1997–98 San Jose Sharks season

The 1997–98 San Jose Sharks season was the Sharks' seventh season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). Following their second last-place finish in as many years, the Sharks unceremoniously fired first-year head coach Al Sims; he was replaced by Darryl Sutter, who had previously coached the Chicago Blackhawks. At the time of his hiring, Sutter was the first head coach in franchise history to have previously coached another NHL team.

1997–98 San Jose Sharks
Division4th Pacific
Conference8th Western
1997–98 record34–38–10
Goals for210
Goals against216
Team information
General ManagerDean Lombardi
CoachDarryl Sutter
CaptainTodd Gill (Oct-Mar)
Vacant (Mar-Apr)

The Sharks' coaching switch was accompanied by a handful of player acquisitions and debuts. Of these, the addition of five-time NHL All-Star goaltender Mike Vernon proved most important. On August 18th, 1997, the Sharks acquired Vernon from the Detroit Red Wings for a pair of second-round picks; at the time of the trade, Vernon was only two months removed from backstopping the Red Wings to victory in the 1997 Stanley Cup Finals. Additionally, the Sharks drafted highly-touted forward Patrick Marleau with the second overall pick in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft. Despite a lackluster rookie season, Marleau would enjoy considerable success with the Sharks over the following two decades. Lastly, 1996 first-found pick Marco Sturm was added to the roster early in the season. Sturm and Marleau, in particular, supplemented a burgeoning collection of young forwards that already included mainstays Jeff Friesen and Owen Nolan.

In Sutter's first season at the helm, the Sharks' play improved substantially. While they once again failed to post a winning record, the team managed to clinch the Western Conference's eighth (and final) playoff berth. In the first round of the 1998 Stanley Cup Playoffs, the Sharks faced the top-seeded Dallas Stars. The Sharks quickly dropped their first two games in Dallas; upon returning to San Jose, however, the Sharks rallied to tie the series at two games apiece. An upset was not to be, however, as the Stars responded with a pair of one-goal victories to win the series in six games. Despite a quick exit from the playoffs, the 1997-98 season would prove to be a turning point for the franchise. After finishing with the Western Conference's worst record in four of their first six seasons of play, the Sharks would miss the postseason just twice between 1998 and 2018.

Offseason

Regular season

Captain Todd Gill is traded to the St. Louis Blues, in March.

Final standings

Pacific Division
No. GP W L T GF GA Pts
1Colorado Avalanche8239261723120595
2Los Angeles Kings8238331122722587
3Edmonton Oilers8235371021522480
4San Jose Sharks8234381021021678
5Calgary Flames8226411521725267
6Mighty Ducks of Anaheim8226431320526165
7Vancouver Canucks8225431422427364

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.

Western Conference[1]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1p – Dallas StarsCEN82492211242167109
2x – Colorado AvalanchePAC8239261723120595
3Detroit Red WingsCEN82442315250196103
4St. Louis BluesCEN824529825620498
5Los Angeles KingsPAC8238331122722587
6Phoenix CoyotesCEN8235351222422782
7Edmonton OilersPAC8235371021522480
8San Jose SharksPAC8234381021021678
9Chicago BlackhawksCEN8230391319219973
10Toronto Maple LeafsCEN823043919423769
11Calgary FlamesPAC8226411521725267
12Mighty Ducks of AnaheimPAC8226431320526165
13Vancouver CanucksPAC8225431422427364

Divisions: CEN – Central, PAC – Pacific

bold – Qualified for playoffs; x – Won Division; p – Won Presidents' Trophy

Schedule and results

No. R Date Score Opponent Record
1LOctober 1, 19973–5Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)0–1–0
2WOctober 4, 19973–2Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)1–1–0
3LOctober 7, 19970–1Ottawa Senators (1997–98)1–2–0
4LOctober 9, 19972–3@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)1–3–0
5WOctober 11, 19975–2Boston Bruins (1997–98)2–3–0
6LOctober 13, 19972–3 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1997–98)2–4–0
7LOctober 16, 19972–5New York Islanders (1997–98)2–5–0
8LOctober 19, 19973–5@ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)2–6–0
9LOctober 22, 19972–5Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)2–7–0
10WOctober 25, 19974–3@ New Jersey Devils (1997–98)3–7–0
11WOctober 27, 19972–1@ New York Islanders (1997–98)4–7–0
12LOctober 29, 19973–4@ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)4–8–0
13LOctober 31, 19973–5@ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)4–9–0
14LNovember 1, 19970–2@ St. Louis Blues (1997–98)4–10–0
15TNovember 4, 19970–0 OTToronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)4–10–1
16LNovember 7, 19973–4Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)4–11–1
17WNovember 8, 19973–1Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98)5–11–1
18WNovember 10, 19976–4@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)6–11–1
19LNovember 12, 19972–5Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)6–12–1
20LNovember 13, 19973–6@ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)6–13–1
21LNovember 15, 19972–3Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)6–14–1
22WNovember 18, 19974–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)7–14–1
23WNovember 20, 19973–0@ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)8–14–1
24WNovember 22, 19975–2@ Washington Capitals (1997–98)9–14–1
25TNovember 24, 19972–2 OT@ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)9–14–2
26LNovember 25, 19971–3@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)9–15–2
27LNovember 28, 19972–4New Jersey Devils (1997–98)9–16–2
28LNovember 30, 19971–6@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)9–17–2
29LDecember 1, 19972–3 OT@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)9–18–2
30WDecember 4, 19973–2@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)10–18–2
31TDecember 10, 19973–3 OTWashington Capitals (1997–98)10–18–3
32WDecember 12, 19971–0@ Dallas Stars (1997–98)11–18–3
33WDecember 14, 19972–1@ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)12–18–3
34WDecember 16, 19975–1Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)13–18–3
35TDecember 18, 19970–0 OTVancouver Canucks (1997–98)13–18–4
36WDecember 21, 19974–2@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)14–18–4
37LDecember 26, 19970–4Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)14–19–4
38LDecember 29, 19971–2@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98)14–20–4
39TDecember 30, 19972–2 OT@ Florida Panthers (1997–98)14–20–5
40WJanuary 2, 19984–1@ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)15–20–5
41LJanuary 3, 19980–3@ Boston Bruins (1997–98)15–21–5
42LJanuary 6, 19981–5St. Louis Blues (1997–98)15–22–5
43WJanuary 10, 19985–2Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)16–22–5
44LJanuary 12, 19981–3Dallas Stars (1997–98)16–23–5
45LJanuary 14, 19982–4Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)16–24–5
46TJanuary 15, 19982–2 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)16–24–6
47WJanuary 21, 19987–1Calgary Flames (1997–98)17–24–6
48WJanuary 23, 19983–2Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)18–24–6
49TJanuary 24, 19981–1 OTFlorida Panthers (1997–98)18–24–7
50WJanuary 27, 19984–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)19–24–7
51LJanuary 29, 19980–3Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)19–25–7
52WJanuary 31, 19985–2Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)20–25–7
53LFebruary 2, 19982–3New York Rangers (1997–98)20–26–7
54WFebruary 4, 19983–0@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)21–26–7
55LFebruary 5, 19982–4@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)21–27–7
56LFebruary 7, 19983–6@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)21–28–7
57WFebruary 26, 19983–1St. Louis Blues (1997–98)22–28–7
58LFebruary 28, 19981–4@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)22–29–7
59LMarch 2, 19981–3Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)22–30–7
60WMarch 5, 19985–4Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)23–30–7
61WMarch 6, 19983–0@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)24–30–7
62WMarch 9, 19983–2Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)25–30–7
63LMarch 11, 19983–5@ New York Rangers (1997–98)25–31–7
64LMarch 12, 19981–3@ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)25–32–7
65WMarch 14, 19982–1@ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)26–32–7
66WMarch 16, 19982–1Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)27–32–7
67LMarch 18, 19981–3Dallas Stars (1997–98)27–33–7
68LMarch 21, 19980–2Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)27–34–7
69LMarch 22, 19981–3@ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)27–35–7
70LMarch 24, 19983–4Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)27–36–7
71WMarch 26, 19985–2@ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98)28–36–7
72WMarch 28, 19984–1@ Dallas Stars (1997–98)29–36–7
73LMarch 30, 19982–6@ St. Louis Blues (1997–98)29–37–7
74WApril 1, 19983–2@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)30–37–7
75TApril 2, 19983–3 OT@ Ottawa Senators (1997–98)30–37–8
76WApril 4, 19985–3@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)31–37–8
77WApril 7, 19986–0Calgary Flames (1997–98)32–37–8
78WApril 9, 19985–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)33–37–8
79TApril 11, 19981–1 OTVancouver Canucks (1997–98)33–37–9
80TApril 15, 19983–3 OT@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)33–37–10
81LApril 16, 19981–4@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)33–38–10
82WApril 18, 19984–1Calgary Flames (1997–98)34–38–10

[2]

Playoffs

In a Conference Quarter-final series, the Sharks met the #1 seeded and Presidents' Trophy-winning Dallas Stars. The Sharks were eliminated by the Stars in six games.

Dallas (1) vs. San Jose (8)
Date Away Home OT
April 22San Jose 14 Dallas
April 24San Jose 25 Dallas
April 26Dallas 14 San Jose
April 28Dallas 01 San JoseOT
April 30San Jose 23 Dallas
May 2Dallas 32 San JoseOT
Dallas wins series 4–2.

[3]

Player statistics

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Jeff FriesenLW79313263408767
Owen NolanRW75142741144-2311
John MacLeanRW51131932280502
Patrick MarleauC74131932145102
Bill HoulderD82725324813402
Marco SturmLW7410203040-2203
Stephane MatteauLW73151429604102
Murray CravenLW67121729254233
Bernie NichollsC606222826-4300
Tony GranatoRW5916925703302
Marcus RagnarssonD795202565-11302
Mike RicciC599142330-4502
Todd GillD648132131-13401
Mike RathjeD813121559-4100
Andrei ZyuzinD566713668202
Shawn BurrLW/C426612502000
Marty McSorleyD562101214010000
Doug BodgerD284610320001
Jarrod SkaldeC22461014-2000
Joe MurphyRW10549141200
Al IafrateD2127928-1200
Ron SutterC5727922-2001
Dave LowryLW50448510001
Viktor KozlovC185272-2200
Shean DonovanRW20336223000
Alexander KorolyukLW192356-5100
Rich BrennanD111232-4100
Bryan MarchmentD12033432000
Steve GuollaC71120-2000
Andrei NazarovLW40112112-4000
Mike VernonG62022240000
Barry PotomskiLW9011301000
Niklas AnderssonLW50002-1000
Kelly HrudeyG2800020000
Jason MuzzattiG100000000
Ken SuttonD800015-4000
Dody WoodC800040-3000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Mike Vernon356462302281462.46514011255.896
Kelly Hrudey1360284162622.741600538.897
Jason Muzzatti27100024.4401311.846
Team:4951823438102102.54620141804.896
Playoffs
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
John MacLeanRW623541100
Bernie NichollsC60558-2000
Owen NolanRW622426-1201
Mike RicciC613460000
Bill HoulderD612320000
Murray CravenLW61120-2000
Joe MurphyRW611220-1100
Al IafrateD610110-4100
Mike RathjeD61016-3100
Ron SutterC610114-1000
Andrei ZyuzinD610114-2001
Jeff FriesenLW60112-1000
Patrick MarleauC50110-1000
Stephane MatteauLW401101000
Shawn BurrLW/C60008-1000
Tony GranatoRW100000000
Kelly HrudeyG100000000
Dave LowryLW6000180000
Bryan MarchmentD6000101000
Marcus RagnarssonD600042000
Marco SturmLW20000-2000
Mike VernonG600000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Mike Vernon348624142.411138124.899
Kelly Hrudey2010013.00065.833
Team:368624152.451144129.896

[4]

Note: Pos = Position; GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; +/- = plus/minus; PIM = Penalty minutes; PPG = Power-play goals; SHG = Short-handed goals; GWG = Game-winning goals
      MIN = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; GA = Goals-against; GAA = Goals-against average; SO = Shutouts; SA = Shots against; SV = Shots saved; SV% = Save percentage;

Awards and records

Transactions

Roster

1997–1998 San Jose Sharks Roster
Goaltenders

Defensemen

Wingers

Centers

[5]

Draft picks

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club Team
1 2 Patrick Marleau Center  Canada Seattle Thunderbirds
1 23 Scott Hannan Defence  Canada Kelowna Rockets
4 82 Adam Colagiacomo Right Wing  Canada Oshawa Generals
5 107 Adam Spylo Right Wing  Canada Erie Otters
7 163 Joe Dusbabek Right Wing  United States Notre Dame
8 192 Cam Severson Left Wing  Canada Prince Albert Raiders
9 219 Mark Smith Center  Canada Lethbridge Hurricanes

Farm teams

gollark: They *can't* listen on the same port, I think.
gollark: Most of the time it's going to be fine, because obviously if there are serious bugs in remotely-accessible stuff they'll be patched *very fast* hopefully.
gollark: I guess.
gollark: As long as there aren't any exploits in the thing you're port-forwarding to, it's completely fine.
gollark: I run 55 mods on 4GB of RAM. surprisingly it runs okay.

See also

References

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