1997–98 Chicago Blackhawks season

1997–98 Chicago Blackhawks
Division5th Central
Conference9th Western
1997–98 record30–39–13
Home record14–19–8
Road record16–20–5
Goals for192
Goals against199
Team information
General managerBob Murray
CoachCraig Hartsburg
CaptainChris Chelios
ArenaUnited Center
Average attendance18,350
Minor league affiliate(s)Indianapolis Ice
Columbus Chill
Team leaders
GoalsTony Amonte (31)
Eric Daze (31)
AssistsTony Amonte (42)
PointsTony Amonte (73)
Penalty minutesJim Cummins (178)
Plus/minusTony Amonte (+21)
WinsJeff Hackett (21)
Goals against averageJeff Hackett (2.20)

The 1997–98 Chicago Blackhawks season was the 72nd season of operation of the Chicago Blackhawks in the National Hockey League. The Blackhawks did not qualify for the 1998 Stanley Cup Playoffs, which snapped their 28 year playoff streak.

Offseason

Regular season

The Blackhawks were shut out a league-high 11 times, tied with the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim and the Tampa Bay Lightning. With the 10 shutouts that Blackhawks goaltenders recorded, a total of 21 of Chicago's 82 regular-season games ended in a shutout. The Blackhawks also tied the Florida Panthers, New York Islanders and Pittsburgh Penguins for the most short-handed goals allowed, with 16.[1][2] Also, the Blackhawks missed the playoffs for the first time since 1969.

Final standings

Central Division
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
Western Conference[3]
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

1997–98 regular season[4]
October: 4–10–0 (home: 3–5–0; road: 1–5–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
1 L October 1, 1997 2–6 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 0–1–0 Recap
2 L October 4, 1997 2–3 @ San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 0–2–0 Recap
3 L October 9, 1997 1–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 0–3–0 Recap
4 L October 10, 1997 0–7 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 0–4–0 Recap
5 L October 13, 1997 1–2 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 0–5–0 Recap
6 L October 15, 1997 0–2 Washington Capitals (1997–98) 0–6–0 Recap
7 L October 17, 1997 0–2 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 0–7–0 Recap
8 W October 19, 1997 5–2 Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 1–7–0 Recap
9 W October 22, 1997 1–0 @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 2–7–0 Recap
10 L October 24, 1997 0–2 Dallas Stars (1997–98) 2–8–0 Recap
11 L October 26, 1997 2–3 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 2–9–0 Recap
12 L October 27, 1997 2–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 2–10–0 Recap
13 W October 29, 1997 3–0 Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 3–10–0 Recap
14 W October 31, 1997 5–3 San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 4–10–0 Recap
November: 6–3–4 (home: 2–1–2; road: 4–2–2)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
15 W November 2, 1997 3–1 Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 5–10–0 Recap
16 W November 6, 1997 2–1 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 6–10–0 Recap
17 W November 8, 1997 4–2 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 7–10–0 Recap
18 T November 10, 1997 1–1 OT Calgary Flames (1997–98) 7–10–1 Recap
19 L November 11, 1997 2–5 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 7–11–1 Recap
20 L November 13, 1997 1–2 Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 7–12–1 Recap
21 T November 16, 1997 3–3 OT Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 7–12–2 Recap
22 W November 19, 1997 4–0 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 8–12–2 Recap
23 L November 20, 1997 3–4 @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 8–13–2 Recap
24 W November 22, 1997 5–4 OT @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 9–13–2 Recap
25 T November 25, 1997 2–2 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 9–13–3 Recap
26 T November 27, 1997 2–2 OT @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 9–13–4 Recap
27 W November 29, 1997 3–2 @ Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 10–13–4 Recap
December: 4–5–3 (home: 1–4–2; road: 3–1–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
28 L December 4, 1997 1–2 Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 10–14–4 Recap
29 T December 7, 1997 3–3 OT Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 10–14–5 Recap
30 T December 10, 1997 3–3 OT Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 10–14–6 Recap
31 L December 12, 1997 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 10–15–6 Recap
32 L December 14, 1997 1–2 San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 10–16–6 Recap
33 L December 16, 1997 3–4 OT @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 10–17–6 Recap
34 T December 17, 1997 0–0 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 10–17–7 Recap
35 W December 20, 1997 5–0 @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 11–17–7 Recap
36 L December 22, 1997 0–1 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 11–18–7 Recap
37 W December 26, 1997 4–1 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 12–18–7 Recap
38 W December 28, 1997 2–0 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 13–18–7 Recap
39 W December 30, 1997 6–2 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 14–18–7 Recap
January: 7–4–2 (home: 4–2–2; road: 3–2–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
40 T January 1, 1998 3–3 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 14–18–8 Recap
41 W January 4, 1998 3–1 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 15–18–8 Recap
42 T January 5, 1998 1–1 OT Calgary Flames (1997–98) 15–18–9 Recap
43 L January 9, 1998 2–4 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 15–19–9 Recap
44 W January 10, 1998 4–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 16–19–9 Recap
45 W January 12, 1998 3–2 Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 17–19–9 Recap
46 W January 14, 1998 4–1 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 18–19–9 Recap
47 L January 15, 1998 2–3 @ Washington Capitals (1997–98) 18–20–9 Recap
48 W January 20, 1998 5–2 New York Islanders (1997–98) 19–20–9 Recap
49 L January 22, 1998 0–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 19–21–9 Recap
50 W January 24, 1998 5–4 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 20–21–9 Recap
51 W January 29, 1998 3–0 @ San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 21–21–9 Recap
52 L January 31, 1998 0–3 @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 21–22–9 Recap
February: 2–4–0 (home: 0–1–0; road: 2–3–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
53 L February 1, 1998 3–4 OT @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 21–23–9 Recap
54 W February 3, 1998 4–2 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 22–23–9 Recap
55 L February 5, 1998 2–4 @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 22–24–9 Recap
56 L February 7, 1998 1–3 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 22–25–9 Recap
57 L February 26, 1998 4–7 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 22–26–9 Recap
58 W February 28, 1998 4–0 @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 23–26–9 Recap
March: 6–7–3 (home: 3–3–1; road: 3–4–2)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
59 T March 1, 1998 2–2 OT Dallas Stars (1997–98) 23–26–10 Recap
60 L March 3, 1998 3–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 23–27–10 Recap
61 T March 5, 1998 2–2 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 23–27–11 Recap
62 W March 7, 1998 2–1 @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 24–27–11 Recap
63 L March 9, 1998 3–4 OT Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 24–28–11 Recap
64 L March 12, 1998 0–3 @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 24–29–11 Recap
65 L March 14, 1998 0–1 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 24–30–11 Recap
66 W March 15, 1998 8–4 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 25–30–11 Recap
67 W March 17, 1998 5–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 26–30–11 Recap
68 W March 19, 1998 1–0 Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 27–30–11 Recap
69 W March 22, 1998 1–0 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 28–30–11 Recap
70 T March 23, 1998 5–5 OT @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 28–30–12 Recap
71 L March 25, 1998 2–3 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 28–31–12 Recap
72 W March 27, 1998 2–1 Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 29–31–12 Recap
73 L March 29, 1998 0–4 Florida Panthers (1997–98) 29–32–12 Recap
74 L March 31, 1998 2–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 29–33–12 Recap
April: 1–6–1 (home: 1–3–1; road: 0–3–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
75 W April 2, 1998 2–1 Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 30–33–12 Recap
76 L April 4, 1998 2–3 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 30–34–12 Recap
77 L April 5, 1998 1–2 OT New York Rangers (1997–98) 30–35–12 Recap
78 L April 9, 1998 2–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 30–36–12 Recap
79 L April 12, 1998 1–2 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 30–37–12 Recap
80 L April 15, 1998 2–3 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 30–38–12 Recap
81 T April 16, 1998 1–1 OT New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 30–38–13 Recap
82 L April 18, 1998 1–3 @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 30–39–13 Recap
Legend:

  Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

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 Blackhawks only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Blackhawks only.
No. Player Pos Regular season
GP G A Pts +/- PIM
10 Tony Amonte RW 82 31 42 73 21 66
36 Alexei Zhamnov C 70 21 28 49 16 61
55 Eric Daze RW 80 31 11 42 4 22
20 Gary Suter D 73 14 28 42 1 74
7 Chris Chelios D 81 3 39 42 −7 151
22 Greg Johnson† C 69 11 22 33 −2 38
11 Jeff Shantz C 61 11 20 31 0 36
25 Sergei Krivokrasov LW 58 10 13 23 −1 33
2 Eric Weinrich D 82 2 21 23 10 106
19 Ethan Moreau LW 54 9 9 18 0 73
14 Steve Dubinsky C 82 5 13 18 −6 57
38 James Black RW 52 10 5 15 −8 8
4 Keith Carney‡ D 60 2 13 15 −7 73
23 Jean-Yves Leroux LW 66 6 7 13 −2 55
46 Dmitri Nabokov C 25 7 4 11 −1 10
17 Kevin Miller RW 37 4 7 11 −4 8
15 Chad Kilger† C 22 3 8 11 2 6
3 Christian Laflamme D 72 0 11 11 14 59
12 Brent Sutter RW 52 2 6 8 −6 28
33 Reid Simpson† LW 38 3 2 5 −1 102
54 Brian Felsner LW 12 1 3 4 0 12
6 Michal Sykora D 28 1 3 4 −10 12
24 Bob Probert LW 14 2 1 3 −7 48
39[a] Craig Mills RW 20 0 3 3 1 34
8 Cam Russell D 41 1 1 2 3 79
15 Jim Cummins‡ RW 55 0 2 2 −9 178
4 Jayson More† D 17 0 2 2 7 8
26 Todd White C 7 1 0 1 0 2
5 Trent Yawney D 45 1 0 1 −5 76
16 Jarrod Skalde†‡†‡ C 7 0 1 1 0 4
40 Chris Terreri G 21 0 1 1 2
34 Ryan VandenBussche† RW 4 0 1 1 0 5
32 Daniel Cleary LW 6 0 0 0 −2 0
16 Martin Gendron†‡ RW 2 0 0 0 −1 0
31 Jeff Hackett G 58 0 0 0 8
56 Ryan Huska LW 1 0 0 0 0 0
29 Andrei Trefilov† G 6 0 0 0 0
17 Petri Varis LW 1 0 0 0 0 0

Goaltending

  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Blackhawks only.
No. Player Regular season
GP W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
31 Jeff Hackett 58 21 25 11 1520 126 2.20 .917 8 3441
40 Chris Terreri 21 8 10 2 519 49 2.41 .906 2 1222
29 Andrei Trefilov† 6 1 4 0 145 17 3.41 .883 0 299

Awards and records

Awards

Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(in-season) 		NHL All-Star Game selection Tony Amonte [5]
Chris Chelios

Milestones

Milestone Player Date Ref
First game Daniel Cleary October 1, 1997 [6]
Todd White October 4, 1997
Brian Felsner November 16, 1997
Petri Varis December 14, 1997
Dmitri Nabokov December 20, 1997
Ryan Huska January 5, 1998
600th assist Chris Chelios March 7, 1998
1,000th game played Chris Chelios April 16, 1998 [7]

Transactions

Draft picks

Chicago's draft picks at the 1997 NHL entry draft held at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.[8]

Round # Player Nationality College/Junior/Club team (League)
1 13 Daniel Cleary  Canada Belleville Bulls (OHL)
1 16 Ty Jones  United States Spokane Chiefs (WHL)
2 39 Jeremy Reich  Canada Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
3 67 Michael Souza  United States University of New Hampshire (Hockey East)
5 110 Ben Simon  United States University of Notre Dame (CCHA)
5 120 Pete Gardiner  Canada Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (ECAC)
5 130 Kyle Calder  Canada Regina Pats (WHL)
6 147 Heath Gordon  United States Green Bay Gamblers (USHL)
7 174 Jerad Smith  Canada Portland Winter Hawks (WHL)
8 204 Sergei Shikhanov  Russia Lada Togliatti (Russia)
9 230 Chris Feil  United States Ohio State University (CCHA)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Mills wore number 46 for a single game on January 10.

References

  • "Chicago Blackhawks 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  • "1997-98 Chicago Blackhawks Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  1. ^ "1997-98 NHL Schedule and Results".
  2. ^ "1997-98 NHL Summary".
  3. ^ "1997-1998 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
  4. ^ "1997-98 Chicago Blackhawks Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  5. ^ "1998 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  6. ^ "1997-98 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
  7. ^ "1981 NHL Entry Draft -- Chris Chelios". www.hockeydraftcentral.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023. Played in 1,000th NHL game for Chicago on April 16, 1998, vs. New Jersey.
  8. ^ "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.