1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 31st in the National Hockey League (NHL). It was their first season under Head Coach Kevin Constantine and first after the initial retirement of Mario Lemieux.

1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins
Northeast Division champions
Division	1st Northeast
Conference	2nd Eastern
1997–98 record	40–24–18
Goals for	228
Goals against	188
Team information
General manager	Craig Patrick
Coach	Kevin Constantine
Captain	Ron Francis
Alternate captains	Kevin Hatcher Jaromír Jágr
Arena	Pittsburgh Civic Arena
Team leaders
Goals	Jaromír Jágr (35)
Assists	Jaromir Jagr (67)
Points	Jaromir Jagr (102)
Penalty minutes	Chris Tamer (181)
Wins	Tom Barrasso (31)
Goals against average	Peter Skudra (1.83)

Offseason

Following the 1996–97 season which saw their Hall of Fame star Mario Lemieux retire, the Penguins attempted to continue keeping their recent success. Over the previous nine seasons, no NHL team had been more successful than Pittsburgh in terms of regular season points, although the team had not won a Stanley Cup since 1992 (part of the reason why Head Coach Eddie Johnston was asked to resign down following the 1996–97 season). Former San Jose Sharks Head Coach Kevin Constantine was hired as Johnston's successor, promising to replace his predecessor's free-form style of play with a more disciplined approach. Additionally, Ron Francis was named captain in Lemieux's absence, and the team acquired center Martin Straka via free agency to add offense. The team also acquired the rights to defensive-defenseman Jiri Slegr, who had spent the 1996–97 season playing for Sodertalje SK in Sweden.

Regular season

The Penguins tied the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Panthers and New York Islanders for most short-handed goals allowed, with 16.[1]

Final standings

Northeast Division

No.		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	40	24	18	228	188	98
2	Boston Bruins	82	39	30	13	221	194	91
3	Buffalo Sabres	82	36	29	17	211	187	89
4	Montreal Canadiens	82	37	32	13	235	208	87
5	Ottawa Senators	82	34	33	15	193	200	83
6	Carolina Hurricanes	82	33	41	8	200	219	74

Eastern Conference[2]

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

1997–98 Schedule
October: 7–5–2 (Home: 1–2–1 ; Road: 6–3–1), 16 Points # Oct Visitor Score Home Record Points 1 1 Los Angeles Kings 3–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 0–0–1 1 2 3 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–3 Carolina Hurricanes 1–0–1 3 3 4 Florida Panthers 5–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–1–1 3 4 8 Montreal Canadiens 3–0 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–2–1 3 5 9 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Philadelphia Flyers 1–3–1 3 6 11 Carolina Hurricanes 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3–1 5 7 14 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–0 New York Rangers 3–3–1 7 8 15 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–1 Montreal Canadiens 3–3–2 8 9 17 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Tampa Bay Lightning 4–3–2 10 10 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Florida Panthers 5–3–2 12 11 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 5–2 San Jose Sharks 6–3–2 14 12 24 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 Edmonton Oilers 6–4–2 14 13 25 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 OT Vancouver Canucks 7–4–2 16 14 28 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–6 Calgary Flames 7–5–2 16
November: 7–4–3 (Home: 5–2–2 ; Road: 2–2–1), 17 Points # Nov Visitor Score Home Record Points 15 1 Vancouver Canucks 6–7 OT Pittsburgh Penguins 8–5–2 18 16 2 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Chicago Blackhawks 8–6–2 18 17 5 Dallas Stars 5–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 8–7–2 18 18 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–1 Detroit Red Wings 8–7–3 19 19 8 Buffalo Sabres 2–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 8–7–4 20 20 12 Washington Capitals 4–1 Pittsburgh Penguins 8–8–4 20 21 14 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 New York Rangers 8–9–4 20 22 15 Pittsburgh Penguins 5–0 Toronto Maple Leafs 9–9–4 22 23 19 Boston Bruins 3–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 9–9–5 23 24 20 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–0 Ottawa Senators 10–9–5 25 25 22 New York Rangers 3–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins 11–9–5 27 26 24 Buffalo Sabres 1–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 12–9–5 29 27 26 Carolina Hurricanes 2–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 13–9–5 31 28 29 Montreal Canadiens 3–6 Pittsburgh Penguins 14–9–5 33
December: 7–3–3 (Home: 3–2–1 ; Road: 4–1–2), 17 Points # Dec Visitor Score Home Record Points 29 1 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–0 Montreal Canadiens 15–9–5 35 30 4 New Jersey Devils 4–0 Pittsburgh Penguins 15–10–5 35 31 6 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 16–10–5 37 32 9 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–1 Los Angeles Kings 17–10–5 39 33 10 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–0 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim 18–10–5 41 34 12 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–2 Phoenix Coyotes 18–10–6 42 35 16 Tampa Bay Lightning 1–1 Pittsburgh Penguins 18–10–7 43 36 19 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–3 Colorado Avalanche 18–10–8 44 37 20 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 St. Louis Blues 18–11–8 44 38 26 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Washington Capitals 19–11–8 46 39 27 Montreal Canadiens 1–0 Pittsburgh Penguins 19–12–8 46 40 29 New York Islanders 1–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 20–12–8 48 41 31 Carolina Hurricanes 2–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 21–12–8 50
January: 8–3–2 (Home: 4–1–1 ; Road: 4–2–1), 18 Points # Jan Visitor Score Home Record Points 42 3 Colorado Avalanche 5–4 OT Pittsburgh Penguins 21–13–8 50 43 6 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–2 New York Islanders 22–13–8 52 44 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 New Jersey Devils 22–14–8 52 45 10 New Jersey Devils 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 23–14–8 54 46 12 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Carolina Hurricanes 24–14–8 56 47 14 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–5 Boston Bruins 24–15–8 56 48 20 Ottawa Senators 0–0 Pittsburgh Penguins 24–15–9 57 49 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–2 New Jersey Devils 25–15–9 59 50 24 Boston Bruins 2–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 26–15–9 61 51 26 St. Louis Blues 2–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 27–15–9 63 52 28 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–2 Washington Capitals 27–15–10 64 53 29 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–2 Boston Bruins 28–15–10 66 54 31 Detroit Red Wings 2–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 29–15–10 68
February: 1–2–3 (Home: 0–1–1 ; Road: 1–1–2), 5 Points # Feb Visitor Score Home Record Points 55 2 New York Islanders 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 29–16–10 68 56 4 Washington Capitals 2–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 29–16–11 69 57 6 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–2 Buffalo Sabres 29–16–12 70 58 7 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–2 Ottawa Senators 29–16–13 71 59 25 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–2 Montreal Canadiens 30–16–13 73 60 28 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–6 Boston Bruins 30–17–13 73
March: 6–3–4 (Home: 6–0–3 ; Road: 0–3–1), 16 Points # Mar Visitor Score Home Record Points 61 2 Toronto Maple Leafs 1–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 31–17–13 75 62 5 Chicago Blackhawks 2–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 31–17–14 76 63 7 Philadelphia Flyers 4–6 Pittsburgh Penguins 32–17–14 78 64 8 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 OT Philadelphia Flyers 32–18–14 78 65 11 Calgary Flames 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 33–18–14 80 66 14 Buffalo Sabres 1–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 34–18–14 82 67 15 Pittsburgh Penguins 0–3 Buffalo Sabres 34–19–14 82 68 18 Edmonton Oilers 2–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 35–19–14 84 69 21 Philadelphia Flyers 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 36–19–14 86 70 22 Pittsburgh Penguins 0–0 Dallas Stars 36–19–15 87 71 26 Pittsburgh Penguins 3–4 New York Islanders 36–20–15 87 72 28 New York Rangers 2–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 36–20–16 88 73 29 Ottawa Senators 1–1 Pittsburgh Penguins 36–20–17 89
April: 4–4–1 (Home: 2–2–1 ; Road: 2–2–0), 9 Points # Apr Visitor Score Home Record Points 74 1 San Jose Sharks 3–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 36–21–17 89 75 4 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Tampa Bay Lightning 37–21–17 91 76 5 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Florida Panthers 37–22–17 91 77 7 Phoenix Coyotes 2–1 Pittsburgh Penguins 37–23–17 91 78 9 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–4 Ottawa Senators 37–24–17 91 79 11 Florida Panthers 3–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 37–24–18 92 80 15 Tampa Bay Lightning 1–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 38–24–18 94 81 16 Pittsburgh Penguins 4–1 Carolina Hurricanes 39–24–18 96 82 18 Boston Bruins 2–5 Pittsburgh Penguins 40–24–18 98
Legend:        = Win        = Loss        = Tie

Playoffs

1998 Stanley Cup Playoffs
Round 1: 2–4 (Home: 1–2 ; Road: 1–2) # Date Visitor Score Home Record 1 April 23 Montreal Canadiens 3–2 (OT) Pittsburgh Penguins 0–1 2 April 25 Montreal Canadiens 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–1 3 April 27 Pittsburgh Penguins 1–3 Montreal Canadiens 1–2 4 April 29 Pittsburgh Penguins 6–3 Montreal Canadiens 2–2 5 May 1 Montreal Canadiens 5–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 2–3 6 May 3 Pittsburgh Penguins 0–3 Montreal Canadiens 2–4
Legend:        = Win        = Loss

Player statistics

Skaters

Regular Season[3] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Jaromír Jágr 77 35 67 102 17 64 Ron Francis 81 25 62 87 12 20 Stu Barnes 78 30 35 65 15 30 Kevin Hatcher 74 19 29 48 –3 66 Martin Straka 75 19 23 42 –1 28 Robert Brown 82 15 25 40 –1 59 Fredrik Olausson 76 6 27 33 13 42 Aleksey Morozov 76 13 13 26 –4 8 Robert Lang^† 51 9 13 22 6 14 Eddie Olczyk 56 11 11 22 –9 35 Alex Hicks 58 7 13 20 4 54 Brad Werenka 71 3 15 18 15 46 Jiří Šlégr 73 5 12 17 10 109 Andreas Johansson 50 5 10 15 4 20 Darius Kasparaitis 81 4 8 12 3 127 Róbert Döme 30 5 2 7 –1 12 Chris Ferraro 46 3 4 7 –2 43 Chris Tamer 79 0 7 7 4 181 Ian Moran 37 1 6 7 0 19 Peter Ferraro^‡ 29 3 4 7 –2 12 Tyler Wright 82 3 4 7 –3 112 Neil Wilkinson 34 2 4 6 0 24 Tuomas Grönman 22 1 2 3 3 25 Garry Valk 39 2 1 3 –3 33 Greg Johnson^‡ 5 1 0 1 0 2 Sean Pronger^† 5 1 0 1 –1 2 Sven Butenschön 8 0 0 0 –1 6 Total 228 397 625 — 1,193

Playoffs[4] Player GP G A Pts +/− PIM Jaromír Jágr 6 4 5 9 5 2 Ron Francis 6 1 5 6 5 2 Stu Barnes 6 3 3 6 2 2 Jiří Šlégr 6 0 4 4 3 2 Robert Lang 6 0 3 3 –4 2 Fredrik Olausson 6 0 3 3 0 2 Martin Straka 6 2 0 2 –3 2 Eddie Olczyk 6 2 0 2 –3 4 Aleksey Morozov 6 0 1 1 –3 2 Tyler Wright 6 0 1 1 0 4 Robert Brown 6 1 0 1 –4 4 Chris Tamer 6 0 1 1 –1 4 Brad Werenka 6 1 0 1 –3 8 Kevin Hatcher 6 1 0 1 1 12 Alex Hicks 6 0 0 0 –5 2 Ian Moran 6 0 0 0 –1 2 Darius Kasparaitis 5 0 0 0 –2 8 Tuomas Grönman 1 0 0 0 0 0 Andreas Johansson 1 0 0 0 0 0 Sean Pronger 5 0 0 0 –1 4 Total 15 26 41 — 68

Goaltenders

Regular Season[5]

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Tom Barrasso	63	60	3542:07	31	14	13	122	2.07	1556	0.922	7	0	2	14
Peter Skudra	17	12	851:23	6	4	3	26	1.83	341	0.924	0	0	1	2
Ken Wregget	15	9	611:26	3	6	2	28	2.75	293	0.904	0	0	0	6
Total		81	5004:56	40	24	18	176	2.11	2190	0.920	7	0	3	22

Playoffs[6]

Player	GP	GS	TOI	W	L	T	GA	GAA	SA	SV%	SO	G	A	PIM
Tom Barrasso	6	6	376:19	2	4	0	17	2.71	171	0.901	0	0	0	2
Total		6	376:19	2	4	0	17	2.71	171	0.901	0	0	0	2

^†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
^‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

Transactions

The Penguins have been involved in the following transactions during the 1997–98 season:[7]

Trades

August 12, 1997	To Edmonton Oilers 1998 3rd round pick	To Pittsburgh Penguins Jiri Slegr
September 24, 1997	To Buffalo Sabres Jason Woolley	To Pittsburgh Penguins 1998 5th round pick
September 28, 1997	To Colorado Avalanche Francois Leroux	To Pittsburgh Penguins 1998 3rd round pick
October 27, 1997	To Chicago Blackhawks Greg Johnson	To Pittsburgh Penguins Tuomas Gronman
March 24, 1998	To Anaheim Ducks rights to Patrick Lalime	To Pittsburgh Penguins Sean Pronger
June 16, 1998	To Edmonton Oilers rights to Josef Beranek	To Pittsburgh Penguins Bobby Dollas Tony Hrkac
June 17, 1998	To Calgary Flames David Roche Ken Wregget	To Pittsburgh Penguins Todd Hlushko German Titov

Free agents lost

Player	New team	Date
Jeff Christian	Phoenix Coyotes	August 4, 1997
Robert Lang[8]	Boston Bruins	September 28, 1997
Drake Berehowsky	Edmonton Oilers	September 30, 1997

Claimed via waivers Date Player Previous team October 1, 1997[9] Peter Ferraro New York Rangers October 1, 1997[9] Chris Ferraro New York Rangers October 25, 1997[10] Robert Lang Boston Bruins

Lost via waivers Date Player New team January 14, 1998[11] Peter Ferraro New York Rangers June 26, 1998 Tony Hrkac Nashville Predators

Player signings Player Date Brad Werenka July 31, 1997 Ian Moran August 1, 1997 Martin Straka August 6, 1997 Robert Lang[12] September 2, 1997 Joe Dziedzic[13] September 10, 1997 Alexei Morozov[14] September 24, 1997 Peter Skudra[15] September 25, 1997 Rob Brown[16] October 1, 1997 Jaromir Jagr January 27, 1998 Peter Skudra June 17, 1998 Roster # Nat Player Pos S/G Age NHL Draft Birthplace 14 Stu Barnes C R 27 1989 Spruce Grove, Alberta 35 Tom Barrasso G R 33 1983 Boston, Massachusetts 44 Robert Brown RW L 30 1986 Kingston, Ontario 22 Sven Butenschon D L 22 1994 Itzehoe, Germany 15 Robert Dome LW L 19 1997 Senica, Slovakia 57 Chris Ferraro C R 25 1992 Port Jefferson, New York 10 Ron Francis (C) C L 35 1981 Sault Ste. Marie, Ontario 42 Tuomas Gronman D L 24 1992 Viitasaari, Finland 4 Kevin Hatcher (A) D R 31 1984 Detroit, Michigan 33 Alex Hicks LW L 28 Undrafted Calgary, Alberta 68 Jaromir Jagr (A) RW L 26 1990 Kladno, Czech Republic 38 Andreas Johansson LW L 25 1991 Hofors, Sweden 11 Darius Kasparaitis D L 25 1992 Elektrenai, Lithuania 20 Robert Lang C R 27 1990 Teplice, Czech Republic 24 Ian Moran D R 25 1990 Cleveland, Ohio 95 Aleksey Morozov RW L 21 1995 Moscow, Russia 23 Fredrik Olausson D R 31 1985 Dadesjo, Sweden 16 Eddie Olczyk RW L 31 1984 Chicago, Illinois 12 Sean Pronger C L 25 1991 Thunder Bay, Ontario 1 Peter Skudra G L 25 Undrafted Riga, Latvia 71 Jiri Slegr D L 27 1990 Jihlava, Czech Republic 82 Martin Straka C L 25 1992 Plzen, Czech Republic 2 Chris Tamer D L 27 1990 Dearborn, Michigan 18 Garry Valk LW L 30 1987 Edmonton, Alberta 5 Brad Werenka D L 29 1987 Two Hills, Alberta 6 Neil Wilkinson D R 30 1986 Selkirk, Manitoba 31 Ken Wregget G L 34 1982 Brandon, Manitoba 29 Tyler Wright C R 25 1991 Kamsac, Saskatchewan Draft picks The Penguins drafted the following players at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh:[17] Round # Player Pos Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League) 1 17 Robert Dome Left Wing  Slovakia Las Vegas Thunder (IHL) 2 44 Brian Gaffaney Defense  United States North Iowa Huskies (USHL) 3 71 Josef Melichar Defense  Czech Republic HC Ceske Budejovice (Czech) 4 97 Alexandre Mathieu Center  Canada Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) 5 124 Harlan Pratt Defense  Canada Prince Albert Raiders (WHL) 6 152 Petr Havelka Left Wing  Czech Republic Sparta Prague (Czech) 7 179 Mark Moore Defense  Canada Harvard University (ECACHL) 8 208 Andrew Ference Defense  Canada Portland Winter Hawks (WHL) 9 234 Eric Lind Defense  United States Avon Old Farms (USHS–CT) Farm teams The Johnstown Chiefs of the East Coast Hockey League finished last overall in the Northern Conference with a record of 23–41–6. The American Hockey League (AHL)'s Syracuse Crunch finished in third place in the Empire State Division with a record of 35–32–11–2 record. They were eliminated by the Hamilton Bulldogs in the first round of the playoffs. See also 1997–98 NHL season References https://www.hockey-reference.com/leagues/NHL_1998.html "1997–1998 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 4, 2014. "1997–1998 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL. "1997–1998 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – All Skaters – Summary – Points – NHL.com – Stats". NHL. "1997–1998 – Regular Season – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL. "1997–1998 – Playoffs – Pittsburgh Penguins – Goalie – Summary – Wins – NHL.com – Stats". NHL. "Hockey Transactions Search Results". ProSportsTransactions. Retrieved September 14, 2012. "PENGUINS TRADE FRANCOIS LEROUX TO COLORADO; LOSE ROBERT LANG IN WAIVER DRAFT". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 28, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS CLAIM PETER AND CHRIS FERRARO". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 1, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS CLAIM ROBERT LANG OFF WAIVERS". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 25, 1997. Archived from the original on January 12, 1998. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PETER FERRARO CLAIMED ON WAIVERS BY NY RANGERS". Pittsburgh Penguins. January 14, 1998. Archived from the original on January 15, 1998. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS SIGN ROBERT LANG". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 2, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS SIGN JOE DZIEDZIC". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 10, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS SIGN ALEXEI MOROZOV". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 24, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS SIGN GOALTENDER PETER SKUDRA". Pittsburgh Penguins. September 25, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "PENGUINS SIGN ROB BROWN". Pittsburgh Penguins. October 1, 1997. Archived from the original on October 22, 1997. Retrieved September 24, 2012. "NHL Entry Draft Year by Year Results". NHL.com. Retrieved July 14, 2012. "1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved 2009-05-06. External links