Twenty Years Later: Penguins 7, Whalers 3 - 10-17-12
Twenty Years Later" is a segment with a highly unimaginative name which will appear on Empty Netters throughout the 2012-13 season. We will examine the Penguins' 1992-93 season which led to the only President's Trophy in franchise history. The 1992-93 squad is commonly regarded as the most talented in the history of the Penguins. We will look back on games on the date they happened.
Today, we look at the Penguins' 7-2 win against the Whalers, Oct. 17, 1992.
The Penguins extended their unbeaten streak to six games at the Hartford Civic Center. At 7:56 into the contest, Penguins left winger Kevin Stevens opened the scoring with a power-play goal off a backhander from the slot against goaltender Sean Burke. Former Whalers center Ron Francis and defenseman Larry Murphy netted assists.
The Penguins took a 2-0 lead at 12:50 when Stevens scored another power play goal off assists from right winger Jaromir Jagr and Murphy.
A goal by center Mario Lemieux at 16:15 made it a 3-0 game. Goaltender Tom Barrasso recorded the only assist.
Shortly after that, Right winger Shawn McEachern scored at 16:53 with a wrister to put the Penguins up, 4-0. Francis and Jagr were given credit for assists.
The Whalers got their first goal just 1:27 into the second period when center Murray Craven scored off assists from right winger Pat Verbeek and center Andrew Cassels.
Stevens completed his hat trick at the 8:20 mark on another power play with a goal against former Penguins goaltender Frank Pietrangelo. Lemieux and Jagr had assists.
Just over a minute later at 9:40, Stevens scored his fourth goal of the game. It was an unassisted score.
Former Penguins center John Cullen scored on a power-play at 16:31 to make it a 6-2 game. Assists went to ex-Penguins defenseman Zarley Zalapski and Cassels.
Another former Penguin, left winger Randy Cunneyworth, scored at 4:07 of the third period to make the score 6-3. Cassels and Verbeek were credited with assists.
Right winger Rick Tocchet scored the game's final goal for the Penguins at 8:26 on a power play. Stevens and Francis had assists.
Notes:
-Barrasso made 28 saves in the victory.
-The three stars were 1.) Stevens 2.) Jagr 3.) Francis.
-Stevens' four goals were a career best and his hat trick was the seventh of his career.
-Burke replaced Pietrangelo at 3:10 of the third period.
-At 1-5-0, the Whalers were off to the worst start in franchise history since joining the NHL in 1979.
Patrick Division standings:
| Record | Points | |
| Penguins | 4-0-2 | 10 |
| Devils | 4-2-0 | 8 |
| Rangers | 3-2-0 | 6 |
| Capitals | 3-3-0 | 6 |
| Islanders | 2-2-1 | 5 |
| Flyers | 2-3-1 | 5 |
Statistics:
| Player Position |
Games Played |
Goals | Assists | Points |
| Mario Lemieux, C | 6 | 7 | 12 | 19 |
| Kevin Stevens, LW | 6 | 9 | 7 | 16 |
| Jaromir Jagr, RW | 6 | 4 | 7 | 11 |
| Ron Francis, C | 6 | 1 | 8 | 9 |
| Rick Tocchet, RW | 4 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Shawn McEachern, LW | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Larry Murphy, D | 6 | 3 | 3 | 6 |
| Bryan Fogarty, D | 3 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| Paul Stanton, D | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 |
| Kjell Samuelsson, D | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Ulf Samuelsson, D | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| Mike Needham, RW | 5 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| Grant Jennings, D | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Troy Loney, LW | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| Jay Caufield, RW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jamie Leach, RW | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Mike Stapleton, C | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jeff Daniels, LW | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Jim Paek, D | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Dave Tippett, C | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Also in the news that day:
-Running back Lyron Brooks rushed for two touchdowns and helped Pitt defeat Temple, 27-20, at Veterans Stadium in Philadelphia.
-Wide receiver O.J. McDuffie had 11 catches for 212 yards and a touchdown for No. 9 Penn State which fell to No. 20 Boston College, 35-32, at Beaver Stadium in State College.
-Running back Adrian Murrell ran for 84 yards and two touchdowns for No. 24 West Virginia which lost to No. 14 Syracuse, 20-17, at Mountaineer Field in Morgantown, W.Va.
-Pitcher Tom Glavine allowed one earned run over nine innings for the Braves who defeated the Blue Jays, 3-1, in Game 1 of the World Series at Atlanta-Fulton County Stadium.
(Photo: Penguins Hockey Cards)