1995–96 Hartford Whalers season

The 1995–96 Hartford Whalers season was the 24th season of the franchise, 17th season in the NHL.

1995–96 Hartford Whalers
Division4th Northeast
Conference10th Eastern
1995–96 record34–39–9
Home record22–15–4
Road record12–24–5
Goals for237
Goals against259
Team information
General managerJim Rutherford
CoachPaul Holmgren (5-6-1)
Paul Maurice (29-33-8)
CaptainBrendan Shanahan
Alternate captainsGlen Wesley
Andrew Cassels
ArenaHartford Civic Center
Average attendance11,983 (76.6%) [1]
Minor league affiliate(s)Springfield Falcons (AHL)
Richmond Renegades (ECHL)
Team leaders
GoalsBrendan Shanahan (44)
AssistsAndrew Cassels (43)
PointsBrendan Shanahan (78)
Penalty minutesScott Daniels (254)
Plus/minusBrad McCrimmon (+15)
WinsSean Burke (28)
Goals against averageJason Muzzatti (2.90)

Key dates prior to the start of the season:

Off-season

On May 31, the Whalers acquired a fourth round draft pick in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft from the Los Angeles Kings in exchange for Jan Vopat.

The Whalers participated in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta on July 8. With their first round selection, 13th overall, Hartford selected Jean-Sébastien Giguère from the Halifax Mooseheads of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. Giguere had a record of 14-27-5 with a 3.94 GAA and a .889 save percentage with the Mooseheads during the 1994-95 season. In the fourth round, the club selected Sami Kapanen from HIFK of the SM-liiga. In 49 games, Kapanen scored 14 goals and 42 points. Other notable players the Whalers selected in the draft include Ian MacNeil, Byron Ritchie and Mike Rucinski.

Hartford signed free agent Jeff Daniels on July 18. Daniels played in three games with the Florida Panthers during the 1994-95, earning no points. He played a majority of the season with the Detroit Vipers of the IHL, scoring eight goals and 20 points in 25 games.

On July 27, the Whalers and St. Louis Blues were involved in a blockbuster trade. Hartford acquired Brendan Shanahan from the Blues in exchange for Chris Pronger. In 45 games during the 1994-95 season, Shanahan scored 20 goals and 41 points. Shanahan had back-to-back 50+ goal seasons in 1992-93 and 1993-94. Shanahan was named to the NHL First All-Star Team during the 1993-94 season, as he scored 52 goals and 102 points in 81 games, while accumulating 211 penalty minutes.

The Whalers signed free agent Gerald Diduck on August 24. Diduck split the 1994-95 season between the Vancouver Canucks and Chicago Blackhawks. In 35 games, he scored two goals and five points.

On October 6, the Whalers acquired Nelson Emerson in a trade with the Winnipeg Jets in exchange for Darren Turcotte. In 1994-95, Emerson scored 14 goals and 37 points in 48 games with the Jets. During the 1993-94 season, Emerson scored a career high 33 goals and 74 points in 83 games with Winnipeg. Also, on October 6, at the NHL Waiver Draft, the Whalers selected Jason Muzzatti from the Calgary Flames. Muzzatti had a 10-14-4 record with the Saint John Flames during the 1994-95 season.

Regular season

Against the Hartford Whalers on March 6, 1996, Chris Osgood became the third goaltender in NHL history to score a goal.[2]

The Whalers were shutout a league-high 8 times during the Regular season.[3]

Final standings
Northeast Division
No. GP W L T GF GA PTS
1Pittsburgh Penguins8249294362284102
2Boston Bruins8240311128226991
3Montreal Canadiens8240321026524890
4Hartford Whalers823439923725977
5Buffalo Sabres823342724726272
6Ottawa Senators821859519129141
Eastern Conference[4]
R Div GP W L T GF GA Pts
1Philadelphia FlyersATL82452413282208103
2Pittsburgh PenguinsNE8249294362284102
3New York RangersATL8241271427223796
4Florida PanthersATL8241311025423492
5Boston BruinsNE8240311128226991
6Montreal CanadiensNE8240321026524890
7Washington CapitalsATL8239321123420489
8Tampa Bay LightningATL8238321223824888
9New Jersey DevilsATL8237331221520286
10Hartford WhalersNE823439923725977
11Buffalo SabresNE823342724726273
12New York IslandersATL8222501022931554
13Ottawa SenatorsNE821859519129141

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results
No. R Date Score Opponent Record Attendance
1WOctober 7, 19952–0New York Rangers (1995–96)1–0–015,635
2WOctober 11, 19953–2Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96)2–0–08,635
3WOctober 14, 19953–2Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96)3–0–015,500
4WOctober 16, 19957–5@ New York Rangers (1995–96)4–0–018,200
5TOctober 20, 19952–2 OTPittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)4–0–115,635
6LOctober 21, 19950–3@ Florida Panthers (1995–96)4–1–112,503
7LOctober 25, 19952–4St. Louis Blues (1995–96)4–2–110,527
8LOctober 27, 19951–4Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)4–3–111,157
9LOctober 28, 19950–3@ Boston Bruins (1995–96)4–4–117,565
10LNovember 2, 19950–5Ottawa Senators (1995–96)4–5–110,458
11WNovember 4, 19955–4@ Ottawa Senators (1995–96)5–5–18,794
12LNovember 5, 19951–6@ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)5–6–117,218
13WNovember 7, 19957–3San Jose Sharks (1995–96)6–6–18,628
14LNovember 11, 19951–4New York Rangers (1995–96)6–7–115,635
15LNovember 14, 19950–1@ New Jersey Devils (1995–96)6–8–111,916
16WNovember 15, 19953–2Ottawa Senators (1995–96)7–8–17,641
17LNovember 18, 19952–4Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)7–9–113,910
18LNovember 20, 19953–4 OT@ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)7–10–116,312
19WNovember 22, 19954–2Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)8–10–111,642
20WNovember 24, 19954–0@ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96)9–10–115,726
21LNovember 25, 19952–4Washington Capitals (1995–96)9–11–113,108
22TNovember 29, 19952–2 OT@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)9–11–215,203
23LDecember 1, 19951–2@ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)9–12–212,036
24LDecember 2, 19953–5Florida Panthers (1995–96)9–13–210,092
25WDecember 6, 19957–4New York Islanders (1995–96)10–13–28,760
26LDecember 9, 19950–6@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)10–14–216,114
27LDecember 10, 19951–4@ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96)10–15–217,955
28LDecember 13, 19952–3Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)10–16–27,547
29WDecember 15, 19954–2Colorado Avalanche (1995–96)11–16–29,826
30TDecember 16, 19953–3 OT@ New York Islanders (1995–96)11–16–38,251
31LDecember 18, 19952–3@ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)11–17–316,237
32LDecember 20, 19952–3Calgary Flames (1995–96)11–18–36,563
33TDecember 22, 19953–3 OT@ New York Rangers (1995–96)11–18–418,200
34TDecember 23, 19953–3 OTPhiladelphia Flyers (1995–96)11–18–512,262
35LDecember 28, 19954–9@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)11–19–517,181
36LDecember 30, 19950–3@ Washington Capitals (1995–96)11–20–518,130
37LDecember 31, 19952–3@ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96)11–21–519,983
38WJanuary 3, 19962–0Washington Capitals (1995–96)12–21–58,087
39WJanuary 5, 19964–2Ottawa Senators (1995–96)13–21–512,239
40LJanuary 6, 19962–5@ Boston Bruins (1995–96)13–22–517,565
41WJanuary 9, 19965–1@ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96)14–22–59,702
42LJanuary 10, 19962–3 OT@ Calgary Flames (1995–96)14–23–516,469
43WJanuary 12, 19963–2@ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96)15–23–59,709
44WJanuary 16, 19963–0Vancouver Canucks (1995–96)16–23–511,124
45WJanuary 17, 19966–3@ New York Islanders (1995–96)17–23–58,544
46LJanuary 24, 19962–4@ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)17–24–512,808
47WJanuary 25, 19968–2Los Angeles Kings (1995–96)18–24–513,757
48TJanuary 27, 19964–4 OTNew Jersey Devils (1995–96)18–24–615,635
49LJanuary 30, 19962–8@ San Jose Sharks (1995–96)18–25–617,190
50WJanuary 31, 19966–4@ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96)19–25–611,775
51WFebruary 2, 19964–3@ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96)20–25–617,174
52WFebruary 7, 19965–3@ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96)21–25–616,758
53WFebruary 9, 19963–2 OT@ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96)22–25–616,061
54WFebruary 11, 19965–3@ Dallas Stars (1995–96)23–25–615,397
55LFebruary 14, 19960–3Boston Bruins (1995–96)23–26–615,635
56WFebruary 17, 19962–1 OTBuffalo Sabres (1995–96)24–26–615,291
57WFebruary 21, 19965–3Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)25–26–614,311
58LFebruary 23, 19964–5@ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)25–27–617,235
59LFebruary 25, 19962–6Dallas Stars (1995–96)25–28–611,143
60TFebruary 28, 19964–4 OTEdmonton Oilers (1995–96)25–28–79,360
61LMarch 1, 19962–5Winnipeg Jets (1995–96)25–29–711,552
62WMarch 2, 19967–1Florida Panthers (1995–96)26–29–711,935
63LMarch 6, 19962–4Detroit Red Wings (1995–96)26–30–711,252
64WMarch 8, 19967–4Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96)27–30–710,979
65LMarch 9, 19963–6@ St. Louis Blues (1995–96)27–31–720,803
66WMarch 13, 19963–2Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)28–31–711,850
67WMarch 16, 19962–1Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)29–31–713,213
68WMarch 18, 19966–3Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)30–31–711,440
69LMarch 20, 19962–3@ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96)30–32–721,255
70TMarch 22, 19961–1 OT@ Ottawa Senators (1995–96)30–32–813,596
71TMarch 23, 19962–2 OT@ Washington Capitals (1995–96)30–32–918,130
72LMarch 25, 19960–3@ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96)30–33–917,380
73LMarch 27, 19965–6 OTBoston Bruins (1995–96)30–34–913,884
74WMarch 30, 19963–1New York Islanders (1995–96)31–34–913,628
75LApril 1, 19962–3@ Florida Panthers (1995–96)31–35–913,159
76LApril 3, 19962–4@ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96)31–36–922,576
77WApril 4, 19961–0@ New Jersey Devils (1995–96)32–36–917,757
78LApril 6, 19963–6New Jersey Devils (1995–96)32–37–913,521
79WApril 8, 19965–4Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96)33–37–912,683
80LApril 11, 19962–3@ Boston Bruins (1995–96)33–38–917,565
81WApril 13, 19962–0Boston Bruins (1995–96)34–38–915,635
82LApril 14, 19961–4@ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96)34–39–916,230

[5]

Player statistics

Regular season
Scoring
Player Pos GP G A Pts PIM +/- PPG SHG GWG
Brendan ShanahanLW7444347812521726
Geoff SandersonLW81343165400607
Andrew CasselsC81204363398601
Nelson EmersonRW8129295878-71225
Andrei NikolishinC6114375134-2413
Robert KronLW772228506-1813
Jeff BrownD4873138382500
Paul RanheimLW7310203014-2011
Jeff O'NeillRW658192740-3101
Glen WesleyD688162488-9601
Steven RiceRW5910122247-4102
Adam BurtD784913121-4001
Glen FeatherstoneD682101213810001
Gerald DiduckD791910887000
Sami KapanenRW3554960000
Brad McCrimmonD583696215010
Kevin DineenRW20279677000
Mark JanssensC81279155-13000
Frantisek KuceraD3026810-3001
Scott DanielsLW53347254-4000
Kelly ChaseRW55246230-4001
Sean BurkeG66066160000
Steve MartinsC231348-3000
Brian GlynnD5404444-15000
Kevin SmythLW212138-5100
Jocelyn LemieuxRW2912331-11000
Jimmy CarsonC1110101000
Alexander GodynyukD30002-1000
Marek MalikD70004-3000
Jason McBainD30000-1000
Jason MuzzattiG22000330000
Jeff ReeseG700000000
Goaltending
Player MIN GP W L T GA GAA SO SA SV SV%
Sean Burke366966282861903.11420341844.907
Jason Muzzatti101322483492.901551502.911
Jeff Reese2757230143.051170156.918
Team:495782343992533.06627552502.908

[6]

Note: 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

The Whalers were involved in the following transactions during the 1995–96 season.

Trades
May 31, 1995 To Los Angeles Kings
Jan Vopat		 To Hartford Whalers
4th round pick in 1995 - Ian MacNeil
July 27, 1995 To St. Louis Blues
Chris Pronger		 To Hartford Whalers
Brendan Shanahan
October 6, 1995 To Winnipeg Jets
Darren Turcotte		 To Hartford Whalers
Nelson Emerson
November 29, 1995 To Dallas Stars
Robert Petrovicky		 To Hartford Whalers
Dan Kesa
December 1, 1995 To Tampa Bay Lightning
Jeff Reese		 To Hartford Whalers
9th round pick in 1996 - Askhat Rakhmatulin
December 19, 1995 To New Jersey Devils
Jocelyn Lemieux
2nd round pick in 1998 - John Erskine		 To Hartford Whalers
Jim Dowd
2nd round pick in 1997 - Dmitri Kokorev
December 19, 1995 To Vancouver Canucks
Jim Dowd
Frantisek Kucera
2nd round pick in 1997 - Ryan Bonni		 To Hartford Whalers
Jeff Brown
3rd round pick in 1998 - Paul Manning
December 28, 1995 To Philadelphia Flyers
3rd round pick in 1997 - Kris Mallette
7th round pick in 1997 - Andrew Merrick		 To Hartford Whalers
Kevin Dineen

Waivers
October 6, 1995 From Calgary Flames
Jason Muzzatti

Free agents
PlayerFormer Team
Jeff DanielsDetroit Vipers (IHL)
Gerald DiduckChicago Blackhawks
David WilliamsAnaheim Mighty Ducks
PlayerNew Team
Jeff BloembergDetroit Red Wings
Jim SandlakVancouver Canucks

Draft picks

Hartford's picks at the 1995 NHL Entry Draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.

Round # Player Position Nationality College/Junior/Club Team (League)
113Jean-Sebastien GiguereGoaltender CanadaHalifax Mooseheads (QMJHL)
235Sergei FedotovDefense RussiaDynamo Moscow (Russia)
485Ian MacNeilCenter CanadaOshawa Generals (OHL)
487Sami KapanenRight Wing FinlandHIFK (Finland)
5113Hugh HamiltonDefense CanadaSpokane Chiefs (WHL)
7165Byron RitchieCenter CanadaLethbridge Hurricanes (WHL)
8191Milan KostolnyRight Wing SlovakiaDetroit Junior Red Wings (OHL)
9217Mike RucinskiDefense United StatesDetroit Junior Red Wings (OHL)

Farm teams

Roster
1995-96 Hartford Whalers
Goaltenders

Defensemen

Wingers

Centers

See also

References
  1. https://www.hockeydb.com/nhl-attendance/att_graph.php?tmi=6045
  2. http://www.legendsofhockey.net/LegendsOfHockey/jsp/SearchPlayer.jsp?player=18352
  3. https://www.hockey-reference.com/teams/HAR/1996_games.html
  4. "1995–1996 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  5. "1995–96 Hartford Whalers Games". Hockey-reference.com. Retrieved May 21, 2009.
  6. "1995-96 Hartford Whalers Statistics - Hockey-Reference.com". hockey-reference.com. Retrieved June 2, 2009.
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