1997–98 Philadelphia Flyers season
The 1997–98 Philadelphia Flyers season was the Philadelphia Flyers 31st season in the National Hockey League. The Flyers lost their quarterfinal series with the Buffalo Sabres in five games.
Off-season
Less than a week after losing game four of the Stanley Cup Finals, head coach Terry Murray was fired. San Jose Sharks assistant coach Wayne Cashman was named his replacement on July 7, 1997.The Flyers made two major acquisitions during the summer. On July 14, unrestricted free agent defenseman Luke Richardson, formerly of the Edmonton Oilers, signed a five-year, $12.6 million contract. A month later the Flyers signed Group II restricted free agent centerman Chris Gratton of the Tampa Bay Lightning to a five-year, $16.5 million offer sheet which included a $9 million signing bonus. However, Tampa Bay claimed they had traded Gratton to the Chicago Blackhawks before the Flyers had signed Gratton. An arbitrator dismissed this and another claim that the offer sheet was illegible because the contract figures were smeared. Fearing Tampa Bay would match, the Flyers agreed to send defenseman Karl Dykhuis and right winger Mikael Renberg to the Lightning in exchange for the four first-round picks Tampa Bay would receive if they did not match.
34-year-old forward Dale Hawerchuk announced his retirement on August 25, 1997, due to a degenerative left hip.
Regular season
With the acquisitions of Gratton and Richardson, the Flyers were expected to make another Stanley Cup run. A 7–3–1 start came crashing down as the Devils posted a 5–0 road win on October 27. Although the club finished the calendar year with an 8–0 strafing of Vancouver on New Year's Eve and began 1998 with a 7–2 road win over Ottawa, there were signs of trouble for Wayne Cashman's team - notably bad shutout home losses to San Jose in November and Boston in early December.In a move which shocked many in Philadelphia and around the NHL, Cashman was reassigned as assistant coach and Roger Neilson elevated to head coach following a 4–3 overtime victory against Pittsburgh on March 8.
The decision didn't seem to pay off, and after a 5–4 overtime win over the New York Rangers on March 22, the team limped to a 6–8–0 finish, including back-to-back 2–1 losses to the Rangers and Bruins to end the year.
On April 13 in a nationally televised 2–1 loss in Buffalo, John LeClair scored his 50th goal of the season, becoming the first American-born player to score 50 goals in three straight seasons.
Season standings
Playoffs
In a season in which the Flyers — despite a hard fall to the Detroit Red Wings the previous year — were heavily favored to repeat as Eastern champs and return to the Finals, they never came close, as they were dominated in the first round by the Buffalo Sabres in five games.Schedule and results
Regular season
Playoffs
Player statistics
Scoring
- Position abbreviations: C = Center; D = Defense; G = Goaltender; LW = Left Wing; RW = Right Wing
- = Joined team via a transaction during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
- = Left team via a transaction during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
Goaltending
- = Joined team via a transaction during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
- = Left team via a transaction during the season. Stats reflect time with the Flyers only.
Awards and records
Awards
Transactions
The Flyers were involved in the following transactions from June 8, 1997, the day after the deciding game of the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals, through June 16, 1998, the day of the deciding game of the 1998 Stanley Cup Finals.Trades
Signings
Free agency
The following players were signed by the Flyers via free agency. Two-way contracts are marked with an asterisk.Date | Player | Previous team | Term | Ref |
June 12, 1997 | Jim Montgomery | Kolner Haie | 3-year* | |
July 10, 1997 | Jamie Heward | Toronto Maple Leafs | 1-year* | |
July 14, 1997 | Luke Richardson | Edmonton Oilers | 5-year | |
July 16, 1997 | Travis VanTighem | Michigan Technical University | 1-year* | |
August 12, 1997 | Chris Gratton | Tampa Bay Lightning | 5-year | |
September 4, 1997 | Chris Joseph | Vancouver Canucks | 1-year | |
May 18, 1998 | Ryan Bast | Saint John Flames | 2-year* |
Internal
The following players were either re-signed by the Flyers or, in the case of the team's selections in the NHL Entry Draft, signed to entry level contracts. Two-way contracts are marked with an asterisk.Date | Player | Term | Ref |
June 18, 1997 | Kjell Samuelsson | 1 year | |
July 9, 1997 | Jean-Marc Pelletier | * | |
July 10, 1997 | Martin Cerven | 3-year* | |
July 15, 1997 | Craig Darby | 2-year* | |
July 15, 1997 | Neil Little | 1-year* | |
July 18, 1997 | Brett Bruininks | 1-year* | |
August 18, 1997 | Garth Snow | 1-year | |
September 3, 1997 | Dan Kordic | 2-year | |
September 12, 1997 | Chris Therien | 3-year | |
October 16, 1997 | Brantt Myhres | 1-year* | |
October 17, 1997 | John LeClair | 3-year | |
December 17, 1997 | Eric Lindros | 1-year |
Waivers
The Flyers were involved in the following waivers transactions. They were involved in one selection during the 1997 NHL Waiver Draft, which was held on September 28, 1997. The Flyers left the following players unprotected: goaltenders Neil Little and Dominic Roussel, defensemen Jason Bowen, Aris Brimanis, Jamie Heward, and John Stevens, and forwards Frank Bialowas, Bruce Coles, Scott Daniels, Craig Darby, John Druce, Dale Hawerchuk, Patrik Juhlin, Shawn McCosh, Jim Montgomery, and Peter White.Date | Player | Team | Ref |
September 28, 1997 | Scott Daniels | to New Jersey Devils |
Departures
The following players left the team via free agency, release, or retirement. Players who were under contract and left the team during the season are marked with an asterisk.Date | Player | New team | Via | Ref |
August 25, 1997 | Dale Hawerchuk | — | Retirement | |
N/A | Patrik Juhlin | Jokerit | Free agency | |
N/A | Frantisek Kucera | HC Sparta Praha | Free agency | |
N/A | Ryan Sittler | South Carolina Stingrays | Free agency | |
October 29, 1997 | Michel Petit | Detroit Vipers | Free agency | |
April 14, 1998 | Brantt Myhres* | San Jose Sharks | Release |
Draft picks
Philadelphia's picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, which was held at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on June 21, 1997. The Flyers traded their third-round pick, 77th overall, to the Dallas Stars for the Stars' 1998 second-round pick on June 21, 1997. They also traded their fifth-round pick, 130th overall, and Bob Wilkie to the Chicago Blackhawks for Karl Dykhuis on February 16, 1995, and their seventh-round pick, 187th overall, to the Edmonton Oilers for Martin Cerven on June 18, 1997.Round | Pick | Player | Position | Nationality | Team | Notes |
2 | 30 | Jean-Marc Pelletier | Goaltender | United States | Cornell University | |
2 | 50 | Pat Kavanagh | Right Wing | Canada | Peterborough Petes | |
3 | 62 | Kris Mallette | Defense | Canada | Kelowna Rockets | |
4 | 103 | Mikhail Chernov | Defense | Russia | Torpedo Yaroslavl | |
6 | 158 | Jordon Flodell | Defense | Canada | Moose Jaw Warriors | |
7 | 164 | Todd Fedoruk | Left Wing | Canada | Kelowna Rockets | |
8 | 214 | Marko Kauppinen | Defense | Finland | JYP Jr. | |
9 | 240 | Par Styf | Defense | Sweden | Modo Hockey Jrs. |