1990–91 Minnesota North Stars season

1990–91 Minnesota North Stars
Campbell Conference champions
Division4th Norris
Conference7th Campbell
1990–91 record27–39–14
Home record19–15–6
Road record8–24–8
Goals for256
Goals against266
Team information
General managerBob Clarke
CoachBob Gainey
CaptainCurt Giles
Alternate captainsNeal Broten
Dave Gagner
Basil McRae
ArenaMet Center
Team leaders
GoalsDave Gagner (40)
AssistsNeal Broten (56)
PointsDave Gagner (82)
Penalty minutesShane Churla (286)
Plus/minusJim Johnson and Dave Gagner (+9)
WinsJon Casey (21)
Goals against averageJon Casey (2.98)

The 1990–91 Minnesota North Stars season was the North Stars' 24th season. The most striking aspect of the season was that despite qualifying for the playoffs with an under–.500 (or "losing") regular-season record, the team reached the 1991 Stanley Cup Finals as the Clarence Campbell Conference champions. Minnesota had beaten Chicago and St. Louis (each in six games), teams that had finished nearly 40 points ahead of them in the regular season, before becoming the first Norris Division team to reach the Stanley Cup Finals since the league had re-aligned a decade earlier when they eliminated the defending Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers in five games — a classic "Cinderella" postseason. The North Stars finally saw their playoff run end in game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins 8–0 in front of their home fans in the Met Center.

Off-season

Weeks after their first-round loss to the Chicago Blackhawks, owners George and Gordon Gund sold the North Stars to a consortium led by Howard Baldwin, in exchange for purchasing the expansion franchise that would become the San Jose Sharks. Baldwin and his partners Morris Belzberg and Norman Green agreed to continue operating the North Stars in the Met Center, while opening negotiations with the owners of the NBA's Minnesota Timberwolves for an opportunity to invest in the team, or possibly share the Wolves' upcoming arena in the future.[1]

NHL Draft

Round Pick Player Nationality College/junior/club team
1 8 Derian Hatcher (D)  United States North Bay Centennials (OHL)
3 50 Laurie Billeck (D)  Canada Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
4 70 Cal McGowan (C)  United States Kamloops Blazers (WHL)
4 71 Frank Kovacs (LW)  Canada Regina Pats (WHL)
5 92 Enrico Ciccone (D)  Canada Trois-Rivieres Draveurs (QMJHL)
6 113 Roman Turek (G)  Czechoslovakia Motor Ceske Budejovice (Czechoslovakia)
7 134 Jeff Levy (G)  United States Rochester Mustangs (USHL)
8 155 Doug Barrault (RW)  Canada Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
9 176 Joe Biondi (C)  United States University of Minnesota Duluth (WCHA)
10 197 Troy Binnie (LW)  Canada Ottawa 67's (OHL)
11 218 Ole Eskild Dahlstrom (C)  Norway Furuset (Norway)
12 239 J. P. McKersie (G)  United States Madison West High School (USHS-WI)
S 13 Rod Houk (G)  Canada University of Regina (CWUAA)

Regular season

Final standings

Norris Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Chicago Blackhawks 80 49 23 8 284 211 106
St. Louis Blues 80 47 22 11 310 250 105
Detroit Red Wings 80 34 38 8 273 298 76
80 27 39 14 256 266 68
Toronto Maple Leafs 80 23 46 11 241 318 57

[2]Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Campbell Conference[3]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 p – Chicago Blackhawks NRS 80 49 23 8 284 211 106
2 St. Louis Blues NRS 80 47 22 11 310 250 105
3 Los Angeles Kings SMY 80 46 24 10 340 254 102
4 Calgary Flames SMY 80 46 26 8 344 263 100
5 Edmonton Oilers SMY 80 37 37 6 272 272 80
6 Detroit Red Wings NRS 80 34 38 8 273 298 76
7 NRS 80 27 39 14 256 266 68
8 Vancouver Canucks SMY 80 28 43 9 243 315 65
9 Winnipeg Jets SMY 80 26 43 11 260 288 63
10 Toronto Maple Leafs NRS 80 23 46 11 241 318 57

Divisions: NRS – Norris, SMY – Smythe

bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents' Trophy


Schedule and results

1990–91 regular season[4]
October
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
1 L October 4, 1990 2–3 St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 0–1–0
2 W October 6, 1990 4–2 New York Islanders (1990–91) 1–1–0
4 L October 9, 1990 2–5 @ New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 1–3–0
5 T October 11, 1990 3–3 OT Boston Bruins (1990–91) 1–3–1
6 L October 13, 1990 1–4 Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 1–4–1
7 L October 17, 1990 2–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1990–91) 1–5–1
8 T October 20, 1990 2–2 OT @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 1–5–2
9 L October 21, 1990 1–7 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 1–6–2
10 W October 24, 1990 3–0 Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 2–6–2
11 L October 26, 1990 6–8 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 2–7–2
12 T October 27, 1990 2–2 OT Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 2–7–3
13 L October 30, 1990 4–5 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 2–8–3
November
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
14 L November 1, 1990 3–6 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 2–9–3
15 W November 3, 1990 2–0 @ Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 3–9–3
16 T November 4, 1990 2–2 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 3–9–4
17 W November 8, 1990 3–2 Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 4–9–4
18 L November 10, 1990 2–3 OT Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 4–10–4
19 L November 13, 1990 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 4–11–4
20 L November 15, 1990 2–4 New York Rangers (1990–91) 4–12–4
21 L November 17, 1990 2–3 St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 4–13–4
22 T November 19, 1990 2–2 OT @ New York Rangers (1990–91) 4–13–5
23 L November 21, 1990 3–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 4–14–5
24 W November 23, 1990 6–4 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 5–14–5
25 L November 24, 1990 3–5 New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 5–15–5
26 T November 27, 1990 1–1 OT @ Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 5–15–6
27 W November 30, 1990 4–2 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 6–15–6
December
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
28 W December 1, 1990 6–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 7–15–6
29 W December 5, 1990 3–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 8–15–6
30 L December 6, 1990 1–2 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 8–16–6
31 W December 8, 1990 7–0 Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 9–16–6
32 L December 11, 1990 4–5 Calgary Flames (1990–91) 9–17–6
33 L December 13, 1990 2–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 9–18–6
34 W December 15, 1990 5–1 Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 10–18–6
35 L December 16, 1990 2–5 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 10–19–6
36 L December 20, 1990 3–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1990–91) 10–20–6
37 L December 22, 1990 2–6 @ Boston Bruins (1990–91) 10–21–6
38 W December 23, 1990 5–2 @ Hartford Whalers (1990–91) 11–21–6
39 L December 26, 1990 4–6 Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 11–22–6
40 T December 29, 1990 4–4 OT Boston Bruins (1990–91) 11–22–7
41 L December 31, 1990 2–4 Los Angeles Kings (1990–91) 11–23–7
January
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
42 L January 2, 1991 2–6 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 11–24–7
43 T January 3, 1991 3–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 11–24–8
44 L January 5, 1991 5–6 Vancouver Canucks (1990–91) 11–25–8
45 W January 8, 1991 3–0 @ New York Islanders (1990–91) 12–25–8
46 L January 12, 1991 3–5 Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 12–26–8
47 L January 13, 1991 3–5 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 12–27–8
48 L January 15, 1991 1–5 Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 12–28–8
49 W January 17, 1991 5–2 Washington Capitals (1990–91) 13–28–8
50 L January 21, 1991 0–2 @ Winnipeg Jets (1990–91) 13–29–8
51 W January 22, 1991 7–3 St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 14–29–8
52 T January 25, 1991 2–2 OT @ Washington Capitals (1990–91) 14–29–9
53 W January 26, 1991 3–1 @ New Jersey Devils (1990–91) 15–29–9
54 L January 28, 1991 0–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 15–30–9
55 W January 30, 1991 5–2 Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 16–30–9
February
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
56 W February 2, 1991 6–4 @ Quebec Nordiques (1990–91) 17–30–9
57 L February 4, 1991 3–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1990–91) 17–31–9
58 W February 7, 1991 4–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 18–31–9
59 W February 9, 1991 6–5 Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 19–31–9
60 L February 12, 1991 4–5 @ New York Islanders (1990–91) 19–32–9
61 T February 13, 1991 6–6 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 19–32–10
62 W February 16, 1991 3–0 @ Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 20–32–10
63 W February 20, 1991 5–1 Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 21–32–10
64 T February 23, 1991 3–3 OT Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 21–32–11
65 T February 26, 1991 2–2 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1990–91) 21–32–12
March
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record
66 T March 1, 1991 1–1 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 21–32–13
67 L March 2, 1991 1–5 @ Calgary Flames (1990–91) 21–33–13
68 W March 6, 1991 5–1 Edmonton Oilers (1990–91) 22–33–13
69 W March 9, 1991 6–2 Detroit Red Wings (1990–91) 23–33–13
70 W March 10, 1991 7–3 Calgary Flames (1990–91) 24–33–13
71 W March 12, 1991 5–2 Buffalo Sabres (1990–91) 25–33–13
72 T March 14, 1991 2–2 OT @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 25–33–14
73 L March 16, 1991 3–4 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 25–34–14
74 W March 17, 1991 4–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1990–91) 26–34–14
75 L March 22, 1991 1–3 @ Washington Capitals (1990–91) 26–35–14
76 L March 24, 1991 4–5 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 26–36–14
77 L March 25, 1991 4–5 St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 26–37–14
78 L March 28, 1991 5–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1990–91) 26–38–14
79 W March 30, 1991 2–1 Chicago Blackhawks (1990–91) 27–38–14
80 L March 31, 1991 1–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1990–91) 27–39–14

Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Skaters

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

Regular season Playoffs
Player # GP G A Pts PIM GP G A Pts PIM
Dave Gagner 15 73 40 42 82 114 23 12 15 27 28
Brian Bellows 23 80 35 40 75 43 23 10 19 29 30
Brian Propp 16 79 26 47 73 58 23 8 15 23 28
Neal Broten 7 79 13 56 69 26 23 9 13 22 6
Mike Modano 9 79 28 36 64 61 23 8 12 20 16
Bobby Smith 18 73 15 31 46 60 23 8 8 16 56
Ulf Dahlen 22 66 21 18 39 6 15 2 6 8 4
Mark Tinordi 24 69 5 27 32 189 23 5 6 11 78
Doug Smail 14 57 7 13 20 38 1 0 0 0 0
Brian Glynn 6 66 8 11 19 83 23 2 6 8 18
Gaetan Duchesne 10 68 9 9 18 18 23 2 3 5 34
Perry Berezan 21 52 11 6 17 30 1 0 0 0 0
Ilkka Sinisalo - 46 5 12 17 24 - - - - -
Larry Murphy - 31 4 11 15 38 - - - - -
Curt Giles 2 70 4 10 14 48 10 1 0 1 16
Mike Craig 20 39 8 4 12 32 10 1 1 2 20
Neil Wilkinson 5 50 2 9 11 117 22 3 3 6 12
Jim Johnson 8 44 1 9 10 100 14 0 1 1 52
Stewart Gavin 12 38 4 4 8 36 21 3 10 13 20
Chris Dahlquist 4 42 2 6 8 33 23 1 6 7 20
Marc Bureau 11 9 0 6 6 4 23 3 2 5 20
Rob Zettler 3 47 1 4 5 119 - - - - -
Shane Churla 27 40 2 2 4 286 22 2 1 3 90
Shawn Chambers 26 29 1 3 4 24 23 0 7 7 16
Basil McRae 17 40 1 3 4 224 22 1 1 2 94
Larry DePalma 31 14 3 0 3 26 - - - - -
Frank Musil - 8 0 2 2 23 - - - - -
Warren Babe 29 1 0 1 1 0 - - - - -
Pat MacLeod 32 1 0 1 1 0 - - - - -
Dan Keczmer 46 9 0 1 1 6 - - - - -
Peter Taglianetti - 16 0 1 1 14 - - - - -
Steve Gotaas 34 1 0 0 0 2 - - - - -
Mitch Messier 37 2 0 0 0 0 - - - - -
Kevin Evans 44 4 0 0 0 19 - - - - -
Dean Kolstad 40 5 0 0 0 15 - - - - -
Mike McHugh 45 6 0 0 0 0 - - - - -
Don Barber - 7 0 0 0 4 - - - - -

Goaltending

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

Player GP MIN W L T SO GAA
Jon Casey 55 3185 21 20 11 3 2.98
Brian Hayward 26 1473 6 15 3 2 3.14
Jarmo Myllys 2 78 0 2 0 0 6.15
Kari Takko 2 119 0 2 0 0 6.05

Playoffs

Norris Division Semi-Finals

Chicago vs. Minnesota
Date Away Home
April 4 Minnesota 4 3 Chicago OT
April 6 Minnesota 2 5 Chicago
April 8 Chicago 6 5 Minnesota
April 10 Chicago 1 3 Minnesota
April 12 Minnesota 6 0 Chicago
April 14 Chicago 1 3 Minnesota
Minnesota wins series 4–2

Norris Division Finals

St. Louis vs. Minnesota
Date Away Home
April 18 Minnesota 2 1 St. Louis
April 20 Minnesota 2 5 St. Louis
April 22 St. Louis 1 5 Minnesota
April 24 St. Louis 4 8 Minnesota
April 26 Minnesota 2 4 St. Louis
April 28 St. Louis 2 3 Minnesota
Minnesota wins series 4–2

Campbell Conference Finals

Campbell Conference
Edmonton vs. Minnesota
Date Away Home
May 2 Minnesota 3 1 Edmonton
May 4 Minnesota 2 7 Edmonton
May 6 Edmonton 3 7 Minnesota
May 8 Edmonton 1 5 Minnesota
May 10 Minnesota 3 2 Edmonton
Minnesota wins series 4–1 and
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl

Stanley Cup Finals

Pittsburgh Penguins vs. Minnesota North Stars

Date Away Score Home Score Notes
May 15 Minnesota North Stars 5 Pittsburgh Penguins 4
May 17 Minnesota North Stars 1 Pittsburgh Penguins 4
May 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 1 Minnesota North Stars 3
May 21 Pittsburgh Penguins 5 Minnesota North Stars 3
May 23 Minnesota North Stars 4 Pittsburgh Penguins 6
May 25 Pittsburgh Penguins 8 Minnesota North Stars 0

Pittsburgh wins best-of-seven series 4–2

Awards and records

  • Clarence S. Campbell Bowl

Transactions

Trades

October 26, 1990 To Minnesota North Stars
Brian Glynn 		To Calgary Flames
Frank Musil
November 1990 To Minnesota North Stars
Brian Hayward[5] 		To Montreal Canadiens
Jayson More

References

  1. ^ "Deal Will Keep North Stars in Minnesota". Los Angeles Times. Associated Press. May 3, 1990. Retrieved December 29, 2022.
  2. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  3. ^ "1990-1991 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  4. ^ "1990-91 Minnesota North Stars Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved March 26, 2025.
  5. ^ Patrick Roy, winning, nothing else, p.278, by Michel Roy, translated by Charles Phillips, 2008, John Wiley & Sons, Mississauga, ON, ISBN 978-0-470-15616-2
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