1997–98 Ottawa Senators season

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1997–98 Ottawa Senators
Division 5th Northeast
Conference 8th Eastern
1997–98 record 34–33–15
Home record 18–16–7
Road record 16–17–8
Goals for 193
Goals against 200
Team information
General Manager Pierre Gauthier
Coach Jacques Martin
Captain Randy Cunneyworth
Alternate captains Daniel Alfredsson
Alexei Yashin
Arena Corel Centre
Average attendance 16,686 per game (667,454 total)
Team leaders
Goals Alexei Yashin (33)
Assists Alexei Yashin (39)
Points Alexei Yashin (72)
Penalties in minutes Denny Lambert (250)
Plus/minus Wade Redden (+17)
Wins Damian Rhodes (19)
Goals against average Ron Tugnutt (2.25)
<1996–97 1998–99>

The 1997–98 Ottawa Senators season would see the Senators face the challenge of improving on their very successful 1996–97 season, when they made the playoffs for the first time in team history. The 1997–98 season would be even more successful, as Ottawa finished over .500 for the first time in club history, qualified for the playoffs for the second straight year and won their first playoff series in modern club history. The Senators defeated the top-seeded New Jersey Devils in six games before falling to the Washington Capitals in five games in the second round.

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Regular season

Alexei Yashin would lead the club offensively, with 72 points (33 goals, 39 assists) in 82 games. Damian Rhodes and Ron Tugnutt would once again perform solidly in the Senators' net, helping set a club record for fewest goals allowed (200).

The Alexandre Daigle era came to an end midway through the season, as the Senators traded him to the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for Vaclav Prospal and Pat Falloon.

Final standings

Northeast Division
No. GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 Pittsburgh Penguins 82 40 24 18 228 188 98
2 Boston Bruins 82 39 30 13 221 194 91
3 Buffalo Sabres 82 36 29 17 211 187 89
4 Montreal Canadiens 82 37 32 13 235 208 87
5 Ottawa Senators 82 34 33 15 193 200 83
6 Carolina Hurricanes 82 33 41 8 200 219 74
Eastern Conference[1]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1 New Jersey Devils ATL 82 48 23 11 225 166 107
2 Pittsburgh Penguins NE 82 40 24 18 228 188 98
3 Philadelphia Flyers ATL 82 42 29 11 242 193 95
4 Washington Capitals ATL 82 40 30 12 219 202 92
5 Boston Bruins NE 82 39 30 13 221 194 91
6 Buffalo Sabres NE 82 36 29 17 211 187 89
7 Montreal Canadiens NE 82 37 32 13 235 208 87
8 Ottawa Senators NE 82 34 33 15 193 200 83
9 Carolina Hurricanes NE 82 33 41 8 200 219 74
10 New York Islanders ATL 82 30 41 11 212 225 71
11 New York Rangers ATL 82 25 39 18 197 231 68
12 Florida Panthers ATL 82 24 43 15 203 256 63
13 Tampa Bay Lightning ATL 82 17 55 10 151 269 44

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs


Playoffs

The Ottawa Senators ended the 1997–98 regular season as the Eastern Conference's eighth seed. Daniel Alfredsson, who missed 27 games in the regular season due to injuries, would lead the team with nine points (seven goals, two assists) in the playoffs and the club won its first round matchup, an upset win over the New Jersey Devils

Eastern Conference Quarter-finals: vs. (1) New Jersey Devils

On paper, the series was a big mismatch, as the Devils had finished 24 points ahead in the standings. One American newspaper covering the playoffs did not even preview the series, expecting an easy win for the Devils.[2] The Devils were characterized as arrogant, although the Devils and the Senators had split their season series. Devil Randy McKay, when asked which player on the Senators he respected, said, "To be honest, I'd have to see their (roster) list."[3]

The series opened in New Jersey. In Game 1, the Senators got a 1–0 lead and held onto it until 3:24 was left in the third period, when Doug Gilmour scored to tie the game. After the goal, the Devils got several penalties in a row, including some in overtime. Although the Senators went 0–6 on the power play, they managed to win the game on an overtime winner from Bruce Gardiner at 5:58.[4] In Game 2, the Devils won the game in large part due to the offence of Doug Gilmour, who assisted on the first goal and scored the second, game-winning goal and an empty netter to tie the series.[5]

The series now moved to Ottawa for Games 3 and 4. In Game 3, Damian Rhodes played outstanding and Alexei Yashin scored the winner, 2:47 into overtime on the power play. According to Devils' goaltender Martin Brodeur, "It's Rhodes, that's the bottom line. He has been tremendous. We're getting the puck to him, we're getting rebounds, but he closes the door every time." Devils Head Coach Jacques Lemaire refused to appear for the post-game press conference.[6] The Senators won Game 4, 4–3, on the strength of a hat-trick by Daniel Alfredsson. The Senators had led 4–1, but late goals by Scott Stevens and Doug Gilmour, with 69 seconds left, made it a close contest.[7]

The series now returned to New Jersey, with the Devils on the brink of elimination. In Game 5, Brodeur stopped 22 of 23 shots and even assisted on a short-handed goal as the Devils won 3–1. Gilmour scored the game-winner and the Devils staved off elimination.[8]

In Game 6, Janne Laukkanen scored the winner, giving the Senators the lead that was solidified when Igor Kravchuk scored into an empty net to complete the series upset, 4–2, for the Senators. After the game, Scott Stevens commented, "The bottom line is that they're an average team that played great. And we're an above average team that played poorly."[2] The headlines from other newspapers labelled the playoff win a "titanic upset"[9] and "sensational upset."[10]

# Date Visitor Score Home Record Attendance
1 April 22 Ottawa 2 – 1 (OT) New Jersey 1 – 0 18,457
2 April 24 Ottawa 1 – 3 New Jersey 1 – 1 19,040
3 April 26 New Jersey 1 – 2 (OT) Ottawa 2 – 1 18,500
4 April 28 New Jersey 3 – 4 Ottawa 3 – 1 18,500
5 April 30 Ottawa 1 – 3 New Jersey 3 – 2 19,040
6 May 2 New Jersey 1 – 3 Ottawa 4 – 2 18,500

Ottawa wins series 4–2.

Eastern Conference Semi-finals: vs. (4) Washington Capitals

The Senators could not capitalize on their first-round win and the Capitals took the series in five games.

# Date Visitor Score Home Record Attendance
1 May 7 Ottawa 2 – 4 Washington 0 – 1 17,941
2 May 9 Ottawa 1 – 6 Washington 0 – 2 19,740
3 May 11 Washington 3 – 4 Ottawa 1 – 2 18,500
4 May 13 Washington 2 – 0 Ottawa 1 – 3 18,500
5 May 15 Ottawa 0 – 3 Washington 1 – 4 19,740

Washington wins series 4–1

Awards and records

Schedule and results

Regular season schedule
No. R Date Score Opponent Record Attendance
1 T October 1, 1997 2–2 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 0–0–1 20,673
2 L October 3, 1997 3–5 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 0–1–1 19,231
3 W October 4, 1997 3–2 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 1–1–1 18,500
4 W October 7, 1997 1–0 @ San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 2–1–1 16,073
5 T October 10, 1997 1–1 OT @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 2–1–2 17,174
6 L October 12, 1997 4–7 @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 2–2–2 16,005
7 W October 15, 1997 5–1 New York Rangers (1997–98) 3–2–2 17,111
8 W October 17, 1997 4–2 New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 4–2–2 13,681
9 W October 19, 1997 3–1 Dallas Stars (1997–98) 5–2–2 14,354
10 W October 22, 1997 6–2 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 6–2–2 15,726
11 T October 23, 1997 2–2 OT Florida Panthers (1997–98) 6–2–3 15,168
12 L October 25, 1997 2–4 Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 6–3–3 18,500
13 W October 29, 1997 5–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 7–3–3 10,776
14 W October 30, 1997 5–2 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 8–3–3 14,703
15 L November 2, 1997 1–3 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 8–4–3 16,753
16 W November 6, 1997 4–1 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 9–4–3 13,437
17 L November 8, 1997 3–4 Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 9–5–3 18,500
18 L November 9, 1997 1–4 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 9–6–3 5,551
19 L November 11, 1997 0–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 9–7–3 19,314
20 L November 13, 1997 2–4 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 9–8–3 18,136
21 T November 15, 1997 3–3 OT @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 9–8–4 14,761
22 L November 17, 1997 2–4 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 9–9–4 15,742
23 L November 20, 1997 0–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 9–10–4 14,097
24 L November 22, 1997 0–1 Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 9–11–4 17,113
25 L November 26, 1997 1–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 9–12–4 19,983
26 W November 27, 1997 3–1 Washington Capitals (1997–98) 10–12–4 13,671
27 L November 29, 1997 2–3 Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 10–13–4 18,251
28 W December 2, 1997 4–2 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 11–13–4 8,141
29 W December 4, 1997 3–2 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 12–13–4 14,108
30 W December 6, 1997 3–0 Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 13–13–4 15,285
31 L December 11, 1997 1–2 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 13–14–4 14,961
32 L December 13, 1997 1–3 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 13–15–4 14,290
33 W December 15, 1997 3–1 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 14–15–4 14,155
34 L December 16, 1997 1–2 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 14–16–4 7,317
35 W December 18, 1997 3–2 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 15–16–4 14,437
36 L December 20, 1997 1–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 15–17–4 20,910
37 W December 22, 1997 4–1 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 16–17–4 10,227
38 W December 23, 1997 4–3 OT Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 17–17–4 18,500
39 W December 27, 1997 3–0 @ Washington Capitals (1997–98) 18–17–4 17,921
40 L December 31, 1997 0–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 18–18–4 15,636
41 T January 1, 1998 0–0 OT @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 18–18–5 13,714
42 L January 3, 1998 2–7 Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 18–19–5 18,500
43 L January 5, 1998 1–4 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 18–20–5 6,055
44 W January 7, 1998 2–0 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 19–20–5 16,928
45 T January 10, 1998 3–3 OT @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 19–20–6 16,061
46 T January 11, 1998 4–4 OT @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 19–20–7 13,963
47 L January 13, 1998 0–4 @ Washington Capitals (1997–98) 19–21–7 11,109
48 T January 20, 1998 0–0 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 19–21–8 13,116
49 L January 22, 1998 2–4 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 19–22–8 15,491
50 W January 24, 1998 3–2 New York Islanders (1997–98) 20–22–8 18,327
51 W January 26, 1998 2–1 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 21–22–8 13,804
52 L January 27, 1998 1–6 @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 21–23–8 14,183
53 T January 29, 1998 2–2 OT New York Rangers (1997–98) 21–23–9 18,500
54 W January 31, 1998 4–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 22–23–9 21,273
55 L February 2, 1998 0–1 New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 22–24–9 15,675
56 L February 4, 1998 0–2 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 22–25–9 15,302
57 W February 5, 1998 3–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 23–25–9 18,500
58 T February 7, 1998 2–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 23–25–10 18,500
59 L February 25, 1998 2–5 @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 23–26–10 16,142
60 L February 28, 1998 4–6 @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 23–27–10 17,233
61 L March 1, 1998 1–2 @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 23–28–10 17,463
62 W March 5, 1998 4–2 Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 24–28–10 18,500
63 W March 7, 1998 2–1 Calgary Flames (1997–98) 25–28–10 18,036
64 W March 11, 1998 5–3 Florida Panthers (1997–98) 26–28–10 15,539
65 W March 14, 1998 4–0 Washington Capitals (1997–98) 27–28–10 18,500
66 L March 16, 1998 4–5 @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 27–29–10 18,200
67 T March 18, 1998 4–4 OT New York Islanders (1997–98) 27–29–11 17,403
68 T March 20, 1998 1–1 OT Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 27–29–12 18,500
69 L March 22, 1998 2–5 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 27–30–12 17,177
70 W March 25, 1998 3–2 OT @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 28–30–12 18,200
71 L March 27, 1998 1–2 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 28–31–12 19,172
72 T March 29, 1998 1–1 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 28–31–13 14,322
73 T April 2, 1998 3–3 OT San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 28–31–14 18,119
74 W April 3, 1998 3–2 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 29–31–14 17,313
75 W April 5, 1998 1–0 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 30–31–14 15,661
76 L April 7, 1998 2–4 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 30–32–14 18,226
77 W April 9, 1998 4–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 31–32–14 17,895
78 T April 11, 1998 4–4 OT Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 31–32–15 18,500
79 W April 13, 1998 3–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 32–32–15 12,387
80 W April 14, 1998 3–2 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 33–32–15 14,703
81 L April 16, 1998 0–2 Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 33–33–15 18,500
82 W April 19, 1998 2–1 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 34–33–15 18,595

[11]

Player statistics

Regular season

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Alexei Yashin C 82 33 39 72 24 6 5 0 6
Shawn McEachern RW 81 24 24 48 42 1 8 2 4
Daniel Alfredsson RW 55 17 28 45 18 7 7 0 7
Igor Kravchuk D 81 8 27 35 8 -19 3 1 1
Andreas Dackell RW 82 15 18 33 24 -11 3 2 2
Magnus Arvedson LW 61 11 15 26 36 2 0 1 0
Sergei Zholtok C 78 10 13 23 16 -7 7 0 1
Wade Redden D 80 8 14 22 27 17 3 0 2
Janne Laukkanen D 60 4 17 21 64 -15 2 0 2
Denny Lambert LW 72 9 10 19 250 4 0 0 1
Shaun Van Allen C 80 4 15 19 48 4 0 0 0
Bruce Gardiner RW 55 7 11 18 50 2 0 0 0
Radek Bonk C 65 7 9 16 16 -13 1 0 0
Alexandre Daigle C 38 7 9 16 8 -7 4 0 2
Chris Phillips D 72 5 11 16 38 2 2 0 2
Jason York D 73 3 13 16 62 8 0 0 0
Randy Cunneyworth LW 71 2 11 13 63 -14 1 0 0
Lance Pitlick D 69 2 7 9 50 8 0 0 0
Chris Murray RW 46 5 3 8 96 1 0 0 2
Vaclav Prospal C 15 1 6 7 4 -1 0 0 0
Pat Falloon RW 28 3 3 6 8 -11 2 0 0
Stan Neckar D 60 2 2 4 31 -14 0 0 0
Phil Crowe LW 9 3 0 3 24 3 0 0 1
Derek Armstrong C 9 2 0 2 9 1 0 0 1
Sean Hill D 13 1 1 2 6 -3 0 0 0
Per Gustafsson D 9 0 1 1 6 3 0 0 0
Marian Hossa RW 7 0 1 1 0 -1 0 0 0
Damian Rhodes G 50 0 1 1 0 0 0 0 0
Radim Bicanek D 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ivan Ciernik RW 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ron Tugnutt G 42 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Dennis Vial D/LW 19 0 0 0 45 0 0 0 0
Jason Zent LW 3 0 0 0 4 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Damian Rhodes 2743 50 19 19 7 107 2.34 5 1148 1041 .907
Ron Tugnutt 2236 42 15 14 8 84 2.25 3 882 798 .905
Team: 4979 82 34 33 15 191 2.30 8 2030 1839 .906

Playoffs

Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Daniel Alfredsson RW 11 7 2 9 20 -4 2 1 1
Alexei Yashin C 11 5 3 8 8 -6 3 0 2
Igor Kravchuk D 11 2 3 5 4 0 0 0
Janne Laukkanen D 11 2 2 4 8 -3 1 0 1
Bruce Gardiner RW 11 1 3 4 2 -2 0 0 1
Shawn McEachern RW 11 0 4 4 8 -6 0 0 0
Andreas Dackell RW 11 1 1 2 2 -4 1 0 0
Jason York D 7 1 1 2 7 -2 1 0 0
Chris Phillips D 11 0 2 2 2 -2 0 0 0
Wade Redden D 9 0 2 2 2 -5 0 0 0
Sergei Zholtok C 11 0 2 2 0 -1 0 0 0
Chris Murray RW 11 1 0 1 8 -2 0 0 0
Magnus Arvedson LW 11 0 1 1 6 -6 0 0 0
Randy Cunneyworth LW 6 0 1 1 6 0 0 0 0
Lance Pitlick D 11 0 1 1 17 -3 0 0 0
Shaun Van Allen C 11 0 1 1 10 -3 0 0 0
Radek Bonk C 5 0 0 0 2 -3 0 0 0
Pat Falloon RW 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Per Gustafsson D 1 0 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0
Denny Lambert LW 11 0 0 0 19 2 0 0 0
Stan Neckar D 9 0 0 0 2 -4 0 0 0
Vaclav Prospal C 6 0 0 0 0 -2 0 0 0
Damian Rhodes G 10 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Ron Tugnutt G 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Damian Rhodes 590 10 5 5 21 2.14 0 236 215 .911
Ron Tugnutt 74 2 0 1 6 4.86 0 25 19 .760
Team: 664 11 5 6 27 2.44 0 261 234 .897

[12]

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;

Transactions

Trades

August 25, 1997 To St. Louis Blues
Steve Duchesne		 To Ottawa Senators
Igor Kravchuk
November 18, 1997 To Carolina Hurricanes
Sean Hill		 To Ottawa Senators
Chris Murray
January 17, 1998 To Philadelphia Flyers
Alexandre Daigle		 To Ottawa Senators
Vaclav Prospal
Pat Falloon
Dallas' second-round pick 1998 Entry Draft (Chris Bala)
March 9, 1998 To Edmonton Oilers
Frank Musil		 To Ottawa Senators
Scott Ferguson
March 17, 1998 To Toronto Maple Leafs
Ottawa's eighth-round pick 1998 Entry Draft (Dwight Wolfe)		 To Ottawa Senators
Per Gustafsson

Waivers

September 28, 1997 To New York Islanders
Tom Chorske

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Free agents

Player Former team
Marc Labelle Dallas Stars
Clayton Beddoes Boston Bruins
Derek Armstrong New York Islanders

Roster

1997-98 Ottawa Senators
Goaltenders

Defensemen

Wingers

Centres

Sources:

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Draft picks

Ottawa's draft picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
1 12 Marian Hossa  Slovakia Dukla Trencin (Slovak Extraliga)
3 58 Jani Hurme  Finland TPS (SM-liiga)
3 66 Josh Langfeld  United States Lincoln Stars (USHL)
5 119 Magnus Arvedson  Sweden Farjestad BK (Elitserien)
6 146 Jeffrey Sullivan  Canada Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
7 173 Robin Bacul  Czech Republic Slavia Prague (Czech Extraliga)
8 203 Nick Gillis  United States Cushing Academy (USHS-MA)
9 229 Karel Rachunek  Czech Republic Zlin ZPS (Czech Extraliga)

Farm teams

See also

References

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  • The Internet Hockey Database
  • National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007
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  12. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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