The 1997–98 Buffalo Sabres season was the 28th season for the National Hockey League franchise that was established on May 22, 1970.[1] In the Playoffs, the Sabres reached the Conference Finals for the first time since 1980.[2]
1997–98 Buffalo Sabres | |
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Division | 3rd Northeast |
Conference | 6th Eastern |
1997–98 record | 36–29–17 |
Home record | 20–13–8 |
Road record | 16–16–9 |
Goals for | 211 |
Goals against | 187 |
Team information | |
General manager | Darcy Regier |
Coach | Lindy Ruff |
Captain | Vacant (Oct.–Nov.) Michael Peca (Nov.–Apr.) |
Arena | Marine Midland Arena |
Average attendance | 15,634 |
Minor league affiliate(s) | Rochester Americans South Carolina Stingrays |
Team leaders | |
Goals | Donald Audette (24) |
Assists | Alexei Zhitnik (30) |
Points | Miroslav Satan (46) |
Penalty minutes | Matthew Barnaby (289) |
Plus/minus | Darryl Shannon (+26) |
Wins | Dominik Hasek (33) |
Goals against average | Dominik Hasek (2.09) |
Off-season
editThis section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010) |
Regular season
editOn March 19, 1998, the Sabres scored three short-handed goals in a 6–1 win over the Florida Panthers.[3]
The Sabres finished the regular season with 13 shutouts, the most in the NHL.[4]
Season standings
editNo. | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 40 | 24 | 18 | 228 | 188 | 98 |
2 | 5 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 221 | 194 | 91 |
3 | 6 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 36 | 29 | 17 | 211 | 187 | 89 |
4 | 7 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 235 | 208 | 87 |
5 | 8 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 34 | 33 | 15 | 193 | 200 | 83 |
6 | 9 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 33 | 41 | 8 | 200 | 219 | 74 |
R | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | New Jersey Devils | ATL | 82 | 48 | 23 | 11 | 225 | 166 | 107 |
2 | Pittsburgh Penguins | NE | 82 | 40 | 24 | 18 | 228 | 188 | 98 |
3 | Philadelphia Flyers | ATL | 82 | 42 | 29 | 11 | 242 | 193 | 95 |
4 | Washington Capitals | ATL | 82 | 40 | 30 | 12 | 219 | 202 | 92 |
5 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 221 | 194 | 91 |
6 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 36 | 29 | 17 | 211 | 187 | 89 |
7 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 235 | 208 | 87 |
8 | Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 34 | 33 | 15 | 193 | 200 | 83 |
9 | Carolina Hurricanes | NE | 82 | 33 | 41 | 8 | 200 | 219 | 74 |
10 | New York Islanders | ATL | 82 | 30 | 41 | 11 | 212 | 225 | 71 |
11 | New York Rangers | ATL | 82 | 25 | 39 | 18 | 197 | 231 | 68 |
12 | Florida Panthers | ATL | 82 | 24 | 43 | 15 | 203 | 256 | 63 |
13 | Tampa Bay Lightning | ATL | 82 | 17 | 55 | 10 | 151 | 269 | 44 |
Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast
bold – Qualified for playoffs
Schedule and results
editRegular season
edit1997–98 regular season[6] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 4–7–2 (home: 2–2–0; road: 2–5–2)
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November: 3–5–3 (home: 1–4–2; road: 2–1–1)
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December: 7–7–1 (home: 6–2–0; road: 1–5–1)
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January: 5–2–4 (home: 3–0–3; road: 2–2–1)
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February: 3–0–4 (home: 0–0–3; road: 3–0–1)
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March: 9–5–1 (home: 3–3–0; road: 6–2–1)
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April: 5–3–2 (home: 5–2–0; road: 0–1–2)
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Legend:
Win (2 points) Loss (0 points) Tie (1 point) |
Playoffs
edit1998 Stanley Cup playoffs[6] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (3) Philadelphia Flyers – Sabres win 4–1
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Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (7) Montreal Canadiens – Sabres win 4–0
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Eastern Conference Finals vs. (4) Washington Capitals – Capitals win 4–2
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Legend:
Win Loss |
Player statistics
editScoring
edit- 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 Sabres only.
- ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Sabres only.
No. | Player | Pos | Regular season | Playoffs | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | |||
81 | Miroslav Satan | LW | 79 | 22 | 24 | 46 | 2 | 34 | 14 | 5 | 4 | 9 | −9 | 4 |
44 | Alexei Zhitnik | D | 78 | 15 | 30 | 45 | 19 | 102 | 15 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 36 |
28 | Donald Audette | RW | 75 | 24 | 20 | 44 | 10 | 59 | 15 | 5 | 8 | 13 | −4 | 10 |
27 | Michael Peca | C | 61 | 18 | 22 | 40 | 12 | 57 | 13 | 3 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 8 |
17 | Jason Dawe‡ | RW | 68 | 19 | 17 | 36 | 10 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
19 | Brian Holzinger | C | 69 | 14 | 21 | 35 | −2 | 36 | 15 | 4 | 7 | 11 | −2 | 18 |
5 | Jason Woolley | D | 71 | 9 | 26 | 35 | 8 | 35 | 15 | 2 | 9 | 11 | 8 | 12 |
26 | Derek Plante | C | 72 | 13 | 21 | 34 | 8 | 26 | 11 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 1 | 10 |
18 | Michal Grosek | LW | 67 | 10 | 20 | 30 | 9 | 60 | 15 | 6 | 4 | 10 | 5 | 28 |
36 | Matthew Barnaby | RW | 72 | 5 | 20 | 25 | 8 | 289 | 15 | 7 | 6 | 13 | 6 | 22 |
37 | Curtis Brown | C | 63 | 12 | 12 | 24 | 11 | 34 | 13 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 6 | 10 |
15 | Dixon Ward | RW | 71 | 10 | 13 | 23 | 9 | 42 | 15 | 3 | 8 | 11 | 8 | 6 |
8 | Darryl Shannon | D | 76 | 3 | 19 | 22 | 26 | 56 | 15 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 0 | 8 |
42 | Richard Smehlik | D | 72 | 3 | 17 | 20 | 11 | 62 | 15 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 6 |
74 | Jay McKee | D | 56 | 1 | 13 | 14 | −1 | 42 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 0 |
22 | Wayne Primeau | C | 69 | 6 | 6 | 12 | 9 | 87 | 14 | 1 | 3 | 4 | −1 | 6 |
25 | Vaclav Varada | RW | 27 | 5 | 6 | 11 | 0 | 15 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 3 | 18 |
10 | Brad May‡ | LW | 36 | 4 | 7 | 11 | 2 | 113 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
12 | Randy Burridge | LW | 30 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
80 | Geoff Sanderson† | LW | 26 | 4 | 5 | 9 | 6 | 20 | 14 | 3 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 4 |
4 | Mike Wilson | D | 66 | 4 | 4 | 8 | 13 | 48 | 15 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −4 | 13 |
32 | Rob Ray | RW | 63 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 2 | 234 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 24 |
9 | Erik Rasmussen | C | 21 | 2 | 3 | 5 | 2 | 14 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
6 | Bob Boughner | D | 69 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 165 | 14 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 9 | 15 |
24 | Paul Kruse† | LW | 12 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 49 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
39 | Dominik Hasek | G | 72 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 12 | 15 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | ||
21 | Mike Hurlbut | D | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
40 | Rumun Ndur | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 2 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
45 | Scott Nichol | C | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
31 | Steve Shields | G | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 17 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Goaltending
editNo. | Player | Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | ||
39 | Dominik Hasek | 72 | 33 | 23 | 13 | 2149 | 147 | 2.09 | .932 | 13 | 4220 | 15 | 10 | 5 | 514 | 32 | 2.03 | .938 | 1 | 948 |
31 | Steve Shields | 16 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 408 | 37 | 2.83 | .909 | 0 | 785 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Awards and records
editAwards
editType | Award/honor | Recipient | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
League (annual) |
Hart Memorial Trophy | Dominik Hasek | [7] |
Lester B. Pearson Award | Dominik Hasek | [8] | |
NHL First All-Star team | Dominik Hasek (Goaltender) | [9] | |
Vezina Trophy | Dominik Hasek | [10] | |
League (in-season) |
NHL All-Star Game selection | Dominik Hasek[a] | [12] |
Milestones
editMilestone | Player | Date | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
25th shutout | Dominik Hasek | December 21, 1997 |
Transactions
editThis section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010) |
Draft picks
editBuffalo's picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[13]
Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/junior/club team |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 21 | Mika Noronen (G) | Finland | Tappara (SM-liiga) |
2 | 48 | Henrik Tallinder (D) | Sweden | AIK IF Jr. (Sweden) |
3 | 69 | Maxim Afinogenov (RW) | Russia | Dynamo Moscow (Russia) |
3 | 75 | Jeff Martin (C) | Canada | Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
4 | 101 | Luc Theoret (D) | Canada | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
5 | 128 | Torrey DiRoberto (C) | United States | Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
6 | 156 | Brian Campbell (D) | Canada | Ottawa 67's (OHL) |
7 | 184 | Jeremy Adduono (RW) | Canada | Sudbury Wolves (OHL) |
8 | 212 | Kamil Piros (RW) | Czech Republic | HC Chemopetrol Jr. (Czech Republic) |
9 | 238 | Dylan Kemp (D) | Canada | Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
Notes
editReferences
edit- "Buffalo Sabres 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- "1997-98 Buffalo Sabres Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ^ National Hockey League (2010). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book/2011. Triumph Books. p. 27. ISBN 978-1-60078-422-4.
- ^ "Buffalo Sabres Historical Statistics and All-Time Top Leaders". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 20, 2024.
- ^ "Florida Panthers at Buffalo Sabres Box Score — March 19, 1998".
- ^ "1997-98 Buffalo Sabres Roster and Statistics".
- ^ "1997–1998 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
- ^ a b "1997-98 Buffalo Sabres Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
- ^ "Hart Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "Ted Lindsay Award". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "Postseason All-Star Teams". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "Vezina Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
- ^ "NHL All-Star Game Starting Lineups by Year (since 1986)". NHL.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ "1998 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
- ^ "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.