This Day in Hockey History
1999 - Hull scores Cup-winning goal in the crease
Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Final between the Buffalo Sabres and Dallas Stars, both of which are gunning for their first NHL championship, heads to triple overtime, with the latter leading 3-2 in the series.
Near the end of the frame, Brett Hull finds his way to the front of the net, attempting to deflect the puck past Dominik Hasek. A Buffalo defenseman moves in to clear Hull away from the crease, but is entirely unsuccessful.
Hull then manages to track down the loose puck and sweeps it into the net, ending the game after 114 minutes and 51 seconds of play and giving his team the Cup victory.
Controversy ensues after it became apparent that Hull's left skate was in the crease, potentially violating a rule that prohibited a player from having any part of his body in the attacking crease without possession of the puck; goals scored as a result from this violation would subsequently be waved off.
As per The Hockey News, the rule had been changed to allow for a skate to be in the crease.
Hull's foot was in the crease as he fired a rebound past Buffalo's Dominik Hasek in triple overtime of Game 6. Many thought that was a no-no, unaware the league had circulated a private memo earlier that season clarifying a skate could be in the crease if the player was in control of the puck.
As a result, the goal stood. Some fans of the Sabres still believe it shouldn't have.
"We all knew that they had changed the rule," Hull said. "But obviously the NHL decided they weren't going to tell anybody but the teams ... They changed the rule to say if you have control in the crease, you can score the goal, and that's exactly what it was.
"But nobody knows that. You can tell people that a million times and they just will not listen."
Ed Belfour stopped 53 of 54 shots in the win, and Joe Nieuwendyk is awarded the Conn Smythe trophy after recording 11 goals and ten assists in 23 playoff games.
2006 - Hurricanes win 1st Cup after lost season
The Carolina Hurricanes become the first team to raise the Stanley Cup after a lockout wiped out the entire 2004-05 NHL season, defeating the Edmonton Oilers 3-1 in Game 7 off the 2006 Stanley Cup Final.
Aaron Ward, Frantisek Kaberle and Justin Williams (of course) score for the Hurricanes, and Cam Ward stops 22 of 23 shots - finishing the playoffs with a .920 save percentage - and becomes the second rookie goaltender to win a Stanley Cup Final series and the Conn Smythe Trophy.
Birthdays
1947 - Walt McKechnie
1954 - Jim Corsi
1958 - Sergei Makarov
1982 - Alex Frolov