1995–96 Florida Panthers season

1995–96 Florida Panthers
Eastern Conference champions
Division	3rd Atlantic
Conference	4th Eastern
1995–96 record	41–31–10
Home record	25–12–4
Road record	16–19–6
Goals for	254
Goals against	234
Team information
General manager	Bryan Murray
Coach	Doug MacLean
Captain	Brian Skrudland
Alternate captains	Scott Mellanby Gord Murphy
Arena	Miami Arena
Average attendance	13,278
Minor league affiliate(s)	Carolina Monarchs Tallahassee Tiger Sharks Detroit Falcons
Team leaders
Goals	Scott Mellanby (32)
Assists	Robert Svehla (49)
Points	Scott Mellanby (70)
Penalty minutes	Paul Laus (236)
Plus/minus	Bill Lindsay (+13)
Wins	John Vanbiesbrouck (26)
Goals against average	John Vanbiesbrouck (2.68)

The 1995–96 Florida Panthers season was the 3rd season of the franchise that was established in 1993 and their most successful season ever. In only their third season in the National Hockey League, the Panthers qualified for the playoffs, and won three playoff series to become Eastern Conference champions. In the 1996 Stanley Cup Finals, Florida lost to the Colorado Avalanche in four games. The Panthers would not win another playoff series until 2022.

Offseason

Head coach Roger Neilson was fired on June 8. Player-development director Doug MacLean was named his replacement on July 24.

Regular season

Year of the Rat

A very unusual goal celebration developed in Miami. On the night of the Panthers' 1995–96 home opener, a rat scurried across the Florida locker room. Panthers winger Scott Mellanby reacted by "one-timing" the rat against the wall, killing it [1]. That night he scored two goals, which goaltender John Vanbiesbrouck quipped was "a rat trick". Two nights later, as the story found its way into the world, a few fans threw rubber rats on the ice in celebration of a goal. The rubber rat count went from 16 for the third home game to over 2,000 during the playoffs. In an amusing coincidence, 1996 was also year of the Rat according to Chinese astrology.

In the 1996 playoffs, as the fourth seed, the Panthers defeated the Boston Bruins in five games, then upset the top-seeded Philadelphia Flyers in six and the second-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins in seven games to reach the Stanley Cup Finals. Their opponents, the Colorado Avalanche, eliminated the Panthers in four games.

Final standings

Atlantic Division

No.		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	82	45	24	13	282	208	103
2	New York Rangers	82	41	27	14	272	237	96
3	Florida Panthers	82	41	31	10	254	234	92
4	Washington Capitals	82	39	32	11	234	204	89
5	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	38	32	12	238	248	88
6	New Jersey Devils	82	37	33	12	215	202	86
7	New York Islanders	82	22	50	10	229	315	54

Eastern Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	45	24	13	282	208	103
2	Pittsburgh Penguins	NE	82	49	29	4	362	284	102
3	New York Rangers	ATL	82	41	27	14	272	237	96
4	Florida Panthers	ATL	82	41	31	10	254	234	92
5	Boston Bruins	NE	82	40	31	11	282	269	91
6	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	40	32	10	265	248	90
7	Washington Capitals	ATL	82	39	32	11	234	204	89
8	Tampa Bay Lightning	ATL	82	38	32	12	238	248	88
9	New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	37	33	12	215	202	86
10	Hartford Whalers	NE	82	34	39	9	237	259	77
11	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	33	42	7	247	262	73
12	New York Islanders	ATL	82	22	50	10	229	315	54
13	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	18	59	5	191	291	41

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Playoffs

Eastern Conference Quarterfinals

The fifth-seeded Boston Bruins had one of the best offenses in the Eastern Conference, scoring 282 goals led by Cam Neely (26 goals) and Adam Oates (25 goals, 67 assists). The Panthers won their first-ever playoff game 6-3 before a sold out Miami Arena, and soon built a 3–0 lead despite being outshot by the Bruins on all games. The Bruins stepped up to win Game 4 with a 6-2 blowout before the Boston crowd. Game 5 was tied 3-3 when with 4:57 left, Bill Lindsay scored with a dive through the air goal while being tripped by star defenseman Ray Bourque, giving the Panthers their first-ever playoff series victory. This was the last year in a record 29 consecutive seasons in the playoffs for the Bruins, as they missed the 1997 post-season.

Eastern Conference Semifinals

The Philadelphia Flyers finished atop the Eastern Conference in the regular season with 103 points, led by the high-scoring "Legion of Doom" and the strong goaltending of Garth Snow and Ron Hextall. Philadelphia had just eliminated the other Florida team, the Tampa Bay Lightning, in 5 games a 2–1 series deficit.

Vanbiesbrouck posted a 2–0 shutout in Game 1, and it took until midway through Game 2 for the Flyers to get rolling offensively in a narrow 3–2 win. Game 3 saw Flyers veterans Dan Quinn, Dale Hawerchuk, Eric Desjardins and Hextall set the tone in a 3–1 victory. With young defenseman Ed Jovanovski tightly covering Flyers superstar Eric Lindros, the Panthers reversed the tide, defeating the Flyers in overtime in Game 4 and double-overtime in Game 5, in what would turn out to be the last Flyers game at the Spectrum. Lindros promised to win game 6 to return the series to Philadelphia, but the Panthers won with a 4–1 score. Florida became the third team to reach the conference finals in their third season – following fellow expansion team New York Islanders in 1975 and the Quebec Nordiques in 1982.

Eastern Conference Finals

The 2-seeded Pittsburgh Penguins were energized by the return of Mario Lemieux, who missed the entire 1994–95 season due to injury, and had the league's best offense, scoring 362 goals, and the most wins in the Eastern conference with 49, finishing just one point behind the Flyers. The Penguins advanced to the third round for the first time since 1992, defeating the Washington Capitals in six games and the New York Rangers in five games.

Despite being outshot 33–25 in game one the Panthers came out on top with an impressive 5–1 win, with 32 saves by Vanbiesbrouck and two goals by forward Tom Fitzgerald. The Penguins wanting to avoid going down two games to none against the Panthers came out with a better effort in game two and won the game 3–2 and evened the series at one game each. In game three the Panthers fired an incredible 61 shots on Penguins goaltender Tom Barrasso and it paid off as the Panthers won 5–2 – two goals by Stu Barnes – to take a 2–1 series lead. The Penguins tied game four on Brad Lauer's goal with 11:03 remaining in regulation, and Bryan Smolinski scored with 3:31 to go to give the Penguins a 2–1 lead, tying the series. In game five the Penguins shut out the Panthers 3–0, with Barrasso stopping 28 shots.

Leading the series three games to two Pittsburgh looked to advance to the Stanley Cup Finals in game six. The Penguins led 2–1 in the second period but the Panthers scored three of the next four goals and edged the Penguins 4–3 to tie the series at 3–3. In game seven Florida got a 1–0 lead on Mike Hough's goal at 13:13 of the first period. After a scoreless second period Pittsburgh tied the game on Petr Nedvěd's power-play goal at 1:23 of the third period. The Panthers regained the lead on Tom Fitzgerald's bizarre 58-foot slapshot at 6:18 and got an insurance goal from Johan Garpenlov at 17:23. Florida hung on to win the game 3–1, with a total of 39 saves by Vanbiesbrouck, and closed the series four games to three.

By reaching the finals in only their third season, the Panthers became the fastest expansion team to do so since the St. Louis Blues reached the Stanley Cup finals in their first three seasons. Many Panthers players were managing their first trips to the finals after long careers, such as Vanbiesbrouck (13 years).

Stanley Cup Finals

In the first Stanley Cup Finals where neither team had ever reached the decision before, the Panthers faced the Colorado Avalanche, who were in their inaugural season after relocating from Quebec City. Led by captain Joe Sakic, forward Peter Forsberg and defenceman Adam Foote, the Avalanche got even stronger once goaltender Patrick Roy joined the team in December 1995. The Avalanche finished the season with a 47–25–10 record for 104 points, won the Pacific Division and finished second in the Western Conference. On their way to the Western title, the Avs beat the Vancouver Canucks, the Chicago Blackhawks and Presidents' Trophy winners Detroit Red Wings, all in six games.

The series started in Denver, and the Avs dominated the Panthers at the McNichols Sports Arena. On game 1, Vanbiesbrouck shut out Colorado for half the game, before three goals were scored in a stretch of 3:49 minutes in the second period, leading to a 3–1 victory. The following game was an 8–1 blowout, starting with three power play goals in the first period as Florida incurred in bad penalties that forced Vanbiesbrouck to be pulled out in favor of Mark Fitzpatrick. Returning to Miami, Game 3 was closer, with Florida scoring twice in the first period. But the Avs still came through, taking over the lead with a Joe Sakic goal early in the second period and holding on to a 3–2 victory.

With their backs to the wall, the Panthers played a defensive game four. Vanbiesbrouck and Roy stood out, combining for 118 saves, and the two teams played a marathon game that took until the third overtime period. Uwe Krupp's unassisted goal at 4:31 ended 44 minutes and 31 seconds of overtime and gave the Avalanche a 1–0 win and a four-games-to-none series win. Goaltender Patrick Roy stopped all 63 shots he faced. Colorado outscored Florida 15–4 in the series, and Patrick Roy stopped 147 of 151 shots, for a save percentage of .974. Joe Sakic was awarded the Conn Smythe Trophy as playoff MVP, having led all skaters in goals with 18, and points with 34. For both Patrick Roy and Claude Lemieux, it was their third Stanley Cup win in eleven years.

Schedule and results

Regular season

1995–96 regular season
October: 7–4–0 (home: 5–2–0; road: 2–2–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 1 L October 7, 1995 0–4 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 0–1–0 Recap 2 W October 8, 1995 4–3 Calgary Flames (1995–96) 1–1–0 Recap 3 W October 11, 1995 6–1 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 2–1–0 Recap 4 W October 13, 1995 6–2 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 3–1–0 Recap 5 W October 15, 1995 5–3 New York Islanders (1995–96) 4–1–0 Recap 6 L October 17, 1995 3–6 Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 4–2–0 Recap 7 W October 21, 1995 3–0 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 5–2–0 Recap 8 W October 24, 1995 6–1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 6–2–0 Recap 9 L October 25, 1995 2–7 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 6–3–0 Recap 10 W October 28, 1995 4–1 @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 7–3–0 Recap 11 L October 31, 1995 4–5 OT New York Islanders (1995–96) 7–4–0 Recap
November: 10–2–1 (home: 7–1–1; road: 3–1–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 12 W November 2, 1995 2–1 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 8–4–0 Recap 13 W November 3, 1995 3–2 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 9–4–0 Recap 14 W November 5, 1995 4–1 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 10–4–0 Recap 15 W November 7, 1995 4–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 11–4–0 Recap 16 W November 9, 1995 2–1 Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 12–4–0 Recap 17 W November 11, 1995 4–1 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 13–4–0 Recap 18 W November 14, 1995 5–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 14–4–0 Recap 19 T November 16, 1995 2–2 OT Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 14–4–1 Recap 20 L November 18, 1995 2–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 14–5–1 Recap 21 W November 19, 1995 4–3 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 15–5–1 Recap 22 W November 21, 1995 4–3 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 16–5–1 Recap 23 W November 26, 1995 5–1 Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 17–5–1 Recap 24 L November 29, 1995 1–2 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 17–6–1 Recap
December: 8–4–1 (home: 3–1–1; road: 5–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 25 L December 1, 1995 1–2 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 17–7–1 Recap 26 W December 2, 1995 5–3 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 18–7–1 Recap 27 W December 5, 1995 4–3 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 19–7–1 Recap 28 T December 7, 1995 3–3 OT Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 19–7–2 Recap 29 W December 9, 1995 3–1 Boston Bruins (1995–96) 20–7–2 Recap 30 W December 11, 1995 2–1 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 21–7–2 Recap 31 W December 12, 1995 3–1 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 22–7–2 Recap 32 L December 14, 1995 4–6 @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 22–8–2 Recap 33 W December 16, 1995 7–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 23–8–2 Recap 34 W December 21, 1995 6–1 Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 24–8–2 Recap 35 W December 23, 1995 2–1 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 25–8–2 Recap 36 L December 28, 1995 4–5 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 25–9–2 Recap 37 L December 30, 1995 5–6 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 25–10–2 Recap
January: 6–4–3 (home: 3–1–0; road: 3–3–3) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 38 L January 3, 1996 2–7 @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 25–11–2 Recap 39 W January 5, 1996 3–2 @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 26–11–2 Recap 40 L January 6, 1996 0–2 @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) 26–12–2 Recap 41 W January 8, 1996 5–2 @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 27–12–2 Recap 42 T January 10, 1996 4–4 OT @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 27–12–3 Recap 43 T January 12, 1996 6–6 OT @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) 27–12–4 Recap 44 W January 16, 1996 4–1 San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 28–12–4 Recap 45 T January 22, 1996 1–1 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 28–12–5 Recap 46 W January 23, 1996 5–4 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 29–12–5 Recap 47 L January 25, 1996 2–6 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 29–13–5 Recap 48 W January 27, 1996 6–3 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 30–13–5 Recap 49 W January 29, 1996 2–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 31–13–5 Recap 50 L January 31, 1996 1–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 31–14–5 Recap
February: 4–5–3 (home: 2–3–2; road: 2–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 51 T February 1, 1996 2–2 OT @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 31–14–6 Recap 52 W February 3, 1996 5–3 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 32–14–6 Recap 53 L February 6, 1996 2–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 32–15–6 Recap 54 W February 8, 1996 3–1 Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 33–15–6 Recap 55 T February 11, 1996 2–2 OT St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 33–15–7 Recap 56 L February 14, 1996 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 33–16–7 Recap 57 L February 16, 1996 4–5 OT Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 33–17–7 Recap 58 W February 18, 1996 6–4 Dallas Stars (1995–96) 34–17–7 Recap 59 W February 21, 1996 4–1 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 35–17–7 Recap 60 L February 24, 1996 0–4 New York Rangers (1995–96) 35–18–7 Recap 61 L February 25, 1996 1–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 35–19–7 Recap 62 T February 29, 1996 2–2 OT Washington Capitals (1995–96) 35–19–8 Recap
March: 3–9–1 (home: 3–3–0; road: 0–6–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 63 L March 2, 1996 1–7 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 35–20–8 Recap 64 L March 5, 1996 0–2 @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 35–21–8 Recap 65 L March 7, 1996 3–5 @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 35–22–8 Recap 66 L March 10, 1996 1–4 Boston Bruins (1995–96) 35–23–8 Recap 67 L March 11, 1996 4–8 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 35–24–8 Recap 68 T March 13, 1996 3–3 OT @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 35–24–9 Recap 69 W March 17, 1996 3–0 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 36–24–9 Recap 70 W March 19, 1996 5–2 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 37–24–9 Recap 71 W March 21, 1996 3–2 New York Islanders (1995–96) 38–24–9 Recap 72 L March 23, 1996 2–4 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 38–25–9 Recap 73 L March 27, 1996 0–3 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 38–26–9 Recap 74 L March 28, 1996 2–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 38–27–9 Recap 75 L March 30, 1996 1–2 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 38–28–9 Recap
April: 3–3–1 (home: 2–1–0; road: 1–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 76 W April 1, 1996 3–2 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 39–28–9 Recap 77 L April 3, 1996 2–3 @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 39–29–9 Recap 78 L April 6, 1996 1–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 39–30–9 Recap 79 W April 8, 1996 5–3 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 40–30–9 Recap 80 L April 10, 1996 1–2 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 40–31–9 Recap 81 T April 12, 1996 1–1 OT @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 40–31–10 Recap 82 W April 14, 1996 5–1 New York Rangers (1995–96) 41–31–10 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1996 Stanley Cup playoffs
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (5) Boston Bruins – Panthers win 4–1 Game Result Date Score Opponent Attendance Decision Series Recap 1 W April 17, 1996 6–3 Boston Bruins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 1–0 Recap 2 W April 22, 1996 6–2 Boston Bruins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 2–0 Recap 3 W April 24, 1996 4–2 @ Boston Bruins 14,922 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 3–0 Recap 4 L April 25, 1996 2–6 @ Boston Bruins 14,810 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 3–1 Recap 5 W April 27, 1996 4–3 Boston Bruins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers win 4–1 Recap
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (1) Philadelphia Flyers – Panthers win 4–2 Game Result Date Score Opponent Attendance Decision Series Recap 1 W May 2, 1996 2–0 @ Philadelphia Flyers 17,380 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 1–0 Recap 2 L May 4, 1996 0–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers 17,380 Vanbiesbrouck Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 L May 7, 1996 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Flyers lead 2–1 Recap 4 W May 9, 1996 4–3 OT Philadelphia Flyers 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 W May 12, 1996 2–1 2OT @ Philadelphia Flyers 17,380 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 3–2 Recap 6 W May 14, 1996 4–1 Philadelphia Flyers 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers win 4–2 Recap
Eastern Conference Finals vs. (2) Pittsburgh Penguins – Panthers win 4–3 Game Result Date Score Opponent Attendance Decision Series Recap 1 W May 18, 1996 5–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 17,355 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 1–0 Recap 2 L May 20, 1996 2–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 17,181 Vanbiesbrouck Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 W May 24, 1996 5–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers lead 2–1 Recap 4 L May 26, 1996 1–2 Pittsburgh Penguins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Series tied 2–2 Recap 5 L May 28, 1996 0–3 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 17,355 Vanbiesbrouck Penguins lead 3–2 Recap 6 W May 30, 1996 4–3 Pittsburgh Penguins 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Series tied 3–3 Recap 7 W June 1, 1996 3–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins 17,355 Vanbiesbrouck Panthers win 4–3 Recap
Stanley Cup Finals vs. (W2) Colorado Avalanche – Avalanche win 4–0 Game Result Date Score Opponent Attendance Decision Series Recap 1 L June 4, 1996 1–3 @ Colorado Avalanche 16,061 Vanbiesbrouck Avalanche lead 1–0 Recap 2 L June 6, 1996 1–8 @ Colorado Avalanche 16,061 Vanbiesbrouck Avalanche lead 2–0 Recap 3 L June 8, 1996 2–3 Colorado Avalanche 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Avalanche lead 3–0 Recap 4 L June 10, 1996 0–1 3OT Colorado Avalanche 14,703 Vanbiesbrouck Avalanche win 4–0 Recap
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 Panthers only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Panthers only.

			Regular season						Playoffs
No.	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
27	Scott Mellanby	RW	79	32	38	70	4	160	22	3	6	9	−10	44
44	Rob Niedermayer	C	82	26	35	61	1	107	22	5	3	8	−8	12
24	Robert Svehla	D	81	8	49	57	−3	94	22	0	6	6	3	32
29	Johan Garpenlov	LW	82	23	28	51	−10	36	20	4	2	6	−2	8
14	Stu Barnes	C	72	19	25	44	−12	46	22	6	10	16	10	4
26	Jesse Belanger‡	C	63	17	21	38	−5	10	—	—	—	—	—	—
12	Jody Hull	RW	78	20	17	37	5	25	14	3	2	5	4	0
21	Tom Fitzgerald	RW	82	13	21	34	−3	75	22	4	4	8	3	34
11	Bill Lindsay	RW	73	12	22	34	13	57	22	5	5	10	6	18
6	Jason Woolley	D	52	6	28	34	−9	32	13	2	6	8	3	14
5	Gord Murphy	D	70	8	22	30	5	30	14	0	4	4	1	6
9	Radek Dvorak	RW	77	13	14	27	5	20	16	1	3	4	2	0
20	Brian Skrudland	C	79	7	20	27	6	129	21	1	3	4	6	18
10	Dave Lowry	LW	63	10	14	24	−2	36	22	10	7	17	8	39
18	Mike Hough	LW	64	7	16	23	4	37	22	4	1	5	5	8
55	Ed Jovanovski	D	70	10	11	21	−3	137	22	1	8	9	2	52
2	Terry Carkner	D	73	3	10	13	10	80	22	0	4	4	8	10
8	Magnus Svensson	D	27	2	9	11	−1	21	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Ray Sheppard†	RW	14	8	2	10	0	4	21	8	8	16	4	4
25	Geoff Smith	D	31	3	7	10	−4	20	1	0	0	0	−1	2
3	Paul Laus	D	78	3	6	9	−2	236	21	2	6	8	3	62
28	Martin Straka†	C	12	2	4	6	1	6	13	2	2	4	−2	2
16	Gilbert Dionne†	LW	5	1	2	3	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
15	Brett Harkins	LW	8	0	3	3	−2	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
23	Rhett Warrener	D	28	0	3	3	4	46	21	0	1	1	3	0
19	Brad Smyth	RW	7	1	1	2	−3	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
51	David Nemirovsky	RW	9	0	2	2	−1	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
34	John Vanbiesbrouck	G	57	0	2	2		10	22	0	1	1		20
22	Bob Kudelski‡	RW	13	0	1	1	1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
40	Steve Washburn	C	1	0	1	1	1	0	1	0	1	1	0	0
7	Mike Casselman†	C	3	0	0	0	−1	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
30	Mark Fitzpatrick	G	34	0	0	0		12	2	0	0	0		0

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
34	John Vanbiesbrouck	57	26	20	7	1473	142	2.68	.904	2	3178	22	12	10	735	50	2.25	.932	1	1332
30	Mark Fitzpatrick	34	15	11	3	810	88	2.96	.891	0	1786	2	0	0	30	6	6.00	.800	0	60

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	NHL All-Rookie Team	Ed Jovanovski (Defense)
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Doug MacLean (coach)
		Scott Mellanby
		John Vanbiesbrouck

Transactions

Trades

The Panthers acquired Ray Sheppard from the San Jose Sharks on the trade deadline in 1996.

Draft picks

Florida's draft picks at the 1995 NHL Entry Draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.

Round	Pick	Player	Nationality	College/junior/club team
1	10	Radek Dvorak (RW)	Czech Republic	HC České Budějovice (Czech)
2	36	Aaron MacDonald (G)	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
3	62	Mike O'Grady (D)	Canada	Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
4	80	Dave Duerden (LW)	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
4	88	Daniel Tjarnqvist (D)	Sweden	Rögle BK (Sweden)
5	114	Francois Cloutier (LW)	Canada	Hull Olympiques (QMJHL)
7	166	Peter Worrell (LW)	Canada	Hull Olympiques (QMJHL)
8	192	Filip Kuba (D)	Czech Republic	HC Vítkovice (Czech Republic)
9	218	David Lemanowicz (G)	Canada	Spokane Chiefs (WHL)

References

• "Florida Panthers 1995-96 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 9, 2023.
• "1995-96 Florida Panthers Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 9, 2023.