1981-82 NHL Co-Op Replay - Wales Conference Finals, Game 4

4 May 1982: The Islanders scored two third-period goals to complete their comeback from a early two-goal deficit and grab firm control of the Prince of Wales Conference Finals by three games to one.

The Canadiens came out of the gate firing in front of the Forum crowd, scoring twice in the first six minutes to knock New York onto their heels. Mario Tremblay stuffed home a rebound of Mark Napier’s shot at 2:12, and Larry Robinson fired home on the power play three minutes later after Billy Smith was whistled for putting the blade of his stick into Keith Acton’s face. When Tremblay went off for roughing with about five minutes to go in the period, the Isles got some life from Clark Gillies’ PPG, but Montréal got what looked to be a critically important score from Acton in the final minute of the period to take a two-goal lead to the intermission.

After a four-goal opening period, things tightened up in the second. When MTL failed to capitalize on three man-advantage opportunities (including four consecutive minutes) it felt as if the tide was turning and Gillies scored again with three minutes to go in the frame to make it a one-goal game with twenty minutes to play. The home team got another power-play five minutes into the third when Butch Goring got caught with a high stick, but the Islanders were the ones to strike on special teams - Ken Morrow poked the puck loose as Montréal were entering the NYI zone and he found Bryan Trottier streaking through the neutral zone for a calm SH finish that tied the game at three goals apiece.

The chances were diminishing as the teams started to play more conservatively and thoughts had perhaps started to turn to sudden death when New York got the big play from an unlikely place. The Islanders were passing the puck around the Montréal zone looking for an opening when Mike McEwen flipped the puck at the Canadiens net under some pressure at the point; as the puck worked its way through the crowd in front of goal, it took the tiniest of deflections off of the skate of Gaston Gingras and past the misdirected Wamsley for a 4-3 Islanders lead. The Canadiens didn’t mount much of a rally in the final six minutes, despite pulling the goalie for the final forty seconds, as New York did a good job of puck possession to see out the crucial victory away from home. FINAL: New York Islanders 4, Montréal Canadiens 3. 

Contribution to the Facebook co-op replay . . .

Mike McEwen's shot decided the game in the final minutes