April 12: Gretzky first to have 200 playoff assists

THIS DATE IN HISTORY: April 12
There's something about this date that seems to bring out the best in
Wayne Gretzky
.

1987: The Great One scores a goal and has four assists to help the Edmonton Oilers to a
6-3 win against the Los Angeles Kings
in Game 4 of the Smythe Division Semifinals at the Forum in Inglewood, California. The goal and three of the assists come in the third period, when the Oilers score four times to blow open a game that's even at 2-2 through two periods.
1988:The opponent and venue are different but Gretzky's numbers are the same: He has a goal and four assists in the Oilers'
6-2 victory against the Winnipeg Jets
in Game 5 of the Smythe Division Semifinals.
Mark Messier
and
Jari Kurri
each has two goals and two assists for the Oilers, who eliminate the Jets and go on to win the Stanley Cup for the fourth time in five years.
1991: Gretzky is in his third season with the Kings, but his April 12 magic hasn't disappeared. He has four assists to power Los Angeles to a
7-4 victory against the Vancouver Canucks
in Game 5 of the Smythe Division Semifinals. The four assists give him 200 in Stanley Cup Playoff competition.

MORE MOMENTS
1945: Toronto Maple Leafs rookie goalie
Frank McCool
sets a playoff record with his third consecutive shutout,
defeating the Detroit Red Wings 1-0
at Maple Leaf Gardens in Game 3 of the Final. The Red Wings finally solve McCool two nights later, scoring five times, and extend the series to seven games before the Maple Leafs win the Cup.
1960:
Maurice Richard
scores his NHL-record 82nd (and final) playoff goal in the Montreal Canadiens'
5-2 victory
against the Maple Leafs in Game 3 of the Final. The Canadiens win 4-0 two nights later to complete a sweep and win the Cup for the fifth consecutive season. Richard retires before the 1960-61 season; his record stands until
Mike Bossy
of the New York Islanders scores his 83rd playoff goal exactly 26 years later.

1970: The third-year Pittsburgh Penguins become the first team in NHL history to win its first four playoff games. After missing the postseason in their first two seasons, the visiting Penguins complete a four-game sweep of their Quarterfinal series when
Michel Briere
scores at 8:28 of overtime for a
3-2 victory against the Oakland Seals
.
1994:
Dominik Hasek
of the Buffalo Sabres becomes the first NHL goalie in 20 years to finish with a goals-against average of less than 2.00. He allows three goals in a
3-2 loss to the New York Rangers
at Madison Square Garden in his final appearance of the regular season but finishes 30-20-6 with a 1.95 GAA and seven shutouts. Before Hasek does it, no goaltender has finished with a GAA below 2.00 since
Bernie Parent
of the Philadelphia Flyers (1.87) in 1973-74.
Photo:
Hasek-94 4-6
1996: The Jets make the final regular-season home game in franchise history a memorable one.
Keith Tkachuk
becomes the third player in the Jets' NHL history to score 50 goals when he hits an empty net with one second remaining, wrapping up a
5-3 victory against the Kings
at Winnipeg Arena. The win clinches a playoff berth for the Jets, who move to Arizona after losing their first-round playoff series to Detroit in six games.
On the same night, the
Red Wings' 5-3 victory
against the Chicago Blackhawks is their NHL-record 61st of the season, one more than the previous record of 60 set by Montreal in 1976-77. Detroit also ties an NHL record set by the Philadelphia Flyers in 1975-76 with its 36th home victory.

1997:The Ottawa Senators clinch their first playoff berth since entering the NHL in 1992 by
defeating the visiting Buffalo Sabres 1-0
. Goalie
Ron Tugnutt
makes 17 saves for his fifth NHL shutout, and defenseman
Steve Duchene
scores the only goal of the game with 4:01 remaining in the third period.
2008: Detroit defenseman
Chris Chelios
steps onto the ice for the 248th playoff game of his career, breaking the NHL record that has belonged to Hall of Fame goaltender
Patrick Roy
since 2003. The 46-year-old plays 9:41 in the Red Wings'
4-2 victory
against the Nashville Predators at Joe Louis Arena in Game 2 of their Western Conference Quarterfinal series. He finishes his NHL career holding the playoff records for most seasons (24) and games played (266).

2017:The New York Rangers get their first playoff shutout in Montreal in 67 years when Henrik Lundqvist makes 31 saves in a 2-0 victory against the Canadiens at Bell Centre. Lundqvist makes a first-period goal by
Tanner Glass
stand up until Michael Grabner scores into an empty net with 1:10 remaining. The Rangers haven't won via shutout in Montreal during the playoffs since April 6, 1950, when
Chuck Rayner
gets the win in a
series-clinching 3-0 victory
in Game 5 of the Semifinals at the Forum.\
2019: The Columbus Blue Jackets become the fourth team since 1985-86 to win the first two games of an opening-round playoff series against the Presidents' Trophy winner when they
defeat the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1
in Game 2 of the Eastern Conference First Round at Amalie Arena. Matt Duchene has a goal and three assists for the Blue Jackets, who are the first team to take a 2-0 lead in a first-round series against the regular-season champion since the Kings in 2012.
On the same night, the New York Islanders
defeat the Pittsburgh Penguins 3-1
at Nassau Coliseum to take a 2-0 lead in their first-round series. It's the first time the Islanders start a series with two straight wins since sweeping the 1983 Stanley Cup Final against the Edmonton Oilers.