1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks season

1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks
Division	3rd Norris
Conference	6th Campbell
1987–88 record	30–41–9
Home record	21–17–2
Road record	9–24–7
Goals for	284
Goals against	328
Team information
General manager	Bob Pulford
Coach	Bob Murdoch
Captain	Vacant
Alternate captains	Keith Brown Steve Larmer Troy Murray Denis Savard
Arena	Chicago Stadium
Team leaders
Goals	Denis Savard (44)
Assists	Denis Savard (87)
Points	Denis Savard (131)
Penalty minutes	Gary Nylund (208)
Plus/minus	Keith Brown (+5)
Wins	Darren Pang (17)
Goals against average	Darren Pang (3.84)
←  1986–87 1988–89  →

The 1987–88 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 62nd season of operation of the Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League (NHL).

Offseason

The 1987–88 Chicago Black Hawks were coming off a year in which they finished third in the Norris Division and were swept in the first round of the playoffs by the Detroit Red Wings. The Blackhawks made several moves in the offseason with GM Bob Pulford replacing himself as coach with Bob Murdoch and trading young star Eddie Olczyk and aging star Al Secord to the Toronto Maple Leafs for wingers Rick Vaive and Steve Thomas and defenseman Bob McGill. Goaltender Bob Mason was the summer's big free agent signing. Though relatively untested at the NHL level, Mason was in demand after an impressive performance in the 1987 playoffs. In addition to Mason, the team signed Ed Belfour who had just backstopped the University of North Dakota to the NCAA championship, and used their number one pick in the June draft to select Jimmy Waite from the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Blackhawks regular goaltenders from the previous season, veterans Murray Bannerman and Bob Sauve, never played another regular season game for Chicago. The Blackhawks also acquired Duane Sutter from the New York Islanders in exchange for a 2nd round pick in the 1988 NHL entry draft. Captain Darryl Sutter retired before the start of the season and the team chose not to name a replacement.

Regular season

The Blackhawks were a streaky team – winning five times in a row in October, followed by 7 straight without a win, then won five of the next seven, then lost eight straight. The up and down season ended on the down with the Hawks going winless in their last eight games of the season. The team's fortunes were greatly hampered by injuries, with regulars Doug Wilson, Keith Brown, Steve Thomas, Wayne Presley, Duane Sutter, Bob Murray, and Behn Wilson, all missing considerable playing time. They would finish the season 30–41–9 (69 Points) – good for 3rd place in the Norris Division.

Offensively, the Blackhawks were again led by Denis Savard, who had an outstanding season leading the team in scoring for the seventh year in a row with team highs of 44 goals, 87 assists and 131 points (which ranked third in the league behind Lemieux and Gretzky). Steve Larmer was again second in points with 41 goals and 48 assists. Offseason acquisition Rick Vaive was second in goals with 43, and mid-season addition, Dirk Graham had 37 points in his half-season with the Hawks. On defense, Doug Wilson again led the club with 32 points (in just 27 games), with Keith Brown leading in the club in plus/minus with +5. Gary Nylund led the team in penalty minutes with 208.

In goal, rookie Darren Pang took over in the net with a 3.48 GAA and a 17–23–1 record in 45 games. Bob Mason was relegated to the bench more and more as the season wore on and finished with a 4.15 GAA and 13–18–8 record in 41 games.

Final standings

Norris Division

	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
Detroit Red Wings	80	41	28	11	322	269	93
St. Louis Blues	80	34	38	8	278	294	76
Chicago Blackhawks	80	30	41	9	284	328	69
Toronto Maple Leafs	80	21	49	10	273	345	52
Minnesota North Stars	80	19	48	13	242	349	51

^[1] Note: GP = Games played, W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, Pts = Points, GF = Goals for, GA = Goals against
Note: Teams that qualified for the playoffs are highlighted in bold.

Record vs. opponents

Norris Division record vs. opponents

Vs. Campbell Conference Vs. Norris Division 1987–88 NHL records [2] Team CHI DET MIN STL TOR Total Chicago — 3–5 5–2–1 3–4–1 5–3 16–14–2 Detroit 5–3 — 4–3–1 4–1–3 3–3–2 16–10–6 Minnesota 2–5–1 3–4–1 — 2–5–1 4–1–3 11–15–6 St. Louis 4–3–1 1–4–3 5–2–1 — 6–1–1 16–10–6 Toronto 3–5 3–3–2 1–4–3 1–6–1 — 8–18–6 Vs. Smythe Division 1987–88 NHL records Team CGY EDM LAK VAN WIN Total Chicago 0–2–1 2–1 1–2 2–1 1–1–1 6–7–2 Detroit 1–1–1 2–1 2–1 2–1 2–0–1 9–4–2 Minnesota 0–2–1 0–2–1 0–3 1–2 0–2–1 1–11–3 St. Louis 1–2 0–3 1–2 2–1 1–2 5–10–0 Toronto 0–3 0–2–1 1–1–1 1–1–1 1–2 3–9–3 Vs. Wales Conference Vs. Adams Division 1987–88 NHL records Team BOS BUF HFD MTL QUE Total Chicago 0–3 1–2 1–2 0–2–1 0–2–1 2–11–2 Detroit 2–1 2–1 1–2 1–2 0–3 6–9–0 Minnesota 0–3 1–1–1 0–3 1–1–1 1–2 3–10–2 St. Louis 2–1 0–3 2–1 1–2 2–1 7–8–0 Toronto 1–2 0–3 0–3 0–3 0–3 1–14–0 Vs. Patrick Division 1987–88 NHL records Team NJD NYI NYR PHI PIT WSH Total Chicago 0–3 1–0–2 0–2–1 3–0 1–2 1–2 6–9–3 Detroit 3–0 2–1 1–1–1 0–2–1 2–1 2–0–1 10–5–3 Minnesota 0–3 1–1–1 1–2 1–2 1–2 0–2–1 4–12–2 St. Louis 0–3 0–2–1 0–3 1–2 3–0 2–0–1 6–10–2 Toronto 1–2 3–0 1–2 2–1 1–2 1–1–1 9–8–1

Schedule and results

1987–88 regular season [3]
October Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 1 L October 8, 1987 5–7 Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Todd Gill 0–1–0 2 L October 10, 1987 4–6 @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) Craig Laughlin 0–2–0 3 W October 11, 1987 5–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) Troy Murray 1–2–0 4 W October 14, 1987 5–3 St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Doug Wilson 2–2–0 5 W October 17, 1987 3–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Denis Savard 3–2–0 6 W October 18, 1987 6–4 Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) Denis Savard 4–2–0 7 W October 21, 1987 5–1 @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Steve Ludzik 5–2–0 8 L October 23, 1987 3–7 @ New York Rangers (1987–88) Tomas Sandstrom 5–3–0 9 L October 24, 1987 3–5 @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) Kevin Dineen 5–4–0 10 T October 27, 1987 4–4 OT @ New York Islanders (1987–88) Richard Kromm 5–4–1 11 L October 31, 1987 5–6 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Greg Terrion 5–5–1
November Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 12 L November 1, 1987 3–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) Mike Foligno 5–6–1 13 T November 4, 1987 4–4 OT Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) Doug Wilson 5–6–2 14 L November 6, 1987 3–6 @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) Thomas Steen 5–7–2 15 W November 8, 1987 8–5 Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Rick Vaive 6–7–2 16 W November 11, 1987 6–3 Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Wayne Presley 7–7–2 17 L November 14, 1987 0–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) Chris Nilan 7–8–2 18 W November 15, 1987 5–4 Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) Troy Murray 8–8–2 19 W November 18, 1987 5–2 Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Brian Noonan 9–8–2 20 L November 20, 1987 2–5 @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) George McPhee 9–9–2 21 W November 22, 1987 3–2 Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) Rick Vaive 10–9–2 22 L November 25, 1987 4–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) Dave Taylor 10–10–2 23 L November 27, 1987 3–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) Wayne Gretzky 10–11–2 24 L November 30, 1987 0–4 @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) Joel Otto 10–12–2
December Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 25 L December 2, 1987 1–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Ron Flockhart 10–13–2 26 L December 4, 1987 0–12 @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Tim Higgins 10–14–2 27 L December 5, 1987 3–7 @ Boston Bruins (1987–88) Bob Sweeney 10–15–2 28 L December 9, 1987 2–6 Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) Paul Cyr 10–16–2 29 L December 12, 1987 1–2 @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) Mike Gartner 10–17–2 30 W December 13, 1987 5–1 Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Rick Vaive 11–17–2 31 W December 16, 1987 4–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Denis Savard 12–17–2 32 W December 19, 1987 6–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Curt Fraser 13–17–2 33 L December 20, 1987 2–4 Boston Bruins (1987–88) Bob Sweeney 13–18–2 34 W December 23, 1987 7–5 New York Islanders (1987–88) David Mackey 14–18–2 35 L December 26, 1987 4–5 St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Bernie Federko 14–19–2 36 L December 27, 1987 2–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Brian Benning 14–20–2 37 L December 30, 1987 4–6 Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Dino Ciccarelli 14–21–2 38 W December 31, 1987 4–1 @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Rik Wilson 15–21–2
January Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 39 L January 3, 1988 3–5 Calgary Flames (1987–88) Joe Mullen 15–22–2 40 L January 6, 1988 1–6 Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) Terry Carkner 15–23–2 41 W January 8, 1988 7–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Rick Vaive 16–23–2 42 W January 10, 1988 5–2 Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) Bob McGill 17–23–2 43 T January 11, 1988 2–2 OT @ New York Rangers (1987–88) Troy Murray 17–23–3 44 W January 13, 1988 2–1 Hartford Whalers (1987–88) Steve Thomas 18–23–3 45 L January 16, 1988 1–4 @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) Jeff Brown 18–24–3 46 W January 17, 1988 5–4 Washington Capitals (1987–88) Denis Savard 19–24–3 47 L January 20, 1988 3–8 Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) Mario Lemieux 19–25–3 48 W January 23, 1988 3–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Mike Stapleton 20–25–3 49 W January 24, 1988 3–1 Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) Steve Thomas 21–25–3 50 W January 26, 1988 6–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Denis Savard 22–25–3 51 L January 29, 1988 2–3 OT @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) Craig Wolanin 22–26–3 52 L January 30, 1988 2–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) Mark Kachowski 22–27–3
February Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 53 L February 1, 1988 3–5 Boston Bruins (1987–88) Bob Sweeney 22–28–3 54 L February 3, 1988 4–6 Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Adam Oates 22–29–3 55 T February 5, 1988 1–1 OT @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) Steve Thomas 22–29–4 56 T February 7, 1988 5–5 OT @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) Bob Murray 22–29–5 57 W February 12, 1988 4–3 OT St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Rick Vaive 23–29–5 58 W February 14, 1988 4–3 OT Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) Steve Thomas 24–29–5 59 L February 17, 1988 3–4 Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Shawn Burr 24–30–5 60 L February 20, 1988 1–6 @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Shawn Burr 24–31–5 61 T February 21, 1988 3–3 OT Calgary Flames (1987–88) Denis Savard 24–31–6 62 W February 24, 1988 6–4 Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) Dirk Graham 25–31–6 63 T February 25, 1988 1–1 OT @ New York Islanders (1987–88) Alan Kerr 25–31–7 64 W February 28, 1988 7–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) Rick Vaive 26–31–7
March Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 65 L March 2, 1988 1–2 Hartford Whalers (1987–88) Randy Ladouceur 26–32–7 66 W March 5, 1988 4–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Brian Noonan 27–32–7 67 L March 6, 1988 3–4 Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) Mel Bridgman 27–33–7 68 W March 9, 1988 4–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Keith Brown 28–33–7 69 L March 12, 1988 4–6 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) Todd Gill 28–34–7 70 W March 13, 1988 5–4 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) Dirk Graham 29–34–7 71 T March 15, 1988 7–7 OT @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Herb Raglan 29–34–8 72 W March 17, 1988 4–3 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) Denis Savard 30–34–8 73 L March 19, 1988 0–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) Brian Skrudland 30–35–8 74 L March 20, 1988 2–5 St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Gino Cavallini 30–36–8 75 L March 23, 1988 4–5 Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Wally Schreiber 30–37–8 76 L March 25, 1988 2–3 @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) Jim Benning 30–38–8 77 L March 26, 1988 5–9 @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) Bobby Carpenter 30–39–8 78 T March 28, 1988 7–7 OT @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) Wayne Presley 30–39–9 79 L March 30, 1988 3–4 New York Rangers (1987–88) Ulf Dahlen 30–40–9
April Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG/GTG Record 80 L April 3, 1988 3–4 OT New Jersey Devils (1987–88) John MacLean 30–41–9
Legend:   Win (2 points)  Loss (0 points)  Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

The Hawks faced Brett Hull and the St. Louis Blues, who finished second in the Norris. After the Blackhawks had been swept two years in a row in the first round, they opened the series in St Louis and lost both games 4–1 and 3–2. The series moved to the Chicago Stadium where the Hawks broke their 11-game playoff losing streak with a 6–3 victory. The winning ways did not last though, as the Hawks lost the next two games – 6–5 and 5–3.

1988 Stanley Cup playoffs [3]
Norris Division Semifinals vs. (N2) St. Louis Blues – Blues win 4–1 Game Result Date Score Opponent GWG Series 1 L April 6, 1988 1–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Brett Hull 0–1 2 L April 7, 1988 2–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Brett Hull 0–2 3 W April 9, 1988 6–3 St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Denis Savard 1–2 4 L April 10, 1988 5–6 St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Tony Hrkac 1–3 5 L April 12, 1988 3–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) Brett Hull 1–4
Legend:   Win  Loss

Player stats

Regular season

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
Denis Savard	C	80	44	87	131	95	4	14	7	6
Steve Larmer	RW	80	41	48	89	42	-5	21	7	0
Rick Vaive	RW	76	43	26	69	108	-20	19	0	6
Troy Murray	C	79	22	36	58	96	-17	3	2	2
Dirk Graham	W	42	17	19	36	32	4	6	1	2
Doug Wilson	D	27	8	24	32	28	-17	6	1	1
Brian Noonan	RW	77	10	20	30	44	-27	3	0	2
Behn Wilson	D	58	6	23	29	166	-19	3	0	0
Steve Thomas	LW	30	13	13	26	40	1	5	0	3
Bob Murray	D	62	6	20	26	44	-7	1	0	0
Wayne Presley	RW	42	12	10	22	52	-13	4	0	1
Steve Ludzik	C	73	6	15	21	40	-14	1	0	1
Everett Sanipass	LW	57	8	12	20	126	-9	0	0	0
Gary Nylund	D	76	4	15	19	208	-9	0	0	0
Dan Vincelette	LW	69	6	11	17	109	-15	2	0	0
Duane Sutter	RW	37	7	9	16	70	2	3	0	0
Bruce Cassidy	D	21	3	10	13	6	-3	2	0	0
Bob McGill	D	67	4	7	11	131	-19	0	0	1
Mike Stapleton	C	53	2	9	11	59	-10	0	0	1
Curt Fraser	LW	27	4	6	10	57	-13	1	0	1
Trent Yawney	D	15	2	8	10	15	1	2	0	0
Rik Wilson	D	14	4	5	9	6	4	0	0	1
Keith Brown	D	24	3	6	9	45	5	0	0	1
Glen Cochrane	D	73	1	8	9	204	-7	0	0	0
Marc Bergevin	D	58	1	6	7	85	-19	0	0	0
Dave Manson	D	54	1	6	7	185	-12	0	0	0
Darren Pang	G	45	0	6	6	2	0	0	0	0
David Mackey	LW	23	1	3	4	71	-14	0	0	1
Jim Playfair	D	12	1	3	4	21	4	1	0	0
Bill Watson	RW	9	2	0	2	0	-5	0	0	0
Mark LaVarre	RW	18	1	1	2	25	-8	0	0	0
Bob Mason	G	41	0	2	2	0	0	0	0	0
Bill Gardner	C	2	1	0	1	2	-1	1	0	0
Kent Paynter	D	2	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
Darren Pang	2548	45	17	23	1	163	3.84	0	1501	1338	.891
Bob Mason	2312	41	13	18	8	160	4.15	0	1353	1193	.882
Team:	4860	80	30	41	9	323	3.99	0	2854	2531	.887

Playoffs

Scoring

Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	PIM	+/-	PPG	SHG	GWG
Rick Vaive	RW	5	6	2	8	38	1	5	0	0
Denis Savard	C	5	4	3	7	17	3	0	1	1
Steve Larmer	RW	5	1	6	7	0	1	1	0	0
Bob Murray	D	5	1	3	4	2	-1	1	0	0
Trent Yawney	D	5	0	4	4	8	1	0	0	0
Dirk Graham	W	4	1	2	3	4	-1	0	0	0
Steve Thomas	LW	3	1	2	3	6	1	0	0	0
Everett Sanipass	LW	2	2	0	2	2	0	0	0	0
Keith Brown	D	5	0	2	2	10	-3	0	0	0
Troy Murray	C	5	1	0	1	8	-4	1	0	0
Steve Ludzik	C	5	0	1	1	13	0	0	0	0
Glen Cochrane	D	5	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
Mark LaVarre	RW	1	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
Dave Manson	D	5	0	0	0	27	1	0	0	0
Bob Mason	G	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
Bob McGill	D	3	0	0	0	2	2	0	0	0
Brian Noonan	RW	3	0	0	0	4	-1	0	0	0
Gary Nylund	D	5	0	0	0	10	-1	0	0	0
Darren Pang	G	4	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0
Wayne Presley	RW	5	0	0	0	4	4	0	0	0
Mike Rucinski	C	2	0	0	0	0	-1	0	0	0
Duane Sutter	RW	5	0	0	0	21	-1	0	0	0
Dan Vincelette	LW	4	0	0	0	0	-2	0	0	0
Behn Wilson	D	3	0	0	0	6	-2	0	0	0

Goaltending

Player	MIN	GP	W	L	GA	GAA	SO	SA	SV	SV%
Darren Pang	240	4	1	3	18	4.50	0	130	112	.862
Bob Mason	60	1	0	1	3	3.00	0	31	28	.903
Team:	300	5	1	4	21	4.20	0	161	140	.870

^[4]

Note: Pos = Position; 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

Chicago's draft picks at the 1987 NHL entry draft held at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit, Michigan. The Blackhawks attempted to select Derek Pizzey in the second round of the 1987 NHL supplemental draft, but the claim was ruled invalid since Pizzey hadn't turned age 21 yet and therefore did not meet eligibility requirements. ^[5]

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	8	Jimmy Waite	Canada	Chicoutimi Saguenéens (QMJHL)
2	29	Ryan McGill	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
3	50	Cam Russell	Canada	Hull Olympiques (QMJHL)
3	60	Mike Dagenais	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
5	92	Ulf Sandstrom	Sweden	Modo Hockey (Sweden)
6	113	Mike McCormick	United States	Richmond Sockeyes (BCJHL)
7	134	Stephen Tepper	United States	Westborough High School (USHS-MA)
8	155	John Reilly	United States	Phillips Andover Academy (USHS-MA)
9	176	Lance Werness	United States	Burnsville High School (USHS-MN)
10	197	Dale Marquette	Canada	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
11	218	Bill LaCouture	United States	Natick High School (USHS-MA)
12	239	Mike Lappin	United States	Northwood School (USHS-NY)

See also

• 1987–88 NHL season

References

1. Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN   9781894801225.
2. "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
3. "1987-88 Chicago Blackhawks Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved March 28, 2025.
4. "1987-88 Chicago Blackhawks Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 16, 2009.
5. "1987 NHL Supplemental Draft -- Round 2 Selections". Hockey Draft Central. Retrieved December 6, 2021.

• 1988–89 Chicago Blackhawks Yearbook (official team publication)