1987–88 Detroit Red Wings season

The 1987–88 Detroit Red Wings season was the Red Wings' 56th season, the franchise's 62nd.

Coached by Jacques Demers, the team compiled a record of 41–28–11 for 93 points, to finish first place in the Norris Division at the end of the regular season for the first time since 1965, and earned their first winning season since 1973. Luckily for them, the division was weak that year; they were the only team in their division to have a winning record that season. In the playoffs, they won their Norris Division Semifinal series 4–2 over the Toronto Maple Leafs, and they followed that with a 5-game win over the St. Louis Blues in the Norris Division Final. As was the case in the previous season, they lost in the conference final to the eventual Stanley Cup champion Edmonton Oilers in five games.

Regular season

Final standings

Record vs. opponents

Schedule and results

|1||L||October 8, 1987||1–5 || align="left"| @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||0–1–0

|2||W||October 9, 1987||4–1 || align="left"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||1–1–0

|3||W||October 12, 1987||3–2 || align="left"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||2–1–0

|4||W||October 16, 1987||3–2 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||3–1–0

|5||L||October 17, 1987||4–7 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||3–2–0

|6||L||October 21, 1987||1–5 || align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||3–3–0

|7||W||October 23, 1987||5–2 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||4–3–0

|8||W||October 28, 1987||5–1 || align="left"| @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||5–3–0

|9||L||October 30, 1987||4–5 || align="left"| Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||5–4–0

|10||T||October 31, 1987||3–3 OT|| align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||5–4–1

|11||T||November 3, 1987||2–2 OT|| align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||5–4–2

|12||L||November 4, 1987||4–7 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||5–5–2

|13||W||November 6, 1987||3–1 || align="left"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||6–5–2

|14||L||November 7, 1987||3–4 OT|| align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1987–88) ||6–6–2

|15||L||November 11, 1987||3–6 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||6–7–2

|16||W||November 14, 1987||6–4 || align="left"| @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||7–7–2

|17||W||November 17, 1987||1–0 || align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||8–7–2

|18||L||November 19, 1987||1–4 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||8–8–2

|19||L||November 22, 1987||0–1 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1987–88) ||8–9–2

|20||W||November 25, 1987||10–8 || align="left"| Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||9–9–2

|21||W||November 27, 1987||6–0 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||10–9–2

|22||W||November 28, 1987||3–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Boston Bruins (1987–88) ||11–9–2

|23||W||December 2, 1987||7–4 || align="left"| Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||12–9–2

|24||W||December 4, 1987||12–0 || align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||13–9–2

|25||L||December 7, 1987||4–5 OT|| align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||13–10–2

|26||T||December 9, 1987||4–4 OT|| align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||13–10–3

|27||T||December 11, 1987||3–3 OT|| align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||13–10–4

|28||L||December 12, 1987||3–5 || align="left"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||13–11–4

|29||L||December 14, 1987||3–4 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1987–88) ||13–12–4

|30||W||December 16, 1987||6–1 || align="left"| Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||14–12–4

|31||W||December 18, 1987||8–3 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||15–12–4

|32||L||December 20, 1987||2–4 || align="left"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||15–13–4

|33||L||December 23, 1987||2–5 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||15–14–4

|34||L||December 26, 1987||3–6 || align="left"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||15–15–4

|35||L||December 27, 1987||4–5 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||15–16–4

|36||W||December 30, 1987||3–2 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||16–16–4

|37||W||December 31, 1987||7–2 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||17–16–4

|38||T||January 3, 1988||4–4 OT|| align="left"| @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||17–16–5

|39||W||January 6, 1988||4–2 || align="left"| St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||18–16–5

|40||W||January 8, 1988||5–3 || align="left"| Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||19–16–5

|41||W||January 10, 1988||7–5 || align="left"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||20–16–5

|42||W||January 13, 1988||7–4 || align="left"| @ New York Rangers (1987–88) ||21–16–5

|43||W||January 15, 1988||2–1 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||22–16–5

|44||L||January 16, 1988||2–4 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||22–17–5

|45||W||January 18, 1988||4–3 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||23–17–5

|46||W||January 21, 1988||3–2 OT|| align="left"| @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||24–17–5

|47||T||January 23, 1988||4–4 OT|| align="left"| Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||24–17–6

|48||L||January 24, 1988||1–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||24–18–6

|49||L||January 26, 1988||4–6 || align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||24–19–6

|50||T||January 29, 1988||3–3 OT|| align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||24–19–7

|51||T||January 30, 1988||5–5 OT|| align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||24–19–8

|52||W||February 3, 1988||6–4 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||25–19–8

|53||W||February 5, 1988||5–1 || align="left"| Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||26–19–8

|54||W||February 6, 1988||5–4 || align="left"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||27–19–8

|55||W||February 12, 1988||4–3 || align="left"| New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||28–19–8

|56||L||February 13, 1988||3–5 || align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||28–20–8

|57||W||February 15, 1988||6–1 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||29–20–8

|58||W||February 17, 1988||4–3 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||30–20–8

|59||W||February 20, 1988||6–1 || align="left"| Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||31–20–8

|60||L||February 21, 1988||3–5 || align="left"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||31–21–8

|61||L||February 23, 1988||6–11 || align="left"| Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||31–22–8

|62||L||February 26, 1988||2–3 || align="left"| Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||31–23–8

|63||L||February 27, 1988||4–5 || align="left"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||31–24–8

|64||W||March 1, 1988||4–0 || align="left"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||32–24–8

|65||W||March 3, 1988||6–3 || align="left"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||33–24–8

|66||T||March 5, 1988||4–4 OT|| align="left"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||33–24–9

|67||W||March 6, 1988||4–3 || align="left"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||34–24–9

|68||W||March 8, 1988||2–0 || align="left"| Boston Bruins (1987–88) ||35–24–9

|69||W||March 10, 1988||5–2 || align="left"| Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||36–24–9

|70||W||March 12, 1988||4–3 || align="left"| @ New York Islanders (1987–88) ||37–24–9

|71||W||March 13, 1988||5–1 || align="left"| New York Islanders (1987–88) ||38–24–9

|72||W||March 16, 1988||2–1 || align="left"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||39–24–9

|73||L||March 19, 1988||4–7 || align="left"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||39–25–9

|74||L||March 22, 1988||4–6 || align="left"| Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||39–26–9

|75||L||March 24, 1988||2–3 || align="left"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||39–27–9

|76||T||March 26, 1988||4–4 OT|| align="left"| New York Rangers (1987–88) ||39–27–10

|77||W||March 27, 1988||5–3 || align="left"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||40–27–10

|78||T||March 29, 1988||2–2 OT|| align="left"| @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||40–27–11

|79||W||April 1, 1988||7–3 || align="left"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||41–27–11

|80||L||April 2, 1988||3–5 || align="left"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||41–28–11

Legend:

Playoffs The Red Wings won the Norris Division title, their first division title since the 1964–65 season. They went up against the Toronto Maple Leafs in the Norris Division semifinals, and won the series in six games. They next faced the St. Louis Blues in the Norris Division Final and won in five games. The Red Wings then faced the Edmonton Oilers in the Campbell Conference Final for the second year in a row. Just like the year before, the Oilers beat the Red Wings in five games on their way to their fourth Stanley Cup championship in five years.

Player statistics

= Indicates team leader

= Indicates league leader

Regular season Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG C 64 50 52 102 44301066 LW 73 34 39 73 242241003 W 78 37 25 62 464655 LW 74 29 33 62 398161505 C 78 13 44 57 1012020 C 63 14 40 54 2016303 LW 73 26 27 53 5010723 LW/C 78 17 23 40 977533 RW 51 14 26 40 5820310 D 63 7 33 40 4511401 D 56 10 25 35 4213200 D 51 9 22 31 1314302 D 70 5 21 26 1306301 RW 62 12 13 25 945011 RW 50 10 9 19 37-4102 D 48 6 13 19 3824000 C 57 6 11 17 424001 D 62 3 14 17 9624002 RW 63 7 7 14 263-11001 RW 36 3 11 14 552000 D 29 2 9 11 5715000 D 55 2 8 10 819000 D 31 1 4 5 673000 D 7 0 3 3 213000 LW 6 2 0 2 52001 D 11 1 1 2 100000 LW 10 1 1 2 843001 RW 13 0 2 2 40000 LW 3 1 0 1 21000 C 7 0 1 1 2-1000 LW 2 0 1 1 2-1000 LW 9 0 1 1 8-2000 G 47 0 1 1 300000 G 33 0 1 1 360000 G 3 0 0 0 20000 D 6 0 0 0 18-3000 G 6 0 0 0 20000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LTGAGAA SO SA SV SV% 2623 47 22 17 5 141 3.23 412921151.891 1854 33 17 9 5 96 3.11 1923827.896 294 6 2 2 0 16 3.27 0148132.892 97 3 0 0 1 9 5.57 05647.839 Team: 4868 80 41 28 11 262 3.23 524192157.892

Playoffs Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM PPG SHG GWG LW 16 8 13 21 51501 C 16 8 12 20 6401 C 16 4 15 19 2100 W 12 10 8 18 10214 LW 16 6 9 15 55101 LW 16 7 5 12 10210 RW 16 5 7 12 22200 D 16 2 6 8 40200 RW 16 6 1 7 62010 D 11 1 5 6 6100 D 16 0 6 6 55000 C 16 4 1 5 12000 D 8 1 4 5 18000 LW/C 9 3 1 4 14001 D 9 2 2 4 31100 C 3 1 3 4 6000 D 10 0 4 4 8000 D 15 0 3 3 22000 D 4 0 3 3 4000 RW 13 1 0 1 26001 RW 10 0 1 1 13000 RW 8 0 1 1 6000 D 4 0 1 1 15000 G 10 0 1 1 0000 G 8 0 0 0 0000 LW 2 0 0 0 0000 D 10 0 0 0 40000 G 1 0 0 0 0000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LGAGAA SO SA SV SV% 531 10 5 4 32 3.62 1236204.864 431 8 4 3 22 3.06 1171149.871 10 1 0 0 1 6.00 076.857 Team: 972 16 9 7 55 3.40 2414359.867

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = Plus-minus PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals;       MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA=Shots against; SV=Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage; Draft picks Detroit's draft picks at the 1987 NHL entry draft held at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)111Yves RacineLongueuil Chevaliers (QMJHL)232Gord KruppkePrince Albert Raiders (WHL)241Bob WilkieSwift Current Broncos (WHL)352Dennis HollandPortland Winter Hawks (WHL)474Mark ReimerSaskatoon Blades (WHL)595Radomir BrazdaLTC Pardubice (Czechoslovakia)6116Sean CliffordOhio State University (CCHA)7137Mike GoberLaval Titan (QMJHL)8158Kevin ScottVernon Lakers (BCJHL)9179Mikko HaapakoskiKarpat (Finland)10200Darin BanisterUniversity of Illinois at Chicago (CCHA)11221Craig QuinlanHill-Murray School (USHS-MN)12242Tomas JanssonSödertälje SK (Sweden)S213Mike LaMoineUniversity of North Dakota (WCHA)

See also 1987–88 NHL season

References