# 1996–97 New Jersey Devils season

The 1996–97 New Jersey Devils season was the 23rd season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on June 11, 1974, and 15th season since the franchise relocated from Colorado prior to the 1982–83 NHL season. The Devils captured the Atlantic Division title and finished first in the Eastern Conference, but fell in the second round of the playoffs to their arch-rivals, the New York Rangers.
The New Jersey Sports and Exposition Authority was contractually obligated to install a new US$600,000 sound system in Continental Airlines Arena prior to the start of the season.

## Offseason

The Devils' head coach Jacques Lemaire expressed his disappointment following the team's loss to the Ottawa Senators in the final game of the 1995–96 season, the first time since 1970 that the defending Stanley Cup champion missed the playoffs in the following season. Lemare was quoted as saying that the team lacked confidence. He also felt that the media, the fans, and some players, misread his commitment to defensive hockey as a detriment to offensive creativity, stating that he never stopped his players from being creative in the offensive zone. He ended up needing to repair his relationship with Devils team captain Scott Stevens due to his comment following the Ottawa game that the team suffered from a "lack of leadership". Stevens reportedly saw the remark as a personal attack, and so himself and Lemare ended up sitting down together in order to discuss the comment. Lemare later stated to the media that the remark was intended to be an indictment of the entire team, himself included.
The 1996 NHL free agent market officially opened on July 1, 1996, following the passing of the June 30 deadline for teams to file contracts with the league. The largest name to become a free agent on July 1 was Wayne Gretzky, who was released from the St. Louis Blues after the team failed to reach an agreement with Gretzky's agent. The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim, Phoenix Coyotes and New York Rangers (who eventually signed him) were reported to have expressed interest in signing Gretzky, but New Jersey Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello told reporters Gretzky did not fit with the team's financial plan. Lamoriello did express a desire to retain Phil Housley, an offensive-minded defenseman who was acquired by the Devils late in the 1995–96 season but who had been released by the team after failing to be signed prior to the deadline. The Devils were unable to sign Housley though, who signed a US$7.7 million three-year deal that included a no-trade clause with the Washington Capitals on July 22, 1996. Lamoriello stated that the team didn't want to make a long term offer, and would not consider a no-trade clause. He reportedly felt that Housley's previous $2.2 million salary was "astronomical".
Speculation the Devils would trade for all-star center Jeremy Roenick, 26 years old at the time, began following the Ranger's signing of Gretzky. In late August, Lou Lamoriello confirmed to the media he was attempting to bring Roenick, a restricted free agent, to the Devils via a trade. Any team signing Roenick out from the Phoenix Coyotes would be required to give the Coyotes five first-round draft picks in compensation, and Lamoriello was quoted as saying, "I have no intentions right now of giving up draft picks." Rumors were reported in the media that Lamoriello considered dealing forwards Bill Guerin, Brian Rolston, Mike Peluso and defenseman Scott Niedermayer for Roenick. Reports the next day reiterated Lamoriello's interest in Roenick, both for the Devils and as a player for Team USA, also included the possibility of including Stephane Richer in a potential trade. However, Richer was traded back to the Montreal Canadiens the following day in exchange for 28-year-old Lyle Odelein, whom the Devils immediately signed to a three-year contract at approximately $1.5 million per season. Roenick eventually signed with the Coyotes, despite interest from the Devils and Capitals, among others.
Amid rumors that the Devils were interested in dealing with the Detroit Red Wings for hold-out center Keith Primeau, Devils center Bobby Holik did not show up to training camp in what was described as a surprising decision on his part to not report to the team. Speculation among teammates and the media was that he wanted a trade. Neal Broten, who was considering retirement at the time, and Mike Peluso, who had been benched by Lemaire during the 1995–96 season and thought that he would be traded over the summer, did report to training camp along with 60 other players. Several regular players who were involved with the 1996 World Cup of Hockey tournament were scheduled to report to camp late.

## Regular season

During the regular season, the Devils allowed the fewest goals (182), the fewest power-play goals (28), took the fewest penalties (235) and had the best penalty killing percentage (88.09%) in the league. Coincidentally, they also had the fewest power-play goals (40) and the fewest short-handed goals (4) in the league. Devils goaltenders combined to record 12 shutouts, the most in the NHL and 5 of those shutouts came in the final 10 games of the season.

### Final standings

Atlantic Division :
| No. | CR | | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | 1 | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 45 | 23 | 14 | 231 | 182 | 104 |
| 2 | 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 45 | 24 | 13 | 274 | 217 | 103 |
| 3 | 4 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 35 | 28 | 19 | 221 | 201 | 89 |
| 4 | 5 | New York Rangers | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 258 | 231 | 86 |
| 5 | 9 | Washington Capitals | 82 | 33 | 40 | 9 | 214 | 231 | 75 |
| 6 | 11 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 32 | 40 | 10 | 217 | 247 | 74 |
| 7 | 12 | New York Islanders | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 240 | 250 | 70 |
Eastern Conference :
| R | | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts |
| 1 | New Jersey Devils | ATL | 82 | 45 | 23 | 14 | 231 | 182 | 104 |
| 2 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 237 | 208 | 92 |
| 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | ATL | 82 | 45 | 24 | 13 | 274 | 217 | 103 |
| 4 | Florida Panthers | ATL | 82 | 35 | 28 | 19 | 221 | 201 | 89 |
| 5 | New York Rangers | ATL | 82 | 38 | 34 | 10 | 258 | 231 | 86 |
| 6 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NE | 82 | 38 | 36 | 8 | 285 | 280 | 84 |
| 7 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 31 | 36 | 15 | 226 | 234 | 77 |
| 8 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 31 | 36 | 15 | 249 | 276 | 77 |
| 9 | Washington Capitals | ATL | 82 | 33 | 40 | 9 | 214 | 231 | 75 |
| 10 | Hartford Whalers | NE | 82 | 32 | 39 | 11 | 226 | 256 | 75 |
| 11 | Tampa Bay Lightning | ATL | 82 | 32 | 40 | 10 | 217 | 247 | 74 |
| 12 | New York Islanders | ATL | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 240 | 250 | 70 |
| 13 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 26 | 47 | 9 | 234 | 300 | 61 |
Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast
bold – Qualified for playoffs

## Playoffs
### Eastern Conference Quarterfinals
#### (E1) New Jersey Devils vs. (E8) Montreal Canadiens

In the first game of the series against Montreal, on April 17, 1997, with the Devils up by two goals late in the game, Martin Brodeur fired the puck the length of the ice and into the Canadiens' empty net to ensure a 5–2 victory. It was only the second time in NHL history that a goaltender had scored in the playoffs, and the fifth time overall. In the game 2, the Devils were victorious by a score of 4–1. Games three and four were played at Molson Centre. The Devils won game 3 6–4. However, in game 4, Montreal was victorious by a score of 4–3 in the third overtime. Game 5 shifted back to New Jersey where the Devils shut out Montreal 4-0 and won the series 4–1.

### Eastern Conference Semifinals
#### (E1) New Jersey Devils vs. (E5) New York Rangers

The series opened at the Meadowlands. The Devils won 2–0 in Game 1, but New York evened the series in Game 2 by winning 2–0. Games 3 and 4 were played at Madison Square Garden. The Rangers won Game 3, 3–2, and Game 4, 3–0. Game 5 was back at the Meadowlands. New York won 2–1 in overtime and the series four games to one on a wraparound goal by Adam Graves to eliminate the Devils and advance.

## Schedule and results
### Regular season

1996–97 regular season :
October: 4–5–1 (home: 3–2–1; road: 1–3–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
1WOctober 5, 19963–1Detroit Red Wings1–0–0Recap
2LOctober 7, 19961–3@ Philadelphia Flyers1–1–0Recap
3LOctober 12, 19962–4Dallas Stars1–2–0Recap
4WOctober 15, 19963–2Montreal Canadiens2–2–0Recap
5TOctober 18, 19962–2 OTOttawa Senators2–2–1Recap
6LOctober 19, 19962–6@ Hartford Whalers2–3–1Recap
7WOctober 24, 19963–1San Jose Sharks3–3–1Recap
8WOctober 26, 19964–1@ Tampa Bay Lightning4–3–1Recap
9LOctober 29, 19962–5@ Boston Bruins4–4–1Recap
10LOctober 30, 19961–6New York Rangers4–5–1Recap :
November: 8–5–0 (home: 4–2–0; road: 4–3–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
11WNovember 2, 19962–1Tampa Bay Lightning5–5–1Recap
12WNovember 6, 19962–0@ Detroit Red Wings6–5–1Recap
13WNovember 7, 19964–2@ Chicago Blackhawks7–5–1Recap
14WNovember 9, 19964–0New York Islanders8–5–1Recap
15WNovember 12, 19963–2 OTWashington Capitals9–5–1Recap
16LNovember 14, 19960–3Vancouver Canucks9–6–1Recap
17WNovember 16, 19966–3Tampa Bay Lightning10–6–1Recap
18WNovember 19, 19962–1@ Ottawa Senators11–6–1Recap
19LNovember 22, 19961–5Washington Capitals11–7–1Recap
20LNovember 23, 19963–4@ Washington Capitals11–8–1Recap
21WNovember 27, 19963–2@ Dallas Stars12–8–1Recap
22LNovember 28, 19963–4 OT@ Phoenix Coyotes12–9–1Recap
23LNovember 30, 19961–2@ Colorado Avalanche12–10–1Recap :
December: 8–3–2 (home: 3–1–2; road: 5–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
24WDecember 3, 19962–0Florida Panthers13–10–1Recap
25WDecember 5, 19962–1Calgary Flames14–10–1Recap
26LDecember 7, 19963–4 OTPhoenix Coyotes14–11–1Recap
27WDecember 10, 19965–2@ Toronto Maple Leafs15–11–1Recap
28WDecember 12, 19967–4@ Boston Bruins16–11–1Recap
29TDecember 14, 19963–3 OTMontreal Canadiens16–11–2Recap
30WDecember 16, 19965–0@ Calgary Flames17–11–2Recap
31WDecember 18, 19962–1@ Vancouver Canucks18–11–2Recap
32WDecember 20, 19963–2@ Edmonton Oilers19–11–2Recap
33TDecember 23, 19960–0 OTBuffalo Sabres19–11–3Recap
34LDecember 26, 19961–4@ New York Islanders19–12–3Recap
35WDecember 28, 19965–3Mighty Ducks of Anaheim20–12–3Recap
36LDecember 31, 19965–6@ Buffalo Sabres20–13–3Recap :
January: 4–4–4 (home: 1–2–4; road: 3–2–0)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
37LJanuary 2, 19971–6Pittsburgh Penguins20–14–3Recap
38WJanuary 3, 19971–0@ Ottawa Senators21–14–3Recap
39LJanuary 5, 19973–5St. Louis Blues21–15–3Recap
40TJanuary 8, 19971–1 OTColorado Avalanche21–15–4Recap
41TJanuary 10, 19973–3 OTChicago Blackhawks21–15–5Recap
42LJanuary 12, 19970–3@ New York Rangers21–16–5Recap
43WJanuary 14, 19974–2Boston Bruins22–16–5Recap
44WJanuary 21, 19974–1@ Los Angeles Kings23–16–5Recap
45LJanuary 22, 19971–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim23–17–5Recap
46WJanuary 24, 19973–1@ San Jose Sharks24–17–5Recap
47TJanuary 29, 19971–1 OTOttawa Senators24–17–6Recap
48TJanuary 31, 19973–3 OTToronto Maple Leafs24–17–7Recap :
February: 7–1–5 (home: 4–0–2; road: 3–1–3)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
49TFebruary 1, 19974–4 OT@ Montreal Canadiens24–17–8Recap
50WFebruary 5, 19974–1New York Islanders25–17–8Recap
51TFebruary 7, 19972–2 OTFlorida Panthers25–17–9Recap
52WFebruary 8, 19974–2Philadelphia Flyers26–17–9Recap
53WFebruary 12, 19973–2@ Hartford Whalers27–17–9Recap
54WFebruary 13, 19974–0Hartford Whalers28–17–9Recap
55WFebruary 15, 19974–1@ Montreal Canadiens29–17–9Recap
56TFebruary 17, 19972–2 OT@ New York Rangers29–17–10Recap
57TFebruary 19, 19971–1 OTNew York Rangers29–17–11Recap
58TFebruary 20, 19972–2 OT@ Florida Panthers29–17–12Recap
59LFebruary 22, 19971–3@ Tampa Bay Lightning29–18–12Recap
60WFebruary 26, 19975–3@ New York Islanders30–18–12Recap
61WFebruary 27, 19974–1Buffalo Sabres31–18–12Recap :
March: 10–3–1 (home: 6–2–0; road: 4–1–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
62WMarch 1, 19976–3Pittsburgh Penguins32–18–12Recap
63WMarch 4, 19973–1@ Pittsburgh Penguins33–18–12Recap
64WMarch 5, 19973–1@ Philadelphia Flyers34–18–12Recap
65LMarch 8, 19971–5@ New York Islanders34–19–12Recap
66WMarch 9, 19974–1@ Buffalo Sabres35–19–12Recap
67WMarch 11, 19976–1Edmonton Oilers36–19–12Recap
68WMarch 13, 19976–0Hartford Whalers37–19–12Recap
69WMarch 15, 19973–2Washington Capitals38–19–12Recap
70LMarch 17, 19971–4Florida Panthers38–20–12Recap
71TMarch 19, 19972–2 OT@ Washington Capitals38–20–13Recap
72WMarch 22, 19973–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins39–20–13Recap
73LMarch 25, 19973–4Philadelphia Flyers39–21–13Recap
74WMarch 27, 19974–0New York Rangers40–21–13Recap
75WMarch 30, 19975–2Los Angeles Kings41–21–13Recap :
April: 4–2–1 (home: 2–0–0; road: 2–2–1)
GameResultDateScoreOpponentRecordRecap
76WApril 1, 19971–0@ Washington Capitals42–21–13Recap
77WApril 4, 19973–0Tampa Bay Lightning43–21–13Recap
78WApril 6, 19972–0@ St. Louis Blues44–21–13Recap
79TApril 8, 19972–2 OT@ Tampa Bay Lightning44–21–14Recap
80LApril 9, 19972–4@ Florida Panthers44–22–14Recap
81WApril 11, 19972–0Boston Bruins45–22–14Recap
82LApril 13, 19974–5@ Philadelphia Flyers45–23–14Recap :
Legend:
  Win (2 points)
  Loss (0 points)
  Tie (1 point) :

### Playoffs

1997 Stanley Cup playoffs :
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (8) Montreal Canadiens – Devils win 4–1
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WApril 17, 19975–2Montreal CanadiensDevils lead 1–0Recap
2WApril 19, 19974–1Montreal CanadiensDevils lead 2–0Recap
3WApril 22, 19976–4@ Montreal CanadiensDevils lead 3–0Recap
4LApril 24, 19973–4 3OT@ Montreal CanadiensDevils lead 3–1Recap
5WApril 26, 19974–0Montreal CanadiensDevils win 4–1Recap :
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (5) New York Rangers – Rangers win 4–1
GameResultDateScoreOpponentSeriesRecap
1WMay 2, 19972–0New York RangersDevils lead 1–0Recap
2LMay 4, 19970–2New York RangersSeries tied 1–1Recap
3LMay 6, 19972–3@ New York RangersRangers lead 2–1Recap
4LMay 8, 19970–3@ New York RangersRangers lead 3–1Recap
5LMay 11, 19971–2 OTNew York RangersRangers win 4–1Recap :
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 Devils only.
* ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Devils 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 |
| 16 | Bobby Holik | C | 82 | 23 | 39 | 62 | 24 | 54 | 10 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 1 | 4 |
| 23 | Dave Andreychuk | LW | 82 | 27 | 34 | 61 | 38 | 48 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| 15 | John MacLean | RW | 80 | 29 | 25 | 54 | 11 | 49 | 10 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 1 | 4 |
| 12 | Bill Guerin | RW | 82 | 29 | 18 | 47 | −2 | 95 | 8 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −5 | 18 |
| 14 | Brian Rolston | LW | 81 | 18 | 27 | 45 | 6 | 20 | 10 | 4 | 1 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| 25 | Valeri Zelepukin | LW | 71 | 14 | 24 | 38 | −10 | 36 | 8 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 2 |
| 27 | Scott Niedermayer | D | 81 | 5 | 30 | 35 | −4 | 64 | 10 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 6 |
| 32 | Steve Thomas | LW | 57 | 15 | 19 | 34 | 9 | 46 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −6 | 18 |
| 10 | Denis Pederson | C | 70 | 12 | 20 | 32 | 7 | 62 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 |
| 21 | Randy McKay | RW | 77 | 9 | 18 | 27 | 15 | 109 | 10 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 |
| 4 | Scott Stevens | D | 79 | 5 | 19 | 24 | 26 | 70 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −2 | 2 |
| 11 | Steve Sullivan‡ | RW | 33 | 8 | 14 | 22 | 9 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 93 | Doug Gilmour† | C | 20 | 7 | 15 | 22 | 7 | 22 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −2 | 14 |
| 29 | Shawn Chambers | D | 73 | 4 | 17 | 21 | 17 | 19 | 10 | 1 | 6 | 7 | −2 | 6 |
| 19 | Bobby Carpenter | C | 62 | 4 | 15 | 19 | 6 | 14 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 2 | 2 |
| 24 | Lyle Odelein | D | 79 | 3 | 13 | 16 | 16 | 110 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −3 | 19 |
| 20 | Jay Pandolfo | LW | 46 | 6 | 8 | 14 | −1 | 6 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −2 | 0 |
| 3 | Ken Daneyko | D | 77 | 2 | 7 | 9 | 24 | 70 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 28 |
| 2 | Dave Ellett† | D | 20 | 2 | 5 | 7 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 3 | 3 | −1 | 10 |
| 28 | Kevin Dean | D | 28 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 6 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
| 26 | Patrik Elias | LW | 17 | 2 | 3 | 5 | −4 | 2 | 8 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 0 | 4 |
| 18 | Sergei Brylin | LW | 29 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −13 | 20 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Martin Brodeur | G | 67 | 0 | 4 | 4 | | 8 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | | 0 |
| 33 | Reid Simpson | LW | 27 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 60 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 29 |
| 26 | Jason Smith‡ | D | 57 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −8 | 38 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 17 | Petr Sykora | RW | 19 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −8 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 22 | Peter Zezel† | C | 18 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 4 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 10 |
| 8 | Mike Peluso‡ | LW | 20 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 68 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Pascal Rheaume | C | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9 | Neal Broten‡ | C | 3 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 1 | Mike Dunham | G | 26 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 26 | Krzysztof Oliwa | LW | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 5 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 5 | Ricard Persson‡ | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Jeff Reese | G | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 9 | Vadim Sharifijanov | LW | 2 | 0 | 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 |
| 30 | Martin Brodeur | 67 | 37 | 14 | 13 | 1633 | 120 | 1.88 | .927 | 10 | 3838 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 268 | 19 | 1.73 | .929 | 2 | 659 |
| 1 | Mike Dunham | 26 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 456 | 43 | 2.55 | .906 | 2 | 1013 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Jeff Reese | 3 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 65 | 13 | 5.62 | .800 | 0 | 139 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |

## Awards and records
### Awards

Martin Brodeur was also a runner-up for the Vezina Trophy.
| Type | Award/honor | Recipient |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Martin Brodeur (Goaltender) |
| League (annual) | NHL Second All-Star Team | Scott Stevens (Defense) |
| League (annual) | William M. Jennings Trophy | Martin Brodeur |
| League (annual) | William M. Jennings Trophy | Mike Dunham |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Martin Brodeur |
| League (in-season) | NHL All-Star Game selection | Scott Stevens |
| Team | Devils' Players' Player | Dave Andreychuk |
| Team | Hugh Delano Unsung Hero | Denis Pederson |
| Team | Most Valuable Devil | Martin Brodeur |
| Team | Three-Star Award | Martin Brodeur |

### Milestones

| Milestone | Player | Date |
| 1,000th game played | Bobby Carpenter | October 19, 1996 |
| First game | Mike Dunham | October 29, 1996 |
| First game | Jay Pandolfo | November 14, 1996 |
| First game | Vadim Sharifijanov | January 3, 1997 |
| First game | Pascal Rheaume | February 20, 1997 |
| First game | Krzysztof Oliwa | March 9, 1997 |

## Draft picks

The New Jersey Devils were 10th in order of selection at the 1996 NHL entry draft, held June 22, 1996, in St. Louis. In a move interpreted to be an affirmation of their commitment to a defense-first philosophy, the Devils chose 6–3, 195-pound Lance Ward of the Western Hockey League's Red Deer Rebels, who had not been ranked anywhere near the tenth seed to observers, with their first pick.
"I was a bit surprised to go early because there are a lot of great players [here], but I'm a pretty happy kid right now", Ward said. "I was hoping to go in the first round but you never know what's going to happen. It was a pretty open field and I guess [the Devils] liked me. They flew me to Toronto for a physical test and an interview [last month] and I guess I did well." Devils general manager Lou Lamoriello was impressed with Ward's potential to be yet another hard-hitting New Jersey defenseman, stating, "We liked [Ward's] potential as far as his upside is concerned", Lamoriello said. "We have guys like Scott Stevens and Ken Daneyko on our team and this young man [is like them]. He's strong now, he's mean, and he's got skills."
During the draft, the Devils traded backup goaltender Corey Schwab to the Tampa Bay Lightning in exchange for their backup goalie Jeff Reese along with their second-round (47th overall) and eighth-round (198th overall) picks in the draft. The Devils then traded their original second round pick (28th overall) to the Pittsburgh Penguins in exchange for the Penguins' two second-round picks (41st and 47th overall).
| Rd # | Pick # | Player | Nat | Pos | Team (League) |
| 1 | 10 | Lance Ward | Canada | D | Red Deer Rebels (WHL) |
| 2 | 38 | Wes Mason | Canada | LW | Sarnia Sting (OHL) |
| 2 | 41 | Josh DeWolf | United States | D | Twin Cities Vulcans (USHL) |
| 2 | 47 | Pierre Dagenais | Canada | LW | Moncton Alpines (QMJHL) |
| 2 | 49 | Colin White | Canada | D | Hull Olympiques (QMJHL) |
| 3 | 63 | Scott Parker | Canada | RW | Kelowna Rockets (WHL) |
| 4 | 91 | Josef Boumedienne | Sweden | D | Huddinge IK (Allsvenskan) |
| 4 | 101 | Josh MacNevin | Canada | D | Vernon Vipers (BCJHL) |
| 5 | 118 | Glenn Crawford | Canada | LW | Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
| 6 | 145 | Sean Ritchlin | United States | RW | University of Michigan (CCHA) |
| 7 | 173 | Daryl Andrews | Canada | D | Melfort Mustangs (SJHL) |
| 8 | 199 | Willie Mitchell | Canada | D | Melfort Mustangs (SJHL) |
| 8 | 205 | Jay Bertsch | Canada | RW | Spokane Chiefs (WHL) |
| 9 | 225 | Pasi Petrilainen | Finland | D | Tappara (SM-liiga) |
Notes
* ↑ Never reported for the Devils; was subsequently redrafted by Florida in the third round (63rd overall) of the 1998 Draft.
* ↑ The Devils acquired the 1996 second-round pick (Mason) from Vancouver for Esa Tikkanen on November 23, 1995; Tikkanen had been acquired from St. Louis just 22 days earlier.
* 1 2 The Devils acquired two 1996 second-round picks, DeWolf (originally Toronto's) and White, from Pittsburgh for San Jose's 1996 second-round pick (used on Pavel Skrbek) on June 22, 1996. The Devils had originally received the pick from San Jose in exchange for Chris Terreri on November 15, 1995.
* 1 2 The Devils traded Corey Schwab to Tampa Bay in exchange for Jeff Reese, Chicago's 1996 second-round pick (Dagenais), and Tampa Bay's 1996 eighth-round pick (Bertsch), on June 22, 1996.
* ↑ Although the Devils made four picks in the second round of the 1996 Draft, none were originally their picks; the Devils' original pick (used on Marek Posmyk) was traded to Toronto in exchange for Dave Andreychuk on March 13, 1996.
* ↑ Parker never reported for the Devils; he was subsequently redrafted by Colorado in the first round (20th overall) of the 1998 Draft.
* ↑ Compensatory pick awarded by the NHL as compensation for free agent Bruce Driver.
* ↑ Bertsch had previously been drafted by Quebec in the eighth round (191st overall) of the 1994 Draft.

## Media

This was the final season of television broadcast coverage on SportsChannel New York as the channel would rebrand itself to Fox Sports Net New York the following season.