# 1997–98 Tampa Bay Lightning season

The 1997–98 Tampa Bay Lightning season was the Lightning's sixth season of operation. The Lightning missed the playoffs for the second consecutive year.

## Regular season

On October 26, head coach Terry Crisp was fired after a 2–7–2 start and Paul Ysebaert’s tenure as team captain ended. Assistant coach Rick Paterson served as interim head coach until Jacques Demers was hired as the team’s new head coach on November 12. Demers named Mikael Renberg the team’s new captain on November 19.
The Lightning struggled offensively during the regular season, being shut out a league-high 11 times (tied with the Chicago Blackhawks and the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim) and finishing 26th in goals scored (151), power-play goals scored (33) and power-play percentage (9.35%). The 9.35% power play was the lowest in NHL history in one season by any team until the 2020-21 Anaheim Ducks surpassed it with an 8.94% power play efficiency.

### Final standings

Atlantic Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 48 | 23 | 11 | 225 | 166 | 107 |
| 2 | 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 42 | 29 | 11 | 242 | 193 | 95 |
| 3 | 4 | Washington Capitals | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 219 | 202 | 92 |
| 4 | 10 | New York Islanders | 82 | 30 | 41 | 11 | 212 | 225 | 71 |
| 5 | 11 | New York Rangers | 82 | 25 | 39 | 18 | 197 | 231 | 68 |
| 6 | 12 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 24 | 43 | 15 | 203 | 256 | 63 |
| 7 | 13 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 17 | 55 | 10 | 151 | 269 | 44 |
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | New Jersey Devils | ATL | 82 | 48 | 23 | 11 | 225 | 166 | 107 |
| 2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NE | 82 | 40 | 24 | 18 | 228 | 188 | 98 |
| 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | ATL | 82 | 42 | 29 | 11 | 242 | 193 | 95 |
| 4 | Washington Capitals | ATL | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 219 | 202 | 92 |
| 5 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 221 | 194 | 91 |
| 6 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 36 | 29 | 17 | 211 | 187 | 89 |
| 7 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 235 | 208 | 87 |
| 8 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 34 | 33 | 15 | 193 | 200 | 83 |
| 9 | Carolina Hurricanes | NE | 82 | 33 | 41 | 8 | 200 | 219 | 74 |
| 10 | New York Islanders | ATL | 82 | 30 | 41 | 11 | 212 | 225 | 71 |
| 11 | New York Rangers | ATL | 82 | 25 | 39 | 18 | 197 | 231 | 68 |
| 12 | Florida Panthers | ATL | 82 | 24 | 43 | 15 | 203 | 256 | 63 |
| 13 | Tampa Bay Lightning | ATL | 82 | 17 | 55 | 10 | 151 | 269 | 44 |
Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast
bold – Qualified for playoffs

## Schedule and results

1997–98 regular season :
October: 2–9–2 (home: 1–4–1; road: 1–5–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 1, 19974–2Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)1–0–0Recap
2LOctober 3, 19973–4New Jersey Devils (1997–98)1–1–0Recap
3TOctober 5, 19971–1 OTBuffalo Sabres (1997–98)1–1–1Recap
4WOctober 9, 19974–1@ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)2–1–1Recap
5LOctober 10, 19970–3@ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)2–2–1Recap
6LOctober 15, 19971–2@ Florida Panthers (1997–98)2–3–1Recap
7LOctober 17, 19971–4Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)2–4–1Recap
8LOctober 18, 19970–5@ New Jersey Devils (1997–98)2–5–1Recap
9LOctober 21, 19971–7@ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)2–6–1Recap
10TOctober 23, 19972–2 OT@ Boston Bruins (1997–98)2–6–2Recap
11LOctober 24, 19973–4@ New York Rangers (1997–98)2–7–2Recap
12LOctober 26, 19971–3Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)2–8–2Recap
13LOctober 29, 19972–5Ottawa Senators (1997–98)2–9–2Recap :
November: 2–8–2 (home: 2–1–2; road: 0–7–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
14LNovember 5, 19972–5@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)2–10–2Recap
15LNovember 6, 19972–5@ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)2–11–2Recap
16LNovember 8, 19971–3@ San Jose Sharks (1997–98)2–12–2Recap
17LNovember 11, 19972–5@ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)2–13–2Recap
18LNovember 14, 19971–4New York Islanders (1997–98)2–14–2Recap
19LNovember 16, 19972–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)2–15–2Recap
20LNovember 17, 19971–4@ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)2–16–2Recap
21WNovember 19, 19976–3New York Rangers (1997–98)3–16–2Recap
22WNovember 22, 19974–3Calgary Flames (1997–98)4–16–2Recap
23TNovember 26, 19973–3 OTColorado Avalanche (1997–98)4–16–3Recap
24LNovember 28, 19970–2@ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)4–17–3Recap
25TNovember 29, 19973–3 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1997–98)4–17–4Recap :
December: 5–6–3 (home: 4–1–2; road: 1–5–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
26WDecember 3, 19972–1Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)5–17–4Recap
27LDecember 5, 19970–4@ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)5–18–4Recap
28LDecember 6, 19972–4@ New Jersey Devils (1997–98)5–19–4Recap
29LDecember 10, 19970–3@ Dallas Stars (1997–98)5–20–4Recap
30WDecember 13, 19973–1@ Ottawa Senators (1997–98)6–20–4Recap
31LDecember 14, 19970–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)6–21–4Recap
32TDecember 16, 19971–1 OT@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)6–21–5Recap
33WDecember 17, 19972–0Boston Bruins (1997–98)7–21–5Recap
34TDecember 20, 19972–2 OTNew York Rangers (1997–98)7–21–6Recap
35TDecember 22, 19972–2 OTSt. Louis Blues (1997–98)7–21–7Recap
36LDecember 23, 19971–4@ New York Rangers (1997–98)7–22–7Recap
37LDecember 27, 19971–3Boston Bruins (1997–98)7–23–7Recap
38WDecember 29, 19972–1San Jose Sharks (1997–98)8–23–7Recap
39WDecember 31, 19972–0New York Rangers (1997–98)9–23–7Recap :
January: 0–12–1 (home: 0–7–1; road: 0–5–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
40TJanuary 2, 19982–2 OTFlorida Panthers (1997–98)9–23–8Recap
41LJanuary 3, 19981–4Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)9–24–8Recap
42LJanuary 7, 19982–5Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)9–25–8Recap
43LJanuary 9, 19981–4@ New Jersey Devils (1997–98)9–26–8Recap
44LJanuary 11, 19982–5Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)9–27–8Recap
45LJanuary 12, 19983–6Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)9–28–8Recap
46LJanuary 14, 19981–7New York Islanders (1997–98)9–29–8Recap
47LJanuary 21, 19982–3 OTWashington Capitals (1997–98)9–30–8Recap
48LJanuary 23, 19981–4@ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)9–31–8Recap
49LJanuary 24, 19982–5@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)9–32–8Recap
50LJanuary 26, 19981–2@ Ottawa Senators (1997–98)9–33–8Recap
51LJanuary 28, 19982–3Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)9–34–8Recap
52LJanuary 31, 19980–2@ Florida Panthers (1997–98)9–35–8Recap :
February: 3–3–1 (home: 1–3–0; road: 2–0–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
53LFebruary 2, 19983–7Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)9–36–8Recap
54TFebruary 4, 19983–3 OT@ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)9–36–9Recap
55LFebruary 5, 19984–5Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)9–37–9Recap
56WFebruary 7, 19984–3@ Washington Capitals (1997–98)10–37–9Recap
57WFebruary 25, 19984–3@ Washington Capitals (1997–98)11–37–9Recap
58LFebruary 26, 19981–4New Jersey Devils (1997–98)11–38–9Recap
59WFebruary 28, 19985–2Washington Capitals (1997–98)12–38–9Recap :
March: 5–8–0 (home: 3–2–0; road: 2–6–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
60LMarch 3, 19981–2@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)12–39–9Recap
61LMarch 4, 19982–4@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)12–40–9Recap
62LMarch 7, 19982–5@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)12–41–9Recap
63WMarch 9, 19982–1@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)13–41–9Recap
64LMarch 11, 19980–2Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)13–42–9Recap
65WMarch 14, 19981–0Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)14–42–9Recap
66LMarch 16, 19983–4 OT@ Boston Bruins (1997–98)14–43–9Recap
67WMarch 18, 19984–2Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)15–43–9Recap
68WMarch 21, 19985–1Florida Panthers (1997–98)16–43–9Recap
69LMarch 25, 19981–2 OTMontreal Canadiens (1997–98)16–44–9Recap
70LMarch 26, 19982–3@ St. Louis Blues (1997–98)16–45–9Recap
71LMarch 28, 19982–8@ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)16–46–9Recap
72WMarch 30, 19983–1@ New York Rangers (1997–98)17–46–9Recap :
April: 0–9–1 (home: 0–5–1; road: 0–4–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
73LApril 1, 19980–4@ New York Islanders (1997–98)17–47–9Recap
74LApril 2, 19981–4@ Washington Capitals (1997–98)17–48–9Recap
75LApril 4, 19981–4Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)17–49–9Recap
76LApril 6, 19980–3New York Islanders (1997–98)17–50–9Recap
77LApril 8, 19981–6Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)17–51–9Recap
78LApril 11, 19981–5Dallas Stars (1997–98)17–52–9Recap
79LApril 13, 19982–3Ottawa Senators (1997–98)17–53–9Recap
80LApril 15, 19981–5@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)17–54–9Recap
81LApril 16, 19980–4@ New York Islanders (1997–98)17–55–9Recap
82TApril 18, 19982–2 OTFlorida Panthers (1997–98)17–55–10Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

## 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 Lightning only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Lightning only.
| No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
| 15 | Paul Ysebaert | C | 82 | 13 | 27 | 40 | −43 | 32 |
| 20 | Mikael Renberg | RW | 68 | 16 | 22 | 38 | −37 | 34 |
| 29 | Alexander Selivanov | RW | 70 | 16 | 19 | 35 | −38 | 85 |
| 7 | Rob Zamuner | LW | 77 | 14 | 12 | 26 | −31 | 41 |
| 18 | Daymond Langkow | C | 68 | 8 | 14 | 22 | −9 | 62 |
| 44 | Stephane Richer† | RW | 26 | 9 | 11 | 20 | −7 | 36 |
| 22 | Dino Ciccarelli‡ | RW | 34 | 11 | 6 | 17 | −14 | 42 |
| 24 | Jason Wiemer‡ | C | 67 | 8 | 9 | 17 | −9 | 132 |
| 34 | Mikael Andersson | LW | 72 | 6 | 11 | 17 | −4 | 29 |
| 44 | Roman Hamrlik‡ | D | 37 | 3 | 12 | 15 | −18 | 22 |
| 16 | Darcy Tucker† | RW | 35 | 6 | 8 | 14 | −8 | 89 |
| 14 | Karl Dykhuis | D | 78 | 5 | 9 | 14 | −8 | 110 |
| 6 | Jeff Norton‡ | D | 37 | 4 | 6 | 10 | −25 | 26 |
| 64 | Jason Bonsignore† | C | 35 | 2 | 8 | 10 | −11 | 22 |
| 4 | Cory Cross | D | 74 | 3 | 6 | 9 | −24 | 77 |
| 28 | Patrick Poulin‡ | C | 44 | 2 | 7 | 9 | −3 | 19 |
| 5 | Igor Ulanov‡ | D | 45 | 2 | 7 | 9 | −5 | 85 |
| 33 | Yves Racine | D | 60 | 0 | 8 | 8 | −23 | 41 |
| 19 | Brian Bradley | C | 14 | 2 | 5 | 7 | −9 | 6 |
| 21 | Jody Hull† | RW | 28 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 4 |
| 23 | Bryan Marchment†‡ | D | 22 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −3 | 43 |
| 79 | Vladimir Vujtek | LW | 30 | 2 | 4 | 6 | −2 | 16 |
| 6 | David Wilkie† | D | 29 | 1 | 5 | 6 | −21 | 17 |
| 17 | Brent Peterson | LW | 19 | 5 | 0 | 5 | −2 | 2 |
| 10 | Sandy McCarthy† | RW | 14 | 0 | 5 | 5 | −1 | 71 |
| 11 | Steve Kelly† | C | 24 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −9 | 15 |
| 5 | Jassen Cullimore† | D | 25 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −4 | 22 |
| 36 | Louie DeBrusk | LW | 54 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −2 | 166 |
| 3 | Pavel Kubina | D | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 22 |
| 9 | Jeff Toms‡ | C | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −6 | 7 |
| 8 | Jamie Huscroft‡ | D | 44 | 0 | 3 | 3 | −4 | 122 |
| 62 | Andrei Nazarov† | LW | 14 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −9 | 58 |
| 10 | Paul Brousseau | RW | 11 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 27 |
| 27 | David Shaw‡ | D | 14 | 0 | 2 | 2 | −2 | 12 |
| 28 | Corey Spring | RW | 8 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 10 |
| 21 | Mick Vukota‡ | RW | 42 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 116 |
| 30 | Mark Fitzpatrick† | G | 34 | 0 | 1 | 1 | | 14 |
| 2 | Mike McBain | D | 27 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −10 | 8 |
| 1 | Zac Bierk | G | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |
| 39 | Enrico Ciccone† | D | 12 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −3 | 45 |
| 25 | Allan Egeland | C | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 16 | Troy Mallette† | LW | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 7 |
| 93 | Daren Puppa | G | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 6 |
| 32 | Corey Schwab | G | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 |
| 35 | Derek Wilkinson | G | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 |

### Goaltending

* † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Lightning only.
| No. | Player | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season | Regular season |
| No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
| 30 | Mark Fitzpatrick† | 34 | 7 | 24 | 1 | 975 | 102 | 3.16 | .895 | 1 | 1938 |
| 93 | Daren Puppa | 26 | 5 | 14 | 6 | 660 | 66 | 2.72 | .900 | 0 | 1456 |
| 32 | Corey Schwab | 16 | 2 | 9 | 1 | 370 | 40 | 2.92 | .892 | 1 | 821 |
| 35 | Derek Wilkinson | 8 | 2 | 4 | 1 | 148 | 17 | 3.28 | .885 | 0 | 311 |
| 1 | Zac Bierk | 13 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 210 | 30 | 4.16 | .857 | 0 | 433 |

## Awards and records
### Records

Tampa Bay set team records for the longest losing streak, 13 games from January 3 to February 2, and the longest winless streak, 16 games from October 10 to November 17 and January 2 to February 5.

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| First game | Zac Bierk | January 3, 1998 |
| First game | Mike McBain | January 21, 1998 |
| First game | Pavel Kubina | March 14, 1998 |
| First game | Corey Spring | March 14, 1998 |

## Draft picks

Tampa Bay's draft picks at the 1997 NHL entry draft held at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
| Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
| 1 | 7 | Paul Mara | United States | Sudbury Wolves (OHL) |
| 2 | 33 | Kyle Kos | Canada | Red Deer Rebels (WHL) |
| 3 | 61 | Matt Elich | United States | Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
| 5 | 108 | Mark Thompson | Canada | Regina Pats (WHL) |
| 5 | 109 | Jan Sulc | Czech Republic | HC Chemopetrol Jr. (Czech Republic) |
| 5 | 112 | Karel Betik | Czech Republic | Kelowna Rockets (WHL) |
| 6 | 153 | Andrei Skopintsev | Russia | TPS (Finland) |
| 7 | 168 | Justin Jack | Canada | Kelowna Rockets (WHL) |
| 7 | 170 | Eero Somervuori | Finland | Jokerit (Finland) |
| 7 | 185 | Samuel St. Pierre | Canada | Victoriaville Tigres (QMJHL) |
| 8 | 198 | Shawn Skolney | Canada | Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
| 9 | 224 | Paul Comrie | Canada | University of Denver (WCHA) |