# 1996–97 Dallas Stars season

The 1996–97 Dallas Stars season was the fourth National Hockey League season in Dallas, Texas (and 30th as a franchise) as they attempted to bounce back from their dismal last place finish in the Central Division, which they would, finishing first, clinching the first Division title for Dallas. They would face off against the Edmonton Oilers in the Conference Quarterfinals, playing a tough series, losing 4-3.

## 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

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1996–97 regular season :
October: 9–2–0 (home: 6–1–0; road: 3–1–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 5, 19964–1Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)1–0–0Recap
2WOctober 8, 19965–3Washington Capitals (1996–97)2–0–0Recap
3WOctober 10, 19962–1@ New York Rangers (1996–97)3–0–0Recap
4WOctober 12, 19964–2@ New Jersey Devils (1996–97)4–0–0Recap
5WOctober 13, 19965–3@ Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)5–0–0Recap
6WOctober 15, 19963–1Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)6–0–0Recap
7LOctober 17, 19961–6Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)6–1–0Recap
8WOctober 19, 19962–0Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)7–1–0Recap
9LOctober 23, 19961–4@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)7–2–0Recap
10WOctober 26, 19965–1Ottawa Senators (1996–97)8–2–0Recap
11WOctober 30, 19962–0Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)9–2–0Recap :
November: 7–6–1 (home: 2–3–1; road: 5–3–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
12LNovember 1, 19962–3 OTChicago Blackhawks (1996–97)9–3–0Recap
13LNovember 3, 19963–6@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)9–4–0Recap
14WNovember 6, 19963–2@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)10–4–0Recap
15LNovember 8, 19961–3@ San Jose Sharks (1996–97)10–5–0Recap
16WNovember 11, 19963–2@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)11–5–0Recap
17TNovember 13, 19963–3 OTCalgary Flames (1996–97)11–5–1Recap
18WNovember 15, 19964–3Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)12–5–1Recap
19WNovember 17, 19967–3@ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)13–5–1Recap
20LNovember 19, 19960–2@ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)13–6–1Recap
21WNovember 20, 19963–1@ Calgary Flames (1996–97)14–6–1Recap
22LNovember 22, 19961–2 OTFlorida Panthers (1996–97)14–7–1Recap
23LNovember 27, 19962–3New Jersey Devils (1996–97)14–8–1Recap
24WNovember 29, 19962–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)15–8–1Recap
25WNovember 30, 19965–2Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)16–8–1Recap :
December: 6–5–2 (home: 2–4–1; road: 4–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
26LDecember 4, 19961–2San Jose Sharks (1996–97)16–9–1Recap
27LDecember 6, 19963–6Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)16–10–1Recap
28TDecember 8, 19961–1 OT@ Florida Panthers (1996–97)16–10–2Recap
29TDecember 11, 19965–5 OTSt. Louis Blues (1996–97)16–10–3Recap
30WDecember 13, 19962–1Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)17–10–3Recap
31WDecember 15, 19964–0@ Ottawa Senators (1996–97)18–10–3Recap
32WDecember 18, 19963–2 OT@ Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)19–10–3Recap
33WDecember 20, 19964–1@ Hartford Whalers (1996–97)20–10–3Recap
34WDecember 21, 19963–2@ New York Islanders (1996–97)21–10–3Recap
35LDecember 23, 19961–2San Jose Sharks (1996–97)21–11–3Recap
36WDecember 27, 19966–4Boston Bruins (1996–97)22–11–3Recap
37LDecember 29, 19962–3@ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)22–12–3Recap
38LDecember 30, 19962–3New York Rangers (1996–97)22–13–3Recap :
January: 7–5–1 (home: 3–2–0; road: 4–3–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
39LJanuary 1, 19974–6Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)22–14–3Recap
40WJanuary 3, 19972–1@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)23–14–3Recap
41LJanuary 4, 19972–3@ Boston Bruins (1996–97)23–15–3Recap
42WJanuary 8, 19976–3Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)24–15–3Recap
43LJanuary 10, 19973–4Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)24–16–3Recap
44WJanuary 13, 19972–1@ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)25–16–3Recap
45LJanuary 14, 19971–3@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)25–17–3Recap
46TJanuary 21, 19973–3 OT@ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)25–17–4Recap
47WJanuary 24, 19975–2@ Washington Capitals (1996–97)26–17–4Recap
48WJanuary 25, 19975–1@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)27–17–4Recap
49WJanuary 27, 19977–2Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)28–17–4Recap
50WJanuary 29, 19973–1Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)29–17–4Recap
51LJanuary 31, 19971–3@ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)29–18–4Recap :
February: 9–4–0 (home: 5–1–0; road: 4–3–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
52LFebruary 2, 19973–4 OT@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)29–19–4Recap
53WFebruary 5, 19974–0Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)30–19–4Recap
54LFebruary 6, 19974–6@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)30–20–4Recap
55WFebruary 8, 19975–4 OT@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)31–20–4Recap
56WFebruary 9, 19972–1 OTLos Angeles Kings (1996–97)32–20–4Recap
57LFebruary 12, 19970–5Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)32–21–4Recap
58WFebruary 14, 19974–3 OTDetroit Red Wings (1996–97)33–21–4Recap
59WFebruary 17, 19972–1@ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)34–21–4Recap
60LFebruary 18, 19971–3@ San Jose Sharks (1996–97)34–22–4Recap
61WFebruary 21, 19974–2Calgary Flames (1996–97)35–22–4Recap
62WFebruary 23, 19976–1Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)36–22–4Recap
63WFebruary 25, 19971–0@ Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)37–22–4Recap
64WFebruary 27, 19976–2@ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)38–22–4Recap :
March: 8–1–2 (home: 5–0–1; road: 3–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
65LMarch 1, 19971–4@ Calgary Flames (1996–97)38–23–4Recap
66WMarch 5, 19973–2St. Louis Blues (1996–97)39–23–4Recap
67WMarch 7, 19972–1Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)40–23–4Recap
68TMarch 10, 19973–3 OT@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)40–23–5Recap
69TMarch 14, 19974–4 OTChicago Blackhawks (1996–97)40–23–6Recap
70WMarch 16, 19976–2Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)41–23–6Recap
71WMarch 19, 19977–2Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)42–23–6Recap
72WMarch 21, 19972–0Hartford Whalers (1996–97)43–23–6Recap
73WMarch 23, 19974–1@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)44–23–6Recap
74WMarch 30, 19973–2@ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)45–23–6Recap
75WMarch 31, 19973–1@ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)46–23–6Recap :
April: 2–3–2 (home: 2–2–0; road: 0–1–2)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
76WApril 2, 19975–4New York Islanders (1996–97)47–23–6Recap
77LApril 4, 19972–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)47–24–6Recap
78TApril 5, 19973–3 OT@ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)47–24–7Recap
79TApril 7, 19972–2 OT@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)47–24–8Recap
80WApril 9, 19973–2Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)48–24–8Recap
81LApril 11, 19971–2Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)48–25–8Recap
82LApril 13, 19972–5Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)48–26–8Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1997 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (7) Edmonton Oilers – Oilers win 4–3
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WApril 16, 19975–3Edmonton OilersStars lead 1–0Recap
2LApril 18, 19970–4Edmonton OilersSeries tied 1–1Recap
3LApril 20, 19973–4 OT@ Edmonton OilersOilers lead 2–1Recap
4WApril 22, 19974–3@ Edmonton OilersSeries tied 2–2Recap
5LApril 25, 19970–1 2OTEdmonton OilersOilers lead 3–2Recap
6WApril 27, 19973–2@ Edmonton OilersSeries tied 3–3Recap
7LApril 29, 19973–4 OTEdmonton OilersOilers win 4–3Recap :
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 Stars only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Stars 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 |
| 9 | Mike Modano | C | 80 | 35 | 48 | 83 | 43 | 42 | 7 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 0 |
| 16 | Pat Verbeek | RW | 81 | 17 | 36 | 53 | 3 | 128 | 7 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −2 | 16 |
| 25 | Joe Nieuwendyk | C | 66 | 30 | 21 | 51 | −5 | 32 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 6 |
| 5 | Darryl Sydor | D | 82 | 8 | 40 | 48 | 37 | 51 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −2 | 0 |
| 33 | Benoit Hogue | C | 73 | 19 | 24 | 43 | 8 | 54 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −1 | 6 |
| 26 | Jere Lehtinen | RW | 63 | 16 | 27 | 43 | 26 | 2 | 7 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 0 |
| 56 | Sergei Zubov | D | 78 | 13 | 30 | 43 | 19 | 24 | 7 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 2 |
| 14 | Dave Reid | LW | 82 | 19 | 20 | 39 | 12 | 10 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −2 | 4 |
| 15 | Jamie Langenbrunner | RW | 76 | 13 | 26 | 39 | −2 | 51 | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 14 |
| 23 | Greg Adams | LW | 50 | 21 | 15 | 36 | 27 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 |
| 10 | Todd Harvey | RW | 71 | 9 | 22 | 31 | 19 | 142 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 10 |
| 41 | Brent Gilchrist | LW | 67 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 6 | 24 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 2 |
| 2 | Derian Hatcher | D | 63 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 8 | 97 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 20 |
| 21 | Guy Carbonneau | C | 73 | 5 | 16 | 21 | 9 | 36 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −3 | 6 |
| 12 | Grant Ledyard | D | 67 | 1 | 15 | 16 | 31 | 61 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −3 | 0 |
| 7 | Neal Broten† | C | 20 | 8 | 7 | 15 | 6 | 12 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| 3 | Craig Ludwig | D | 77 | 2 | 11 | 13 | 17 | 62 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 18 |
| 28 | Bob Bassen | C | 46 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 5 | 41 | 7 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 4 |
| 24 | Richard Matvichuk | D | 57 | 5 | 7 | 12 | 1 | 87 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 20 |
| 17 | Bill Huard | LW | 40 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 5 | 105 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 29 | Grant Marshall | RW | 56 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 98 | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 8 |
| 39 | Mike Kennedy | C | 24 | 1 | 6 | 7 | 3 | 13 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 18 | Mike Lalor | D | 55 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 42 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 32 | Arturs Irbe | G | 35 | 0 | 2 | 2 | | 8 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 22 | Dan Keczmer | D | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Andy Moog | G | 48 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 12 | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 0 |
| 44 | Patrick Cote | LW | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 27 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 27 | Marc Labelle | LW | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 46 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 42 | Sergei Makarov†‡ | RW | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1 | Roman Turek | G | 6 | 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 |
| 35 | Andy Moog | 48 | 28 | 13 | 5 | 1121 | 98 | 2.15 | .913 | 3 | 2738 | 7 | 3 | 4 | 214 | 21 | 2.81 | .902 | 0 | 449 |
| 32 | Arturs Irbe | 35 | 17 | 12 | 3 | 825 | 88 | 2.69 | .893 | 3 | 1965 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 0 | 13 |
| 1 | Roman Turek | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 129 | 9 | 2.06 | .930 | 0 | 263 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Derian Hatcher |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Ken Hitchcock (coach) |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Mike Modano |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Andy Moog |
| Team | Star of the Game Award | Mike Modano |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Marc LaBelle | October 23, 1996 |
| First game | Roman Turek | November 20, 1996 |
| 1,000th game played | Pat Verbeek | November 11, 1996 |
| 25th shutout | Andy Moog | December 15, 1996 |

## Draft picks

Dallas'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) |
| 1 | 5 | Ric Jackman | Canada | Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL) |
| 3 | 70 | Jon Sim | Canada | Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
| 4 | 90 | Mike Hurley | Canada | Tri-City Americans (WHL) |
| 5 | 112 | Ryan Christie | Canada | Owen Sound Platers (OHL) |
| 5 | 113 | Yevgeni Tsybuk | Russia | Yaroslavl Torpedo (Russia) |
| 7 | 166 | Eoin McInerney | Canada | London Knights (OHL) |
| 8 | 194 | Joel Kwiatkowski | Canada | Prince George Cougars (WHL) |
| 9 | 220 | Nick Bootland | Canada | Guelph Storm (OHL) |