1995–96 Tampa Bay Lightning season

The 1995–96 Tampa Bay Lightning season was the Lightning fourth season of operation in the National Hockey League. The Lightning finished with a record of 38-32-12 and qualified for the playoffs for the first time in franchise history.

1995–96 Tampa Bay Lightning
Division	5th Atlantic
Conference	8th Eastern
1995–96 record	38–32–12
Home record	22–14–5
Road record	16–18–7
Goals for	238
Goals against	248
Team information
General manager	Phil Esposito
Coach	Terry Crisp
Captain	Paul Ysebaert
Arena	ThunderDome
Average attendance	18,880
Minor league affiliate(s)	Atlanta Knights Nashville Knights
Team leaders
Goals	Alexander Selivanov (31)
Assists	Brian Bradley (56)
Points	Brian Bradley (79)
Penalty minutes	Enrico Ciccone (258)
Plus/minus	Rob Zamuner (+11)
Wins	Daren Puppa (29)
Goals against average	Daren Puppa (2.46)
← 1994–95 1996–97 →

It would also be the Lightning's third and final season in the ThunderDome before moving into their next and current home, the Ice Palace.

Regular season

The Lightning tied the New York Rangers and the Ottawa Senators for fewest short-handed goals scored (6).^[1]

Final standings

Atlantic Division

No.		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	82	45	24	13	282	208	103
2	New York Rangers	82	41	27	14	272	237	96
3	Florida Panthers	82	41	31	10	254	234	92
4	Washington Capitals	82	39	32	11	234	204	89
5	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	38	32	12	238	248	88
6	New Jersey Devils	82	37	33	12	215	202	86
7	New York Islanders	82	22	50	10	229	315	54

Eastern Conference^[2]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	45	24	13	282	208	103
2	Pittsburgh Penguins	NE	82	49	29	4	362	284	102
3	New York Rangers	ATL	82	41	27	14	272	237	96
4	Florida Panthers	ATL	82	41	31	10	254	234	92
5	Boston Bruins	NE	82	40	31	11	282	269	91
6	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	40	32	10	265	248	90
7	Washington Capitals	ATL	82	39	32	11	234	204	89
8	Tampa Bay Lightning	ATL	82	38	32	12	238	248	88
9	New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	37	33	12	215	202	86
10	Hartford Whalers	NE	82	34	39	9	237	259	77
11	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	33	42	7	247	262	73
12	New York Islanders	ATL	82	22	50	10	229	315	54
13	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	18	59	5	191	291	41

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Playoffs

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

(1) Philadelphia Flyers vs. (8) Tampa Bay Lightning

The series opened up in Philadelphia. The Flyers won Game 1 7–3, but the Lightning rebounded in Game 2 by a 2–1 overtime win. Games 3 and 4 were in Tampa Bay. The Lightning won again in overtime in Game 3, but this time, by a score of 5–4. However, the series was tied up at 2-2 thanks to Philadelphia's 4–1 win in Game 4. The series shifted back to Philadelphia, where the Flyers won 4-1 again in Game 5. In Game 6, Philadelphia won 6-1 and won the series 4–2.

Schedule and results

Regular season

1995–96 regular season^[3]
October: 2–4–4 (home: 1–2–2; road: 1–2–2) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 1 T October 7, 1995 3–3 OT Calgary Flames (1995–96) 0–0–1 Recap 2 W October 12, 1995 3–1 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 1–0–1 Recap 3 L October 14, 1995 0–2 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 1–1–1 Recap 4 L October 15, 1995 4–7 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 1–2–1 Recap 5 L October 17, 1995 2–5 @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 1–3–1 Recap 6 W October 19, 1995 4–1 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 2–3–1 Recap 7 T October 21, 1995 3–3 OT @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) 2–3–2 Recap 8 T October 26, 1995 4–4 OT New York Rangers (1995–96) 2–3–3 Recap 9 L October 28, 1995 2–4 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 2–4–3 Recap 10 T October 31, 1995 2–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 2–4–4 Recap
November: 7–6–1 (home: 5–3–1; road: 2–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 11 L November 1, 1995 0–10 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 2–5–4 Recap 12 W November 3, 1995 5–3 New York Islanders (1995–96) 3–5–4 Recap 13 L November 5, 1995 1–4 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 3–6–4 Recap 14 L November 8, 1995 4–5 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 3–7–4 Recap 15 L November 10, 1995 3–4 OT Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 3–8–4 Recap 16 L November 12, 1995 4–6 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 3–9–4 Recap 17 W November 14, 1995 5–3 Boston Bruins (1995–96) 4–9–4 Recap 18 L November 16, 1995 4–5 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 4–10–4 Recap 19 W November 18, 1995 5–4 OT Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 5–10–4 Recap 20 W November 22, 1995 3–1 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 6–10–4 Recap 21 W November 24, 1995 2–1 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 7–10–4 Recap 22 W November 25, 1995 2–1 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 8–10–4 Recap 23 W November 27, 1995 2–0 Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 9–10–4 Recap 24 T November 29, 1995 2–2 OT Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 9–10–5 Recap
December: 7–5–1 (home: 4–2–1; road: 3–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 25 L December 1, 1995 1–5 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 9–11–5 Recap 26 L December 3, 1995 4–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 9–12–5 Recap 27 W December 6, 1995 2–1 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 10–12–5 Recap 28 W December 8, 1995 3–1 Boston Bruins (1995–96) 11–12–5 Recap 29 W December 11, 1995 6–1 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 12–12–5 Recap 30 W December 13, 1995 3–2 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 13–12–5 Recap 31 L December 14, 1995 0–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 13–13–5 Recap 32 L December 16, 1995 2–7 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 13–14–5 Recap 33 W December 19, 1995 6–3 Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 14–14–5 Recap 34 T December 21, 1995 2–2 OT New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 14–14–6 Recap 35 L December 23, 1995 5–7 @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 14–15–6 Recap 36 W December 28, 1995 3–1 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 15–15–6 Recap 37 W December 31, 1995 3–0 @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 16–15–6 Recap
January: 5–5–1 (home: 3–0–0; road: 2–5–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 38 L January 2, 1996 0–10 @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) 16–16–6 Recap 39 W January 3, 1996 5–0 @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 17–16–6 Recap 40 L January 6, 1996 2–9 @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 17–17–6 Recap 41 T January 8, 1996 3–3 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 17–17–7 Recap 42 W January 13, 1996 4–1 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 18–17–7 Recap 43 L January 15, 1996 2–3 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 18–18–7 Recap 44 W January 17, 1996 6–4 San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 19–18–7 Recap 45 W January 22, 1996 4–1 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 20–18–7 Recap 46 L January 25, 1996 3–4 @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 20–19–7 Recap 47 L January 27, 1996 1–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 20–20–7 Recap 48 W January 31, 1996 4–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 21–20–7 Recap
February: 7–5–1 (home: 3–4–0; road: 4–1–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 49 L February 3, 1996 3–5 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 21–21–7 Recap 50 W February 4, 1996 5–2 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 22–21–7 Recap 51 T February 7, 1996 4–4 OT @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 22–21–8 Recap 52 L February 10, 1996 2–3 OT Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 22–22–8 Recap 53 L February 11, 1996 2–6 New York Rangers (1995–96) 22–23–8 Recap 54 L February 13, 1996 2–3 St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 22–24–8 Recap 55 W February 15, 1996 4–2 Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 23–24–8 Recap 56 W February 17, 1996 5–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 24–24–8 Recap 57 W February 19, 1996 4–2 Dallas Stars (1995–96) 25–24–8 Recap 58 W February 21, 1996 3–2 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 26–24–8 Recap 59 W February 23, 1996 3–2 OT @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 27–24–8 Recap 60 L February 24, 1996 0–2 @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 27–25–8 Recap 61 W February 28, 1996 5–1 @ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 28–25–8 Recap
March: 6–4–4 (home: 4–1–1; road: 2–3–3) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 62 W March 1, 1996 7–3 @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 29–25–8 Recap 63 T March 3, 1996 2–2 OT @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 29–25–9 Recap 64 W March 5, 1996 2–0 Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 30–25–9 Recap 65 W March 7, 1996 5–2 New York Rangers (1995–96) 31–25–9 Recap 66 W March 10, 1996 1–0 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 32–25–9 Recap 67 T March 13, 1996 1–1 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 32–25–10 Recap 68 L March 15, 1996 0–5 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 32–26–10 Recap 69 L March 17, 1996 0–5 @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 32–27–10 Recap 70 L March 18, 1996 3–6 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 32–28–10 Recap 71 T March 21, 1996 3–3 OT Washington Capitals (1995–96) 32–28–11 Recap 72 W March 23, 1996 4–2 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 33–28–11 Recap 73 L March 26, 1996 4–6 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 33–29–11 Recap 74 W March 30, 1996 2–1 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 34–29–11 Recap 75 T March 31, 1996 1–1 OT @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 34–29–12 Recap
April: 4–3–0 (home: 2–2–0; road: 2–1–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 76 W April 3, 1996 4–2 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 35–29–12 Recap 77 L April 5, 1996 3–4 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 35–30–12 Recap 78 L April 6, 1996 1–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 35–31–12 Recap 79 W April 8, 1996 4–3 New York Islanders (1995–96) 36–31–12 Recap 80 W April 10, 1996 2–1 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 37–31–12 Recap 81 W April 12, 1996 3–2 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 38–31–12 Recap 82 L April 14, 1996 1–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 38–32–12 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1996 Stanley Cup playoffs^[3]
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (1) Philadelphia Flyers – Flyers win 4–2 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 L April 16, 1996 3–7 @ Philadelphia Flyers Flyers lead 1–0 Recap 2 W April 18, 1996 2–1 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 W April 21, 1996 5–4 OT Philadelphia Flyers Lightning lead 2–1 Recap 4 L April 23, 1996 1–4 Philadelphia Flyers Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 L April 25, 1996 1–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers Flyers lead 3–2 Recap 6 L April 27, 1996 1–6 Philadelphia Flyers Flyers win 4–2 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)

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 Lightning only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Lightning only.

			Regular season						Playoffs
No.	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
19	Brian Bradley	C	75	23	56	79	−11	77	5	0	3	3	−5	6
44	Roman Hamrlik	D	82	16	49	65	−24	103	5	0	1	1	−1	4
29	Alex Selivanov	RW	79	31	21	52	3	93	6	2	2	4	2	6
85	Petr Klima	W	67	22	30	52	−25	68	4	2	0	2	0	14
12	John Cullen	C	76	16	34	50	1	65	5	3	3	6	4	0
23	Brian Bellows	LW	79	23	26	49	−14	39	6	2	0	2	−2	4
77	Chris Gratton	C	82	17	21	38	−13	105	6	0	2	2	−3	27
7	Rob Zamuner	LW	72	15	20	35	11	62	6	2	3	5	−1	10
15	Paul Ysebaert	C	55	16	15	31	−19	16	5	0	0	0	−6	0
11	Shawn Burr	LW	81	13	15	28	4	119	6	0	2	2	0	8
2	Bill Houlder	D	61	5	23	28	1	22	6	0	1	1	0	4
34	Mikael Andersson	LW	64	8	11	19	0	2	6	1	1	2	0	0
24	Jason Wiemer	C	66	9	9	18	−9	81	6	1	0	1	−3	28
4	Cory Cross	D	75	2	14	16	4	66	6	0	0	0	−4	22
22	Aaron Gavey	C	73	8	4	12	−6	56	6	0	0	0	−3	4
27	David Shaw	D	66	1	11	12	5	64	6	0	1	1	−4	4
95	Michel Petit†	D	45	4	7	11	−10	108	6	0	0	0	−3	20
14	John Tucker	C	63	3	7	10	−8	18	2	0	0	0	−1	2
39	Enrico Ciccone‡	D	55	2	3	5	−4	258	—	—	—	—	—	—
20	Rudy Poeschek	RW	57	1	3	4	−2	88	3	0	0	0	0	12
5	Igor Ulanov†	D	11	2	1	3	−1	24	5	0	0	0	−1	15
6	Adrien Plavsic	D	7	1	2	3	5	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
5	Drew Bannister	D	13	0	1	1	−1	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
18	Daymond Langkow	C	4	0	1	1	−1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
28	Patrick Poulin†	C	8	0	1	1	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0
93	Daren Puppa	G	57	0	1	1		4	4	0	0	0		0
30	Jean-Claude Bergeron	G	12	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
3	Eric Charron‡	D	14	0	0	0	−6	18	—	—	—	—	—	—
25	Allan Egeland	C	5	0	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
28	Steven Finn‡	D	16	0	0	0	−6	24	—	—	—	—	—	—
21	Bob Halkidis‡	D	3	0	0	0	−1	7	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Chris LiPuma	D	21	0	0	0	−7	13	—	—	—	—	—	—
1	Jeff Reese†	G	19	0	0	0		0	5	0	0	0		0
9	Jeff Toms	C	1	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
35	Derek Wilkinson	G	4	0	0	0		2	—	—	—	—	—	—

Goaltending

• † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Lightning only.

		Regular season										Playoffs
No.	Player	GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
93	Daren Puppa	57	29	16	9	1605	131	2.46	.918	5	3189	4	1	3	86	14	4.85	.837	0	173
1	Jeff Reese†	19	7	7	1	464	54	3.26	.884	0	994	5	1	1	100	12	3.64	.880	0	198
30	Jean-Claude Bergeron	12	2	6	2	250	42	4.23	.832	0	595	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
35	Derek Wilkinson	4	0	3	0	105	15	4.50	.857	0	200	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Roman Hamrlik	^[4]

Records

The Tampa Bay Lightning tied its team record worst defeat from 1993, 2–9 against the Vancouver Canucks.

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
1,000th game played	Brian Bellows	January 31, 1996	^[5]

Draft picks

Tampa Bay's draft picks at the 1995 NHL Entry Draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.^[6]

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	5	Daymond Langkow	Canada	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
2	30	Mike McBain	Canada	Red Deer Rebels (WHL)
3	56	Shane Willis	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
5	108	Konstantin Golokhvastov	Russia	Dynamo Moscow (Russia)
6	134	Eduard Pershin	Russia	Moscow Dynamo (Russia)
7	160	Cory Murphy	Canada	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
8	186	Joe Cardarelli	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
9	212	Zac Bierk	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)

See also

• 1995–96 NHL season

References

• "Tampa Bay Lightning 1995-96 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
• "1995-96 Tampa Bay Lightning Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 12, 2023.

1. "1995-96 NHL Summary".
2. "1995–1996 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
3. "1995-96 Tampa Bay Lightning Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 12, 2023.
4. "NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1996". NHL.com. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
5. Buckley, Tim (January 31, 1996). "TONIGHT: LIGHTNING VS. PENGUINS". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved August 27, 2023. Milestone: Lightning wing Brian Bellows plays in his 1,000th NHL game tonight. The former Minnesota and Montreal forward will be honored in a pregame ceremony.
6. "1995 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 28, 2023.