# 1996–97 Chicago Blackhawks season

The 1996–97 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 71st season of operation of the Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League.

## Regular season
### Final standings

Central Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 2 | Dallas Stars | 82 | 48 | 26 | 8 | 252 | 198 | 104 |
| 2 | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 38 | 26 | 18 | 253 | 197 | 94 |
| 3 | 5 | Phoenix Coyotes | 82 | 38 | 37 | 7 | 240 | 243 | 83 |
| 4 | 6 | St. Louis Blues | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 236 | 239 | 83 |
| 5 | 8 | Chicago Blackhawks | 82 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 223 | 210 | 81 |
| 6 | 11 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 30 | 44 | 8 | 230 | 273 | 68 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
Western Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | p – Colorado Avalanche | PAC | 82 | 49 | 24 | 9 | 277 | 205 | 107 |
| 2 | Dallas Stars | CEN | 82 | 48 | 26 | 8 | 252 | 198 | 104 |
| 3 | Detroit Red Wings | CEN | 82 | 38 | 26 | 18 | 253 | 197 | 94 |
| 4 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PAC | 82 | 36 | 33 | 13 | 245 | 233 | 85 |
| 5 | Phoenix Coyotes | CEN | 82 | 38 | 37 | 7 | 240 | 243 | 83 |
| 6 | St. Louis Blues | CEN | 82 | 36 | 35 | 11 | 236 | 239 | 83 |
| 7 | Edmonton Oilers | PAC | 82 | 36 | 37 | 9 | 252 | 247 | 81 |
| 8 | Chicago Blackhawks | CEN | 82 | 34 | 35 | 13 | 223 | 210 | 81 |
| 9 | Vancouver Canucks | PAC | 82 | 35 | 40 | 7 | 257 | 273 | 77 |
| 10 | Calgary Flames | PAC | 82 | 32 | 41 | 9 | 214 | 239 | 73 |
| 11 | Toronto Maple Leafs | CEN | 82 | 30 | 44 | 8 | 230 | 273 | 68 |
| 12 | Los Angeles Kings | PAC | 82 | 28 | 43 | 11 | 214 | 268 | 67 |
| 13 | San Jose Sharks | PAC | 82 | 27 | 47 | 8 | 211 | 278 | 62 |
Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific
bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents' Trophy

## Playoffs

* April 24, 1997: Patrick Roy of the Colorado Avalanche shut out Chicago by a score of 7–0. He earned his 89th postseason victory and became the goalie with the most postseason wins, surpassing the old record set by New York Islanders goalie Billy Smith.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1996–97 regular season :
October: 6–5–2 (home: 3–4–0; road: 3–1–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 5, 19965–2@ Washington Capitals (1996–97)1–0–0Recap
2WOctober 6, 19964–1@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)2–0–0Recap
3LOctober 9, 19960–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)2–1–0Recap
4LOctober 11, 19960–2Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)2–2–0Recap
5LOctober 13, 19963–5Dallas Stars (1996–97)2–3–0Recap
6WOctober 15, 19963–1@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)3–3–0Recap
7WOctober 17, 19962–1Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)4–3–0Recap
8WOctober 20, 19962–1Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)5–3–0Recap
9WOctober 24, 19966–4St. Louis Blues (1996–97)6–3–0Recap
10TOctober 25, 19962–2 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)6–3–1Recap
11LOctober 27, 19962–6San Jose Sharks (1996–97)6–4–1Recap
12TOctober 29, 19962–2 OT@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)6–4–2Recap
13LOctober 30, 19962–3@ Florida Panthers (1996–97)6–5–2Recap :
November: 6–7–1 (home: 2–3–0; road: 4–4–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
14WNovember 1, 19963–2 OT@ Dallas Stars (1996–97)7–5–2Recap
15WNovember 3, 19964–2Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)8–5–2Recap
16LNovember 7, 19962–4New Jersey Devils (1996–97)8–6–2Recap
17WNovember 9, 19964–1@ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)9–6–2Recap
18WNovember 10, 19962–0Ottawa Senators (1996–97)10–6–2Recap
19LNovember 14, 19961–2 OTCalgary Flames (1996–97)10–7–2Recap
20LNovember 15, 19963–4@ Ottawa Senators (1996–97)10–8–2Recap
21LNovember 17, 19962–4Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)10–9–2Recap
22TNovember 19, 19964–4 OT@ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)10–9–3Recap
23LNovember 21, 19961–2 OT@ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)10–10–3Recap
24WNovember 22, 19965–2@ Calgary Flames (1996–97)11–10–3Recap
25LNovember 27, 19962–3@ San Jose Sharks (1996–97)11–11–3Recap
26LNovember 29, 19960–2@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)11–12–3Recap
27WNovember 30, 19965–3@ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)12–12–3Recap :
December: 3–8–3 (home: 2–5–2; road: 1–3–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
28LDecember 6, 19961–3Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)12–13–3Recap
29LDecember 7, 19962–3@ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)12–14–3Recap
30LDecember 9, 19961–3Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)12–15–3Recap
31LDecember 12, 19962–6@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)12–16–3Recap
32WDecember 13, 19964–1@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)13–16–3Recap
33WDecember 15, 19962–1Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)14–16–3Recap
34LDecember 18, 19962–3 OTDallas Stars (1996–97)14–17–3Recap
35LDecember 20, 19961–3Florida Panthers (1996–97)14–18–3Recap
36TDecember 22, 19962–2 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1996–97)14–18–4Recap
37TDecember 23, 19963–3 OT@ Boston Bruins (1996–97)14–18–5Recap
38TDecember 26, 19964–4 OTSt. Louis Blues (1996–97)14–18–6Recap
39LDecember 28, 19964–5@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)14–19–6Recap
40WDecember 29, 19964–3Hartford Whalers (1996–97)15–19–6Recap
41LDecember 31, 19961–4Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)15–20–6Recap :
January: 3–6–2 (home: 1–4–1; road: 2–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
42LJanuary 2, 19972–4Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)15–21–6Recap
43TJanuary 5, 19975–5 OTDetroit Red Wings (1996–97)15–21–7Recap
44WJanuary 8, 19974–1Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)16–21–7Recap
45TJanuary 10, 19973–3 OT@ New Jersey Devils (1996–97)16–21–8Recap
46WJanuary 11, 19973–1@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)17–21–8Recap
47LJanuary 13, 19970–2Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)17–22–8Recap
48LJanuary 20, 19971–2@ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)17–23–8Recap
49LJanuary 22, 19973–4 OTVancouver Canucks (1996–97)17–24–8Recap
50LJanuary 24, 19971–2 OTToronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)17–25–8Recap
51LJanuary 25, 19972–3@ New York Islanders (1996–97)17–26–8Recap
52WJanuary 27, 19972–1@ New York Rangers (1996–97)18–26–8Recap :
February: 7–3–1 (home: 3–1–0; road: 4–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
53WFebruary 1, 19973–2@ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)19–26–8Recap
54WFebruary 3, 19974–2@ San Jose Sharks (1996–97)20–26–8Recap
55LFebruary 6, 19972–3@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)20–27–8Recap
56WFebruary 8, 19974–2@ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)21–27–8Recap
57WFebruary 13, 19977–3San Jose Sharks (1996–97)22–27–8Recap
58WFebruary 15, 19972–0New York Rangers (1996–97)23–27–8Recap
59LFebruary 17, 19972–4@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)23–28–8Recap
60WFebruary 20, 19975–3Boston Bruins (1996–97)24–28–8Recap
61WFebruary 22, 19975–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)25–28–8Recap
62LFebruary 25, 19970–1Dallas Stars (1996–97)25–29–8Recap
63TFebruary 26, 19972–2 OT@ Hartford Whalers (1996–97)25–29–9Recap :
March: 6–4–3 (home: 4–3–1; road: 2–1–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
64LMarch 1, 19971–2@ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)25–30–9Recap
65WMarch 2, 19974–0@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)26–30–9Recap
66TMarch 5, 19971–1 OT@ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)26–30–10Recap
67LMarch 8, 19970–2Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)26–31–10Recap
68TMarch 10, 19972–2 OTVancouver Canucks (1996–97)26–31–11Recap
69WMarch 12, 19973–2@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)27–31–11Recap
70TMarch 14, 19974–4 OT@ Dallas Stars (1996–97)27–31–12Recap
71WMarch 16, 19975–4New York Islanders (1996–97)28–31–12Recap
72LMarch 20, 19972–4Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)28–32–12Recap
73WMarch 23, 19975–3Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)29–32–12Recap
74WMarch 26, 19975–3Washington Capitals (1996–97)30–32–12Recap
75LMarch 28, 19973–4Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)30–33–12Recap
76WMarch 30, 19973–2Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)31–33–12Recap :
April: 3–2–1 (home: 1–1–0; road: 2–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
77TApril 1, 19973–3 OT@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)31–33–13Recap
78LApril 3, 19972–4@ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)31–34–13Recap
79WApril 6, 19972–1@ Calgary Flames (1996–97)32–34–13Recap
80LApril 9, 19970–1St. Louis Blues (1996–97)32–35–13Recap
81WApril 11, 19977–3Calgary Flames (1996–97)33–35–13Recap
82WApril 13, 19975–2@ Dallas Stars (1996–97)34–35–13Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1997 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (1) Colorado Avalanche – Avalanche win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LApril 16, 19970–6@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 18, 19971–3@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 20, 19974–3 2OTColorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 2–1Recap
4WApril 22, 19976–3Colorado AvalancheSeries tied 2–2Recap
5LApril 24, 19970–7@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 3–2Recap
6LApril 26, 19973–6Colorado AvalancheAvalanche win 4–2Recap :
Legend:
  Win
  Loss :

## Player statistics
### Scoring

* Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left wing; RW = Right wing
* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Blackhawks only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Blackhawks only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 10 | Tony Amonte | RW | 81 | 41 | 36 | 77 | 35 | 64 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 2 | 8 |
| 26 | Alexei Zhamnov | C | 74 | 20 | 42 | 62 | 18 | 56 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7 | Chris Chelios | D | 72 | 10 | 38 | 48 | 16 | 112 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 8 |
| 55 | Eric Daze | RW | 71 | 22 | 19 | 41 | −4 | 16 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −1 | 2 |
| 32 | Murray Craven | C | 75 | 8 | 27 | 35 | 0 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 2 |
| 2 | Eric Weinrich | D | 81 | 7 | 25 | 32 | 19 | 62 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 4 |
| 19 | Ethan Moreau | LW | 82 | 15 | 16 | 31 | 13 | 123 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 9 |
| 16 | Kevin Miller | RW | 69 | 14 | 17 | 31 | −10 | 41 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 11 | Jeff Shantz | C | 69 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 11 | 28 | 6 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 4 | 6 |
| 20 | Gary Suter | D | 82 | 7 | 21 | 28 | −4 | 70 | 6 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 1 | 8 |
| 18 | Denis Savard | C | 64 | 9 | 18 | 27 | −10 | 60 | 6 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −3 | 2 |
| 25 | Sergei Krivokrasov | LW | 67 | 13 | 11 | 24 | −1 | 42 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 4 |
| 38 | James Black | LW | 64 | 12 | 11 | 23 | 6 | 20 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 24 | Bob Probert | LW | 82 | 9 | 14 | 23 | −3 | 326 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −4 | 41 |
| 4 | Keith Carney | D | 81 | 3 | 15 | 18 | 26 | 62 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −2 | 2 |
| 12 | Brent Sutter | C | 39 | 7 | 7 | 14 | 10 | 18 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 6 |
| 22 | Ulf Dahlen† | LW | 30 | 6 | 8 | 14 | 9 | 10 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | Jim Cummins | RW | 65 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 4 | 199 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −5 | 24 |
| 6 | Michal Sykora† | D | 28 | 1 | 9 | 10 | 4 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 |
| 39 | Enrico Ciccone | D | 67 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 233 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 18 |
| 22 | Adam Creighton† | C | 19 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −2 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Cam Russell | D | 44 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −8 | 65 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 46 | Tuomas Gronman | D | 16 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Jeff Hackett | G | 41 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 44 | Christian Laflamme | D | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Jean-Yves Leroux | LW | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Ed Belfour‡ | G | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 26 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 54 | Dave Chyzowski | LW | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 14 | Steve Dubinsky | C | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 4 |
| 17 | Sergei Klimovich | C | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 17 | Basil McRae†‡ | LW | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | Mike Prokopec‡ | RW | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5 | Steve Smith | D | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 29 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 40 | Chris Terreri† | G | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 |
| 29 | Jimmy Waite | G | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 31 | Jeff Hackett | 41 | 19 | 18 | 4 | 1212 | 89 | 2.16 | .927 | 2 | 2473 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 190 | 25 | 4.34 | .868 | 0 | 345 |
| 30 | Ed Belfour‡ | 33 | 11 | 15 | 6 | 946 | 88 | 2.69 | .907 | 1 | 1966 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 40 | Chris Terreri† | 7 | 4 | 1 | 2 | 192 | 19 | 2.66 | .901 | 0 | 429 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 28 | 3 | 4.11 | .893 | 0 | 44 |
| 29 | Jimmy Waite | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 58 | 7 | 4.00 | .879 | 0 | 105 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Chris Chelios (Defense) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Tony Amonte |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Chris Chelios |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Tuomas Gronman | October 5, 1996 |
| First game | Sergei Klimovich | December 9, 1996 |
| First game | Christian Laflamme | March 12, 1997 |
| First game | Jean-Yves Leroux | April 13, 1997 |

## Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1996 NHL entry draft held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 2 | 31 | Remi Royer | Canada | Saint-Hyacinthe Laser (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 42 | Jeff Paul | Canada | Niagara Falls Thunder (OHL) |
| 2 | 46 | Geoff Peters | Canada | Niagara Falls Thunder (OHL) |
| 5 | 130 | Andy Johnson | Canada | Peterborough Petes (OHL) |
| 7 | 184 | Mike Vellinga | Canada | Guelph Storm (OHL) |
| 8 | 210 | Chris Twerdun | Canada | Moose Jaw Warriors (WHL) |
| 9 | 236 | Andrei Kozyrev | Russia | Severstal Cherepovets (Russia) |