Russian 5 member Slava Kozlov played the role of hero for the Red Wings on this day in 1997 against the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, scoring in triple overtime.
The collective euphoria of having won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years is a feeling Detroit Red Wings fans around the world will never forget.
It was a long road to get there, starting with a six-game victory over the St. Louis Blues in the opening round of the 1997 Stanley Cup Playoffs and setting up a date with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
The Ducks were in their first playoff appearance, and had dispatched the Phoenix Coyotes in their opening round series.
However, the dangerous offensive combination of Paul Kariya and Teemu Selanne proved to be no match for the Red Wings, who swept through the series in four games.
And amazingly, three of the four games required overtime to settle a winner.
Less than a minute into overtime in Game 1, Brendan Shanahan broke in on a two-on-one rush with Martin Lapointe, who beat goaltender Guy Hebert for what he described as his first-career overtime goal dating back to his Pee Wee hockey days.
But Game 2 took nearly two full games worth of hockey to decide a winner. It was Slava Kozlov who finally sent the fans home happy at 1:38 of the third overtime, firing a shot from the face-off circle past goaltender Mikhail Shtalenkov, who replaced the injured Hebert.
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Following a regulation Game 3 victory in Anaheim, Detroit punched their ticket to the Western Conference Final against the Colorado Avalanche thanks to a double-overtime game-winning goal from Brendan Shanahan in Game 4.
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