The 1896–97 Ottawa Hockey Club season was the club's 12th season of play. Ottawa placed second in the league.
Source: News: The Globe . Sports of all sorts . 26 . November 14, 1896.
Fred Chittick was the league's leading goaltender, only allowing 2.3 goals per game. Former captains Chauncy Kirby and Bert Russel retired from the team.
The Ottawa club moved to the new Dey's Skating Rink. In the first game in the new rink, it was inaugurated with the Governor General, the Earl of Aberdeen and his wife, the Countess of Aberdeen in attendance.[1]
| Team | Games Played | Wins | Losses | Ties | Goals For | Goals Against |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Montreal Victorias | ||||||
| Ottawa | ||||||
| Montreal | ||||||
| Quebec | ||||||
| Montreal Shamrocks | ||||||
| Day | Visitor | Score | Home | Score | Record |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| January | |||||
| 9 | Shamrocks | 1 | Ottawa | 4 | 1–0 |
| 16 | Quebec | 1 | Ottawa | 4 | 2–0 |
| 30† | Ottawa | 0 | Montreal | 1 | 2–1† |
| February | |||||
| 6 | Victorias | 4 | Ottawa | 2 | 2–1 |
| 13 | Ottawa | 3 | Victorias | 1 | 3–1 |
| 17‡ | Ottawa | 4 | Montreal | 0 | 4–1 |
| 20 | Montreal | 4 | Ottawa | 3 | 4–2 |
| 27 | Ottawa | 1 | Quebec | 4 | 4–3 |
| March | |||||
| 6 | Ottawa | 4 | Shamrocks | 3 | 5–3 |
† Protested by Ottawa who scored the tying goal in last few seconds but the goal was disallowed by the referee. The protest was upheld and the game replayed.
‡ Replay of January 30 protested game.
| Name | GP | G |
|---|---|---|
| 8 | 12 | |
| 8 | 6 | |
| 7 | 3 | |
| Alf Living | 2 | 2 |
| Daniel "Moxie" Smith | 5 | 2 |