1999 Stanley Cup Final

The 1999 Stanley Cup Final was the championship series of the National Hockey League's (NHL) 1998–99 season, and the culmination of the 1999 Stanley Cup playoffs. It was contested by the Eastern Conference champion Buffalo Sabres and the Western Conference champion Dallas Stars. It was the 106th year of the Stanley Cup being contested.

1999 Stanley Cup Final
1 2 3 4 5 6 Total Dallas Stars 2* 4 2 1 2 2*** 4 Buffalo Sabres 3* 2 1 2 0 1*** 2
* indicates periods of overtime
Location(s)	Dallas: Reunion Arena (1, 2, 5) Buffalo: Marine Midland Arena (3, 4, 6)
Coaches	Dallas: Ken Hitchcock Buffalo: Lindy Ruff
Captains	Dallas: Derian Hatcher Buffalo: Michael Peca
Referees	Terry Gregson (1, 3, 6) Bill McCreary (1, 4, 6) Kerry Fraser (2, 4) Dan Marouelli (2, 5) Don Koharski (3, 5)
Dates	June 8–19, 1999
MVP	Joe Nieuwendyk (Stars)
Series-winning goal	Brett Hull (14:51, 3OT, G6)
Hall of Famers	Stars: Ed Belfour (2011) Guy Carbonneau (2019) Brett Hull (2009) Mike Modano (2014) Joe Nieuwendyk (2011) Sergei Zubov (2019) Sabres: Dominik Hasek (2014) Coaches: Ken Hitchcock (2023) Officials: Bill McCreary (2014)
Networks	Canada: (English): CBC (French): SRC United States: (English): Fox (1–2, 5), ESPN (3–4, 6)
Announcers	(CBC) Bob Cole and Harry Neale (SRC) Claude Quenneville and Michel Bergeron (Fox) Mike Emrick and John Davidson (ESPN) Gary Thorne and Bill Clement
← 1998 Stanley Cup Final 2000 →

The Sabres were led by captain Michael Peca, head coach Lindy Ruff and goaltender Dominik Hasek. The Stars were led by captain Derian Hatcher, head coach Ken Hitchcock and goaltender Ed Belfour. The Stars defeated the Sabres in six games to win their first Stanley Cup, becoming the eighth post-1967 expansion team to earn a championship, and the first team based in the Southern United States to win the Cup.

The series ended with a controversial triple-overtime goal in game six, when replays showed that Stars forward Brett Hull scored with his skate in the crease. Although the Sabres protested later, the league stated that the goal had been reviewed and was judged as a good goal, since Hull had maintained possession of the puck as it exited the crease just before he shot it.

Background

Further information: 1999 Stanley Cup playoffs

See also: 1998–99 Buffalo Sabres season and 1998–99 Dallas Stars season

This was the third meeting between teams from Dallas and Buffalo for a major professional sports championship. This previously occurred in two Super Bowls in 1993 and 1994.^[1]

Buffalo Sabres

Buffalo entered the playoffs as the seventh seed in the Eastern Conference. They first swept the second seeded Ottawa Senators, then defeated the sixth seeded Boston Bruins in six games, and then defeated the fourth seeded Toronto Maple Leafs in five games to advance to the Finals. This was Buffalo's first Stanley Cup Final appearance since 1975, in which they fell to the Philadelphia Flyers in six games. The Sabres also became the second seventh seeded team to reach the Finals after the Vancouver Canucks did so in 1994.

Dallas Stars

Dallas entered the playoffs as the Presidents' Trophy winner for the second consecutive season as they clinched the best record in the NHL once again. They swept the eighth seeded Edmonton Oilers, then defeated the fifth seeded St. Louis Blues in six games, and the second seeded Colorado Avalanche in seven games to advance to the Finals. The Stars became the first team from the Deep South to win the Stanley Cup Final.

Game summaries

June 8	Buffalo Sabres		3–2	OT	Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			10:17 – pp – Brett Hull (6)
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Stu Barnes (5) – 08:33 Wayne Primeau (3) – pp – 13:37		Third period			19:11 – Jere Lehtinen (8)
Jason Woolley (4) – 15:30		First overtime period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 37 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 21 saves / 24 shots

June 10	Buffalo Sabres		2–4		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Michael Peca (5) – pp – 07:27		Second period			18:26 – Jamie Langenbrunner (10)
Alexei Zhitnik (4) – pp – 05:36		Third period			04:25 – Craig Ludwig (1) 17:10 – Brett Hull (7) 19:34 – en – Derian Hatcher (1)
Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 19 saves / 21 shots

June 12	Dallas Stars		2–1		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Joe Nieuwendyk (10) – 15:33		Second period			07:51 – Stu Barnes (6)
Joe Nieuwendyk (11) – 09:35		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 11 saves / 12 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 27 shots / 29 saves

June 15	Dallas Stars		1–2		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Jere Lehtinen (9) – pp – 10:14		First period			08:09 – Geoff Sanderson (4)
No scoring		Second period			07:37 – Dixon Ward (7)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 16 saves / 18 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 30 saves / 31 shots

June 17	Buffalo Sabres		0–2		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			02:23 – pp – Darryl Sydor (3)
No scoring		Third period			15:21 – Pat Verbeek (3)
Dominik Hasek 19 saves / 21 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 23 saves / 23 shots

June 19	Dallas Stars		2–1	3OT	Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Jere Lehtinen (10) – 08:09		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			18:21 – Stu Barnes (7)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Brett Hull (8) – 14:51		Third overtime period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 53 saves / 54 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 48 saves / 50 shots

Dallas won series 4–2

Game 1

June 8	Buffalo Sabres		3–2	OT	Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			10:17 – Hull (Modano, Lehtinen) PP
No scoring		Second period			No scoring
Barnes (Juneau, Smehlik) – 08:33 Primeau (Zhitnik, Smehlik) PP – 13:37		Third period			19:11 – Lehtinen (Modano, Zubov)
Woolley (Brown) – 15:30		First overtime period			No scoring
Dominik Hasek 35 saves / 37 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 21 saves / 24 shots

The opening game was in Dallas and it was the visiting Buffalo Sabres who struck first, winning 3–2 in overtime. Dallas led 1–0 on a power play goal by Brett Hull, but Stu Barnes and Wayne Primeau scored 5:04 apart in the third to give Buffalo a 2–1 lead. Jere Lehtinen tied the game in the final minute of the third period, but Jason Woolley scored at 15:30 of overtime to give the Sabres the series lead.

Game 2

June 10	Buffalo Sabres		2–4		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Peca (Woolley, Satan) PP – 07:22		Second period			18:26 – Langenbrunner (Matvichuk, Nieuwendyk)
Zhitnik PP – 05:36		Third period			04:25 – Ludwig (Skrudland) 17:10 – Hull (Hrkac, Chambers) 19:34 – Hatcher (Zubov) EN
Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 30 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 19 saves / 21 shots

With three seconds left in the period, Dallas center Mike Modano tripped Buffalo goaltender Dominik Hasek, and a number of scrums broke out as time expired. Dallas winger Joe Nieuwendyk fought Buffalo center Brian Holzinger in the circle to the right of Hasek. These were the first fighting majors in three years in the final round, and it was also Nieuwendyk's first fighting major in five years in either the playoffs or regular season.

After the scoreless opening period, the teams traded goals in the middle frame. Craig Ludwig's first goal in 102 playoff games gave Dallas its first lead of the game in the third period, but Alexei Zhitnik tied it 71 seconds later. Brett Hull scored on a slap shot, a one-timer on a pass from Tony Hrkac, from the top of the circle to Hasek's left with 2:50 remaining in the game, but Buffalo had an excellent chance to tie the game with Derian Hatcher being assessed a high-sticking minor 19 seconds later. During the power play, Buffalo pulled Hasek for a 6-on-4 attacking advantage, but the Stars were able to kill the penalty, and Hatcher scored an empty-netter just three seconds after emerging from the penalty box. The empty net goal sealed the win for Dallas, and evened the series at one game apiece. Mike Modano left the game with approximately ten minutes to play after suffering a broken wrist.

Game 3

June 12	Dallas Stars		2–1		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
Nieuwendyk (Reid, Langenbrunner) – 15:33		Second period			07:51 – Barnes (Smehlik, Holzinger)
Nieuwendyk (Langenbrunner, Reid) – 09:35		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 11 saves / 12 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 27 saves / 29 shots

The series shifted to Buffalo for games three and four. It was the visiting Dallas Stars turn to win one on the road, winning 2–1. With Modano hampered by his wrist injury, and Hull leaving the game with a groin injury, Joe Nieuwendyk's two goals, including his sixth game-winner of the playoffs, led Dallas to the win.

Game 4

June 15	Dallas Stars		1–2		Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Lehtinen (Modano, Hatcher) PP – 10:14		First period			08:09 – Sanderson
No scoring		Second period			07:37 – Ward
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 16 saves / 18 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 30 saves / 31 shots

Facing a two games to one deficit in the series, the Sabres came through with a 2–1 victory on Dixon Ward's game-winning goal in the second period.

Game 5

June 17	Buffalo Sabres		0–2		Dallas Stars	Reunion Arena	Recap
No scoring		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			02:23 – Sydor (Modano, Zubov) PP
No scoring		Third period			15:21 – Verbeek (Matvichuk, Modano)
Dominik Hasek 19 saves / 21 shots		Goalie stats			Ed Belfour 23 saves / 23 shots

With the series tied at two games apiece and returning to Dallas, Ed Belfour made 23 saves to shut out the Sabres, and move Dallas within one win of the Stanley Cup.

Game 6

June 19	Dallas Stars		2–1	3OT	Buffalo Sabres	Marine Midland Arena	Recap
Lehtinen (Modano, Ludwig) – 08:09		First period			No scoring
No scoring		Second period			18:21 – Barnes (Primeau, Zhitnik)
No scoring		Third period			No scoring
Hull (Lehtinen, Modano) – 14:51		Third overtime period			No scoring
Ed Belfour 53 saves / 54 shots		Goalie stats			Dominik Hasek 48 saves / 50 shots

The series shifted back to Marine Midland Arena for Game 6, where the Dallas Stars would seek their first Stanley Cup, while the Buffalo Sabres would fight for a win to extend the series to a seventh and final game.

Dallas, which allowed the first goal in the earlier two games played at Marine Midland Arena, took a 1–0 lead on one of its few scoring chances in the first period when Lehtinen scored his tenth goal of the playoffs at 8:09. The Sabres tied the game with their first goal since the third period of game four when Barnes' wrist shot eluded Belfour with 1:39 to play in the second period.

The game remained tied at one through the third period and the first two overtime periods, despite several chances by both teams to score. At 14:51 of the third overtime period, Brett Hull scored to end the series and win Dallas their first Stanley Cup. Joe Nieuwendyk was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player in the playoffs.

It was the longest Cup-winning game in Finals history, and the second-longest Finals game overall, after game one of the 1990 Stanley Cup Final, which ended at 15:13 of the third overtime.

Hull's series-ending goal

In the third overtime, Jere Lehtinen took a shot from the left circle that was stopped by Dominik Hasek.^[2] Brett Hull was not in the crease for the first shot. The rebound came near Hull's left skate, which Hull used to kick the puck to his stick, which was just outside the crease. His left skate entered the crease just before his second shot went in and ended the series.^[3]

None of the Sabres players or coaches questioned the legality of the goal in the immediate aftermath. It was not until league commissioner Gary Bettman was on the ice to hand out the trophies that Buffalo coach Lindy Ruff returned to his bench and began screaming at Bettman to explain why the goal had not been reviewed. In the Sabres' locker room, players who had seen the replays were infuriated. Hasek recalled, "My first reaction was 'Let's get back on the ice.' But it's 2 o'clock in the morning and I look at everyone and it's like, 'I'm already out of my pants. It's impossible.'"^[4]

The NHL had sent a private memo out earlier in the season with a clarification to the in-the-crease rule. The memo stated that if a player was in control of the puck, a skate could be in the crease even if the puck was not, and a goal in that circumstance would count.^[5] NHL Director of Officiating Bryan Lewis said after the game that the goal had been reviewed, just as every goal that season had been, and the officials in the video review booth had determined that since Hull was deemed to have been in possession of the puck throughout the play, he was allowed to shoot and score a goal, even though one skate had entered the crease before the puck.^[6]

Among Sabres fans, both the game and the play itself are often simply referred to as "No Goal".^[7][8][9]

Team rosters

Bolded years under Finals appearance indicates year won Stanley Cup.

Dallas Stars

#	Nat	Player	Position	Hand	Acquired	Place of birth	Finals appearance
1		Roman Turek	G	R	1990	Strakonice, Czechoslovakia	first
20		Ed Belfour	G	L	1997–98	Carman, Manitoba	second (1992)
2		Derian Hatcher – C	D	L	1990	Sterling Heights, Michigan	first
3		Craig Ludwig – A	D	L	1991–92	Rhinelander, Wisconsin	third (1986, 1989)
5		Darryl Sydor	D	L	1995–96	Edmonton, Alberta	second (1993)
24		Richard Matvichuk	D	L	1991	Edmonton, Alberta	first
27		Shawn Chambers	D	L	1995–96	Royal Oak, Michigan	third (1991, 1995)
17		Brent Severyn	D	L	1998–99	Vegreville, Alberta	first (did not play)
56		Sergei Zubov – A	D	R	1996–97	Moscow, Soviet Union	second (1994)
9		Mike Modano – A	C	L	1988	Livonia, Michigan	second (1991)
10		Brian Skrudland	C	L	1997–98	Peace River, Alberta	fourth (1986, 1989, 1996)
11		Blake Sloan	RW	R	1998–99	Park Ridge, Illinois	first
12		Mike Keane	RW	R	1997–98	Winnipeg, Manitoba	fourth (1989, 1993, 1996)
14		Dave Reid	LW	L	1996–97	Toronto, Ontario	first
15		Jamie Langenbrunner	RW	R	1993	Cloquet, Minnesota	first
16		Pat Verbeek	RW	R	1996–97	Sarnia, Ontario	first
18		Derek Plante	C	L	1998–99	Cloquet, Minnesota	first (did not play)
21		Guy Carbonneau	C	R	1995–96	Sept-Îles, Quebec	fourth (1986, 1989, 1993)
22		Brett Hull	RW	R	1998–99	Belleville, Ontario	second (1986)
25		Joe Nieuwendyk – A	C	L	1995–96	Oshawa, Ontario	second (1989)
26		Jere Lehtinen	RW	R	1992	Espoo, Finland	first
29		Grant Marshall	RW	R	1994–95	Port Credit, Ontario	first (did not play)
33		Benoit Hogue	LW	L	1998–99	Repentigny, Quebec	first
41		Tony Hrkac	C/LW	L	1998–99	Thunder Bay, Ontario	second (1992)
49		Jon Sim	LW	L	1996	New Glasgow, Nova Scotia	first

Buffalo Sabres

#	Nat	Player	Position	Hand	Acquired	Place of birth	Finals appearance
30		Dwayne Roloson	G	L	1998–99	Simcoe, Ontario	first (did not play)
39		Dominik Hasek	G	L	1992–93	Pardubice, Czechoslovakia	second (1992)
3		James Patrick – A	D	R	1998–99	Winnipeg, Manitoba	first
4		Rhett Warrener	D	R	1998–99	Shaunavon, Saskatchewan	second (1996)
5		Jason Woolley	D	L	1994–95	Toronto, Ontario	second (1996)
8		Darryl Shannon	D	L	1995–96	Barrie, Ontario	first
42		Richard Smehlik	D	L	1990	Ostrava, Czechoslovakia	first
44		Alexei Zhitnik	D	L	1994–95	Kyiv, Soviet Union	second (1993)
74		Jay McKee	D	L	1995	Kingston, Ontario	first
9		Erik Rasmussen	LW	L	1996	Minneapolis, Minnesota	first
15		Dixon Ward	RW	R	1995–96	Leduc, Alberta	first
17		Randy Cunneyworth	LW	L	1998–99	Etobicoke, Ontario	first
18		Michal Grosek	RW	R	1995–96	Vyškov, Czechoslovakia	first
19		Brian Holzinger	C	R	1991	Parma, Ohio	first
22		Wayne Primeau	C	L	1994	Scarborough, Ontario	first
24		Paul Kruse	LW	L	1997–98	Merritt, British Columbia	first
25		Vaclav Varada	RW	L	1993–94	Vsetín, Czechoslovakia	first
27		Michael Peca – C	C	R	1995–96	Toronto, Ontario	second (1994)
32		Rob Ray	RW	L	1988	Stirling, Ontario	first
37		Curtis Brown – A	C	L	1994	Unity, Saskatchewan	first
41		Stu Barnes	C	R	1998–99	Spruce Grove, Alberta	second (1996)
80		Geoff Sanderson	LW	L	1997–98	Hay River, Northwest Territories	first
81		Miroslav Satan	RW	L	1996–97	Jacovce, Czechoslovakia	first
90		Joe Juneau	C	L	1998–99	Pont-Rouge, Quebec	second (1998)

Stanley Cup engraving

The 1999 Stanley Cup was presented to Stars captain Derian Hatcher by NHL Commissioner Gary Bettman following the Stars 2–1 triple overtime win over the Sabres in game six.

1998–99 Dallas Stars

Players

  Centres

• 9 Mike Modano (A)
• 10 Brian Skrudland
• 18 Derek Plante ‡
• 21 Guy Carbonneau
• 25 Joe Nieuwendyk (A)
• 41 Tony Hrkac*
• 49 Jon Sim

  Wingers

• 11 Blake Sloan
• 12 Mike Keane
• 14 Dave Reid
• 15 Jamie Langenbrunner
• 16 Pat Verbeek
• 22 Brett Hull
• 26 Jere Lehtinen
• 29 Grant Marshall †
• 33 Benoit Hogue

  Defencemen

• 2 Derian Hatcher (C)
• 3 Craig Ludwig (A)
• 5 Darryl Sydor
• 17 Brent Severyn ‡
• 24 Richard Matvichuk
• 56 Sergei Zubov (A)
• 27 Shawn Chambers

  Goaltenders

• 1 Roman Turek
• 20 Ed Belfour

* Played both centre and wing.
† Did not play or dress in the Final.
‡ Did not automatically qualify,^[a] but an exemption was granted to engrave the player's name.

Coaching and administrative staff

• Thomas O. Hicks (Chairman/Owner/Governor), Jim Lites (President), Bob Gainey (Vice President/General Manager)
• Doug Armstrong (Asst. General Manager), Craig Button (Director of Player Personnel), Ken Hitchcock (Head Coach)
• Doug Jarvis (Asst. Coach), Rick Wilson (Asst. Coaches), Rick McLaughlin (Vice President-Chief Financial Officer), Jeff Cogen (Vice President-Marketing & Promotions)
• Bill Strong (Vice President-Marketing & Broadcasting), Tim Bernhardt (Director-Amateur Scouting), Doug Overton (Director-Pro Scouting)
• Bob Gernader (Chief Scout), Stu McGregor (Western Scout), Dave Suprenant (Medical Trainer)
• Dave Smith (Equipment Manager), Rick Matthews (Asst. Equipment Manager), Jean-Jacque McQueen (Strength-Conditioning Coach)
• Rick St. Croix (Goaltending Consultant), Dan Stuchal (Director of Team Services), Larry Kelly (Director of Public Relations)

Engraving notes

• #18 Derek Plante (C) played in 10 regular season games and 8 playoff games for Dallas, previously 41 regular season games for Buffalo. #17 Brent Severyn (D) played in 30 regular season games, missing 22 due to injuries. He spent the entire season with Dallas. They did not play (both healthy scratches) in the Final. As they did not automatically qualify,^[a] Dallas successfully requested an exemption to engrave their names.
• Mike Modano and Shawn Chambers were the only players on the roster that had played for the Minnesota North Stars. Chambers left the Stars in summer of 1991 for Washington. He joined Tampa Bay in summer of 1992. Chambers won the Stanley Cup first year in New Jersey in 1995, before rejoining the Stars in summer of 1997. Modano was part of the Stars franchise for the first 20 years of his NHL career.
• #37 Brad Lukowich (D – 14 regular season games and 8 playoff games) and #6 Doug Lidster (D – 7 regular season games and 4 playoff games) were on the roster during the Final, but left off the Stanley Cup engraving due to not qualifying.^[a] They were included in the team picture and received Stanley Cup rings.
• Leon Friedrich (Video Coordinator), Craig Lowery (Trainer Asst.), Doug Warner (Equipment Asst.) were left off the Stanley Cup engraving, but included in team picture and received Stanley Cup rings.

Broadcasting

In Canada, the series was televised on CBC. In the United States, this was fifth and final year in which coverage of the Cup Finals was split between Fox and ESPN. Fox aired games one, two, and five; while ESPN had games three, four, and six.^[10] Had there been a game seven, it would have aired on Fox. Under the U.S. TV contracts that would take effect beginning next season, ABC would take over for Fox as the NHL's network television partner.

See also

• 1998–99 NHL season
• 1999 Stanley Cup playoffs
• List of Stanley Cup champions

Notes

1. Automatic qualification for a player's name to be engraved on the Stanley Cup: Playing in (for a goaltender, dressing for) at least one Stanley Cup Final game or at least half of regular season games for the Stanley Cup winning team.