The following is the list of teams that have overcome 3–0 series deficits in a best-of-seven playoff series, otherwise known as a reverse sweep.[1] [2] The listed teams won four consecutive games after losing the first three. Unsuccessful comebacks are also listed, in which teams evened a series after being behind 3–0, then lost game seven of the series.
Three major North American professional sports leagues have playoff series that can reach a seventh game: Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Hockey League (NHL). In MLB, only the semi-final League Championship Series and the final World Series are best-of-seven series.[3] In the NBA and NHL, all four rounds of their respective playoffs are best-of-seven series.[4] [5]
In the history of these leagues, teams that were down 3–0 in a series have come back to win the series five times; four times in the NHL and once in MLB.[6] The most recent example is the Los Angeles Kings of the NHL in the 2014 Stanley Cup playoffs first round.[7] The only instance in the MLB to date was by the Boston Red Sox in the 2004 American League Championship Series. The only instance in a championship series was by the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1942 Stanley Cup Finals. The NBA is the only league in which this has never happened, to date.[8]
Conversely, eleven teams have evened a series after being behind 3–0 and then lost in the final game: six in the NHL, four in the NBA, and one in MLB. The most recent example is the Edmonton Oilers of the NHL in the 2024 Stanley Cup Finals.
No team has overcome multiple 3–0 deficits in a single postseason, although the 1974–75 New York Islanders of the NHL nearly did so; they successfully overcame a 3–0 series deficit in the 1975 Stanley Cup quarterfinals, then rallied from a 3–0 series deficit in the Stanley Cup semifinals before losing the seventh game.
While, traditionally, a best-of-seven series was only played in the final (championship) round of a postseason, MLB adopted a best-of-seven format in 1985 for the League Championship Series,[9] the NHL followed suit for its first round in 1987,[10] and the NBA did the same for its first round in 2003.[11]
Outside of the noted major North American leagues, various other leagues across multiple sports also use seven-game postseason series. There are several known instances of teams in such leagues overcoming 3–0 series deficits. In other cases, like the Swedish Hockey League, seven-game series are common but no team has yet overcome such a deficit.
| Indicates the team down 3–0 was the home team in game seven | ||
| Indicates series in the championship round | ||
| Eventual champion | Indicates the series winner went on to win the championship |
In Stanley Cup Playoffs history, 211 teams faced a 3–0 deficit in a best-of-seven series. Of these teams, only four overcame the deficit (~2%). Only one overcame the deficit in the Stanley Cup Finals.[12] Three comebacks were completed with game seven away, while the 1942 Toronto Maple Leafs completed the comeback on home ice.
| Year and series | Series Winner | Series Loser | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Only time in the Stanley Cup Finals. | ||||
| New York won eight games while facing elimination this playoff year. | ||||
| Philadelphia also overcame a 3–0 goal deficit in the seventh game. | ||||
| Los Angeles won three game sevens in this playoff year and holds the record for most elimination games won in a single playoff year for a Stanley Cup champion, with seven. |
Six other NHL teams have evened a series after being down 3–0, only to lose game seven (~3%).[13] Five of these teams were the visiting team in game seven, while the 1945 Detroit Red Wings were the only home team in game seven.
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Boston won game seven in triple overtime. | ||||
| Detroit nearly got revenge on Toronto for a blown 3–0 lead three years previously. | ||||
| New York came back from a 3–0 deficit to win in the previous round. | ||||
| The Presidents' Trophy-winning Canucks won game seven in overtime after Chicago tied it 1–1 with a shorthanded goal by forward and captain Jonathan Toews with 1:56 left in the third period. Should Chicago have won, it would have been the third straight playoff year that they beat Vancouver, as they eliminated them in six games in the conference semifinals in both 2009 and 2010. It also would've been the fourth time in NHL history and first time a Presidents' Trophy winner would lose a series after initially taking a 3–0 series lead. | ||||
| For the second time in the same year, a team forced a game seven after being down 3–0. Except for an empty net goal in game six, every game in this series was decided by one goal. | ||||
| Florida won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Edmonton forward and captain Connor McDavid became only the sixth player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy despite losing the Finals. |
One MLB team has overcome a 3–0 deficit to win the series.[14]
One MLB team has evened a series after being down 3–0, but lost game seven.[15]
There has never been a successful comeback from a 3–0 series deficit in the NBA to date. Of the 157 NBA teams that faced a 3–0 deficit, only 4 of them (~3%) forced a game seven which they ultimately lost.[16]
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| New York became the first team to force a game seven after trailing 3–0 in the series. | ||||
| Denver overcame a 2–0 deficit to win a best-of-five series in the previous round. | ||||
| Portland went on a 21–0 run in the third quarter of game four to avoid a 4–0 sweep by Dallas. Portland led game seven 90–88 with 4:43 left and tied the score 93–93 with 4:28 left, but Dallas dominated in the final minutes to win by 12 points.[17] This was the first year the first round expanded to a best-of-seven series; the series would have been a 3–0 sweep if played one year earlier.[18] | ||||
| Boston became the first team to host a game seven after trailing 3–0 in a series. |
Outside of MLB, the NBA, and the NHL, there are some other known instances of successful comebacks from 3–0 series deficits. The Slovak ice hockey club HK Dukla Trenčín and the Swiss ice hockey club EV Zug are the only teams that managed to overcome a 3–0 deficit twice.
| Year and series | Series Winner | Series Loser | Sports league | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nishitetsu was 1 inning away from elimination in Game 5, but tied the game 3–3 in the bottom of the ninth inning to force extras. | |||||
| 1971 Serie del Rey | |||||
| Mexican Baseball League | Tijuana was 1 base away from elimination in Game 5, when Yucatán had the winning run at third base in the bottom of the ninth inning. However, Fernando Rodney struck out the next batter to send the game to extra innings, where Tijuana eventually won to extend the series. | ||||
| 2023 Mexican Baseball League Playoffs first round | Rojos del Águila de Veracruz | Pericos de Puebla[19] | Mexican Baseball League[20] | ||
| 2024 Mexican Baseball League South Zone Championship Series | Mexico Diablos | Oaxaca Warriors | Mexican Baseball League | [21] |
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Sports league | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nippon Professional Baseball | |||||
| 2015 Mexican Baseball League Playoffs Championship Series (South Region) | Leones de Yucatán | Tigres de Quintana Roo | Mexican Baseball League | Yucatán was the home team in five of the seven games (games 1, 2, 5, 6, 7). | |
| 2021 Mexican Baseball League Playoffs first round | Algodoneros de Unión Laguna | Mariachis de Guadalajara | Mexican Baseball League |
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Sports league | Note(s) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lethbridge won game 7 and the series in overtime on a goal by Neil Hawryluk. | |||||
| 2007 OHL Western Conference Semifinals | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds | London Knights | |||
| 2008 J. Ross Robertson Cup Finals | Belleville Bulls | Kitchener Rangers | |||
| Port Hope Panthers | Essex 73's | Ontario Hockey Association | [23] [24] | ||
| 2023–24 Czech Extraliga Quarterfinals | České Budějovice | Třinec | Czech Extraliga | After avoiding the comeback, Třinec went on to complete a 3–0 comeback of their own in the next round. | |
| 2024 Liiga Quarterfinals | Helsinki HIFK | Lahti Pelicans | SM-liiga (Finland) | ||
| 2024 OHL Eastern Conference Finals | Oshawa Generals | ||||
| 2024 AHL Eastern Conference Finals | Cleveland Monsters | Hershey Bears | American Hockey League | Game 7 won by Hershey in overtime on a goal by Garrett Roe. |
While ties can prolong the series to eight games or more, these are still best-of-seven series in that only seven of the games can have a decisive winner. Four victories still takes the series, thus overcoming a 3–0 deficit is still equally difficult.