1997–98 NHL season

The **1997–98 NHL season** was the 81st regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup winners were the Detroit Red Wings, who swept the Washington Capitals in four games.

### Highlights

Jari Kurri reached 600 goals in his career, finishing with 601.

The Vancouver Canucks and Mighty Ducks of Anaheim opened the season with two games in Tokyo, Japan; this was the first time the NHL played games outside of North America.

### Final standings

***Note:** W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points_
|Team|W|L|T|GF|GA|Pts||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|||||||||
|Pittsburgh Penguins|40|24|18|228|188|98||||
|Boston Bruins|39|30|13|221|194|91||||
|Buffalo Sabres|36|29|17|211|187|89||||
|Montreal Canadiens|37|32|13|235|208|87||||
|Ottawa Senators|34|33|15|193|200|83||||
|Carolina Hurricanes|33|41|8|200|219|74|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|New Jersey Devils|48|23|11|225|166|107||||
|Philadelphia Flyers|42|29|11|242|193|95||||
|Washington Capitals|40|30|12|219|202|92||||
|New York Islanders|30|41|11|212|225|71||||
|New York Rangers|25|39|18|197|231|68||||
|Florida Panthers|24|43|15|203|256|63||||
|Tampa Bay Lightning|17|55|10|151|269|44|}|||

|Team|W|L|T|GF|GA|Pts||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|||||||||
|Dallas Stars|49|22|11|242|167|109||||
|Detroit Red Wings|44|23|15|250|196|103||||
|St. Louis Blues|45|29|8|256|204|98||||
|Phoenix Coyotes|35|35|12|224|227|82||||
|Chicago Blackhawks|30|39|13|192|199|73||||
|Toronto Maple Leafs|30|43|9|194|237|69|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|Colorado Avalanche|39|26|17|231|205|95||||
|Los Angeles Kings|38|33|11|227|225|87||||
|Edmonton Oilers|35|37|10|215|224|80||||
|San Jose Sharks|34|38|10|210|216|78||||
|Calgary Flames|26|41|15|217|252|67||||
|Mighty Ducks of Anaheim|26|43|13|205|261|65||||
|Vancouver Canucks|25|43|14|224|273|64|}|||

### Scoring leaders

***Note:** GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points_
|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="37.5%"|Player|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="30%"|Team|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="7.5%"|GP|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="7.5%"|G|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="7.5%"|A|bgcolor="#DDDDFF" width="10%"|PTS|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Jaromir Jagr|Pittsburgh|77|35|67|102|||||||
|Peter Forsberg|Colorado|72|25|66|91|||||||
|Pavel Bure|Vancouver|82|51|39|90|||||||
|Wayne Gretzky|NY Rangers|82|23|67|90|||||||
|John LeClair|Philadelphia|82|51|36|87|||||||
|Zigmund Palffy|NY Islanders|82|45|42|87|||||||
|Ron Francis|Pittsburgh|81|25|62|87|||||||
|Teemu Selanne|Anaheim|73|52|34|86|||||||
|Jason Allison|Boston|81|33|50|83|||||||
|Jozef Stumpel|Los Angeles|77|21|58|79|||||||

#### Eastern Conference

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|Ottawa vs. New Jersey||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|April 22|**Ottawa 2**|1 New Jersey|OT||
|April 24|Ottawa 1|**3 New Jersey**|||
|April 26|New Jersey 1|**2 Ottawa**|OT||
|April 28|New Jersey 3|**4 Ottawa**|||
|April 30|Ottawa 1|**3 New Jersey**|||
|May 2|New Jersey 1|**3 Ottawa**|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Ottawa wins series 4–2***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|April 23|**Montreal 3**|2 Pittsburgh|OT||
|April 25|Montreal 1|**4 Pittsburgh**|||
|April 27|Pittsburgh 1|**3 Montreal**|||
|April 29|**Pittsburgh 6**|3 Montreal|||
|May 1|**Montreal 5**|2 Pittsburgh|||
|May 3|Pittsburgh 0|**3 Montreal**|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Montreal wins series 4–2***|}|||
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|April 22|**Buffalo 3**|2 Philadelphia|||
|April 24|Buffalo 2|**3 Philadelphia**|||
|April 27|Philadelphia 1|**6 Buffalo**|||
|April 29|Philadelphia 1|**4 Buffalo**|||
|May 1|**Buffalo 3**|2 Philadelphia|OT||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Buffalo wins series 4–1***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|April 22|Boston 1|**3 Washington**|||
|April 24|**Boston 4**|3 Washington|2OT||
|April 26|**Washington 3**|2 Boston|2OT||
|April 28|**Washington 3**|0 Boston|||
|May 1|**Boston 4**|0 Washington|||
|May 3|**Washington 3**|2 Boston|OT||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Washington wins series 4–2***|}|||

#### Western Conference

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|San Jose vs. Dallas||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|April 23|San Jose 1|**4 Dallas**|||
|April 24|San Jose 2|**5 Dallas**|||
|April 26|Dallas 1|**4 San Jose**|||
|April 28|Dallas 0|**1 San Jose**|OT||
|April 30|San Jose 2|**3 Dallas**|||
|May 2|**Dallas 3**|2 San Jose|OT||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Dallas wins series 4–2***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|April 22|**Edmonton 3**|2 Colorado|||
|April 24|Edmonton 2|**5 Colorado**|||
|April 26|**Colorado 5**|4 Edmonton|OT||
|April 28|**Colorado 3**|1 Edmonton|||
|April 30|**Edmonton 3**|1 Colorado|||
|May 2|Colorado 0|**2 Edmonton**|||
|May 4|**Edmonton 4**|0 Colorado|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Edmonton wins series 4–3***|}|||
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|April 22|Phoenix 3|**6 Detroit**|||
|April 24|**Phoenix 7**|4 Detroit|||
|April 26|Detroit 2|**3 Phoenix**|||
|April 28|**Detroit 4**|2 Phoenix|||
|April 30|Phoenix 1|**3 Detroit**|||
|May 3|**Detroit 5**|2 Phoenix|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Detroit wins series 4–2***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|April 23|Los Angeles 3|**8 St. Louis**|||
|April 25|Los Angeles 1|**3 St. Louis**|||
|April 27|**St. Louis 4**|3 Los Angeles|||
|April 29|**St. Louis 2**|1 Los Angeles|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***St. Louis wins series 4–0***|}|||

### Conference semifinals

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|Ottawa vs. Washington||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|May 7|Ottawa 2|**4 Washington**|||
|May 9|Ottawa 1|**6 Washington**|||
|May 11|Washington 3|**4 Ottawa**|||
|May 13|**Washington 2**|0 Ottawa|||
|May 15|Ottawa 0|**3 Washington**|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Washington win series 4–1***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|May 8|Montreal 2|**3 Buffalo**|OT||
|May 10|Montreal 3|**6 Buffalo**|||
|May 12|**Buffalo 5**|4 Montreal|2OT||
|May 14|**Buffalo 3**|1 Montreal|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Buffalo wins series 4–0***|}|||

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|Edmonton vs. Dallas||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|May 7|Edmonton 1|**3 Dallas**|||
|May 9|**Edmonton 2**|0 Dallas|||
|May 11|**Dallas 1**|0 Edmonton|OT||
|May 13|**Dallas 3**|1 Edmonton|||
|May 16|Edmonton 1|**2 Dallas**|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Dallas wins series 4–1***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|May 8|**St. Louis 4**|2 Detroit|||
|May 10|St. Louis 1|**6 Detroit**|||
|May 12|**Detroit 3**|2 St. Louis|2OT||
|May 14|**Detroit 5**|2 St. Louis|||
|May 17|**St. Louis 3**|1 Detroit|||
|May 19|**Detroit 6**|1 St. Louis|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Detroit wins series 4–2***|}|||

### Conference finals

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|Buffalo vs. Washington||||
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"||||
|May 23|**Buffalo 2**|0 Washington|||
|May 25|Buffalo 2|**3 Washington**|OT||
|May 28|**Washington 4**|3 Buffalo|OT||
|May 30|**Washington 2**|0 Buffalo|||
|June 2|**Buffalo 2**|1 Washington|||
|June 4|**Washington 3**|2 Buffalo|OT||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Washington wins series 4–2 and Prince of Wales Trophy***|}|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|
|May 24|**Detroit 2**|0 Dallas|||
|May 26|Detroit 1|**3 Dallas**|||
|May 29|Dallas 3|**5 Detroit**|||
|May 31|Dallas 2|**3 Detroit**|||
|June 3|Detroit 2|**3 Dallas**|OT||
|June 5|Dallas 0|**2 Detroit**|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Detroit wins series 4–2 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl***|}|||

### Stanley Cup final

|bgcolor="#DDDDDD" colspan="4"|Washington vs. Detroit|||
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
|valign="top"|{| cellpadding="3" border="1"|||
|June 9|Washington 1|**2 Detroit**||
|June 11|Washington 4|**5 Detroit**|OT|
|June 13|**Detroit 2**|1 Washington||
|June 16|**Detroit 4**|1 Washington||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Detroit wins series 4–0 and Stanley Cup***|||
|align="center" colspan="4"|***Steve Yzerman (Detroit) wins Conn Smythe Trophy***|}||

### Scoring leaders

**_Note:** GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points_
|Player|Team|GP|G|A|Pts|
| --- | --- | --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Steve Yzerman|Detroit|22|6|18|24|
|Sergei Fedorov|Detroit|22|10|10|20|
|Tomas Holmstrom|Detroit|22|7|12|19|
|Nicklas Lidstrom|Detroit|22|6|13|19|
|Joe Juneau|Washington|21|7|10|17|
|Adam Oates|Washington|21|6|11|17|
|Martin Lapointe|Detroit|21|9|6|15|
|Larry Murphy|Detroit|22|3|12|15|
|Vyacheslav Kozlov|Detroit|22|6|8|14|
|Mike Modano|Dallas|17|4|10|14|

## NHL Awards

The **NHL Awards** took place in **Toronto, Ontario**
|Presidents' Trophy:|Dallas Stars|
| --- | --- |
|Prince of Wales Trophy:|Washington Capitals|
|Clarence S. Campbell Bowl:|Detroit Red Wings|
|Art Ross Memorial Trophy:|Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins|
|Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy:|Jamie McLennan, St. Louis Blues|
|Calder Memorial Trophy:|Sergei Samsonov, Boston Bruins|
|Frank J. Selke Trophy:|Jere Lehtinen, Dallas Stars|
|Hart Memorial Trophy:|Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres|
|Conn Smythe Trophy:|Steve Yzerman, Detroit Red Wings|
|Jack Adams Award:|Pat Burns, Boston Bruins|
|James Norris Memorial Trophy:|Rob Blake, Los Angeles Kings|
|King Clancy Memorial Trophy:|Kelly Chase, St. Louis Blues|
|Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:|Ron Francis, Pittsburgh Penguins|
|Lester B. Pearson Award:|Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres|
|Lester Patrick Trophy:|Peter Karmanos, Max McNab, Neal Broten, John Mayasich|
|NHL Plus/Minus Award:|Chris Pronger, St. Louis Blues|
|Vezina Trophy:|Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres|
|William M. Jennings Trophy:|Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils|

### All-Star teams

|First Team|Position|Second Team||
| --- | --- | --- | --- |
|Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres|align=center|G|Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils|
|Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings|align=center|D|Chris Pronger, St. Louis Blues|
|Rob Blake, Los Angeles Kings|align=center|D|Scott Niedermayer, New Jersey Devils|
|Peter Forsberg, Colorado Avalanche|align=center|C|Wayne Gretzky, New York Rangers|
|Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins|align=center|RW|Teemu Selanne, Anaheim Mighty Ducks|
|John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers|align=center|LW|Keith Tkachuk, Phoenix Coyotes|

## First games

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1997–98 (listed with their first team, stars(*) mark start in playoffs):
- Joe Thornton, Boston Bruins
- Sergei Samsonov, Boston Bruins
- Derek Morris, Calgary Flames
- Olli Jokinen, Los Angeles Kings
- Brendan Morrison, New Jersey Devils
- Sheldon Souray, New Jersey Devils
- Zdeno Chara, New York Islanders
- Marc Savard, New York Rangers
- Chris Phillips, Ottawa Senators
- Marian Hossa, Ottawa Senators
- Daniel Briere, Phoenix Coyotes
- Marco Sturm, San Jose Sharks
- Patrick Marleau, San Jose Sharks
- Pavel Kubina, Tampa Bay Lightning
- Danny Markov, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Mattias Ohlund, Vancouver Canucks

## Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1997–98 (listed with their last team):
- Brent Sutter, Chicago Blackhawks
- Jari Kurri, Colorado Avalanche
- Slava Fetisov, Detroit Red Wings
- Kevin Lowe, Edmonton Oilers
- Andy Moog, Montreal Canadiens
- Bruce Driver, New York Rangers
- Pat LaFontaine, New York Rangers
- Joel Otto, Philadelphia Flyers
- Michel Petit, Phoenix Coyotes
- Mike Gartner, Phoenix Coyotes
- Al Iafrate, San Jose Sharks
- Kelly Hrudey, San Jose Sharks
- Jeff Brown, Washington Capitals

## References

- Hockey Database
- NHL.com

## Infobox (sports season)

- **title**: 1997–98 NHL season
- **league**: National Hockey League
- **sport**: Ice hockey
- **duration**: October 1, 1997 – June 16, 1998
- **draft**: Draft
- **draft link**: 1997 NHL Entry Draft
- **top pick link**: List of first overall NHL draft picks
- **top pick**: Joe Thornton
- **picked by**: Boston Bruins
- **season**: Regular season
- **season champ name**: Presidents' Trophy
- **season champs**: Dallas Stars
- **mvp**: Dominik Hašek, Dominik Hasek (Buffalo Sabres, Sabres)
- **mvp link**: Hart Memorial Trophy
- **top scorer**: Jaromír Jágr, Jaromir Jagr (Pittsburgh Penguins, Penguins)
- **top scorer link**: Art Ross Trophy
- **playoffs**: Playoffs
- **playoffs link**: 1998 Stanley Cup playoffs
- **finals**: Stanley Cup
- **finals link**: 1998 Stanley Cup Finals
- **finals champ**: Detroit Red Wings
- **finals runner-up**: Washington Capitals
- **playoffs mvp**: Steve Yzerman (Detroit Red Wings, Red Wings)
- **playoffs mvp link**: Conn Smythe Trophy
- **nextseason year**: 1998–99 NHL season, 1998–99
- **prevseason year**: 1996–97 NHL season, 1996–97
- **seasonslistnames**: List of NHL seasons, NHL
- **no of games**: 82
- **no of teams**: 26
- **tv**: Hockey Night in Canada, CBC, TSN Hockey, TSN, La Soirée du hockey, SRC (Canada)
NHL on ESPN, ESPN, NHL on Fox, Fox (United States)