1997–98 Los Angeles Kings season

1997–98 Los Angeles Kings
1997–98 Los Angeles Kings
Division	2nd Pacific
Conference	5th Western
1997–98 record	38–33–11
Home record	22–16–3
Road record	16–17–8
Goals for	227
Goals against	225
Team information
General manager	Dave Taylor
Coach	Larry Robinson
Captain	Rob Blake
Alternate captains	Luc Robitaille ; Garry Galley
Arena	Great Western Forum
Average attendance	13,019
Minor league affiliate(s)	Long Beach Ice Dogs; Fredericton Canadiens; Mississippi Sea Wolves
Team leaders
Goals	Glen Murray (29)
Assists	Jozef Stumpel (58)
Points	Jozef Stumpel (79)
Penalty minutes	Matt Johnson (249)
Plus/minus	Jozef Stumpel (+17)
Wins	Stephane Fiset (26)
Goals against average	Jamie Storr (2.22)
	← 1996–97 1998–99 →

The 1997–98 Los Angeles Kings season was the Kings' 31st season in the National Hockey League. The Kings qualified for the playoffs for the first time in five years, losing in the first round to St. Louis in four straight games.

Offseason

Regular season

On Saturday, April 11, 1998, the Kings scored three short-handed goals in 4-3 win over the Colorado Avalanche.^[1]

Final standings

Pacific Division
No.	CR		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	2	Colorado Avalanche	82	39	26	17	231	205	95
2	5	Los Angeles Kings	82	38	33	11	227	225	87
3	7	Edmonton Oilers	82	35	37	10	215	224	80
4	8	San Jose Sharks	82	34	38	10	210	216	78
5	11	Calgary Flames	82	26	41	15	217	252	67
6	12	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim	82	26	43	13	205	261	65
7	13	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.

Western Conference^[2]
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

Playoffs

The Kings were swept by the St. Louis Blues in 4 games in the first round. At home (game 3) LA were leading 3-0, until Storr was run by Geoff Courtnall with 11:27 remaining in the 3rd period. Kings player Sean O'Donnell stuck up for Storr resulting in a 5-minute major for the Blues. St. Louis went on to score 4 PP goals in a 3:07 span. Jamie likely had a concussion or some injury from the charge as his reactions and play were sluggishly uncoordinated contributing to the goals especially the 4th one.

Schedule and results

Regular season

1997–98 regular season^[3]

October: 5–5–4 (home: 3–3–0; road: 2–2–4)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
1	T	October 1, 1997	3–3 OT	@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)	0–0–1	Recap
2	L	October 2, 1997	5–6	@ Boston Bruins (1997–98)	0–1–1	Recap
3	T	October 5, 1997	2–2 OT	@ New York Rangers (1997–98)	0–1–2	Recap
4	T	October 7, 1997	3–3 OT	@ Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)	0–1–3	Recap
5	L	October 9, 1997	2–3 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (1997–98)	0–2–3	Recap
6	W	October 12, 1997	7–4	Ottawa Senators (1997–98)	1–2–3	Recap
7	L	October 15, 1997	3–5	Boston Bruins (1997–98)	1–3–3	Recap
8	W	October 17, 1997	5–1	Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)	2–3–3	Recap
9	L	October 19, 1997	2–3 OT	Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)	2–4–3	Recap
10	W	October 21, 1997	3–2	New York Islanders (1997–98)	3–4–3	Recap
11	L	October 23, 1997	1–4	Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)	3–5–3	Recap
12	W	October 26, 1997	3–1	@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98)	4–5–3	Recap
13	T	October 28, 1997	2–2 OT	@ Florida Panthers (1997–98)	4–5–4	Recap
14	W	October 31, 1997	5–1	@ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)	5–5–4	Recap

November: 7–4–1 (home: 5–2–0; road: 2–2–1)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
15	L	November 1, 1997	2–4	@ New York Islanders (1997–98)	5–6–4	Recap
16	W	November 4, 1997	3–0	@ New Jersey Devils (1997–98)	6–6–4	Recap
17	W	November 6, 1997	5–2	Tampa Bay Lightning (1997–98)	7–6–4	Recap
18	L	November 8, 1997	1–4	Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)	7–7–4	Recap
19	W	November 11, 1997	8–2	Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	8–7–4	Recap
20	W	November 13, 1997	6–3	San Jose Sharks (1997–98)	9–7–4	Recap
21	L	November 15, 1997	1–5	Dallas Stars (1997–98)	9–8–4	Recap
22	W	November 20, 1997	4–3	Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)	10–8–4	Recap
23	W	November 23, 1997	2–1 OT	@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)	11–8–4	Recap
24	L	November 26, 1997	1–4	@ Dallas Stars (1997–98)	11–9–4	Recap
25	T	November 27, 1997	2–2 OT	@ St. Louis Blues (1997–98)	11–9–5	Recap
26	W	November 29, 1997	4–1	New Jersey Devils (1997–98)	12–9–5	Recap

December: 4–7–2 (home: 2–2–1; road: 2–5–1)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
27	L	December 3, 1997	0–2	@ Montreal Canadiens (1997–98)	12–10–5	Recap
28	L	December 4, 1997	2–3	@ Ottawa Senators (1997–98)	12–11–5	Recap
29	L	December 6, 1997	2–7	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)	12–12–5	Recap
30	L	December 9, 1997	1–2	Pittsburgh Penguins (1997–98)	12–13–5	Recap
31	T	December 13, 1997	2–2 OT	Washington Capitals (1997–98)	12–13–6	Recap
32	L	December 15, 1997	0–7	@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	12–14–6	Recap
33	W	December 18, 1997	5–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)	13–14–6	Recap
34	W	December 20, 1997	4–1	@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)	14–14–6	Recap
35	W	December 22, 1997	1–0	@ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)	15–14–6	Recap
36	L	December 23, 1997	1–5	@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)	15–15–6	Recap
37	L	December 27, 1997	2–4	Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)	15–16–6	Recap
38	W	December 29, 1997	5–2	Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	16–16–6	Recap
39	T	December 31, 1997	2–2 OT	@ Dallas Stars (1997–98)	16–16–7	Recap

January: 7–3–2 (home: 5–1–1; road: 2–2–1)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
40	L	January 1, 1998	0–4	@ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)	16–17–7	Recap
41	W	January 4, 1998	3–2	@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)	17–17–7	Recap
42	L	January 5, 1998	2–3	@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	17–18–7	Recap
43	T	January 8, 1998	2–2 OT	Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)	17–18–8	Recap
44	L	January 10, 1998	3–4	Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)	17–19–8	Recap
45	W	January 12, 1998	3–2 OT	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)	18–19–8	Recap
46	W	January 14, 1998	4–2	@ San Jose Sharks (1997–98)	19–19–8	Recap
47	W	January 20, 1998	4–3	Calgary Flames (1997–98)	20–19–8	Recap
48	W	January 22, 1998	3–1	Florida Panthers (1997–98)	21–19–8	Recap
49	T	January 24, 1998	3–3 OT	@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)	21–19–9	Recap
50	W	January 29, 1998	5–3	Calgary Flames (1997–98)	22–19–9	Recap
51	W	January 31, 1998	3–0	Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)	23–19–9	Recap

February: 4–2–1 (home: 1–1–0; road: 3–1–1)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
52	L	February 2, 1998	0–1	@ Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)	23–20–9	Recap
53	W	February 3, 1998	6–3	@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)	24–20–9	Recap
54	W	February 5, 1998	3–1	New York Rangers (1997–98)	25–20–9	Recap
55	W	February 7, 1998	5–2	@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)	26–20–9	Recap
56	T	February 25, 1998	1–1 OT	@ Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)	26–20–10	Recap
57	W	February 26, 1998	7–4	@ Chicago Blackhawks (1997–98)	27–20–10	Recap
58	L	February 28, 1998	2–5	St. Louis Blues (1997–98)	27–21–10	Recap

March: 7–6–1 (home: 4–4–1; road: 3–2–0)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
59	T	March 2, 1998	2–2 OT	Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	27–21–11	Recap
60	L	March 5, 1998	1–2	Carolina Hurricanes (1997–98)	27–22–11	Recap
61	W	March 7, 1998	2–1	Detroit Red Wings (1997–98)	28–22–11	Recap
62	W	March 9, 1998	4–3 OT	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)	29–22–11	Recap
63	W	March 10, 1998	4–3	@ Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)	30–22–11	Recap
64	L	March 12, 1998	1–2	Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)	30–23–11	Recap
65	W	March 14, 1998	5–2	Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)	31–23–11	Recap
66	L	March 16, 1998	1–2	@ San Jose Sharks (1997–98)	31–24–11	Recap
67	L	March 17, 1998	3–4	Dallas Stars (1997–98)	31–25–11	Recap
68	W	March 21, 1998	3–2	Phoenix Coyotes (1997–98)	32–25–11	Recap
69	W	March 24, 1998	4–3	@ San Jose Sharks (1997–98)	33–25–11	Recap
70	L	March 26, 1998	2–5	San Jose Sharks (1997–98)	33–26–11	Recap
71	L	March 28, 1998	2–5	@ Calgary Flames (1997–98)	33–27–11	Recap
72	W	March 30, 1998	3–2	@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1997–98)	34–27–11	Recap

April: 4–6–0 (home: 2–3–0; road: 2–3–0)

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Record	Recap
73	L	April 1, 1998	0–4	@ Buffalo Sabres (1997–98)	34–28–11	Recap
74	L	April 2, 1998	0–3	@ Philadelphia Flyers (1997–98)	34–29–11	Recap
75	L	April 4, 1998	2–3	@ Washington Capitals (1997–98)	34–30–11	Recap
76	W	April 6, 1998	3–1	@ Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)	35–30–11	Recap
77	L	April 9, 1998	0–4	Edmonton Oilers (1997–98)	35–31–11	Recap
78	W	April 11, 1998	4–3	Colorado Avalanche (1997–98)	36–31–11	Recap
79	W	April 13, 1998	4–2	Calgary Flames (1997–98)	37–31–11	Recap
80	W	April 15, 1998	2–0	@ Vancouver Canucks (1997–98)	38–31–11	Recap
81	L	April 16, 1998	3–7	St. Louis Blues (1997–98)	38–32–11	Recap
82	L	April 18, 1998	1–4	Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1997–98)	38–33–11	Recap

Legend:

Win (2 points) Loss (0 points) Tie (1 point)

Playoffs

1998 Stanley Cup playoffs^[3]

Western Conference Quarterfinals vs. (4) St. Louis Blues: Blues win 4–0

Game	Result	Date	Score	Opponent	Series	Recap
1	L	April 23, 1998	3–8	@ St. Louis Blues	Blues lead 1–0	Recap
2	L	April 25, 1998	1–2	@ St. Louis Blues	Blues lead 2–0	Recap
3	L	April 27, 1998	3–4	St. Louis Blues	Blues lead 3–0	Recap
4	L	April 29, 1998	1–2	St. Louis Blues	Blues 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 Kings only.
‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Kings only.

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season						Playoffs
No.	Player	Pos	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM	GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
15	Jozef Stumpel	C	77	21	58	79	17	53	4	1	2	3	2	2
27	Glen Murray	RW	81	29	31	60	6	54	4	2	0	2	2	6
9	Vladimir Tsyplakov	LW	73	18	34	52	15	18	4	0	1	1	−1	8
4	Rob Blake	D	81	23	27	50	−3	94	4	0	0	0	−4	6
44	Yanic Perreault	C	79	28	20	48	6	32	4	1	2	3	−1	6
20	Luc Robitaille	LW	57	16	24	40	5	66	4	1	2	3	1	6
23	Craig Johnson	LW	74	17	21	38	9	42	4	1	0	1	0	4
3	Garry Galley	D	74	9	28	37	−5	63	4	0	1	1	−2	2
45	Sandy Moger	C	62	11	13	24	4	70	—	—	—	—	—	—
22	Ian Laperriere	RW	77	6	15	21	0	131	4	1	0	1	0	6
19	Russ Courtnall†	RW	58	12	6	18	−2	27	4	0	0	0	−2	2
6	Sean O'Donnell	D	80	2	15	17	7	179	4	1	0	1	1	36
28	Philippe Boucher	D	45	6	10	16	6	49	—	—	—	—	—	—
26	Ray Ferraro	C	40	6	9	15	−10	42	3	0	1	1	1	2
14	Mattias Norstrom	D	73	1	12	13	14	90	4	0	0	0	−1	2
42	Dan Bylsma	RW	65	3	9	12	9	33	2	0	0	0	−3	0
24	Nathan LaFayette	C	34	5	3	8	2	32	4	0	0	0	−2	2
7	Steve McKenna	LW	62	4	4	8	−9	150	3	0	1	1	1	8
5	Aki Berg	D	72	0	8	8	3	61	4	0	3	3	3	0
2	Doug Zmolek	D	46	0	8	8	0	111	2	0	0	0	0	2
10	Donald MacLean	C	22	5	2	7	−1	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
17	Matt Johnson	LW	66	2	4	6	−8	249	4	0	0	0	−1	6
33	Jan Vopat	D	21	1	5	6	8	10	2	0	1	1	1	2
11	Brad Smyth‡	RW	9	1	3	4	−1	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
12	Roman Vopat	C	25	0	3	3	−7	55	—	—	—	—	—	—
52	Jason Morgan	C	11	1	0	1	−7	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
35	Stephane Fiset	G	60	0	1	1		8	2	0	0	0		0
43	Vitali Yachmenev	LW	4	0	1	1	1	4	—	—	—	—	—	—
31	Frederic Chabot	G	12	0	0	0		0	—	—	—	—	—	—
21	Olli Jokinen	C	8	0	0	0	−5	6	—	—	—	—	—	—
1	Jamie Storr	G	17	0	0	0		0	3	0	0	0		0

Goaltending

No.	Player	Regular season										Playoffs
No.	Player	GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI	GP	W	L	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
35	Stephane Fiset	60	26	25	8	1728	158	2.71	.909	2	3497	2	0	2	61	7	4.52	.885	0	93
1	Jamie Storr	17	9	5	1	482	34	2.22	.929	2	920	3	0	2	77	9	3.72	.883	0	145
31	Frederic Chabot	12	3	3	2	267	29	3.14	.891	0	554	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	James Norris Memorial Trophy	Rob Blake	^[4]
	NHL All-Rookie Team	Jamie Storr (Goaltender)	^[5]
	NHL First All-Star Team	Rob Blake (Defense)	^[5]
Team	Best Newcomer	Jozef Stumpel	^[6]
	Bill Libby Memorial Award	Rob Blake	^[6]
	Defensive Player	Ian Laperriere	^[6]
	Jim Fox Community Service	Luc Robitaille	^[6]
	Leading Scorer	Jozef Stumpel	^[6]
	Most Inspirational	Rob Blake	^[6]
	Most Popular Player	Rob Blake	^[6]
	Outstanding Defenseman	Rob Blake	^[6]
	Unsung Hero	Mattias Norstrom	^[6]

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Olli Jokinen	October 1, 1997	^[7]
First game	Donald MacLean	October 1, 1997	^[7]
1,000th point	Luc Robitaille	January 29, 1998	^[8]

Transactions

The Kings were involved in the following transactions during the 1997–98 season.^[9]

Trades

August 28, 1997	To Los Angeles Kings Luc Robitaille	To New York Rangers Kevin Stevens
August 29, 1997	To Los Angeles Kings Jozef Stümpel Sandy Moger 4th round pick in 1998 - Pierre Dagenais	To Boston Bruins Byron Dafoe Dmitri Khristich
November 14, 1997	To Los Angeles Kings Future considerations	To New York Rangers Brad Smyth

Free agent signings

July 5, 1997	From Buffalo Sabres Garry Galley (3 years, $4.8 million)
July 18, 1997	From Milwaukee Admirals (IHL) Mark Visheau
July 25, 1997	From New York Islanders Chris Taylor
September 3, 1997	From Florida Panthers Frédéric Chabot
November 7, 1997	From New York Rangers Russ Courtnall (1 year, $940,000)

Free agents lost

August 11, 1997	To Buffalo Sabres Patrice Tardif
August 15, 1997	To San Jose Sharks Barry Potomski
August 18, 1997	To Phoenix Coyotes John Slaney (1 year, $350,000)
September 4, 1997	To Phoenix Coyotes Brad Tiley

Draft picks

Los Angeles's draft picks at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft held at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.^[10]

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	3	Olli Jokinen	Finland	HIFK (Finland)
1	15	Matt Zultek	Canada	Ottawa 67's (OHL)
2	29	Scott Barney	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
4	83	Joe Corvo	United States	Western Michigan University (CCHA)
4	99	Sean Blanchard	Canada	Ottawa 67's (OHL)
6	137	Richard Seeley	Canada	Prince Albert Raiders (WHL)
6	150	Jeff Katcher	Canada	Brandon Wheat Kings (WHL)
8	193	Jay Kopischke	United States	North Iowa Huskies (USHL)
9	220	Konrad Brand	Canada	Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)

References

"Los Angeles Kings 1997-98 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
"1997-98 Los Angeles Kings Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.

^ "Colorado Avalanche at Los Angeles Kings Box Score — April 11, 1998".
^ "1997-1998 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
^ ^a ^b "1997-98 Los Angeles Kings Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.
^ "James Norris Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
^ ^a ^b "Postseason All-Star Teams". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Los Angeles Kings 2014–15 Media Guide, p. 201–03
^ "1997-98 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 8, 2024.
^ "Robitaille reaches milestone". Deseret News. January 30, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2023.
^ "Hockey Transactions Search Results".
^ "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.

[1] "Colorado Avalanche at Los Angeles Kings Box Score — April 11, 1998".

[2] "1997-1998 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.

[Gamelog-3] "1997-98 Los Angeles Kings Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved July 8, 2023.

[4] "James Norris Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.

[ASteams-5] "Postseason All-Star Teams". records.nhl.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.

[Teamawards-6] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ Los Angeles Kings 2014–15 Media Guide, p. 201–03

[7] "1997-98 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 8, 2024.

[8] "Robitaille reaches milestone". Deseret News. January 30, 1998. Retrieved July 9, 2023.

[9] "Hockey Transactions Search Results".

[10] "1997 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved July 9, 2023.

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1997–98 Los Angeles Kings season

Contents

Offseason

Regular season

Final standings

Playoffs

Schedule and results

Regular season

Playoffs

Player statistics

Scoring

Goaltending

Awards and records

Awards

Milestones

Transactions

Trades

Free agent signings

Free agents lost

Draft picks

See also

References