1996-97 NHL season
| 1996–97 NHL season | |
|---|---|
| League | National Hockey League |
| Sport | Ice hockey |
| Duration | October 4, 1996 – June 7, 1997 |
| Number of games | 82 |
| Number of teams | 26 |
| Regular season | |
| Presidents' Trophy | Colorado Avalanche |
| Season MVP | Dominik Hasek (Sabres) |
| Top scorer | Mario Lemieux (Penguins) |
| Playoffs | |
| Eastern champions | Philadelphia Flyers |
| Eastern runners-up | New York Rangers |
| Western champions | Detroit Red Wings |
| Western runners-up | Colorado Avalanche |
| Playoffs MVP | Mike Vernon (Red Wings) |
| Stanley Cup | |
| Champions | Detroit Red Wings |
| Runners-up | Philadelphia Flyers |
The 1996–97 NHL season was the 80th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup winners were the Detroit Red Wings, who swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games and won the Stanley Cup for the first time in 42 years.
The regular season saw a decline in scoring and rise in the number of shutouts to an all-time record of 127. This trend continued into the playoffs, during which an all-time record of 18 shutouts were recorded. Only two players, Mario Lemieux and Teemu Selanne, reached the 100-point plateau during the regular season (compared with 12 who reached the plateau in 1995–96). Many factors, including fewer power plays, more calls of the skate-in-the-crease rule, fewer shots on goal and more injuries to star players than the season before, contributed to the reduction in scoring and skyrocketing in shutouts. Paradoxically, teams averaged more even-strength goals scored (174) than in 1995–96 (172).
This was the first time in 30 years—and in the entire expansion era—that the Boston Bruins had either a losing record or missed the playoffs, ending a still-unsurpassed North American professional sports streak of 29-straight seasons in the playoffs.
This was the first season for the Phoenix Coyotes, who had relocated from Winnipeg and had previously been known as the Winnipeg Jets. They would remain in the Central Division.
On March 25, 1997, the Hartford Whalers announced that they would move from Connecticut following the 1996–97 season. Starting in the 1997–98 NHL season, they would be known as the Carolina Hurricanes.
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