Holding 15:12 2:00 MNS Brian Bellows Hooking 16:36 2:00 MNS Shawn Chambers Interference 18:13 2:00 PIT Bench Too many men on the ice 20:00 2:00 2nd MNS Gaetan Duchesne Holding 06:22 2:00 PIT Larry Murphy Hooking 06:37 2:00 MNS Bobby Smith Interference 09:30 2:00 MNS Brian Glynn Roughing 17:27 2:00 MNS Neil Wilkinson Roughing 19:58 2:00 MNS Mark Tinordi Roughing 20:00 2:00 MNS Mark Tinordi Fighting – major 20:00 5:00 PIT Troy Loney Roughing 20:00 2:00 PIT Troy Loney Fighting – major 20:00 5:00 3rd MNS Mike Modano High-sticking 05:29 2:00 MNS Gaetan Duchesne Hooking 10:39 2:00 MNS Bobby Smith Interference 09:30 2:00 PIT Ulf Samuelsson Holding 12:58 2:00 MNS Marc Bureau Roughing 16:20 2:00 PIT Kevin Stevens Roughing 16:20 2:00 MNS Bryan Trottier Misconduct 16:20 10:00 MNS Dave Gagner Roughing 17:03 2:00 PIT Paul Stanton Roughing 17:03 2:00 PIT Gordie Roberts Holding 17:34 2:00 PIT Gordie Roberts Spearing – major 17:34 5:00 PIT Gordie Roberts Game misconduct 17:34 10:00 MNS Bench Delay of game 19:41 2:00 PIT Ron Francis Holding 20:00 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total 12 12 1640 14 12 5 31

Game three

Due to a disc herniation, Mario Lemieux did not dress for Pittsburgh in game three. After a scoreless first, Dave Gagner and Bobby Smith both scored in the second, and Gaetan Duchesne scored early in the third. Pittsburgh forward Kevin Stevens received a major penalty for spearing late in the game and was ejected. The North Stars went on to win the game 3–1, giving them a 2–1 lead in the series. Scoring summaryPeriodTeamGoalAssist(s)TimeScore1stNone2ndMNSDave Gagner (9)Mike Modano (12) and Jim Johnson (1)07:211–0 MNSMNSBobby Smith (8)Brian Bellows (18) and Chris Dahlquist (6)07:542–0 MNS3rdPITPhil Bourque (5)Jaromir Jagr (8) and Bryan Trottier (3)01:232–1 MNSMNSGaetan Duchesne (2)Stewart Gavin (9) and Neal Broten (13)02:013–1 MNS Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st PIT Bob Errey Charging 09:08 2:00 PIT Ron Francis Holding 13:44 2:00 MNS Bobby Smith Interference 16:21 2:00 2nd MNS Basil McRae Boarding 04:08 2:00 MNS Shawn Chambers Unsportsmanlike conduct 05:23 2:00 PIT Mark Recchi Unsportsmanlike conduct 05:23 2:00 MNS Gaetan Duchesne Holding 08:38 2:00 PIT Peter Taglianetti High-sticking 12:26 2:00 MNS Jim Johnson Roughing 17:28 2:00 PIT Troy Loney Roughing 17:28 2:00 3rd MNS Jim Johnson High-sticking 07:20 2:00 PIT Phil Bourque Slashing 07:20 2:00 MNS Brian Bellows Roughing 08:09 2:00 PIT Paul Stanton Roughing 08:09 2:00 MNS Dave Gagner Roughing 08:13 2:00 PIT Randy Gilhen Holding 08:13 2:00 PIT Ulf Samuelsson Elbowing 08:53 2:00 MNS Chris Dahlquist Tripping 13:34 2:00 PIT Kevin Stevens Spearing – major 18:47 5:00 PIT Kevin Stevens Game misconduct 18:47 10:00 PIT Tom Barrasso Slashing 19:21 2:00 MNS Brian Bellows Misconduct 19:53 10:00 PIT Randy Gilhen Misconduct 19:53 10:00 MNS Bobby Smith High-sticking 20:00 2:00 PIT Bob Errey Charging 20:00 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total 7 8 15 30 12 8 13 33

Game four

The Penguins won game four 5–3, with five different Pittsburgh players scoring goals. With 6:57 left in the third period, Pittsburgh forward Troy Loney hit Minnesota defenseman Mark Tinordi in the head with his stick, resulting in a major penalty and Loney being ejected from the game. Scoring summaryPeriodTeamGoalAssist(s)TimeScore1stPITKevin Stevens (16)Unassisted00:581–0 PITPITRon Francis (5)Kevin Stevens (14) and Joe Mullen (6)02:362–0 PITPITMario Lemieux (14)Mark Recchi (24) and Larry Murphy (13)02:583–0 PITMNSDave Gagner (10)Brian Bellows (19) and Ulf Dahlen (6)18:223–1 PIT2ndPITBryan Trottier (3)Bob Errey (2) and Jaromir Jagr (9)09:554–1 PITMNSBrian Propp (8) – ppDave Gagner (14)13:104–2 PITMNSMike Modano (8) – ppBrian Propp (13) and Dave Gagner (15)18:254–3 PIT3rdPITPhil Bourque (6) – enJoe Mullen (7) and Mario Lemieux (23)19:455–3 PIT Penalty summary Period Team Player Penalty Time PIM 1st PIT Ulf Samuelsson Charging 07:27 2:00 MNS Brian Propp High-sticking 07:44 2:00 PIT Paul Stanton High-sticking 07:44 2:00 MNS Jim Johnson Holding 14:45 2:00 PIT Ulf Samuelsson Holding 18:38 2:00 2nd MNS Mike Modano Slashing 04:28 2:00 MNS Basil McRae Roughing – double minor 11:22 4:00 PIT Larry Murphy Roughing 11:22 2:00 PIT Kevin Stevens Holding 11:49 2:00 MNS Brian Bellows Roughing 12:34 2:00 PIT Mario Lemieux Interference 12:34 2:00 PIT Mario Lemieux Roughing 12:34 2:00 PIT Larry Murphy Roughing 16:59 2:00 PIT Bob Errey Hooking 18:06 2:00 MNS Dave Gagner Roughing 18:50 2:00 3rd PIT Troy Loney High-sticking – major 13:03 5:00 PIT Troy Loney Game misconduct 13:03 10:00 MNS Jon Casey Interference 16:52 2:00 Shots by period Team 1 2 3 Total 13 5 6 24 14 17 7 38

Game five

Mario Lemieux recorded three points for Pittsburgh in game five, Mark Recchi scored twice, and the Penguins defeated the North Stars 6–4.