Oilers’ 1999 Series vs. Stars: The Closest Sweep in Team History – The Hockey Writers – Edmonton Oilers

Of the dozens upon dozens of postseason series that the Edmonton Oilers have played in their NHL history, their 1999 Western Conference Quarter-Finals match-up with the Dallas Stars is probably one of the least remembered.

The entire series lasted less than one week. Game 1 began just after 6:30 p.m. with the opening face-off at Reunion Arena on April 21. Game 4 ended in Edmonton on April 28 at 1:03 a.m. with Joe Nieuwednyk scoring on Tommy Salo. There was barely enough time for Edmonton to catch playoff fever.

This series probably isn’t even that clearly recalled by Dallas fans. The Stars were just beginning their postseason run and had three more series to play en route to winning the franchise’s first and only NHL championship.

It was one of the bigger mismatches in Stanley Cup Playoff history: Dallas finished the 1998-99 NHL regular season with a league-best 114 points; Edmonton had 78 points, the fewest of any team that qualified for the 1999 postseason. Dallas had set an NHL record for the fewest goals allowed in a season of 80 or more games; Edmonton had surrendered the most goals among any Western Conference playoff team.

But what it turned out to be is arguably among the most closely contested four-game sweeps ever in the long and storied history of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

Edmonton held a third-period lead in three of the four games. The score was either tied or a one-goal margin for 97.2% of the series. At no point did either team trail by more than two goals. Dallas led for a total of 69:59, and Edmonton was ahead for 55:21. The rest of the time, 172:14 worth of gripping hockey, they were deadlocked, and it took nearly an hour of sudden-death overtime in Game 4 before the Stars could finally put the pesky Oilers away.

Any game could have gone either way, but all ended up going one way. The superior skill of Dallas was ultimately just too much against an Edmonton team that couldn’t catch a break.

But in defeat, these underdog Oilers filled fans with a unique sense of pride that can’t quite be replicated by a squad of superstars, even in victory. On its 25^th anniversary, here’s a look back at the 1999 Western Conference Quarter-Finals, beginning with the backstory.

Oilers Begin Life After Joseph

After missing the NHL Playoffs for the first time in franchise history for four straight seasons, the Oilers returned to the postseason in 1997. Elite…