1997–98 St. Louis Blues season
1997–98 St. Louis Blues | |
---|---|
Division | 3rd Central |
Conference | 4th Western |
1997–98 record | 45–29–8 |
Home record | 26–10–5 |
Road record | 19–19–3 |
Goals for | 256 |
Goals against | 204 |
Team information | |
General manager | Larry Pleau |
Coach | Joel Quenneville |
Captain | Chris Pronger |
Arena | Kiel Center |
Average attendance | 18,414 |
Minor league affiliate(s) | Worcester IceCats Peoria Rivermen Baton Rouge Kingfish |
Team leaders | |
Goals | Geoff Courtnall (31) |
Assists | Pierre Turgeon (46) |
Points | Brett Hull (72) |
Penalty minutes | Kelly Chase (231) |
Plus/minus | Chris Pronger (+47) |
Wins | Grant Fuhr (29) |
Goals against average | Jamie McLennan (2.17) |
The highlight of the 1997–98 St. Louis Blues season would mark an end of an era as former captain Brett Hull was not re-signed following the season.
Off-season
[edit]In his first full season as head coach, Joel Quenneville decided to employ a defensive formula. The move worked wonders as even Brett Hull bought into the new system as the Blues finished in third place with a solid 45–29–8 record. In the first round of the playoffs, the Blues would sweep the Los Angeles Kings in four games. In the second round, the Blues were eliminated by the Detroit Red Wings in six games. The season would mark an end of an era, as Brett Hull was not signed to a new contract after the season, joining the Dallas Stars as a free agent during the summer.[1]
Defenseman Chris Pronger was named team captain, a role that had been vacant during the previous season.
Regular season
[edit]The Blues were one of only two teams out the NHL's 26 to score at least 3 goals per game (The Detroit Red Wings were the other team). The Blues' 256 goals for led all teams.[2]
Final standings
[edit]No. | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Dallas Stars | 82 | 49 | 22 | 11 | 242 | 167 | 109 |
2 | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 44 | 23 | 15 | 250 | 196 | 103 |
3 | 4 | St. Louis Blues | 82 | 45 | 29 | 8 | 256 | 204 | 98 |
4 | 6 | Phoenix Coyotes | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 224 | 227 | 82 |
5 | 9 | Chicago Blackhawks | 82 | 30 | 39 | 13 | 192 | 199 | 73 |
6 | 10 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 30 | 43 | 9 | 194 | 237 | 69 |
R | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | p – Dallas Stars | CEN | 82 | 49 | 22 | 11 | 242 | 167 | 109 |
2 | x – Colorado Avalanche | PAC | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 231 | 205 | 95 |
3 | Detroit Red Wings | CEN | 82 | 44 | 23 | 15 | 250 | 196 | 103 |
4 | St. Louis Blues | CEN | 82 | 45 | 29 | 8 | 256 | 204 | 98 |
5 | Los Angeles Kings | PAC | 82 | 38 | 33 | 11 | 227 | 225 | 87 |
6 | Phoenix Coyotes | CEN | 82 | 35 | 35 | 12 | 224 | 227 | 82 |
7 | Edmonton Oilers | PAC | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 215 | 224 | 80 |
8 | San Jose Sharks | PAC | 82 | 34 | 38 | 10 | 210 | 216 | 78 |
9 | Chicago Blackhawks | CEN | 82 | 30 | 39 | 13 | 192 | 199 | 73 |
10 | Toronto Maple Leafs | CEN | 82 | 30 | 43 | 9 | 194 | 237 | 69 |
11 | Calgary Flames | PAC | 82 | 26 | 41 | 15 | 217 | 252 | 67 |
12 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PAC | 82 | 26 | 43 | 13 | 205 | 261 | 65 |
13 | Vancouver Canucks | PAC | 82 | 25 | 43 | 14 | 224 | 273 | 64 |
Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific
bold – Qualified for playoffs; x – Won Division; p – Won Presidents' Trophy
Schedule and results
[edit]Regular season
[edit]1997–98 regular season[4] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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October: 10–2–2 (home: 7–1–1; road: 3–1–1)
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November: 5–7–1 (home: 3–3–1; road: 2–4–0)
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December: 7–6–3 (home: 4–3–2; road: 3–3–1)
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January: 6–5–2 (home: 3–1–1; road: 3–4–1)
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February: 3–2–0 (home: 1–0–0; road: 2–2–0)
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March: 8–4–0 (home: 6–1–0; road: 2–3–0)
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April: 6–3–0 (home: 2–1–0; road: 4–2–0)
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Legend:
Win (2 points) Loss (0 points) Tie (1 point) |
Playoffs
[edit]1998 Stanley Cup playoffs[4] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (5) Los Angeles Kings: Blues win 4–0
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Western Conference Semifinals vs. (3) Detroit Red Wings: Red Wings win 4–2
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Legend:
Win Loss |
Player statistics
[edit]Scoring
[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 Blues only.
- ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Blues only.
Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
No. | Player | Pos | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM | GP | G | A | Pts | +/- | PIM |
16 | Brett Hull | RW | 66 | 27 | 45 | 72 | −1 | 26 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 2 |
77 | Pierre Turgeon | C | 60 | 22 | 46 | 68 | 13 | 24 | 10 | 4 | 4 | 8 | −5 | 2 |
14 | Geoff Courtnall | LW | 79 | 31 | 31 | 62 | 12 | 94 | 10 | 2 | 8 | 10 | −2 | 18 |
28 | Steve Duchesne | D | 80 | 14 | 42 | 56 | 9 | 32 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 4 | −8 | 6 |
38 | Pavol Demitra | LW | 61 | 22 | 30 | 52 | 11 | 22 | 10 | 3 | 3 | 6 | −3 | 2 |
2 | Al MacInnis | D | 71 | 19 | 30 | 49 | 6 | 80 | 8 | 2 | 6 | 8 | 1 | 12 |
22 | Craig Conroy | C | 81 | 14 | 29 | 43 | 20 | 46 | 10 | 1 | 2 | 3 | −1 | 8 |
10 | Jim Campbell | RW | 76 | 22 | 19 | 41 | 0 | 55 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 | −1 | 12 |
44 | Chris Pronger | D | 81 | 9 | 27 | 36 | 47 | 180 | 10 | 1 | 9 | 10 | −2 | 26 |
33 | Scott Pellerin | LW | 80 | 8 | 21 | 29 | 14 | 62 | 10 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 |
23 | Blair Atcheynum | RW | 61 | 11 | 15 | 26 | 5 | 10 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 2 |
27 | Terry Yake | C | 65 | 10 | 15 | 25 | 1 | 38 | 10 | 2 | 1 | 3 | −3 | 6 |
9 | Darren Turcotte | C | 62 | 12 | 6 | 18 | 6 | 26 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −4 | 2 |
25 | Pascal Rheaume | C | 48 | 6 | 9 | 15 | 4 | 35 | 10 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 0 | 8 |
17 | Joe Murphy‡ | RW | 27 | 4 | 9 | 13 | 8 | 22 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
37 | Harry York‡ | C | 58 | 4 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 31 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
4 | Marc Bergevin | D | 81 | 3 | 7 | 10 | −2 | 90 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −1 | 8 |
19 | Chris McAlpine | D | 54 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 14 | 36 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −1 | 16 |
5 | Todd Gill† | D | 11 | 5 | 4 | 9 | 2 | 10 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 4 | −3 | 10 |
34 | Michel Picard† | LW | 16 | 1 | 8 | 9 | 3 | 29 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
20 | Rudy Poeschek | RW/D | 50 | 1 | 7 | 8 | −5 | 64 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 6 |
39 | Kelly Chase | RW | 67 | 4 | 3 | 7 | 10 | 231 | 7 | 0 | 0 | 0 | −2 | 23 |
6 | Jamie Rivers | D | 59 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 5 | 36 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
18 | Tony Twist | LW | 60 | 1 | 1 | 2 | −4 | 105 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
31 | Grant Fuhr | G | 58 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 10 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 2 | ||
12 | Chris Kenady | RW | 5 | 0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
32 | Mike Eastwood† | C | 10 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 1 | −1 | 0 |
43 | Libor Zabransky | D | 6 | 0 | 1 | 1 | −3 | 6 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
29 | Jamie McLennan | G | 30 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ||
30 | Rich Parent | G | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — | |
7 | Ricard Persson | D | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Goaltending
[edit]Regular season | Playoffs | |||||||||||||||||||
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No. | Player | GP | W | L | T | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI | GP | W | L | SA | GA | GAA | SV% | SO | TOI |
31 | Grant Fuhr | 58 | 29 | 21 | 6 | 1354 | 138 | 2.53 | .898 | 3 | 3274 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 297 | 28 | 2.73 | .906 | 0 | 616 |
29 | Jamie McLennan | 30 | 16 | 8 | 2 | 618 | 60 | 2.17 | .903 | 2 | 1658 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 4.25 | .750 | 0 | 14 |
30 | Rich Parent | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.00 | 1.000 | 0 | 12 | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — | — |
Awards and records
[edit]Awards
[edit]Type | Award/honor | Recipient | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
League (annual) |
Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy | Jamie McLennan | [5] |
King Clancy Memorial Trophy | Kelly Chase | [6] | |
NHL Second All-Star Team | Chris Pronger (Defense) | [7] | |
NHL Plus-Minus Award | Chris Pronger | [8] | |
League (in-season) |
NHL All-Star Game selection | Al MacInnis[a] | [9] |
Milestones
[edit]Milestone | Player | Date | Ref |
---|---|---|---|
1,000th game played | Al MacInnis | October 23, 1997 | [10] |
Geoff Courtnall | March 3, 1998 | [11] | |
1,000th point | Al MacInnis | April 7, 1998 | [12] |
Transactions
[edit]![]() | This section is empty. You can help by adding to it. (July 2010) |
Draft picks
[edit]St. Louis's draft picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft held at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[13]
Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team (League) |
---|---|---|---|---|
2 | 40 | Tyler Rennette | ![]() |
North Bay Centennials (OHL) |
4 | 86 | Didier Tremblay | ![]() |
Halifax Mooseheads (QMJHL) |
4 | 98 | Jan Horacek | ![]() |
Slavia Prague (Czech Republic) |
4 | 106 | Jame Pollock | ![]() |
Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
6 | 149 | Nicholas Bilotto | ![]() |
Beauport Harfangs (QMJHL) |
7 | 177 | Ladislav Nagy | ![]() |
HC Košice (Slovakia) |
8 | 206 | Bob Haglund | ![]() |
Des Moines Buccaneers (USHL) |
9 | 232 | Dmitri Plekhanov | ![]() |
Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk (Russia) |
9 | 244 | Marek Ivan | ![]() |
Lethbridge Hurricanes (WHL) |
See also
[edit]Notes
[edit]- ^ Commissioner’s selection.
References
[edit]- "St. Louis Blues 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- "1997-98 St. Louis Blues Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ^ St. Louis Blues (1967-Present)
- ^ "1997-98 NHL Summary".
- ^ "1997-1998 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
- ^ a b "1997-98 St. Louis Blues Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 6, 2023.
- ^ "Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ "King Clancy Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ "Postseason All-Star Teams". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ "Bud Light Plus-Minus Award award winners at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ "NHL All-Star Game Historical Summaries - 1998". NHL.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
- ^ "N.H.L.: LAST NIGHT; Lightning Coach On Thin Ice". The New York Times. October 24, 1997. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
Blues defenseman Al MacInnis, who played in his 1,000th game, was honored in a pregame ceremony.
- ^ "ST. PETERSBURG TIMES POWER RANKINGS". Tampa Bay Times. March 8, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
ST. LOUIS (8): Can you believe Geoff Courtnall played his 1,000th NHL game last week?
- ^ "1981 NHL Entry Draft -- Al MacInnis". www.hockeydraftcentral.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
Scored his 1,000th career NHL point during St. Louis' April 7, 1998, game at Detroit.
- ^ "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.