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1996–97 WHL season
...The 1996–97 WHL season was the 31st season for the Western Hockey League. Eighteen teams completed a 72-game season. The Lethbridge Hurricanes won the President's Cup.
League notes
- The Edmonton Ice joined the WHL as its 18th franchise, playing in the Central Division.
- The Swift Current Broncos moved to the East Division.
Regular season
Final standings
| East Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Brandon Wheat Kings | 72 | 47 | 24 | 1 | 95 | 339 | 208 |
| x Swift Current Broncos | 72 | 44 | 23 | 5 | 93 | 336 | 243 |
| x Regina Pats | 72 | 42 | 27 | 3 | 87 | 326 | 259 |
| x Moose Jaw Warriors | 72 | 36 | 29 | 7 | 79 | 278 | 240 |
| x Prince Albert Raiders | 72 | 29 | 34 | 9 | 67 | 235 | 262 |
| Saskatoon Blades | 72 | 18 | 48 | 6 | 42 | 227 | 344 |
| Central Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Lethbridge Hurricanes | 72 | 47 | 22 | 3 | 97 | 342 | 248 |
| x Red Deer Rebels | 72 | 43 | 26 | 3 | 89 | 317 | 297 |
| x Medicine Hat Tigers | 72 | 39 | 32 | 1 | 79 | 270 | 278 |
| Calgary Hitmen | 72 | 15 | 53 | 4 | 34 | 199 | 360 |
| Edmonton Ice | 72 | 14 | 56 | 2 | 30 | 231 | 395 |
| West Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| x Portland Winter Hawks | 72 | 46 | 21 | 5 | 97 | 300 | 196 |
| x Seattle Thunderbirds | 72 | 41 | 27 | 4 | 86 | 311 | 249 |
| x Spokane Chiefs | 72 | 35 | 33 | 4 | 74 | 260 | 235 |
| x Kelowna Rockets | 72 | 35 | 35 | 2 | 72 | 298 | 314 |
| x Kamloops Blazers | 72 | 28 | 37 | 7 | 63 | 256 | 285 |
| x Prince George Cougars | 72 | 28 | 39 | 5 | 61 | 238 | 287 |
| Tri-City Americans | 72 | 22 | 43 | 7 | 51 | 225 | 288 |
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalties in minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Todd Robinson | Portland Winter Hawks | 71 | 38 | 96 | 134 | 53 |
| Byron Ritchie | Lethbridge Hurricanes | 63 | 50 | 76 | 126 | 86 |
| Patrick Marleau | Seattle Thunderbirds | 71 | 51 | 74 | 125 | 22 |
| Peter Schaefer | Brandon Wheat Kings | 61 | 49 | 74 | 123 | 66 |
| B.J. Young | Red Deer Rebels | 63 | 58 | 56 | 114 | 72 |
| Josh St. Louis | Swift Current Broncos | 65 | 57 | 51 | 108 | 20 |
| Brett McLean | Kelowna Rockets | 72 | 44 | 60 | 104 | 89 |
| Kelly Smart | Brandon Wheat Kings | 69 | 39 | 60 | 99 | 8 |
| Josh Holden | Regina Pats | 58 | 49 | 49 | 98 | 111 |
| Greg Schmidt | Red Deer Rebels | 66 | 45 | 53 | 98 | 97 |
Goaltending leaders
Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties ; GA = Goals against; SO = Total shutouts; SV% = Save percentage; GAA = Goals against average
| Player | Team | GP | Min | W | L | T | GA | SO | SV% | GAA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Brian Elder | Brandon Wheat Kings | 52 | 2930 | 32 | 15 | 0 | 132 | 2 | .906 | 2.70 |
| Brent Belecki | Portland Winter Hawks | 27 | 1568 | 17 | 7 | 1 | 71 | 1 | .909 | 2.72 |
| Chris Wickenheiser | Red Deer/Portland | 41 | 2428 | 24 | 14 | 3 | 110 | 3 | .913 | 2.72 |
| David Haun | Brandon Wheat Kings | 27 | 1442 | 15 | 9 | 1 | 72 | 1 | .898 | 3.00 |
| Donavon Nunweiler | Moose Jaw Warriors | 56 | 3278 | 27 | 21 | 5 | 166 | 6 | .907 | 3.04 |
1997 WHL Playoffs
- Top eight teams in the Eastern Conference (East and Central divisions) qualified for playoffs
- Top six teams in the Western Conference (division) qualified for the playoffs
| First Round | Division Semi-Finals | Division Finals | WHL Championship | ||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Lethbridge | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E5 | Prince Albert | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Lethbridge | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Moose Jaw | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E1 | Brandon | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| E4 | Moose Jaw | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Lethbridge | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Red Deer | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Swift Current | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| C3 | Medicine Hat | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| E2 | Swift Current | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Red Deer | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| C2 | Red Deer | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| E3 | Regina | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| C1 | Lethbridge | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W5 | Kamloops | 1 | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | bye | |||||||||||||||||
| W2 | Seattle | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Prince George | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W1 | Portland | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Prince George | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Spokane | 0 | |||||||||||||||||
| W6 | Prince George | 3 | |||||||||||||||||
| W3 | Spokane | 4 | |||||||||||||||||
| W4 | Kelowna | 2 | |||||||||||||||||
Conference Quarterfinals
Eastern Conference
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