| 1996–97 AHL season | |
| League: | American Hockey League |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Season Champ Name: | F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy |
| Season Champs: | Worcester IceCats |
| Mvp: | Jean-Francois Labbe |
| Mvp Link: | Les Cunningham Award |
| Top Scorer: | Peter White |
| Top Scorer Link: | John B. Sollenberger Trophy |
| Playoffs: | Playoffs |
| Playoffs Link: | 1997 Calder Cup playoffs |
| Finals: | Calder Cup |
| Finals Champ: | Hershey Bears |
| Finals Runner-Up: | Hamilton Bulldogs |
| Playoffs Mvp: | Mike McHugh |
| Playoffs Mvp Link: | Jack A. Butterfield Trophy |
| Seasonslistnames: | AHL |
The 1996–97 AHL season was the 61st season of the American Hockey League. The league renames its divisions due to relocating teams. The Northern Conferences consists of the Atlantic Division becoming the Canadian Division, and the Central Division becoming the Empire State Division. The Southern Conferences consists of the North Division becoming the New England Division, and the South Division becoming the Mid-Atlantic Division.
Eighteen teams played 80 games each in the schedule. The Philadelphia Phantoms finished first overall in the regular season. The Hershey Bears won their eighth Calder Cup championship.
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; OTL = Overtime losses; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points;
| Canadian | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| St. John's Maple Leafs (TOR) | 80 | 36 | 28 | 10 | 6 | 88 | 265 | 264 | |
| Saint John Flames (CGY) | 80 | 28 | 36 | 13 | 3 | 72 | 237 | 269 | |
| Hamilton Bulldogs (EDM) | 80 | 28 | 39 | 9 | 4 | 69 | 220 | 276 | |
| Fredericton Canadiens (MTL) | 80 | 26 | 44 | 8 | 2 | 62 | 234 | 283 |
| Empire State | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rochester Americans (BUF) | 80 | 40 | 30 | 9 | 1 | 90 | 298 | 257 | |
| Adirondack Red Wings (DET/TBL) | 80 | 38 | 28 | 12 | 2 | 90 | 258 | 249 | |
| Albany River Rats (NJD) | 80 | 38 | 28 | 9 | 5 | 90 | 269 | 231 | |
| Syracuse Crunch (VAN) | 80 | 32 | 38 | 10 | 0 | 74 | 241 | 265 | |
| Binghamton Rangers (NYR) | 80 | 27 | 38 | 13 | 2 | 69 | 245 | 300 |
| New England | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Worcester IceCats (OTT/STL) | 80 | 43 | 23 | 9 | 5 | 100 | 256 | 234 | |
| Springfield Falcons (HFD/PHX) | 80 | 41 | 25 | 12 | 2 | 96 | 268 | 229 | |
| Portland Pirates (WSH) | 80 | 37 | 26 | 10 | 7 | 91 | 279 | 264 | |
| Providence Bruins (BOS) | 80 | 35 | 40 | 3 | 2 | 75 | 262 | 289 |
| Mid-Atlantic | GP | W | L | T | OTL | Pts | GF | GA | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Phantoms (PHI) | 80 | 49 | 18 | 10 | 3 | 111 | 325 | 230 | |
| Hershey Bears (COL) | 80 | 43 | 22 | 10 | 5 | 101 | 273 | 220 | |
| Kentucky Thoroughblades (SJS) | 80 | 36 | 35 | 9 | 0 | 81 | 278 | 284 | |
| Baltimore Bandits (ANA) | 80 | 30 | 37 | 10 | 3 | 73 | 251 | 285 | |
| Carolina Monarchs (FLA) | 80 | 28 | 43 | 4 | 5 | 65 | 273 | 303 |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 80 | 44 | 61 | 105 | 28 | |||
| 78 | 34 | 67 | 101 | 77 | |||
| 71 | 33 | 62 | 95 | 83 | |||
| 63 | 32 | 63 | 95 | 70 | |||
| 78 | 31 | 60 | 91 | 24 | |||
| 79 | 33 | 56 | 89 | 41 | |||
| 72 | 41 | 47 | 88 | 69 | |||
| 77 | 42 | 45 | 87 | 57 | |||
| 66 | 43 | 43 | 86 | 68 | |||
| 79 | 30 | 51 | 81 | 110 |
See main article: 1997 Calder Cup playoffs.
The 10th AHL All-Star Game was played on January 16, 1997, at the Harbour Station in Saint John, New Brunswick. Team World defeated Team Canada 3–2 in a shootout. In the skills competition held the day before the All-Star Game, Team World won 18–9 over Team Canada. https://web.archive.org/web/20090819073132/http://www.theahl.com/allstar/events/
| Calder Cup Playoff champions: | Hershey Bears | |
| Richard F. Canning Trophy Northern Conference playoff champions: | Hamilton Bulldogs | |
| Robert W. Clarke Trophy Southern Conference playoff champions: | Hershey Bears | |
| Frank Mathers Trophy Regular season champions, Mid-Atlantic Division: | Philadelphia Phantoms | |
| F. G. "Teddy" Oke Trophy Regular season champions, New England Division: | Worcester IceCats | |
| Sam Pollock Trophy Regular season champions, Canadian Division: | St. John's Maple Leafs | |
| John D. Chick Trophy Regular season champions, Empire State Division: | Rochester Americans |
| Les Cunningham Award Most valuable player: | Jean-Francois Labbe – Hershey Bears | |
| John B. Sollenberger Trophy Top point scorer: | Peter White – Philadelphia Phantoms | |
| Dudley "Red" Garrett Memorial Award Rookie of the year: | Jaroslav Svejkovsky – Portland Pirates | |
| Eddie Shore Award Defenceman of the year: | Darren Rumble – Philadelphia Phantoms | |
| Aldege "Baz" Bastien Memorial Award Best goaltender: | ||
| Harry "Hap" Holmes Memorial Award Lowest goals against average: | Jean-Francois Labbe – Hershey Bears | |
| Louis A. R. Pieri Memorial Award Coach of the year: | Greg Gilbert – Worcester IceCats | |
| Fred T. Hunt Memorial Award Sportsmanship / Perseverance: | Steve Passmore – Hamilton Bulldogs | |
| Jack A. Butterfield Trophy MVP of the playoffs: | Mike McHugh – Hershey Bears |
| James C. Hendy Memorial Award Most outstanding executive: | Jay Feaster, Hershey Bears | |
| James H. Ellery Memorial Awards Outstanding media coverage: | Lindsay Kramer, Syracuse, (newspaper) Aaron Kennedy, Saint John, (radio) Jim Ogle, Kentucky, (television) | |
| Ken McKenzie Award Outstanding marketing executive: | Glenn Stanford, St. John's Maple Leafs & Carole Appleton, Springfield Falcons |