# 1998–99 San Jose Sharks season

The 1998–99 San Jose Sharks season was the Sharks' eighth season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). Under second-year head coach Darryl Sutter, the Sharks reached the playoffs for a second consecutive season. While the team won three fewer games than it had during the prior season, it became the first in franchise history to score more goals (196) than it allowed (191).
During the campaign, general manager Dean Lombardi continued to add to the Sharks' roster. During the 1998 preseason, both goaltender Steve Shields and All-Star defenseman Gary Suter were acquired from the Buffalo Sabres and Chicago Blackhawks, respectively, in exchange for low-level draft picks and prospects. While neither played a major role during the 1998–99 season, both would make key contributions to the Sharks' success the following season. Indeed, Lombardi's most notable addition was that of veteran forward Vincent Damphousse. Damphousse, acquired in a midseason trade with the Montreal Canadiens, would experience immediate success in San Jose; he would ultimately remain with the Sharks until the conclusion of the 2003–04 season. The 1998–99 season also saw the continued development of several highly-touted prospects. Most notably, the campaign saw second-year forwards Patrick Marleau and Marco Sturm emerge as consistent scoring threats. Additionally, the season also saw the debut of promising young defenseman (and future NHL All-Star) Scott Hannan. These players, along with established forward Jeff Friesen and defenseman Mike Rathje, would drive much of the team's success over the following five years.
Despite their losing record, the Sharks reached the postseason for a second consecutive season. In the first round of the 1999 Stanley Cup playoffs, the Sharks were matched against the Northwest Division champion Colorado Avalanche. Due to the Columbine High School Massacre, the first two games of the series were played in San Jose; the heavily favored Avalanche won both. As had been the case one year prior, the Sharks won their next two games in Denver to even the series at two games apiece. The Avalanche responded by routing the Sharks in Game Five to take a 3–2 series lead. The Sharks managed to push the Avalanche to overtime in Game Six; a goal by Colorado rookie Milan Hejduk, however, spelled the end of the Sharks' season. As of the 2017–18 NHL season, the 1998–99 San Jose Sharks (along with the 1998–99 Edmonton Oilers) are the last team to have qualified for the Stanley Cup Playoffs with a losing record.

## Off-season

Forward Owen Nolan was named team captain.

## Regular season

The Sharks tied the Dallas Stars and St. Louis Blues for the fewest short-handed goals allowed, with 4.

### Final standings

Pacific Division :
| R | CR | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | Dallas Stars | 82 | 51 | 19 | 12 | 236 | 168 | 114 |
| 2 | 4 | Phoenix Coyotes | 82 | 39 | 31 | 12 | 205 | 197 | 90 |
| 3 | 6 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 82 | 35 | 34 | 13 | 215 | 206 | 83 |
| 4 | 7 | San Jose Sharks | 82 | 31 | 33 | 18 | 196 | 191 | 80 |
| 5 | 11 | Los Angeles Kings | 82 | 32 | 45 | 5 | 189 | 222 | 69 |
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 – Dallas Stars | PAC | 82 | 51 | 19 | 12 | 236 | 168 | 114 |
| 2 | y – Colorado Avalanche | NW | 82 | 44 | 28 | 10 | 239 | 205 | 98 |
| 3 | y – Detroit Red Wings | CEN | 82 | 43 | 32 | 7 | 245 | 202 | 93 |
| 4 | Phoenix Coyotes | PAC | 82 | 39 | 31 | 12 | 205 | 197 | 90 |
| 5 | St. Louis Blues | CEN | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 237 | 209 | 87 |
| 6 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PAC | 82 | 35 | 34 | 13 | 215 | 206 | 83 |
| 7 | San Jose Sharks | PAC | 82 | 31 | 33 | 18 | 196 | 191 | 80 |
| 8 | Edmonton Oilers | NW | 82 | 33 | 37 | 12 | 230 | 226 | 78 |
| 9 | Calgary Flames | NW | 82 | 30 | 40 | 12 | 211 | 234 | 72 |
| 10 | Chicago Blackhawks | CEN | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 202 | 248 | 70 |
| 11 | Los Angeles Kings | PAC | 82 | 32 | 45 | 5 | 189 | 222 | 69 |
| 12 | Nashville Predators | CEN | 82 | 28 | 47 | 7 | 190 | 261 | 63 |
| 13 | Vancouver Canucks | NW | 82 | 23 | 47 | 12 | 192 | 258 | 58 |
Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific, NW – Northwest
bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents' Trophy; y – Won division

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1998–99 regular season :
October: 1–6–2 (home: 1–3–0; road: 0–3–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1TOctober 9, 19983–3 OT@ Calgary Flames (1998–99)0–0–1Recap
2LOctober 10, 19983–5Calgary Flames (1998–99)0–1–1Recap
3LOctober 18, 19980–3Boston Bruins (1998–99)0–2–1Recap
4LOctober 20, 19981–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (1998–99)0–3–1Recap
5TOctober 22, 19982–2 OT@ Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99)0–3–2Recap
6LOctober 24, 19981–2@ Dallas Stars (1998–99)0–4–2Recap
7LOctober 28, 19982–4Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99)0–5–2Recap
8LOctober 29, 19982–4@ Colorado Avalanche (1998–99)0–6–2Recap
9WOctober 31, 19986–1Tampa Bay Lightning (1998–99)1–6–2Recap :
November: 4–5–3 (home: 3–2–2; road: 1–3–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
10WNovember 4, 19984–0Dallas Stars (1998–99)2–6–2Recap
11TNovember 6, 19982–2 OT@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)2–6–3Recap
12TNovember 7, 19982–2 OTSt. Louis Blues (1998–99)2–6–4Recap
13LNovember 10, 19982–4Nashville Predators (1998–99)2–7–4Recap
14WNovember 12, 19983–0Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99)3–7–4Recap
15WNovember 18, 19985–4Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)4–7–4Recap
16LNovember 20, 19981–2 OTPhoenix Coyotes (1998–99)4–8–4Recap
17TNovember 21, 19982–2 OTNew York Rangers (1998–99)4–8–5Recap
18LNovember 23, 19982–3@ Dallas Stars (1998–99)4–9–5Recap
19LNovember 25, 19980–3@ Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99)4–10–5Recap
20WNovember 27, 19984–2@ St. Louis Blues (1998–99)5–10–5Recap
21LNovember 29, 19981–4@ Detroit Red Wings (1998–99)5–11–5Recap :
December: 5–5–3 (home: 4–3–2; road: 1–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
22LDecember 2, 19980–3Dallas Stars (1998–99)5–12–5Recap
23TDecember 4, 19982–2 OTDetroit Red Wings (1998–99)5–12–6Recap
24LDecember 6, 19981–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)5–13–6Recap
25TDecember 9, 19983–3 OT@ Dallas Stars (1998–99)5–13–7Recap
26LDecember 10, 19981–2@ Nashville Predators (1998–99)5–14–7Recap
27WDecember 12, 19982–1Washington Capitals (1998–99)6–14–7Recap
28LDecember 15, 19980–1New York Islanders (1998–99)6–15–7Recap
29WDecember 17, 19983–1Nashville Predators (1998–99)7–15–7Recap
30WDecember 19, 19982–1Colorado Avalanche (1998–99)8–15–7Recap
31WDecember 23, 19985–3@ Edmonton Oilers (1998–99)9–15–7Recap
32WDecember 26, 19982–0Vancouver Canucks (1998–99)10–15–7Recap
33TDecember 28, 19981–1 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1998–99)10–15–8Recap
34LDecember 30, 19981–5@ Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)10–16–8Recap :
January: 5–4–4 (home: 3–2–3; road: 2–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
35WJanuary 2, 19994–3 OT@ New York Islanders (1998–99)11–16–8Recap
36LJanuary 4, 19993–4@ New York Rangers (1998–99)11–17–8Recap
37TJanuary 5, 19993–3 OT@ New Jersey Devils (1998–99)11–17–9Recap
38WJanuary 7, 19994–3@ Nashville Predators (1998–99)12–17–9Recap
39TJanuary 9, 19992–2 OTBuffalo Sabres (1998–99)12–17–10Recap
40WJanuary 11, 19994–0Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)13–17–10Recap
41LJanuary 13, 19991–2Dallas Stars (1998–99)13–18–10Recap
42WJanuary 15, 19993–2Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99)14–18–10Recap
43TJanuary 16, 19993–3 OTCalgary Flames (1998–99)14–18–11Recap
44WJanuary 18, 19993–1New Jersey Devils (1998–99)15–18–11Recap
45TJanuary 21, 19993–3 OTEdmonton Oilers (1998–99)15–18–12Recap
46LJanuary 26, 19990–3St. Louis Blues (1998–99)15–19–12Recap
47LJanuary 30, 19990–5@ Colorado Avalanche (1998–99)15–20–12Recap :
February: 5–7–2 (home: 1–1–1; road: 4–6–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
48WFebruary 1, 19995–1Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99)16–20–12Recap
49LFebruary 4, 19991–3@ Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99)16–21–12Recap
50LFebruary 6, 19990–2@ Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)16–22–12Recap
51WFebruary 8, 19993–0@ Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99)17–22–12Recap
52WFebruary 10, 19995–2@ Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99)18–22–12Recap
53WFebruary 11, 19995–1@ St. Louis Blues (1998–99)19–22–12Recap
54WFebruary 13, 19993–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1998–99)20–22–12Recap
55TFebruary 15, 19992–2 OT@ Florida Panthers (1998–99)20–22–13Recap
56LFebruary 17, 19991–3@ Detroit Red Wings (1998–99)20–23–13Recap
57LFebruary 19, 19992–4@ Buffalo Sabres (1998–99)20–24–13Recap
58LFebruary 20, 19991–3@ Washington Capitals (1998–99)20–25–13Recap
59TFebruary 24, 19991–1 OTVancouver Canucks (1998–99)20–25–14Recap
60LFebruary 26, 19991–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)20–26–14Recap
61LFebruary 27, 19991–4Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)20–27–14Recap :
March: 7–3–3 (home: 4–2–0; road: 3–1–3)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
62WMarch 1, 19992–1@ Calgary Flames (1998–99)21–27–14Recap
63WMarch 3, 19994–3@ Vancouver Canucks (1998–99)22–27–14Recap
64LMarch 6, 19990–4Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99)22–28–14Recap
65WMarch 9, 19994–2Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99)23–28–14Recap
66WMarch 12, 19992–0Detroit Red Wings (1998–99)24–28–14Recap
67WMarch 13, 19993–2Ottawa Senators (1998–99)25–28–14Recap
68WMarch 17, 19994–2Florida Panthers (1998–99)26–28–14Recap
69TMarch 20, 19992–2 OT@ Boston Bruins (1998–99)26–28–15Recap
70TMarch 22, 19991–1 OT@ Montreal Canadiens (1998–99)26–28–16Recap
71WMarch 24, 19998–5@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1998–99)27–28–16Recap
72TMarch 26, 19991–1 OT@ Ottawa Senators (1998–99)27–28–17Recap
73LMarch 28, 19992–5@ Edmonton Oilers (1998–99)27–29–17Recap
74LMarch 31, 19992–3Colorado Avalanche (1998–99)27–30–17Recap :
April: 4–3–1 (home: 1–2–1; road: 3–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
75WApril 2, 19997–0@ Vancouver Canucks (1998–99)28–30–17Recap
76WApril 3, 19995–2Vancouver Canucks (1998–99)29–30–17Recap
77WApril 6, 19991–0@ Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99)30–30–17Recap
78LApril 8, 19992–3@ Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)30–31–17Recap
79WApril 9, 19994–1@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)31–31–17Recap
80LApril 12, 19994–5 OTEdmonton Oilers (1998–99)31–32–17Recap
81LApril 16, 19990–2Los Angeles Kings (1998–99)31–33–17Recap
82TApril 17, 19993–3 OTMighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99)31–33–18Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1999 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (2) Colorado Avalanche: Avalanche win 4–2
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1LApril 24, 19991–3@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 26, 19991–2 OT@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 28, 19994–2Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 2–1Recap
4WApril 30, 19997–3Colorado AvalancheSeries tied 2–2Recap
5LMay 1, 19992–6@ Colorado AvalancheAvalanche lead 3–2Recap
6LMay 3, 19992–3 OTColorado 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 Sharks only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sharks 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 |
| 39 | Jeff Friesen | LW | 78 | 22 | 35 | 57 | 3 | 42 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 14 |
| 17 | Joe Murphy | RW | 76 | 25 | 23 | 48 | 10 | 73 | 6 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 4 |
| 14 | Patrick Marleau | C | 81 | 21 | 24 | 45 | 10 | 24 | 6 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −1 | 4 |
| 11 | Owen Nolan | RW | 78 | 19 | 26 | 45 | 16 | 129 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 6 |
| 18 | Mike Ricci | C | 82 | 13 | 26 | 39 | 1 | 68 | 6 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 10 |
| 19 | Marco Sturm | LW | 78 | 16 | 22 | 38 | 7 | 52 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 4 |
| 2 | Bill Houlder | D | 76 | 9 | 23 | 32 | 8 | 40 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 4 |
| 15 | Alexander Korolyuk | LW | 55 | 12 | 18 | 30 | 3 | 26 | 6 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −3 | 2 |
| 37 | Stephane Matteau | LW | 68 | 8 | 15 | 23 | 2 | 73 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 6 |
| 5 | Jeff Norton† | D | 69 | 4 | 18 | 22 | 2 | 42 | 6 | 0 | 7 | 7 | 5 | 10 |
| 22 | Ron Stern | RW | 78 | 7 | 9 | 16 | −3 | 158 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 6 |
| 26 | Dave Lowry | LW | 61 | 6 | 9 | 15 | −5 | 24 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 40 | Mike Rathje | D | 82 | 5 | 9 | 14 | 15 | 36 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −6 | 4 |
| 32 | Murray Craven | LW | 43 | 4 | 10 | 14 | −3 | 18 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 25 | Vincent Damphousse† | C | 12 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 3 | 4 | 6 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 1 | 6 |
| 10 | Marcus Ragnarsson | D | 74 | 0 | 13 | 13 | 7 | 66 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 6 |
| 21 | Tony Granato | RW | 35 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 4 | 54 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −1 | 2 |
| 3 | Bob Rouse | D | 70 | 0 | 11 | 11 | 0 | 44 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 6 |
| 12 | Ron Sutter | C | 59 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −8 | 40 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 4 |
| 27 | Bryan Marchment | D | 59 | 2 | 6 | 8 | −7 | 101 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 4 | Andrei Zyuzin | D | 25 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 36 | Steve Guolla | C | 14 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 42 | Andy Sutton | D | 31 | 0 | 3 | 3 | −4 | 65 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Jarrod Skalde | C | 17 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −6 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 6 | Scott Hannan | D | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9 | Bernie Nicholls‡ | C | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −4 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 33 | Brantt Myhres | RW | 30 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 116 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 13 | Jamie Baker | C | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 7 | Shawn Burr | LW | 18 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −3 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 16 | Alex Hicks‡ | LW | 4 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Steve Shields | G | 37 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 25 | Mike Craig | RW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Sean Gauthier | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | Shawn Heins | D | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 20 | Gary Suter | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 29 | Mike Vernon | G | 49 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 8 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 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 |
| 29 | Mike Vernon | 49 | 16 | 22 | 10 | 1200 | 107 | 2.27 | .911 | 4 | 2831 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 172 | 13 | 2.43 | .924 | 0 | 321 |
| 31 | Steve Shields | 37 | 15 | 11 | 8 | 1011 | 80 | 2.22 | .921 | 4 | 2162 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 36 | 6 | 6.00 | .833 | 0 | 60 |
| 30 | Sean Gauthier | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 0 | 3 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Marco Sturm |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Mike Vernon (February 15) |
| League (in-season) | NHL Player of the Week | Steve Shields (March 15) |
| Team | Sharks Player of the Year | Steve Shields |
| Team | Sharks Player of the Year | Mike Vernon |
| Team | Sharks Rookie of the Year | Alexander Korolyuk |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Scott Hannan | October 9, 1998 |
| First game | Andy Sutton | October 20, 1998 |
| First game | Shawn Heins | February 19, 1999 |
| First game | Sean Gauthier | March 6, 1999 |
| 1,000th game played | Bob Rouse | January 2, 1999 |
| 1,000th game played | Vincent Damphousse | April 6, 1999 |

## Draft picks

San Jose's draft picks at the 1998 NHL Entry Draft held at the Marine Midland Arena in Buffalo, New York.
| Round | # | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team |
| 1 | 3 | Brad Stuart | Defense | Canada | Regina Pats |
| 2 | 29 | Jonathan Cheechoo | Right Wing | Canada | Belleville Bulls |
| 3 | 65 | Eric Laplante | Left Wing | Canada | Halifax Mooseheads |
| 4 | 98 | Rob Davison | Defense | Canada | North Bay Centennials |
| 4 | 104 | Miroslav Zalesak | Right Wing | Slovakia | HC Plastika Nitra |
| 5 | 127 | Brandon Coalter | Left Wing | Canada | Oshawa Generals |
| 5 | 145 | Mikael Samuelsson | Right Wing | Sweden | Sodertalje SK |
| 7 | 185 | Robert Mulick | Defense | Canada | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds |
| 8 | 212 | Jim Fahey | Defense | Canada | Catholic Memorial H.S. |