Bobby Nystrom scored the Stanley Cup-winning goal in overtime for the 1980 New York Islanders. His goal in Game 6 gave New York a 5–4 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers and secured the Islanders’ first Stanley Cup championship.
The deciding game was played on May 24, 1980, at the Nassau Veterans Memorial Coliseum. Nystrom redirected John Tonelli’s cross-ice pass past Flyers goaltender Pete Peeters at 7:11 of overtime. Lorne Henning also helped create the scoring play with a precise pass to Tonelli.
The Islanders won the best-of-seven Final four games to two, completing a rapid rise for a franchise that had entered the NHL in 1972. The championship began a dynasty: New York won four consecutive Stanley Cups from 1980 through 1983.
A common mix-up is confusing Nystrom with Denis Potvin, Bryan Trottier, or Mike Bossy, all important Islanders. Potvin did score an overtime goal earlier in the series, but Nystrom scored the goal that actually clinched the 1980 Cup.