1997–98 Washington Capitals season

The 1997–98 Washington Capitals season saw the team reach the Stanley Cup Finals for the first time in club history. Peter Bondra's 52 goals led the team; veterans Dale Hunter, Joe Juneau, and Adam Oates returned to old form; and Olaf Kolzig had a solid .920 save percentage as the Caps got past the Boston Bruins, Ottawa Senators and Buffalo Sabres (the latter on a dramatic overtime win in Game 6 on a goal by Juneau) en route to the team's first Stanley Cup Finals appearance. The Capitals won five overtime games, two against the Bruins and three against Sabres. However, they were no match for the defending cup champs, the Detroit Red Wings, who won in a four-game sweep. It was also the team’s first year at the MCI Center.

1997–98 Washington Capitals
Eastern Conference champions
Division	3rd Atlantic
Conference	4th Eastern
1997–98 record	40–30–12
Home record	23–12–6
Road record	17–18–6
Goals for	219
Goals against	202
Team information
General manager	George McPhee
Coach	Ron Wilson
Captain	Dale Hunter
Arena	US Airways Arena (until Nov. 26, 1997) MCI Center (from Dec. 5, 1997 onward)
Average attendance	15,275
Minor league affiliate(s)	Portland Pirates Hampton Roads Admirals
Team leaders
Goals	Peter Bondra (52)
Assists	Adam Oates (58)
Points	Peter Bondra (78)
Penalty minutes	Craig Berube (189)
Plus/minus	Joe Reekie (+15)
Wins	Olaf Kolzig (33)
Goals against average	Olaf Kolzig (2.20)
← 1996–97 1998–99 →

Offseason

Regular season

• Adam Oates, Phil Housley and Dale Hunter, all scored their 1,000th career point, the only time in NHL history that one team had three different players reach that same milestone in a single season.

The Capitals had a very effective penalty kill during the regular season, allowing the fewest power-play goals (39) and finishing with the highest penalty-kill percentage (89.23%).^[1]

Season standings

Atlantic Division

No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	1	New Jersey Devils	82	48	23	11	225	166	107
2	3	Philadelphia Flyers	82	42	29	11	242	193	95
3	4	Washington Capitals	82	40	30	12	219	202	92
4	10	New York Islanders	82	30	41	11	212	225	71
5	11	New York Rangers	82	25	39	18	197	231	68
6	12	Florida Panthers	82	24	43	15	203	256	63
7	13	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	17	55	10	151	269	44

Eastern Conference^[2]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	48	23	11	225	166	107
2	Pittsburgh Penguins	NE	82	40	24	18	228	188	98
3	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	42	29	11	242	193	95
4	Washington Capitals	ATL	82	40	30	12	219	202	92
5	Boston Bruins	NE	82	39	30	13	221	194	91
6	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	36	29	17	211	187	89
7	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	37	32	13	235	208	87
8	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	34	33	15	193	200	83
9	Carolina Hurricanes	NE	82	33	41	8	200	219	74
10	New York Islanders	ATL	82	30	41	11	212	225	71
11	New York Rangers	ATL	82	25	39	18	197	231	68
12	Florida Panthers	ATL	82	24	43	15	203	256	63
13	Tampa Bay Lightning	ATL	82	17	55	10	151	269	44

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

Regular season

1997–98 regular season[3]
October: 7–4–2 (home: 3–1–1; road: 4–3–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 1 W October 1, 1997 4–1 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 1–0–0 Recap 2 W October 3, 1997 6–2 Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 2–0–0 Recap 3 W October 4, 1997 4–1 New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 3–0–0 Recap 4 W October 8, 1997 6–3 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 4–0–0 Recap 5 L October 9, 1997 2–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 4–1–0 Recap 6 W October 11, 1997 3–1 New York Islanders (1997–98) 5–1–0 Recap 7 W October 15, 1997 2–0 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 6–1–0 Recap 8 W October 24, 1997 3–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 7–1–0 Recap 9 L October 22, 1997 3–4 @ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 7–2–0 Recap 10 T October 23, 1997 3–3 OT @ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 7–2–1 Recap 11 L October 25, 1997 2–5 @ St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 7–3–1 Recap 12 L October 29, 1997 3–4 Dallas Stars (1997–98) 7–4–1 Recap 13 T October 31, 1997 2–2 OT Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 7–4–2 Recap
November: 6–6–2 (home: 2–2–1; road: 4–4–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 14 L November 1, 1997 1–3 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 7–5–2 Recap 15 W November 4, 1997 2–1 Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 8–5–2 Recap 16 L November 6, 1997 0–2 @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 8–6–2 Recap 17 W November 8, 1997 2–1 Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 9–6–2 Recap 18 L November 9, 1997 2–3 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 9–7–2 Recap 19 W November 12, 1997 4–1 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 10–7–2 Recap 20 W November 13, 1997 3–2 @ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 11–7–2 Recap 21 W November 15, 1997 3–2 @ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 12–7–2 Recap 22 T November 18, 1997 6–6 OT Colorado Avalanche (1997–98) 12–7–3 Recap 23 L November 22, 1997 2–5 San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 12–8–3 Recap 24 W November 23, 1997 5–2 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 13–8–3 Recap 25 L November 26, 1997 5–6 Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 13–9–3 Recap 26 L November 27, 1997 1–3 @ Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 13–10–3 Recap 27 T November 29, 1997 1–1 OT @ Boston Bruins (1997–98) 13–10–4 Recap
December: 4–5–4 (home: 2–3–2; road: 2–2–2) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 28 W December 2, 1997 3–2 OT @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 14–10–4 Recap 29 W December 5, 1997 3–2 OT Florida Panthers (1997–98) 15–10–4 Recap 30 L December 7, 1997 4–5 @ Florida Panthers (1997–98) 15–11–4 Recap 31 T December 10, 1997 3–3 OT @ San Jose Sharks (1997–98) 15–11–5 Recap 32 L December 12, 1997 4–6 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 15–12–5 Recap 33 T December 13, 1997 2–2 OT @ Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 15–12–6 Recap 34 T December 16, 1997 2–2 OT New York Islanders (1997–98) 15–12–7 Recap 35 L December 18, 1997 0–4 Florida Panthers (1997–98) 15–13–7 Recap 36 W December 20, 1997 2–1 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 16–13–7 Recap 37 T December 23, 1997 1–1 OT New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 16–13–8 Recap 38 L December 26, 1997 1–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 16–14–8 Recap 39 L December 27, 1997 0–3 Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 16–15–8 Recap 40 W December 29, 1997 4–2 St. Louis Blues (1997–98) 17–15–8 Recap
January: 9–2–2 (home: 6–1–1; road: 3–1–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 41 W January 1, 1998 3–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98) 18–15–8 Recap 42 L January 3, 1998 2–3 New York Rangers (1997–98) 18–16–8 Recap 43 W January 6, 1998 5–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98) 19–16–8 Recap 44 W January 8, 1998 5–3 @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 20–16–8 Recap 45 W January 9, 1998 4–1 Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 21–16–8 Recap 46 L January 11, 1998 0–2 @ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 21–17–8 Recap 47 W January 13, 1998 4–0 Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 22–17–8 Recap 48 W January 15, 1998 3–2 Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98) 23–17–8 Recap 49 W January 21, 1998 3–2 OT @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 24–17–8 Recap 50 W January 25, 1998 4–1 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 25–17–8 Recap 51 T January 26, 1998 2–2 OT @ New York Rangers (1997–98) 25–17–9 Recap 52 T January 28, 1998 2–2 OT Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 25–17–10 Recap 53 W January 31, 1998 3–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 26–17–10 Recap
February: 0–4–1 (home: 0–3–0; road: 0–1–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 54 L February 1, 1998 2–4 Detroit Red Wings (1997–98) 26–18–10 Recap 55 T February 4, 1998 2–2 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98) 26–18–11 Recap 56 L February 7, 1998 3–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 26–19–11 Recap 57 L February 25, 1998 3–4 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 26–20–11 Recap 58 L February 28, 1998 2–5 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 26–21–11 Recap
March: 8–7–0 (home: 6–2–0; road: 2–5–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 59 L March 1, 1998 0–3 Buffalo Sabres (1997–98) 26–22–11 Recap 60 L March 3, 1998 0–3 Boston Bruins (1997–98) 26–23–11 Recap 61 L March 5, 1998 2–3 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 26–24–11 Recap 62 W March 7, 1998 6–3 Florida Panthers (1997–98) 27–24–11 Recap 63 W March 9, 1998 5–2 Calgary Flames (1997–98) 28–24–11 Recap 64 W March 12, 1998 2–1 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 29–24–11 Recap 65 L March 14, 1998 0–4 @ Ottawa Senators (1997–98) 29–25–11 Recap 66 W March 16, 1998 2–1 Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98) 30–25–11 Recap 67 W March 18, 1998 1–0 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 31–25–11 Recap 68 W March 20, 1998 2–0 New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 32–25–11 Recap 69 L March 21, 1998 2–3 @ New Jersey Devils (1997–98) 32–26–11 Recap 70 L March 25, 1998 2–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98) 32–27–11 Recap 71 L March 26, 1998 2–3 @ Calgary Flames (1997–98) 32–28–11 Recap 72 W March 28, 1998 3–2 @ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98) 33–28–11 Recap 73 W March 31, 1998 5–2 New York Islanders (1997–98) 34–28–11 Recap
April: 6–2–1 (home: 4–0–1; road: 2–2–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 74 W April 2, 1998 4–1 Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98) 35–28–11 Recap 75 W April 4, 1998 3–2 Los Angeles Kings (1997–98) 36–28–11 Recap 76 T April 6, 1998 2–2 OT Montreal Canadiens (1997–98) 36–28–12 Recap 77 L April 8, 1998 1–2 OT @ Dallas Stars (1997–98) 36–29–12 Recap 78 L April 11, 1998 3–4 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98) 36–30–12 Recap 79 W April 13, 1998 2–0 @ New York Islanders (1997–98) 37–30–12 Recap 80 W April 14, 1998 3–1 New York Rangers (1997–98) 38–30–12 Recap 81 W April 18, 1998 4–3 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 39–30–12 Recap 82 W April 19, 1998 2–1 Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98) 40–30–12 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

In the playoffs, the Capitals reached the Conference Finals for the first time since 1990, defeating the Buffalo Sabres in six games before reaching the Stanley Cup Finals where they lost to the Detroit Red Wings in four games.^[4]

1998 Stanley Cup playoffs[3]
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (5) Boston Bruins – Capitals win 4–2 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 W April 22, 1998 3–1 Boston Bruins Capitals lead 1–0 Recap 2 L April 24, 1998 3–4 2OT Boston Bruins Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 W April 26, 1998 3–2 2OT @ Boston Bruins Capitals lead 2–1 Recap 4 W April 28, 1998 3–0 @ Boston Bruins Capitals lead 3–1 Recap 5 L May 1, 1998 0–4 Boston Bruins Capitals lead 3–2 Recap 6 W May 3, 1998 3–2 OT @ Boston Bruins Capitals win 4–2 Recap
Eastern Conference Semifinals vs. (8) Ottawa Senators – Capitals win 4–1 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 W May 7, 1998 4–2 Ottawa Senators Capitals lead 1–0 Recap 2 W May 9, 1998 6–1 Ottawa Senators Capitals lead 2–0 Recap 3 L May 11, 1998 3–4 @ Ottawa Senators Capitals lead 2–1 Recap 4 W May 13, 1998 2–0 @ Ottawa Senators Capitals lead 3–1 Recap 5 W May 15, 1998 3–0 Ottawa Senators Capitals win 4–1 Recap
Eastern Conference Finals vs. (6) Buffalo Sabres – Capitals win 4–2 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 L May 23, 1998 0–2 Buffalo Sabres Sabres lead 1–0 Recap 2 W May 25, 1998 3–2 OT Buffalo Sabres Series tied 1–1 Recap 3 W May 28, 1998 4–3 OT @ Buffalo Sabres Capitals lead 2–1 Recap 4 W May 30, 1998 2–0 @ Buffalo Sabres Capitals lead 3–1 Recap 5 L June 2, 1998 1–2 Buffalo Sabres Capitals lead 3–2 Recap 6 W June 4, 1998 3–2 OT @ Buffalo Sabres Capitals win 4–2 Recap
Stanley Cup Finals vs. (W3) Detroit Red Wings – Red Wings win 4–0 Game Result Date Score Opponent Series Recap 1 L June 9, 1998 1–2 @ Detroit Red Wings Red Wings lead 1–0 Recap 2 L June 11, 1998 4–5 OT @ Detroit Red Wings Red Wings lead 2–0 Recap 3 L June 13, 1998 1–2 Detroit Red Wings Red Wings lead 3–0 Recap 4 L June 16, 1998 1–4 Detroit Red Wings Red Wings win 4–0 Recap
Legend:   Win   Loss

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 Capitals only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Capitals only.

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season						Playoffs
			GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
12	Peter Bondra	RW	76	52	26	78	14	44	17	7	5	12	4	12
77	Adam Oates	C	82	18	58	76	6	36	21	6	11	17	8	8
6	Calle Johansson	D	73	15	20	35	−11	30	21	2	8	10	9	16
22	Steve Konowalchuk	LW	80	10	24	34	9	80	—	—	—	—	—	—
90	Joe Juneau	C	56	9	22	31	−8	26	21	7	10	17	6	8
96	Phil Housley	D	64	6	25	31	−10	24	18	0	4	4	−2	4
44	Richard Zednik	RW	65	17	9	26	−2	28	17	7	3	10	0	16
32	Dale Hunter	C	82	8	18	26	1	103	21	0	4	4	−1	30
18	Andrew Brunette	LW	28	11	12	23	2	12	—	—	—	—	—	—
55	Sergei Gonchar	D	72	5	16	21	2	66	21	7	4	11	2	30
24	Mark Tinordi	D	47	8	9	17	9	39	21	1	2	3	6	42
17	Chris Simon	LW	28	7	10	17	−1	38	18	1	0	1	−3	26
13	Andrei Nikolishin	C	38	6	10	16	1	14	21	1	13	14	4	12
8	Jan Bulis	C	48	5	11	16	−5	18	—	—	—	—	—	—
3	Sylvain Cote‡	D	59	1	15	16	−5	36	—	—	—	—	—	—
27	Craig Berube	LW	74	6	9	15	−3	189	21	1	0	1	0	21
10	Kelly Miller	LW	76	7	7	14	−2	41	10	0	1	1	2	4
9	Todd Krygier	LW	45	2	12	14	−3	30	13	1	2	3	−2	6
11	Esa Tikkanen†	LW	20	2	10	12	−4	2	21	3	3	6	−2	20
29	Joe Reekie	D	68	2	8	10	15	70	21	1	2	3	4	20
23	Brian Bellows†	LW	11	6	3	9	−3	6	21	6	7	13	6	6
20	Michal Pivonka	C	33	3	6	9	5	20	13	0	3	3	5	0
19	Brendan Witt	D	64	1	7	8	−11	112	16	1	0	1	−1	14
21	Jeff Toms†	C	33	3	4	7	−11	8	1	0	0	0	−1	0
2	Ken Klee	D	51	4	2	6	−3	46	9	1	0	1	2	10
28	Jeff Brown†	D	9	0	6	6	4	6	2	0	2	2	1	0
34	Jaroslav Svejkovsky	RW	17	4	1	5	−5	10	1	0	0	0	0	2
36	Mike Eagles	LW	36	1	3	4	−2	16	12	0	2	2	1	2
28	Jan Benda	C	9	0	3	3	1	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
38	Nolan Baumgartner	D	4	0	1	1	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
48	Benoit Gratton	C	6	0	1	1	1	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
37	Olaf Kolzig	G	64	0	1	1		12	21	0	0	0		4
30	Bill Ranford	G	22	0	1	1		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
25	Brad Church	LW	2	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
43	David Harlock	D	6	0	0	0	2	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
42	Dwayne Hay‡	LW	2	0	0	0	0	2	—	—	—	—	—	—
4	Stewart Malgunas	D	8	0	0	0	1	12	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Ryan Mulhern	C	3	0	0	0	0	0	—	—	—	—	—	—
14	Pat Peake	C	1	0	0	0	0	4	—	—	—	—	—	—

Goaltending

No.	Player	Regular season										Playoffs
		GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
37	Olaf Kolzig	64	33	18	10	1729	139	2.20	.920	5	3788	21	12	9	740	44	1.95	.941	4	1351
30	Bill Ranford	22	7	12	2	555	55	2.79	.901	0	1183	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Peter Bondra	[5]
		Olaf Kolzig

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
1,000th point	Adam Oates	October 8, 1997	[6]
	Phil Housley	November 8, 1997	[7]
	Dale Hunter	January 9, 1998	[8]

Transactions

Draft picks

See also: List of Washington Capitals draft picks

Below are the Washington Capitals' selections at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft, held on June 21, 1997 at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[9]

Round	#	Player	Pos	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	9	Nick Boynton	D	Canada	Ottawa 67's (OHL)
2	35	Jean-Francois Fortin	D	Canada	Sherbrooke Faucons (QMJHL)
4	89	Curtis Cruickshank	G	Canada	Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
5	116	Kevin Caulfield	RW	United States	Boston College (NCAA)
6	143	Henrik Petre	D	Sweden	Djurgårdens IF-jr. (Allsvenskan)
8	200	Pierre-Luc Therrien	G	Canada	Drummondville Voltigeurs (QMJHL)
9	226	Matt Oikawa	RW	Canada	St. Lawrence University (NCAA)

Farm teams

Portland Pirates

See also

• 1997–98 NHL season

References

• "Washington Capitals 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
• "1997-98 Washington Capitals Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.

1. "1997-98 NHL Summary".
2. "1997–1998 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 4, 2014.
3. "1997-98 Washington Capitals Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
4. "Washington Capitals Historical Statistics and All-Time Top Leaders".
5. "1998 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
6. "Oates scores 1,000th point in Caps' win". New Bedford Standard-Times. October 9, 1997. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
7. "Avalanche buries Blues, 4-1". Deseret News. November 9, 1997. Retrieved July 9, 2023. At Landover, Md., Phil Housley became the second American-born player in NHL history to score 1,000 points, tallying an assist as the Washington Capitals beat the Edmonton Oilers.
8. "Battle of Best Ends Up Even". Los Angeles Times. January 10, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2023. Washington 4, Philadelphia 1--The Capitals' Dale Hunter assisted on the three second-period goals, giving the 18-year veteran 682 assists to go with 318 goals for 1,000 points, as Washington won at home.
9. "1997 NHL Draft". NHL. Retrieved July 20, 2017.