Mandela effects in hockey
The other day I was reading one of my favorite childhood books to my son, when I realized that I’ve been calling them the Berenstein Bears since I was single-digit aged. But, it turns out, they’ve been called the BerenSTAIN Bears the whole time! My mind was blown, and apparently a lot of other people have been living with the same exact false memory.
And that got me thinking of all the times I’ve noticed hockey fans sharing the same false memory about historical events in hockey.
It’s called the Mandela Effect. No, I’m not talking about the time that Jonathan Bernier mistook Nelson Mandela for a sports legend. That’s a story for another blog post.
No, the Mandela Effect is a phenomenon where many people share the same incorrect memory of a historical event. For example, there are many people who claim to remember that anti-apartheid activist Nelson Mandela died in a South African prison in the 1980s. But, in actuality, he survived prison and eventually became the president of South Africa.
Weird, hey?
Well, today I’m looking at some of the most interesting Mandela Effects in hockey. Forget everything you think you know about hockey history, ‘cause some of these might knock your socks off.
Steve smith didn't score on his own goal in the dying seconds of game seven in the 1986 stanley cup playoffs
One of the foundational pieces on the Oilers’ dynasty back in the 1980s was Steve Smith, who was known for his sound defensive play. Or, at least he was, until he scored on his own goal in a game seven contest against provincial rivals, the Calgary Flames, in 1986.
Most people recall that goal as the nail in the Oilers’ coffin, as Smith banked the puck off the back of Grant Fuhr’s leg and into the Oilers’ net, giving the Flames a 3-2 lead with just seconds left to play.
Except there was still 15 minutes left to play. And 15 minutes with a squad that included Wayne Gretzky, Mark Messier, Jarri Kurri, Glenn Anderson, and Paul Coffey is more than enough time to get even in a one-goal game.
I remember watching this game and going to bed thinking, “There’s no way that will be allowed to happen. I’ll wake up, the NHL will decide to play the game over again and the Oilers will win. Young Keener learned a valuable sports lesson that day, you can’t win them all.
It was an embarrassing moment, for sure — extra painful given that it happened on Smith’s 23rd birthday — but the game wasn’t unsalvageable like people tend to remember it.
Here is footage of the infamous event.
patrik stefan's embarrassing empty net flub
didn't cost the stars the game
It’s one of the most embarrassing moments in NHL history. On January 4, 2007, with just eleven seconds remaining in a 5-4 hockey game, Patrik Stefan of the Dallas Stars found himself with a clear-cut breakaway on an empty net against the Edmonton Oilers. But, he missed the net completely! And everybody knows what happened next.
Or do they?
Most people think that the Oilers went on to win the contest, but the Stars actually pulled out the victory in a shootout.
I think the problem is that the Oilers and Stars have a history of exciting finishes, and fans are probably conflating this moment with another iconic moment in which the Oilers got the best of the Stars in a do-or-die situation.
In game seven of the Oilers and Stars 1997 first-round playoff matchup, Curtis Joseph made one of the most incredible saves in playoff hockey history, denying the Stars a sure-goal in overtime. After the ensuing faceoff, the Oilers collected the puck to the left of their goaltender and threw it up ice to the right wing where Todd Marchant streaked in and scored the series winner.
It was a similar series of events to what happened in the Patrik Stefan incident. After Stefan’s flub in ‘07, Jared Stoll collected the puck to the left of his goal and ripped it up the right wing to Ryan Smyth, who dished it to Ales Hemsky, who made no mistake, tying the game 5–5 with two seconds remaining.
So, in both moments there was a gimme-goal denied, followed shortly after by a long pass up the right wing, and a nice move to beat the Stars’ goalie. The only difference is that the 2007 Stars salvaged the regular season win in a shootout.
Steve Dangle does an informative deep dive that’s worth a watch even though the camera always seems a little too close to his face.
You’ve seen the jokes, now you know the true story behind the league’s most famous missed net!
the 1980 U.s. olympic hockey team did not win a
medal at the miracle on ice
The 1980 Miracle on Ice is maybe the most iconic underdog stories of all-time. The 1980 US Olympic hockey squad was very young and inexperienced, and on February 22 of that year, they found themselves lining up against Soviet players who, if not for Cold War tensions, would all likely have been professional hockey players playing in the NHL.
The Americans were major underdogs, but they managed to pull off a stunning 4–3 victory to win the Olympic gold medal. Right?
Wrong.
That game — the one where the Lake Placid crowd went crazy and the entire US team flooded onto the ice, piling on each other behind their net in sheer jubilation — was just the first game of the medal round tournament. And, while the Americans did go on to win the 1980 gold medal in Olympic Hockey, they were not awarded the gold medal following their incredible victory over the Soviets.
No, the Americans clinched the gold medal two days later when they defeated Finland 4–2. That win gave the Americans five points in the medal round, edging the favored Soviets who managed to post only four points in the medal round.
That said, back in the 80s, the hockey gold medal went through the Soviets, so in order to win the gold, the Americans had to beat them. And for that reason, the 4–3 victory over the Soviets, was as big a deal as the photos and videos made it seem.
Side note: Herb Brooks/Kurt Russell’s inspirational speech is one of the best. You can hear me recite it every morning to the KJ staff.
One of the best scenes in all of hockey.
ray bourque did not win the stanley cup as a
trade deadline addition
Ray Bourque played 1518 games as a Boston Bruin, amassing 1506 points in the process — as a defenseman. Wow.
But, after 21 seasons in Beantown, Bourque still had not won a Stanley Cup, which is why he requested to be moved to a contender at the trade deadline that year.
He landed in Colorado, and the stacked Avs promptly bulldozed their way through the playoffs… until they lost in the conference finals to the Dallas Stars.
It wasn’t until the next season that we got to see that iconic moment where Avs captain, Joe Sakic handed off Lord Stanley’s mug to the 40 year old Bourque.
To me, that makes Bourque’s cup win all the more sweet. He wasn’t just a ringer, he was a key component for the Avalanche all season long. In fact, not only did he win the Cup in 2001, he also finished second in Norris Trophy voting that year, and he was named a First Team All-Star. Incredible feats accomplished in his retirement year.
Two decades later, this is still one of the most heartwarming moments in hockey.
the "l" on the washington capitals' logo is
not a hockey stick!
As a jersey maker, this one’s never fooled me, but it does fool a lot of my customers. Many die-hard hockey fans are dead certain that the hockey stick on the original Washington Capitals jerseys takes the place of the “L” in the word “Capitals”.
It does not.
The reason people make this mistake is probably because a hockey stick is in the shape of an “L”. But, when you think about it, it doesn’t make a whole lot of sense that it would replace the “L”, seeing as every letter in the Capitals’ logo is a lower-case letter, and a hockey stick is in the shape of an upper-case “L”.
No, the hockey stick takes the place of the lower-case “t” on both the original Capitals jersey, as well as the new version of the red, white, and blue classic.
Plot twist! The stick is the ‘T’!
Details are like elephants- they're huge!
Isn’t it wild how one small detail can change the whole story? But, it’s like I always say: details are like elephants — they’re huge! So, whether I’m talkin’ hockey or customizing a jersey, I always make sure I get the details right.
There are a few other hockey Mandela Effects that have less currency in hockey circles, but still deserve honourable mentions. For example, Bobby Orr did not score a goal while flying through the air. He was tripped while celebrating the goal he’d just scored.
And Jim Shoenfeld never said “have another donut, you fat pig” to referee Don Koharski. The line was “You fell, you fat pig! Have another donut!”. I guess that’s hockey’s version of “Luke, I am your father”.
Oh, did you not know that Darth Vader never actually says those words to Luke Skywalker?
Anywho, wasn’t that fun? If you want more interesting tidbits about hockey culture and hockey jerseys, be sure to sign up for the 4 Shots with Keener newsletter below. Every Friday I send out my deepest thoughts and my fuzziest memories of the world’s best game.
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