1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs season

1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs
Division5th Norris
Conference10th Campbell
1988–89 record28–46–6
Home record15–20–5
Road record13–26–1
Goals for259
Goals against342
Team information
General managerGord Stellick
CoachJohn Brophy (fired)
George Armstrong (interim)
CaptainVacant
Alternate captainsWendel Clark
Borje Salming
Tom Fergus
ArenaMaple Leaf Gardens
Team leaders
GoalsEddie Olczyk (38)
AssistsEddie Olczyk (52)
PointsEddie Olczyk (90)
Penalty minutesBrian Curran and John Kordic (185)
Plus/minusDave Reid (+12)
WinsAllan Bester (17)
Goals against averageAllan Bester (3.80)

The 1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs season was Toronto's 72nd season in the National Hockey League (NHL). Toronto made a late season push for the playoffs under interim head coach (and former captain) George Armstrong but an overtime loss in the final regular season game at the Chicago Blackhawks kept them out of the postseason for the first time since 1984–85.

Off-season

NHL draft

Round Pick Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team
1 6 Scott Pearson (LW)  Canada Kingston Canadians (OHL)
2 27 Tie Domi (RW)  Canada Peterborough Petes (OHL)
3 48 Peter Ing (G)  Canada Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
4 69 Ted Crowley (D)  United States Lawrence Academy (USHS-MA)
5 86 Len Esau (D)  Canada Humboldt Broncos (SJHL)
7 132 Matt Mallgrave (C)  United States St. Paul's School (USHS-NH)
8 153 Roger Elvenes (C)  Sweden Rögle BK (Sweden)
9 174 Mike DeLay (D)  United States Canterbury School (USHS-CT)
10 195 David Sacco (C)  United States Medford High School (USHS-MA)
11 216 Mike Gregorio (G)  United States Cushing Academy (USHS-MA)
12 237 Peter DeBoer (RW)  Canada Windsor Spitfires (OHL)
S 11 Dean Anderson (G)  Canada University of Wisconsin (WCHA)

Regular season

The 1988–89 Maple Leafs season was a disastrous one that saw John Brophy fired as head coach midway through the season. Interim head coach George Armstrong led the Leafs close to the playoffs, but they eventually missed out after losing to the Chicago Blackhawks in the final game of the regular season. The Leafs needed a win against Chicago to clinch a playoff berth, but a Troy Murray overtime goal ended Toronto's season.

The Maple Leafs finished the regular season last in the NHL in power play goals scored (56), power play opportunities (334), power play percentage (16.77%) and penalty-killing percentage (72.70%).[1]

  • November 7, 1988 – The Maple Leafs traded RW Russ Courtnall to Montreal for RW John Kordic and a 6th-round choice (Michael Doers)
  • Ken Wregget was traded by Maple Leafs to Philadelphia Flyers for two first-round picks (RW Rob Pearson and D Steve Bancroft) in 1989 draft, March 6, 1989.

Final standings

Norris Division
GP W L T GF GA Pts
Detroit Red Wings 80 34 34 12 313 316 80
St. Louis Blues 80 33 35 12 275 285 78
Minnesota North Stars 80 27 37 16 258 278 70
Chicago Blackhawks 80 27 41 12 297 335 66
Toronto Maple Leafs 80 28 46 6 259 342 62

[2]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

Vs. Campbell Conference

Vs. Wales Conference


Schedule and results

No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1 L October 6, 1988 1–2 @ Boston Bruins (1988–89) 0–1–0
2 W October 8, 1988 7–4 Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 1–1–0
3 W October 9, 1988 8–4 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 2–1–0
4 L October 12, 1988 2–4 St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 2–2–0
5 W October 14, 1988 3–1 @ Washington Capitals (1988–89) 3–2–0
6 L October 15, 1988 3–5 Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 3–3–0
7 W October 17, 1988 6–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) 4–3–0
8 W October 19, 1988 4–2 Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) 5–3–0
9 W October 21, 1988 4–2 @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 6–3–0
10 T October 22, 1988 3–3 OT Calgary Flames (1988–89) 6–3–1
11 W October 25, 1988 4–3 @ New York Islanders (1988–89) 7–3–1
12 W October 26, 1988 3–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 8–3–1
13 L October 29, 1988 2–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 8–4–1
14 L November 2, 1988 2–7 Boston Bruins (1988–89) 8–5–1
15 L November 5, 1988 4–6 Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) 8–6–1
16 L November 10, 1988 1–5 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) 8–7–1
17 L November 12, 1988 2–6 Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) 8–8–1
18 L November 14, 1988 4–5 Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 8–9–1
19 W November 16, 1988 8–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) 9–9–1
20 L November 18, 1988 0–3 @ Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) 9–10–1
21 L November 19, 1988 1–9 @ Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) 9–11–1
22 W November 21, 1988 4–0 St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 10–11–1
23 W November 23, 1988 4–3 Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 11–11–1
24 L November 25, 1988 3–5 @ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 11–12–1
25 L November 26, 1988 3–6 Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 11–13–1
26 L December 1, 1988 3–9 @ Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) 11–14–1
27 L December 3, 1988 0–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 11–15–1
28 L December 9, 1988 3–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 11–16–1
29 L December 10, 1988 2–8 Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 11–17–1
30 T December 12, 1988 4–4 OT Calgary Flames (1988–89) 11–17–2
31 L December 14, 1988 2–8 Edmonton Oilers (1988–89) 11–18–2
32 L December 15, 1988 3–6 @ New Jersey Devils (1988–89) 11–19–2
33 L December 17, 1988 1–7 Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) 11–20–2
34 W December 19, 1988 4–3 St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 12–20–2
35 L December 21, 1988 1–6 Pittsburgh Penguins (1988–89) 12–21–2
36 L December 23, 1988 2–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) 12–22–2
37 L December 26, 1988 3–4 New York Islanders (1988–89) 12–23–2
38 W December 29, 1988 6–5 @ Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) 13–23–2
39 W December 31, 1988 6–1 Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) 14–23–2
40 T January 1, 1989 3–3 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 14–23–3
41 L January 6, 1989 0–3 @ Washington Capitals (1988–89) 14–24–3
42 L January 7, 1989 1–6 Buffalo Sabres (1988–89) 14–25–3
43 W January 9, 1989 3–0 Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) 15–25–3
44 L January 11, 1989 2–3 Washington Capitals (1988–89) 15–26–3
45 L January 14, 1989 3–5 Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) 15–27–3
46 W January 16, 1989 5–3 Hartford Whalers (1988–89) 16–27–3
47 T January 19, 1989 3–3 OT Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 16–27–4
48 L January 21, 1989 3–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1988–89) 16–28–4
49 L January 25, 1989 1–2 OT Boston Bruins (1988–89) 16–29–4
50 L January 27, 1989 1–8 @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 16–30–4
51 T January 28, 1989 1–1 OT New York Rangers (1988–89) 16–30–5
52 L January 30, 1989 1–7 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 16–31–5
53 W February 2, 1989 4–1 @ New York Islanders (1988–89) 17–31–5
54 L February 4, 1989 1–3 Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 17–32–5
55 W February 11, 1989 4–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) 18–32–5
56 L February 13, 1989 1–8 @ New Jersey Devils (1988–89) 18–33–5
57 L February 15, 1989 2–4 Hartford Whalers (1988–89) 18–34–5
58 W February 17, 1989 10–6 @ New York Rangers (1988–89) 19–34–5
59 W February 18, 1989 5–3 New Jersey Devils (1988–89) 20–34–5
60 L February 20, 1989 4–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1988–89) 20–35–5
61 W February 22, 1989 4–3 OT @ Calgary Flames (1988–89) 21–35–5
62 L February 23, 1989 1–2 OT @ Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) 21–36–5
63 W February 25, 1989 4–2 @ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 22–36–5
64 L February 27, 1989 5–7 St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 22–37–5
65 L March 1, 1989 4–7 @ New York Rangers (1988–89) 22–38–5
66 T March 4, 1989 3–3 OT Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 22–38–6
67 L March 5, 1989 0–3 @ Hartford Whalers (1988–89) 22–39–6
68 W March 7, 1989 6–4 @ Quebec Nordiques (1988–89) 23–39–6
69 L March 9, 1989 1–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 23–40–6
70 W March 11, 1989 5–3 Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 24–40–6
71 L March 12, 1989 7–9 @ Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) 24–41–6
72 W March 14, 1989 5–3 @ Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 25–41–6
73 L March 18, 1989 2–10 Winnipeg Jets (1988–89) 25–42–6
74 L March 19, 1989 6–8 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1988–89) 25–43–6
75 W March 22, 1989 5–3 Vancouver Canucks (1988–89) 26–43–6
76 L March 24, 1989 2–6 @ Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 26–44–6
77 W March 25, 1989 6–5 Detroit Red Wings (1988–89) 27–44–6
78 W March 29, 1989 3–1 Minnesota North Stars (1988–89) 28–44–6
79 L April 1, 1989 3–4 OT @ St. Louis Blues (1988–89) 28–45–6
80 L April 2, 1989 3–4 OT @ Chicago Blackhawks (1988–89) 28–46–6

[4]

Playoffs

The Maple Leafs did not qualify for the playoffs.

Player statistics

Forwards

Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Eddie Olczyk 80 38 52 90 75
Gary Leeman 61 32 43 75 66
Vincent Damphousse 80 26 42 68 75
Tom Fergus 80 22 45 67 48
Daniel Marois 76 31 23 54 76
Mark Osborne 75 16 30 46 112
Dave Reid 77 9 21 30 22
Craig Laughlin 66 10 13 23 41
Peter Ihnacak 26 2 16 18 10
Derek Laxdal 41 9 6 15 65
Al Secord 40 5 10 15 71
Dan Daoust 68 7 5 12 54
Wendel Clark 15 7 4 11 66
Paul Gagne 16 3 2 5 6
John Kordic 46 1 2 3 185
Russ Courtnall 9 1 1 2 4
Tim Armstrong 11 1 0 1 6
Mike Blaisdell 9 1 0 1 4
Ken Yaremchuk 11 1 0 1 2
Scott Pearson 9 0 1 1 2
Sean McKenna 3 0 1 1 0
Paul Lawless 7 0 0 0 0
Marty Dallman 4 0 0 0 0
Chris McRae 3 0 0 0 12
Doug Shedden 1 0 0 0 2

Defencemen

Note: GP= Games played; G= Goals; AST= Assists; PTS = Points; PIM = Points

Player GP G AST PTS PIM
Al Iafrate 65 13 20 33 72
Todd Gill 59 11 14 25 72
Börje Salming 63 3 17 20 86
Brad Marsh 80 1 15 16 79
Chris Kotsopoulos 57 1 14 15 44
Darren Veitch 37 3 7 10 16
Rick Lanz 32 1 9 10 18
Luke Richardson 55 2 7 9 106
Brian Curran 47 1 4 5 185
Darryl Shannon 14 1 3 4 6
Ken Hammond 14 0 2 2 12

Goaltending

Note: GP= Games played; W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals Against

Player GP W L T SO GAA
Allan Bester 43 17 20 3 2 3.80
Ken Wregget 32 9 20 2 0 4.42
Jeff Reese 10 2 6 1 0 4.94

Transactions

The Maple Leafs have been involved in the following transactions in the 1988–89 season.

Trades

June 21, 1988 To Philadelphia Flyers
Mike Stothers
To Toronto Maple Leafs
Bill Root
November 7, 1988 To Montreal Canadiens
Russ Courtnall
To Toronto Maple Leafs
John Kordic
6th round pick in 1989Mike Doers
February 7, 1989 To Philadelphia Flyers
Al Secord
To Toronto Maple Leafs
5th round pick in 1989Keith Carney
February 21, 1989 To New York Rangers
Chris McRae
To Toronto Maple Leafs
Ken Hammond
February 25, 1989 To Vancouver Canucks
Peter DeBoer
To Toronto Maple Leafs
Paul Lawless
March 6, 1989 To Philadelphia Flyers
Ken Wregget
To Toronto Maple Leafs
1st round pick in 1989Rob Pearson
1st round pick in 1989Steve Bancroft
June 16, 1989 To Calgary Flames
2nd round pick in 1989Kent Manderville
To Toronto Maple Leafs
Rob Ramage

Waivers

October 3, 1988 To Los Angeles Kings
Dale DeGray
October 3, 1988 From Philadelphia Flyers
Brad Marsh

Free agents

Player Former Team
Craig Laughlin Los Angeles Kings
Alan Hepple New Jersey Devils
Paul Gagne New Jersey Devils
Doug Shedden Baltimore Skipjacks (AHL)

Awards and records

  • Gary Leeman, Molson Cup (Most game star selections for Toronto Maple Leafs)

References

  1. ^ "1988-89 NHL Summary".
  2. ^ Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Dan Diamond & Associates. p. 153. ISBN 9781894801225.
  3. ^ "All-Time NHL Results". NHL.com. Retrieved August 25, 2023.
  4. ^ "1988–89 Toronto Maple Leafs Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved May 21, 2009.