NEW JERSEY VS. PITTSBURGH COLORADO VS. ST. LOUIS

Monday, June 4 The longest mile By Joy Russo ESPN.com The hockey has changed, the names have changed, but one game in one series has stood the test of time. Red Wings 3, Maroons 0 Date Result Goalie 3/24 Red Wings 1, Maroons 0 Smith 3/26 Red Wings 3, Maroons 0 Smith 3/29 Red Wings 2, Maroons 1 Smith In 1936, the NHL playoff format didn't resemble the present day postseason. In fact, there have been 13 "amendments" to the format since then. But in what would now be considered a conference final was a matchup between the top Canadian Division team (Montreal Maroons) and the top American Division team (Detroit Red Wings). The Wings turned things around from the previous season, jumping from sixth to first in the overall standings and finishing two points ahead (54) of the defending champion Maroons. The opener in the best-of-five series would boost one team's morale and deflate the other's Cup hopes. The turnaround? Two teams reach triple overtime, and the legs are dragging. To stretch a game to a sixth extra session is another realm of delirium altogether. The Wings and Maroons reached that Twilight Zone-esque point on March 24, 1936. With the top players on each team understandably fatigued, more inexperienced, younger players saw more ice time since they were not used as often in regulation. One of those players was Detroit winger Modere "Mud" Bruneteau, who was, ironically, the youngest player in either lineup that night at age 21. Bruneteau carried the puck up from the Red Wings at the 16-minute mark of the sixth overtime. After teammate Hec Kilrea slid the puck across the blue line and behind the Montreal defense, Bruneteau swept in and shot the loose puck past Maroons goalie Lorne Chabot. In an instant, the rookie became a legend, and the Wings swept Montreal 3-0 and went on to win their first Stanley Cup. The MVP Mud. Not only because of the great old-school hockey name, but also because of what his winning goal represented in his career and NHL lore. Bruneteau's goal capped the longest playoff game in NHL history with 116 minutes, 30 seconds of extra time at the Forum. The game ended at 2:25 a.m. Mud would help Detroit win another Cup in 1937, and led the team with 23 goals and five more in the playoffs when the Wings won their third title in 1943. Another nod goes to goalie Norm Smith, who faced 92 shots in the game. Joy Russo is a staff editor for ESPN.com Send this story to a friend | Most sent stories