- Regular season Final standings
- Schedule and results
- Playoffs
- Player statistics
- Draft picks
- Awards and records
- References
{{NHLTeamSeason
|League=NHL
|Season=1996–97
|year=1996
|Team=New York Rangers
|Conference=Eastern
|ConferenceRank=5th
|Division=Atlantic
|DivisionRank=4th
|Record=38–34–10
|HomeRecord=21–14–6
|RoadRecord=17–20–4
|GoalsFor=258
|GoalsAgainst=231
|GeneralManager=Neil Smith
|Coach=Colin Campbell
|Captain= Mark Messier
|AltCaptain=Brian Leetch
Adam Graves
|Arena=Madison Square Garden
|Attendance=18,200 (100%)
|GoalsLeader=Mark Messier (36)
|AssistsLeader=Wayne Gretzky (72)
|PointsLeader=Wayne Gretzky (97)
|PIMLeader=Darren Langdon (195)
|WinsLeader=Mike Richter (33)
|GAALeader=Glenn Healy (2.61)
}}The 1996–97 New York Rangers season was the Rangers' 71st season. The highlight of the season was that it was Wayne Gretzky's first season in New York. 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. {{TOClimit|limit=2}}Regular seasonThe Rangers had the fewest power-play opportunities during the regular season (287), but the best power-play percentage (21.95%).[1] Final standings{{1996–97 NHL Atlantic Division standings |team=NYR}}{{1996–97 NHL Eastern Conference standings|team=NYR}}Schedule and results| 1996-97 Game Log |
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October: 5-6-3 (Home: 4-3-1; Road: 1-3-0) | Game | October | Opponent | Score | Record |
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| 1 | 5 | @ Boston Bruins | 4 - 4 OT | 0-0-1 | | 2 | 6 | Florida Panthers | 5 - 2 | 0-1-1 | | 3 | 8 | @ Florida Panthers | 1 - 1 OT | 0-1-2 | | 4 | 10 | Dallas Stars | 2 - 1 | 0-2-2 | | 5 | 12 | @ Montreal Canadiens | 5 - 2 | 0-3-2 | | 6 | 14 | Calgary Flames | 5 - 4 | 1-3-2 | | 7 | 16 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 8 - 1 | 2-3-2 | | 8 | 18 | St. Louis Blues | 2 - 1 | 3-3-2 | | 9 | 20 | @ Tampa Bay Lightning | 5 - 2 | 3-4-2 | | 10 | 23 | Washington Capitals | 3 - 2 | 3-5-2 | | 11 | 25 | @ Florida Panthers | 6 - 4 | 3-6-2 | | 12 | 27 | Buffalo Sabres | 6 - 4 | 4-6-2 | | 13 | 29 | Florida Panthers | 1 - 1 OT | 4-6-3 | | 14 | 30 | @ New Jersey Devils | 6 - 1 | 5-6-3 |
| November: 4-7-1 (Home: 0-3-0; Road: 4-4-1) | Game | November | Opponent | Score | Record |
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| 15 | 2 | @ Boston Bruins | 5 - 2 | 6-6-3 | | 16 | 4 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 5 - 3 | 6-7-3 | | 17 | 6 | @ New York Islanders | 1 - 1 OT | 6-7-4 | | 18 | 9 | @ Washington Capitals | 3 - 2 | 6-8-4 | | 19 | 11 | Vancouver Canucks | 3 - 2 | 6-9-4 | | 20 | 13 | Philadelphia Flyers | 2 - 1 | 6-10-4 | | 21 | 16 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins | 8 - 3 | 7-10-4 | | 22 | 18 | @ Calgary Flames | 5 - 3 | 7-11-4 | | 23 | 21 | @ Edmonton Oilers | 3 - 2 | 7-12-4 | | 24 | 23 | @ Vancouver Canucks | 5 - 3 | 7-13-4 | | 25 | 26 | @ Phoenix Coyotes | 3 - 1 | 8-13-4 | | 26 | 27 | @ Colorado Avalanche | 5 - 2 | 9-13-4 |
| December: 11-3-1 (Home: 7-1-1; Road: 4-2-0) | Game | December | Opponent | Score | Record |
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| 27 | 1 | Montreal Canadiens | 6 - 2 | 10-13-4 | | 28 | 4 | Philadelphia Flyers | 1 - 1 OT | 10-13-5 | | 29 | 6 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 6 - 5 | 11-13-5 | | 30 | 7 | @ Toronto Maple Leafs | 4 - 0 | 12-13-5 | | 31 | 9 | Phoenix Coyotes | 5 - 2 | 13-13-5 | | 32 | 11 | New York Islanders | 5 - 3 | 13-14-5 | | 33 | 13 | @ Buffalo Sabres | 3 - 0 | 14-14-5 | | 34 | 16 | Hartford Whalers | 5 - 2 | 15-14-5 | | 35 | 18 | Los Angeles Kings | 4 - 0 | 16-14-5 | | 36 | 21 | @ Montreal Canadiens | 3 - 2 OT | 17-14-5 | | 37 | 22 | Florida Panthers | 7 - 3 | 18-14-5 | | 38 | 26 | @ Ottawa Senators | 5 - 2 | 18-15-5 | | 39 | 27 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 3 - 2 | 19-15-5 | | 40 | 30 | @ Dallas Stars | 3 - 2 | 20-15-5 | | 41 | 31 | @ Tampa Bay Lightning | 4 - 2 | 20-16-5 |
| January: 5-4-2 (Home: 3-3-2; Road: 2-1-0) | Game | January | Opponent | Score | Record |
|---|
| 42 | 2 | New York Islanders | 4 - 3 | 21-16-5 | | 43 | 4 | Ottawa Senators | 6 - 4 | 22-16-5 | | 44 | 6 | Colorado Avalanche | 2 - 2 OT | 22-16-6 | | 45 | 8 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 4 - 3 | 22-17-6 | | 46 | 9 | @ Washington Capitals | 2 - 0 | 22-18-6 | | 47 | 12 | New Jersey Devils | 3 - 0 | 23-18-6 | | 48 | 13 | New York Islanders | 4 - 2 | 23-19-6 | | 49 | 21 | Edmonton Oilers | 4 - 4 OT | 23-19-7 | | 50 | 22 | @ Washington Capitals | 5 - 3 | 24-19-7 | | 51 | 25 | @ Pittsburgh Penguins | 7 - 4 | 25-19-7 | | 52 | 27 | Chicago Blackhawks | 2 - 1 | 25-20-7 |
| February: 3-6-2 (Home: 1-1-1; Road: 2-5-1) | Game | February | Opponent | Score | Record |
|---|
| 53 | 1 | @ Philadelphia Flyers | 4 - 2 | 26-20-7 | | 54 | 2 | Boston Bruins | 3 - 2 | 26-21-7 | | 55 | 5 | Hartford Whalers | 5 - 2 | 27-21-7 | | 56 | 8 | @ New York Islanders | 5 - 2 | 28-21-7 | | 57 | 9 | @ Florida Panthers | 4 - 3 | 28-22-7 | | 58 | 13 | @ St. Louis Blues | 4 - 1 | 28-23-7 | | 59 | 15 | @ Chicago Blackhawks | 2 - 0 | 28-24-7 | | 60 | 17 | New Jersey Devils | 2 - 2 OT | 28-24-8 | | 61 | 19 | @ New Jersey Devils | 1 - 1 OT | 28-24-9 | | 62 | 21 | @ Hartford Whalers | 7 - 2 | 28-25-9 | | 63 | 23 | @ Philadelphia Flyers | 2 - 1 | 28-26-9 |
| March: 7-6-0 (Home: 4-2-0; Road: 3-4-0) | Game | March | Opponent | Score | Record |
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| 64 | 1 | @ Detroit Red Wings | 3 - 0 | 28-27-9 | | 65 | 3 | San Jose Sharks | 5 - 4 OT | 29-27-9 | | 66 | 6 | @ Los Angeles Kings | 6 - 2 | 30-27-9 | | 67 | 7 | @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 5 - 2 | 30-28-9 | | 68 | 9 | @ San Jose Sharks | 2 - 1 | 31-28-9 | | 69 | 12 | Washington Capitals | 3 - 2 | 32-28-9 | | 70 | 14 | @ Ottawa Senators | 4 - 3 OT | 33-28-9 | | 71 | 17 | Ottawa Senators | 4 - 3 | 33-29-9 | | 72 | 19 | Montreal Canadiens | 5 - 4 | 33-30-9 | | 73 | 21 | Detroit Red Wings | 3 - 1 | 34-30-9 | | 74 | 24 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 3 - 0 | 35-30-9 | | 75 | 27 | @ New Jersey Devils | 4 - 0 | 35-31-9 | | 76 | 29 | @ Hartford Whalers | 2 - 1 | 35-32-9 |
| April: 3-2-1 (Home: 2-1-1; Road: 1-1-0) | Game | April | Opponent | Score | Record |
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| 77 | 1 | Buffalo Sabres | 1 - 1 OT | 35-32-10 | | 78 | 3 | Boston Bruins | 5 - 4 | 36-32-10 | | 79 | 4 | @ Buffalo Sabres | 5 - 1 | 36-33-10 | | 80 | 7 | Philadelphia Flyers | 3 - 2 | 37-33-10 | | 81 | 10 | @ Philadelphia Flyers | 6 - 3 | 38-33-10 | | 82 | 11 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 4 - 2 | 38-34-10 |
|
Playoffs{{main|1997 Stanley Cup playoffs}}Key: {{Color box|#ccffcc|border=darkgray}} Win {{Color box|#ffbbbb|border=darkgray}} Loss | 1997 Stanley Cup Playoffs |
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| Conference Quarter-finals: vs. (4) Florida Panthers - New York Rangers win series 4-1 |
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| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Series | | 1 | April 17 | New York Rangers | 0 - 3 | Florida Panthers | Florida leads series 1-0 | | 2 | April 20 | New York Rangers | 3 - 0 | Florida Panthers | Series tied 1-1 | | 3 | April 22 | Florida Panthers | 3 - 4 | New York Rangers | OT | New York Rangers lead series 2-1 | | 4 | April 23 | Florida Panthers | 2 - 3 | New York Rangers | New York Rangers lead series 3-1 | | 5 | April 25 | New York Rangers | 3 - 2 | Florida Panthers | OT | New York Rangers win series 4-1 |
| | Conference Semi-finals: vs. (1) New Jersey Devils - New York Rangers win series 4-1 |
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| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Series | | 1 | May 2 | New York Rangers | 0 - 2 | New Jersey Devils | New Jersey leads series 1-0 | | 2 | May 4 | New York Rangers | 2 - 0 | New Jersey Devils | Series tied 1-1 | | 3 | May 6 | New Jersey Devils | 2 - 3 | New York Rangers | New York Rangers lead series 2-1 | | 4 | May 8 | New Jersey Devils | 0 - 3 | New York Rangers | New York Rangers lead series 3-1 | | 5 | May 11 | New York Rangers | 2 - 1 | New Jersey Devils | OT | New York Rangers win series 4-1 |
| | Conference Finals: vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers - Philadelphia wins series 4-1 |
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| # | Date | Visitor | Score | Home | OT | Series | | 1 | May 16 | New York Rangers | 1 - 3 | Philadelphia Flyers | Philadelphia leads series 1-0 | | 2 | May 18 | New York Rangers | 5 - 4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Series tied 1-1 | | 3 | May 20 | Philadelphia Flyers | 6 - 3 | New York Rangers | Philadelphia leads series 2-1 | | 4 | May 23 | Philadelphia Flyers | 3 - 2 | New York Rangers | Philadelphia leads series 3-1 | | 5 | May 25 | New York Rangers | 2 - 4 | Philadelphia Flyers | Philadelphia wins series 4-1 |
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Player statistics- Skaters
{{col-begin}}{{col-2}} Regular Season| Player | GP|Games Played | G|Goals | A|Assists | Pts|Points | {{abbr|+/-|Plus/Minus | PIM|Penalty Minutes |
|---|
| Wayne|Gretzky}} | 82 | 25 | 72 | 97 | 12 | 28 | | Mark|Messier}} | 71 | 36 | 48 | 84 | 12 | 88 | | Brian|Leetch}} | 82 | 20 | 58 | 78 | 31 | 40 | | Adam|Graves}} | 82 | 33 | 28 | 61 | 10 | 66 | | Niklas|Sundstrom|Niklas Sundström}} | 82 | 24 | 28 | 52 | 23 | 20 | | Luc|Robitaille}} | 69 | 24 | 24 | 48 | 16 | 48 | | Alexander|Karpovtsev}} | 77 | 9 | 29 | 38 | 1 | 59 | | Alexei|Kovalev}} | 45 | 13 | 22 | 35 | 11 | 42 | | Bruce|Driver}} | 79 | 5 | 25 | 30 | 8 | 48 | | Patrick|Flatley}} | 68 | 10 | 12 | 22 | 6 | 26 | | Sergei|Nemchinov}}‡ | 63 | 6 | 13 | 19 | 5 | 12 | | Ulf|Samuelsson}} | 73 | 6 | 11 | 17 | 3 | 138 | | Brian|Noonan}}†‡ | 44 | 6 | 9 | 15 | -7 | 28 | | Bill|Berg|dab=ice hockey}} | 67 | 8 | 6 | 14 | 2 | 37 | | Daniel|Goneau}} | 41 | 10 | 3 | 13 | -5 | 10 | | Jeff|Beukeboom}} | 80 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 22 | 167 | | Vladimir|Vorobiev}} | 16 | 5 | 5 | 10 | 4 | 6 | | Darren|Langdon}} | 60 | 3 | 6 | 9 | -1 | 195 | | Mike|Eastwood}}† | 27 | 1 | 7 | 8 | 2 | 10 | | Doug|Lidster}} | 48 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 10 | 24 | | Russ|Courtnall}}† | 14 | 2 | 5 | 7 | -3 | 2 | | David|Oliver|David Oliver (ice hockey)}}† | 14 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 4 | | Esa|Tikkanen}}† | 14 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 6 | | Chris|Ferraro}} | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 6 | | Christian|Dube|Christian Dubé (ice hockey)}} | 27 | 1 | 1 | 2 | -4 | 4 | | Ryan|VandenBussche}} | 11 | 1 | 0 | 1 | -2 | 30 | | Jayson|More}}‡ | 14 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 25 | | Eric|Cairns}} | 40 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -7 | 147 | | Shane|Churla}} | 45 | 0 | 1 | 1 | -10 | 106 | | Jeff|Nielsen}} | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 2 | | Peter|Ferraro}} | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Dallas|Eakins}}† | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 6 | | Sylvain|Blouin}} | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -1 | 18 | | Sergio|Momesso}}‡ | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | -2 | 11 | |
{{col-2}} Playoffs| Player | GP|Games Played | G|Goals | A|Assists | Pts|Points | PIM|Penalty Minutes |
|---|
| Wayne|Gretzky}} | 15 | 10 | 10 | 20 | 2 | | Esa|Tikkanen}} | 15 | 9 | 3 | 12 | 26 | | Mark|Messier}} | 15 | 3 | 9 | 12 | 6 | | Luc|Robitaille}} | 15 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 4 | | Brian|Leetch}} | 15 | 2 | 8 | 10 | 6 | | Russ|Courtnall}} | 15 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 0 | | Doug|Lidster}} | 15 | 1 | 5 | 6 | 8 | | Niklas|Sundstrom|Niklas Sundström}} | 9 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 2 | | Alexander|Karpovtsev}} | 13 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 20 | | Mike|Eastwood}} | 15 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 22 | | Adam|Graves}} | 15 | 2 | 1 | 3 | 12 | | Ulf|Samuelsson}} | 15 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 30 | | Jeff|Beukeboom}} | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 34 | | Bruce|Driver}} | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | | Dallas|Eakins}} | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | | Peter|Ferraro}} | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Ken|Gernander}} | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Shane|Churla}} | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 20 | | Eric|Cairns}} | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Christian|Dube|Christian Dubé (ice hockey)}} | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | David|Oliver|David Oliver (ice hockey)}} | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | | Darren|Langdon}} | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | | Bill|Berg|dab=ice hockey}} | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | | Patrick|Flatley}} | 11 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 14 | {{col-end}}- Goaltenders
Regular Season| Player | GP|Games Played | TOI|Time on Ice | W|Win | L|Loss | T|Tie | GA|Goals Against | GAA|Goals Against Average | SA|Shots Against | SV%|Save Percentage | SO|Shutouts |
|---|
| Mike|Richter}} | 61 | 3598 | 33 | 22 | 6 | 161 | 2.68 | 1945 | .917 | 4 | | Glenn|Healy}} | 23 | 59 | 5 | 12 | 4 | 59 | 2.61 | 632 | .907 | 1 | Playoffs| Player | GP|Games Played | TOI|Time on Ice | W|Win | L|Loss | GA|Goals Against | GAA|Goals Against Average | SA|Shots Against | SV%|Save Percentage | SO|Shutouts |
|---|
| Mike|Richter}} | 15 | 939 | 9 | 6 | 33 | 2.11 | 488 | .932 | 3 | †Denotes player spent time with another team before joining Rangers. Stats reflect time with Rangers only.
‡Traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with Rangers only.
[2]{{Hockey season stats note}}Draft picksNew York's picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft in St. Louis, Missouri at the Kiel Center. | 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) |
Awards and records- James Norris Memorial Trophy: Brian Leetch
References- Rangers on Hockey Database
1. ^https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1997.html
2. ^{{cite web |publisher=hockeydb.com |accessdate=2010-08-01 |title=1996-97 New York Rangers |url=http://www.hockeydb.com/ihdb/stats/leagues/seasons/teams/0000481997.html}}
{{1996–97 NHL season by team}}{{New York Rangers}}{{New York Rangers seasons}}{{DEFAULTSORT:1996-97 New York Rangers season}} 5 : 1996–97 NHL season by team|1996–97 in American ice hockey by team|New York Rangers seasons|1996 in sports in New York City|1997 in sports in New York City |