List of teams that have overcome 3–0 series deficits
Notable comebacks in playoff series in sports
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
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 the final game of the series.
All 3–0 deficit comebacks in a seven-game series involve winning four straight elimination games, finally featuring a double-elimination game seven. Longer series of this nature are almost always structured as single-elimination knockout tournaments, so one more loss ends playoff contention for the losing side.
Background
Three major North American professional sports leagues have playoff series that can reach a Game 7: Major League Baseball (MLB), the National Basketball Association (NBA), and the National Hockey League (NHL). In MLB, only the League Championship Series and the 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.[8] The only instance in a championship series was by the NHL's Toronto Maple Leafs in the 1942 Stanley Cup Final. The NBA is the only league in which this has never happened, to date.[9]
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 Final.
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,[10] the NHL followed suit for its first round in 1987,[11] and the NBA did the same for its first round in 2003.[12]
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.
Key
| Indicates the team that had home advantage | |
| Indicates series in the championship round | |
| Eventual champion | Indicates the series winner won (or went on to win) the championship |
The team that won the first three games is on the right, while the team that won the second three is on the left.
National Hockey League
Successful comebacks
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 Final.[13] 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1942 Stanley Cup Final | Toronto Maple Leafs | Detroit Red Wings | Only time in the Stanley Cup Final. |
| 1975 Stanley Cup quarterfinals | New York Islanders | Pittsburgh Penguins | New York won a record eight games while facing elimination this playoff year. |
| 2010 Eastern Conference semifinals | Philadelphia Flyers | Boston Bruins | Philadelphia also overcame a 3–0 goal deficit in the seventh game. |
| 2014 Western Conference first round | Los Angeles Kings | San Jose Sharks |
Los Angeles won three Game 7s 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. This was the second time that a team has overcome a 3–0 deficit and gone on to win the Stanley Cup. |
Unsuccessful comebacks
Six other NHL teams have evened a series after being down 3–0, only to lose game seven (~3%).[14] 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1939 Stanley Cup semifinals | New York Rangers | Boston Bruins | Boston won game seven in triple overtime. |
| 1945 Stanley Cup Final | Detroit Red Wings | Toronto Maple Leafs | Detroit nearly got revenge on Toronto for a blown 3–0 lead three years previously. |
| 1975 Stanley Cup semifinals | New York Islanders | Philadelphia Flyers | New York successfully came back from a 3–0 deficit to win in the previous round. |
| 2011 Western Conference quarterfinals | Chicago Blackhawks | Vancouver Canucks | 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 consecutive 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. |
| 2011 Western Conference semifinals | Detroit Red Wings | San Jose Sharks | 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. |
| 2024 Stanley Cup Final | Edmonton Oilers | Florida Panthers | Florida won their first Stanley Cup in franchise history. Edmonton forward and captain Connor McDavid became the sixth player to win the Conn Smythe Trophy despite losing the Final. |
Major League Baseball
Successful comebacks
One MLB team has overcome a 3–0 deficit to win the series.[8]
| Year and series | Series Winner | Series Loser | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2004 American League Championship Series | Boston Red Sox | New York Yankees | The Red Sox were 3 outs away from being swept in Game 4. Trailing 4–3 in the bottom of the 9th, Kevin Millar walked to lead off the inning before being pinch ran for by Dave Roberts. Roberts stole second, and two pitches later, Bill Mueller tied the game with an RBI single to force extra innings. In the 12th inning, David Ortiz hit a walk-off 2-run home run to win the game 6–4 and force a Game 5. There, the Red Sox would once again trail late, down 4–2 in the bottom of the 8th. A home run by David Ortiz cut the deficit to 1, before Jason Varitek hit a sac fly to tie the game. The game would go deep into extra innings before David Ortiz played hero again, hitting a walk-off RBI single in the 14th inning to force a Game 6. Curt Schilling was the starter for the Red Sox in Game 6 and was playing with a torn tendon sheath in his right ankle. He went 7 innings, limiting the Yankees to just 1 run. The Red Sox won what would later be known as the "Bloody Sock Game" to force a Game 7, becoming the first MLB team to do so after trailing 3–0. The Red Sox dominated Game 7, going up 6–0 in the 2nd inning, thanks to a grand slam by Johnny Damon, and never looked back, winning 10–3. The Red Sox became the first team in MLB history to win a series after trailing 3–0. They went on to win the World Series for the first time since 1918, never having trailed a single time that series. |
Unsuccessful comebacks
One MLB team has evened a series after being down 3–0, but lost game seven.[15]
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 American League Championship Series [note 1] | Houston Astros | Tampa Bay Rays | In Game 5, Carlos Correa hit a walk-off home run to force a Game 6, which they would win to become the second team in MLB history to force a Game 7 after trailing 3–0. However, in Game 7, the Rays took an early lead that they wouldn't relinquish. Series was played at Petco Park, a neutral site due to the COVID-19 pandemic and the series had no off-days. |
National Basketball Association
Unsuccessful comebacks
There has never been a successful comeback from a 3–0 series deficit in the NBA to date. Of the 164 NBA teams (as of May 25, 2026[update]) 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) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1951 NBA Finals | New York Knicks | Rochester Royals | New York became the first team to force a game seven after trailing 3–0 in the series. |
| 1994 Western Conference semifinals | Denver Nuggets | Utah Jazz | Denver overcame a 2–0 deficit to win a best-of-five series in the previous round. |
| 2003 Western Conference first round | Portland Trail Blazers | Dallas Mavericks | 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, having previously been best-of-five; the series would have been a 3–0 sweep if played one year earlier.[18] |
| 2023 Eastern Conference finals | Boston Celtics | Miami Heat | Boston became the first team to host a game seven after trailing 3–0 in a series. |
Other leagues
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.
Successful comebacks
Baseball
| Year and series | Series Winner | Series Loser | Sports league | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1958 Japan Series | Nishitetsu Lions | Yomiuri Giants | Nippon Professional Baseball | 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 | Jalisco Horsemen | Saltillo Saraperos | Mexican Baseball League | |
| 1986 Japan Series | Seibu Lions | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Nippon Professional Baseball | Game one ended in a tie after 14 innings. This series was the only time a Game 8 has been played in the Japan Series. |
| 1989 Japan Series | Yomiuri Giants | Kintetsu Buffaloes | ||
| 2021 Serie del Rey | Tijuana Bulls | Yucatán Lions | 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[19] | Rojos del Águila de Veracruz | Pericos de Puebla[20] | ||
| 2024 Mexican Baseball League South Zone Championship Series | Mexico Diablos | Oaxaca Warriors | [21] |
World Basketball
| Note(s) | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015–16 PBA Philippine Cup Finals | San Miguel Beermen | Alaska Aces | Philippine Basketball Association | Games 4 and 5 of the comeback went to overtime. |
| 2024-25 MNBA The League Semifinals | Bishrelt Metal | SG Apes | Mongolian National Basketball Association | Bishrelt Metal overcome 0-3 deficit in a tight scheduled 20 day span. They played in BCL twice during the playoff series. |
Ice hockey
Unsuccessful comebacks
Baseball
| Year and series | Series Loser | Series Winner | Sports league | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1976 Japan Series | Yomiuri Giants | Hankyu Braves | Nippon Professional Baseball | |
| 2000 Korean Series | Doosan Bears | Hyundai Unicorns | KBO League | |
| 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 | ||
| 2025 Pacific League Climax Series | Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | Nippon Professional Baseball |
|
Ice hockey
3–0 Comebacks in a best-of-seven with ties
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.
| Year and series | Series Winner | Series Loser | Sports league | Note(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 Japan Series | Seibu Lions | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Nippon Professional Baseball | Game one ended in a tie due to reaching the time limit of four hours, thirty minutes of game time in the 14th inning (in the final year before the rule was changed). Hiroshima won Games 2–4. Seibu won games 5–8, with game five being a win in the 12th inning. Nippon Professional Baseball does allow for games to be ended in ties, and this is also, to date, the only time a Japan Series went to an eighth game. The rule changed from 4:30 to 18 innings in 1987, 15 innings in 1994, and since 2018, 12 innings, and only applies from games one to seven. There is no limit on innings in game eight, and starting in 2021, the WBSC tiebreaker is implemented for the 13th inning. |
See also
Notes
- Played at a neutral site