1997–98 Vancouver Canucks season
The 1997–98 Vancouver Canucks season was the team's 28th season in the National Hockey League (NHL). After missing the playoffs the season before, the team responded by signing Mark Messier to a three-year contract. The signing of Messier did little to improve the team, however, as they finished even worse than the year before, costing Head Coach Tom Renney and General Manager Pat Quinn their jobs. For the first time in NHL history, regular season games were played outside of North America, with the Canucks playing the Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in Tokyo, Japan, to open up the regular season. Pavel Bure became the last Canuck to score 50 or more goals in a season. On April 9, 1998, the Canucks scored three short-handed goals in a 6–3 road win over the Calgary Flames.[1]
1997–98 Vancouver Canucks | |
---|---|
Division | 7th Pacific |
Conference | 13th Western |
Home record | 15–22–4 |
Road record | 10–21–10 |
Goals for | 224 |
Goals against | 273 |
Team information | |
General manager | Pat Quinn (16 games) |
Coach | Tom Renney (19 games) Mike Keenan (63 games) |
Captain | Mark Messier |
Alternate captains | Dave Babych (Oct-Mar) Pavel Bure Trevor Linden (Oct-Jan) Bryan McCabe (Mar-Apr) Dana Murzyn (Jan-Apr) |
Arena | General Motors Place |
Average attendance | 17,120 |
Minor league affiliate(s) | Syracuse Crunch |
Team leaders | |
Goals | Pavel Bure (51) |
Assists | Pavel Bure (39) |
Points | Pavel Bure (90) |
Penalty minutes | Donald Brashear (372) |
Plus/minus | Peter Zezel (+13) |
Wins | Arturs Irbe (14) |
Goals against average | Arturs Irbe (2.73) |
In addition, the team introduced a new logo that would stay in use since its debut, with minor colour alterations.
The team was the last in NHL history to record over 2,000 penalty minutes, with 2,148.[2]
Off-season
Forward Trevor Linden resigned the team captaincy, in favour of new arrival Mark Messier.
Regular season
The Canucks finished the regular season with the most power-play opportunities against, with 432. Although the Canucks allowed the most goals in the League, with 273, they scored the most short-handed goals, with 19.[3]
All-Star Game

The 48th National Hockey League All-Star Game took place at General Motors Place in Vancouver, British Columbia, home to the Vancouver Canucks, on January 18, 1998.
The International Showdown
The 48th game was held in the very same year as the 1998 Winter Olympics in Nagano, providing the NHL to show its players from all over the world. To this extent, the NHL had the All-Star teams consist of a team of North Americans playing against a team of stars from the rest of the world. The format change also helped to intensify the game, as national pride would also become a factor. These provisions only applied to the players — coaches would still be selected based on which teams were the best from each conference at the time of the break.
Final standings
No. | GP | W | L | T | GF | GA | Pts | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
1 | Colorado Avalanche | 82 | 39 | 26 | 17 | 231 | 205 | 95 |
2 | Los Angeles Kings | 82 | 38 | 33 | 11 | 227 | 225 | 87 |
3 | Edmonton Oilers | 82 | 35 | 37 | 10 | 215 | 224 | 80 |
4 | San Jose Sharks | 82 | 34 | 38 | 10 | 210 | 216 | 78 |
5 | Calgary Flames | 82 | 26 | 41 | 15 | 217 | 252 | 67 |
6 | Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 82 | 26 | 43 | 13 | 205 | 261 | 65 |
7 | Vancouver Canucks | 82 | 25 | 43 | 14 | 224 | 273 | 64 |
Note: CR = Conference rank; GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against; Pts = Points
Bolded teams qualified for the playoffs.
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 * At Yoyogi National Gymnasium in Tokyo, Japan
Player statistics
Forwards
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty Minutes
Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Pavel Bure | 82 | 51 | 39 | 90 | 48 |
Mark Messier | 82 | 22 | 38 | 60 | 58 |
Alexander Mogilny | 51 | 18 | 27 | 45 | 36 |
Markus Naslund | 76 | 14 | 20 | 34 | 56 |
Brian Noonan | 82 | 10 | 15 | 25 | 62 |
Dave Scatchard | 76 | 13 | 11 | 24 | 165 |
Donald Brashear | 77 | 9 | 9 | 18 | 372 |
Steve Staios | 77 | 3 | 4 | 7 | 134 |
Defencemen
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty Minutes
Player | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Jyrki Lumme | 74 | 9 | 21 | 30 | 34 |
Mattias Ohlund | 77 | 7 | 23 | 30 | 76 |
Bret Hedican | 71 | 3 | 24 | 27 | 79 |
Grant Ledyard | 39 | 2 | 13 | 15 | 14 |
Bryan McCabe | 26 | 1 | 11 | 12 | 64 |
Dave Babych | 47 | 0 | 9 | 9 | 37 |
Dana Murzyn | 31 | 5 | 2 | 7 | 42 |
Bert Robertsson | 30 | 2 | 4 | 6 | 24 |
Adrian Aucoin | 35 | 3 | 3 | 6 | 21 |
Chris McAllister | 36 | 1 | 2 | 3 | 106 |
Jamie Huscroft | 7 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 |
Enrico Ciccone | 13 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 47 |
Mark Wotton | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 6 |
Goaltending
Note: GP= Games played; W= Wins; L= Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; GAA = Goals Against
Player | GP | W | L | T | SO | GAA |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Arturs Irbe | 41 | 14 | 11 | 6 | 2 | 2.73 |
Garth Snow | 13 | 3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 3.10 |
Sean Burke | 16 | 2 | 9 | 4 | 0 | 3.51 |
Kirk McLean | 29 | 6 | 17 | 4 | 1 | 3.68 |
Corey Hirsch | 1 | - | - | - | - | 6.00 |
Transactions
Trades
Draft picks
Vancouver's picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Round | # | Player | Nationality | College/Junior/Club team |
---|---|---|---|---|
1 | 10 | Brad Ference (D) | ![]() |
Spokane Chiefs (WHL) |
2 | 34 | Ryan Bonni (D) | ![]() |
Saskatoon Blades (WHL) |
2 | 36 | Harold Druken (D) | ![]() |
Detroit Whalers (OHL) |
3 | 64 | Kyle Freadrich (LW) | ![]() |
Prince George Cougars (WHL) |
4 | 90 | Chris Stanley (C) | ![]() |
Belleville Bulls (OHL) |
5 | 114 | David Darguzas (C) | ![]() |
Edmonton Ice (WHL) |
5 | 117 | Matt Cockell (G) | ![]() |
Saskatoon Blades (WHL) |
6 | 144 | Matt Cooke (LW) | ![]() |
Windsor Spitfires (OHL) |
6 | 148 | Larry Shapley (D) | ![]() |
Welland Jr. Canadians (Golden Horseshoe Junior B Hockey League) |
7 | 171 | Rod Leroux (D) | ![]() |
Seattle Thunderbirds (WHL) |
8 | 201 | Denis Martynyuk (LW) | ![]() |
CSKA Moscow (Russian Pro Hockey League) |
9 | 227 | Peter Brady (G) | ![]() |
Powell River Paper Kings (BCJHL) |