1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season
1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins | ||
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Division | 1st Northeast | |
1997–98 record | 40–24–18 | |
Goals for | 228 | |
Goals against | 188 | |
Team information | ||
General Manager | Craig Patrick | |
Coach | Kevin Constantine | |
Captain | Ron Francis | |
Alternate captains | Kevin Hatcher Jaromir Jagr | |
Arena | Pittsburgh Civic Arena | |
Team leaders | ||
Goals | Jaromir Jagr (35) | |
Assists | Jaromir Jagr (67) | |
Points | Jaromir Jagr (102) | |
Penalties in minutes | Chris Tamer (181) | |
Wins | Tom Barrasso (31) | |
Goals against average | Peter Skudra (1.83) | |
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The 1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 31st in the National Hockey League (NHL). It was their first season under Head Coach Kevin Constantine and first after the initial retirement of Mario Lemieux.
Offseason
Following the 1996–97 season which saw their Hall of Fame star Mario Lemieux retire, the Penguins attempted to continue keeping their recent success. Over the previous nine seasons, no NHL team had been more successful than Pittsburgh in terms of regular season points, although the team had not won a Stanley Cup since 1992 (part of the reason why Head Coach Eddie Johnston was asked to resign down following the 1996–97 season). Former San Jose Sharks Head Coach Kevin Constantine was hired as Johnston's successor, promising to replace his predecessor's free-form style of play with a more disciplined approach. Additionally, Ron Francis was named captain in Lemieux's absence, and the team acquired center Martin Straka via free agency to add offense. The team also acquired the rights to defensive-defenseman Jiri Slegr, who had spent the 1996–97 season playing for Sodertalje SK in Sweden.
Regular season
The Penguins tied the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Panthers and New York Islanders for most short-handed goals allowed, with 16.[1]
Final standings
No. | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 40 | 24 | 18 | 228 | 188 | 98 |
2 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 221 | 194 | 91 |
3 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 36 | 29 | 17 | 211 | 187 | 89 |
4 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 235 | 208 | 87 |
5 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 34 | 33 | 15 | 193 | 200 | 83 |
6 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 33 | 41 | 8 | 200 | 219 | 74 |
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 Schedule | ||||||||
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October: 7–5–2 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 6–3–1), 16 Points
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November: 7–4–3 (Home: 5–2–2 ; Road: 2–2–1), 17 Points
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December: 7–3–3 (Home: 3–2–1 ; Road: 4–1–2), 17 Points
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January: 8–3–2 (Home: 4–1–1 ; Road: 4–2–1), 18 Points
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February: 1–2–3 (Home: 0–1–1 ; Road: 1–1–2), 5 Points
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March: 6–3–4 (Home: 6–0–3 ; Road: 0–3–1), 16 Points
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April: 4–4–1 (Home: 2–2–1 ; Road: 2–2–0), 9 Points
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Legend: = Win = Loss = Tie |
Playoffs
1998 Stanley Cup Playoffs | ||||||||
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Round 1: 2–4 (Home: 1–2 ; Road: 1–2)
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Legend: = Win = Loss |
Player statistics
- Skaters
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- Goaltenders
Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | T | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Barrasso, TomTom Barrasso | 63 | 60 | 3542:07 | 31 | 14 | 13 | 122 | 2.07 | 1556 | 0.922 | 7 | 0 | 2 | 14 |
Skudra, PeterPeter Skudra | 17 | 12 | 851:23 | 6 | 4 | 3 | 26 | 1.83 | 341 | 0.924 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
Wregget, KenKen Wregget | 15 | 9 | 611:26 | 3 | 6 | 2 | 28 | 2.75 | 293 | 0.904 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Player | GP | GS | TOI | W | L | OT | GA | GAA | SA | SV% | SO | G | A | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Barrasso, TomTom Barrasso | 6 | 376:19 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 17 | 2.71 | 171 | 0.901 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 |
†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Team only.
Transactions
The Penguins have been involved in the following transactions during the 1997–98 season:[7]
Trades
August 12, 1997 | To Edmonton Oilers
1998 3rd round pick |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Jiri Slegr |
September 24, 1997 | To Buffalo Sabres
Jason Woolley |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
1998 5th round pick |
September 28, 1997 | To Colorado Avalanche
Francois Leroux |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
1998 3rd round pick |
October 27, 1997 | To Chicago Blackhawks
Greg Johnson |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Tuomas Gronman |
March 24, 1998 | To Anaheim Ducks
rights to Patrick Lalime |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Sean Pronger |
June 16, 1998 | To Edmonton Oilers
rights to Josef Beranek |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Bobby Dollas |
June 17, 1998 | To Calgary Flames
David Roche |
To Pittsburgh Penguins
Todd Hlushko |
Free agents lost
Player | New team | Date |
Jeff Christian | Phoenix Coyotes | August 4, 1997 |
Robert Lang[8] | Boston Bruins | September 28, 1997 |
Drake Berehowsky | Edmonton Oilers | September 30, 1997 |
Claimed via waivers
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Lost via waivers
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Player signings
Roster
Draft picksMain article: 1997 NHL Entry Draft
The Penguins drafted the following players at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh:[17]
Farm teamsThe Johnstown Chiefs of the East Coast Hockey League finished last overall in the Northern Conference with a record of 23–41–6. The American Hockey League (AHL)'s Syracuse Crunch finished in third place in the Empire State Division with a record of 35–32–11–2 record. They were eliminated by the Hamilton Bulldogs in the first round of the playoffs. See alsoReferences
External links
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