1995–96 Ottawa Senators season

1995–96 Ottawa Senators
Division	6th Northeast
Conference	13th Eastern
1995–96 record	18–59–5
Home record	8–28–5
Road record	10–31–0
Goals for	191
Goals against	291
Team information
General manager	Randy Sexton (Oct.–Dec.) Pierre Gauthier (Dec.–Apr.)
Coach	Rick Bowness (Oct.–Nov.) Dave Allison (Nov.–Jan.) Jacques Martin (Jan.–Apr.)
Captain	Randy Cunneyworth
Alternate captains	Steve Duchesne Tom Chorske
Arena	Ottawa Civic Centre (Oct.–Dec.) The Palladium (Jan.–Apr.)
Average attendance	13,271 (544,108 total)
Minor league affiliate(s)	Prince Edward Island Senators Thunder Bay Senators
Team leaders
Goals	Daniel Alfredsson (26)
Assists	Daniel Alfredsson (35)
Points	Daniel Alfredsson (61)
Penalty minutes	Dennis Vial (276)
Plus/minus	Pat Elyniuk (+2)
Wins	Damian Rhodes (10)
Goals against average	Damian Rhodes (2.77)

The 1995–96 Ottawa Senators season was the fourth season of the Ottawa Senators of the National Hockey League (NHL). This season was plenty of change for the club. The club changed coaching staffs twice, changed their general manager and moved into the new Palladium arena in Kanata. The team again finished last in the league, even though they knocked the defending Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils out of playoff contention in the last game of the season, allowing the Tampa Bay Lightning to clinch the playoff berth at the expense of the Devils.

Offseason

'Smitty' patch worn during the season

Prior to the season, on August 2, 1995, Brian Smith, former NHL hockey player and sportscaster at Ottawa TV station CJOH-TV was killed. He had been the primary reporter on the Senators for the station. The Senators honored him with a patch on their jerseys, with his nickname 'Smitty' and number 18, which they wore on their jerseys for the whole season. The team raised a banner in his memory.

Regular season

Bruins

Sabres

Whalers

Canadiens

Senators

Penguins

Northeast Division Teams

The Senators finished last in wins (18), points (41), goals scored (191), even-strength goals scored (132), power-play goals scored (53) and power-play percentage (12.33%). They also tied the New York Rangers and the Tampa Bay Lightning for fewest short-handed goals scored (6).

There were some bright spots during the season, rookie Daniel Alfredsson led the team offensively with 61 points (26 goals-35 assists), while Alexei Yashin was out of the lineup for 36 games. Alfredsson won the Calder Memorial Trophy, awarded to the NHL's rookie of the year.

After getting off to a good start with a 6–5–0 record, the Senators lost their next eight games, which ended up costing head coach Rick Bowness his job, as the club replaced him with Dave Allison, who was previously the head coach of the Senators AHL affiliate, the Prince Edward Island Senators. The Dave Allison era did not last long in Ottawa, as the club won two of 25 games (2–22–1) before he was replaced by Jacques Martin. Under Martin, the Senators was more competitive, going 10–24–4 in his 38 games to finish the year with an 18–59–5, their fourth straight season at the bottom of the NHL standings.

Highlights

After taking over from the fired Randy Sexton as General Manager, on December 6, 1995, Pierre Gauthier made three moves to strengthen the club. He hired Jacques Martin as head coach, signed hold-out Alexei Yashin to a contract and engineered a blockbuster trade on January 23, 1996, dealing away Don Beaupre, Martin Straka, and Bryan Berard, while acquiring Damian Rhodes and Wade Redden. It was a three-way trade between the Senators, the Toronto Maple Leafs, and the New York Islanders and was necessary because Berard, the Senators' first-round pick, was refusing to report to the Senators.

The Senators left the Ottawa Civic Centre and played their first game in The Palladium on January 17, 1996, against the Montreal Canadiens. The raising of the Senators' Stanley Cup banners failed, leaving the banners obscuring some fans' view of the scoreboard. The Senators lost 3–0 to the Canadiens.

On April 13, 1996, the Senators played the defending Stanley Cup champion New Jersey Devils, who must win to clinch the final playoff spot in the Eastern Conference. The Senators played the role of spoiler, defeating New Jersey 5–2, officially eliminating the Devils from post-season play and giving the Tampa Bay Lightning, the team that entered the league the same year as the Senators, its first playoff berth.

Final standings

Northeast Division

No.		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PTS
1	Pittsburgh Penguins	82	49	29	4	362	284	102
2	Boston Bruins	82	40	31	11	282	269	91
3	Montreal Canadiens	82	40	32	10	265	248	90
4	Hartford Whalers	82	34	39	9	237	259	77
5	Buffalo Sabres	82	33	42	7	247	262	72
6	Ottawa Senators	82	18	59	5	191	291	41

Eastern Conference

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	45	24	13	282	208	103
2	Pittsburgh Penguins	NE	82	49	29	4	362	284	102
3	New York Rangers	ATL	82	41	27	14	272	237	96
4	Florida Panthers	ATL	82	41	31	10	254	234	92
5	Boston Bruins	NE	82	40	31	11	282	269	91
6	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	40	32	10	265	248	90
7	Washington Capitals	ATL	82	39	32	11	234	204	89
8	Tampa Bay Lightning	ATL	82	38	32	12	238	248	88
9	New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	37	33	12	215	202	86
10	Hartford Whalers	NE	82	34	39	9	237	259	77
11	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	33	42	7	247	262	73
12	New York Islanders	ATL	82	22	50	10	229	315	54
13	Ottawa Senators	NE	82	18	59	5	191	291	41

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic, NE – Northeast

bold – Qualified for playoffs

Schedule and results

1995–96 regular season
October: 5–5–0 (home: 2–2–0; road: 3–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 1 L October 7, 1995 1–3 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 0–1–0 9,567 Recap 2 L October 13, 1995 2–6 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 0–2–0 10,895 Recap 3 W October 15, 1995 7–4 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 1–2–0 13,488 Recap 4 W October 19, 1995 4–2 Calgary Flames (1995–96) 2–2–0 8,424 Recap 5 L October 21, 1995 1–4 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 2–3–0 17,620 Recap 6 W October 22, 1995 4–2 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 3–3–0 18,200 Recap 7 W October 24, 1995 2–1 @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 4–3–0 19,512 Recap 8 W October 26, 1995 5–4 Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 5–3–0 10,575 Recap 9 L October 28, 1995 1–4 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 5–4–0 8,660 Recap 10 L October 29, 1995 2–5 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 5–5–0 17,328 Recap
November: 1–11–1 (home: 0–5–1; road: 1–6–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 11 W November 2, 1995 5–0 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 6–5–0 10,458 Recap 12 L November 4, 1995 4–5 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 6–6–0 8,794 Recap 13 L November 8, 1995 1–7 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 6–7–0 10,137 Recap 14 L November 9, 1995 3–4 @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 6–8–0 17,261 Recap 15 L November 11, 1995 2–3 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 6–9–0 8,988 Recap 16 L November 15, 1995 2–3 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 6–10–0 7,641 Recap 17 L November 16, 1995 3–5 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 6–11–0 17,220 Recap 18 L November 18, 1995 1–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 6–12–0 17,302 Recap 19 L November 19, 1995 0–6 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 6–13–0 10,697 Recap 20 L November 22, 1995 1–3 Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 6–14–0 8,426 Recap 21 T November 25, 1995 3–3 OT Boston Bruins (1995–96) 6–14–1 9,419 Recap 22 L November 28, 1995 2–7 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 6–15–1 16,162 Recap 23 L November 30, 1995 3–5 New York Islanders (1995–96) 6–16–1 8,167 Recap
December: 2–12–0 (home: 0–5–0; road: 2–7–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 24 L December 2, 1995 2–4 New York Rangers (1995–96) 6–17–1 8,194 Recap 25 L December 5, 1995 1–4 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 6–18–1 15,746 Recap 26 W December 7, 1995 5–2 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 7–18–1 17,552 Recap 27 L December 9, 1995 3–7 Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 7–19–1 9,169 Recap 28 L December 12, 1995 1–2 @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 7–20–1 17,190 Recap 29 L December 13, 1995 2–6 @ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 7–21–1 11,221 Recap 30 L December 15, 1995 2–4 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 7–22–1 17,174 Recap 31 L December 17, 1995 1–4 @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 7–23–1 16,006 Recap 32 L December 18, 1995 1–3 @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 7–24–1 8,419 Recap 33 L December 23, 1995 2–4 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 7–25–1 8,615 Recap 34 L December 26, 1995 4–6 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 7–26–1 18,200 Recap 35 W December 27, 1995 4–3 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 8–26–1 12,175 Recap 36 L December 30, 1995 1–4 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 8–27–1 10,575 Recap 37 L December 31, 1995 0–3 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 8–28–1 8,522 Recap
January: 1–10–1 (home: 1–5–1; road: 0–5–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 38 L January 3, 1996 1–4 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 8–29–1 15,632 Recap 39 L January 5, 1996 2–4 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 8–30–1 12,239 Recap 40 L January 6, 1996 4–5 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 8–31–1 12,175 Recap 41 L January 11, 1996 1–6 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 8–32–1 11,511 Recap 42 L January 13, 1996 1–4 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 8–33–1 21,829 Recap 43 L January 17, 1996 0–3 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 8–34–1 18,500 Recap 44 L January 22, 1996 3–7 Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 8–35–1 13,872 Recap 45 L January 24, 1996 3–4 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 8–36–1 17,149 Recap 46 L January 25, 1996 2–4 Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 8–37–1 16,882 Recap 47 T January 27, 1996 2–2 OT Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 8–37–2 18,500 Recap 48 W January 29, 1996 4–2 St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 9–37–2 13,125 Recap 49 L January 31, 1996 1–3 Boston Bruins (1995–96) 9–38–2 15,795 Recap
February: 3–8–1 (home: 0–4–1; road: 3–4–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 50 L February 1, 1996 2–4 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 9–39–2 12,322 Recap 51 L February 3, 1996 2–3 OT New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 9–40–2 18,280 Recap 52 L February 6, 1996 1–3 @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) 9–41–2 16,442 Recap 53 L February 8, 1996 2–6 @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 9–42–2 8,673 Recap 54 W February 10, 1996 5–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 10–42–2 17,535 Recap 55 W February 12, 1996 4–1 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 11–42–2 7,567 Recap 56 T February 15, 1996 2–2 OT San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 11–42–3 13,556 Recap 57 L February 17, 1996 1–2 OT New York Rangers (1995–96) 11–43–3 18,500 Recap 58 W February 20, 1996 7–1 @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 12–43–3 19,736 Recap 59 L February 22, 1996 2–3 @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) 12–44–3 14,818 Recap 60 L February 25, 1996 2–4 @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 12–45–3 16,061 Recap 61 L February 28, 1996 2–3 OT Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 12–46–3 13,419 Recap
March: 3–10–1 (home: 3–5–1; road: 0–5–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 62 L March 1, 1996 2–3 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 12–47–3 18,500 Recap 63 L March 2, 1996 1–4 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 12–48–3 15,510 Recap 64 L March 7, 1996 1–5 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 12–49–3 13,377 Recap 65 L March 9, 1996 2–3 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 12–50–3 17,959 Recap 66 W March 13, 1996 4–1 Dallas Stars (1995–96) 13–50–3 13,226 Recap 67 W March 15, 1996 2–0 Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 14–50–3 17,850 Recap 68 W March 17, 1996 5–0 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 15–50–3 15,102 Recap 69 L March 19, 1996 2–5 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 15–51–3 12,255 Recap 70 L March 21, 1996 1–3 @ Boston Bruins (1995–96) 15–52–3 17,565 Recap 71 T March 22, 1996 1–1 OT Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 15–52–4 13,596 Recap 72 L March 24, 1996 2–3 Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 15–53–4 13,188 Recap 73 L March 27, 1996 2–4 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 15–54–4 15,183 Recap 74 L March 29, 1996 0–5 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 15–55–4 18,130 Recap 75 L March 30, 1996 1–3 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 15–56–4 18,500 Recap
April: 3–3–1 (home: 2–2–1; road: 1–1–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Attendance Recap 76 T April 1, 1996 1–1 OT Boston Bruins (1995–96) 15–56–5 13,335 Recap 77 W April 3, 1996 3–2 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 16–56–5 13,074 Recap 78 W April 5, 1996 4–2 New York Islanders (1995–96) 17–56–5 16,541 Recap 79 L April 6, 1996 3–4 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 17–57–5 15,101 Recap 80 L April 10, 1996 2–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 17–58–5 15,111 Recap 81 L April 11, 1996 3–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 17–59–5 18,500 Recap 82 W April 13, 1996 5–2 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 18–59–5 19,040 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

• Position abbreviations: C = Centre; D = Defence; 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 Senators only.
• ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Senators only.

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season
			GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
11	Daniel Alfredsson	RW	82	26	35	61	−18	28
19	Alexei Yashin	C	46	15	24	39	−15	28
7	Randy Cunneyworth	LW	81	17	19	36	−31	130
28	Steve Duchesne	D	62	12	24	36	−23	42
76	Radek Bonk	C	76	16	19	35	−5	36
17	Tom Chorske	LW	72	15	14	29	−9	21
82	Martin Straka‡	C	43	9	16	25	−14	29
9	Dan Quinn‡	C	28	6	18	24	−8	24
4	Sean Hill	D	80	7	14	21	−26	94
23	Jaroslav Modry‡	D	64	4	14	18	−17	38
78	Pavol Demitra	LW	31	7	10	17	−3	6
91	Alexandre Daigle	C	50	5	12	17	−30	24
13	Ted Drury	C	42	9	7	16	−19	54
22	Antti Tormanen	RW	50	7	8	15	−15	28
5	Kerry Huffman‡	D	43	4	11	15	−18	63
20	Trent McCleary	RW	75	4	10	14	−15	68
10	Rob Gaudreau	RW	52	8	5	13	−19	15
94	Stan Neckar	D	82	3	9	12	−16	54
12	Dave Archibald	C	44	6	4	10	−14	18
49	Michel Picard	LW	17	2	6	8	−1	10
2	Lance Pitlick	D	28	1	6	7	−8	20
36	Troy Mallette	LW	64	2	3	5	−7	171
21	Dennis Vial	D	64	1	4	5	−13	276
3	Frank Musil	D	65	1	3	4	−10	85
25	Pat Elynuik	RW	29	1	2	3	2	16
29	Phil Bourque	LW	13	1	1	2	−3	14
6	Chris Dahlquist	D	24	1	1	2	−7	14
14	Jean-Yves Roy	RW	4	1	1	2	3	2
33	Don Beaupre‡	G	33	0	2	2		17
27	Janne Laukkanen†	D	20	0	2	2	0	14
26	Scott Levins	RW	27	0	2	2	−3	80
1	Damian Rhodes†	G	36	0	2	2		4
16	Dave McLlwain‡	RW	1	0	1	1	0	2
35	Mike Bales	G	20	0	0	0		2
27	Joe Cirella†‡	D	6	0	0	0	−3	4
24	Daniel Laperriere	D	6	0	0	0	2	4
18	Patrick Traverse	D	5	0	0	0	−1	2

Goaltending

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

No.	Player	Regular season
		GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
1	Damian Rhodes†	36	10	22	4	1041	98	2.77	.906	2	2123
33	Don Beaupre‡	33	6	23	0	892	110	3.73	.877	1	1770
35	Mike Bales	20	2	14	1	560	72	4.15	.871	0	1040

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honour	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	Calder Memorial Trophy	Daniel Alfredsson
	NHL All-Rookie Team	Daniel Alfredsson (Forward)
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Daniel Alfredsson
	NHL Rookie of the Month	Daniel Alfredsson (November)
		Daniel Alfredsson (April)
Team	Molson Cup	Damian Rhodes

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Daniel Alfredsson	October 7, 1995
	Trent McCleary
	Antti Tormanen
	Patrick Traverse	December 30, 1995

Transactions

July 1995

July 8	Acquired Jaroslav Modrý from the New Jersey Devils for a 4th round pick in the 1995 NHL Entry Draft - (Alyn McCauley).
July 31	Lost free agent Darren Rumble to the Philadelphia Flyers to a 1-year, $300,000 contract.

Source

August 1995

August 1	Signed free agent Dan Quinn from the Los Angeles Kings to a 2-year, $1.05 mil contract.
August 4	Acquired Steve Duchesne from the St. Louis Blues for a 2nd round pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft - (Cory Sarich).
August 7	Lost free agent Corey Foster to the Pittsburgh Penguins to a 1-year contract.
August 9	Signed free agent Eric Lavigne from the Los Angeles Kings to a 1-year contract.

Source

September 1995

September 20

Traded Jean-François Labbé to the Colorado Avalanche for future considerations.

Source

October 1995

October 2	Claimed Justin Hocking from the Los Angeles Kings in the 1995 NHL Waiver Draft. Claimed Ted Drury from the Colorado Avalanche in the 1995 NHL Waiver Draft.
October 4	Claimed Tom Chorske off of waivers from the New Jersey Devils.
October 5	Acquired Jean-Yves Roy from the New York Rangers for Steve Larouche. New Jersey Devils received 3rd round draft pick in 1997 NHL Entry Draft - (Josh Langfeld for waiver draft payment for Tom Chorske.
October 7	Acquired Frank Musil from the Calgary Flames for a 4th round pick in the 1997 NHL Entry Draft - (Chris St. Croix).
October 10	Signed free agent Joe Cirella from the Florida Panthers to a 1-year, $150,000 (CAD) contract.
October 13	Resigned Frank Musil to a 1-year, $500,000 contract.

Source

December 1995

December 1	Released Joe Cirella.
December 31	Re-signed Alexei Yashin to a 5-year, $13.6 million contract.

Source

January 1996

January 23	Traded Dan Quinn to the Philadelphia Flyers for cash. Acquired Damian Rhodes from the Toronto Maple Leafs and Wade Redden from the New York Islanders for Martin Straka and Bryan Berard to the New York Islanders and Don Beaupre to the Toronto Maple Leafs as part of three-team trade.
January 25	Acquired Janne Laukkanen from the Colorado Avalanche for the rights to Brad Larsen.

Source

March 1996

March 1	Acquired an 8th round pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft - (Erich Goldmann) from the Pittsburgh Penguins for Dave McLlwain.
March 19	Acquired an 9th round pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft - (Sami Salo) from the Philadelphia Flyers for Kerry Huffman.
March 20	Acquired Kevin Brown from the Los Angeles Kings for Jaroslav Modrý and an 8th round pick in the 1996 NHL Entry Draft - (Steve Valiquette).

Source

Draft picks

Ottawa's draft picks at the 1995 NHL entry draft in Edmonton, Alberta.

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	1	Bryan Berard	United States	Detroit Jr. Red Wings (OHL)
2	27	Marc Moro	Canada	Kingston Frontenacs (OHL)
3	53	Brad Larsen	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
4	89	Kevin Bolibruck	Canada	Peterborough Petes (OHL)
4	103	Kevin Boyd	Canada	London Knights (OHL)
6	131	David Hruska	Czech Republic	Banik Sokolov (Czech.)
8	183	Kaj Linna	Finland	Boston University (NCAA)
8	184	Ray Schultz	Canada	Tri-City Americans (WHL)
9	231	Erik Kaminski	United States	Northeastern University (Boston) (NCAA)

Farm teams

• Prince Edward Island Senators (American Hockey League)
• Thunder Bay Senators (Colonial Hockey League)

See also

• 1995–96 NHL season

References

• "Ottawa Senators 1995-96 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
• "1995-96 Ottawa Senators Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 8, 2023.
• Garrioch, Bruce (1998), "Ottawa Senators 1992–93 to Date", Total Hockey
• Ottawa Senators staff (2006). Ottawa Senators Media Guide 2007. Ottawa Senators.
• NHL staff (2006). National Hockey League Guide & Record Book 2007. NHL.