1987–88 Boston Bruins season

NHL team season March 2026 August 2023 NHL 1987–88 1987 Boston Bruins Wales 2nd Adams 2nd 44–30–6 24–13–3 20–17–3 300 251 Harry Sinden Terry O'Reilly Ray Bourque Rick Middleton Keith Crowder Boston Garden Cam Neely (42) Ray Bourque (64) Ray Bourque (81) Jay Miller (304) Rejean Lemelin (24) Andy Moog (2.83) Yes The 1987–88 Boston Bruins season was the Bruins' 64th season. The season involved participating in the 1988 Stanley Cup Finals. Off-season NHL draft Boston's draft picks at the 1987 NHL entry draft held at the Joe Louis Arena in Detroit. Round # Player Nationality College/junior/club team (league)13Glen WesleyCanadaPortland Winter Hawks (WHL)114Stephane QuintalCanadaGranby Bisons (QMJHL)356Todd LalondeCanadaSudbury Wolves (OHL)467Darwin McPhersonCanadaNew Westminster Bruins (WHL)477Matt DelGuidiceUnited StatesSaint Anselm College (ECAC East)598Ted DonatoUnited StatesCatholic Memorial School (USHS-MA)6119Matt GlennonUnited StatesArchbishop Williams High School (USHS-MA)7140Rob CheeversUnited StatesBoston College (Hockey East)8161Chris WinnesUnited StatesNorthwood School (USHS-NY)9182Paul OhmanUnited StatesSt. John's School (USHS-MA)10203Casey JonesUnited StatesCornell University (ECAC)11224Eric LeMarqueUnited StatesNorthern Michigan University (WCHA)12245Sean GormanUnited StatesMatignon High School (USHS-MA)S215Mike JeffreyCanadaNorthern Michigan University (WCHA) Regular season The season will forever be remembered when on the night Phil Esposito's number 7 would retire, captain Ray Bourque went from wearing uniform number 7 to wearing uniform number 77. Bourque would wear that number until the end of his career. This occurred on December 3, 1987. As for the game, the Bruins beat the New York Rangers 4–3, in which Esposito was the General Manager. Final standings BOS Record vs. opponents BOS Schedule and results background:#fff; border-top:#010101 5px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 5px solid; 1987–88 regular season1987-88 Boston Bruins Schedule https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/BOS/1988_games.html Hockey-Reference.com April 3, 2025 y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; October Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |1||W||October 8, 1987||4–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||1–0–0 |- |2||L||October 10, 1987||5–6 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||1–1–0 |- |3||W||October 11, 1987||5–2 || style="text-align:left;"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||2–1–0 |- |4||W||October 15, 1987||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||3–1–0 |- |5||L||October 17, 1987||3–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||3–2–0 |- |6||W||October 18, 1987||6–5 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||4–2–0 |- |7||W||October 21, 1987||5–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||5–2–0 |- |8||L||October 24, 1987||0–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||5–3–0 |- |9||L||October 29, 1987||2–4 || style="text-align:left;"| Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||5–4–0 |- |10||T||October 31, 1987||3–3 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||5–4–1 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; November Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |11||L||November 1, 1987||5–6 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| New York Islanders (1987–88) ||5–5–1 |- |12||T||November 4, 1987||2–2 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||5–5–2 |- |13||L||November 5, 1987||6–7 || style="text-align:left;"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||5–6–2 |- |14||W||November 7, 1987||4–1 || style="text-align:left;"| Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||6–6–2 |- |15||L||November 9, 1987||4–6 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||6–7–2 |- |16||W||November 11, 1987||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||7–7–2 |- |17||W||November 12, 1987||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||8–7–2 |- |18||W||November 14, 1987||4–1 || style="text-align:left;"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||9–7–2 |- |19||W||November 17, 1987||6–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||10–7–2 |- |20||W||November 18, 1987||4–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||11–7–2 |- |21||W||November 21, 1987||7–5 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||12–7–2 |- |22||W||November 22, 1987||1–0 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) ||13–7–2 |- |23||L||November 25, 1987||1–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||13–8–2 |- |24||W||November 26, 1987||5–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||14–8–2 |- |25||L||November 28, 1987||2–3 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) ||14–9–2 |- |26||L||November 30, 1987||4–6 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||14–10–2 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; December Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |27||W||December 2, 1987||5–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||15–10–2 |- |28||W||December 3, 1987||4–3 || style="text-align:left;"| New York Rangers (1987–88) ||16–10–2 |- |29||W||December 5, 1987||7–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||17–10–2 |- |30||L||December 8, 1987||2–5 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||17–11–2 |- |31||W||December 10, 1987||4–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||18–11–2 |- |32||T||December 12, 1987||3–3 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||18–11–3 |- |33||W||December 17, 1987||3–2 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||19–11–3 |- |34||L||December 19, 1987||5–7 || style="text-align:left;"| St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||19–12–3 |- |35||W||December 20, 1987||4–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||20–12–3 |- |36||W||December 22, 1987||9–0 || style="text-align:left;"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||21–12–3 |- |37||L||December 26, 1987||1–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ New York Islanders (1987–88) ||21–13–3 |- |38||L||December 27, 1987||1–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ New York Rangers (1987–88) ||21–14–3 |- |39||T||December 29, 1987||4–4 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||21–14–4 |- |40||W||December 31, 1987||2–0 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||22–14–4 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; January Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |41||W||January 2, 1988||5–1 || style="text-align:left;"| Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||23–14–4 |- |42||T||January 4, 1988||2–2 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||23–14–5 |- |43||W||January 7, 1988||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1987–88) ||24–14–5 |- |44||W||January 9, 1988||2–1 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| @ St. Louis Blues (1987–88) ||25–14–5 |- |45||L||January 11, 1988||3–4 || style="text-align:left;"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||25–15–5 |- |46||L||January 13, 1988||4–5 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||25–16–5 |- |47||W||January 14, 1988||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||26–16–5 |- |48||W||January 16, 1988||5–1 || style="text-align:left;"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||27–16–5 |- |49||L||January 20, 1988||3–5 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||27–17–5 |- |50||W||January 21, 1988||6–1 || style="text-align:left;"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||28–17–5 |- |51||L||January 23, 1988||4–6 || style="text-align:left;"| Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||28–18–5 |- |52||W||January 28, 1988||3–0 || style="text-align:left;"| Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||29–18–5 |- |53||L||January 30, 1988||2–4 || style="text-align:left;"| New York Rangers (1987–88) ||29–19–5 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; February Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |54||W||February 1, 1988||5–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Chicago Blackhawks (1987–88) ||30–19–5 |- |55||W||February 4, 1988||7–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||31–19–5 |- |56||W||February 6, 1988||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||32–19–5 |- |57||W||February 7, 1988||6–3 || style="text-align:left;"| New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||33–19–5 |- |58||W||February 12, 1988||7–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Edmonton Oilers (1987–88) ||34–19–5 |- |59||L||February 13, 1988||5–6 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Vancouver Canucks (1987–88) ||34–20–5 |- |60||L||February 17, 1988||2–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||34–21–5 |- |61||W||February 21, 1988||4–1 || style="text-align:left;"| @ New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||35–21–5 |- |62||L||February 23, 1988||2–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||35–22–5 |- |63||W||February 25, 1988||5–2 || style="text-align:left;"| Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||36–22–5 |- |64||W||February 27, 1988||7–4 || style="text-align:left;"| Minnesota North Stars (1987–88) ||37–22–5 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; March Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |65||W||March 3, 1988||5–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Toronto Maple Leafs (1987–88) ||38–22–5 |- |66||L||March 5, 1988||6–7 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| New Jersey Devils (1987–88) ||38–23–5 |- |67||L||March 6, 1988||0–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||38–24–5 |- |68||L||March 8, 1988||0–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Detroit Red Wings (1987–88) ||38–25–5 |- |69||T||March 10, 1988||3–3 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Los Angeles Kings (1987–88) ||38–25–6 |- |70||W||March 12, 1988||4–3 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||39–25–6 |- |71||L||March 13, 1988||0–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Washington Capitals (1987–88) ||39–26–6 |- |72||L||March 17, 1988||5–7 || style="text-align:left;"| Calgary Flames (1987–88) ||39–27–6 |- |73||L||March 19, 1988||3–4 || style="text-align:left;"| Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||39–28–6 |- |74||W||March 20, 1988||6–2 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Buffalo Sabres (1987–88) ||40–28–6 |- |75||W||March 22, 1988||3–0 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Philadelphia Flyers (1987–88) ||41–28–6 |- |76||W||March 24, 1988||4–3 OT|| style="text-align:left;"| Winnipeg Jets (1987–88) ||42–28–6 |- |77||W||March 26, 1988||6–2 || style="text-align:left;"| Quebec Nordiques (1987–88) ||43–28–6 |- |78||L||March 31, 1988||1–3 || style="text-align:left;"| Montreal Canadiens (1987–88) ||43–29–6 |- y background:#fff; border-top:#010101 2px solid; border-bottom:#FFB81C 2px solid; April Game Result Date Score Opponent Record |- |79||L||April 2, 1988||2–4 || style="text-align:left;"| @ Hartford Whalers (1987–88) ||43–30–6 |- |80||W||April 3, 1988||3–2 || style="text-align:left;"| New York Islanders (1987–88) ||44–30–6 |- |- | Legend: #cfc Win (2 points) 1px solid black #fcc Loss (0 points) 1px solid black #ffc Tie (1 point) 1px solid black Player statistics Regular season Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG Ray Bourque D 78 17 64 81 7234715 Ken Linseman C 77 29 45 74 16736705 Steve Kasper C 79 26 44 70 35-1935 Cam Neely RW 69 42 27 69 175301103 Geoff Courtnall LW 62 32 26 58 10824804 Randy Burridge LW 79 27 28 55 1050533 Bob Sweeney Bob Sweeney (ice hockey) C/RW 80 22 23 45 7311607 Keith Crowder RW 68 17 26 43 17314603 Glen Wesley D 79 7 30 37 6921120 Gord Kluzak D 66 6 31 37 13518010 Reed Larson D 62 10 24 34 933511 Rick Middleton RW 59 13 19 32 113231 Michael Thelven D 67 6 25 31 5712101 Lyndon Byers RW 53 10 14 24 23610002 Jay Miller Jay Miller (ice hockey) LW 78 7 12 19 304-5001 Bill O'Dwyer C 77 7 10 17 83-3101 Craig Janney C 15 7 9 16 06101 Nevin Markwart LW 25 1 12 13 854000 Bob Joyce ice hockey LW 15 7 5 12 104200 Tom McCarthy Tom McCarthy (ice hockey, born 1960) LW 7 2 5 7 63100 Allen Pedersen D 78 0 6 6 906000 Willi Plett RW 65 2 3 5 170-10100 Frank Simonetti D 30 2 3 5 191001 Tommy Lehman C 9 1 3 4 60000 Doug Keans G 30 0 2 2 20000 John Blum D 19 0 1 1 70-5000 Wade Campbell D 6 0 1 1 211000 John Carter John Carter (ice hockey) LW 4 0 1 1 23000 Bruce Shoebottom D 3 0 1 1 0-3000 Mike Stevens Mike Stevens (ice hockey, born 1965) LW 7 0 1 1 90000 Paul Beraldo RW 3 0 0 0 0-3000 Alain Cote Alain Côté (ice hockey, born 1967) D 2 0 0 0 0-1000 Taylor Hall Taylor Hall (ice hockey, born 1964) LW 7 0 0 0 4-3000 Greg Hawgood D 1 0 0 0 0-1000 Moe Lemay LW 2 0 0 0 0-2000 Rejean Lemelin Réjean Lemelin G 49 0 0 0 20000 Alan May RW 3 0 0 0 15-1000 Andy Moog G 6 0 0 0 00000 Kraig Nienhuis LW 1 0 0 0 0-1000 Dave Reid Dave Reid (ice hockey, born 1964) LW 3 0 0 0 00000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LTGAGAA SO SA SV SV% Rejean Lemelin Réjean Lemelin 2,828 49 24 17 6 138 2.93 31,2441,106.889 Doug Keans 1,660 30 16 11 0 90 3.25 1751661.880 Andy Moog 360 6 4 2 0 17 2.83 1181164.906 Team: 4,848 80 44 30 6 245 3.03 52,1761,931.887 Playoffs Scoring Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG Ken Linseman C 23 11 14 25 564410 Ray Bourque D 23 3 18 21 2616001 Cam Neely RW 23 9 8 17 511202 Craig Janney C 23 6 10 16 11-1401 Bob Joyce ice hockey LW 23 8 6 14 18-2301 Bob Sweeney Bob Sweeney (ice hockey) C/RW 23 6 8 14 669111 Glen Wesley D 23 6 8 14 225410 Steve Kasper C 23 7 6 13 109010 Gord Kluzak D 23 4 8 12 596011 Keith Crowder RW 23 3 9 12 440100 Randy Burridge LW 23 2 10 12 169000 Rick Middleton RW 19 5 5 10 44013 Tom McCarthy Tom McCarthy (ice hockey, born 1960) LW 13 3 4 7 180000 Moe Lemay LW 15 4 2 6 321000 Michael Thelven Michael Thelvén D 21 3 3 6 264100 Willi Plett RW 17 2 4 6 745001 Lyndon Byers RW 11 1 2 3 621000 Greg Hawgood D 3 1 0 1 00000 Bruce Shoebottom D 4 1 0 1 424001 John Blum D 3 0 1 1 02000 Greg Johnston Greg Johnston (ice hockey) RW 3 0 1 1 22000 Reed Larson D 8 0 1 1 6-2000 Rejean Lemelin Réjean Lemelin G 17 0 1 1 20000 Nevin Markwart LW 2 0 0 0 21000 Jay Miller Jay Miller (ice hockey) LW 12 0 0 0 1242000 Andy Moog G 7 0 0 0 00000 Bill O'Dwyer C 9 0 0 0 02000 Allen Pedersen D 21 0 0 0 342000 Goaltending Player MIN GPW LGAGAA SO SA SV SV% Rejean Lemelin Réjean Lemelin 1027 17 11 6 45 2.63 1430385.895 Andy Moog 354 7 1 4 25 4.24 0166141.849 Team: 1,381 22 12 10 70 3.04 1596526.883 hockey-reference.com 2009-06-05 1987-88 Boston Bruins Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/BOS/1988.html Playoffs Adams Division semifinals Buffalo Sabres vs. Boston Bruins The Boston Bruins were led by team co-captains Ray Bourque, Rick Middleton and the goaltending duo of Rejean Lemelin and the newly acquired Andy Moog. The Buffalo Sabres returned to the playoffs thanks to added depth provided by rookie Ray Sheppard. Date Away Score Home ScoreApril 6 Buffalo 3 Boston 7 April 7 Buffalo 1 Boston 4 April 9 Boston 2 Buffalo 6April 10 Boston 5 Buffalo 6 April 12 Buffalo 4 Boston 5 April 14 Boston 5 Buffalo 2 Boston wins best-of-seven series 4–2. Adams Division finals Boston Bruins vs. Montreal Canadiens The Wales Conference's two best teams, and the NHL's two best defensive teams, met in this series with equal rest time. The Habs had beaten Boston in the Adams Division Semi-finals four years in a row, sweeping the Bruins in three of the past four seasons, and beating them 3–2 in a best-of-five the other year. This time, the Bruins' defence would wear down Montreal, as Ken Linseman, Ray Bourque and Cam Neely provided the offence to finally conquer the Canadiens. It was the first Bruins' playoff series win over the Habs in 44 seasons. Date Away Score Home Score April 18 Boston 1 Montreal 5 April 20 Boston 4 Montreal 3 April 22 Montreal 1 Boston 3 April 24 Montreal 0 Boston 2 April 26 Boston 4 Montreal 1 Boston wins best-of-seven series 4–1. Prince of Wales Conference finals New Jersey Devils vs. Boston Bruins The Devils would take Boston to the limit, but their offense could not compete with the Bruins, who would make their first appearance in the Stanley Cup Finals since consecutive appearances in 1976–77 and 1977–78. This series would also have the infamous confrontation between Devils head coach Jim Schoenfeld and referee Don Koharski after Game 3, when, during an argument in the tunnel after the game, Koharski tripped and fell, accusing Schoenfield of pushing him. Schoenfield famously responded, "You tripped and fell you fat pig!" He then yelled, "Have another doughnut! Have another doughnut!" The incident was played repeatedly on ESPN and has become part of NHL lore. Schonefeld was suspended by NHL president John Ziegler for Game 4, but the Devils received an injunction from a New Jersey court, allowing Schoenfeld to coach the fourth game. In protest, the officials scheduled to work that game in the Meadlowands refused to take the ice, forcing the NHL to scramble for amateur officials to call the contest. The injunction was lifted and Schoenfeld served his suspension during Game 5 in the Boston Garden. Date Away Score Home Score OT May 2 New Jersey 3 Boston 5 May 4 New Jersey 3 Boston 2 (OT) May 6 Boston 6 New Jersey 1 May 8 Boston 1 New Jersey 3 May 10 New Jersey 1 Boston 7 May 12 Boston 3 New Jersey 6 May 14 New Jersey 2 Boston 6 Boston wins best-of-seven series 4–3. Stanley Cup Finals Boston Bruins vs. Edmonton Oilers Date Away Score Home Score Notes May 18 Boston Bruins 1 Edmonton Oilers 2 May 20 Boston Bruins 2 Edmonton Oilers 4 May 22 Edmonton Oilers 6 Boston Bruins 3 May 24 Edmonton Oilers 3 Boston Bruins 3 Game suspended at 16:33 of 2nd due to power failure. May 26 Boston Bruins 3 Edmonton Oilers 6 Edmonton wins best-of-seven series 4–0–1. Awards and records James Norris Memorial Trophy: || Ray Bourque Ray Bourque, NHL First Team All-StarNational Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 237, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, 0-920445-98-5. Cam Neely, NHL Second Team All-Star References Bruins on Hockey Database Category:Boston Bruins seasons Boston Bruins Category:Eastern Conference (NHL) championship seasons Bos Boston Bruins Boston Bruins Bruins Bruins