The 1998–99 NHL season was the 82nd regular season of the National Hockey League. The league expanded to 27 teams with the addition of the Nashville Predators. The NHL also realigned to a strictly geographic six-division structure, with three per conference. The Dallas Stars finished first in regular season play, and won the Stanley Cup championship over the Buffalo Sabres on a controversial triple-overtime goal by Brett Hull.
1998–99 NHL season | |
---|---|
League | National Hockey League |
Sport | Ice hockey |
Duration | October 9, 1998 – June 19, 1999 |
Number of games | 82 |
Number of teams | 27 |
TV partner(s) | CBC, CTV Sportsnet, SRC (Canada) ESPN, Fox (United States) |
Draft | |
Top draft pick | Vincent Lecavalier |
Picked by | Tampa Bay Lightning |
Regular season | |
Presidents' Trophy | Dallas Stars |
Season MVP | Jaromir Jagr (Penguins) |
Top scorer | Jaromir Jagr (Penguins) |
Playoffs | |
Playoffs MVP | Joe Nieuwendyk (Stars) |
Stanley Cup | |
Champions | Dallas Stars |
Runners-up | Buffalo Sabres |
League business
editWith the addition of the expansion Nashville Predators, the NHL realigned this year to a strictly geographic six-division structure (three per conference), erasing the last vestiges of the traditional Adams/Patrick/Norris/Smythe four-division structure abandoned in 1993–94. Other than the reassignment of Colorado to the Western Conference in 1995 due to its move from Quebec, the divisions' membership had remained static for five years although several franchises had relocated. As part of this realignment, the Toronto Maple Leafs moved from the Western Conference to the Eastern Conference. This put three of the Original Six teams in the Northeast Division (Boston, Montreal, and Toronto), and the three original cities of the NHL in the Northeast (Montreal, Ottawa, and Toronto).[1][2][3][4][5]
The Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy for the most goals by a player in a season made its debut this year. The first winner was Teemu Selanne of the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim.
Rule changes
editIn an effort to reduce the number of disallowed goals due to the skate-in-the-crease violation, regulatory reforms were implemented resulting the goal crease shape and size being significantly reduced.[6] In spite of this regulatory change, goaltenders and defensive systems continued to dominate the league, as only two teams, the Toronto Maple Leafs and the New Jersey Devils,[7] averaged more than three goals scored per game. In addition, no player reached the 50-goal plateau.[8] A total of 160 shutouts were recorded for the second-straight regular season.[9][10]
Uniform changes
edit- Anaheim: The third and fourth jerseys from 1997 got new socks.
- Boston: The team wore a 75th-anniversary patch for their 75th season.
- Calgary: New Black Alternates introduced. Crest has its alternate Flaming-Horse Logo.
- Colorado: No updates in the regular season, but in the 1999 Playoffs, the Avalanche wore a CHS patch for the victims of the Columbine High School massacre on their left sleeve just above the number. The patch remained on the jerseys throughout the playoffs.
- Florida: The names on the back become vertically arched, and a navy blue alternate jersey is introduced. On that jersey, the panther is breaking a stick in half.
- Los Angeles: Jerseys Redesigned, Purple is Reintroduced.
- Nashville: white jerseys include a Blue triangle for the Crest, and the blue ones do not. The team wore an Inaugural season patch that would later become the team's alternate logo.
- New York Islanders: The jerseys reverted to its 1978–1995 design, retaining navy blue as its main color with a patch on the right shoulder featuring four diagonal stripes, symbolizing the team's four Stanley Cup titles in the 1980s.
- New York Rangers: White Lady Liberty Jerseys.
- Phoenix: The Coyotes introduce a new green alternate jersey, complete with a desertscape at the bottom and the sleeve ends
- St Louis: Alternates are retired and adopt a new color scheme
- San Jose: Alternates are retired and become the basis of the team's new uniforms.
- Tampa Bay: All-Star Game Patches for the 1999 NHL All-Star Game in Tampa.
- Toronto: Team wore alternate throwbacks and a patch to commemorate their final season at Maple Leaf Gardens.
- Washington: For the first few games, the Capitals wore a patch celebrating their 25th season in the NHL. The patch was worn on the upper right chest.
Arena changes
edit- The Edmonton Oilers' home arena, Edmonton Coliseum, was renamed Skyreach Centre as part of a new naming rights agreement with Skyreach Equipment.
- The Florida Panthers moved from Miami Arena in Miami to National Car Rental Center in Sunrise, Florida, with National Car Rental acquiring the naming rights.
- The expansion Nashville Predators moved into Gaylord Entertainment Center, with Gaylord Entertainment Company acquiring the naming rights.
- The Philadelphia Flyers's home arena, the CoreStates Center, was renamed the First Union Center after First Union acquired CoreStates Financial Corporation.
- The Toronto Maple Leafs moved from Maple Leaf Gardens to the Air Canada Centre on February 20, 1999, with Air Canada acquiring the naming rights.
Teams
editFirst season in the NHL * |
Map of teams
editRegular season
editThe 1998–99 season marked the retirement of Wayne Gretzky, the NHL's all-time leading scorer, who played his final three NHL seasons with the New York Rangers.[11]
Final standings
editEastern Conference
editR | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | New Jersey Devils | 82 | 47 | 24 | 11 | 248 | 196 | 105 |
2 | 5 | Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 37 | 26 | 19 | 231 | 196 | 93 |
3 | 8 | Pittsburgh Penguins | 82 | 38 | 30 | 14 | 242 | 225 | 90 |
4 | 10 | New York Rangers | 82 | 33 | 38 | 11 | 217 | 227 | 77 |
5 | 13 | New York Islanders | 82 | 24 | 48 | 10 | 194 | 244 | 58 |
R | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | PIM | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 44 | 23 | 15 | 239 | 179 | 892 | 103 |
2 | 4 | Toronto Maple Leafs | 82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 268 | 231 | 1095 | 97 |
3 | 6 | Boston Bruins | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 214 | 181 | 1182 | 91 |
4 | 7 | Buffalo Sabres | 82 | 37 | 28 | 17 | 207 | 175 | 1561 | 91 |
5 | 11 | Montreal Canadiens | 82 | 32 | 39 | 11 | 184 | 209 | 1299 | 75 |
R | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | PIM | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 3 | Carolina Hurricanes | 82 | 34 | 30 | 18 | 210 | 202 | 1158 | 86 |
2 | 9 | Florida Panthers | 82 | 30 | 34 | 18 | 210 | 228 | 1522 | 78 |
3 | 12 | Washington Capitals | 82 | 31 | 45 | 6 | 200 | 218 | 1381 | 68 |
4 | 14 | Tampa Bay Lightning | 82 | 19 | 54 | 9 | 179 | 292 | 1316 | 47 |
R | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | y – New Jersey Devils | ATL | 82 | 47 | 24 | 11 | 248 | 196 | 105 |
2 | y – Ottawa Senators | NE | 82 | 44 | 23 | 15 | 239 | 179 | 103 |
3 | y – Carolina Hurricanes | SE | 82 | 34 | 30 | 18 | 210 | 202 | 86 |
4 | Toronto Maple Leafs | NE | 82 | 45 | 30 | 7 | 268 | 231 | 97 |
5 | Philadelphia Flyers | ATL | 82 | 37 | 26 | 19 | 231 | 196 | 93 |
6 | Boston Bruins | NE | 82 | 39 | 30 | 13 | 214 | 181 | 91 |
7 | Buffalo Sabres | NE | 82 | 37 | 28 | 17 | 207 | 175 | 91 |
8 | Pittsburgh Penguins | ATL | 82 | 38 | 30 | 14 | 242 | 225 | 90 |
9 | Florida Panthers | SE | 82 | 30 | 34 | 18 | 210 | 228 | 78 |
10 | New York Rangers | ATL | 82 | 33 | 38 | 11 | 217 | 227 | 77 |
11 | Montreal Canadiens | NE | 82 | 32 | 39 | 11 | 184 | 209 | 75 |
12 | Washington Capitals | SE | 82 | 31 | 45 | 6 | 200 | 218 | 68 |
13 | New York Islanders | ATL | 82 | 24 | 48 | 10 | 194 | 244 | 58 |
14 | Tampa Bay Lightning | SE | 82 | 19 | 54 | 9 | 179 | 292 | 47 |
Divisions: ATL – Atlantic Division, NE – Northeast Division, SE – Southeast Division
bold – Qualified for playoffs; y – Won division
Western Conference
editR | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | PIM | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 3 | Detroit Red Wings | 82 | 43 | 32 | 7 | 245 | 202 | 1202 | 93 |
2 | 5 | St. Louis Blues | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 237 | 209 | 1308 | 87 |
3 | 10 | Chicago Blackhawks | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 202 | 248 | 1807 | 70 |
4 | 12 | Nashville Predators | 82 | 28 | 47 | 7 | 190 | 261 | 1420 | 63 |
R | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | PIM | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 2 | Colorado Avalanche | 82 | 44 | 28 | 10 | 239 | 205 | 1619 | 98 |
2 | 8 | Edmonton Oilers | 82 | 33 | 37 | 12 | 230 | 226 | 1373 | 78 |
3 | 9 | Calgary Flames | 82 | 30 | 40 | 12 | 211 | 234 | 1389 | 72 |
4 | 13 | Vancouver Canucks | 82 | 23 | 47 | 12 | 192 | 258 | 1764 | 58 |
R | CR | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 1 | Dallas Stars | 82 | 51 | 19 | 12 | 236 | 168 | 114 |
2 | 4 | Phoenix Coyotes | 82 | 39 | 31 | 12 | 205 | 197 | 90 |
3 | 6 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 82 | 35 | 34 | 13 | 215 | 206 | 83 |
4 | 7 | San Jose Sharks | 82 | 31 | 33 | 18 | 196 | 191 | 80 |
5 | 11 | Los Angeles Kings | 82 | 32 | 45 | 5 | 189 | 222 | 69 |
R | Div | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | p – Dallas Stars | PAC | 82 | 51 | 19 | 12 | 236 | 168 | 114 |
2 | y – Colorado Avalanche | NW | 82 | 44 | 28 | 10 | 239 | 205 | 98 |
3 | y – Detroit Red Wings | CEN | 82 | 43 | 32 | 7 | 245 | 202 | 93 |
4 | Phoenix Coyotes | PAC | 82 | 39 | 31 | 12 | 205 | 197 | 90 |
5 | St. Louis Blues | CEN | 82 | 37 | 32 | 13 | 237 | 209 | 87 |
6 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | PAC | 82 | 35 | 34 | 13 | 215 | 206 | 83 |
7 | San Jose Sharks | PAC | 82 | 31 | 33 | 18 | 196 | 191 | 80 |
8 | Edmonton Oilers | NW | 82 | 33 | 37 | 12 | 230 | 226 | 78 |
9 | Calgary Flames | NW | 82 | 30 | 40 | 12 | 211 | 234 | 72 |
10 | Chicago Blackhawks | CEN | 82 | 29 | 41 | 12 | 202 | 248 | 70 |
11 | Los Angeles Kings | PAC | 82 | 32 | 45 | 5 | 189 | 222 | 69 |
12 | Nashville Predators | CEN | 82 | 28 | 47 | 7 | 190 | 261 | 63 |
13 | Vancouver Canucks | NW | 82 | 23 | 47 | 12 | 192 | 258 | 58 |
Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific, NW – Northwest
bold – Qualified for playoffs; p – Won Presidents' Trophy; y – Won division
Playoffs
editBracket
editConference quarterfinals | Conference semifinals | Conference finals | Stanley Cup Finals | ||||||||||||||||
1 | New Jersey | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Pittsburgh | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Toronto | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Pittsburgh | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Ottawa | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Buffalo | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Toronto | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
Eastern Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
7 | Buffalo | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Carolina | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Boston | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Boston | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | Buffalo | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Toronto | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | Philadelphia | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
E7 | Buffalo | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
W1 | Dallas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Dallas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
8 | Edmonton | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Dallas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | St. Louis | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Colorado | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
7 | San Jose | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
1 | Dallas | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
Western Conference | |||||||||||||||||||
2 | Colorado | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Detroit | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
6 | Anaheim | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
2 | Colorado | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
3 | Detroit | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
4 | Phoenix | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
5 | St. Louis | 4 |
Awards
editAll-Star teams
editPlayer statistics
editScoring leaders
editNote: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jaromir Jagr | Pittsburgh Penguins | 81 | 44 | 83 | 127 | 66 |
Teemu Selanne | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 75 | 47 | 60 | 107 | 30 |
Paul Kariya | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 82 | 39 | 62 | 101 | 40 |
Peter Forsberg | Colorado Avalanche | 78 | 30 | 67 | 97 | 108 |
Joe Sakic | Colorado Avalanche | 73 | 41 | 55 | 96 | 29 |
Alexei Yashin | Ottawa Senators | 82 | 44 | 50 | 94 | 54 |
Eric Lindros | Philadelphia Flyers | 71 | 40 | 53 | 93 | 120 |
Theoren Fleury | Calgary Flames /Colorado Avalanche | 75 | 40 | 53 | 93 | 86 |
John LeClair | Philadelphia Flyers | 76 | 43 | 47 | 90 | 30 |
Pavol Demitra | St. Louis Blues | 82 | 37 | 52 | 89 | 16 |
Source: NHL.[12]
Leading goaltenders
editRegular season
Player | Team | GP | MIN | GA | SO | GAA | SV% |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Ron Tugnutt | Ottawa | 43 | 2508 | 75 | 3 | 1.79 | .925 |
Dominik Hasek | Buffalo | 64 | 3817 | 119 | 9 | 1.87 | .937 |
Ed Belfour | Dallas | 61 | 3536 | 117 | 5 | 1.99 | .915 |
Byron Dafoe | Boston | 68 | 4001 | 133 | 10 | 1.99 | .926 |
Roman Turek | Dallas | 26 | 1382 | 48 | 1 | 2.08 | .915 |
Nikolai Khabibulin | Phoenix | 63 | 3657 | 130 | 8 | 2.13 | .920 |
John Vanbiesbrouck | Philadelphia | 62 | 3712 | 135 | 6 | 2.18 | .902 |
Steve Shields | San Jose | 37 | 2162 | 80 | 4 | 2.22 | .921 |
Arturs Irbe | Carolina | 62 | 3643 | 135 | 6 | 2.22 | .923 |
Mike Vernon | San Jose | 49 | 2831 | 107 | 4 | 2.27 | .911 |
Coaches
editEastern Conference
edit- Boston Bruins: Pat Burns
- Buffalo Sabres: Lindy Ruff
- Carolina Hurricanes: Paul Maurice
- Florida Panthers: Terry Murray
- Montreal Canadiens: Alain Vigneault
- New Jersey Devils: Robbie Ftorek
- New York Islanders: Mike Milbury and Bill Stewart
- New York Rangers: John Muckler
- Ottawa Senators: Jacques Martin
- Philadelphia Flyers: Roger Neilson
- Pittsburgh Penguins: Kevin Constantine
- Tampa Bay Lightning: Jacques Demers
- Toronto Maple Leafs: Pat Quinn
- Washington Capitals: Ron Wilson
Western Conference
edit- Mighty Ducks of Anaheim: Craig Hartsburg
- Calgary Flames: Brian Sutter
- Chicago Blackhawks: Dirk Graham
- Colorado Avalanche: Bob Hartley
- Dallas Stars: Ken Hitchcock
- Detroit Red Wings: Scotty Bowman
- Edmonton Oilers: Ron Low
- Los Angeles Kings: Larry Robinson
- Nashville Predators: Barry Trotz
- Phoenix Coyotes: Jim Schoenfeld
- San Jose Sharks: Darryl Sutter
- St. Louis Blues: Joel Quenneville
- Vancouver Canucks: Mike Keenan
Milestones
editDebuts
editThe following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1998–99 (listed with their first team, an asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
- Martin St. Louis, Calgary Flames
- Chris Drury, Colorado Avalanche
- Milan Hejduk, Colorado Avalanche
- Dan Boyle, Florida Panthers
- Jason Blake, Los Angeles Kings
- David Legwand, Nashville Predators
- Karlis Skrastins, Nashville Predators
- Kimmo Timonen, Nashville Predators
- Eric Brewer, New York Islanders
- Vincent Lecavalier, Tampa Bay Lightning
- Tomas Kaberle, Toronto Maple Leafs
Last games
editThe following is a list of players of note who played their last game in the NHL in 1998–99 (listed with their last team):
- Dave Babych, Los Angeles Kings
- Brian Bellows, Washington Capitals
- Jim Carey, St. Louis Blues
- Bobby Carpenter, New Jersey Devils
- Dino Ciccarelli, Florida Panthers
- Russ Courtnall, Los Angeles Kings
- John Cullen, Tampa Bay Lightning
- Wayne Gretzky, New York Rangers
- Ron Hextall, Philadelphia Flyers
- Dale Hunter, Colorado Avalanche
- Craig Ludwig, Dallas Stars
- Jamie Macoun, Detroit Red Wings
- Bernie Nicholls, San Jose Sharks
- Kjell Samuelsson, Tampa Bay Lightning (Last player born in the 1950s)
- Tomas Sandstrom, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
- Esa Tikkanen, Florida Panthers
- Mark Tinordi, Washington Capitals
Broadcasting
editCanada
editThis was the first season of the league's Canadian national broadcast rights deals with CBC and CTV Sportsnet. CBC continued to air Saturday night Hockey Night in Canada regular season games. The fledgling CTV Sportsnet replaced TSN as the league's cable broadcaster. Tuesday Night Hockey became CTV Sportsnet's signature weekly regular season telecasts. Coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs continued to primarily be on CBC, while CTV Sportsnet aired first round all-U.S. series.
United States
editThis was the fifth and final season of the league's U.S. national broadcast rights deals with Fox and ESPN. Both ESPN and ESPN2 aired weeknight games throughout the regular season, and Fox had the All-Star Game and weekly regional telecasts on 11 weekend afternoons between February and April. During the first two rounds of the playoffs, ESPN and ESPN2 aired selected games, while Fox had Sunday regional telecasts. Each U.S. team's regional broadcaster produced local coverage of first and second round games (except for those games on Fox). Fox's Sunday telecasts continued into the Conference Finals, while ESPN had the rest of the third round games. The Stanley Cup Finals were also split between Fox and ESPN.
The league then signed a new five-year deal with ESPN that also called for sister network ABC to become the new broadcast network partner.
See also
editReferences
edit- Diamond, Dan, ed. (2000). Total Hockey. Kingston, NY: Total Sports. ISBN 1-892129-85-X.
- Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto, ON: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.
- Dryden, Steve, ed. (2000). Century of hockey. Toronto, ON: McClelland & Stewart Ltd. ISBN 0-7710-4179-9.
- Fischler, Stan; Fischler, Shirley; Hughes, Morgan; Romain, Joseph; Duplacey, James (2003). The Hockey Chronicle: Year-by-Year History of the National Hockey League. Lincolnwood, IL: Publications International Inc. ISBN 0-7853-9624-1.
- Notes
- ^ "NHL will skate into 4 new cities for 1997-98 season". Deseret News. Associated Press. June 26, 1997. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
- ^ "N.H.L. Names 4 Cities For Its New Franchises". The New York Times. Associated Press. June 18, 1997. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
- ^ El-Bashir, Tarik (July 9, 1998). "HOCKEY; Ice in July: Schedule Is Released". The New York Times. pp. C4. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
- ^ Alex, Rachel (June 18, 1997). "NHL proposes expansion and realignment". Washington Post. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
- ^ Thompson, Jack (June 26, 1997). "IT'S OFFICIAL: NHL APPROVES EXPANSION, REALIGNMENT". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved August 30, 2023.
- ^ Alexander, Rachel; Barr, John (January 9, 2024). "GMS RECOMMEND RULES CHANGES". Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ "1998-99 NHL Summary - Hockey-Reference.com". Hockey-Reference.com. Archived from the original on May 3, 2018. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
- ^ "1998-99 NHL Leaders - Hockey-Reference.com". Hockey-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
- ^ "1998-99 NHL Goalie Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". Hockey-Reference.com. Archived from the original on July 11, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2018.
- ^ Bailey, Budd (July 7, 1999). "LOW GOALS DESPITE RULES CHANGES MEANT TO INCREASE SCORING, THE NHL HAS ONLY BEEN ABLE TO SLOW THE SLIDE". Buffalo News. Retrieved February 17, 2024.
- ^ Dryden 2000, p. 101.
- ^ a b c d e f g Dinger 2011, p. 155.
- ^ "1998-1999 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
- ^ "1998-1999 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
- ^ "1998-99 NHL Leaders - Hockey-Reference.com". Hockey-Reference.com. Archived from the original on June 23, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2018.