2006–07 NHL season

2006–07 NHL season
League	National Hockey League
Sport	Ice hockey
Duration	October 4, 2006 – June 6, 2007
Number of games	82
Number of teams	30
Regular season
Presidents' Trophy	Buffalo Sabres
Season MVP	Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh)
Top scorer	Sidney Crosby (Pittsburgh)
Playoffs
Eastern champions	Ottawa Senators
Eastern runners-up	Buffalo Sabres
Western champions	Anaheim Ducks
Western runners-up	Detroit Red Wings
Playoffs Playoffs MVP	Scott Niedermayer (Anaheim)
Stanley Cup
Champions	Anaheim Ducks
Runners-up	Ottawa Senators

The 2006–07 NHL season was the 90th season of operation (89th season of play) of the National Hockey League (NHL). The 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs began on April 11, 2007 and concluded on June 6, with the Anaheim Ducks defeating the Ottawa Senators to win their first Stanley Cup, becoming the first team from California to do so.

League business

National Hockey League announced that the regular season salary cap rise after the initial season. The 2006–07 salary cap was increased by $5,000,000 (US) per team to bring the salary cap up to $44,000,000 (US). While the 2006–07 salary floor was increased by $8,000,000 (US) per team to $28,000,000 (US). This is the only year where the NHL salary floor raised faster than the NHL salary cap.

The Mighty Ducks of Anaheim officially shortened their name to the Anaheim Ducks prior to the season, introducing a new logo and color scheme. This reflected a clean break from their original owners, The Walt Disney Company, who originally named the team after the movie, The Mighty Ducks.

Regular season

The NHL All-Star Game returned after a two-year absence when the Dallas Stars hosted the 55th National Hockey League All-Star Game at the American Airlines Center on January 24, 2007. Dallas hosted the All-Star Game for the first time, and it was the first time the Stars franchise had hosted the game since 1972, when it was hosted by the-then Minnesota North Stars. The West defeated the East by a score of 12–9, with Danny Briere of the Buffalo Sabres being named MVP of the game. Fewer penalties were called than in 2005–06 (an average of 398 per team). This led to fewer goals scored overall (7,082) and more shutouts (150). However, more even-strength goals were scored (4,715) than in 2005–06 (4,579).

This season would have an intense battle between Martin Brodeur and Roberto Luongo for the Vezina Trophy and a piece of NHL history. Both goaltenders were vying to break Bernie Parent's NHL record 47 wins in a single season. On April 3, 2007, Brodeur tied the NHL record for most wins in a single season with 47, set by Parent in 1973–74, in a 2–1 shootout victory against the Ottawa Senators. Two days later, he broke the thirty-three-year-old record with his 48th win in a 3–2 victory over the Philadelphia Flyers, which helped the Devils clinch their seventh Atlantic Division title and the second seed in the Eastern Conference. Luongo finished with a career-high 47 wins, one shy of Brodeur, and consequently finished runner-up in a close race for the Vezina. Luongo and Brodeur are considered, however, to have been given an advantage to Parent with the inauguration of the shootout that season by the NHL, allowing more games to be decided with wins, as opposed to ties. The Carolina Hurricanes became the first team since the 1995-96 New Jersey Devils to miss the playoffs after being the defending Stanley Cup Champions.

The inter-conference division play had the Northeast visits The Central, The Central visits The Atlantic, The Atlantic visits The Pacific, The Pacific visits The Southeast, The Southeast visits The Northwest, And the Northwest visits the Northeast.

Final standings

Buffalo Sabres won the Presidents' Trophy and home-ice advantage throughout the playoffs.

For the purpose of conference rankings, division leaders are automatically ranked 1–3. These three, plus the next five teams in the conference standings, earn playoff berths at the end of the season.

Eastern Conference

Atlantic Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	New Jersey Devils	82	49	24	9	216	201	107
2	5	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	47	24	11	277	246	105
3	6	New York Rangers	82	42	30	10	242	216	94
4	8	New York Islanders	82	40	30	12	248	240	92
5	15	Philadelphia Flyers	82	22	48	12	214	303	56

Northeast Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	1	Buffalo Sabres	82	53	22	7	308	242	113
2	4	Ottawa Senators	82	48	25	9	288	222	105
3	9	Toronto Maple Leafs	82	40	31	11	258	269	91
4	10	Montreal Canadiens	82	42	34	6	245	256	90
5	13	Boston Bruins	82	35	41	6	219	289	76

Southeast Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	3	Atlanta Thrashers	82	43	28	11	246	245	97
2	7	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	44	33	5	253	261	93
3	11	Carolina Hurricanes	82	40	34	8	241	253	88
4	12	Florida Panthers	82	35	31	16	247	257	86
5	14	Washington Capitals	82	28	40	14	235	286	70

Eastern Conference R Div GP W L OTL GF GA Pts 1 P - Buffalo Sabres NE 82 53 22 7 308 242 113 2 Y - New Jersey Devils AT 82 49 24 9 216 201 107 3 Y - Atlanta Thrashers SE 82 43 28 11 246 201 97 4 X - Ottawa Senators NE 82 48 25 9 288 222 105 5 X - Pittsburgh Penguins AT 82 47 24 11 277 246 105 6 X - New York Rangers AT 82 42 30 10 242 216 94 7 X - Tampa Bay Lightning SE 82 44 33 5 253 261 93 8 X - New York Islanders AT 82 40 30 12 248 240 92 8.5 9 Toronto Maple Leafs NE 82 40 31 11 258 269 91 10 Montreal Canadiens NE 82 42 34 6 245 256 90 11 Carolina Hurricanes SE 82 40 34 8 241 253 88 12 Florida Panthers SE 82 35 31 16 247 257 86 13 Boston Bruins NE 82 35 41 6 219 289 76 14 Washington Capitals SE 82 28 40 14 235 286 70 15 Philadelphia Flyers AT 82 22 48 12 214 303 56

Divisions: AT – Atlantic, NE – Northeast, SE – Southeast

P- Clinched Presidents Trophy; Y- Clinched Division; X- Clinched Playoff spot

Western Conference

Central Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	1	Detroit Red Wings	82	50	19	13	254	199	113
2	4	Nashville Predators	82	51	23	8	272	212	110
3	10	St. Louis Blues	82	34	35	13	214	254	81
4	11	Columbus Blue Jackets	82	33	42	7	201	249	73
5	13	Chicago Blackhawks	82	31	42	9	201	258	71

Northwest Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	3	Vancouver Canucks	82	49	26	7	222	201	105
2	7	Minnesota Wild	82	48	26	8	235	191	104
3	8	Calgary Flames	82	43	29	10	258	226	96
4	9	Colorado Avalanche	82	44	31	7	272	251	95
5	12	Edmonton Oilers	82	32	43	7	195	248	71

Pacific Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	Anaheim Ducks	82	48	20	14	258	208	110
2	5	San Jose Sharks	82	51	26	5	258	199	107
3	6	Dallas Stars	82	50	25	7	226	197	107
4	14	Los Angeles Kings	82	27	41	14	227	283	68
5	15	Phoenix Coyotes	82	31	46	5	216	284	67

Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime/shootout loss; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; PIM = Penalties in minutes; Pts = Points
         Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.

Western Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	OTL	GF	GA	Pts
1	z-Detroit Red Wings	CE	82	50	19	13	254	199	113
2	y-Anaheim Ducks	PA	82	48	20	14	258	208	110
3	y-Vancouver Canucks	NW	82	49	26	7	222	201	105
4	Nashville Predators	CE	82	51	23	8	272	212	110
5	San Jose Sharks	PA	82	51	26	5	258	199	107
6	Dallas Stars	PA	82	50	25	7	226	197	107
7	Minnesota Wild	NW	82	48	26	8	235	191	104
8	Calgary Flames	NW	82	43	29	10	258	226	96
9	Colorado Avalanche	NW	82	44	31	7	272	251	95
10	St. Louis Blues	CE	82	34	35	13	214	254	81
11	Columbus Blue Jackets	CE	82	33	42	7	201	249	73
12	Edmonton Oilers	NW	82	32	43	7	195	248	71
13	Chicago Blackhawks	CE	82	31	42	9	201	258	71
14	Los Angeles Kings	PA	82	27	41	14	227	283	68
15	Phoenix Coyotes	PA	82	31	46	5	216	284	67

bold - qualified for playoffs, y - division title, z - best conference record
CE - Central Division, NW - Northwest Division, PA - Pacific Division
Source:Yahoo Sports.

Tiebreaking procedures

If two or more clubs are tied in points during the regular season, the standing of the clubs is determined in the following order:

1. The fewer number of games played (i.e., superior points percentage).
2. The greater number of games won.
3. The greater number of points earned in games between the tied clubs.
4. The greater differential between goals for and against.

Playoffs

Main article: 2007 Stanley Cup playoffs

The Stanley Cup

Final

Main article: 2007 Stanley Cup Finals

Anaheim Ducks vs. Ottawa Senators

Date	Away	Score	Home	Score
May 28	Ottawa	2	Anaheim	3
May 30	Ottawa	0	Anaheim	1
June 2	Anaheim	3	Ottawa	5
June 4	Anaheim	3	Ottawa	2
June 6	Ottawa	2	Anaheim	6
Anaheim wins series 4–1
Scott Niedermayer wins Conn Smythe Trophy

Playoff bracket

	Conference Quarterfinals					Conference Semifinals					Conference Finals					Stanley Cup Finals
	1	Buffalo	4			1	Buffalo	4
	8	NY Islanders	1			6	NY Rangers	2
	2	New Jersey	4							Eastern Conference
	7	Tampa Bay	2
											1	Buffalo	1
										4	Ottawa	4
	3	Atlanta	0
	6	NY Rangers	4
	4	Ottawa	4			2	New Jersey	1
	5	Pittsburgh	1			4	Ottawa	4
																E4	Ottawa	1
		(Pairings are re-seeded after the first round.)
																W2	Anaheim	4
	1	Detroit	4			1	Detroit	4
	8	Calgary	2			5	San Jose	2
	2	Anaheim	4
	7	Minnesota	1
											1	Detroit	2
										2	Anaheim	4
	3	Vancouver	4
	6	Dallas	3								Western Conference
	4	Nashville	1			2	Anaheim	4
	5	San Jose	4			3	Vancouver	1

• During the first three rounds home ice is determined by seeding number, not position on the bracket. In the Finals the team with the better regular season record has home ice.

In each round, the highest remaining seed in each conference is matched against the lowest remaining seed. The higher-seeded team is awarded home ice advantage, which gives them a maximum possible four games on their home ice, with the other team getting a maximum possible three. In the Stanley Cup Final, home ice is determined based on regular season points, giving the Anaheim Ducks home ice for this year's series. Each best-of-seven series follows a 2–2–1–1–1 format. This means that the higher-seeded team will have Games 1 and 2, plus 5 and 7 if necessary, played on their home ice, while the lower-seeded team will be at home for the other games. The format ensures that the team with home ice advantage will always have home ice for the "extra" game if there are an odd number of games in a series.

Awards

2006–2007 NHL awards
Award	Recipient(s)
Stanley Cup:	Anaheim Ducks
Presidents' Trophy:	Buffalo Sabres
Prince of Wales Trophy:	Ottawa Senators
Clarence S. Campbell Bowl:	Anaheim Ducks
Art Ross Trophy:	Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy:	Phil Kessel, Boston Bruins
Calder Memorial Trophy:	Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
Conn Smythe Trophy:	Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim Ducks
Frank J. Selke Trophy:	Rod Brind'Amour, Carolina Hurricanes
Hart Memorial Trophy:	Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Jack Adams Award:	Alain Vigneault, Vancouver Canucks
James Norris Memorial Trophy:	Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings
King Clancy Memorial Trophy:	Saku Koivu, Montreal Canadiens
Lady Byng Memorial Trophy:	Pavel Datsyuk, Detroit Red Wings
Lester B. Pearson Award:	Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins
Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy:	Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
NHL Plus/Minus Award:	Thomas Vanek, Buffalo Sabres
Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award:	Niklas Backstrom, Minnesota Wild
Vezina Trophy:	Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils
William M. Jennings Trophy:	Niklas Backstrom and Manny Fernandez, Minnesota Wild
Lester Patrick Trophy:	Brian Leetch, Cammi Granato, Stan Fischler, John Halligan

All-Star teams

First Team	Position	Second Team
Martin Brodeur, New Jersey Devils	G	Roberto Luongo, Vancouver Canucks
Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings	D	Dan Boyle, Tampa Bay Lightning
Scott Niedermayer, Anaheim Ducks	D	Chris Pronger, Anaheim Ducks
Sidney Crosby, Pittsburgh Penguins	C	Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
Dany Heatley, Ottawa Senators	RW	Martin St. Louis, Tampa Bay Lightning
Alexander Ovechkin, Washington Capitals	LW	Thomas Vanek, Buffalo Sabres

Player statistics

Scoring leaders

Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/– = Plus/Minus; PIM = Penalty Minutes

Player	Team	GP	G	A	Pts	+/–	PIM
Sidney Crosby	Pittsburgh Penguins	79	36	84	120	+10	60
Joe Thornton	San Jose Sharks	82	22	92	114	+24	44
Vincent Lecavalier	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	52	56	108	+2	44
Dany Heatley	Ottawa Senators	82	50	55	105	+31	74
Martin St. Louis	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	43	59	102	+7	28
Marian Hossa	Atlanta Thrashers	82	43	57	100	+18	49
Joe Sakic	Colorado Avalanche	82	36	64	100	+2	46
Jaromir Jagr	New York Rangers	82	30	66	96	+26	78
Marc Savard	Boston Bruins	82	22	74	96	−19	96
Daniel Briere	Buffalo Sabres	81	32	63	95	+17	89

Source: NHL.

Leading goaltenders

Note: GP = Games Played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; OT = Overtime/Shootout Losses; GA = Goals Against; SO = Shutouts; Sv% = Save Percentage; GAA = Goals Against Average

Player	Team	GP	Min	W	L	OT	GA	SO	Sv%	GAA
Niklas Backstrom	Minnesota Wild	41	2,226	23	8	6	73	5	.929	1.97
Dominik Hasek	Detroit Red Wings	56	3,340	38	11	6	114	8	.913	2.05
Martin Brodeur	New Jersey Devils	78	4,696	48	23	7	171	12	.922	2.18
Roberto Luongo	Vancouver Canucks	76	4,490	47	22	6	171	5	.921	2.28
Jean-Sebastien Giguere	Anaheim Ducks	56	3,244	36	10	8	122	4	.918	2.26

Events and milestones

Several former players had their jersey numbers retired during this season:

• Pittsburgh Penguins retired Mario Lemieux's No. 66 for the second time on October 5.
• St. Louis Blues retired Brett Hull's No. 16 on December 5.
• Detroit Red Wings retired Steve Yzerman's No. 19 on January 2.
• Los Angeles Kings retired Luc Robitaille's No. 20 on January 20.
• Montreal Canadiens retired Serge Savard's No. 18 on November 18 and Ken Dryden's No. 29 on January 29.
• Calgary Flames retired Mike Vernon's No. 30 on February 6.
• Edmonton Oilers retired Mark Messier's No. 11 on February 27.

Numerous players reached major milestones during the season:

• Brendan Shanahan became the 15th player with 600 regular season NHL goals when he scored twice in his debut with the New York Rangers on October 5.
• Jaromir Jagr joined Shanahan in the 600 goal club on November 19, making Jagr and Shanahan the first teammates to reach 600 goals in the same season. Jagr also passed Jari Kurri's record for points by a European-born player and later became the 12th player to score 1,500 career points. Jagr scored his 30th goal of the season against the Montreal Canadiens on April 5, tying Mike Gartner's record for most consecutive 30-goal seasons at 15.
• Joe Sakic became the third player to score 600 career goals this season on February 15. Sakic also became the 11th player to record 1,500 points.
• Teppo Numminen played in his 1,252nd regular season game on November 13, passing Jari Kurri's record for most games played by a European-trained player.
• Mats Sundin became the first Swedish player to score 500 career goals on October 14.
• Teemu Selänne scored his 500th goal on November 23, becoming only the second Finnish player to reach the mark.
• Peter Bondra became the 37th player to achieve 500 goals on December 22, followed shortly thereafter by Mark Recchi as number 38 on January 26.
• On March 13, Mike Modano became the 39th player to score 500 goals. Four nights later, he passed Joe Mullen for most goals by an American-born player by scoring his 503rd goal.

The NHL's youth movement continued:

• Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins became first player in 89 years to score a goal in each of his first six games in the NHL.
• Pittsburgh Penguins forward Jordan Staal became the youngest player (18 years, 153 days) in NHL history to record a hat trick on February 10.
• Colorado Avalanche forward Paul Stastny set an NHL rookie record by scoring at least one point in 20 consecutive games, breaking Teemu Selänne's record of 17.
• Nineteen-year-old phenom Sidney Crosby claimed the scoring title with 120 points, becoming the youngest player in NHL history to achieve the feat.
• Crosby scored a goal against the Carolina Hurricanes to pass Wayne Gretzky as the youngest player (19 years, 207 days) in NHL history to reach 200 career points.

Numerous other milestones, events, and happenings occurred as well:

• The New York Rangers and Florida Panthers played an historic preseason game on September 23, 2006, when the Rangers defeated the Panthers 3–2 in the NHL's first game in Puerto Rico.

• On November 9, 2006, the Anaheim Ducks set an NHL open era record by remaining undefeated in regulation for the first 16 games of the season, with 12 wins and four overtime losses. The previous mark was set by the 1984–85 Edmonton Oilers, who had 12 wins and three ties.

• On January 2, 2007, the Edmonton Oilers recorded their 1,000th regular season win in franchise history by defeating the Florida Panthers 4–1 at Rexall Place in Edmonton, Alberta.

• On February 1, 2007, Martin Brodeur passed Patrick Roy for first place on the all-time overtime wins list, with 45 career overtime wins.

• On February 22, 2007, eight games went to overtime, setting a record for most on one day. Four of these games went to a shootout. One of the shootouts, between the Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres, was the culmination of a game that saw a huge fight, the result of a late hit on Sabres co-captain Chris Drury, that resulted in 100 penalty minutes and three game misconduct ejections.

• On March 11, 2007, Chris Simon of the New York Islanders was suspended an NHL-record 25 games (minimum) for striking New York Rangers center Ryan Hollweg in the face with his stick during a March 8 game between the two teams. Simon missed the Islanders' final 15 regular-season contests, their five post-season games, and the first five games of the 2007–08 season.

• On March 31, 2007, Vincent Lecavalier of the Tampa Bay Lightning scored his 51st goal of the season against the Washington Capitals, which would be enough to ensure that he became the first Lightning player to win the Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (most goals scored). Lecavalier finished the season with 52 goals. On the same night, Martin St. Louis crossed the 100-point mark for the season, making him and Lecavalier the only teammates in the 2006–07 season to reach 100 points.

• On April 3, 2007, Dominik Hasek of the Detroit Red Wings made 35 saves and moved into a tie for eighth place with Ed Belfour and Tony Esposito on the career shutouts list with 76, in a 3–0 win over the Columbus Blue Jackets. The shutout was Columbus' 16th of the season, setting a modern-day NHL record for shutouts against.

• On April 5, 2007, goalie Martin Brodeur of the New Jersey Devils recorded his 48th win of the season, setting a new record for most wins in a single season by a goaltender. The previous record of 47 wins was set during the 1973–74 NHL season by Bernie Parent of the Philadelphia Flyers.

• For the first time in NHL history, neither of the previous season's Stanley Cup finalists qualified for the playoffs, as both the Edmonton Oilers and defending champion Carolina Hurricanes failed to qualify. The Hurricanes are also the first Stanley Cup Champion since the 1995–96 New Jersey Devils to miss the playoffs the season after their victory.

• The Colorado Avalanche, with 95 points, broke the record set by the Montreal Canadiens in the 1969–70 season who had 92 points, for having the most points of any team missing the playoffs.

• The Vancouver Canucks broke their franchise record of the longest playoff game on April 11, 2007 winning near the end of the fourth overtime, against the Dallas Stars and marking the sixth-longest game in NHL history.

• On June 2, 2007, the Stanley Cup Finals returned to Ottawa for the first time in over 80 years, since the final match between the original Ottawa Senators and the Boston Bruins on April 13, 1927 was played. As reported by The Canadian Press, 99-year-old Russell Williams is in attendance, who attended the previous Finals game. The Senators won the game, 5–3.

Debuts

The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 2006–07:

• Loui Eriksson, Dallas Stars
• Jack Johnson, Los Angeles Kings
• Anze Kopitar, Los Angeles Kings
• Evgeni Malkin, Pittsburgh Penguins
• Jordan Staal, Pittsburgh Penguins
• Kris Letang, Pittsburgh Penguins
• Rich Peverley, Nashville Predators
• David Krejci, Boston Bruins
• Drew Stafford, Buffalo Sabres
• Joe Pavelski, San Jose Sharks
• Ryan Callahan, New York Rangers
• Keith Yandle, Phoenix Coyotes

Last games

The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 2006–07 (listed with their last team):

• Tony Amonte Calgary Flames
• Matthew Barnaby, Dallas Stars
• Eddie Belfour, Florida Panthers
• Peter Bondra, Chicago Blackhawks
• Sean Burke, Los Angeles Kings
• John LeClair, Pittsburgh Penguins
• Eric Lindros, Dallas Stars
• Alyn McCauley, Los Angeles Kings
• Scott Mellanby, Atlanta Thrashers
• Joe Nieuwendyk, Florida Panthers
• Mike Ricci, Phoenix Coyotes
• Patrik Stefan, Dallas Stars
• Pierre Turgeon, Colorado Avalanche

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See also

• 2006 NHL Entry Draft
• 2006-07 NHL transactions
• 2007 Stanley Cup Playoffs
• 55th National Hockey League All-Star Game
• National Hockey League All-Star Game
• 2006 in ice hockey
• 2007 in ice hockey

References

Notes

External links

Media related to at Wikimedia Commons

• NHL.com
• Hockey Database

• Archived March 3, 2009 at the Wayback Machine
• 2006–07 NHL Season Summary | Hockey-Reference.com Archived 21 February 2011 at WebCite
• 2006–07 NHL Season Skater Statistics | Hockey-Reference.com Archived 21 February 2011 at WebCite
• 2006–07 NHL Season Goalie Statistics | Hockey-Reference.com Archived 21 February 2011 at WebCite
• 2005–06 NHL Season Skater Statistics | Hockey-Reference.com Archived 21 February 2011 at WebCite
• Canucks' Luongo aims for exclusive club. CBC Sports. March 11, 2007 [Retrieved February 1, 2010]. Archived 21 February 2011 at WebCite
• Dinger 2011, p. 156.
• http://espn.go.com/nhl/player/gamelog/_/id/15/tony-amonte