1996–97 Detroit Red Wings season explained

League:	NHL
Season:	1996–97
Year:	1996
Team:	Detroit Red Wings
Conferencerank:	3rd
Divisionrank:	2nd
Record:	38–26–18
Homerecord:	20–12–9
Roadrecord:	18–14–9
Goalsfor:	253
Goalsagainst:	197
Generalmanager:	Scotty Bowman (interim) Jim Devellano (interim)
Attendance:	19,978 (99.9%) Total: 819,107
Minorleague:	Adirondack Red Wings (AHL) Toledo Storm (ECHL)
Goalsleader:	Brendan Shanahan (46)
Assistsleader:	Steve Yzerman (63)
Pointsleader:	Brendan Shanahan (87)
Plusminusleader:	Vladimir Konstantinov (38)
Pimleader:	Martin Lapointe (167)
Winsleader:	Chris Osgood (23)
Gaaleader:	Kevin Hodson (1.63)
Stanleycup:	Yes
Conferencewin:	Yes

The 1996–97 Detroit Red Wings season was the 71st National Hockey League season in Detroit, Michigan. The highlight of the Red Wings season was winning the Stanley Cup, their first since 1955.

Off-season

On July 23, 1996, Detroit Red Wings President Bill Evo resigned his position after serving just ten months at the team's helm.^[1] The Nickname "Hockeytown" was coined to launch the start of a five-year marketing campaign.

Regular season

The "HOCKEYTOWN" logo, a Red Wings logo overlapped with the term "HOCKEYTOWN," was shown over center ice starting this season and was still there .

A season highlight was Sergei Fedorov's five-goal performance on December 26, 1996, in a game against the Washington Capitals. The Red Wings won 5–4 in overtime. Fedorov's fifth goal of the game came at 2:39 of the overtime period.

On February 8, 1997, coach Scotty Bowman achieved his 1000th victory as an NHL head coach against his previous team, the Pittsburgh Penguins.

On March 26, 1997, the Red Wings–Avalanche brawl continued to fuel the rivalry between the teams. Detroit won that game 6–5 in overtime.

Season standings

Playoffs

See main article: 1997 Stanley Cup playoffs. The Red Wings won the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals, their first Stanley Cup since the 1954–55 NHL season.

Six days after winning the Stanley Cup, tragedy struck when defenseman Vladimir Konstantinov, defenseman Viacheslav Fetisov, and massage therapist Sergei Mnatsakanov were involved in a limousine accident. The driver, who later said he fell asleep, had a suspended license for previous drunk driving convictions.

Schedule and results

Regular season

|- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 1 || October 5 || Detroit || 1–3 || New Jersey || || Osgood || 18,622 || 0–1–0 || 0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 2 || October 9 || Edmonton || 0–2 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 1–1–0 || 2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 3 || October 11 || Calgary || 2–1 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 1–2–0 || 2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 4 || October 12 || Detroit || 6–1 || Buffalo || || Vernon || 18,595 || 2–2–0 || 4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 5 || October 15 || Detroit || 1–3 || Dallas || || Vernon || 15,983 || 2–3–0 || 4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 6 || October 17 || Detroit || 1–2 || Chicago || || Osgood || 18,261 || 2–4–0 || 4 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 7 || October 19 || NY Islanders || 2–4 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 3–4–0 || 6 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 8 || October 21 || Los Angeles || 0–3 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,849 || 4–4–0 || 8 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 9 || October 23 || Dallas || 1–4 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 5–4–0 || 10 || |-| 10 || October 25 || Chicago || 2–2 || Detroit || OT || Hodson || 19,983 || 5–4–1 || 11 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 11 || October 26 || Detroit || 2–1 || Boston || || Osgood || 17,012 || 6–4–1 || 13 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 12 || October 30 || Montreal || 3–5 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 7–4–1 || 15 || |-|-| 13 || November 1 || Detroit || 2–2 || Ottawa || OT || Osgood || 14,158 || 7–4–2 || 16 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 14 || November 2 || Detroit || 2–6 || Toronto || || Vernon || 15,726 || 7–5–2 || 16 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 15 || November 4 || Hartford || 1–5 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 8–5–2 || 18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 16 || November 6 || New Jersey || 2–0 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 8–6–2 || 18 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 17 || November 8 || Detroit || 4–1 || Hartford || || Vernon || 14,660 || 9–6–2 || 20 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 18 || November 10 || Tampa Bay || 2–4 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 10–6–2 || 22 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 19 || November 13 || Colorado || 4–1 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 10–7–2 || 22 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 20 || November 15 || San Jose || 1–5 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 11–7–2 || 24 || |-| 21 || November 18 || Detroit || 2–2 || Phoenix || OT || Osgood || 15,436 || 11–7–3 || 25 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 22 || November 21 || Detroit || 6–1 || San Jose || || Vernon || 17,442 || 12–7–3 || 27 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 23 || November 23 || Detroit || 6–0 || Los Angeles || || Osgood || 16,005 || 13–7–3 || 29 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 24 || November 24 || Detroit || 1–3 || Anaheim || || Vernon || 17,174 || 13–8–3 || 29 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 25 || November 27 || Toronto || 2–5 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 14–8–3 || 31 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 26 || December 1 || Florida || 4–2 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 14–9–3 || 31 || |-| 27 || December 3 || Vancouver || 2–2 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,921 || 14–9–4 || 32 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 28 || December 4 || Detroit || 2–0 || Washington || || Hodson || 16,117 || 15–9–4 || 34 || |-| 29 || December 10 || Edmonton || 0–0 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,983 || 15–9–5 || 35 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 30 || December 12 || Chicago || 2–6 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 16–9–5 || 37 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 31 || December 15 || Toronto || 1–3 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 17–9–5 || 39 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 32 || December 17 || Detroit || 3–4 || Colorado || || Vernon || 16,061 || 17–10–5 || 39 || |-| 33 || December 18 || Detroit || 3–3 || Calgary || OT || Osgood || 16,237 || 17–10–6 || 40 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 34 || December 20 || Detroit || 2–3 || Vancouver || || Hodson || 18,422 || 17–11–6 || 40 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 35 || December 22 || Detroit || 6–2 || Edmonton || || Osgood || 16,724 || 18–11–6 || 42 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 36 || December 26 || Washington || 4–5 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,983 || 19–11–6 || 44 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 37 || December 28 || Detroit || 7–1 || NY Islanders || || Vernon || 16,297 || 20–11–6 || 46 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 38 || December 30 || Phoenix || 5–3 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 20–12–6 || 46 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 39 || January 3 || Dallas || 2–1 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 20–13–6 || 46 || |-| 40 || January 5 || Detroit || 5–5 || Chicago || OT || Vernon || 21,914 || 20–13–7 || 47 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 41 || January 8 || Detroit || 3–6 || Dallas || || Osgood || 15,326 || 20–14–7 || 47 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 42 || January 9 || Detroit || 5–4 || Phoenix || OT || Osgood || 16,210 || 21–14–7 || 49 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 43 || January 11 || Chicago || 3–1 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 21–15–7 || 49 || |-| 44 || January 14 || Los Angeles || 3–3 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,983 || 21–15–8 || 50 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 45 || January 20 || Detroit || 1–4 || Montreal || || Vernon || 21,273 || 21–16–8 || 50 || |-| 46 || January 22 || Philadelphia || 2–2 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 21–16–9 || 51 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 47 || January 25 || Detroit || 4–1 || Philadelphia || || Vernon || 19,711 || 22–16–9 || 53 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 48 || January 29 || Phoenix || 3–0 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 22–17–9 || 53 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 49 || February 1 || Detroit || 4–1 || St. Louis || || Vernon || 20,330 || 23–17–9 || 55 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 50 || February 2 || Dallas || 3–4 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,983 || 24–17–9 || 57 || |-| 51 || February 4 || St. Louis || 1–1 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 24–17–10 || 58 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 52 || February 6 || Vancouver || 7–4 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 24–18–10 || 58 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 53 || February 8 || Detroit || 6–5 || Pittsburgh || OT || Vernon || 17,355 || 25–18–10 || 60 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 54 || February 12 || San Jose || 1–7 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 26–18–10 || 62 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 55 || February 14 || Detroit || 3–4 || Dallas || OT || Vernon || 16,924 || 26–19–10 || 62 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 56 || February 16 || Detroit || 4–2 || Florida || || Osgood || 14,703 || 27–19–10 || 64 || |-| 57 || February 17 || Detroit || 3–3 || Tampa Bay || OT || Vernon || 19,579 || 27–19–11 || 65 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 58 || February 19 || Calgary || 0–4 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 28–19–11 || 67 || |-| 59 || February 22 || Detroit || 2–2 || St. Louis || OT || Vernon || 20,371 || 28–19–12 || 68 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 60 || February 24 || Detroit || 5–3 || Phoenix || || Osgood || 16,210 || 29–19–12 || 70 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 61 || February 27 || Pittsburgh || 1–4 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 30–19–12 || 72 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 62 || March 1 || NY Rangers || 0–3 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 31–19–12 || 74 || |-| 63 || March 2 || Anaheim || 1–1 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 31–19–13 || 75 || |-| 64 || March 5 || Detroit || 4–4 || Toronto || OT || Osgood || 15,726 || 31–19–14 || 76 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 65 || March 8 || Detroit || 5–3 || Vancouver || || Vernon || 18,422 || 32–19–14 || 78 || |-| 66 || March 10 || Detroit || 3–3 || Los Angeles || OT || Osgood || 10,663 || 32–19–15 || 79 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 67 || March 12 || Detroit || 1–2 || Anaheim || || Vernon || 17,174 || 32–20–15 || 79 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 68 || March 15 || Detroit || 7–4 || San Jose || || Osgood || 17,442 || 33–20–15 || 81 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 69 || March 16 || Detroit || 2–4 || Colorado || || Osgood || 16,061 || 33–21–15 || 81 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 70 || March 19 || Boston || 1–4 || Detroit || || Hodson || 19,983 || 34–21–15 || 83 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 71 || March 21 || Detroit || 1–3 || NY Rangers || || Osgood || 18,200 || 34–22–15 || 83 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 72 || March 23 || Detroit || 3–5 || Chicago || || Hodson || 22,422 || 34–23–15 || 83 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 73 || March 26 || Colorado || 5–6 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 35–23–15 || 85 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 74 || March 28 || Buffalo || 1–2 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 36–23–15 || 87 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 75 || March 30 || Anaheim || 1–0 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 36–24–15 || 87 || |-|-| 76 || April 1 || St. Louis || 1–1 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 19,983 || 36–24–16 || 88 || |-| 77 || April 3 || Toronto || 2–2 || Detroit || OT || Osgood || 19,983 || 36–24–17 || 89 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 78 || April 5 || Detroit || 4–2 || Toronto || || Osgood || 15,726 || 37–24–17 || 91 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 79 || April 8 || Detroit || 3–2 || Calgary || OT || Osgood || 17,841 || 38–24–17 || 93 || |-| 80 || April 9 || Detroit || 3–3 || Edmonton || OT || Vernon || 17,099 || 38–24–18 || 94 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 81 || April 11 || Ottawa || 3–2 || Detroit || || Vernon || 19,983 || 38–25–18 || 94 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 82 || April 13 || St. Louis || 3–1 || Detroit || || Osgood || 19,983 || 38–26–18 || 94 || |-|-| Legend:

Playoffs

|- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 1 || April 16 || St. Louis || 2–0 || Detroit || || Vernon || 0–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 2 || April 18 || St. Louis || 1–2 || Detroit || || Vernon || 1–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 3 || April 20 || Detroit || 3–2 || St. Louis || || Vernon || 2–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 4 || April 22 || Detroit || 0–4 || St. Louis || || Vernon || 2–2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 5 || April 25 || St. Louis || 2–5 || Detroit || || Vernon || 3–2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 6 || April 27 || Detroit || 3–1 || St. Louis || || Vernon || 4–2 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 1 || May 2 || Anaheim || 1–2 || Detroit || OT || Vernon || 1–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 2 || May 4 || Anaheim || 2–3 || Detroit || 3OT || Vernon || 2–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 3 || May 6 || Detroit || 5–2 || Anaheim || || Vernon || 3–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 4 || May 8 || Detroit || 3–2 || Anaheim || 2OT || Vernon || 4–0 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 1 || May 15 || Detroit || 1–2 || Colorado || || Vernon || 0–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 2 || May 17 || Detroit || 4–2 || Colorado || || Vernon || 1–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 3 || May 19 || Colorado || 1–2 || Detroit || || Vernon || 2–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc| 4 || May 22 || Colorado || 0–6 || Detroit || || Vernon || 3–1 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#fcc"| 5 || May 24 || Detroit || 0–6 || Colorado || || Vernon || 3–2 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 6 || May 26 || Colorado || 1–3 || Detroit || || Vernon || 4–2 || |-|- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 1 || May 31 || Detroit || 4–2 || Philadelphia || || Vernon || 1–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 2 || June 3 || Detroit || 4–2 || Philadelphia || || Vernon || 2–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc"| 3 || June 5 || Philadelphia || 1–6 || Detroit || || Vernon || 3–0 || |- align="center" bgcolor="#cfc| 4 || June 7 || Philadelphia || 1–2 || Detroit || || Vernon || 4–0 || |-|-| 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 Red Wings only.
= Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Red Wings only.

	Regular season						Playoffs
	Player
14		LW	79	46	41	87	31	131	20	9	8	17	8	43
19		LW	81	22	63	85	22	78	20	7	6	13	3	4
91		C	74	30	33	63	29	30	20	8	12	20	5	12
5		D	79	15	42	57	11	30	20	2	6	8	12	2
8		C	64	12	42	54	31	26	20	4	8	12	8	8
25		RW	68	19	30	49	14	126	20	3	4	7	1	34
13		C	75	23	22	45	21	46	20	8	5	13	3	14
16		D	77	5	33	38	38	151	20	0	4	4	−1	29
20		RW	78	16	17	33	−14	167	20	4	8	12	8	60
2		D	64	5	23	28	26	76	20	0	4	4	2	42
28		RW	34	9	9	18	2	36	20	0	4	4	−3	24
23		RW	43	6	10	16	−5	12
33		C	76	8	5	13	−11	73	20	2	4	6	5	12
17		LW	49	6	7	13	−3	8	14	3	3	6	4	2
3		D	70	4	9	13	8	58	22	0	0	0	8	55
11		RW	65	3	9	12	−10	28
4		D	75	4	7	11	1	129	5	0	1	1	−1	5
15		LW	47	6	3	9	−10	33	1	0	0	0	−1	0
18		LW	66	3	5	8	3	75	20	5	2	7	6	24
37		C	44	3	4	7	−6	52	2	0	0	0	−1	0
27		D	49	2	5	7	−9	52	19	0	0	0	1	17
55		D	12	2	4	6	2	0	20	2	9	11	16	8
34		D	23	0	6	6	5	10
26		RW	34	2	1	3	−7	70	19	1	3	4	5	22
21		LW	36	1	2	3	−3	27
30		G	47	0	2	2		6	2	0	0	0		2
22		RW	9	1	0	1	−1	0
31		G	6	0	1	1		0
32		LW	1	0	0	0	−1	0
40		LW	2	0	0	0	0	5
23		D	2	0	0	0	0	0
29		G	33	0	0	0		35	20	0	1	1		12

Goaltending

	Regular season											Playoffs
	Player
30		47	45	23	13	9	1,175	106	2.30	.910	6	2,768:48	2	0	0	0	21	2	2.54	.905	0	47:10
29		33	33	13	11	8	782	79	2.43	.899	0	1,952:03	20	20	16	4	494	36	1.76	.927	1	1,229:12
31		6	4	2	2	1	114	8	1.63	.930	1	293:47	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Vladimir Konstantinov was the runner-up for the James Norris Memorial Trophy.^[2]

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	Conn Smythe Trophy	Mike Vernon	^[3]
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Viacheslav Fetisov	^[4]
		Chris Osgood
		Brendan Shanahan
		Steve Yzerman

Milestones

Transactions

Trades

Date	Details
	To Edmonton Oilers Bob Essensa	To Detroit Red Wings Future Considerations
	To Tampa Bay Lightning Dino Ciccarelli	To Detroit Red Wings 1998 4th-round pick (#87th overall)
	To Hartford Whalers Paul Coffey Keith Primeau 1997 1st-round pick (22nd overall)	To Detroit Red Wings Brian Glynn Brendan Shanahan
	To Montreal Canadiens Jason MacDonald	To Detroit Red Wings Cash
	To Pittsburgh Penguins Greg Johnson	To Detroit Red Wings Tomas Sandström
	To Toronto Maple Leafs Future Considerations	To Detroit Red Wings Larry Murphy

Free agents

Date	Player	Team
		to St. Louis Blues
		to Chicago Blackhawks
		from Vancouver Canucks

Retirement

Draft picks

Detroit's picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft.^[6]

Round		Player	Position	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	26	Jesse Wallin	D	Red Deer Rebels (WHL)
2	52	Aren Miller	G	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
4	108	Johan Forsander	LW	HV71 (SEL)
5	135	Michal Podolka	G	Sault Ste. Marie Greyhounds (OHL)
6¹	144	Magnus Nilsson	LW	Malmo IF (SEL)
6	162	Alexandre Jacques	C	Shawinigan Cataractes (QMJHL)
7	189	Colin Beardsmore	C	North Bay Centennials (OHL)
8	215	Craig Stahl	RW	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
9	241	Yevgeni Afanasyev	LW	Flint Generals (CoHL)

Notes

The Red Wings acquired this pick as the result of a trade on April 4, 1995 that sent Mike Sillinger and Jason York to Anaheim in exchange for Stu Grimson, Mark Ferner and this pick.

The Red Wings third-round pick went to the Boston Bruins as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent David Shaw to Tampa Bay in exchange for this pick (80th overall).

Tampa Bay previously acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 17, 1995 that sent Marc Bergevin and Ben Hankinson to Detroit in exchange for Shawn Burr and this pick.

References

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

Notes and References

Web site: Evo Resigns as Red Wings President.
National Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 222, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario,
Web site: Conn Smythe Trophy . records.nhl.com . July 27, 2023.
Web site: NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1997 . www.nhl.com . July 27, 2023.
Web site: On This Day in Red Wings History... . NHL.com . July 27, 2023 . February 19, 2013 . On February 19, 1997: In his 1,000th career regular-season game, Steve Yzerman collects three assists in the Wings’ 4-0 win against Calgary..
1996 NHL Entry Draft Results hockeydb.com