1996–97 Hartford Whalers season

1996–97 Hartford Whalers
Division	5th Northeast
Conference	10th Eastern
1996–97 record	32–39–11
Home record	23–15–3
Road record	9–24–8
Goals for	226
Goals against	256
Team information
General manager	Jim Rutherford
Coach	Paul Maurice
Captain	Kevin Dineen
Alternate captains	Glen Wesley Andrew Cassels
Arena	Hartford Civic Center
Average attendance	13,680 (87.5%)
Minor league affiliate(s)	Springfield Falcons (AHL) Richmond Renegades (ECHL)
Team leaders
Goals	Geoff Sanderson (36)
Assists	Andrew Cassels (44)
Points	Geoff Sanderson (67)
Penalty minutes	Stu Grimson (218)
Plus/minus	Sami Kapanen (+6)
Wins	Sean Burke (22)
Goals against average	Sean Burke (2.69)

The 1996–97 Hartford Whalers season was the 25th season of the franchise and the 18th and final season in Hartford. The Whalers would move to Greensboro, North Carolina, the next season to become the Carolina Hurricanes.

Off-season

On June 22, the Whalers participated in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri. Hartford did not have a selection in the first round, as the pick was traded to the Boston Bruins as part of the trade that brought Glen Wesley to the Whalers. In the second round, Hartford made their first selection of the draft, as they drafted Trevor Wasyluk from the Medicine Hat Tigers of the Western Hockey League with the 34th overall pick in the draft. Wasyluk scored 25 goals and 46 points in 69 games during the 1995-96 season. Other notable selections by the Whalers included Craig MacDonald in the fourth round, and Craig Adams in the ninth round.

The Whalers acquired Kevin Brown in a trade with the Anaheim Mighty Ducks in exchange for Espen Knutsen on October 1. Brown played in seven games with the Los Angeles Kings during the 1995-96 season, scoring one goal. Brown spent the majority of the season with the Phoenix Roadrunners of the IHL, scoring 10 goals and 26 points in 45 games. He also played in eight games with the Prince Edward Island Senators of the AHL, scoring three goals and nine points after he was traded from the Kings to the Ottawa Senators during the season.

On October 2, Hartford claimed Kent Manderville off of waivers from the Edmonton Oilers. In 37 games with the Oilers during the 1995-96 where he scored three goals and eight points.

Regular season

On April 13, 1997, the Whalers played their last game in Hartford, defeating the Tampa Bay Lightning 2–1. Fittingly, team captain Kevin Dineen scored the final goal in Whaler history.

The final words from SportsChannel New England with Play by play voice John Forslund at the end of the game were as follows:

"It's over folks, it's been a great ride. The Whalers will go out, winners".

Final standings

Northeast Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	Buffalo Sabres	82	40	30	12	237	208	92
2	6	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	38	36	8	285	280	84
3	7	Ottawa Senators	82	31	36	15	226	234	77
4	8	Montreal Canadiens	82	31	36	15	249	276	77
5	10	Hartford Whalers	82	32	39	11	226	256	75
6	13	Boston Bruins	82	26	47	9	234	300	61

Eastern Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	45	23	14	231	182	104
2	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	40	30	12	237	208	92
3	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	45	24	13	274	217	103
4	Florida Panthers	ATL	82	35	28	19	221	201	89
5	New York Rangers	ATL	82	38	34	10	258	231	86
6	Pittsburgh Penguins	NE	82	38	36	8	285	280	84
7	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	31	36	15	226	234	77
8	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	31	36	15	249	276	77
9	Washington Capitals	ATL	82	33	40	9	214	231	75
10	Hartford Whalers	NE	82	32	39	11	226	256	75
11	Tampa Bay Lightning	ATL	82	32	40	10	217	247	74
12	New York Islanders	ATL	82	29	41	12	240	250	70
13	Boston Bruins	NE	82	26	47	9	234	300	61

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

1996–97 regular season
October: 5–2–2 (home: 4–0–1; road: 1–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 1 W October 5, 1996 1–0 Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97) 1–0–0 15,635 Recap 2 W October 8, 1996 7–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97) 2–0–0 11,240 Recap 3 L October 12, 1996 0–6 @ Florida Panthers (1996–97) 2–1–0 14,703 Recap 4 W October 17, 1996 3–1 @ New York Islanders (1996–97) 3–1–0 8,019 Recap 5 W October 19, 1996 6–2 New Jersey Devils (1996–97) 4–1–0 14,476 Recap 6 W October 24, 1996 4–1 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97) 5–1–0 12,328 Recap 7 L October 26, 1996 3–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 5–2–0 16,193 Recap 8 T October 30, 1996 2–2 OT New York Islanders (1996–97) 5–2–1 11,936 Recap 9 T October 31, 1996 4–4 OT @ Boston Bruins (1996–97) 5–2–2 13,284 Recap
November: 6–5–3 (home: 3–4–0; road: 3–1–3) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 10 L November 2, 1996 2–3 Los Angeles Kings (1996–97) 5–3–2 13,425 Recap 11 L November 4, 1996 1–5 @ Detroit Red Wings (1996–97) 5–4–2 19,983 Recap 12 W November 6, 1996 5–1 Boston Bruins (1996–97) 6–4–2 13,026 Recap 13 L November 8, 1996 1–4 Detroit Red Wings (1996–97) 6–5–2 14,460 Recap 14 W November 9, 1996 4–3 OT Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 7–5–2 13,352 Recap 15 W November 12, 1996 4–3 @ San Jose Sharks (1996–97) 8–5–2 17,742 Recap 16 W November 14, 1996 2–1 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1996–97) 9–5–2 14,968 Recap 17 T November 16, 1996 4–4 OT @ Colorado Avalanche (1996–97) 9–5–3 16,061 Recap 18 W November 20, 1996 3–1 Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 10–5–3 13,033 Recap 19 L November 22, 1996 1–7 Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97) 10–6–3 14,572 Recap 20 T November 23, 1996 3–3 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1996–97) 10–6–4 14,648 Recap 21 L November 27, 1996 2–6 Vancouver Canucks (1996–97) 10–7–4 14,289 Recap 22 T November 29, 1996 1–1 OT @ Florida Panthers (1996–97) 10–7–5 14,703 Recap 23 W November 30, 1996 6–3 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97) 11–7–5 16,375 Recap
December: 6–6–1 (home: 5–2–0; road: 1–4–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 24 T December 3, 1996 4–4 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97) 11–7–6 13,816 Recap 25 W December 5, 1996 4–2 @ Boston Bruins (1996–97) 12–7–6 14,955 Recap 26 W December 7, 1996 6–4 Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 13–7–6 13,464 Recap 27 W December 11, 1996 5–2 Florida Panthers (1996–97) 14–7–6 11,884 Recap 28 L December 12, 1996 2–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97) 14–8–6 19,124 Recap 29 L December 14, 1996 0–4 Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97) 14–9–6 14,590 Recap 30 L December 16, 1996 2–5 @ New York Rangers (1996–97) 14–10–6 18,200 Recap 31 W December 17, 1996 5–3 St. Louis Blues (1996–97) 15–10–6 12,922 Recap 32 L December 20, 1996 1–4 Dallas Stars (1996–97) 15–11–6 12,945 Recap 33 W December 21, 1996 6–5 OT Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97) 16–11–6 12,082 Recap 34 L December 26, 1996 1–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 16–12–6 18,595 Recap 35 W December 28, 1996 3–2 Ottawa Senators (1996–97) 17–12–6 14,092 Recap 36 L December 29, 1996 3–4 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97) 17–13–6 20,502 Recap
January: 3–10–1 (home: 2–3–1; road: 1–7–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 37 L January 1, 1997 2–3 OT @ Washington Capitals (1996–97) 17–14–6 12,608 Recap 38 L January 2, 1997 4–5 OT Boston Bruins (1996–97) 17–15–6 14,403 Recap 39 T January 4, 1997 1–1 OT Washington Capitals (1996–97) 17–15–7 14,613 Recap 40 L January 6, 1997 4–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 17–16–7 20,292 Recap 41 L January 9, 1997 2–3 @ Calgary Flames (1996–97) 17–17–7 17,121 Recap 42 L January 10, 1997 3–5 @ Vancouver Canucks (1996–97) 17–18–7 17,378 Recap 43 L January 12, 1997 1–2 OT @ Edmonton Oilers (1996–97) 17–19–7 14,301 Recap 44 L January 15, 1997 0–3 Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97) 17–20–7 14,502 Recap 45 W January 20, 1997 3–1 Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97) 18–20–7 13,002 Recap 46 W January 22, 1997 2–1 OT Florida Panthers (1996–97) 19–20–7 12,627 Recap 47 L January 24, 1997 2–5 New York Islanders (1996–97) 19–21–7 14,619 Recap 48 W January 25, 1997 5–1 @ Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 20–21–7 18,595 Recap 49 L January 30, 1997 3–5 @ Los Angeles Kings (1996–97) 20–22–7 11,036 Recap 50 L January 31, 1997 3–6 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1996–97) 20–23–7 17,174 Recap
February: 4–6–2 (home: 3–2–1; road: 1–4–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 51 L February 5, 1997 2–5 @ New York Rangers (1996–97) 20–24–7 18,200 Recap 52 W February 6, 1997 5–3 @ Boston Bruins (1996–97) 21–24–7 15,213 Recap 53 L February 8, 1997 2–3 OT @ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 21–25–7 21,273 Recap 54 L February 12, 1997 2–3 New Jersey Devils (1996–97) 21–26–7 12,710 Recap 55 L February 13, 1997 0–4 @ New Jersey Devils (1996–97) 21–27–7 14,138 Recap 56 W February 15, 1997 2–1 Ottawa Senators (1996–97) 22–27–7 13,767 Recap 57 L February 16, 1997 2–4 @ Ottawa Senators (1996–97) 22–28–7 18,338 Recap 58 T February 19, 1997 2–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97) 22–28–8 19,484 Recap 59 W February 21, 1997 7–2 New York Rangers (1996–97) 23–28–8 14,660 Recap 60 W February 22, 1997 2–0 Washington Capitals (1996–97) 24–28–8 14,311 Recap 61 T February 26, 1997 2–2 OT Chicago Blackhawks (1996–97) 24–28–9 13,121 Recap 62 L February 28, 1997 2–3 San Jose Sharks (1996–97) 24–29–9 13,547 Recap
March: 5–7–1 (home: 4–3–0; road: 1–4–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 63 L March 2, 1997 2–5 Philadelphia Flyers (1996–97) 24–30–9 14,660 Recap 64 W March 5, 1997 2–0 Calgary Flames (1996–97) 25–30–9 12,140 Recap 65 W March 7, 1997 2–0 Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 26–30–9 14,341 Recap 66 T March 8, 1997 1–1 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1996–97) 26–30–10 15,726 Recap 67 W March 12, 1997 6–3 Boston Bruins (1996–97) 27–30–10 13,155 Recap 68 L March 13, 1997 0–6 @ New Jersey Devils (1996–97) 27–31–10 16,244 Recap 69 L March 15, 1997 2–4 Edmonton Oilers (1996–97) 27–32–10 14,437 Recap 70 L March 16, 1997 3–5 @ Washington Capitals (1996–97) 27–33–10 18,130 Recap 71 L March 20, 1997 1–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1996–97) 27–34–10 17,959 Recap 72 L March 21, 1997 0–2 @ Dallas Stars (1996–97) 27–35–10 16,522 Recap 73 L March 25, 1997 0–4 Colorado Avalanche (1996–97) 27–36–10 14,191 Recap 74 W March 27, 1997 5–2 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97) 28–36–10 19,984 Recap 75 W March 29, 1997 2–1 New York Rangers (1996–97) 29–36–10 14,660 Recap
April: 3–3–1 (home: 2–1–0; road: 1–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 76 L April 2, 1997 1–4 Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 29–37–10 14,177 Recap 77 T April 3, 1997 5–5 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1996–97) 29–37–11 17,284 Recap 78 W April 5, 1997 4–1 @ Montreal Canadiens (1996–97) 30–37–11 21,273 Recap 79 W April 7, 1997 4–2 Buffalo Sabres (1996–97) 31–37–11 14,660 Recap 80 L April 9, 1997 4–5 @ Ottawa Senators (1996–97) 31–38–11 18,500 Recap 81 L April 11, 1997 4–6 @ New York Islanders (1996–97) 31–39–11 15,382 Recap 82 W April 13, 1997 2–1 Tampa Bay Lightning (1996–97) 32–39–11 14,660 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 Whalers only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Whalers only.

			Regular season
No.	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
8	Geoff Sanderson	LW	82	36	31	67	−9	29
21	Andrew Cassels	C	81	22	44	66	−16	46
55	Keith Primeau†	C	75	26	25	51	−3	161
11	Kevin Dineen	RW	78	19	29	48	−6	141
16	Nelson Emerson	RW	66	9	29	38	−21	34
12	Steven Rice	RW	78	21	14	35	−11	59
20	Glen Wesley	D	68	6	26	32	0	40
92	Jeff O'Neill	RW	72	14	16	30	−24	40
24	Sami Kapanen	RW	45	13	12	25	6	2
18	Robert Kron	LW	68	10	12	22	−18	10
28	Paul Ranheim	LW	67	10	11	21	−13	18
7	Curtis Leschyshyn†	D	64	4	13	17	−19	30
3	Steve Chiasson†	D	18	3	11	14	−10	7
6	Adam Burt	D	71	2	11	13	−13	79
44	Kent Manderville	C	44	6	5	11	3	18
4	Gerald Diduck‡	D	56	1	10	11	−9	40
77	Paul Coffey†‡	D	20	3	5	8	0	18
14	Kevin Haller†	D	35	2	6	8	−11	48
36	Glen Featherstone‡	D	41	2	5	7	0	87
10	Andrei Nikolishin‡	C	12	2	5	7	−2	2
5	Alexander Godynyuk	D	55	1	6	7	−10	41
27	Derek King†	LW	12	3	3	6	0	2
22	Mark Janssens‡	C	54	2	4	6	−10	90
23	Marek Malik	D	47	1	5	6	5	50
32	Stu Grimson†	LW	75	2	2	4	−7	218
46	Kevin Brown	RW	11	0	4	4	−6	6
17	Hnat Domenichelli‡	LW	13	2	1	3	−4	7
39	Kelly Chase‡	RW	28	1	2	3	2	122
17	Chris Murray†	RW	8	1	1	2	1	10
1	Sean Burke	G	51	0	2	2		14
37	Jeff Daniels	LW	10	0	2	2	2	0
41	Nolan Pratt	D	9	0	2	2	0	6
7	Brian Glynn	D	1	1	0	1	2	2
94	Brendan Shanahan‡	LW	2	1	0	1	1	0
26	Steve Martins	C	2	0	1	1	0	0
29	Jason Muzzatti	G	31	0	1	1		18
27	Jeff Brown	D	1	0	0	0	0	0
47	Jean-Sebastien Giguere	G	8	0	0	0		0
25	Jason McBain	D	6	0	0	0	−4	0

Goaltending

		Regular season
No.	Player	GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
1	Sean Burke	51	22	22	6	1560	134	2.69	.914	4	2985
29	Jason Muzzatti	31	9	13	5	815	91	3.43	.888	0	1591
47	Jean-Sebastien Giguere	8	1	4	0	201	24	3.65	.881	0	394

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Geoff Sanderson
Team	Award of Excellence	Kevin Dineen
	Booster Club MVP Award	Sean Burke
	Frank Keys Memorial Award	Kent Manderville
	Mark Kravitz Award	Sean Burke
	Most Valuable Defenseman	Glen Wesley
	Three Star Award of Excellence	Sean Burke
	Top Gun Award	Geoff Sanderson
	True Grit Award	Kevin Dineen

Transactions

The Whalers were involved in the following transactions during the 1996–97 season.

Trades

October 1, 1996	To Anaheim Mighty Ducks Espen Knutsen	To Hartford Whalers Kevin Brown
October 9, 1996	To Detroit Red Wings Brendan Shanahan Brian Glynn	To Hartford Whalers Paul Coffey Keith Primeau 1st round pick in 1997 - Nikos Tselios
November 9, 1996	To Washington Capitals Andrei Nikolishin	To Hartford Whalers Curtis Leschyshyn
December 15, 1996	To Philadelphia Flyers Paul Coffey 3rd round pick in 1997 - Kris Mallette	To Hartford Whalers Kevin Haller 1st round pick in 1997 - Scott Hannan 7th round pick in 1997 - Andrew Merrick
March 5, 1997	To Calgary Flames Hnat Domenichelli Glen Featherstone 2nd round pick in 1997 - Dmitri Kokorev 3rd round pick in 1998 - Paul Manning	To Hartford Whalers Steve Chiasson 3rd round pick in 1997 - Francis Lessard
March 18, 1997	To Toronto Maple Leafs Kelly Chase	To Hartford Whalers 8th round pick in 1998 - Jaroslav Svoboda
March 18, 1997	To Anaheim Mighty Ducks Mark Janssens	To Hartford Whalers Bates Battaglia 4th round pick in 1998 - Josef Vasicek
March 18, 1997	To New York Islanders 5th round pick in 1997 - Adam Edinger	To Hartford Whalers Derek King
March 18, 1997	To Phoenix Coyotes Gerald Diduck	To Hartford Whalers Chris Murray

Waivers

October 2, 1996	From Edmonton Oilers Kent Manderville
October 12, 1996	From Detroit Red Wings Stu Grimson

Free agents

Player	New Team
Scott Daniels	Philadelphia Flyers
Brad McCrimmon	Phoenix Coyotes
David Williams	Boston Bruins
Kevin Smyth	Orlando Solar Bears (IHL)
John Stevens	Philadelphia Flyers

Draft picks

Hartford's picks at the 1996 NHL Entry Draft held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

Round	#	Player	Position	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
2	34	Trevor Wasyluk	Left wing	Canada	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
3	61	Andrei Petrunin	Right wing	Russia	CSKA Moscow (Russia)
4	88	Craig MacDonald	Center	Canada	Harvard University (ECAC)
4	104	Steve Wasylko	Center	Canada	Detroit Whalers (OHL)
5	116	Mark McMahon	Defense	Canada	Kitchener Rangers (OHL)
6	143	Aaron Baker	Goaltender	Canada	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
7	171	Greg Kuznik	Defense	Canada	Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL)
8	197	Kevin Marsh	Left wing	Canada	Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
9	223	Craig Adams	Right wing	Canada	Harvard University (ECAC)
9	231	Askhat Rakhmatullin	Left wing	Russia	Salavat Yulaev Ufa (Russia)

Departure from Hartford

In 1994, Compuware founder Peter Karmanos purchased the Whalers. Karmanos pledged to keep the Whalers in Hartford for four years. Frustrated with lackluster attendance and corporate support, he announced in 1996 that if the Whalers were unable to sell at least 11,000 season tickets for the 1996–97 season, he would likely move the team. Furthermore, ownership only made season tickets available in full-season (41-game) packages, eliminating the popular five- and ten-game "mini plans," in a strategy largely designed to spur purchases from wealthier corporations and individuals. Sales were underwhelming at the beginning of the campaign, and at the end of the 1995–96 season it was still unknown whether the Whalers would stay in Connecticut or move. However, thanks to an aggressive marketing campaign, and the creative efforts of many fans (who pooled together resources to purchase some of the full-season packages collectively) the Whalers announced that they would stay in Connecticut for the 1996–97 season.

In early 1996, negotiations between the Whalers and Connecticut Governor John G. Rowland to build a new $147.5 million arena seemed to be going well. However, negotiations fell apart when Rowland and the State refused Karmanos' demand to reimburse the Whalers for up to $45 million in losses during the three years the new arena was to be built. As a result, the team announced on March 26, 1997, that they would leave Hartford, one of the few times that a team announced it would leave its current city without having already selected a new city. Many suspected that Governor John G. Rowland did not want to keep the Whalers, as he harbored hopes of instead landing an NFL franchise. Ideally, Rowland wanted to use the state's resources to build a new stadium to lure the New England Patriots to Connecticut and did not have serious intentions of building an NHL arena for the Whalers.

References

• "Hartford Whalers 1996-97 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.
• "1996-97 Hartford Whalers Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 16, 2023.