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1996–97 Boston Bruins
Division6th Northeast
Conference13th Eastern
1996–97 record26–47–9
Home record14–20–7
Road record12–27–2
Goals for234
Goals against300
Team information
General manager Harry Sinden
Coach Steve Kasper
Captain Ray Bourque
Arena Fleet Center
Average attendance15,550 (87.1%)
Total: 637,575
Minor league affiliate(s) Providence Bruins ( AHL)
Charlotte Checkers ( ECHL)
Team leaders
Goals Ted Donato (25)
Assists Jozef Stumpel (55)
PointsJozef Stumpel (76)
Penalty minutes Jeff Odgers (197)
Plus/minus P. C. Drouin (+1)
Wins Bill Ranford (12)
Goals against average Tim Cheveldae (3.22)
←  1995–96
1997–98 →

The 1996–97 Boston Bruins season was the team's 73rd season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). The Bruins finished with the worst record in the NHL and missed the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time since 1967. [1] [2] [3]

Off-season

Regular season

Final standings

Northeast Division
No. CR GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 2 Buffalo Sabres 82 40 30 12 237 208 92
2 6 Pittsburgh Penguins 82 38 36 8 285 280 84
3 7 Ottawa Senators 82 31 36 15 226 234 77
4 8 Montreal Canadiens 82 31 36 15 249 276 77
5 10 Hartford Whalers 82 32 39 11 226 256 75
6 13 Boston Bruins 82 26 47 9 234 300 61
Eastern Conference [4]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 New Jersey Devils ATL 82 45 23 14 231 182 104
2 Buffalo Sabres NE 82 40 30 12 237 208 92
3 Philadelphia Flyers ATL 82 45 24 13 274 217 103
4 Florida Panthers ATL 82 35 28 19 221 201 89
5 New York Rangers ATL 82 38 34 10 258 231 86
6 Pittsburgh Penguins NE 82 38 36 8 285 280 84
7 Ottawa Senators NE 82 31 36 15 226 234 77
8 Montreal Canadiens NE 82 31 36 15 249 276 77
9 Washington Capitals ATL 82 33 40 9 214 231 75
10 Hartford Whalers NE 82 32 39 11 226 256 75
11 Tampa Bay Lightning ATL 82 32 40 10 217 247 74
12 New York Islanders ATL 82 29 41 12 240 250 70
13 Boston Bruins NE 82 26 47 9 234 300 61

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs


Schedule and results

1996–97 regular season [5]
October: 4–4–2 (home: 1–3–2; road: 3–1–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
1 T October 5, 1996 4–4 OT New York Rangers ( 1996–97) 0–0–1 Recap
2 L October 7, 1996 2–5 Phoenix Coyotes ( 1996–97) 0–1–1 Recap
3 W October 12, 1996 5–3 @ San Jose Sharks ( 1996–97) 1–1–1 Recap
4 W October 14, 1996 5–4 OT @ Vancouver Canucks ( 1996–97) 2–1–1 Recap
5 L October 17, 1996 2–4 @ Los Angeles Kings ( 1996–97) 2–2–1 Recap
6 W October 20, 1996 5–1 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim ( 1996–97) 3–2–1 Recap
7 L October 24, 1996 1–2 Toronto Maple Leafs ( 1996–97) 3–3–1 Recap
8 L October 26, 1996 1–2 Detroit Red Wings ( 1996–97) 3–4–1 Recap
9 W October 29, 1996 5–2 New Jersey Devils ( 1996–97) 4–4–1 Recap
10 T October 31, 1996 4–4 OT Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 4–4–2 Recap
November: 5–6–2 (home: 4–4–1; road: 1–2–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
11 L November 2, 1996 2–5 New York Rangers ( 1996–97) 4–5–2 Recap
12 T November 4, 1996 4–4 OT Los Angeles Kings ( 1996–97) 4–5–3 Recap
13 L November 6, 1996 1–5 @ Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 4–6–3 Recap
14 L November 7, 1996 0–6 Edmonton Oilers ( 1996–97) 4–7–3 Recap
15 W November 9, 1996 4–3 @ Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 5–7–3 Recap
16 W November 14, 1996 2–1 OT Pittsburgh Penguins ( 1996–97) 6–7–3 Recap
17 W November 18, 1996 4–2 San Jose Sharks ( 1996–97) 7–7–3 Recap
18 T November 19, 1996 2–2 OT @ Washington Capitals ( 1996–97) 7–7–4 Recap
19 L November 21, 1996 2–6 Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 7–8–4 Recap
20 L November 23, 1996 2–3 OT Buffalo Sabres ( 1996–97) 7–9–4 Recap
21 W November 26, 1996 2–0 Philadelphia Flyers ( 1996–97) 8–9–4 Recap
22 W November 29, 1996 7–3 Vancouver Canucks ( 1996–97) 9–9–4 Recap
23 L November 30, 1996 2–6 @ Pittsburgh Penguins ( 1996–97) 9–10–4 Recap
December: 4–7–2 (home: 2–4–2; road: 2–3–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
24 W December 4, 1996 4–3 @ Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 10–10–4 Recap
25 L December 5, 1996 2–4 Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 10–11–4 Recap
26 T December 7, 1996 1–1 OT Calgary Flames ( 1996–97) 10–11–5 Recap
27 L December 9, 1996 2–5 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim ( 1996–97) 10–12–5 Recap
28 L December 12, 1996 4–7 New Jersey Devils ( 1996–97) 10–13–5 Recap
29 L December 14, 1996 0–4 Buffalo Sabres ( 1996–97) 10–14–5 Recap
30 L December 15, 1996 0–6 @ Philadelphia Flyers ( 1996–97) 10–15–5 Recap
31 W December 17, 1996 6–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins ( 1996–97) 11–15–5 Recap
32 W December 19, 1996 3–0 Tampa Bay Lightning ( 1996–97) 12–15–5 Recap
33 W December 21, 1996 4–3 Washington Capitals ( 1996–97) 13–15–5 Recap
34 T December 23, 1996 3–3 OT Chicago Blackhawks ( 1996–97) 13–15–6 Recap
35 L December 27, 1996 4–6 @ Dallas Stars ( 1996–97) 13–16–6 Recap
36 L December 29, 1996 2–4 @ St. Louis Blues ( 1996–97) 13–17–6 Recap
January: 5–8–0 (home: 3–3–0; road: 2–5–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
37 L January 1, 1997 2–3 @ Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 13–18–6 Recap
38 W January 2, 1997 5–4 OT @ Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 14–18–6 Recap
39 W January 4, 1997 3–2 Dallas Stars ( 1996–97) 15–18–6 Recap
40 L January 7, 1997 3–7 @ Philadelphia Flyers ( 1996–97) 15–19–6 Recap
41 W January 9, 1997 5–4 Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 16–19–6 Recap
42 L January 11, 1997 3–6 @ Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 16–20–6 Recap
43 L January 13, 1997 3–4 Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 16–21–6 Recap
44 L January 14, 1997 2–4 @ New Jersey Devils ( 1996–97) 16–22–6 Recap
45 L January 20, 1997 2–3 Washington Capitals ( 1996–97) 16–23–6 Recap
46 W January 22, 1997 4–1 @ Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 17–23–6 Recap
47 L January 23, 1997 1–4 Florida Panthers ( 1996–97) 17–24–6 Recap
48 W January 25, 1997 4–1 Colorado Avalanche ( 1996–97) 18–24–6 Recap
49 L January 30, 1997 1–3 @ Florida Panthers ( 1996–97) 18–25–6 Recap
February: 3–8–2 (home: 1–2–1; road: 2–6–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
50 W February 1, 1997 3–0 @ Tampa Bay Lightning ( 1996–97) 19–25–6 Recap
51 W February 2, 1997 3–2 @ New York Rangers ( 1996–97) 20–25–6 Recap
52 L February 4, 1997 3–4 Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 20–26–6 Recap
53 L February 6, 1997 3–5 Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 20–27–6 Recap
54 T February 8, 1997 3–3 OT St. Louis Blues ( 1996–97) 20–27–7 Recap
55 L February 11, 1997 1–5 @ Calgary Flames ( 1996–97) 20–28–7 Recap
56 L February 12, 1997 3–4 @ Edmonton Oilers ( 1996–97) 20–29–7 Recap
57 L February 15, 1997 4–5 OT @ Phoenix Coyotes ( 1996–97) 20–30–7 Recap
58 L February 18, 1997 2–3 OT @ Colorado Avalanche ( 1996–97) 20–31–7 Recap
59 L February 20, 1997 3–5 @ Chicago Blackhawks ( 1996–97) 20–32–7 Recap
60 L February 23, 1997 1–5 @ Buffalo Sabres ( 1996–97) 20–33–7 Recap
61 T February 24, 1997 3–3 OT @ Washington Capitals ( 1996–97) 20–33–8 Recap
62 W February 27, 1997 6–2 Tampa Bay Lightning ( 1996–97) 21–33–8 Recap
March: 3–10–1 (home: 1–3–1; road: 2–7–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
63 T March 1, 1997 5–5 OT Philadelphia Flyers ( 1996–97) 21–33–9 Recap
64 L March 3, 1997 2–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs ( 1996–97) 21–34–9 Recap
65 L March 6, 1997 2–5 @ New York Islanders ( 1996–97) 21–35–9 Recap
66 W March 8, 1997 6–4 @ Tampa Bay Lightning ( 1996–97) 22–35–9 Recap
67 W March 9, 1997 3–1 @ Florida Panthers ( 1996–97) 23–35–9 Recap
68 L March 12, 1997 3–6 @ Hartford Whalers ( 1996–97) 23–36–9 Recap
69 L March 13, 1997 0–3 Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 23–37–9 Recap
70 W March 15, 1997 5–2 New York Islanders ( 1996–97) 24–37–9 Recap
71 L March 17, 1997 1–5 @ Buffalo Sabres ( 1996–97) 24–38–9 Recap
72 L March 19, 1997 1–4 @ Detroit Red Wings ( 1996–97) 24–39–9 Recap
73 L March 22, 1997 4–5 Ottawa Senators ( 1996–97) 24–40–9 Recap
74 L March 24, 1997 1–3 @ Montreal Canadiens ( 1996–97) 24–41–9 Recap
75 L March 27, 1997 3–6 New York Islanders ( 1996–97) 24–42–9 Recap
76 L March 29, 1997 2–8 @ New York Islanders ( 1996–97) 24–43–9 Recap
April: 2–4–0 (home: 2–1–0; road: 0–3–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
77 L April 3, 1997 4–5 @ New York Rangers ( 1996–97) 24–44–9 Recap
78 W April 5, 1997 4–2 Florida Panthers ( 1996–97) 25–44–9 Recap
79 L April 8, 1997 1–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins ( 1996–97) 25–45–9 Recap
80 L April 10, 1997 1–5 Buffalo Sabres ( 1996–97) 25–46–9 Recap
81 L April 11, 1997 0–2 @ New Jersey Devils ( 1996–97) 25–47–9 Recap
82 W April 13, 1997 7–3 Pittsburgh Penguins ( 1996–97) 26–47–9 Recap
Legend:

  Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

  • Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
Regular season
No. Player Pos GP G A Pts +/- PIM
16 Jozef Stumpel C 78 21 55 76 −22 14
12 Adam Oates‡ C 63 18 52 70 −3 10
21 Ted Donato LW 67 25 26 51 −9 37
77 Ray Bourque D 62 19 31 50 −11 18
22 Rick Tocchet‡ RW 40 16 14 30 −3 67
19 Rob DiMaio C 72 13 15 28 −21 82
32 Don Sweeney D 82 3 23 26 −5 39
23 Steve Heinze RW 30 17 8 25 −8 27
43 Jean-Yves Roy LW 52 10 15 25 −8 22
42 Tim Sweeney LW 36 10 11 21 0 14
33 Sheldon Kennedy RW 56 8 10 18 −17 30
46 Barry Richter D 50 5 13 18 −7 32
65 Brett Harkins LW 44 4 14 18 −3 8
27 Landon Wilson† RW 40 7 10 17 −6 49
20 Todd Elik LW 31 4 12 16 −12 16
36 Jeff Odgers RW 80 7 8 15 −15 197
29 Troy Mallette LW 68 6 8 14 −8 155
18 Kyle McLaren D 58 5 9 14 −9 54
45 Sandy Moger RW 34 10 3 13 −12 45
11 Anson Carter† RW 19 8 5 13 −7 2
41 Jason Allison† C 19 3 9 12 −3 9
48 Steve Staios‡ D 54 3 8 11 −26 71
47 Mattias Timander D 41 1 8 9 −9 14
25 Trent McCleary C 59 3 5 8 −16 33
38 Jon Rohloff D 37 3 5 8 −14 31
34 Bob Beers D 27 3 4 7 0 8
37 Clayton Beddoes C 21 1 2 3 −1 13
28 Dean Chynoweth D 57 0 3 3 −12 171
14 [a] Anders Myrvold† D 9 0 2 2 −1 4
49 Andre Roy LW 10 0 2 2 −5 12
62 Evgeny Shaldybin D 3 1 0 1 −2 0
17 Davis Payne LW 15 0 1 1 −4 7
26 Cam Stewart LW 15 0 1 1 −2 4
39 Scott Bailey G 8 0 0 0 0
30 Jim Carey† G 19 0 0 0 0
31 Tim Cheveldae G 2 0 0 0 0
40 P. C. Drouin† LW 3 0 0 0 1 0
52 David Emma C 5 0 0 0 −1 0
44 Dean Malkoc D 33 0 0 0 −14 70
30 Bill Ranford‡ G 37 0 0 0 0
48 Randy Robitaille† C 1 0 0 0 0 0
14 Kevin Sawyer LW 2 0 0 0 0 0
1 Paxton Schafer G 3 0 0 0 0
35 Robbie Tallas G 28 0 0 0 0

Goaltending

  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
Regular season
No. Player GP GS W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
30 Bill Ranford‡ 37 37 12 16 8 1,102 125 3.49 .887 2 2,147:09
35 Robbie Tallas 28 22 8 12 1 587 69 3.33 .882 1 1,243:53
30 Jim Carey† 19 17 5 13 0 496 64 3.82 .871 0 1,004:01
39 Scott Bailey 8 5 1 5 0 181 24 3.66 .867 0 393:46
31 Tim Cheveldae 2 1 0 1 0 33 5 3.22 .848 0 93:09
1 Paxton Schafer 3 0 0 0 0 25 6 4.65 .760 0 77:28

Awards and records

Awards

Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(in-season) 		NHL All-Star Game selection Ray Bourque [b] [7]
Adam Oates [c]
Team Elizabeth C. Dufresne Trophy Jozef Stumpel [9]
Seventh Player Award Ted Donato [9]
Three Stars Awards Ray Bourque (1st) [10]
Ted Donato (2nd)
Jozef Stumpel (3rd)

Transactions

Trades

Date Details
June 21, 1996 (1996-06-21) To San Jose Sharks
Al Iafrate 		To Boston Bruins
Jeff Odgers
1996 PIT 5th-round pick (#132 overall)
June 22, 1996 (1996-06-22) To Ottawa Senators
Shawn McEachern 		To Boston Bruins
Trent McCleary
1996 3rd-round pick (#53 overall)
September 30, 1996 (1996-09-30) To San Jose Sharks
1997 5th-round pick (#107 overall) 		To Boston Bruins
Rob DiMaio
November 22, 1996 (1996-11-22) To Colorado Avalanche
1998 1st-round pick (#19 overall) 		To Boston Bruins
Landon Wilson
Anders Myrvold
March 1, 1997 (1997-03-01) To Washington Capitals
Bill Ranford
Adam Oates
Rick Tocchet 		To Boston Bruins
Jason Allison
Jim Carey
Anson Carter
1997 3rd-round pick (#63 overall)
1998 Conditional 2nd-round pick (#52 overall)

Draft picks

Boston's draft picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri. [11]

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
11 8 Johnathan Aitken D   Canada Medicine Hat Tigers ( WHL)
2 45 Henry Kuster RW   Canada Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
32 53 Eric Naud LW   Canada Saint-Hyacinthe Laser ( QMJHL)
33 80 Jason Doyle RW   Canada Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (WHL)
4 100 Trent Whitfield C   Canada Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
54 132 Elias Abrahamsson D   Sweden Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
6 155 Chris Lane D   Canada Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
7 182 Thomas Brown D   Canada Sarnia Sting ( OHL)
8 208 Bob Prier RW   Canada St. Lawrence University ( ECAC)
9 234 Anders Soderberg LW   Sweden Modo Hockey (Sweden)
Notes
  1. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 26, 1994 that sent Glen Wesley to Hartford in exchange for first-round picks in 1995, 1997 and this pick.
  2. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on June 22, 1996 that sent Shawn McEachern to Ottawa in exchange for Trent McCleary and this pick.
  3. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent David Shaw to Tampa Bay in exchange for this pick.
    Tampa Bay previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent Marc Bergevin and Ben Hankinson to Detroit in exchange for Shawn Burr and this pick.
  4. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on June 21, 1996 that sent Al Iafrate to San Jose in exchange for Jeff Odgers and this pick.
    San Jose previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on March 20, 1996 that sent Kevin Miller to Pittsburgh in exchange for this pick.

Notes

  1. ^ Myrvold wore number 41 in his first six games.
  2. ^ Bourque was voted to the starting lineup. [6]
  3. ^ Oates was an injury replacement for Jaromir Jagr of the Pittsburgh Penguins. [8]

References

  • "Boston Bruins 1996-97 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  • "1996-97 Boston Bruins Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  1. ^ Elliott, Helene (April 8, 1997). "From Bruins to Ruins : After 30 Years, Another Boston Tradition--Playoff Hockey--Crumbles Beneath Weight of Inept Team". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  2. ^ Smith, Michael. "The 5 Most Painful Seasons in Boston Bruins History". Bleacher Report. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  3. ^ "ESPN.com - NHL - It's a shame about Ray ... and the Bruins". www.espn.com. Retrieved January 27, 2024.
  4. ^ "1996-1997 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  5. ^ "1996-97 Boston Bruins Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
  6. ^ "NHL All-Star Game Starting Lineups by Year (since 1986)". www.nhl.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  7. ^ "NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1997". www.nhl.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  8. ^ "Injured Jagr to Miss The All-Star Game". The New York Times. January 17, 1997. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  9. ^ a b Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p.239
  10. ^ Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p. 239–40
  11. ^ "1996 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
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