1996–97 Phoenix Coyotes season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1996–97
Year:	1996
Team:	Phoenix Coyotes
Conferencerank:	5th
Divisionrank:	3rd
Record:	38–37–7
Homerecord:	15–19–7
Roadrecord:	23–18–0
Goalsfor:	240
Goalsagainst:	243
Generalmanager:	John Paddock (Oct–Dec) Bobby Smith (Dec–Apr)
Attendance:	15,585
Goalsleader:	Keith Tkachuk (52)
Assistsleader:	Oleg Tverdovsky (45)
Pointsleader:	Keith Tkachuk (86)
Pimleader:	Keith Tkachuk (228)
Plusminusleader:	Jayson More (+10)
Winsleader:	Nikolai Khabibulin (30)
Gaaleader:	Nikolai Khabibulin (2.83)
Prev Season:	1995–96 (Winnipeg)

The 1996–97 Phoenix Coyotes' season was the team's first of 28 seasons in Arizona in the National Hockey League (NHL) since relocating from Winnipeg the season prior. The franchise's 25th season since its founding in 1972, and 18th season in the National Hockey League since 1979.

Off-season

The Winnipeg Jets team was sold to Phoenix businessmen Steven Gluckstern and Richard Burke, and in 1996, the club moved to Arizona and became the Phoenix Coyotes.

In the summer that the move took place, the franchise saw the exit of Jets stars like Teemu Selanne and Alexei Zhamnov, while the team added established superstar Jeremy Roenick from the Chicago Blackhawks.

Regular season

Roenick teamed up with power wingers Keith Tkachuk and Rick Tocchet to form a dynamic 1–2–3 offensive punch that led the Coyotes through their first years in Arizona. Also impressive were young players like Shane Doan (who became the last remaining active original Jet in the NHL), Oleg Tverdovsky and goaltender Nikolai Khabibulin, whom the fans nicknamed the "Bulin Wall."

Forward Keith Tkachuk was renamed captain, replacing Kris King.

Final standings

Playoffs

In their first year, the Coyotes managed to make the playoffs. However, they lost to the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 4 games to 3 in round one.

Schedule and results

Regular season

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

Playoffs

|- align="center" bgcolor="#fbb"| 1 ||L || April 16, 1997 || 2–4 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Mighty Ducks lead 1–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fbb"| 2 ||L || April 18, 1997 || 2–4 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Mighty Ducks lead 2–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc" | 3 ||W || April 20, 1997 || 4–1 || align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Mighty Ducks lead 2–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 4 ||W || April 22, 1997 || 2–0 || align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Series tied 2–2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 5 ||W || April 24, 1997 || 5–2 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Coyotes lead 3–2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fbb"| 6 ||L || April 27, 1997 || 2–3 OT|| align="left"| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Series tied 3–3 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fbb"| 7 ||L || April 29, 1997 || 0–3 || align="left"| @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim || Mighty Ducks win 4–3 || |-|-| Legend:

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

	Regular season						Playoffs
	Player
7		LW	81	52	34	86	−1	228	7	6	0	6	2	7
97		C	72	29	40	69	−7	115	6	2	4	6	6	4
22		RW	82	32	31	63	−11	38	7	1	2	3	−1	4
20		D	82	10	45	55	−5	30	7	0	1	1	0	0
15		C	77	15	38	53	−1	26	7	0	3	3	1	4
77		C	69	19	32	51	−9	26	7	0	7	7	2	12
11		RW	63	17	19	36	−11	52	7	0	1	1	−2	2
27		D	82	2	25	27	−3	28	7	3	3	6	3	0
34		LW	82	11	13	24	4	41	7	3	1	4	2	4
21		C	80	9	11	20	−7	40	7	2	2	4	−1	4
4		D	66	3	17	20	−25	164
14		C	55	4	11	15	−4	36	7	0	0	0	−1	14
17		LW	81	3	11	14	−7	185	7	0	0	0	−1	17
5		D	27	3	11	14	−4	4	7	0	2	2	2	0
44		D	32	4	9	13	−11	24
19		RW	63	4	8	12	−3	49	4	0	0	0	−1	2
26		D	65	3	7	10	−8	40	1	0	0	0	−1	2
8		D	55	3	7	10	5	74	6	0	0	0	0	4
23		C	41	3	7	10	−5	28	1	0	0	0	0	0
33		LW	65	5	3	8	−5	200	7	0	0	0	0	2
18		LW	24	4	3	7	−5	13
6		D	23	1	6	7	10	37	7	0	0	0	1	7
10		D	37	1	5	6	2	18
32		C	33	1	3	4	−3	4
4		D	11	1	2	3	2	23	7	0	0	0	2	10
35		G	72	0	3	3		16	7	0	0	0		6
32		RW	2	1	0	1	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	4
43		G	16	0	1	1		4
36		D	8	0	0	0	0	4	1	0	0	0	0	0
24		D	2	0	0	0	0	0
1		G	1	0	0	0		0
6		D	4	0	0	0	−3	10
47		RW	1	0	0	0	0	0
28		C	7	0	0	0	−4	2
39		G	2	0	0	0		0
38		LW	1	0	0	0	−1	0
3		D	1	0	0	0	−1	7
36		C	2	0	0	0	0	0

Goaltending

= Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Coyotes only.

	Regular season										Playoffs
	Player
35		72	30	33	6	2094	193	2.83	.908	7	4091	7	3	4	222	15	2.11	.932	1	426
43		16	8	3	1	386	39	2.99	.899	1	782	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
1		1	0	0	0	8	1	2.08	.875	0	29	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
39		2	0	1	0	24	2	2.04	.917	0	59	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Keith Tkachuk	^[1]
Oleg Tverdovsky	NHL All-Star Game selection		^[1]
Team	Hardest Working Player Award	Dallas Drake	^[2]
	Leading Scorer Award	Keith Tkachuk
	Man of the Year Award	Kris King
	Team MVP Award	Keith Tkachuk
	Three-Star Award	Keith Tkachuk

Transactions

Trades

June 22, 1996	To Toronto Maple Leafs 4th round pick in 1996 (Vladimir Antipov)	To Phoenix Coyotes Mike Gartner
July 1, 1996	To Calgary Flames 3rd round pick in 1997 (Erik Andersson)	To Phoenix Coyotes Compensation for head coach Don Hay
August 16, 1996	To Chicago Blackhawks Alexei Zhamnov Craig Mills 1st round pick in 1997 (Ty Jones)	To Phoenix Coyotes Jeremy Roenick
February 6, 1997	To New York Rangers Mike Eastwood Dallas Eakins	To Phoenix Coyotes Jay More
March 18, 1997	To Montreal Canadiens Dave Manson Steve Cheredaryk	To Phoenix Coyotes Murray Baron Pat Jablonski Chris Murray

Waivers

September 30, 1996	From Philadelphia Flyers Bob Corkum

Free agents

Joining the Coyotes:

Player	Former Team
	Vancouver Canucks
	Hartford Whalers
	Dallas Stars
	Dallas Stars
	Colorado Avalanche
	Calgary Flames
	Ottawa Senators
	St. Louis Blues
	Calgary Flames

Leaving the Coyotes:

Player	New Team
	Philadelphia Flyers
	Los Angeles Kings
	Florida Panthers
	San Jose Sharks
	Ottawa Senators

Draft picks

Phoenix's draft picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri.^[3]

Round	Pick	Player	College/Junior/Club team
1	11	Dan Focht (D)	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
1	24	Daniel Briere (C)	Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
3	62	Per-Anton Lundstrom (D)	MODO (Sweden)
5	119	Richard Lintner (D)	Dukla Trencin Jr. (Slovakia)
6	139	Robert Esche (G)	Detroit Whalers (OHL)
7	174	Trevor Letowski (RW)	Sarnia Sting (OHL)
8	200	Nick Lent (RW)	Omaha Lancers (USHL)
9	226	Marc-Etienne Hubert (C)	Laval Titan College Francais (QMJHL)

References

Web site: Phoenix Coyotes 1996-97 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . July 23, 2023.
Web site: 1996-97 Phoenix Coyotes Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts . Hockey-Reference.com . July 23, 2023.

Notes and References

Web site: NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1997 . www.nhl.com . July 27, 2023.
Arizona Coyotes 2014–2015 Media Guide, p.290
Web site: 1996 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com . www.hockeydb.com . July 27, 2023.