1996–97 Boston Bruins season

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.

1996–97 Boston Bruins
Division	6th Northeast
Conference	13th Eastern
1996–97 record	26–47–9
Home record	14–20–7
Road record	12–27–2
Goals for	234
Goals against	300
Team information
General manager	Harry Sinden
Coach	Steve Kasper
Captain	Ray Bourque
Arena	Fleet Center
Average attendance	15,550 (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)
Points	Jozef 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 →

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^[1]

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

Regular season schedule

No.	R	Date	Score	Opponent	Record
1	T	October 5, 1996	4–4 OT	New York Rangers (1996–97)	0–0–1
2	L	October 7, 1996	2–5	Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)	0–1–1
3	W	October 12, 1996	5–3	@ San Jose Sharks (1996–97)	1–1–1
4	W	October 14, 1996	5–4 OT	@ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)	2–1–1
5	L	October 17, 1996	2–4	@ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)	2–2–1
6	W	October 20, 1996	5–1	@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)	3–2–1
7	L	October 24, 1996	1–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)	3–3–1
8	L	October 26, 1996	1–2	Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)	3–4–1
9	W	October 29, 1996	5–2	New Jersey Devils (1996–97)	4–4–1
10	T	October 31, 1996	4–4 OT	Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	4–4–2
11	L	November 2, 1996	2–5	New York Rangers (1996–97)	4–5–2
12	T	November 4, 1996	4–4 OT	Los Angeles Kings (1996–97)	4–5–3
13	L	November 6, 1996	1–5	@ Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	4–6–3
14	L	November 7, 1996	0–6	Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)	4–7–3
15	W	November 9, 1996	4–3	@ Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	5–7–3
16	W	November 14, 1996	2–1 OT	Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)	6–7–3
17	W	November 18, 1996	4–2	San Jose Sharks (1996–97)	7–7–3
18	T	November 19, 1996	2–2 OT	@ Washington Capitals (1996–97)	7–7–4
19	L	November 21, 1996	2–6	Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	7–8–4
20	L	November 23, 1996	2–3 OT	Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)	7–9–4
21	W	November 26, 1996	2–0	Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)	8–9–4
22	W	November 29, 1996	7–3	Vancouver Canucks (1996–97)	9–9–4
23	L	November 30, 1996	2–6	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)	9–10–4
24	W	December 4, 1996	4–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	10–10–4
25	L	December 5, 1996	2–4	Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	10–11–4
26	T	December 7, 1996	1–1 OT	Calgary Flames (1996–97)	10–11–5
27	L	December 9, 1996	2–5	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97)	10–12–5
28	L	December 12, 1996	4–7	New Jersey Devils (1996–97)	10–13–5
29	L	December 14, 1996	0–4	Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)	10–14–5
30	L	December 15, 1996	0–6	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)	10–15–5
31	W	December 17, 1996	6–4	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)	11–15–5
32	W	December 19, 1996	3–0	Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)	12–15–5
33	W	December 21, 1996	4–3	Washington Capitals (1996–97)	13–15–5
34	T	December 23, 1996	3–3 OT	Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)	13–15–6
35	L	December 27, 1996	4–6	@ Dallas Stars (1996–97)	13–16–6
36	L	December 29, 1996	2–4	@ St. Louis Blues (1996–97)	13–17–6
37	L	January 1, 1997	2–3	@ Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	13–18–6
38	W	January 2, 1997	5–4 OT	@ Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	14–18–6
39	W	January 4, 1997	3–2	Dallas Stars (1996–97)	15–18–6
40	L	January 7, 1997	3–7	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)	15–19–6
41	W	January 9, 1997	5–4	Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	16–19–6
42	L	January 11, 1997	3–6	@ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	16–20–6
43	L	January 13, 1997	3–4	Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	16–21–6
44	L	January 14, 1997	2–4	@ New Jersey Devils (1996–97)	16–22–6
45	L	January 20, 1997	2–3	Washington Capitals (1996–97)	16–23–6
46	W	January 22, 1997	4–1	@ Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	17–23–6
47	L	January 23, 1997	1–4	Florida Panthers (1996–97)	17–24–6
48	W	January 25, 1997	4–1	Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)	18–24–6
49	L	January 30, 1997	1–3	@ Florida Panthers (1996–97)	18–25–6
50	W	February 1, 1997	3–0	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)	19–25–6
51	W	February 2, 1997	3–2	@ New York Rangers (1996–97)	20–25–6
52	L	February 4, 1997	3–4	Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	20–26–6
53	L	February 6, 1997	3–5	Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	20–27–6
54	T	February 8, 1997	3–3 OT	St. Louis Blues (1996–97)	20–27–7
55	L	February 11, 1997	1–5	@ Calgary Flames (1996–97)	20–28–7
56	L	February 12, 1997	3–4	@ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97)	20–29–7
57	L	February 15, 1997	4–5 OT	@ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97)	20–30–7
58	L	February 18, 1997	2–3 OT	@ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97)	20–31–7
59	L	February 20, 1997	3–5	@ Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97)	20–32–7
60	L	February 23, 1997	1–5	@ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)	20–33–7
61	T	February 24, 1997	3–3 OT	@ Washington Capitals (1996–97)	20–33–8
62	W	February 27, 1997	6–2	Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)	21–33–8
63	T	March 1, 1997	5–5 OT	Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97)	21–33–9
64	L	March 3, 1997	2–4	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97)	21–34–9
65	L	March 6, 1997	2–5	@ New York Islanders (1996–97)	21–35–9
66	W	March 8, 1997	6–4	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97)	22–35–9
67	W	March 9, 1997	3–1	@ Florida Panthers (1996–97)	23–35–9
68	L	March 12, 1997	3–6	@ Hartford Whalers (1996–97)	23–36–9
69	L	March 13, 1997	0–3	Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	23–37–9
70	W	March 15, 1997	5–2	New York Islanders (1996–97)	24–37–9
71	L	March 17, 1997	1–5	@ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)	24–38–9
72	L	March 19, 1997	1–4	@ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97)	24–39–9
73	L	March 22, 1997	4–5	Ottawa Senators (1996–97)	24–40–9
74	L	March 24, 1997	1–3	@ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97)	24–41–9
75	L	March 27, 1997	3–6	New York Islanders (1996–97)	24–42–9
76	L	March 29, 1997	2–8	@ New York Islanders (1996–97)	24–43–9
77	L	April 3, 1997	4–5	@ New York Rangers (1996–97)	24–44–9
78	W	April 5, 1997	4–2	Florida Panthers (1996–97)	25–44–9
79	L	April 8, 1997	1–3	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)	25–45–9
80	L	April 10, 1997	1–5	Buffalo Sabres (1996–97)	25–46–9
81	L	April 11, 1997	0–2	@ New Jersey Devils (1996–97)	25–47–9
82	W	April 13, 1997	7–3	Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97)	26–47–9

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular season^[2]

Player	GP	G	A	Pts	+/−	PIM
Jozef Stumpel	78	21	55	76	-22	14
Adam Oates ‡	63	18	52	70	-3	10
Ted Donato	67	25	26	51	-9	37
Ray Bourque	62	19	31	50	-11	18
Rick Tocchet ‡	40	16	14	30	-3	67
Rob DiMaio	72	13	15	28	-21	82
Don Sweeney	82	3	23	26	-5	39
Steve Heinze	30	17	8	25	-8	27
Jean-Yves Roy	52	10	15	25	-8	22
Tim Sweeney	36	10	11	21	0	14
Sheldon Kennedy	56	8	10	18	-17	30
Barry Richter	50	5	13	18	-7	32
Brett Harkins	44	4	14	18	-3	8
Landon Wilson †	40	7	10	17	-6	49
Todd Elik	31	4	12	16	-12	16
Jeff Odgers	80	7	8	15	-15	197
Troy Mallette	68	6	8	14	-8	155
Kyle McLaren	58	5	9	14	-9	54
Sandy Moger	34	10	3	13	-12	45
Anson Carter †	19	8	5	13	-7	2
Jason Allison †	19	3	9	12	-3	9
Steve Staios	54	3	8	11	-26	71
Mattias Timander	41	1	8	9	-9	14
Trent McCleary	59	3	5	8	-16	33
Jon Rohloff	37	3	5	8	-14	31
Bob Beers	27	3	4	7	0	8
Clayton Beddoes	21	1	2	3	-1	13
Dean Chynoweth	57	0	3	3	-12	171
Anders Myrvold †	9	0	2	2	-1	4
Andre Roy	10	0	2	2	-5	12
Evgeny Shaldybin	3	1	0	1	-2	0
Davis Payne	15	0	1	1	-4	7
Cam Stewart	15	0	1	1	-2	4
P. C. Drouin	3	0	0	0	1	0
David Emma	5	0	0	0	-1	0
Dean Malkoc	33	0	0	0	-14	70
Randy Robitaille	1	0	0	0	0	0
Kevin Sawyer	2	0	0	0	0	0
Total		234	392	626	—	1,365

Goaltenders

Regular season

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Bill Ranford ‡	37	37	2,147:09	12	16	8	125	3.49	1,102	.887	2	0	0	0
Robbie Tallas	28	22	1,243:53	8	12	1	69	3.33	587	.882	1	0	0	0
Jim Carey †	19	17	1,004:01	5	13	0	64	3.82	496	.871	0	0	0	0
Scott Bailey	8	5	393:46	1	5	0	24	3.66	181	.867	0	0	0	0
Tim Cheveldae	2	1	93:09	0	1	0	5	3.22	33	.848	0	0	0	0
Paxton Schafer	3	0	77:28	0	0	0	6	4.65	25	.760	0	0	0	0
Total			4,959:26	26	47	9	293	3.54	2,424	.879	3	0	0	0

† Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Bruins. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
‡ Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.

Note:

Pos = Position; GPI = Games played in; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes; +/- = Plus/minus; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals

Min, TOI = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T,T/OT = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards and records

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)

Free agents Date Player Team July 11, 1996 (1996-07-11) Dave Reid to Dallas Stars July 15, 1996 (1996-07-15) Jean-Yves Roy from Ottawa Senators July 17, 1996 (1996-07-17) Phil Von Stefenelli to Ottawa Senators July 19, 1996 (1996-07-19) Barry Richter from New York Rangers July 24, 1996 (1996-07-24) Troy Mallette from Ottawa Senators August 5, 1996 (1996-08-05) Bob Beers from New York Islanders August 7, 1996 (1996-08-07) Sheldon Kennedy from Calgary Flames August 27, 1996 (1996-08-27) David Emma August 27, 1996 (1996-08-27) Tim Cheveldae from Philadelphia Flyers September 4, 1996 (1996-09-04) Brett Harkins from Florida Panthers September 5, 1996 (1996-09-05) Joe Mullen to Pittsburgh Penguins October 12, 1996 (1996-10-12) Ron Sutter to San Jose Sharks October 14, 1996 (1996-10-14) P. C. Drouin December 13, 1996 (1996-12-13) Rick Zombo to Los Angeles Kings March 27, 1997 (1997-03-27) Randy Robitaille

Signings Date Player Contract term June 27, 1996 (1996-06-27) Cameron Mann 3-year January 2, 1997 (1997-01-02) Bill Ranford 3-year April 4, 1997 (1997-04-04) Ray Bourque 2-year extension April 23, 1997 (1997-04-23) Jonathan Aitken 3-year May 27, 1997 (1997-05-27) P.J. Axelson 2-year May 29, 1997 (1997-05-29) Hal Gill Waivers Date Player Team September 30, 1996 (1996-09-30) Dean Malkoc from Vancouver Canucks in waiver draft March 18, 1997 (1997-03-18) Steve Staios to Vancouver Canucks

Draft picks

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

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1^1	8	Johnathan Aitken	D	Canada	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
2	45	Henry Kuster	RW	Canada	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
3^2	53	Eric Naud	LW	Canada	Saint-Hyacinthe Laser (QMJHL)
3^3	80	Jason Doyle	RW	Canada	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (WHL)
4	100	Trent Whitfield	C	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
5^4	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.

• The Bruins first-round pick went to the Edmonton Oilers as the result of a trade on January 11, 1996 that sent Bill Ranford to Boston in exchange for Mariusz Czerkawski, rights to Sean Brown and this pick (19th overall).
• The Bruins third-round pick went to the Pittsburgh Penguins as the result of a trade on August 1, 1995 that sent Shawn McEachern and Kevin Stevens to Boston in exchange for Glen Murray, Bryan Smolinski and this pick (72nd overall).
• The Bruins fourth-round pick went to the New York Islanders as the result of a trade on December 9, 1995 that sent Dean Chynoweth to Boston in exchange for this pick (128th overall).

References

• "1996–97 Boston Bruins Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-05-06.

1. "1996-1997 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
2. "1996-97 Boston Bruins Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-06-09.