The 1996–97 NHL season was the 80th regular season of the National Hockey League. The Stanley Cup winners were the Detroit Red Wings. They swept the Philadelphia Flyers in four games. The Red Wings had not won the Stanley Cup for 42 years.
Regular season
The Boston Bruins recorded the league's worst record, missing the playoffs for the first time in thirty seasons and ending the longest number of years in a row in the playoffs ever recorded in the history of North American professional sport.
Final standings
Note: W = Wins, L = Losses, T = Ties, GF= Goals For, GA = Goals Against, Pts = Points
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points
Stanley Cup playoffs
Playoff bracket
Conference quarterfinals
Eastern Conference
| Montreal vs. New Jersey |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| April 17 |
Montreal 2 |
5 New Jersey |
| April 19 |
Montreal 1 |
4 New Jersey |
| April 22 |
New Jersey 5 |
4 Montreal |
| April 24 |
New Jersey 3 |
4 Montreal |
3OT |
| April 26 |
Montreal 0 |
4 New Jersey |
| New Jersey wins series 4–1 |
|
|
| Pittsburgh vs. Philadelphia |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| April 17 |
Pittsburgh 1 |
5 Philadelphia |
| April 19 |
Pittsburgh 2 |
3 Philadelphia |
| April 21 |
Philadelphia 5 |
3 Pittsburgh |
| April 23 |
Philadelphia 1 |
4 Pittsburgh |
| April 26 |
Pittsburgh 3 |
6 Philadelphia |
| Philadelphia wins series 4–1 |
|
| NY Rangers vs. Florida |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| April 17 |
NY Rangers 0 |
3 Florida |
| April 20 |
NY Rangers 3 |
0 Florida |
| April 22 |
Florida 3 |
4 NY Rangers |
OT |
| April 23 |
Florida 2 |
3 NY Rangers |
| April 25 |
NY Rangers 3 |
2 Florida |
OT |
| NY Rangers win series 4–1 |
|
Western Conference
| Chicago vs. Colorado |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| April 16 |
Chicago 0 |
6 Colorado |
| April 18 |
Chicago 1 |
3 Colorado |
| April 20 |
Colorado 3 |
4 Chicago |
2OT |
| April 22 |
Colorado 3 |
6 Chicago |
| April 24 |
Chicago 0 |
7 Colorado |
| April 26 |
Colorado 6 |
3 Chicago |
| Colorado wins series 4–2 |
|
|
| St. Louis vs. Detroit |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| April 16 |
St. Louis 2 |
0 Detroit |
| April 18 |
St. Louis 1 |
2 Detroit |
| April 20 |
Detroit 3 |
2 St. Louis |
| April 22 |
Detroit 0 |
4 St. Louis |
| April 25 |
St. Louis 2 |
5 Detroit |
| April 27 |
Detroit 3 |
1 St. Louis |
| Detroit wins series 4–2 |
|
|
Conference semifinals
Eastern Conference
| NY Rangers vs. New Jersey |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| May 2 |
NY Rangers 0 |
2 New Jersey |
| May 4 |
NY Rangers 2 |
0 New Jersey |
| May 6 |
New Jersey 2 |
3 NY Rangers |
| May 8 |
New Jersey 0 |
3 NY Rangers |
| May 11 |
NY Rangers 2 |
1 New Jersey |
OT |
| NY Rangers win series 4–1 |
|
| Philadelphia vs. Buffalo |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| May 3 |
Philadelphia 5 |
3 Buffalo |
| May 5 |
Philadelphia 2 |
1 Buffalo |
| May 7 |
Buffalo 1 |
4 Philadelphia |
| May 9 |
Buffalo 5 |
4 Philadelphia |
OT |
| May 11 |
Philadelphia 6 |
3 Buffalo |
| Philadelphia wins series 4–1 |
|
Western Conference
| Edmonton vs. Colorado |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| May 2 |
Edmonton 1 |
5 Colorado |
| May 4 |
Edmonton 1 |
4 Colorado |
| May 7 |
Colorado 3 |
4 Edmonton |
| May 9 |
Colorado 3 |
2 Edmonton |
OT |
| May 11 |
Edmonton 3 |
Colorado 4 |
| Colorado wins series 4–1 |
|
| Anaheim vs. Detroit |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| May 2 |
Anaheim 1 |
2 Detroit |
OT |
| May 4 |
Anaheim 2 |
3 Detroit |
3OT |
| May 6 |
Detroit 5 |
3 Anaheim |
| May 8 |
Detroit 3 |
2 Anaheim |
2OT |
| Detroit wins series 4–0 |
|
Conference finals
Eastern Conference
| NY Rangers vs. Philadelphia |
| Date |
Away |
Home |
| May 16 |
NY Rangers 1 |
3 Philadelphia |
| May 18 |
NY Rangers 5 |
4 Philadelphia |
| May 20 |
Philadelphia 6 |
3 NY Rangers |
| May 23 |
Philadelphia 3 |
2 NY Rangers |
| May 25 |
NY Rangers 2 |
4 Philadelphia |
Philadelphia wins series 4–1
and Prince of Wales Trophy |
|
|
Stanley Cup final
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games Played, G = Goals, A = Assists, Pts = Points
NHL Awards
The NHL Awards presentation took place on June 19, 1997.
| Presidents' Trophy: |
Colorado Avalanche |
| Prince of Wales Trophy: |
Philadelphia Flyers |
| Clarence S. Campbell Bowl: |
Detroit Red Wings |
| Art Ross Memorial Trophy: |
Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy: |
Tony Granato, San Jose Sharks |
| Calder Memorial Trophy: |
Bryan Berard, New York Islanders |
| Conn Smythe Trophy: |
Mike Vernon, Detroit Red Wings |
| Frank J. Selke Trophy: |
Michael Peca, Buffalo Sabres |
| Hart Memorial Trophy: |
Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres |
| Jack Adams Award: |
Ted Nolan, Buffalo Sabres |
| James Norris Memorial Trophy: |
Brian Leetch, New York Rangers |
| King Clancy Memorial Trophy: |
Trevor Linden, Vancouver Canucks |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy: |
Paul Kariya, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim |
| Lester B. Pearson Award: |
Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres |
| NHL Plus/Minus Award: |
John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers |
| Vezina Trophy: |
Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres |
| William M. Jennings Trophy: |
Martin Brodeur/Mike Dunham, New Jersey Devils |
| Lester Patrick Trophy: |
Bill Cleary, Pat LaFontaine |
All-Star teams
| First Team |
Position |
Second Team |
| Dominik Hasek, Buffalo Sabres |
G |
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils |
| Brian Leetch, New York Rangers |
D |
Chris Chelios, Chicago Blackhawks |
| Sandis Ozolinsh, Colorado Avalanche |
D |
Scott Stevens, New Jersey Devils |
| Mario Lemieux, Pittsburgh Penguins |
C |
Wayne Gretzky, New York Rangers |
| Teemu Selanne, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim |
RW |
Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins |
| Paul Kariya, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim |
LW |
John LeClair, Philadelphia Flyers |
First games
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1996–97 (listed with their first team, stars(*) mark start in playoffs):
- Dwayne Roloson, Calgary Flames
- Marc Denis, Colorado Avalanche
- Roman Turek, Dallas Stars
- Tomas Holmstrom, Detroit Red Wings
- Jean-Sebastien Giguere, Hartford Whalers
- Tomas Vokoun, Montreal Canadiens
- Jay Pandolfo, New Jersey Devils
- Bryan Berard, New York Islanders
- Wade Redden, Ottawa Senators
- Janne Niinimaa, Philadelphia Flyers
- Vaclav Prospal, Philadelphia Flyers
- Patrick Lalime, Pittsburgh Penguins
Last games
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1996–97 (listed with their last team):
- Tim Cheveldae, Boston Bruins
- Charlie Huddy, Buffalo Sabres
- Denis Savard, Chicago Blackhawks
- Sergei Makarov, Dallas Stars
- Neal Broten, Dallas Stars
- Mike Ramsey, Detroit Red Wings
- Vladimir Konstantinov, Detroit Red Wings
- Dale Hawerchuk, Philadelphia Flyers
- Brad McCrimmon, Philadelphia Flyers
- Dan Quinn, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Joe Mullen, Pittsburgh Penguins
- Tim Hunter, San Jose Sharks
- Craig MacTavish, St. Louis Blues
- Gary Leeman, St. Louis Blues
- Jon Casey, St. Louis Blues
- Jay Wells, Tampa Bay Lightning
- Don Beaupre, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Nick Kypreos, Toronto Maple Leafs
- Mike Ridley, Vancouver Canucks
