# 1996–97 Detroit Red Wings season

The 1996–97 Detroit Red Wings season was the 71st National Hockey League season in Detroit, Michigan. The highlight of the Red Wings season was winning the Stanley Cup, their first since 1955.

## Off-season

On July 23, 1996, Detroit Red Wings President Bill Evo resigned his position after serving just ten months at the team's helm. The Nickname "Hockeytown" was coined to launch the start of a five-year marketing campaign.

## Regular season

The "HOCKEYTOWN" logo, a Red Wings logo overlapped with the term "HOCKEYTOWN," was shown over center ice starting this season and was still there as of 2022.
A season highlight was Sergei Fedorov's five-goal performance on December 26, 1996, in a game against the Washington Capitals. The Red Wings won 5–4 in overtime. Fedorov's fifth goal of the game came at 2:39 of the overtime period.
On February 8, 1997, coach Scotty Bowman achieved his 1000th victory as an NHL head coach against his previous team, the Pittsburgh Penguins.
On March 26, 1997, the Red Wings–Avalanche brawl continued to fuel the rivalry between the teams. Detroit won that game 6–5 in overtime.

### Season 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

The Red Wings won the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals, their first Stanley Cup since the 1954–55 NHL season.
Six days after winning the Stanley Cup, tragedy struck when defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov, defenseman Viacheslav Fetisov, and massage therapist Sergei Mnatsakanov were involved in a limousine accident. The driver, who later said he fell asleep, had a suspended license for previous drunk driving convictions.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1996–97 regular season :
October: 7–4–1 (home: 5–1–1; road: 2–3–0)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
1October 5Detroit1–3New JerseyOsgood18,6220–1–00Recap
2October 9Edmonton0–2DetroitOsgood19,9831–1–02Recap
3October 11Calgary2–1DetroitOsgood19,9831–2–02Recap
4October 12Detroit6–1BuffaloVernon18,5952–2–04Recap
5October 15Detroit1–3DallasVernon15,9832–3–04Recap
6October 17Detroit1–2ChicagoOsgood18,2612–4–04Recap
7October 19NY Islanders2–4DetroitVernon19,9833–4–06Recap
8October 21Los Angeles0–3DetroitOsgood19,8494–4–08Recap
9October 23Dallas1–4DetroitOsgood19,9835–4–010Recap
10October 25Chicago2–2DetroitOTHodson19,9835–4–111Recap
11October 26Detroit2–1BostonOsgood17,0126–4–113Recap
12October 30Montreal3–5DetroitOsgood19,9837–4–115Recap :
November: 7–4–2 (home: 4–2–0; road: 3–2–2)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
13November 1Detroit2–2OttawaOTOsgood14,1587–4–216Recap
14November 2Detroit2–6TorontoVernon15,7267–5–216Recap
15November 4Hartford1–5DetroitOsgood19,9838–5–218Recap
16November 6New Jersey2–0DetroitOsgood19,9838–6–218Recap
17November 8Detroit4–1HartfordVernon14,6609–6–220Recap
18November 10Tampa Bay2–4DetroitOsgood19,98310–6–222Recap
19November 13Colorado4–1DetroitOsgood19,98310–7–222Recap
20November 15San Jose1–5DetroitVernon19,98311–7–224Recap
21November 18Detroit2–2PhoenixOTOsgood15,43611–7–325Recap
22November 21Detroit6–1San JoseVernon17,44212–7–327Recap
23November 23Detroit6–0Los AngelesOsgood16,00513–7–329Recap
24November 24Detroit1–3AnaheimVernon17,17413–8–329Recap
25November 27Toronto2–5DetroitOsgood19,98314–8–331Recap :
December: 6–4–3 (home: 3–2–2; road: 3–2–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
26December 1Florida4–2DetroitOsgood19,98314–9–331Recap
27December 3Vancouver2–2DetroitOTOsgood19,92114–9–432Recap
28December 4Detroit2–0WashingtonHodson16,11715–9–434Recap
29December 10Edmonton0–0DetroitOTOsgood19,98315–9–535Recap
30December 12Chicago2–6DetroitOsgood19,98316–9–537Recap
31December 15Toronto1–3DetroitOsgood19,98317–9–539Recap
32December 17Detroit3–4ColoradoVernon16,06117–10–539Recap
33December 18Detroit3–3CalgaryOTOsgood16,23717–10–640Recap
34December 20Detroit2–3VancouverHodson18,42217–11–640Recap
35December 22Detroit6–2EdmontonOsgood16,72418–11–642Recap
36December 26Washington4–5DetroitOTOsgood19,98319–11–644Recap
37December 28Detroit7–1NY IslandersVernon16,29720–11–646Recap
38December 30Phoenix5–3DetroitOsgood19,98320–12–646Recap :
January: 2–5–3 (home: 0–3–2; road: 2–2–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
39January 3Dallas2–1DetroitVernon19,98320–13–646Recap
40January 5Detroit5–5ChicagoOTVernon21,91420–13–747Recap
41January 8Detroit3–6DallasOsgood15,32620–14–747Recap
42January 9Detroit5–4PhoenixOTOsgood16,21021–14–749Recap
43January 11Chicago3–1DetroitOsgood19,98321–15–749Recap
44January 14Los Angeles3–3DetroitOTOsgood19,98321–15–850Recap
45January 20Detroit1–4MontrealVernon21,27321–16–850Recap
46January 22Philadelphia2–2DetroitOTVernon19,98321–16–951Recap
47January 25Detroit4–1PhiladelphiaVernon19,71122–16–953Recap
48January 29Phoenix3–0DetroitVernon19,98322–17–953Recap :
February: 8–2–3 (home: 4–1–1; road: 4–1–2)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
49February 1Detroit4–1St. LouisVernon20,33023–17–955Recap
50February 2Dallas3–4DetroitOTOsgood19,98324–17–957Recap
51February 4St. Louis1–1DetroitOTVernon19,98324–17–1058Recap
52February 6Vancouver7–4DetroitOsgood19,98324–18–1058Recap
53February 8Detroit6–5PittsburghOTVernon17,35525–18–1060Recap
54February 12San Jose1–7DetroitOsgood19,98326–18–1062Recap
55February 14Detroit3–4DallasOTVernon16,92426–19–1062Recap
56February 16Detroit4–2FloridaOsgood14,70327–19–1064Recap
57February 17Detroit3–3Tampa BayOTVernon19,57927–19–1165Recap
58February 19Calgary0–4DetroitOsgood19,98328–19–1167Recap
59February 22Detroit2–2St. LouisOTVernon20,37128–19–1268Recap
60February 24Detroit5–3PhoenixOsgood16,21029–19–1270Recap
61February 27Pittsburgh1–4DetroitVernon19,98330–19–1272Recap :
March: 6–5–3 (home: 4–1–1; road: 2–4–2)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
62March 1NY Rangers0–3DetroitOsgood19,98331–19–1274Recap
63March 2Anaheim1–1DetroitOTVernon19,98331–19–1375Recap
64March 5Detroit4–4TorontoOTOsgood15,72631–19–1476Recap
65March 8Detroit5–3VancouverVernon18,42232–19–1478Recap
66March 10Detroit3–3Los AngelesOTOsgood10,66332–19–1579Recap
67March 12Detroit1–2AnaheimVernon17,17432–20–1579Recap
68March 15Detroit7–4San JoseOsgood17,44233–20–1581Recap
69March 16Detroit2–4ColoradoOsgood16,06133–21–1581Recap
70March 19Boston1–4DetroitHodson19,98334–21–1583Recap
71March 21Detroit1–3NY RangersOsgood18,20034–22–1583Recap
72March 23Detroit3–5ChicagoHodson22,42234–23–1583Recap
73March 26Colorado5–6DetroitOTVernon19,98335–23–1585Recap
74March 28Buffalo1–2DetroitOTVernon19,98336–23–1587Recap
75March 30Anaheim1–0DetroitOTVernon19,98336–24–1587Recap :
April: 2–2–3 (home: 0–2–2; road: 2–0–1)
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionAttendanceRecordPointsRecap
76April 1St. Louis1–1DetroitOTVernon19,98336–24–1688Recap
77April 3Toronto2–2DetroitOTOsgood19,98336–24–1789Recap
78April 5Detroit4–2TorontoOsgood15,72637–24–1791Recap
79April 8Detroit3–2CalgaryOTOsgood17,84138–24–1793Recap
80April 9Detroit3–3EdmontonOTVernon17,09938–24–1894Recap
81April 11Ottawa3–2DetroitVernon19,98338–25–1894Recap
82April 13St. Louis3–1DetroitOsgood19,98338–26–1894Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1997 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (6) St. Louis Blues: Detroit won 4–2
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionSeriesRecap
1April 16St. Louis2–0DetroitVernon0–1Recap
2April 18St. Louis1–2DetroitVernon1–1Recap
3April 20Detroit3–2St. LouisVernon2–1Recap
4April 22Detroit0–4St. LouisVernon2–2Recap
5April 25St. Louis2–5DetroitVernon3–2Recap
6April 27Detroit3–1St. LouisVernon4–2Recap :
Western Conference Semifinals vs. (4) Mighty Ducks of Anaheim: Detroit won 4–0
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionSeriesRecap
1May 2Anaheim1–2DetroitOTVernon1–0Recap
2May 4Anaheim2–3Detroit3OTVernon2–0Recap
3May 6Detroit5–2AnaheimVernon3–0Recap
4May 8Detroit3–2Anaheim2OTVernon4–0Recap :
Western Conference Finals vs. (1) Colorado Avalanche: Detroit won 4–2
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionSeriesRecap
1May 15Detroit1–2ColoradoVernon0–1Recap
2May 17Detroit4–2ColoradoVernon1–1Recap
3May 19Colorado1–2DetroitVernon2–1Recap
4May 22Colorado0–6DetroitVernon3–1Recap
5May 24Detroit0–6ColoradoVernon3–2Recap
6May 26Colorado1–3DetroitVernon4–2Recap :
Stanley Cup Finals vs. (E3) Philadelphia Flyers: Detroit won 4–0
GameDateVisitorScoreHomeOTDecisionSeriesRecap
1May 31Detroit4–2PhiladelphiaVernon1–0Recap
2June 3Detroit4–2PhiladelphiaVernon2–0Recap
3June 5Philadelphia1–6DetroitVernon3–0Recap
4June 7Philadelphia1–2DetroitVernon4–0Recap :
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 Red Wings only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings 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 |
| 14 | Brendan Shanahan† | LW | 79 | 46 | 41 | 87 | 31 | 131 | 20 | 9 | 8 | 17 | 8 | 43 |
| 19 | Steve Yzerman | LW | 81 | 22 | 63 | 85 | 22 | 78 | 20 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 3 | 4 |
| 91 | Sergei Fedorov | C | 74 | 30 | 33 | 63 | 29 | 30 | 20 | 8 | 12 | 20 | 5 | 12 |
| 5 | Nicklas Lidstrom | D | 79 | 15 | 42 | 57 | 11 | 30 | 20 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 12 | 2 |
| 8 | Igor Larionov | C | 64 | 12 | 42 | 54 | 31 | 26 | 20 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 8 |
| 25 | Darren McCarty | RW | 68 | 19 | 30 | 49 | 14 | 126 | 20 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 34 |
| 13 | Vyacheslav Kozlov | C | 75 | 23 | 22 | 45 | 21 | 46 | 20 | 8 | 5 | 13 | 3 | 14 |
| 16 | Vladimir Konstantinov | D | 77 | 5 | 33 | 38 | 38 | 151 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −1 | 29 |
| 20 | Martin Lapointe | RW | 78 | 16 | 17 | 33 | −14 | 167 | 20 | 4 | 8 | 12 | 8 | 60 |
| 2 | Viacheslav Fetisov | D | 64 | 5 | 23 | 28 | 26 | 76 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 42 |
| 28 | Tomas Sandstrom† | RW | 34 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 2 | 36 | 20 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −3 | 24 |
| 23 | Greg Johnson‡ | RW | 43 | 6 | 10 | 16 | −5 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 33 | Kris Draper | C | 76 | 8 | 5 | 13 | −11 | 73 | 20 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 12 |
| 17 | Doug Brown | LW | 49 | 6 | 7 | 13 | −3 | 8 | 14 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 2 |
| 3 | Bob Rouse | D | 70 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 8 | 58 | 22 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 8 | 55 |
| 11 | Mathieu Dandenault | RW | 65 | 3 | 9 | 12 | −10 | 28 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 4 | Jamie Pushor | D | 75 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 1 | 129 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 5 |
| 15 | Tomas Holmstrom | LW | 47 | 6 | 3 | 9 | −10 | 33 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |
| 18 | Kirk Maltby | LW | 66 | 3 | 5 | 8 | 3 | 75 | 20 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 6 | 24 |
| 37 | Tim Taylor | C | 44 | 3 | 4 | 7 | −6 | 52 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |
| 27 | Aaron Ward | D | 49 | 2 | 5 | 7 | −9 | 52 | 19 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 17 |
| 55 | Larry Murphy† | D | 12 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 0 | 20 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 16 | 8 |
| 34 | Anders Eriksson | D | 23 | 0 | 6 | 6 | 5 | 10 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | Joe Kocur† | RW | 34 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −7 | 70 | 19 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 22 |
| 21 | Bob Errey‡ | LW | 36 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −3 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Chris Osgood | G | 47 | 0 | 2 | 2 | | 6 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 |
| 22 | Mike Knuble | RW | 9 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Kevin Hodson | G | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Stu Grimson‡ | LW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 40 | Mark Major | LW | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | Mike Ramsey†‡ | D | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 29 | Mike Vernon | G | 33 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 35 | 20 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 12 |

### Goaltending

| No. | Player | Regular season | 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 | Playoffs |
| No. | Player | GP | GS | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | GS | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 30 | Chris Osgood | 47 | 45 | 23 | 13 | 9 | 1,175 | 106 | 2.30 | .910 | 6 | 2,768:48 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 2 | 2.54 | .905 | 0 | 47:10 |
| 29 | Mike Vernon | 33 | 33 | 13 | 11 | 8 | 782 | 79 | 2.43 | .899 | 0 | 1,952:03 | 20 | 20 | 16 | 4 | 494 | 36 | 1.76 | .927 | 1 | 1,229:12 |
| 31 | Kevin Hodson | 6 | 4 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 114 | 8 | 1.63 | .930 | 1 | 293:47 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

Vladimir Konstantinov was the runner-up for the James Norris Memorial Trophy.
| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | Conn Smythe Trophy | Mike Vernon |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Viacheslav Fetisov |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Chris Osgood |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Brendan Shanahan |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Steve Yzerman |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Tomas Holmstrom | October 5, 1996 |
| First game | Mark Major | November 1, 1996 |
| First game | Mike Knuble | March 26, 1997 |
| 1,000th game played | Steve Yzerman | February 19, 1997 |

## Transactions
### Retirement

| Date | Player |
| March 18, 1997 (1997-03-18) | Mike Ramsey |

## Draft picks

Detroit's picks at the 1996 NHL entry draft.
| Round | # | Player | Position | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 26 | Jesse Wallin | D | Canada | Red Deer Rebels (WHL) |
| 2 | 52 | Aren Miller | G | Canada | Spokane Chiefs (WHL) |
| 4 | 108 | Johan Forsander | LW | Sweden | HV71 (SEL) |
| 5 | 135 | Michal Podolka | G | Czech Republic | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) |
| 6$^1$ | 144 | Magnus Nilsson | LW | Sweden | Malmo IF (SEL) |
| 6 | 162 | Alexandre Jacques | C | Canada | Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL) |
| 7 | 189 | Colin Beardsmore | C | Canada | North Bay Centennials (OHL) |
| 8 | 215 | Craig Stahl | RW | Canada | Tri-City Americans (WHL) |
| 9 | 241 | Yevgeni Afanasyev | LW | Canada | Flint Generals (CoHL) |

### Notes

* The Red Wings acquired this pick as the result of a trade on April 4, 1995 that sent Mike Sillinger and Jason York to Anaheim in exchange for Stu Grimson, Mark Ferner and this pick.
* The Red Wings third-round pick went to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent David Shaw to Tampa Bay in exchange for this pick (80th overall).
       Tampa Bay previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent Marc Bergevin and Ben Hankinson to Detroit in exchange for Shawn Burr and this pick.