1996-97 NHL SEASON


The '1996-97 NHL season' was the 80th regular season of the National Hockey League. Twenty-six teams each played 82 games. The Stanley Cup winners were the Detroit Red Wings, who swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games and won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years.
This was the first season for the Phoenix Coyotes, who were previously known as the Winnipeg Jets. On March 25, 1997, the Hartford Whalers announced that they would move from Connecticut following the 1996-97 season. Starting in the 1997-98 NHL season, they were known as the Carolina Hurricanes.
The Boston Bruins recorded the league's worst record, missing the playoffs for the first time in thirty seasons and ending the longest consecutive playoff streak ever recorded in the history of North American professional sport.
The 1996-97 season marked the retirement of Craig MacTavish, the last active NHL player who played without a protective helmet. He had been grandfathered under the old rule requiring them to be worn because he had signed a pro contract before the rule was established.

Contents
Regular season
Final standings
Scoring leaders
Stanley Cup playoffs
Playoff bracket
Conference quarterfinals
Eastern Conference
Western Conference
Conference semifinals
Conference finals
Stanley Cup final
Scoring leaders
NHL Awards
All-Star teams
Debuts
Last games
See also
References

Regular season


Final standings

'''Note:' W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points''
'Eastern Conference'
'Northeast Division'
Team W L T GF GA Pts
Buffalo Sabres 40 30 12 237 208 92
Pittsburgh Penguins 38 36 8 285 280 84
Ottawa Senators 31 36 15 249 276 77
Montreal Canadiens 31 36 15 249 276 77
Hartford Whalers 32 39 11 226 256 75
Boston Bruins 26 47 9 234 300 61
'Atlantic Division'
Team W L T GF GA Pts
New Jersey Devils 45 23 14 231 182 104
Philadelphia Flyers 45 24 13 274 217 103
Florida Panthers 35 28 19 221 201 89
New York Rangers 38 34 10 258 231 86
Washington Capitals 33 40 9 214 231 75
Tampa Bay Lightning 32 40 10 217 247 74
New York Islanders 29 41 12 240 250 70

'Western Conference'
'Central Division'
Team W L T GF GA Pts
Dallas Stars 48 26 8 252 198 104
Detroit Red Wings 38 26 18 253 197 94
Phoenix Coyotes 38 37 7 240 243 83
St. Louis Blues 36 35 11 236 239 83
Chicago Blackhawks 34 35 13 223 210 81
Toronto Maple Leafs 30 44 8 230 273 68
'Pacific Division'
Team W L T GF GA Pts
Colorado Avalanche 49 24 9 277 205 107
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 36 33 13 243 231 85
Edmonton Oilers 36 37 9 252 247 81
Vancouver Canucks 35 40 7 257 273 77
Calgary Flames 32 41 9 214 239 73
Los Angeles Kings 28 43 11 214 268 67
San Jose Sharks 27 47 8 211 278 62

Scoring leaders

'''Note:' GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points''
Player Team GP G A PTS
Mario Lemieux Pittsburgh 76 50 72 122
Teemu Selanne Anaheim 78 51 58 109
Paul Kariya Anaheim 69 44 55 99
John LeClair Philadelphia 82 50 47 97
Wayne Gretzky NY Rangers 82 25 72 97
Jaromir Jagr Pittsburgh 63 47 48 95
Mats Sundin Toronto 82 41 53 94
Zigmund Palffy NY Islanders 80 48 42 90
Ron Francis Pittsburgh 81 27 63 90
Brendan Shanahan Hartford/
Detroit
81 47 41 88

Stanley Cup playoffs


Playoff bracket


Conference quarterfinals

Eastern Conference

Montreal vs. New Jersey
Date Away Home
April 17 Montreal 2 '5 New Jersey'
April 19 Montreal 1 '4 New Jersey'
April 22 'New Jersey 6' 4 Montreal
April 24 New Jersey 3 '4 Montreal' 3OT
April 26 Montreal 0 '4 New Jersey'
'''New Jersey wins series 4–1'''
Ottawa vs. Buffalo
Date Away Home
April 17 Ottawa 1 '3 Buffalo'
April 19 'Ottawa 3' 1 Buffalo
April 21 'Buffalo 3' 2 Ottawa
April 23 Buffalo 0 '1 Ottawa' OT
April 25 'Ottawa 4' 1 Buffalo
April 27 'Buffalo 3' 0 Ottawa
April 29 Ottawa 2 '3 Buffalo' OT
'''Buffalo wins series 4–3'''
Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia
Date Away Home
April 17 Pittsburgh 1 '5 Philadelphia'
April 19 Pittsburgh 2 '3 Philadelphia'
April 21 'Philadelphia' 5 3 Pittsburgh
April 23 Philadelphia 1 '4 Pittsburgh'
April 26 Pittsburgh 3 '6 Philadelphia'
'''Philadelphia wins series 4–1'''
NY Rangers vs. Florida
Date Away Home
April 17 NY Rangers 0 '3 Florida'
April 20 'NY Rangers 3' 0 Florida
April 22 Florida 3 '4 NY Rangers' OT
April 23 Florida 2 '3 NY Rangers'
April 25 'NY Rangers 3' 2 Florida OT
'''NY Rangers win series 4–1'''

Western Conference

Chicago vs. Colorado
Date Away Home
April 16 Chicago 0 '6 Colorado'
April 18 Chicago 1 '3 Colorado'
April 20 Colorado 3 '4 Chicago' 2OT
April 22 Colorado 3 '6 Chicago'
April 24 Chicago 0 '7 Colorado'
April 26 'Colorado 6' 3 Chicago
'''Colorado wins series 4–2'''
Edmonton vs. Dallas
Date Away Home
April 16 Edmonton 3 '5 Dallas'
April 18 'Edmonton 4' 0 Dallas
April 20 Dallas 3 '4 Edmonton' OT
April 22 'Dallas 4' 3 Edmonton
April 25 'Edmonton 1' 0 Dallas 2OT
April 27 'Dallas 3' 2 Edmonton
April 29 'Edmonton 4' 3 Dallas OT
'''Edmonton wins series 4–3'''
St. Louis vs. Detroit
Date Away Home
April 16 'St. Louis 2' 0 Detroit
April 18 St. Louis 1 '2 Detroit'
April 20 'Detroit 3' 2 St. Louis
April 22 Detroit 0 '4 St. Louis'
April 25 St. Louis 2 '5 Detroit'
April 27 'Detroit 3' 1 St. Louis
'''Detroit wins series 4–2'''
Phoenix vs. Anaheim
Date Away Home
April 16 Phoenix 2 '4 Anaheim'
April 18 Phoenix 2 '4 Anaheim'
April 20 Anaheim 1 '4 Phoenix'
April 22 Anaheim 0 '2 Phoenix'
April 24 'Phoenix 5' 2 Anaheim
April 27 'Anaheim 3' 2 Phoenix OT
April 29 Phoenix 0 '3 Anaheim'
'''Anaheim wins series 4–3'''

Conference semifinals

'Eastern Conference'
NY Rangers vs. New Jersey
Date Away Home
May 2 NY Rangers 0 '2 New Jersey'
May 4 'NY Rangers 2' 0 New Jersey
May 6 New Jersey 2 '3 NY Rangers'
May 8 New Jersey 0 '3 NY Rangers'
May 11 'NY Rangers 2' 1 New Jersey OT
'''NY Rangers win series 4–1'''
Philadelphia vs. Buffalo
Date Away Home
May 3 'Philadelphia 5' 3 Buffalo
May 5 'Philadelphia 2' 1 Buffalo
May 7 Buffalo 1 '4 Philadelphia'
May 9 'Buffalo 5' 4 Philadelphia OT
May 11 'Philadelphia 6' 3 Buffalo
'''Philadelphia wins series 4–1'''

'Western Conference'
Edmonton vs. Colorado
Date Away Home
May 2 Edmonton 1 '5 Colorado'
May 4 Edmonton 1 '4 Colorado'
May 7 Colorado 3 '4 Edmonton'
May 9 'Colorado 3' 2 Edmonton OT
May 11 Edmonton 3 'Colorado 4'
'''Colorado wins series 4–1'''
Anaheim vs. Detroit
Date Away Home
May 2 Anaheim 1 '2 Detroit' OT
May 4 Anaheim 2 '3 Detroit' 3OT
May 6 'Detroit 5' 3 Anaheim
May 8 'Detroit 3' 2 Anaheim 2OT
'''Detroit wins series 4–0'''

Conference finals

Main articles: 1997 Eastern Conference Finals (NHL)

Main articles: 1997 Western Conference Finals (NHL)

'Eastern Conference'
NY Rangers vs. Philadelphia
Date Away Home
May 16 NY Rangers 1 '3 Philadelphia'
May 18 'NY Rangers 5' 4 Philadelphia
May 20 'Philadelphia 6' 3 NY Rangers
May 23 'Philadelphia 3' 2 NY Rangers
May 25 NY Rangers 2 '4 Philadelphia'
'''Philadelphia wins series 4–1
and Prince of Wales Trophy'''
'Western Conference'
Detroit vs. Colorado
Date Away Home
May 15 Detroit 1 '2 Colorado'
May 17 'Detroit 4' 2 Colorado
May 19 Colorado 1 '2 Detroit'
May 22 Colorado 0 '6 Detroit'
May 24 Detroit 0 '6 Colorado'
May 26 Colorado 1 '3 Detroit'
'''Detroit wins series 4–2 and
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl'''

Stanley Cup final

Main articles: 1997 Stanley Cup Finals

Detroit vs. Philadelphia
Date Away Home
May 31 'Detroit 4' 2 Philadelphia
June 3 'Detroit 4' 2 Philadelphia
June 5 Philadelphia 1 '6 Detroit'
June 7 Philadelphia 1 '2 Detroit'
'''Detroit wins series 4–0
and Stanley Cup'''
'''Mike Vernon (Detroit)
wins Conn Smythe Trophy'''

Scoring leaders

'''Note:' GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points''
Player Team GP G A Pts
Eric Lindros Phi 19 12 14 26
Joe Sakic Col 17 8 17 25
Claude Lemieux Col 17 13 10 23
Valeri Kamensky Col 17 8 14 22
Rod Brind'Amour Phi 19 13 8 21
John LeClair Phi 19 9 12 21
Wayne Gretzky NYR 15 10 10 20
Sergei Fedorov Det 20 8 12 20
Brendan Shanahan Det 20 9 8 17
Peter Forsberg Col 14 5 12 17
Sandis Ozolinsh Col 17 4 13 17
Vyacheslav Kozlov Det 20 8 5 13
Paul Kariya Ana 11 7 6 13
Steve Yzerman Det 20 7 6 13
Janne Niinimaa Phi 19 1 12 13

NHL Awards


The 'NHL Awards' presentation took place on June 19, 1997.
Presidents' Trophy: Colorado Avalanche
Prince of Wales Trophy: Philadelphia Flyers
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: Detroit Red Wings
Art Ross Memorial Trophy: Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: Tony Granato, San Jose Sharks
Calder Memorial Trophy: Bryan Berard, New York Islanders
Conn Smythe Trophy: Mike Vernon, Detroit Red Wings
Frank J. Selke Trophy: Michael Peca, Buffalo Sabres
Hart Memorial Trophy: Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres
Jack Adams Award: Ted Nolan, Buffalo Sabres
James Norris Memorial Trophy: Brian Leetch, New York Rangers
King Clancy Memorial Trophy: Trevor Linden, Vancouver Canucks
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: Paul Kariya, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Lester B. Pearson Award: Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres
NHL Plus/Minus Award: John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers
Vezina Trophy: Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres
William M. Jennings Trophy: Martin Brodeur/Mike Dunham, New Jersey Devils
Lester Patrick Trophy: Bill Cleary, Pat LaFontaine

All-Star teams

First Team   Position   Second Team
Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres GMartin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
Brian Leetch, New York Rangers DChris Chelios, Chicago Blackhawks
Sandis Ozolinsh, Colorado Avalanche DScott Stevens, New Jersey Devils
Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins CWayne Gretzky, New York Rangers
Teemu Selanne, Anaheim Mighty Ducks RWJaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins
Paul Kariya, Anaheim Mighty Ducks LWJohn LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers

Debuts


The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1996-97 (listed with their first team, asterisk(
★ ) marks debut in playoffs):

Dwayne Roloson, Calgary Flames

Marc Denis, Colorado Avalanche

Roman Turek, Dallas Stars

Tomas Holmstrom, Detroit Red Wings

Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Hartford Whalers

Tomas Vokoun, Montreal Canadiens

Jay Pandolfo, New Jersey Devils

Bryan Berard, New York Islanders

Wade Redden, Ottawa Senators

Janne Niinimaa, Philadelphia Flyers

Vaclav Prospal, Philadelphia Flyers

Patrick Lalime, Pittsburgh Penguins

Last games


The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1996-97 (listed with their last team):

Tim Cheveldae, Boston Bruins

Charlie Huddy, Buffalo Sabres

Denis Savard, Chicago Blackhawks

Sergei Makarov, Dallas Stars

Neal Broten, Dallas Stars

Mike Ramsey, Detroit Red Wings

Vladimir Konstantinov, Detroit Red Wings

Dale Hawerchuk, Philadelphia Flyers

Brad McCrimmon, Philadelphia Flyers

Dan Quinn, Pittsburgh Penguins

Joe Mullen, Pittsburgh Penguins

Tim Hunter, San Jose Sharks

Craig MacTavish, St. Louis Blues

Gary Leeman, St. Louis Blues

Jon Casey, St. Louis Blues

Jay Wells, Tampa Bay Lightning

Don Beaupre, Toronto Maple Leafs

Mike Ridley, Vancouver Canucks

See also



List of Stanley Cup champions

1996 NHL Entry Draft

47th National Hockey League All-Star Game

National Hockey League All-Star Game

NHL All-Rookie Team

1996 World Cup of Hockey

1996 in sports

1997 in sports

References



Hockey Database

★ http://nhl.com/

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