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With the addition of the expansion Nashville Predators , the NHL realigned this year to a strictly geographic six-division structure (three per conference), erasing the last vestiges of the traditional four-division structure (Adams/Patrick/Norris/Smythe) abandoned in 1993-94 ; other than the necessary reassignment of Colorado in 1995 due to its two-thousand mile (over 3,200 Km ) east-west move from Quebec , the divisions' membership had remained static despite the renaming and the moves of several other franchises. As part of this realignment, the Toronto Maple Leafs moved from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference.

1998-99 marked the retirement of Wayne Gretzky , the NHL's all-time leading scorer, who played his final three NHL seasons with the New York Rangers . The Rangers had been battling for a playoff spot up until the end of the regular season when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins who were able to clinch the postseason berth when Jaromir Jagr scored the winning goal. The game was also symbolic because it appeared as though Gretzky was passing the torch to Jagr, signalling a changing of the guard of the NHL's greatest superstar.

This was the final season Fox televised NHL games in the United States.


REGULAR SEASON


Final standings


Eastern Conference



Western Conference



Scoring leaders

''Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points''


Leading goaltenders


STANLEY CUP PLAYOFFS

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Several highlights of the playoffs include:

Eastern Conference

  • The New Jersey Devils held a 3-2 lead entering game six of their first round series but lost the two deciding games against the Pittsburgh Penguins and their superstar Jaromir Jagr. It was the Devils' second first-round playoff loss in a row.

  • The Ottawa Senators, despite setting regular season franchise records and being led by Hart Trophy runner-up Alexei Yashin , were swept in the first round by the Buffalo Sabres who were backstopped by Dominik Hasek .

  • The Toronto Maple Leafs, who were the highest scoring team in the regular season, defeated the Philadelphia Flyers and Pittsburgh Penguins enroute to reaching to the conference finals for the first time since 1993-1994.

  • The Eastern Conference final, featuring the Maple Leafs and the Sabres, was expected to be a close matchup as well as a duel between the two best regular season goaltenders Dominik Hasek and Curtis Joseph. However, the series turned out to the lopsided as Sabres won it in five games, beating Joseph 21 times.



Western Conference

  • The Detroit Red Wings, despite being the two-time defending Stanley Cup champions, follow up their first wins with four straight losses to fall to the Colorado Avalanche and Patrick Roy in the second-round series.

  • The Avalanche take a 3-2 lead in the Western Conference final against the Dallas Stars but the Stars win games six and seven both by scores of 4-1. The series is widely regarded as a duel between goaltenders Patrick Roy and Ed Belfour.



Stanley Cup finals

In the 1999 Stanley Cup Finals, the Dallas Stars beat the Buffalo Sabres four games to two to win their first (and to date, only) Stanley Cup . The Sabres shocked the Stars in the latter's arena to win the first game of the series. The Stars won the next two games and the Sabres took game four. A home-ice win for the Stars in game five set up the deciding match to be played in Buffalo.

In Game 6, the game went to a triple scored the game-winning goal to secure the victory -- and the Stanley Cup -- for the Dallas Stars. Video replay showed that Hull's foot was in the crease, which the Sabres as well as ESPN analyst Gary Thorne argued was a violation of a rule that disallowed goals if an offensive player was in the goal crease. The goal was immediately reviewed as the Stars celebrated on the ice. The NHL officials allowed the goal to stand, arguing that Brett Hull's three consecutive shots on Hasek, the third of which went in, constituted possession of the puck through the end of the play; the rules did allow for a player to legally bring the puck into the crease and score. Partisans of one side or another debate the legality of the goal to this day, and it is arguably the most controversial Cup-winning goal in the history of Stanley Cup play.


NHL AWARDS



SEE ALSO



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