Connor McDavid conjures memories of Mario Lemieux’s 1992 postseason

It happened Feb. 10, 2013. The Penguins had just lost to the Devils on home ice, but something far more relevant transpired after the game.

Connor McDavid, who turned 16 a few weeks earlier and was already a star for the Erie Otters, traveled with teammates to Pittsburgh. Mario Lemieux was aware of the hype surrounding McDavid and wanted to meet the kid, so he hosted him in his private box.

As kids McDavid’s age like to say, if you know, you know. Lemieux and Sidney Crosby knew even then that McDavid was different than all of the prospects who came before and after them. They recognized their own.

Crosby is the greatest player to enter the NHL since Lemieux, and McDavid is the greatest to enter the NHL since Crosby. Rank them however you wish, but they are the NHL’s three greatest players of the past 30 years.

McDavid’s postseason, in fact, is the most dominant hockey has seen since Lemieux’s in 1992 — a postseason lost in time but one that defied physics, much like a McDavid rush.

Connor McDavid: 2022 postseason

Mario Lemieux: 1992 postseason

McDavid’s postseason has been brilliant and historically relevant for a number of reasons: He’s the first player to average in the range of two points per game this deep into a postseason since Lemieux in 1992. He’s a human highlight reel almost every night, his speed captivating NHL audiences. And ESPN and TNT are in the first season of their respective TV deals with the NHL, badly wanting to promote a star. McDavid very much is that guy.

In 1992, ESPN didn’t broadcast the NHL. Promoting stars was about as foreign to the NHL as the idea of McDavid losing a race. It was a much different time. Lemieux, though, was as much a human highlight reel as McDavid.

Making the spring of 1992 even more noteworthy, the Penguins faced a challenging road to their second straight championship, and Lemieux’s health ailments were even more exaggerated than usual.

Then, there was this: In all four of the Penguins’ series that spring, the opponent showcased a Hall of Fame defenseman, three of whom were regarded as among the best defenders in hockey. Rod Langway, Brian Leetch, Ray Bourque and Chris Chelios were waiting for Lemieux in consecutive rounds.

Perhaps even more imposing was the list of goaltenders he faced. Don Beaupre, Washington’s goalie, was selected to the NHL All-Star Game in 1992. So was Rangers goalie Mike Richter. The other Rangers goaltender, John Vanbiesbrouck, was one of the best goalies of that era.

Another frequent NHL All-Star, Andy Moog, was Boston’s goaltender in the conference final.

In the Stanley Cup Final, Lemieux and the Penguins faced the Hall of Fame duo of Eddie Belfour and Dominik Hasek.

Few stars have ever endured such a path to a championship.

Let’s take a trip down memory lane.

1992 first round

The details

Lemieux didn’t play in Game 1 in Washington because of a separated shoulder. He barely played in Game 2 but still mustered two assists. The final five games of the series arguably produced the finest hockey of Lemieux’s career. Despite still dealing with shoulder pain, Lemieux put up 15 points in five games against the NHL’s second-best team.

With the Penguins in must-win mode in Game 3 in Pittsburgh, Lemieux recorded a hat trick in a six-point game that ranks as one of the greatest in his career. He erupted for five more points in Game 6 with the Penguins down in the series, 3-2.

He also handled some coaching duties. With the Penguins down 3-1 in the series, he held a team meeting following the morning skate before Game 5. Lemieux decided the Penguins needed to use a more defensive system to beat the Capitals. Using the left-wing lock, the Penguins won three straight games while Lemieux notched eight points in those contests.

1992 Patrick Division final

The details

The Rangers decided, apparently, that they couldn’t stop Lemieux. He had two assists in the Game 1 victory, another entry in his long history of putting on a show at Madison Square Garden. Thus, early in Game 2, Adam Graves knocked Lemieux out of the series with a slash that broke his hand. Already dealing with back issues and a separated shoulder that was still healing, Lemieux now had a broken hand that kept him out for about two weeks.

1992 Wales Conference final

The details

Lemieux returned from the broken hand earlier than in expected in Game 2 against the Bruins. He showed no signs of rust, scoring twice and adding an assist in his first game back.

Two nights later, in Boston Garden, Lemieux scored one of the most famous goals of his career, stickhandling with the puck between Bourque’s legs before beating Andy Moog in one of the more iconic moments of his career.

The Penguins of the early ’90s never looked more dominant than they did in this four-game sweep. Bourque was rarely a match for Lemieux and certainly wasn’t in this series.

1992 Stanley Cup Final

The details

This series gave us another one of Lemieux’s most famous moments. In the final seconds of Game 1, with the game even at 4, Lemieux evaded Chicago coverage for just a moment following an offensive zone faceoff to score a game-winning goal that sent the Civic Arena into a frenzy.

Earlier in the game, Lemieux scored the most famous of his bank-shot goals.

He added two goals, including the game-winner, in Game 2.

Lemieux added a goal and two assists in the deciding Game 4, his goal coming against a backup goaltender named Dominik Hasek.

Final thought

Who’s to say what’s the greatest postseason in NHL history? Wayne Gretzky produced 47 points in 18 postseason games in 1985, good for 2.61 points per game. That’s absurd. Scoring, of course, was completely out of whack in the 1980s, as the Oilers cleaned up against the hideous Smythe Division before winning the highest-scoring series in NHL history against Chicago. Smythe Division teams scored 4.36 goals per game that season, to put the numbers in perspective.

Still, Gretzky’s spring of 1985 is the pinnacle in terms of numbers. And Gretzky was, if nothing less, all about untouchable numbers.

Lemieux’s spring of 1992 was a microcosm of his career. What numbers would he have produced if not for playing with a bad back, a broken hand and a separated shoulder? And against four of the NHL’s best defensive teams?

The numbers were outrageous, but Lemieux’s majesty that spring — like his career in general — was better understood by witnessing it as opposed to reading about it.

Then there’s McDavid, whose postseason is on the verge of ending because of the mighty Avalanche. This spring, McDavid has produced numbers like Gretzky and moments like Lemieux.

In the annals of NHL history, he can’t keep better company.

Still, in the past 30 years, there’s never been anything like what Lemieux did in 1992.

Not yet, anyway.

(Top photo: John Swart / Associated Press)