# 1997–98 CHL season

The 1997–98 CHL season was the sixth season of the Central Hockey League (CHL).

## Teams

1997-98 Central Hockey League :
| Division | Team | City | Arena |
| Eastern | Columbus Cottonmouths | Columbus, Georgia | Columbus Civic Center |
| Eastern | Fayetteville Force | Fayetteville, North Carolina | Cumberland County Crown Coliseum |
| Eastern | Huntsville Channel Cats | Huntsville, Alabama | Von Braun Civic Center |
| Eastern | Macon Whoopee | Macon, Georgia | Macon Coliseum |
| Eastern | Nashville Ice Flyers | Nashville, Tennessee | Nashville Municipal Auditorium |
| Western | Fort Worth Fire | Fort Worth, Texas | Fort Worth Convention Center |
| Western | Memphis RiverKings | Memphis, Tennessee | Mid-South Coliseum |
| Western | Oklahoma City Blazers | Oklahoma City, Oklahoma | Myriad Convention Center |
| Western | Tulsa Oilers | Tulsa, Oklahoma | Tulsa Coliseum |
| Western | Wichita Thunder | Wichita, Kansas | Britt Brown Arena |

## Regular season
### Division standings

| Eastern Division | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| y-Columbus Cottonmouths | 70 | 51 | 13 | 6 | 341 | 219 | 108 |
| x-Nashville Ice Flyers | 70 | 41 | 19 | 10 | 274 | 246 | 92 |
| x-Huntsville Channel Cats | 70 | 40 | 22 | 8 | 333 | 281 | 88 |
| x-Macon Whoopee | 70 | 38 | 25 | 7 | 249 | 234 | 83 |
| e-Fayetteville Force | 70 | 25 | 42 | 3 | 247 | 348 | 53 |
| Western Division | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| x-Oklahoma City Blazers | 70 | 48 | 19 | 3 | 319 | 237 | 99 |
| x-Wichita Thunder | 70 | 35 | 31 | 4 | 302 | 303 | 74 |
| x-Tulsa Oilers | 70 | 34 | 31 | 5 | 308 | 274 | 73 |
| x-Memphis RiverKings | 70 | 25 | 40 | 5 | 239 | 287 | 55 |
| e-Fort Worth Fire | 70 | 13 | 53 | 4 | 214 | 397 | 30 |
y - clinched league title; x - clinched playoff spot; e - eliminated from playoff contention

## Playoffs
### Playoff bracket

| Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals | Quarter Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Semi-Finals | Championships | Championships | Championships |
| 1 | Columbus | 3 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Macon | 0 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Macon | 0 | 1 | Columbus | 4 | | | |
| Eastern | Eastern | Eastern | 1 | Columbus | 4 | | | |
| Eastern | Eastern | Eastern | 2 | Nashville | 2 | | | |
| 2 | Nashville | 3 | 2 | Nashville | 2 | | | |
| 3 | Huntsville | 0 | | | | | | |
| 3 | Huntsville | 0 | | | | 1 | Columbus | 4 |
| | | | | | | 2 | Wichita | 0 |
| 1 | Oklahoma City | 3 | | | | | | | 2 | Wichita | 0 |
| 4 | Memphis | 1 | | | | | | |
| 4 | Memphis | 1 | 1 | Oklahoma City | 3 | | | |
| Western | Western | Western | 1 | Oklahoma City | 3 | | | |
| Western | Western | Western | 2 | Wichita | 4 | | | |
| 2 | Wichita | 3 | 2 | Wichita | 4 | | | |
| 3 | Tulsa | 1 | | | | | | |

## CHL awards

| William “Bill” Levins Memorial Cup: | Columbus Cottonmouths |
| Adams Cup: | Columbus Cottonmouths |
| Coach of the Year: | David Lohrei (Nashville) |
| Most Valuable Player: | Joe Burton (Oklahoma City) |
| Playoff Most Valuable Player: | Mike Martens (Columbus) |
| Most Outstanding Goaltender: | Brian Elder (Oklahoma City) |
| Most Outstanding Defenseman | Hardy Sauter (Oklahoma City) |
| Rookie of the Year | David Beauregard (Wichita) |
| Scoring Champion | Luc Beausoleil (Tulsa) |
| Community Service Award | Rod Branch (Tulsa) |