1998-99 NHL season

The 1998-99 NHL season was the 82nd regular season of the National Hockey League. Twenty-seven teams played 82 games each. The Dallas Stars finished first in regular season play, and won the Stanley Cup Championship over the Buffalo Sabres in a controversial fashion on a disputed overtime goal by Brett Hull. 
==League Business==
With the addition of the expansion Nashville Predators, the NHL realigned this year to a strictly geographic six-division structure (three per conference), erasing the last vestiges of the traditional four-division structure (Adams/Patrick/Norris/Smythe) abandoned in 1993-94; other than the necessary reassignment of Colorado in 1995 due to its two-thousand mile (over 3,200 km) east-west move from Quebec, the divisions' membership had remained static for six years despite the renaming and the moves of several other franchises. As part of this realignment, the Toronto Maple Leafs moved from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference. 
The 1998-99 season marked the retirement of Wayne Gretzky, the NHL's all-time leading scorer, who played his final three NHL seasons with the New York Rangers. The Rangers had been battling for a playoff spot up until the end of the regular season when they lost to the Pittsburgh Penguins who were able to clinch the postseason berth when Jaromir Jagr scored the winning goal. The game was also symbolic because it appeared as though Gretzky was passing the torch to Jagr, signalling a changing of the guard of the NHL's greatest superstar.
This was the final season Fox televised NHL games in the United States. It was also the final season for the Carolina Hurricanes at the Greensboro Coliseum, before moving their home games to the Raleigh Entertainment and Sports Arena for the following season.
The Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy for the most goals by a player in a season made its debut this year. The first winner was Teemu Selanne of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
==Regular season==
===Final standings===
====Eastern Conference====
Atlantic Division 	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
New Jersey Devils 	82	47	24	11	105	248	196	1355
Philadelphia Flyers	82	37	26	19	93 	231	196	1075
Pittsburgh Penguins	82	38	30	14	90 	242	225	977
New York Rangers 	82	33	38	11	77 	217	227	1087
New York Islanders 	82	24	48	10	58 	194	244	1111
Northeast Division 	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
Ottawa Senators 	82	44	23	15	103	239	179	892
Toronto Maple Leafs	82	45	30	7 	97 	268	231	1095
Boston Bruins 	82	39	30	13	91 	214	181	1182
Buffalo Sabres 	82	37	28	17	91 	207	175	1561
Montreal Canadiens 	82	32	39	11	75 	184	209	1299
Southeast Division 	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
Carolina Hurricanes	82	34	30	18	86 	210	202	1158
Florida Panthers 	82	30	34	18	78 	210	228	1522
Washington Capitals	82	31	45	6 	68 	200	218	1381
Tampa Bay Lightning	82	19	54	9 	47 	179	292	1316
====Western Conference====
Central Division 	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
Detroit Red Wings 	82	43	32	7 	93 	245	202	1202
St. Louis Blues 	82	37	32	13	87 	237	209	1308
Chicago Blackhawks 	82	29	41	12	70 	202	248	1807
Nashville Predators	82	28	47	7 	63 	190	261	1420
Northwest Division	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
Colorado Avalanche	82	44	28	10	98 	239	205	1619
Edmonton Oilers 	82	33	37	12	78 	230	226	1373
Calgary Flames 	82	30	40	12	72 	211	234	1389
Vancouver Canucks 	82	23	47	12	58 	192	258	1764
Pacific Division 	GP	W 	L 	T 	Pts	GF 	GA 	PIM
Dallas Stars 	82	51	19	12	114	236	168	1108
Phoenix Coyotes 	82	39	31	12	90 	205	197	1412
Anaheim Mighty Ducks	82	35	34	13	83 	215	206	1323
San Jose Sharks 	82	31	33	18	80 	196	191	1423
Los Angeles Kings 	82	32	45	5 	69 	189	222	1383
===Scoring leaders===
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
Player 	Team 	GP	G 	A 	Pts	PIM
Jaromir Jagr 	Pittsburgh Penguins 	81	44	83	127	66
Teemu Selanne 	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 	75	47	60	107	30
Paul Kariya 	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 	82	39	62	101	40
Peter Forsberg	Colorado Avalanche 	78	30	67	97 	108
Joe Sakic 	Colorado Avalanche 	73	41	55	96 	29
Alexei Yashin 	Ottawa Senators 	82	44	50	94 	54
Eric Lindros 	Philadelphia Flyers 	71	40	53	93 	120
Theoren Fleury	Calgary Flames /Colorado Avalanche	75	40	53	93 	86
John Leclair 	Philadelphia Flyers 	76	43	47	90 	30
Pavol Demitra 	St. Louis Blues 	82	37	52	89 	16
===Leading goaltenders===
==Postseason==
===Playoff bracket===
====Eastern Conference Quarterfinals====
{| cellpadding="5" border="1" 	New Jersey (1) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	New Jersey (1) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	New Jersey (1) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	New Jersey (1) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	New Jersey (1) vs. Pittsburgh (8)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score 	
April 22 	Pittsburgh 	New Jersey 	 	3 - 1 	
April 24 	Pittsburgh 	New Jersey 	 	4 - 1 	
April 25 	New Jersey 	Pittsburgh 	 	4 - 2 	
April 27 	New Jersey 	Pittsburgh 	 	4 - 2 	
April 30 	Pittsburgh 	New Jersey 	 	4 - 3 	
May 2 	New Jersey 	Pittsburgh 	OT 	3 - 2 	
May 4 	Pittsburgh 	New Jersey 	 	4 - 2 	
Pittsburgh wins series 4–3	Pittsburgh wins series 4–3 	Pittsburgh wins series 4–3 	Pittsburgh wins series 4–3 	Pittsburgh wins series 4–3 	
====Western Conference Quarterfinals====
{| cellpadding="5" border="1"	Dallas (1) vs. Edmonton (8) 	Dallas (1) vs. Edmonton (8) 	Dallas (1) vs. Edmonton (8) 	Dallas (1) vs. Edmonton (8) 	Dallas (1) vs. Edmonton (8)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score 	
April 21 	Edmonton 	Dallas 	 	2 - 1 	
April 23 	Edmonton 	Dallas 	 	3 - 2 	
April 25]] 	Dallas 	Edmonton 	 	3 - 2 	
April 28 	Dallas 	Edmonton 	3OT 	3 - 2 	
Dallas wins series 4–0	Dallas wins series 4–0	Dallas wins series 4–0	Dallas wins series 4–0	Dallas wins series 4–0	
====Eastern Conference Semifinals====
{| cellpadding="5" border="1"	Toronto (4) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	Toronto (4) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	Toronto (4) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	Toronto (4) vs. Pittsburgh (8)	Toronto (4) vs. Pittsburgh (8)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score 	
May 7 	Pittsburgh 	Toronto 	 	2 - 0 	
May 9 	Pittsburgh 	Toronto 	 	4 - 2 	
May 11 	Toronto 	Pittsburgh 	 	4 - 3 	
May 13 	Toronto 	Pittsburgh 	OT 	3 - 2 	
May 15 	Pittsburgh 	Toronto 	 	4 - 1 	
May 17 	Toronto 	Pittsburgh 	OT 	4 - 3 	
Toronto wins series 4–2	Toronto wins series 4–2 	Toronto wins series 4–2 	Toronto wins series 4–2 	Toronto wins series 4–2 	
====Western Conference Semifinals====
{| cellpadding="5" border="1"	Dallas (1) vs. St. Louis (5)	Dallas (1) vs. St. Louis (5)	Dallas (1) vs. St. Louis (5)	Dallas (1) vs. St. Louis (5)	Dallas (1) vs. St. Louis (5)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score 	
May 6 	St. Louis 	Dallas 	 	3 - 0 	
May 8 	St. Louis 	Dallas 	OT 	5 - 4 	
May 10 	Dallas 	St. Louis 	OT 	3 - 2 	
May 12 	Dallas 	St. Louis 	OT 	3 - 2 	
May 15 	St. Louis 	Dallas 	 	3 - 1 	
May 17 	Dallas 	St. Louis 	OT 	2 - 1 	
Dallas wins series 4–2	Dallas wins series 4–2	Dallas wins series 4–2	Dallas wins series 4–2	Dallas wins series 4–2	
====Eastern Conference Final====
{| cellpadding="3" border="1" 	Toronto (4) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Toronto (4) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Toronto (4) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Toronto (4) vs. Buffalo (7)
Date 	Away 	Home 	Score 	
May 23 	Buffalo 	Toronto 	5 - 4 	
May 25 	Buffalo 	Toronto 	6 - 3 	
May 27 	Toronto 	Buffalo 	4 - 2 	
May 29 	Toronto 	Buffalo 	5 - 2 	
May 31 	Buffalo 	Toronto 	4 - 2 	
Buffalo wins series 4–1 and Prince of Wales Trophy	Buffalo wins series 4–1 and Prince of Wales Trophy	Buffalo wins series 4–1 and Prince of Wales Trophy	Buffalo wins series 4–1 and Prince of Wales Trophy	
====Western Conference Final====
{| cellpadding="5" border="1" 	Dallas (1) vs. Colorado (2) 	Dallas (1) vs. Colorado (2) 	Dallas (1) vs. Colorado (2) 	Dallas (1) vs. Colorado (2) 	Dallas (1) vs. Colorado (2)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score 	
May 22 	Colorado 	Dallas 	 	2 - 1 	
May 24 	Colorado 	Dallas 	 	4 - 2 	
May 26 	Dallas 	Colorado 	 	3 - 0 	
May 28 	Dallas 	Colorado 	OT 	3 - 2 	
May 30 	Colorado 	Dallas 	 	7 - 5 	
June 1 	Dallas 	Colorado 	 	4 - 1 	
June 4 	Colorado 	Dallas 	 	4 - 1 	
Dallas wins series 4–3 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl	Dallas wins series 4–3 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl	Dallas wins series 4–3 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl	Dallas wins series 4–3 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl	Dallas wins series 4–3 and Clarence S. Campbell Bowl	
====Finals====
{| cellspacing="10"
| valign="top" |
Dallas (1) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Dallas (1) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Dallas (1) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Dallas (1) vs. Buffalo (7) 	Dallas (1) vs. Buffalo (7)
Date 	Away 	Home 	OT 	Score
June 8 	Buffalo 	Dallas 	OT 	3 - 2
June 10 	Buffalo 	Dallas 	 	4 - 2
June 12 	Dallas 	Buffalo 	 	2 - 1
June 15 	Dallas 	Buffalo 	 	2 - 1
June 17 	Buffalo 	Dallas 	 	2 - 0
June 19 	Dallas 	Buffalo 	3OT 	2 - 1
Dallas wins series 4—2 and the Stanley Cup	Dallas wins series 4—2 and the Stanley Cup	Dallas wins series 4—2 and the Stanley Cup	Dallas wins series 4—2 and the Stanley Cup	Dallas wins series 4—2 and the Stanley Cup
Joe Nieuwendyk (Dallas) wins Conn Smythe Trophy 	Joe Nieuwendyk (Dallas) wins Conn Smythe Trophy 	Joe Nieuwendyk (Dallas) wins Conn Smythe Trophy 	Joe Nieuwendyk (Dallas) wins Conn Smythe Trophy 	Joe Nieuwendyk (Dallas) wins Conn Smythe Trophy
==NHL awards==
Presidents' Trophy: 	Dallas Stars
Prince of Wales Trophy: 	Buffalo Sabres
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: 	Dallas Stars
Art Ross Memorial Trophy: 	Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: 	John Cullen, Tampa Bay Lightning
Calder Memorial Trophy: 	Chris Drury, Colorado Avalanche
Conn Smythe Trophy: 	Joe Nieuwendyk, Dallas Stars
Frank J. Selke Trophy: 	Jere Lehtinen, Dallas Stars
Hart Memorial Trophy: 	Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins
Jack Adams Award: 	Jacques Martin, Ottawa Senators
James Norris Memorial Trophy: 	Al MacInnis, St. Louis Blues
King Clancy Memorial Trophy: 	Rob Ray, Buffalo Sabres
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: 	Wayne Gretzky, New York Rangers
Lester B. Pearson Award: 	Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins
Maurice 'Rocket' Richard Trophy:	Teemu Selänne, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
NHL Plus/Minus Award: 	John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers
Vezina Trophy: 	Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres
William M. Jennings Trophy: 	Ed Belfour & Roman Turek, Dallas Stars
Lester Patrick Trophy: 	Harry Sinden
===All-Star teams===
First Team 	  Position  	Second Team
Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres 	G 	Byron Dafoe, Boston Bruins
Al MacInnis, St. Louis Blues 	D 	Ray Bourque, Boston Bruins
Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings	D 	Eric Desjardins, Philadelphia Flyers
Peter Forsberg, Colorado Avalanche 	C 	Alexei Yashin, Ottawa Senators
Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins 	RW 	Teemu Selanne, Anaheim Mighty Ducks
Paul Kariya, Anaheim Mighty Ducks 	LW 	John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers
==Debuts==
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1998-99 (listed with their first team, asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
*Martin St. Louis, Calgary Flames
*Jean-Pierre Dumont, Chicago Blackhawks
*Chris Drury, Colorado Avalanche
*Milan Hejduk, Colorado Avalanche
*Tom Poti, Edmonton Oilers
*Dan Boyle, Florida Panthers
*Jason Blake, Los Angeles Kings
*David Legwand, Nashville Predators
*Karlis Skrastins, Nashville Predators
*Kimmo Timonen, Nashville Predators
*John Madden, New Jersey Devils
*Eric Brewer, New York Islanders
*Sami Salo, Ottawa Senators
*Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
*Tomas Kaberle, Toronto Maple Leafs
==Last games==
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1998-99 (listed with their last team):
*Tomas Sandstrom, Anaheim Mighty Ducks
*Randy Cunneyworth, Buffalo Sabres
*Steve Chiasson, Carolina Hurricanes
*Dale Hunter, Colorado Avalanche
*Craig Ludwig, Dallas Stars
*Jamie Macoun, Detroit Red Wings
*Petr Klima, Detroit Red Wings
*Dino Ciccarelli, Florida Panthers
*Russ Courtnall, Los Angeles Kings
*Dave Babych, Los Angeles Kings
*Bob Carpenter, New Jersey Devils
*Craig Janney, New York Islanders
*Esa Tikkanen, New York Rangers
*Wayne Gretzky, New York Rangers
*Ron Hextall, Philadelphia Flyers
*Bernie Nicholls, San Jose Sharks
*Jim Carey, St. Louis Blues
*Peter Zezel, Vancouver Canucks
*Dave Gagner, Vancouver Canucks
*Brian Bellows, Washington Capitals
*Kelly Miller, Washington Capitals
*Michal Pivonka, Washington Capitals
==Hat tricks==
==See also==
* List of Stanley Cup champions
* 1998 NHL Entry Draft
* 1998 NHL Expansion Draft
* 49th National Hockey League All-Star Game
* National Hockey League All-Star Game
==References==
*Hockey Database
*http://nhl.com/