1987 Canada Cup

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1987 Canada Cup
Tournament details
Host country Canada
DatesAugust 28 – September 15, 1987
Teams6
Venue(s)7 (in 7 host cities)
Final positions
Champions Gold medal blank.svg Canada (3rd title)
Tournament statistics
Matches played20
Goals scored139 (6.95 per match)
Scoring leader(s)Canada Wayne Gretzky (21 pts)
MVPCanada Wayne Gretzky
1984
1991

The 1987 Labatt Canada Cup was a professional international ice hockey tournament held from August 28 to September 15, 1987. The finals took place in Montreal on September 11 and Hamilton, on September 13 and September 15, and were won by Team Canada.

The final best-of-three series of this tournament between Canada and the Soviet Union is considered by many to be the best exhibition of hockey in history.[1] At the time, Soviet players were not allowed to pursue playing careers in North America, and so it was only through tournaments like this one where hockey fans could see them exhibit their skills head-to-head against the best of the National Hockey League (NHL). The United States and Soviet Union teams complained about the neutrality of the officiating in the tournament.[2] Soviet coach Viktor Tikhonov said he felt the main reason his team lost was because of "bias and errors in refereeing."[3]

The tournament also was the only time that two of the most dominant NHL players of all time, Wayne Gretzky and Mario Lemieux, played on the same forward unit,[1] combining with each other on 29% of Team Canada's goals. The winning Canadian team had 12 future Hockey Hall of Fame members on the roster.[1]

Rosters[]

Canada[]

Forwards and defence: Dale Hawerchuk, Mark Messier, Mike Gartner, Glenn Anderson, Kevin Dineen, Michel Goulet, Brent Sutter, Rick Tocchet, Brian Propp, Doug Gilmour, Claude Lemieux, Mario Lemieux, Wayne Gretzky, Doug Crossman, Craig Hartsburg, Normand Rochefort, James Patrick, Raymond Bourque, Larry Murphy, Paul Coffey
Goaltenders: Ron Hextall, Kelly Hrudey, Grant Fuhr
Coaches: Mike Keenan, John Muckler, Jean Perron, Tom Watt

Czechoslovakia[]

Forwards and defence: Petr Rosol, Igor Liba, , Jiri Kucera, Jiri Dolezal, Vladimir Ruzicka, Ladislav Lubina, David Volek, Petr Vlk, Dusan Pasek, Jiri Sejba, Jiri Hrdina, Rostislav Vlach, Miloslav Horava, Drahomír Kadlec, Ludek Čajka, Bedřich Ščerban, Jaroslav Benák, Antonin Stavjana, Mojmir Bozik
Goaltenders: Petr Briza, Dominik Hašek, Jaromir Sindel
Coaches: Dr. Ján Starší, František Pospíšil

Finland[]

Forwards and defence: Timo Blomqvist, Jari Grönstrand, Matti Hagman, Raimo Helminen, Iiro Järvi, Timo Jutila, Jari Kurri, Markku Kyllonen, Mikko Mäkelä, , Teppo Numminen, Janne Ojanen, Reijo Ruotsalainen, Christian Ruuttu, Jukka Seppo, Ville Siren, Petri Skriko, Raimo Summanen, Esa Tikkanen, Hannu Virta
Goaltenders: Jarmo Myllys, Kari Takko, Jukka Tammi
Coaches: Rauno Korpi, Juhani Tamminen

Sweden[]

Forwards and defence: Tommy Albelin, Mikael Andersson, Peter Andersson, Jonas Bergqvist, Anders Carlsson, Thom Eklund, Anders Eldebrink, Peter Eriksson, Bengt-Åke Gustafsson, Tomas Jonsson, Lars Karlsson, Mats Näslund, Kent Nilsson, Lars-Gunnar Pettersson, Magnus Roupé, Thomas Rundqvist, Tommy Samuelsson, Håkan Södergren, Peter Sundström, Michael Thelvén
Goaltenders: Anders Bergman, , Peter Lindmark
Coaches: Tommy Sandlin, Curt Lindström,

United States[]

Forwards and defence: Joe Mullen, Curt Fraser, Corey Millen, Aaron Broten, Kelly Miller, Mark Johnson, Bob Brooke, Wayne Presley, Pat LaFontaine, Bobby Carpenter, Ed Olczyk, Joel Otto, Chris Nilan, Dave Ellett, Mike Ramsey, Kevin Hatcher, Rod Langway, Phil Housley, Gary Suter, Chris Chelios
Goaltenders: Tom Barrasso, Bob Mason, John Vanbiesbrouck
Coaches: Bob Johnson, Ted Sator, Doug Woog

USSR[]

Forwards and defence: Vyacheslav Fetisov, Alexei Gusarov, Igor Stelnov, Vasily Pervukhin, Alexei Kasatonov, Anatoli Fedotov, Igor Kravchuk, Yuri Khmylev, Vladimir Krutov, Andrei Lomakin, Igor Larionov, Valeri Kamensky, Andrei Khomutov, Sergei Svetlov, Alexander Semak, Sergei Nemchinov, Sergei Makarov, Vyacheslav Bykov, Anatoly Semenov
Goaltenders: Vitali Samoilov, Sergei Mylnikov, Evgeny Belosheikin
Coaches: Viktor Tikhonov, Igor Dmitriev

Round robin standings[]

Team GP W L T GF GA DIF PTS
 Canada 5 3 0 2 19 13 +6 8
 Soviet Union 5 3 1 1 22 13 +9 7
 Sweden 5 3 2 0 17 14 +3 6
 Czechoslovakia 5 2 2 1 12 15 –3 5
 United States 5 2 3 0 13 14 –1 4
 Finland 5 0 5 0 9 23 –14 0

Game scores[]

Round-robin[]

Friday, 28 August 1987
18:00 MDT
Canada 4–4
( 2–2, 1–1, 1–1 )
 CzechoslovakiaOlympic Saddledome, Calgary
Attendance: 8,458
Friday, 28 August 1987
19:30 EDT
Finland 1–4
( 0–0, 0–1, 1–3 )
 United StatesCivic Centre Coliseum, Hartford
Attendance: 8,508
Saturday, 29 August 1987
12:00 MDT
Sweden 5–3
( 3–1, 1–2, 1–0 )
 Soviet UnionOlympic Saddledome, Calgary
Attendance: 3,055
Sunday, 30 August 1987
20:00 EDT
Finland 1–4
( 0–2, 1–2, 0–0 )
 CanadaCopps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 9,624
Monday, 31 August 1987
12:00 CST
Soviet Union 4–0
(2–0, 1–0, 1–0 )
 CzechoslovakiaAgridome, Regina
Attendance: 5,477
Monday, 31 August 1987
19:30 EDT
United States 5–2
( 1–0, 3–1, 1–1 )
 SwedenCopps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 4,474
Wednesday, 2 September 1987
12:00 CST
Czechoslovakia 0–4
( 0–1, 0–1, 0–2 )
 SwedenAgridome, Regina
Wednesday, 2 September 1987
12:00 ADT
Soviet Union 7–4
( 3–3, 3–0, 1–1 )
 FinlandHalifax, Halifax
Attendance: 3,262
Wednesday, 2 September 1987
20:00 EDT
United States 2–3
( 1–0, 0–2, 1–1 )
 CanadaCopps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 17,026
Friday, 4 September 1987
14:00 ADT
Czechoslovakia 5–2
( 2–0, 2–0, 1–2 )
 FinlandCentre 200, Sydney
Attendance: 4,500
Friday, 4 September 1987
19:30 EDT
Soviet Union 5–1
( 2–0, 1–1, 2–0 )
 United StatesCivic Centre Coliseum, Hartford
Attendance: 14,838
Friday, 4 September 1987
20:00 EDT
Canada 5–3
( 2–2, 1–0, 2–1 )
 SwedenForum, Montréal
Attendance: 12,360
Sunday, 6 September 1987
12:00 ADT
Sweden 3–1
( 1–0, 1–0, 1–1 )
 FinlandCentre 200, Sydney
Attendance: 4,500
Sunday, 6 September 1987
16:00 ADT
United States 1–3
( 0–1, 1–1, 0–1 )
 CzechoslovakiaCentre 200, Sydney
Attendance: 4,500
Sunday, 6 September 1987
20:00 EDT
Canada 3–3
( 1–0, 1–3, 1–0 )
 Soviet UnionCopps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 17,026

Semi-Finals[]

8 September 1987
20:00 EDT
 Soviet Union4–2Sweden Copps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 7,051
9 September 1987
20:00 EDT
 Canada5–3Czechoslovakia The Forum, Montreal
Attendance: 10,262

Final (best of three)[]

11 September 1987
20:00 EDT
 Soviet Union6–5 (OT)Canada The Forum, Montreal
Attendance: 14,588
13 September 1987
20:00 EDT
 Canada6–5 (2OT)Soviet Union Copps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 17,026
15 September 1987
20:00 EDT
 Canada6–5Soviet Union Copps Coliseum, Hamilton
Attendance: 17,026

Three closely fought 6–5 games decided the '87 Canada Cup.[1]

In Game 1, Canada erased a 4–1 second period deficit to send the game to overtime, only to lose on Alexander Semak's goal at 5:33 of the extra frame.

In Game 2, which is considered by some to be the greatest hockey game ever played,[1][4] Canada led 3–1 after one period, but this time it was the Soviets who came from behind to tie it 3–3 in the second. Canada scored twice more, each time Mario Lemieux assisted by Wayne Gretzky, but the Soviets replied each time. The tying goal was an end-to-end rush by Valeri Kamensky with 1:04 remaining in regulation time. After a scoreless period of overtime, which featured tremendous goaltending from Grant Fuhr, Gretzky and Lemieux hooked up for the third time of the evening at 10:07 of the second overtime. It was the fifth assist for Gretzky on the night and completed a hat trick for Lemieux.[1]

The Canadians got off to a slow start in the decisive third game. The Soviets scored three times in the first eight minutes to take a 3–0 lead. Canada's grinders took over after that (particularly Rick Tocchet, Brent Sutter, and Dale Hawerchuk), and pulled Canada into a 5–4 lead after two periods. The Soviets tied it back up in the third and the game looked like it would head to overtime again. But late in the third period, Canada coach Mike Keenan, who had been juggling lines all series, sent the trio of Gretzky, Lemieux and Hawerchuk out to play with a faceoff in Canada's end. After Hawerchuk won the faceoff, Gretzky, Lemieux and Larry Murphy rushed up the ice. Soviet defenseman Igor Stelnov was the only man back and he fell down to block a pass across but Gretzky fed the puck back to Lemieux, who fired a shot over the glove of goaltender Sergei Mylnikov with 1:26 remaining. The Gretzky to Lemieux play is one of the most memorable plays in Canadian sports history.

Stat leaders[]

Points[]

Rk Player GP G A Pts PIM
1 Canada Wayne Gretzky 9 3 18 21 2
2 Canada Mario Lemieux 9 11 7 18 8
3 Soviet Union Sergei Makarov 9 7 8 15 8
4 Soviet Union Vladimir Krutov 9 7 7 14 4
5 Soviet Union Vyacheslav Bykov 9 2 7 9 4
6 Canada Ray Bourque 9 2 6 8 10
7 Soviet Union Valeri Kamensky 9 6 1 7 6
8 Soviet Union Andrei Khomutov 9 4 3 7 0
9 Soviet Union Viacheslav Fetisov 9 2 5 7 9
10 Soviet Union Anatoli Semenov 9 2 5 7 2

Goals[]

Rk Player GP G
1 Canada Mario Lemieux 9 11
2 Soviet Union Sergei Makarov 9 7
2 Soviet Union Vladimir Krutov 9 7
4 Soviet Union Valeri Kamensky 9 6
5 Czechoslovakia Dusan Pasek 6 4
6 Soviet Union Andrei Khomutov 9 4
7 Canada Dale Hawerchuk 9 4
8 Soviet Union Sergei Svetlov 6 3
9 Canada Rick Tocchet 7 3
10 Canada Wayne Gretzky 9 3

Assists[]

Rk Player GP A
1 Canada Wayne Gretzky 9 18
2 Soviet Union Sergei Makarov 9 8
3 Soviet Union Vladimir Krutov 9 7
3 Soviet Union Vyacheslav Bykov 9 7
3 Canada Mario Lemieux 9 7
6 Canada Larry Murphy 8 6
7 Canada Ray Bourque 9 6
7 Canada Mark Messier 9 6
9 Soviet Union Viacheslav Fetisov 9 5
10 Soviet Union Anatoli Semenov 9 5

PIM[]

Rk Player GP PIM
1 United States Chris Nilan 5 14
2 Czechoslovakia Drahomir Kadlec 3 12
3 United States Wayne Presley 5 12
3 Finland Mikko Mäkelä 5 12
5 Czechoslovakia Dusan Pasek 6 12

Goaltender wins[]

Rk Player GP Min GA GAA W L T SO
1 Canada Grant Fuhr 9 575 32 3.34 6 1 2 0
2 Soviet Union Sergei Mylnikov 6 365 18 2.96 5 1 0 1
3 Sweden Peter Lindmark 6 360 18 3.00 3 3 0 1
4 United States John Vanbiesbrouck 4 240 9 2.25 2 2 0 0
5 Czechoslovakia Dominik Hašek 6 360 20 3.33 2 3 1 0

Goaltender Save Percentage[]

Rk Player GP Shots GA Sv.%
1 United States John Vanbiesbrouck 4 116 9 .922
2 Czechoslovakia Dominik Hašek 6 189 20 .894
3 Soviet Union Sergei Mylnikov 6 170 18 .894
4 Canada Grant Fuhr 9 298 32 .893
5 Sweden Peter Lindmark 6 152 18 .882
  • minimum 120 minutes played

Goaltender Goals Against Average[]

Rk Player GP Mins GA GAA
1 United States John Vanbiesbrouck 4 240 9 2.25
2 Soviet Union Sergei Mylnikov 6 365 18 2.96
3 Sweden Peter Lindmark 6 360 18 3.00
4 Czechoslovakia Dominik Hašek 6 360 20 3.33
5 Canada Grant Fuhr 9 575 32 3.34
  • minimum 120 minutes played

All numbers in bold represent that was tournament high

Trophies and awards[]

Tournament champion[]

  • Canada

Tournament MVP[]

  • Wayne Gretzky, Canada

All-star team[]

  • Goaltender: Grant Fuhr, Canada
  • Defence: Ray Bourque, Canada; Viacheslav Fetisov, Soviet Union
  • Forwards: Wayne Gretzky, Canada; Mario Lemieux, Canada; Vladimir Krutov, Soviet Union

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ a b c d e f Campbell, Ken (September 15, 2017). "Thirty years later, 1987 Canada Cup still represents the best hockey ever played". The Hockey News. Retrieved September 17, 2017.
  2. ^ "The Canada Cup of Hockey Fact and Stat Book" (2005), (p. 114), By H. G. Anderson.
  3. ^ "Archives - Philly.com". articles.philly.com. Retrieved 2018-09-12.
  4. ^ "The World Cup of Hockey - The History of the Canada Cup and World Cup of Hockey". 2012-10-05. Archived from the original on 2012-10-05. Retrieved 2018-09-12.

External links[]

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