The 1996–97

Buffalo Sabres The Buffalo Sabres are a professional ice hockey team based in Buffalo, New York. The Sabres compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Atlantic Division in the Eastern Conference. The team was established in 1970, along w ...

season A season is a division of the year based on changes in weather, ecology, and the number of daylight hours in a given region. On Earth, seasons are the result of the axial parallelism of Earth's tilted orbit around the Sun. In temperate and pol ...

was the 27th for the

National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...

franchise that was established on May 22, 1970. The season was the first season in the newly constructed

Marine Midland Arena KeyBank Center is a multipurpose indoor arena located in Buffalo, New York. Originally known as Marine Midland Arena, the venue has since been named HSBC Arena and First Niagara Center. Home to the Buffalo Sabres of the National Hockey League ...

. The Sabres also underwent a drastic uniform change, replacing the blue and gold colors and classic crest with a black and red color scheme and new white buffalo-head logo. The Sabres won their first Northeast Division title, their first division title in 16 years.

Off-season

Regular season

On January 12, 1997, Jason Dawe scored just ten seconds into the overtime period to give the Sabres a 3–2 road win over the

Phoenix Coyotes The Arizona Coyotes are a professional ice hockey team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Coyotes compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division in the Western Conference and currently play at the Mull ...

. It would prove to be the fastest overtime goal scored during the 1996–97 NHL regular season. The Sabres allowed the fewest shorthanded goals (4) and scored the most shorthanded goals (16) in the NHL. The Sabres' power play struggled, as they finished 26th in power-play percentage, with 13.19% (43 for 326). The Sabres were also shut out a league-high 10 times during the regular season.

Season standings

Schedule and results

Playoffs

1997 Stanley Cup playoffs The 1997 Stanley Cup playoffs, the playoff tournament of the National Hockey League (NHL), began on April 16, 1997, following the completion of the 1996–97 NHL season. The sixteen teams that qualified, eight from each conference, played best- ...

The Sabres defeated the

Ottawa Senators The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...

in the first round. The series was played to overtime in Game 7.

Derek Plante Derek John Plante (born January 17, 1971) is an American ice hockey coach and former professional ice hockey player. Plante played eight seasons in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Buffalo Sabres, Dallas Stars, Chicago Blackhawks and Phil ...

scored the series clinching goal in overtime. The Sabres then lost to the

Philadelphia Flyers The Philadelphia Flyers are a professional ice hockey team based in Philadelphia. The Flyers compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Metropolitan Division in the Eastern Conference. The team plays its home games in Wells ...

in five games in the second round.

Player statistics

Regular season

;Scoring ;Goaltending

Playoffs

;Scoring ;Goaltending 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

Dominik Hasek Dominic is a name common among Roman Catholics and other Latin-Romans as a male given name. Originally from the late Roman-Italic name "Dominicus", its translation means "Lordly", "Belonging to God" or "of the Master". Variations include: Domini ...

, Hart Memorial Trophy * Dominik Hasek, Lester B. Pearson Award * Dominik Hasek, Vezina Trophy * Dominik Hasek, NHL First Team All-StarNational Hockey League Official Guide and Record Book 2006, p. 237, Dan Diamond & Associates, Toronto, Ontario, * Seymour Knox,

Lester Patrick Trophy The Lester Patrick Trophy has been presented by the National Hockey League and USA Hockey since 1966 to honor a recipient's contribution to ice hockey in the United States. It is considered a non-NHL trophy because it may be awarded to players, c ...

Collins gem Hockey Facts and Stats 2009-10, p.426, Andrew Podnieks, Harper Collins Publishers Ltd, Toronto, Canada, *

Pat Lafontaine Patrick Michael LaFontaine (born February 22, 1965) is an American former ice hockey center who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) and spent his entire playing career with the league's New York State-based teams. LaFontaine played for th ...

Michael Peca Michael Anthony Peca (born March 26, 1974) is a Canadian former professional ice hockey forward who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Vancouver Canucks, Buffalo Sabres, New York Islanders, Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs, ...

Frank J. Selke Trophy The Frank J. Selke Trophy, or simply the Selke Trophy, is awarded annually to the National Hockey League forward who demonstrates the most skill in the defensive component of the game. The winner is selected by a poll of the Professional Hockey W ...

NHL All-Star Game The National Hockey League All-Star Game (french: Match des Étoiles de la Ligue Nationale de Hockey, links=no) is an exhibition ice hockey game that is traditionally held during the regular season of the National Hockey League (NHL), with many o ...

* Dominik Hasek, Eastern Conference

Draft picks

Buffalo's draft picks at the

1996 NHL Entry Draft The 1996 NHL Entry Draft was the 34th NHL Entry Draft. It was held at the Kiel Center in St. Louis, Missouri, on June 22, 1996. The last active player in the NHL from this draft class was Zdeno Chára, who retired after the 2021–22 season. ...

held at the

Kiel Center Kiel () is the capital and most populous city in the northern German state of Schleswig-Holstein, with a population of 246,243 (2021). Kiel lies approximately north of Hamburg. Due to its geographic location in the southeast of the Jutland pe ...

St. Louis St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the bi-state metropolitan area, which e ...

Missouri Missouri is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it is bordered by eight states (tied for the most with Tennessee ...

References

Sabres on Hockey Database
{{DEFAULTSORT:Buffalo Sabres season, 1996-97 1996-97 Buffalo Sabres season B B Buffalo Buffalo