The 1990-91 NHL season was the 74th regular season of the National Hockey League. Twenty-one teams each played 80 games. The Stanley Cup winners were the Pittsburgh Penguins, who won the best of seven series 4–2 against the Minnesota North Stars. The North Stars defeated the Edmonton Oilers to become the first Norris Division team to appear in the Stanley Cup Finals since the 1981 realignment. The championship was the first in Penguins history. A record high 92 playoff games were held, and for the first time since the 1973 playoffs, no team was swept in a playoff series.