A new divisional-based playoff structure was adopted, replacing the previous format that seeded teams regardless of division or conference.
In game five, the Islanders scored twice in the last five minutes to force overtime and then won the series on John Tonelli's goal 6:19 into the extra session.
This served as a wake-up call for New York, who lost only two more games the rest of the way on their march to a third straight Stanley Cup.
Their Finals opponents, the Vancouver Canucks, finished the regular season with only 77 points, defeating three teams beneath them in the standings (Calgary 75, Los Angeles 63, and Chicago 72) in the much weaker Campbell Conference.
This remains the most recent time that the Detroit Red Wings and the Toronto Maple Leafs missed the playoffs in the same season.
Dale Hunter scored the game-winning overtime goal in the decisive Game 5 twenty-two seconds into the first OT to help the Nordiques eliminate the Canadiens.
New York won the only previous meeting in seven games in the 1975 Stanley Cup Quarterfinals after falling behind 3–0 in the series.
Game two saw New York's Mikko Leinonen set an NHL playoff record with six assists, a feat only matched by Wayne Gretzky.
Canucks Coach Roger Neilson was tossed out of game 2 for holding up a white towel on a hockey stick as a form of protest.
He was ejected from the game along with two players but the protest began the Canucks Towel Power tradition that still exists to this day and has since been copied by other teams.