1997–98 San Jose Sharks season

The 1997–98 San Jose Sharks season was the Sharks' seventh season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). Following their second last-place finish in as many years, the Sharks unceremoniously fired first-year head coach Al Sims; he was replaced by Darryl Sutter, who had previously coached the Chicago Blackhawks. At the time of his hiring, Sutter was the first head coach in franchise history to have previously coached another NHL team.

1997–98 San Jose Sharks
Division	4th Pacific
Conference	8th Western
1997–98 record	34–38–10
Home record	17–19–5
Road record	17–19–5
Goals for	210
Goals against	216
Team information
General manager	Dean Lombardi
Coach	Darryl Sutter
Captain	Todd Gill (Oct-Mar) Vacant (Mar-Apr)
Arena	San Jose Arena
Average attendance	17,111
Minor league affiliate(s)	Kentucky Thoroughblades Louisville RiverFrogs
Team leaders
Goals	Jeff Friesen (31)
Assists	Jeff Friesen (32)
Points	Jeff Friesen (63)
Penalty minutes	Owen Nolan (144)
Plus/minus	Bill Houlder (+13)
Wins	Mike Vernon (30)
Goals against average	Mike Vernon (2.46)
← 1996–97 1998–99 →

The Sharks' coaching switch was accompanied by a handful of player acquisitions and debuts. Of these, the addition of five-time NHL All-Star goaltender Mike Vernon proved most important. On August 18, 1997, the Sharks acquired Vernon from the Detroit Red Wings for a pair of second-round picks; at the time of the trade, Vernon was only two months removed from backstopping the Red Wings to victory in the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals. Additionally, the Sharks drafted highly-touted forward Patrick Marleau with the second overall pick in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. Despite a lackluster rookie season, Marleau would enjoy considerable success with the Sharks over the following two decades. Lastly, 1996 first-found pick Marco Sturm was added to the roster early in the season. Sturm and Marleau, in particular, supplemented a burgeoning collection of young forwards that already included mainstays Jeff Friesen and Owen Nolan.

In Sutter's first season at the helm, the Sharks' play improved substantially. While they once again failed to post a winning record, the team managed to clinch the Western Conference's eighth (and final) playoff berth. In the first round of the 1998 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Sharks faced the top-seeded Dallas Stars. The Sharks quickly dropped their first two games in Dallas; upon returning to San Jose, however, the Sharks rallied to tie the series at two games apiece. An upset was not to be, however, as the Stars responded with a pair of one-goal victories to win the series in six games. Despite a quick exit from the playoffs, the 1997-98 season would prove to be a turning point for the franchise. After finishing with the Western Conference's worst record in four of their first six seasons of play, the Sharks would miss the postseason just twice between 1998 and 2019.

Offseason

Regular season

Captain Todd Gill was traded to the St. Louis Blues, in March.

Final standings

Pacific Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	Colorado Avalanche	82	39	26	17	231	205	95
2	5	Los Angeles Kings	82	38	33	11	227	225	87
3	7	Edmonton Oilers	82	35	37	10	215	224	80
4	8	San Jose Sharks	82	34	38	10	210	216	78
5	11	Calgary Flames	82	26	41	15	217	252	67
6	12	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	82	26	43	13	205	261	65
7	13	Vancouver Canucks	82	25	43	14	224	273	64

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Western Conference^[1]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	p – Dallas Stars	CEN	82	49	22	11	242	167	109
2	x – Colorado Avalanche	PAC	82	39	26	17	231	205	95
3	Detroit Red Wings	CEN	82	44	23	15	250	196	103
4	St. Louis Blues	CEN	82	45	29	8	256	204	98
5	Los Angeles Kings	PAC	82	38	33	11	227	225	87
6	Phoenix Coyotes	CEN	82	35	35	12	224	227	82
7	Edmonton Oilers	PAC	82	35	37	10	215	224	80
8	San Jose Sharks	PAC	82	34	38	10	210	216	78
9	Chicago Blackhawks	CEN	82	30	39	13	192	199	73
10	Toronto Maple Leafs	CEN	82	30	43	9	194	237	69
11	Calgary Flames	PAC	82	26	41	15	217	252	67
12	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	PAC	82	26	43	13	205	261	65
13	Vancouver Canucks	PAC	82	25	43	14	224	273	64

Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific

bold – Qualified for playoffs; x – Won Division; p – Won Presidents' Trophy

Playoffs

In a Conference Quarterfinals series, the Sharks met the #1 seeded and Presidents' Trophy-winning Dallas Stars. The Sharks were eliminated by the Stars in six games.

Schedule and results

Regular season

1997–98 regular season^[2]
October: 4–9–0 (home: 2–5–0; road: 2–4–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 1 L October 1, 1997 3–5 Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 0–1–0 Recap 2 W October 4, 1997 3–2 Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 1–1–0 Recap 3 L October 7, 1997 0–1 Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 1–2–0 Recap 4 L October 9, 1997 2–3 @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 1–3–0 Recap 5 W October 11, 1997 5–2 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 2–3–0 Recap 6 L October 13, 1997 2–3 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 2–4–0 Recap 7 L October 16, 1997 2–5 New York Islanders (1997–98) 2–5–0 Recap 8 L October 19, 1997 3–5 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 2–6–0 Recap 9 L October 22, 1997 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 2–7–0 Recap 10 W October 25, 1997 4–3 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 3–7–0 Recap 11 W October 27, 1997 2–1 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 4–7–0 Recap 12 L October 29, 1997 3–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 4–8–0 Recap 13 L October 31, 1997 3–5 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 4–9–0 Recap
November: 5–8–2 (home: 2–4–1; road: 3–4–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 14 L November 1, 1997 0–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 4–10–0 Recap 15 T November 4, 1997 0–0 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 4–10–1 Recap 16 L November 7, 1997 3–4 Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 4–11–1 Recap 17 W November 8, 1997 3–1 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 5–11–1 Recap 18 W November 10, 1997 6–4 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 6–11–1 Recap 19 L November 12, 1997 2–5 Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 6–12–1 Recap 20 L November 13, 1997 3–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 6–13–1 Recap 21 L November 15, 1997 2–3 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 6–14–1 Recap 22 W November 18, 1997 4–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 7–14–1 Recap 23 W November 20, 1997 3–0 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 8–14–1 Recap 24 W November 22, 1997 5–2 @ Washington Capitals (1997–98) 9–14–1 Recap 25 T November 24, 1997 2–2 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 9–14–2 Recap 26 L November 25, 1997 1–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 9–15–2 Recap 27 L November 28, 1997 2–4 New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 9–16–2 Recap 28 L November 30, 1997 1–6 @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 9–17–2 Recap
December: 5–3–3 (home: 1–1–2; road: 4–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 29 L December 1, 1997 2–3 OT @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 9–18–2 Recap 30 W December 4, 1997 3–2 @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 10–18–2 Recap 31 T December 10, 1997 3–3 OT Washington Capitals (1997–98) 10–18–3 Recap 32 W December 12, 1997 1–0 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 11–18–3 Recap 33 W December 14, 1997 2–1 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 12–18–3 Recap 34 W December 16, 1997 5–1 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 13–18–3 Recap 35 T December 18, 1997 0–0 OT Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 13–18–4 Recap 36 W December 21, 1997 4–2 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 14–18–4 Recap 37 L December 26, 1997 0–4 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 14–19–4 Recap 38 L December 29, 1997 1–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 14–20–4 Recap 39 T December 30, 1997 2–2 OT @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 14–20–5 Recap
January: 6–5–2 (home: 5–4–1; road: 1–1–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 40 W January 2, 1998 4–1 @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 15–20–5 Recap 41 L January 3, 1998 0–3 @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 15–21–5 Recap 42 L January 6, 1998 1–5 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 15–22–5 Recap 43 W January 10, 1998 5–2 Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 16–22–5 Recap 44 L January 12, 1998 1–3 Dallas Stars (1997–98) 16–23–5 Recap 45 L January 14, 1998 2–4 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 16–24–5 Recap 46 T January 15, 1998 2–2 OT @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 16–24–6 Recap 47 W January 21, 1998 7–1 Calgary Flames (1997–98) 17–24–6 Recap 48 W January 23, 1998 3–2 Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 18–24–6 Recap 49 T January 24, 1998 1–1 OT Florida Panthers (1997–98) 18–24–7 Recap 50 W January 27, 1998 4–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 19–24–7 Recap 51 L January 29, 1998 0–3 Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 19–25–7 Recap 52 W January 31, 1998 5–2 Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 20–25–7 Recap
February: 2–4–0 (home: 1–1–0; road: 1–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 53 L February 2, 1998 2–3 New York Rangers (1997–98) 20–26–7 Recap 54 W February 4, 1998 3–0 @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 21–26–7 Recap 55 L February 5, 1998 2–4 @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 21–27–7 Recap 56 L February 7, 1998 3–6 @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 21–28–7 Recap 57 W February 26, 1998 3–1 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 22–28–7 Recap 58 L February 28, 1998 1–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 22–29–7 Recap
March: 7–8–0 (home: 3–4–0; road: 4–4–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 59 L March 2, 1998 1–3 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 22–30–7 Recap 60 W March 5, 1998 5–4 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 23–30–7 Recap 61 W March 6, 1998 3–0 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 24–30–7 Recap 62 W March 9, 1998 3–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 25–30–7 Recap 63 L March 11, 1998 3–5 @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 25–31–7 Recap 64 L March 12, 1998 1–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 25–32–7 Recap 65 W March 14, 1998 2–1 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 26–32–7 Recap 66 W March 16, 1998 2–1 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 27–32–7 Recap 67 L March 18, 1998 1–3 Dallas Stars (1997–98) 27–33–7 Recap 68 L March 21, 1998 0–2 Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 27–34–7 Recap 69 L March 22, 1998 1–3 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 27–35–7 Recap 70 L March 24, 1998 3–4 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 27–36–7 Recap 71 W March 26, 1998 5–2 @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 28–36–7 Recap 72 W March 28, 1998 4–1 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 29–36–7 Recap 73 L March 30, 1998 2–6 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 29–37–7 Recap
April: 5–1–3 (home: 3–0–1; road: 2–1–2) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 74 W April 1, 1998 3–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 30–37–7 Recap 75 T April 2, 1998 3–3 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 30–37–8 Recap 76 W April 4, 1998 5–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 31–37–8 Recap 77 W April 7, 1998 6–0 Calgary Flames (1997–98) 32–37–8 Recap 78 W April 9, 1998 5–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 33–37–8 Recap 79 T April 11, 1998 1–1 OT Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 33–37–9 Recap 80 T April 15, 1998 3–3 OT @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 33–37–10 Recap 81 L April 16, 1998 1–4 @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 33–38–10 Recap 82 W April 18, 1998 4–1 Calgary Flames (1997–98) 34–38–10 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1998 Stanley Cup playoffs^[2]
Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (1) Dallas Stars – Stars win 4–2 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 L April 22, 1998 1–4 @ Dallas Stars Stars lead 1–0 Recap 2 L April 24, 1998 2–5 @ Dallas Stars Stars lead 2–0 Recap 3 W April 26, 1998 4–1 Dallas Stars Stars lead 2–1 Recap 4 W April 28, 1998 1–0 OT Dallas Stars Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 L April 30, 1998 2–3 @ Dallas Stars Stars lead 3–2 Recap 6 L May 2, 1998 2–3 OT Dallas Stars Stars win 4–2 Recap
Legend:   Win   Loss

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

			Regular season						Playoffs
No.	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
39	Jeff Friesen	LW	79	31	32	63	8	40	6	0	1	1	−1	2
11	Owen Nolan	RW	75	14	27	41	−2	144	6	2	2	4	−1	26
15	John MacLean†	RW	51	13	19	32	0	28	6	2	3	5	1	4
14	Patrick Marleau	C	74	13	19	32	5	14	5	0	1	1	−1	0
2	Bill Houlder	D	82	7	25	32	13	48	6	1	2	3	0	2
19	Marco Sturm	LW	74	10	20	30	−2	40	2	0	0	0	−2	0
37	Stephane Matteau	LW	73	15	14	29	4	60	4	0	1	1	1	0
22	Murray Craven	LW	67	12	17	29	4	25	6	1	1	2	−2	0
9	Bernie Nicholls	C	60	6	22	28	−4	26	6	0	5	5	−2	8
21	Tony Granato	RW	59	16	9	25	3	70	1	0	0	0	0	0
10	Marcus Ragnarsson	D	79	5	20	25	−11	65	6	0	0	0	2	4
18	Mike Ricci†	C	59	9	14	23	−4	30	6	1	3	4	0	6
23	Todd Gill‡	D	64	8	13	21	−13	31	—	—	—	—	—	—
40	Mike Rathje	D	81	3	12	15	−4	59	6	1	0	1	−3	6
20	Andrei Zyuzin	D	56	6	7	13	8	66	6	1	0	1	−2	14
28	Shawn Burr	LW	42	6	6	12	2	50	6	0	0	0	−1	8
33	Marty McSorley	D	56	2	10	12	10	140	—	—	—	—	—	—
3	Doug Bodger‡	D	28	4	6	10	0	32	—	—	—	—	—	—
8	Jarrod Skalde‡†‡†	C	22	4	6	10	−2	14	—	—	—	—	—	—
17	Joe Murphy†	RW	10	5	4	9	1	14	6	1	1	2	−1	20
43	Al Iafrate	D	21	2	7	9	−1	28	6	1	0	1	−4	10
12	Ron Sutter	C	57	2	7	9	−2	22	6	1	0	1	−1	14
26^[a]	Dave Lowry†	LW	50	4	4	8	0	51	6	0	0	0	0	18
25	Viktor Kozlov‡	C	18	5	2	7	−2	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
42	Shean Donovan‡	RW	20	3	3	6	3	22	—	—	—	—	—	—
27	Alexander Korolyuk	LW	19	2	3	5	−5	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
7	Rich Brennan‡	D	11	1	2	3	−4	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
27	Bryan Marchment†	D	12	0	3	3	2	43	6	0	0	0	1	10
17	Steve Guolla	C	7	1	1	2	−2	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
62	Andrei Nazarov‡	LW	40	1	1	2	−4	112	—	—	—	—	—	—
29	Mike Vernon	G	62	0	2	2		24	6	0	0	0		0
24	Barry Potomski	LW	9	0	1	1	1	30	—	—	—	—	—	—
34	Niklas Andersson	LW	5	0	0	0	−1	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
32	Kelly Hrudey	G	28	0	0	0		2	1	0	0	0		0
30	Jason Muzzatti†	G	1	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
5	Ken Sutton†	D	8	0	0	0	−4	15	—	—	—	—	—	—
16	Dody Wood‡	C	8	0	0	0	−3	40	—	—	—	—	—	—

Goaltending

• † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sharks 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
29	Mike Vernon	62	30	22	8	1401	146	2.46	.896	5	3564	6	2	4	138	14	2.41	.899	1	348
32	Kelly Hrudey	28	4	16	2	600	62	2.73	.897	1	1360	1	0	0	6	1	3.00	.833	0	20
30	Jason Muzzatti†	1	0	0	0	13	2	4.49	.846	0	27	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL Rookie of the Month	Marco Sturm (November)	^[3]
Team	Sharks Player of the Year	Mike Vernon	^[4]
	Sharks Rookie of the Year	Patrick Marleau	^[4]
		Marco Sturm
		Andrei Zyuzin

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
1,000th game played	Murray Craven	March 30, 1998	^[5]

Transactions

Draft picks

San Jose's picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[6]

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team
1	2	Patrick Marleau	Center	Canada	Seattle Thunderbirds
1	23	Scott Hannan	Defense	Canada	Kelowna Rockets
4	82	Adam Colagiacomo	Right Wing	Canada	Oshawa Generals
5	107	Adam Spylo	Right Wing	Canada	Erie Otters
7	163	Joe Dusbabek	Right Wing	United States	Notre Dame
8	192	Cam Severson	Left Wing	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders
9	219	Mark Smith	Center	Canada	Lethbridge Hurricanes

See also

• 1997–98 NHL season

Notes

1. Lowry wore number 15 until MacLean was acquired.

References

• "San Jose Sharks 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
• "1997-98 San Jose Sharks Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.

1. "1997-1998 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
2. "1997-98 San Jose Sharks Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
3. "NHL Rookies of the Month". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
4. 2014–15 San Jose Sharks Media Guide, p.255–58
5. Cooper, Tony (March 31, 1998). "Sharks Take a Shot Where It Hurts / Injury to Hrudey leads to Blues' rout". SFGATE. Retrieved July 9, 2023. Left wing Murray Craven, out the past five games with a neck injury, returned to play the 1,000th game of his NHL career.
6. "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.