The Calgary Flames’ first trip to the Stanley Cup Final was supposed to be the payoff for a team that had spent the mid-1980s growing into something more serious, more dangerous, more ready. Instead, Game 5 of the 1986 Final at the Saddledome became a lesson in what happens when you run into the Montreal Canadiens.
Calgary had already made plenty of noise in that spring’s playoffs. The Flames swept the Winnipeg Jets, knocked out the Edmonton Oilers for the first time ever in seven games, and then finished off the St.
Louis Blues with a composed 2-1 win at home in Game 7 to reach the Final for the first time. They even opened the series against Montreal with a 5-2 win on home ice.
Then the Canadiens took control. Montreal won the next three games, putting Calgary on the edge of elimination, even if the margins stayed tight - the Habs’ biggest win in that stretch was by just two goals.
Game 5 itself was a bruising, choppy night. The penalties piled up early, with Nick Fotiu called for roughing at 2:43 of the first period and Gary McDonald whistled for hooking at 5:53.
Montreal broke through on the power play at 6:53 when Gaston Gingras scored, with assists from Claude Lemieux and Mats Naslund. More penalties followed, including high-sticking on Brian Skrudland and misconducts to Joel Risebrough and Skrudland later in the period.
Calgary finally tied it in the second when Steve Bozek scored at 7:17, set up by Tim Hunter and Jim Peplinski. But Montreal answered quickly. Brian Skrudland put the Canadiens back in front at 10:49, assisted by Mike McPhee and Claude Lemieux.
The third period delivered the knockout sequence. Rick Green scored at 10:11 to make it 3-1, and Bobby Smith added another just 19 seconds later off a Mats Naslund feed.
The Flames still had some life. Bozek cut it to 4-2 at 16:46, with Jamie Macoun assisting, and Joe Mullen made it interesting with a goal at 19:14, assisted by Dan Quinn and Al MacInnis.
But Calgary ran out of time.
Montreal won the game 4-3, with Patrick Roy stopping 30 of 33 shots and Mike Vernon allowing four goals on 33 shots.
Three years later, the Flames got their payback. In the 1989 Stanley Cup Final, Calgary beat Montreal at the Forum to win the Cup. That made Montreal the only road team to beat the Flames on Saddledome ice for a Stanley Cup, and the Flames the only road team to beat the Habs on Forum ice for one.
The 1989 champions also carried a strong thread back to 1986. Eleven members of that Saddledome Final team returned to win it all three years later: Tim Hunter, Hakan Loob, Al MacInnis, Lanny McDonald, Joe Mullen, Joel Otto, Colin Patterson, Jim Peplinski, Gary Roberts, Gary Suter and Mike Vernon. Doug Risebrough was part of the coaching staff in 1989 after being on the 1986 Finalist team.
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Flames Could Face A Tough Expansion Choice Around Dustin Wolf
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The wrinkle is the kind of depth issue contenders and rebuilders alike hope to avoid: a valuable backup or organizational insurance piece could become the odd man out in a theoretical expansion scenario. There is no official NHL expansion draft on the calendar, but the discussion is still useful for Calgary because it shows how quickly goalie depth, contract timing and long-term planning can collide when a team has one clear starter and a young core worth shielding. [Read more 🡒]