1996–97 New York Rangers season

The 1996–97 New York Rangers season was the franchise's 71st season. The highlight of the season was that it was Wayne Gretzky's first season in New York.

1996–97 New York Rangers
Division4th Atlantic
Conference5th Eastern
1996–97 record38–34–10
Home record21–14–6
Road record17–20–4
Goals for258
Goals against231
Team information
General managerNeil Smith
CoachColin Campbell
CaptainMark Messier
Alternate captainsBrian Leetch
Adam Graves
ArenaMadison Square Garden
Average attendance18,200 (100%)
Minor league affiliate(s)Binghamton Rangers
Charlotte Checkers
Team leaders
GoalsMark Messier (36)
AssistsWayne Gretzky (72)
PointsWayne Gretzky (97)
Penalty minutesDarren Langdon (195)
Plus/minusBrian Leetch (+31)
WinsMike Richter (33)
Goals against averageGlenn Healy (2.61)

The Rangers qualified for the playoffs as the fifth seed in the Eastern Conference, and advanced all the way to the Eastern Conference Finals, where they were defeated by the Philadelphia Flyers. This marked the last playoff appearance for the Rangers until the 2005–06 season.

Regular season

The Rangers had the fewest power-play opportunities during the regular season (287), but the best power-play percentage (21.95%).[1]

Final standings
Atlantic Division
No. CR GP W L T GF GA Pts
11New Jersey Devils82452314231182104
23Philadelphia Flyers82452413274217103
34Florida Panthers8235281922120189
45New York Rangers8238341025823186
59Washington Capitals823340921423175
611Tampa Bay Lightning8232401021724774
712New York Islanders8229411224025070
Eastern Conference[2]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1New Jersey DevilsATL82452314231182104
2Buffalo SabresNE8240301223720892
3Philadelphia FlyersATL82452413274217103
4Florida PanthersATL8235281922120189
5New York RangersATL8238341025823186
6Pittsburgh PenguinsNE823836828528084
7Ottawa SenatorsNE8231361522623477
8Montreal CanadiensNE8231361524927677
9Washington CapitalsATL823340921423175
10Hartford WhalersNE8232391122625675
11Tampa Bay LightningATL8232401021724774
12New York IslandersATL8229411224025070
13Boston BruinsNE822647923430061

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Playoffs
Main article: 1997 Stanley Cup playoffs

Schedule and results

Regular season
1996–97 regular season[3]
October: 5–6–3 (home: 4–3–1; road: 1–3–2)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
1October 5, 1996@ Boston Bruins4–4 OT0–0–1Recap
2October 6, 1996Florida Panthers5–20–1–1Recap
3October 8, 1996@ Florida Panthers1–1 OT0–1–2Recap
4October 10, 1996Dallas Stars2–10–2–2Recap
5October 12, 1996@ Montreal Canadiens5–20–3–2Recap
6October 14, 1996Calgary Flames5–41–3–2Recap
7October 16, 1996Pittsburgh Penguins8–12–3–2Recap
8October 18, 1996St. Louis Blues2–13–3–2Recap
9October 20, 1996@ Tampa Bay Lightning5–23–4–2Recap
10October 23, 1996Washington Capitals3–23–5–2Recap
11October 25, 1996@ Florida Panthers6–43–6–2Recap
12October 27, 1996Buffalo Sabres6–44–6–2Recap
13October 29, 1996Florida Panthers1–1 OT4–6–3Recap
14October 30, 1996@ New Jersey Devils6–15–6–3Recap
November: 4–7–1 (home: 0–3–0; road: 4–4–1)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
15November 2, 1996@ Boston Bruins5–26–6–3Recap
16November 4, 1996Tampa Bay Lightning5–36–7–3Recap
17November 6, 1996@ New York Islanders1–1 OT6–7–4Recap
18November 9, 1996@ Washington Capitals3–26–8–4Recap
19November 11, 1996Vancouver Canucks3–26–9–4Recap
20November 13, 1996Philadelphia Flyers2–16–10–4Recap
21November 16, 1996@ Pittsburgh Penguins8–37–10–4Recap
22November 18, 1996@ Calgary Flames5–37–11–4Recap
23November 21, 1996@ Edmonton Oilers3–27–12–4Recap
24November 23, 1996@ Vancouver Canucks5–37–13–4Recap
25November 26, 1996@ Phoenix Coyotes3–18–13–4Recap
26November 27, 1996@ Colorado Avalanche5–29–13–4Recap
December: 11–3–1 (home: 7–1–1; road: 4–2–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
27December 1, 1996Montreal Canadiens6–210–13–4Recap
28December 4, 1996Philadelphia Flyers1–1 OT10–13–5Recap
29December 6, 1996Toronto Maple Leafs6–511–13–5Recap
30December 7, 1996@ Toronto Maple Leafs4–012–13–5Recap
31December 9, 1996Phoenix Coyotes5–213–13–5Recap
32December 11, 1996New York Islanders5–313–14–5Recap
33December 13, 1996@ Buffalo Sabres3–014–14–5Recap
34December 16, 1996Hartford Whalers5–215–14–5Recap
35December 18, 1996Los Angeles Kings4–016–14–5Recap
36December 21, 1996@ Montreal Canadiens3–2 OT17–14–5Recap
37December 22, 1996Florida Panthers7–318–14–5Recap
38December 26, 1996@ Ottawa Senators5–218–15–5Recap
39December 27, 1996Mighty Ducks of Anaheim3–219–15–5Recap
40December 30, 1996@ Dallas Stars3–220–15–5Recap
41December 31, 1996@ Tampa Bay Lightning4–220–16–5Recap
January: 5–4–2 (home: 3–3–2; road: 2–1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
42January 2, 1997New York Islanders4–321–16–5Recap
43January 4, 1997Ottawa Senators6–422–16–5Recap
44January 6, 1997Colorado Avalanche2–2 OT22–16–6Recap
45January 8, 1997Tampa Bay Lightning4–322–17–6Recap
46January 9, 1997@ Washington Capitals2–022–18–6Recap
47January 12, 1997New Jersey Devils3–023–18–6Recap
48January 13, 1997New York Islanders4–223–19–6Recap
49January 21, 1997Edmonton Oilers4–4 OT23–19–7Recap
50January 22, 1997@ Washington Capitals5–324–19–7Recap
51January 25, 1997@ Pittsburgh Penguins7–425–19–7Recap
52January 27, 1997Chicago Blackhawks2–125–20–7Recap
February: 3–6–2 (home: 1–1–1; road: 2–5–1)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
53February 1, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers4–226–20–7Recap
54February 2, 1997Boston Bruins3–226–21–7Recap
55February 5, 1997Hartford Whalers5–227–21–7Recap
56February 8, 1997@ New York Islanders5–228–21–7Recap
57February 9, 1997@ Florida Panthers4–328–22–7Recap
58February 13, 1997@ St. Louis Blues4–128–23–7Recap
59February 15, 1997@ Chicago Blackhawks2–028–24–7Recap
60February 17, 1997New Jersey Devils2–2 OT28–24–8Recap
61February 19, 1997@ New Jersey Devils1–1 OT28–24–9Recap
62February 21, 1997@ Hartford Whalers7–228–25–9Recap
63February 23, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers2–128–26–9Recap
March: 7–6–0 (home: 4–2–0; road: 3–4–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
64March 1, 1997@ Detroit Red Wings3–028–27–9Recap
65March 3, 1997San Jose Sharks5–4 OT29–27–9Recap
66March 6, 1997@ Los Angeles Kings6–230–27–9Recap
67March 7, 1997@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim5–230–28–9Recap
68March 9, 1997@ San Jose Sharks2–131–28–9Recap
69March 12, 1997Washington Capitals3–232–28–9Recap
70March 14, 1997@ Ottawa Senators4–3 OT33–28–9Recap
71March 17, 1997Ottawa Senators4–333–29–9Recap
72March 19, 1997Montreal Canadiens5–433–30–9Recap
73March 21, 1997Detroit Red Wings3–134–30–9Recap
74March 24, 1997Pittsburgh Penguins3–035–30–9Recap
75March 27, 1997@ New Jersey Devils4–035–31–9Recap
76March 29, 1997@ Hartford Whalers2–135–32–9Recap
April: 3–2–1 (home: 2–1–1; road: 1–1–0)
GameDateOpponentScoreRecordRecap
77April 1, 1997Buffalo Sabres1–1 OT35–32–10Recap
78April 3, 1997Boston Bruins5–436–32–10Recap
79April 4, 1997@ Buffalo Sabres5–136–33–10Recap
80April 7, 1997Philadelphia Flyers3–237–33–10Recap
81April 10, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers6–338–33–10Recap
82April 11, 1997Tampa Bay Lightning4–238–34–10Recap
Legend:

  Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs
1997 Stanley Cup playoffs[3]
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (4) Florida Panthers – Rangers win 4–1
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1April 17, 1997@ Florida Panthers3–0Panthers lead 1–0Recap
2April 20, 1997@ Florida Panthers3–0Series tied 1–1Recap
3April 22, 1997Florida Panthers4–3 OTRangers lead 2–1Recap
4April 23, 1997Florida Panthers3–2Rangers lead 3–1Recap
5April 25, 1997@ Florida Panthers3–2 OTRangers win 4–1Recap
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (1) New Jersey Devils – Rangers win 4–1
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1May 2, 1997@ New Jersey Devils2–0Devils lead 1–0Recap
2May 4, 1997@ New Jersey Devils2–0Series tied 1–1Recap
3May 6, 1997New Jersey Devils3–2Rangers lead 2–1Recap
4May 8, 1997New Jersey Devils3–0Rangers lead 3–1Recap
5May 11, 1997@ New Jersey Devils2–1 OTRangers win 4–1Recap
Eastern Conference Finals vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers – Flyers win 4–1
GameDateOpponentScoreSeriesRecap
1May 16, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers3–1Flyers lead 1–0Recap
2May 18, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers5–4Series tied 1–1Recap
3May 20, 1997Philadelphia Flyers6–3Flyers lead 2–1Recap
4May 23, 1997Philadelphia Flyers3–2Flyers lead 3–1Recap
5May 25, 1997@ Philadelphia Flyers4–2Flyers win 4–1Recap
Legend:

  Win   Loss

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 Rangers only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Rangers only.
Regular season Playoffs
No. Player Pos GP G A Pts +/- PIM GP G A Pts +/- PIM
99Wayne GretzkyC8225729712281510102052
11Mark MessierC71364884128815391226
2Brian LeetchD82205878314015281056
9Adam GravesLW82332861106615213112
24Niklas SundstromRW822428522320905532
20Luc RobitailleLW69242448164815471174
25Alexander KarpovtsevD779293815913134220
27Alexei KovalevRW451322351142——————
33Bruce DriverD795253084815011−32
8[lower-alpha 1]Patrick FlatleyRW6810122262611000214
13Sergei Nemchinov‡C6361319512——————
5Ulf SamuelssonD7361117313815022130
28Brian Noonan†‡RW446915−728——————
18Bill BergLW6786142373000−12
16Daniel GoneauLW4110313−510——————
23Jeff BeukeboomD8039122216715011534
39Vladimir VorobievRW16551046——————
15Darren LangdonLW60369−119510000−12
32Mike Eastwood†C2717821015123022
6Doug LidsterD48347102415156−28
21Russ Courtnall†RW14257−321534710
26David Oliver†RW1421334300000
10Esa Tikkanen†C1412306159312226
19Christian DubeC27112−443000−20
14Chris FerraroRW1211216——————
37Ryan VandenBusscheRW11101−230——————
29Eric CairnsD40011−7147300000
22Shane ChurlaRW45011−1010615000−320
21Jayson More‡D14011025——————
38[lower-alpha 2]Sylvain BlouinD6000−118——————
28Dallas Eakins†D3000−164000−14
17Peter FerraroC200000200000
30Glenn HealyG230004——————
32Sergio Momesso‡LW9000−211——————
36Jeff NielsenRW2000−12——————
35Mike RichterG610004150110
12Ken GernanderC——————900000

Goaltending
Regular season Playoffs
No. Player GP W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI GP W L SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
35Mike Richter613322619451612.69.917435981596488332.11.9323939
30Glenn Healy235124632592.61.90711357—————————

Awards and records

Awards
Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(annual)		 James Norris Memorial Trophy Brian Leetch [4]
NHL First All-Star Team Brian Leetch (Defense) [5]
NHL Second All-Star Team Wayne Gretzky (Center) [5]
League
(in-season)		 NHL All-Star Game selection Wayne Gretzky[lower-alpha 3] [7]
Brian Leetch[lower-alpha 3]
Mark Messier
Team Ceil Saidel Memorial Award Adam Graves [8]
"Crumb Bum" Award Mike Richter [8]
Frank Boucher Trophy Mark Messier [8]
Good Guy Award Wayne Gretzky [8]
Lars-Erik Sjoberg Award Eric Cairns [8]
Players' Player Award Darren Langdon [8]
Rangers MVP Brian Leetch [8]
Steven McDonald Extra Effort Award Brian Leetch [8]

Draft picks

New York's picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft in St. Louis, Missouri at the Kiel Center.[9]

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 22 Jeff Brown D  Canada Sarnia Sting (OHL)
2 48 Daniel Goneau LW  Canada Granby Predateurs (QMJHL)
3 76 Dmitri Subbotin LW  Russia CSKA Moscow (Russia)
5 131 Colin Pepperall LW  Canada Niagara Falls Thunder (OHL)
6 158 Ola Sandberg D  Sweden Djurgårdens IF (SEL)
7 185 Jeff Dessner D  United States Taft School (Connecticut)
8 211 Ryan McKie D  Canada London Knights (OHL)
9 237 Ronnie Sundin D  Sweden Frölunda HC (SEL)

Notes
  1. Flatley wore number 26 on February 5.
  2. Blouin wore number 32 in his first five games.
  3. Gretzky and Leetch were voted to the starting lineup.[6]

References
  • "New York Rangers 1996-97 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  • "1996-97 New York Rangers Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  1. "1996-97 NHL Summary".
  2. "1996-1997 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  3. "1996-97 New York Rangers Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  4. "James Norris Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
  5. "Postseason All-Star Teams". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  6. "NHL All-Star Game Starting Lineups by Year (since 1986)". www.nhl.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  7. "NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1997". www.nhl.com. Retrieved July 26, 2023.
  8. 2014–15 New York Rangers Media Guide. New York Rangers. 2014. pp. 349–352.
  9. "1996 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 27, 2023.
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