1928 Stanley Cup Final
| 1928 Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||||||||
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| * indicates periods of overtime. | ||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location(s) | Montreal (Forum) (all games) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Format | best-of-five | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Coaches | New York: Lester Patrick Montreal: Eddie Gerard |
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| Captains | New York: Bill Cook Montreal: Dunc Munro |
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| Dates | April 5 to April 14, 1928 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Series-winning goal | Frank Boucher (3:35, third, G5) | |||||||||||||||||||||
The 1928 Stanley Cup Finals was played by the New York Rangers and the Montreal Maroons. It was the first appearance by the Rangers in the Finals and was their first victory of the Stanley Cup in only their second season. This was the second Stanley Cup victory by an American team, the first being the Seattle Metropolitans in the 1917 Stanley Cup Finals.
The Montreal Maroons defeated the Ottawa Senators in the quarter-finals total-goals series 3–1.
The New York Rangers defeated the Pittsburgh Pirates in the quarter-finals total-goals series 6–4.
The Rangers then defeated the Boston Bruins in the semi-finals total-goals series 5–2 to reach the Final.
The Maroons then defeated the Montreal Canadiens in the semi-finals total-goals series 3–2 to reach the Final.
The series had to be played in Montreal, as the circus had taken over New York's Madison Square Garden.
The Rangers lost their goalie Lorne Chabot to eye injury in the second game. Although goaltenders Alex Connell and Hugh McCormick were in the stands, the Maroons refused to allow the Rangers to use either goalie. In one of the most famous incidents in hockey history, 44-year-old coach Lester Patrick took over with the recorded words "Boys, don't let an old man down," and his efforts inspired the Rangers to a 2–1 victory in overtime. Patrick became the oldest man to play in the Stanley Cup finals (44 years-3 months-10 days old), a record which remains unsurpassed to this day. (Chris Chelios in 2008 at the age of 46 became the oldest player with his name on the cup though he did not log any ice time in the final.)
For the following matches, the Rangers hired New York Americans goalie Joe Miller, who won two games including a shutout. Miller was available to all NHL teams as a backup after the Americans had put him on waivers. The Boston Bruins had claimed him on waivers, but he was made available to any NHL team. At the time of the Final, Miller had not played in four weeks, and was home in Ottawa. Miller was cut and suffered two black eyes in game five, but hung on for a 2–1 victory.
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