The Islanders' Stanley Cup dynasty ended in 1984 when the Oilers defeated them. At the time, Isles GM Bill Torrey discussed the loss as a harbinger of unfortunate days to come.
Four decades ago, the Edmonton Oilers won their first Stanley Cup in team history, ending a dynasty.
In this major story from The Hockey News’ June 1, 1984, edition (Volume 37, Issue 34), writer Tim Moriarty spoke to the GM of the New York Islanders team beaten by Edmonton for the Cup – Hockey Hall of Famer Bill Torrey, who said the loss should serve as a harbinger of bad things to come for the Isles.
(And here’s your regular heads-up: for access to The Hockey News’ exclusive Archive, go to THN.com/Free and subscribe to the magazine.)
Coming into the 1983-84 season, the Islanders had won four consecutive Cups, but Edmonton demolished the Isles in five games in the 1984 post-season. Torrey told Moriarty he’d told Islanders coach Al Arbour a handful of bad days that post-season had caught up to the Isles and put them on the losing side of the ledger in the Cup final.
“I was telling Al that in five years we had one bad week,” Torrey said. “Unfortunately, it came at the wrong time… I know this much, though. I feel if we had been 100 percent healthy… well, I’m not going to say the outcome would have been different, but maybe we’d still be playing. However, it wasn’t meant to be, and maybe that was a bit of a warning.”
Arguably, the biggest crossroads the Islanders arrived at concerned their goaltending. Star netminder Billy Smith and youngsters Roland Melanson and Kelly Hrudey all battled for playing time on Long Island, and Torrey wrestled with which of the three to move on from. (Smith and Hrudey were in it for the long haul, while Melanson was traded to Minnesota in the 1984-85 season for a first-round draft pick.)
“That’s the biggest decision I have facing me over the summer.” Torrey told Moriarty. “When the waiver draft comes about in October and I’m still sitting with three goaltenders, obviously one will be snapped up… I’m certainly not going to give one of them away. I have to do something. But when, how, with whom, which one? It’s going to be a difficult decision.”
TORREY SEES ISLES’ CUP LOSS AS A ‘WARNING’
Vol. 37, No. 34, June 1, 1984
By Tim Moriarty
LONG ISLAND – Bill Torrey laughed, recalling the incident which occurred four days after the Islanders surrendered the Stanley Cup to the Oilers. He had gone to his favorite golf course on the North Shore of Long Island in late afternoon, hoping to get in a round of golf before dinner.
“It was the first time I’d had a club in my hands all year,” he said. “I played two holes, then the thunder and lightning came and chased me off the course.”
He laughed again. “It was that kind of a week.”
At least the Islanders’ general manager had not lost his sense of humor in the wake of his team’s tumble from the top of the hockey world. He and coach Al Arbour accepted defeat with a lot of class.
“I was telling Al that in five years we had one bad week,” Torrey said. “Unfortunately, it came at the wrong time.”
He then saluted the new champions. “The Oilers were very well prepared. They were fresh, they were young. They had every motivational thing going for them, and when we didn’t cash in on our opportunities, they took off. Give them credit for that.
“I know this much, though. I feel if we had been 100 percent healthy…well, I’m not going to say the outcome would have been different, but maybe we’d still be playing. However, it wasn’t meant to be, and maybe that was a bit of a warning.
“There are some things lacking and that’s what we have to look at. There’ll be some changes.”
What kind of changes?
“Well, we’re not going to carry 27 players next season,” Torrey said. “I carried them this year because I thought I’d need them in the playoffs. Unfortunately, we could have used 30.
“Obviously, something has to be trimmed. How do we go about it? Only time will tell.”
The Islanders are five players over the limit they will be allowed to protect in this year’s waiver draft. The most likely candidates to be moved are Wayne Merrick, Gord Lane, Mats Hallin, Anders Kallur and Billy Carroll or Butch Goring.
Carroll, 25, has been a handy penalty-killer and useful fourth-line center since joining the club in 1981. However, both he and Merrick became expendable when 19-year-old Pat LaFontaine signed with the Islanders after the Olympics. Goring, 34, is a free agent and has hinted he might leave the team in order to become a player-coach in Switzerland.
It is worth noting that some of the Islanders’ best players in the playoffs were their youngest. They included LaFontaine, Pat Flatley (20), Paul Boutilier (21), Brent Sutter (21) and Greg Gilbert (22). Defenseman Gerald Diduck, only 19 and a first-round draft pick last year, will be given a good look in training camp.
Among the veterans, Clark Gillies’ future appears secure on the strength of his work in the playoffs; he led the team with 12 goals. Bobby Nystrom has one year left on his contract, then might consider retirement. Denis Potvin has to negotiate a new contract, while Mike Bossy and Bryan Trottier are working on long-term deals.
However, the most vexing problem facing Torrey concerns his goalies. Only two can be protected in the waiver draft. Will the general manager trade 33-year-old Bill Smith, who sparked the Islanders to four consecutive Cup championships before the Oilers caught up with him? Or will he accept bids for Roland Melanson or Kelly Hrudey, both of whom are 10 years younger than Smith?
“That’s the biggest decision I have facing me over the summer.” Torrey said. “When the waiver draft comes about in October and I’m still sitting with three goaltenders, obviously one will be snapped up.”
Or one will be traded for a high draft choice?
“Hmmm,” said Torrey. “I don’t know how else to get rid of them. I’m certainly not going to give one of them away. I have to do something. But when, how, with whom, which one? It’s going to be a difficult decision.”
Smith has frequently acknowledged that he will be traded “some day.” Will it be this year? “I don’t know what’s going to happen,” Smith said. “I love the team. I love the organization. But if it happens, there won’t be any bitterness from me.”
Melanson finished the regular season with 20 victories and a 3.27 goals-against average (compared to Smith’s 23 victories and a 3.42 average. Now Melanson, who relieved Smith in six of the Islanders’ 21 playoff games, appears to be running out of patience.
“I like the organization, but I have to play,” Melanson said. “I need to start thinking about myself.”
The Hockey News Archive is an exclusive collection of more than 2,640 issues and more than 156,000 articles exclusively produced for subscribers, chronicling the full history of The Hockey News from 1947 until this day. Visit the archive at THN.com/archive and subscribe today at subscribe.thehockeynews.com