Stanley Cup Final Exam: A series told through numbers
The ridiculous goaltending, the valiant comeback attempt, the road warriors, the unlikely performances: We tell the story of the 2012 Stanley Cup final round through surprising statistics.
1 Stanley Cup finals in NHL history to feature two teams who finished outside of the league’s top eight overall — this one. The Devils finished ninth overall; the Kings finished 13th
14 seeding, combined, of the Los Angeles Kings (8) and New Jersey Devils (6)
5 NHL teams, including Darryl Sutter’s Kings, to win the Cup after a midseason coaching change
20 years after Sutter was given his first NHL coaching job, with the Chicago Blackhawks, that he won a Stanley Cup
6 non-Canadians to win the Conn Smythe Trophy, now that American Jonathan Quick has done so
6 age of Kings netminder Quick when his 40-year-old foil, Martin Brodeur, entered the NHL
44 age of the oldest goalie to ever play in a Cup final, Lester Patrick of the 1928 New York Rangers
9 different champions in the last nine NHL seasons, a first for any of the four major North American team sports
12-2 record of the Kings entering the final
1-3 record of the Kings in Game 4’s
4 consecutive teams, prior to the Kings’ victory, entering the final with a 12-2 record to lose in the final
4 playoff losses, total, by the Kings, who played four rounds
4 playoff losses, total, by the Penguins, who played one round
30 total playoff goals scored against each the Kings and Penguins
3 consecutive postseasons that the Vancouver Canucks have been eliminated by the Cup winner
4 consecutive Stanley Cup winners that began their season playing in Europe: 2009 Pittsburgh Penguins, 2010 Chicago Blackhawks, 2011 Boston Bruins; 2012 Los Angeles Kings
4 series in which the Kings jumped to a 3-0 lead, the only team to do so since the NHL adopted a best-of-seven for all four rounds in 1987
4 spanks delivered by KTLA-TV news reporter Allie MacKay delivered to the Devils mascot during a live morning news broadcast
5 months Devils defenceman Henrik Tallinder had been out of the lineup before making his return in Game 4
5 months Kings forward Simon Gagne has been out of his team’s lineup before returning for Game 3
13 consecutive seasons that the championship final has not ended in a sweep, the longest such streak of any of the major team sports
43 consecutive playoff series that the Devils have not been swept, the NHL’s second-best streak all-time
0 points, combined, for Ilya Kovalchuk and Zach Parise, through the first three games of the final
55,591 distance, in miles, travelled by the Kings prior to the final, making them the NHL’s most-travelled team
28,597 distance, in miles, travelled by the Devils prior to the final, making them the NHL’s least-travelled team
47 road victories in the 2012 playoffs, a new NHL record
2 finalists to win all four Game 1’s on the road, the 2012 Kings and the 1991 Minnesota North Stars
12 road teams to steal the first two games of the Cup final
10 of those teams to go on and win the series
14 playoff points by Devils defenceman Bryce Salvador, the most postseason points ever recorded by a player who recorded fewer than 10 points during the regular season
25 overtime games in the 2012 playoffs, good for the third-most ever
18-5 record of the road team in this postseason’s overtimes
1945 last year a goaltender, Frank McCool, allowed two goals or fewer in their first three Staley Cup final games, as Jonathan Quick did
1945 last year a team trailing 3-0 in the final forced a sixth game, as the Devils did
1951 last year the first two games of the final went to overtime; the Toronto Maple Leafs defeated the Montreal Canadiens that year
5 p.m. start time, local, of games 3 and 4 in Los Angeles to accommodate television schedules in the East: “That’s something you don’t deal with during the regular season at all,” said Devils coach Peter DeBoer
6 p.m. time of news broadcast on WABC-TV, whose studios are located in the Upper West side of Manhattan, during which the New Jersey Devils were depicted as the New York Islanders
 |
2.71 million U.S. television viewers of NBC’s Game 1 of the Stanley Cup final
6.97 million U.S. television viewers of Fox’s So You Think You Can Dance, shown at the same time as Game 1
18,764 Game 3 attendance at Staples Center, a new record at that arena for a Kings game
18,867 Game 4 attendance at Staples Center, a newer record at that arena for a Kings game
12 Canadian players on the L.A. Kings
6 Canadian players on the New Jersey Devils
100% Stanley Cup finals since the lockout in which one team jumped to a 2-0 series lead
3 of 3 Cup final Game 1’s won by Brodeur which led to a championship
3 of 3 Cup final Game 1’s lost by Brodeur which led to a series defeat
26-10 score by which the Kings outscored their playoff opponents after the second intermission
10 consecutive road victories for the Kings since this postseason began, a new NHL record
12 consecutive road playoff victories for the Kings (multi-season), a new NHL record
8 years since a road team won Game 1 of the final, when coach Darryl Sutter’s 2004 Flames accomplished the feat
3:58 time it took for the Kings to score three goals while Steve Bernier served a five-minute boarding major in the deciding Game 6
10 New Jersey Devils who will be unrestricted free agents on July 1
4 L.A. Kings who will be unrestricted free agents on July 1
2 goaltenders to post a GAA below 2.00 in four different series during one playoff run, Quick in 2012 and Brodeur in 2003
1 player from Slovenia to ever win the Stanley Cup, the Kings’ Anze Kopitar
2 California Stanley Cup champions since 1992
1Canadian Stanley Cup champions since 1992