given the job permanently. It was in his new capacity that Neilson led the team on its run to the 1982 Stanley Cup Finals. After five seasons with the Rangers and Panthers, Neilson led the Flyers to first place in the Eastern Conference in the 1999-2000 season. With the Flyers leading in the conference standings at the midseason break, Neilson earned the honour to coach the Eastern Conference squad in the All-Star game. Previously, based on his performance with the Canucks, he had coached the Campbell Conference All-Stars at the 1983 All-Star Game. But a Neilson-coached team fell short of expectations once again, as the Flyers were ousted by the New Jersey Devils in seven games in the Eastern Conference championship round. Lemieux 'hit' controversy The peak and valley of Neilson's stay with the Rangers came in the 1991-92 season, when they captured the Presidents' Trophy with the best record in the league. The Rangers entered the playoffs as prohibitive favorites to win their first Stanley Cup since 1940, only to be eliminated by the Pittsburgh Penguins in six games in the Patrick Division finals. Neilson's reputation as a so-called old school coach was put on a microscope in Game 2 of the series, when Rangers enforcer Adam Graves fractured the left wrist of Penguins superstar Mario Lemieux with a two-handed baseball swing of his stick. Graves stated that he was swinging on the glove to loosen his grip on the stick to deal with the puck, which reflected Neilson's belief for one to go for the hands. 'Yes, no question about it. I kill penalties, too. I hit the gloves, also, once in a while. But to take a swing like he did ... that certainly came from the coach." Lemieux said after the injury. He added, "Certainly a contract was on me that game. I'm not saying Roger Neilson told Graves to go after me, but he told his players to go after me." Graves was assessed only a minor penalty on the play and allowed to take part in Game 3, in which he scored the first goal of a 6–5 overtime victory. After he was suspended for the remainder of the series as a result of a league hearing, the well-motivated Penguins rallied to win their next seven games, the series and the Stanley Cup Finals. The Rangers did not win the Stanley Cup until after