The Red Wings were the last team to win the Cup without home ice advantage in the Finals and with fewer than 100 points earned during the regular season until 2009.

Philadelphia rose to the top on the back of a 17-game unbeaten streak in December and January, and despite losing the Atlantic Division title to New Jersey, had a relatively easy time with the Pittsburgh Penguins and Buffalo Sabres in the first two rounds.

Eric Lindros and Wayne Gretzky each recorded a hat trick in the set, but the size, strength and discipline of Philadelphia (particularly the Legion of Doom line) trumped the veteran savvy of the Blueshirts.

For Detroit there was the departure of several players whom head coach Scotty Bowman blamed for their loss to Colorado a year prior, including trading away Paul Coffey to get star Brendan Shanahan.

In the playoffs, the Wings dispatched a fractured St. Louis Blues team in six games, and a surprising Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in a sweep to reach the Western Conference Final for the third straight season.

The Red Wings controlled the game from the get-go, forging ahead 1–0 after one period and employing the left-wing lock to keep the Flyers' mix of big and speedy forwards at bay.

The burly checker faked out Flyers rookie defenceman Janne Niinimaa inside the blue line, swooped around him, then did a quick cutback in front of Hextall in his crease to slip the puck into the net.

[3] On June 13, 1997, just six days after the Red Wings won the Stanley Cup, a limousine carrying Vladimir Konstantinov, team masseur Sergei Mnatsakanov and Viacheslav Fetisov crashed into a tree after returning from a private party.