In August 1991, head coach Bob Johnson was diagnosed with brain cancer after a six-game, 12-day road trip with Team USA in preparation for the 1991 Canada Cup. During the pre-season, the Penguins visited Johnson surrounding exhibition games played September 19th and 20th against Calgary and Team USA, both teams Johnson had previously coached. On October 1st, just three days before the 1991-92 regular season opener, the Penguins named Scotty Bowman interim head coach as Johnson continued to battle brain cancer in Colorado Springs.

Ron Francis missed the first nine games of the season due to a contract holdout as the Penguins went 4-3-2 (.556) to start the season. After Francis returned, the Penguins went 18-9-2 (.655) in their next 29 games including an 8-3-2 record in November in which they averaged 4.62 goals-per-game. Bob Johnson passed away on November 26, 1991 at his home in Colorado Springs. The next night, the Penguins held an on-ice candlelight tribute to Johnson and unveiled a patch on the left shoulder of their jerseys honoring Johnson's life. Mario Lemieux went on an incredible stretch from November 27th to New Year's Eve in which he recorded 45 points (15G, 30A) in 17 games and scored a point in all but one game.

The Penguins sent five players to the 1992 NHL All-Star Game in Philadelphia including Mario Lemieux, Kevin Stevens, Jaromir Jagr, Paul Coffey and Bryan Trottier in addition to coach Scotty Bowman who served in Bob Johnson's place. The mid-season classic did the Penguins no favors though as they went 3-8-2 in the first 13 games after the All-Star break. After being surrounded by trade rumors all season, defenseman Paul Coffey was traded to Los Angeles in exhchange for Jeff Chychrun, Brian Benning and Los Angeles' 1st round choice in the 1992 NHL Entry Draft. General Manager Craig Patrick then dealt Benning and the 1st round choice to Philadelphia and Mark Recchi, the team's leading scorer in 1990-91, to Philadelphia for Rick Tocchet, Kjell Samuelsson, Ken Wregget and Philadelphia's 3rd round choice in the 1993 NHL Entry Draft.

Tocchet scored 14 goals and had 16 assists in 19 gameCs to finish out the regular season, missing just three games due to a broken jaw suffered March 15, 1992 at Chicago. The Penguins went 12-8-2 in the final 22 games of the season after the trades finishing in third place in the Patrick Division. Mario Lemieux won the Art Ross Trophy as the league's leading scorer with 131 points in just 64 games. The Penguins led the league with 343 goals scored, but finished third to last in the NHL with 308 allowed. The Penguins finished with a record of 39-32-9 and entered the Playoffs facing the Washington Capitals without the luxury of home ice. 

Washington dominated the first two games of the series taking Game 1, 3-1, and Game 2, 6-2. Pittsburgh won Game 3 at home 6-4, but Dino Ciccarelli's four goals in Game 4 gave the Caps a 3-1 series lead heading back to Washington for Game 5. Prior to Game 5, a team meeting resulted in the Penguins deploying a  one-four defensive posture against the Capitals that minimized the ability for the Capitals to enter the offensive zone by fortressing four players on the defensive blueline with one player chasing the puck carrier in the neutral zone. The scheme led to a 5-2 win in Game 5 which shifted the series back to Pittsburgh for Game 6. Mario Lemieux scored the game-winning goal late in the second period of Game 6 and added an insurance goal in the third to even the series at 3-3. Tom Barrasso made 18 saves in Game 7 and Jaromir Jagr broke a 1-1 tie with 10:20 left in the second period to propel Pittsburgh to the Patrick Division Finals. Mario Lemieux scored a remarkable 17 points (7G, 10A) in the series, two shy of Rick Middleton's record set against Buffalo in 1983.

Tom Barrasso backstopped the Penguins to a 4-2 win in Game 1 of the Patrick Division Finals at Madison Square Garden making 35 saves. In Game 2, Mario Lemieux was viciously slashed on the hand by Adam Graves in the first period. Lemieux missed the rest of the series with a broken hand, Graves was suspended four games, and the Penguins dropped Game 2, 4-2. Kris King's overtime goal in Game 3 in Pittsburgh gave the Rangers a 2-1 series lead. In Game 4, New York led 4-2 after Mark Messier's goal 46 seconds into the third period and received a five-minute power-play at 5:19 when Randy Gilhen leveled Paul Broten with a cross-checking major penalty. The Penguins killed the penalty and eight seconds later Ron Francis fired a slapshot from the neutral zone that beat Mike Richter to cut the Rangers' lead in half. Troy Loney scored 1:25 later to tie the game at 4-4. Just 2:47 into overtime, Francis deflected Larry Murphy's power-play shot in front of John Vanbiesbrouck to send the Civic Arena crowd into a frenzy and tie the series at 2-2. Jaromir Jagr scored two goals in Game 5 including a penalty shot goal to give the Penguins a 2-0 first period lead and the game-winner to break a 2-2 tie with 5:33 left in the game. Tom Barrasso made 33 saves in Game 6 to propel the Penguins to a 5-1 win and the team to its second straight Wales Conference Final.

The Penguins met the Boston Bruins for the second consecutive year in the Wales Conference Final, but had home-ice this time around. It wouldn't matter. Jaromir Jagr scored 9:44 into the first overtime in Game 1, his third straight game-winning goal and fourth of the Playoffs to give the Penguins a 1-0 series lead. Mario Lemieux returned to the lineup for Game 2 and scored two goals and assisted on another in a 5-2 Penguins win. In Boston, Kevin Stevens scored four goals in Game 3 and Lemieux scored two goals in Game 4 while Tom Barrasso made 29 saves to defeat the Bruins 5-1 in each game and move the Penguins into the Stanley Cup Final against the Chicago Blackhawks.

Chicago entered the Stanley Cup Final on a record 11-game Playoff win streak have won the final three games against St. Louis in the Norris Division Semi-Finals, sweeping the Red Wings in the Division Finals and the Edmonton Oilers in the Campbell Conference Final. In Game 1, the Blackhawks stormed out to a 4-1 lead with 8:24 left in the second period. Rick Tocchet scored with 4:36 left in the second to cut the lead to 4-2 before Lemieux banked a shot off of Chicago goaltender Ed Belfour  from behind the net 59 seconds later to make it 4-3. Jaromir Jagr's dazzling goal with 4:55 left in the game knotted the score at 4-4. Then Lemieux took over.

Steve Smith hauled down Lemieux with 18 seconds left in the game setting up a faceoff in the right circle in front of Belfour. Ron Francis won the draw back to Larry Murphy at the right point. Murphy's wrist shot made its way through to Belfour who kicked it to his right side. Lemieux, who set up for the faceoff near the left point, swooped in and buried the rebound behind Belfour with 12.6 seconds left to give the Penguins a 5-4 victory. Sound had feeling. The building shook.

In Game 2, Lemieux broke a 1-1 tie with a power-play goal 12:55 into the second period and added another goal 2:28 later to put the Penguins up 3-1 and give them a 2-0 series lead. The Penguins defeated the Blackhawks, 1-0, in Game 3 in Chicago and Lemieux scored a goal and assisted on two others in the Penguins' 6-5 win in Game 4 to complete the series sweep and capture the franchise's second consecutive Stanley Cup championship. Lemieux scored 16 goals in 15 games and added 18 assists for 34 points en route to winning his second Conn Smythe Trophy in a row as the Most Valuable Player of the Stanley Cup Playoffs.

The 11 consecutive wins tied an NHL record achieved earlier that same post-season by Chicago.

This miniature Stanley Cup,  produced by Boffey Promotions, Inc. - the same company that engraves the actual Stanley Cup - was awarded to a member of the Pittsburgh Penguins organization. Standing 13" tall, the trophy features the names of every member of the 1991-92 Pittsburgh Penguins that are engraved on the actual Stanley Cup.

1992 Pittsburgh Penguins Stanley Cup Trophy

Provenance