The New York Times article
May 17, 1996
by Joe LaPointe
For most of this splendid Game 7, the two captains played on lines that were matched against each other. Steve Yzerman of Detroit and Wayne Gretzky of St. Louis must have skated 40 minutes each amid the precious tension of Joe Louis Arena.
Along with their linemates, they circled, shot, passed and blocked shots in one of those Stanley Cup playoff classics that was scoreless for more than 81 scoreboard minutes and for more than four hours if you were keeping time at home.
Inevitably, it all came down to one rush, one shot, one goal. And only one team survived to move into the final four of the National Hockey League’s post-season tournament.
That team is the Red Wings, and that shooter was Yzerman. Picking up a puck that bounced off Gretzky’s stick in the Detroit zone, Yzerman raced the other way, crossed the blue line of the Blues, drew back his stick and drilled a long slap shot that beat goalie Jon Casey.
