Red Wings-Avalanche brawl 1997
Encyclopedia
The Red Wings–Avalanche brawl was a large-scale on-ice melee that occurred March 26, 1997, at Joe Louis Arena
in Detroit, Michigan
, United States, between two National Hockey League
rivals, the Detroit Red Wings
and the Colorado Avalanche
. The brawl, alternatively called Bloody Wednesday, Fight Night at the Joe and Brawl in Hockeytown, stemmed from a previous on-ice incident between the two teams during the 1996 Western Conference Finals.
Claude Lemieux
checked Red Wings center
Kris Draper
from behind, driving Draper's face into the boards.
The hit sent Draper out of the game and into the hospital with a broken jaw, shattered cheek and orbital bone, which required reconstructive surgery involving his jaw being wired shut and numerous stitches. The Avalanche would go on to defeat the Red Wings in six games, eventually winning the Stanley Cup
. After the traditional handshakes that take place after a playoff series, former Red Wing winger Dino Ciccarelli
said of Lemieux, "I can't believe I shook the guy's freaking hand. That just pisses me right off."
Brent Severyn
(Avalanche) and Jamie Pushor
(Red Wings) fought at 4:45 of the first period, followed by a fight between forward
s Kirk Maltby
(Red Wings) and René Corbet
(Avalanche) at 10:14.
The major melee ensued at the 18:22 mark, leading to the third fight. Shortly after a collision between Red Wing center Igor Larionov
and Avalanche forward Peter Forsberg
, Wings enforcer Darren McCarty
seized the chance to avenge his Grind Line teammate by escaping a linesman's grasp and hitting Lemieux with a right hook from the side. McCarty laid many blows on Lemieux, who fell to the ice and covered his head (labeled "turtling" in hockey terminology); McCarty managed to land a few more punches, drag Lemieux to the boards, and knee him in the head before the two were separated by officials.
Seeing what McCarty was doing to Lemieux, Avalanche goaltender
Patrick Roy
skated out of his net to defend his teammate, but was intercepted by Red Wing forward Brendan Shanahan
, who was skating at full speed, with an open ice body check
, sending him sprawling momentarily into Avalanche defenseman
Adam Foote
. While Shanahan and Foote tangled, Wings goalie Mike Vernon went out to center ice to try and grab Foote off of Shanahan. Roy saw this going on and got Vernon's attention by attacking him from behind, which ended up escalating to a fight when Vernon and Roy dropped their masks, gloves, and blockers. The scrum between Larionov and Forsberg ended with the oft-injured Forsberg aggravating an injury. As a result of the third brawl of the first period, Forsberg and Larionov each received matching minor penalites for roughing
; Roy and Vernon were each assessed minor penalties for roughing Shanahan and Foote, respectively, and major penalties for fighting
each other, and McCarty received a double-minor for roughing Lemieux, giving Colorado a power play. Forsberg aggravated an injury in scrum with Larionov and would not return, and the McCarty/Lemieux incident left patches of blood on the ice that were visible before the ice was resurfaced by the Zamboni
; blood also ended up on the boards near the Red Wings bench. There was even more blood during this brawl, when blood started to gush out from Roy's forehead from the punches he received by Vernon.
Fifteen seconds after the Roy/Vernon fight, Avalanche winger Adam Deadmarsh
and Red Wing defenceman Vladimir Konstantinov
would drop the gloves in another fight for the final fight in the first period.
There would be five more fights (and four stoppages) in the second period: a fight between Shanahan and Foote four seconds into the second period, simultaneous fights between Avalanche winger Mike Keane
and Red Wing winger Tomas Holmstrom
, which occurred for the most part on the ice and between Severyn and Red Wing defenceman Aaron Ward 3:34 in (Severyn and Ward were ejected for a secondary fight), McCarty and Deadmarsh at 7:24 (McCarty also received a roughing), and between Pushor and Avalanche defenceman Uwe Krupp
at 11:26.
When the third period ended, the score was tied 5–5. Incidentally, it was McCarty who scored the winner against Roy in overtime
, assisted
by Shanahan and Larionov.
Marc Crawford
, meanwhile, wondered why McCarty did not receive a game misconduct for his largely one-sided instigation
and subsequent fight with Lemieux (McCarty received a double-minor for roughing
for that incident, and also received a fighting major
later in the game). Subsequently, Avalanche right winger
Mike Keane
criticized Draper for having McCarty fight on his behalf.
A similar free-for-all took place on May 19, during Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals at Joe Louis Arena, when during a penalty-filled game, Crawford was seen screaming obscenities at Red Wings head coach Scotty Bowman
across the glass separating the two benches. Bowman then told Crawford that he knew Crawford's father before he did and he wouldn't appreciate the way he was acting. The Wings would win that game 6-0. Crawford was fined $10,000 for the tirade.
The next year during a game on November 11, 1997 between the two teams, McCarty and Lemieux began to throw punches seconds after the opening faceoff, much to the delight of the Joe Louis Arena crowd. On April 1, 1998, Joe Louis Arena was the site of another Avs-Wings brawl. This time Patrick Roy challenged and then squared off with Chris Osgood
at center ice. The referees called more severe penalties this time, as Roy and Osgood both received minor, major, misconduct, and game misconduct penalties
. The two teams combined for 46 penalties totaling 228 minutes. The Wings ultimately won the game 2–0, and would go on to win the second of their consecutive Stanley Cups.
The game and brawl is considered a defining moment in modern Red Wings history. However, as players began to leave each team through free agency, trades, or retirements, the rivalry
began to die down.
A game between the Red Wings and Avalanche on March 23, 2002 broke into a brawl (much smaller than the previous two) when Kirk Maltby came into Patrick Roy's net and Roy took exception. The brawl continued when Red Wing goalie Dominik Hašek
skated down the length of the ice to confront Roy but tripped on a discarded stick, causing him to crash into and knock over Roy. Infuriated, Roy threw off his gloves and mask to fight as Hasek did the same, but the two were restrained by the officials, thus preventing Roy from fighting a third Red Wing goalie since 1997.
Joe Louis Arena
Joe Louis Arena, nicknamed The Joe and JLA is a hockey arena located at 600 Civic Center Drive in Detroit, Michigan. It is the home of the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League. Completed in 1979 at a cost of $57 million, Joe Louis Arena is named after boxer and former heavyweight...
in Detroit, Michigan
Detroit, Michigan
Detroit is the major city among the primary cultural, financial, and transportation centers in the Metro Detroit area, a region of 5.2 million people. As the seat of Wayne County, the city of Detroit is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan and serves as a major port on the Detroit River...
, United States, between two National Hockey League
National Hockey League
The National Hockey League is an unincorporated not-for-profit association which operates a major professional ice hockey league of 30 franchised member clubs, of which 7 are currently located in Canada and 23 in the United States...
rivals, the Detroit Red Wings
Detroit Red Wings
The Detroit Red Wings are a professional ice hockey team based in Detroit, Michigan. They are members of the Central Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League , and are one of the Original Six teams of the NHL, along with the Toronto Maple Leafs, Montreal Canadiens, New York...
and the Colorado Avalanche
Colorado Avalanche
The Colorado Avalanche are a professional ice hockey team based in Denver, Colorado, United States. They are members of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Hockey League . The Avalanche have won the Stanley Cup twice, in 1995–96 and 2000–01. The franchise...
. The brawl, alternatively called Bloody Wednesday, Fight Night at the Joe and Brawl in Hockeytown, stemmed from a previous on-ice incident between the two teams during the 1996 Western Conference Finals.
Previous incident
In Game 6 of the 1996 Western Conference Finals, Avalanche right wingerWinger (ice hockey)
Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...
Claude Lemieux
Claude Lemieux
Claude Percy Lemieux is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey player. He last played for the San Jose Sharks before announcing his retirement on July 8, 2009. He is one of only ten players in Stanley Cup history to win the Cup with three different teams. His 80 career playoff goals are the...
checked Red Wings center
Centre (ice hockey)
The centre in ice hockey is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play is the middle of the ice, away from the side boards. Centres have more flexibility in their positioning and are expected to cover more ice surface than any other player...
Kris Draper
Kris Draper
Kristopher Draper is a Canadian retired professional ice hockey player. Draper is a four-time winner of the Stanley Cup, a Frank J. Selke Trophy winner and scored over 100 goals in the Red Wings uniform. Draper was a member of the famous Grind Line in Detroit, consisting of himself, Kirk Maltby...
from behind, driving Draper's face into the boards.
The hit sent Draper out of the game and into the hospital with a broken jaw, shattered cheek and orbital bone, which required reconstructive surgery involving his jaw being wired shut and numerous stitches. The Avalanche would go on to defeat the Red Wings in six games, eventually winning the Stanley Cup
Stanley Cup
The Stanley Cup is an ice hockey club trophy, awarded annually to the National Hockey League playoffs champion after the conclusion of the Stanley Cup Finals. It has been referred to as The Cup, Lord Stanley's Cup, The Holy Grail, or facetiously as Lord Stanley's Mug...
. After the traditional handshakes that take place after a playoff series, former Red Wing winger Dino Ciccarelli
Dino Ciccarelli
.Dino Ciccarelli is a Canadian former professional hockey player who played 19 seasons in the National Hockey League, primarily with the Minnesota North Stars. He scored 1,200 points in his NHL career. His 608 career NHL goals are also the most goals scored by a draft-eligible player who was not...
said of Lemieux, "I can't believe I shook the guy's freaking hand. That just pisses me right off."
The brawls
In the next regular season, although the two teams had played each other three times without incident, this fourth meeting on the night of March 26 was different, with nine fights in the game. As tensions mounted early in the first period, defencemenDefenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
Brent Severyn
Brent Severyn
Brent Leonard Severyn is a Canadian former professional ice hockey Defenseman who played in the National Hockey League.-Playing career:...
(Avalanche) and Jamie Pushor
Jamie Pushor
James M. Pushor is a Canadian former professional ice hockey defenceman who last played professionally for the Syracuse Crunch of the American Hockey League....
(Red Wings) fought at 4:45 of the first period, followed by a fight between forward
Forward (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, a forward is a player position on the ice whose primary responsibility is to score goals. Generally, the forwards try to stay in three different lanes, also known as thirds, of the ice going from goal to goal. It is not mandatory however, to stay in a lane. Staying in a lane aids in...
s Kirk Maltby
Kirk Maltby
Kirk Maltby is a Canadian former professional ice hockey winger who played 16 seasons in the National Hockey League for the Edmonton Oilers and Detroit Red Wings.-Playing career:...
(Red Wings) and René Corbet
René Corbet
René Corbet is a Canadian ice hockey player who currently plays for the Frisk Tigers of the Norwegian GET-ligaen. He has previously played in the National Hockey League with the Quebec Nordiques, Colorado Avalanche, Calgary Flames, and Pittsburgh Penguins.-Playing career:Corbet was drafted in the...
(Avalanche) at 10:14.
The major melee ensued at the 18:22 mark, leading to the third fight. Shortly after a collision between Red Wing center Igor Larionov
Igor Larionov
Igor Nikolayevich Larionov is a Russian retired professional ice hockey player, known as The Professor. Along with Viacheslav Fetisov, he was instrumental in breaking the barrier that stopped Soviet players from joining the National Hockey League . He primarily played the centre position, and is...
and Avalanche forward Peter Forsberg
Peter Forsberg
Peter Mattias "Foppa" Forsberg is a retired Swedish professional ice hockey player and currently an assistant general manager of Modo Sports. Known for his on-ice vision and physical play, Forsberg is considered one of the most complete players of his generation...
, Wings enforcer Darren McCarty
Darren McCarty
Darren McCarty is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey forward, best known for his years playing with the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League...
seized the chance to avenge his Grind Line teammate by escaping a linesman's grasp and hitting Lemieux with a right hook from the side. McCarty laid many blows on Lemieux, who fell to the ice and covered his head (labeled "turtling" in hockey terminology); McCarty managed to land a few more punches, drag Lemieux to the boards, and knee him in the head before the two were separated by officials.
Seeing what McCarty was doing to Lemieux, Avalanche goaltender
Goaltender
In ice hockey, the goaltender is the player who defends his team's goal net by stopping shots of the puck from entering his team's net, thus preventing the opposing team from scoring...
Patrick Roy
Patrick Roy
Patrick Edward Armand Roy is a former Canadian ice hockey goaltender. Nicknamed "Saint Patrick," Roy split his professional career between the Montreal Canadiens, whom he played with for 10 years, and the Colorado Avalanche, whom he played with for 8 years, both of the National Hockey League...
skated out of his net to defend his teammate, but was intercepted by Red Wing forward Brendan Shanahan
Brendan Shanahan
Brendan Frederick "Shanny" Shanahan is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger who currently serves as the National Hockey League's Vice President of Hockey and Business Development and head disciplinarian. Originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL Entry...
, who was skating at full speed, with an open ice body check
Checking (ice hockey)
Checking in ice hockey is any one of a number of defensive techniques. It is usually not a penalty.- Types :There are various types of checking:...
, sending him sprawling momentarily into Avalanche defenseman
Defenceman (ice hockey)
Defence in ice hockey is a player position whose primary responsibility is to prevent the opposing team from scoring...
Adam Foote
Adam Foote
Adam David Vernon Foote is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman. He was best known for his physical presence and gritty play as a stay-at-home defenceman....
. While Shanahan and Foote tangled, Wings goalie Mike Vernon went out to center ice to try and grab Foote off of Shanahan. Roy saw this going on and got Vernon's attention by attacking him from behind, which ended up escalating to a fight when Vernon and Roy dropped their masks, gloves, and blockers. The scrum between Larionov and Forsberg ended with the oft-injured Forsberg aggravating an injury. As a result of the third brawl of the first period, Forsberg and Larionov each received matching minor penalites for roughing
Roughing
Roughing is an offense and penalty in ice hockey when two players are in a minor altercation. The incident would have to be minor for either player to be categorized as such an offense such as:* A player striking another opponent...
; Roy and Vernon were each assessed minor penalties for roughing Shanahan and Foote, respectively, and major penalties for fighting
Fighting in ice hockey
Fighting in ice hockey is an established tradition of the sport in North America, with a long history involving many levels of amateur and professional play and including some notable individual fights. Although a definite source of criticism, it is a considerable draw for the sport, and some fans...
each other, and McCarty received a double-minor for roughing Lemieux, giving Colorado a power play. Forsberg aggravated an injury in scrum with Larionov and would not return, and the McCarty/Lemieux incident left patches of blood on the ice that were visible before the ice was resurfaced by the Zamboni
Ice resurfacer
An ice resurfacer is a truck-like vehicle or smaller device used to clean and smooth the surface of an ice rink. The first ice resurfacer was developed by Frank J. Zamboni in 1949 in the city of Paramount, California...
; blood also ended up on the boards near the Red Wings bench. There was even more blood during this brawl, when blood started to gush out from Roy's forehead from the punches he received by Vernon.
Fifteen seconds after the Roy/Vernon fight, Avalanche winger Adam Deadmarsh
Adam Deadmarsh
Adam Deadmarsh is a former Canadian-American professional ice hockey player who played in the NHL with the Quebec Nordiques, Colorado Avalanche and the Los Angeles Kings. He is currently an Assistant Coach to Joe Sacco for the Avalanche...
and Red Wing defenceman Vladimir Konstantinov
Vladimir Konstantinov
Vladimir Nikolaevich Konstantinov is a Russian retired professional ice hockey player who played his entire National Hockey League career with the Detroit Red Wings. Previously, he had played for Soviet club CSKA Moscow...
would drop the gloves in another fight for the final fight in the first period.
There would be five more fights (and four stoppages) in the second period: a fight between Shanahan and Foote four seconds into the second period, simultaneous fights between Avalanche winger Mike Keane
Mike Keane
Michael John Keane is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger. Undrafted, Keane played over 1100 games in the National Hockey League from 1988 until 2004, and then played five seasons for his hometown Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League until he retired in 2010...
and Red Wing winger Tomas Holmstrom
Tomas Holmström
Tomas Holmström is a Swedish professional ice hockey left winger currently playing for the Detroit Red Wings of the National Hockey League , where he has won four Stanley Cup championships...
, which occurred for the most part on the ice and between Severyn and Red Wing defenceman Aaron Ward 3:34 in (Severyn and Ward were ejected for a secondary fight), McCarty and Deadmarsh at 7:24 (McCarty also received a roughing), and between Pushor and Avalanche defenceman Uwe Krupp
Uwe Krupp
Uwe G. Krupp is a retired German professional hockey defenceman and current coach of the German national ice hockey team. Following Walt Tkaczuk, Krupp was only the second German-born player to have a lasting career in the National Hockey League...
at 11:26.
When the third period ended, the score was tied 5–5. Incidentally, it was McCarty who scored the winner against Roy in overtime
Overtime (sports)
Overtime or extra time is an additional period of play specified under the rules of a sport to bring a game to a decision and avoid declaring the match a tie or draw. In most sports, this extra period is only played if the game is required to have a clear winner, as in single-elimination...
, assisted
Assist (ice hockey)
In ice hockey, an assist is attributed to up to two players of the scoring team who shot, passed or deflected the puck towards the scoring teammate, or touched it in any other way which enabled the goal, meaning that they were "assisting" in the goal. There can be a maximum of two assists per goal...
by Shanahan and Larionov.
Aftermath
Mike Vernon, who won his 300th career game, believed the brawl-filled game "brought the Red Wings together" in time for the playoffs. Colorado head coachHead coach
A head coach, senior coach or manager is a professional at training and developing athletes. They typically hold a more public profile and are paid more than other coaches...
Marc Crawford
Marc Crawford
Marc Joseph John Crawford is a Canadian professional ice hockey head coach, most recently employed by the Dallas Stars of the National Hockey League. He was previously the head coach of three other organizations and won a Stanley Cup in 1996 with the Colorado Avalanche...
, meanwhile, wondered why McCarty did not receive a game misconduct for his largely one-sided instigation
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...
and subsequent fight with Lemieux (McCarty received a double-minor for roughing
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...
for that incident, and also received a fighting major
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...
later in the game). Subsequently, Avalanche right winger
Winger (ice hockey)
Winger, in the game of hockey, is a forward position of a player whose primary zone of play on the ice is along the outer playing area. They typically work by flanking the centre forward. Originally the name was given to forward players who went up and down the sides of the rink...
Mike Keane
Mike Keane
Michael John Keane is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey winger. Undrafted, Keane played over 1100 games in the National Hockey League from 1988 until 2004, and then played five seasons for his hometown Manitoba Moose of the American Hockey League until he retired in 2010...
criticized Draper for having McCarty fight on his behalf.
A similar free-for-all took place on May 19, during Game 4 of the Western Conference Finals at Joe Louis Arena, when during a penalty-filled game, Crawford was seen screaming obscenities at Red Wings head coach Scotty Bowman
Scotty Bowman
William Scott "Scotty" Bowman is a retired National Hockey League head coach. He holds the record for most wins in league history, with 1,244 wins in the regular season and 223 in the Stanley Cup playoffs. He coached the St. Louis Blues, Montreal Canadiens, Buffalo Sabres, Pittsburgh Penguins, and...
across the glass separating the two benches. Bowman then told Crawford that he knew Crawford's father before he did and he wouldn't appreciate the way he was acting. The Wings would win that game 6-0. Crawford was fined $10,000 for the tirade.
The next year during a game on November 11, 1997 between the two teams, McCarty and Lemieux began to throw punches seconds after the opening faceoff, much to the delight of the Joe Louis Arena crowd. On April 1, 1998, Joe Louis Arena was the site of another Avs-Wings brawl. This time Patrick Roy challenged and then squared off with Chris Osgood
Chris Osgood
Christopher John Osgood is a retired Canadian professional ice hockey goaltender. He's currently ranked tenth in wins in NHL regular season history with 401 career wins. He spent the first part of his 17-year NHL career with the Detroit Red Wings, then the New York Islanders and the St. Louis...
at center ice. The referees called more severe penalties this time, as Roy and Osgood both received minor, major, misconduct, and game misconduct penalties
Penalty (ice hockey)
A penalty in ice hockey is a punishment for inappropriate behavior. Most penalties are enforced by detaining the offending player within a penalty box for a set number of minutes, during which, the player can not participate in play. The offending team usually may not replace the player on the ice,...
. The two teams combined for 46 penalties totaling 228 minutes. The Wings ultimately won the game 2–0, and would go on to win the second of their consecutive Stanley Cups.
The game and brawl is considered a defining moment in modern Red Wings history. However, as players began to leave each team through free agency, trades, or retirements, the rivalry
Sports rivalry
A sports rivalry is intense competition between athletic teams or athletes. This pressure of competition is felt by players, coaches, and management, but is perhaps felt strongest by the fans. The intensity of the rivalry varies from a friendly competition on one end to serious violence on the...
began to die down.
A game between the Red Wings and Avalanche on March 23, 2002 broke into a brawl (much smaller than the previous two) when Kirk Maltby came into Patrick Roy's net and Roy took exception. The brawl continued when Red Wing goalie Dominik Hašek
Dominik Hašek
Dominik Hašek is a Czech ice hockey goaltender who is currently with HC Spartak Moscow of the KHL.In his 16-season National Hockey League career, he played for the Chicago Blackhawks, Buffalo Sabres, Detroit Red Wings, and the Ottawa Senators. During his years in Buffalo, he became one of the...
skated down the length of the ice to confront Roy but tripped on a discarded stick, causing him to crash into and knock over Roy. Infuriated, Roy threw off his gloves and mask to fight as Hasek did the same, but the two were restrained by the officials, thus preventing Roy from fighting a third Red Wing goalie since 1997.