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1995–96 Boston Bruins season

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1995–96 Boston Bruins
Division2nd Northeast
Conference5th Eastern
1995–96 record40–31–11
Home record22–14–5
Road record18–17–6
Goals for282
Goals against269
Team information
General managerHarry Sinden
CoachSteve Kasper
CaptainRay Bourque
ArenaFleet Center
Average attendance17,474 (97.8%)
Total: 716,443
Minor league affiliate(s)Providence Bruins (AHL)
Charlotte Checkers (ECHL)
Team leaders
GoalsCam Neely (26)
AssistsAdam Oates (67)
PointsAdam Oates (92)
Penalty minutesDean Chynoweth (88)
Plus/minusRay Bourque (+31)
WinsBill Ranford (21)
Goals against averageBill Ranford (2.83)

The 1995–96 Boston Bruins season was the team's 72nd season. It was the Bruins' first season at Fleet Center, which replaced Boston Garden as their home venue.

Off-season

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Regular season

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During the regular season, the Bruins led the league in shots on goal with 2,838.[1]

Final standings

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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[2]
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


Playoffs

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The Bruins qualified for the playoffs for the 29th consecutive season, an NHL record that still stands (as of the 2022–23 season).[3] The streak ended one season later. The Bruins were seeded 5th in the Eastern Conference and faced the 4th-seeded Florida Panthers in the Eastern Conference Quarterfinals. The Bruins lost the series in five games after falling behind three games to none. The Panthers went on to lose to the Colorado Avalanche in the Stanley Cup Finals.

Schedule and results

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Regular season

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1995–96 regular season[4]
October: 3–5–2 (home: 2–2–1; road: 1–3–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
1 T October 7, 1995 4–4 OT New York Islanders (1995–96) 0–0–1 Recap
2 W October 9, 1995 5–3 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 1–0–1 Recap
3 L October 11, 1995 1–3 @ Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 1–1–1 Recap
4 T October 12, 1995 6–6 OT @ San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 1–1–2 Recap
5 L October 14, 1995 5–6 @ Dallas Stars (1995–96) 1–2–2 Recap
6 W October 17, 1995 7–4 @ St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 2–2–2 Recap
7 L October 21, 1995 2–4 @ Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 2–3–2 Recap
8 L October 26, 1995 2–4 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 2–4–2 Recap
9 W October 28, 1995 3–0 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 3–4–2 Recap
10 L October 31, 1995 1–3 Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 3–5–2 Recap
November: 5–5–2 (home: 4–3–1; road: 1–2–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
11 L November 2, 1995 5–6 OT Detroit Red Wings (1995–96) 3–6–2 Recap
12 L November 4, 1995 1–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 3–7–2 Recap
13 W November 7, 1995 4–3 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 4–7–2 Recap
14 W November 9, 1995 4–3 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 5–7–2 Recap
15 L November 11, 1995 1–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 5–8–2 Recap
16 L November 14, 1995 3–5 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 5–9–2 Recap
17 T November 16, 1995 2–2 OT New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 5–9–3 Recap
18 W November 18, 1995 5–2 St. Louis Blues (1995–96) 6–9–3 Recap
19 W November 21, 1995 5–4 Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 7–9–3 Recap
20 W November 24, 1995 2–1 Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 8–9–3 Recap
21 T November 25, 1995 3–3 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 8–9–4 Recap
22 L November 30, 1995 6–9 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 8–10–4 Recap
December: 7–4–1 (home: 5–0–0; road: 2–4–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
23 W December 2, 1995 6–4 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 9–10–4 Recap
24 L December 3, 1995 1–6 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 9–11–4 Recap
25 W December 5, 1995 6–4 Dallas Stars (1995–96) 10–11–4 Recap
26 L December 8, 1995 1–3 @ Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 10–12–4 Recap
27 L December 9, 1995 1–3 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 10–13–4 Recap
28 L December 13, 1995 2–4 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 10–14–4 Recap
29 W December 14, 1995 6–4 Florida Panthers (1995–96) 11–14–4 Recap
30 W December 16, 1995 6–3 Calgary Flames (1995–96) 12–14–4 Recap
31 W December 22, 1995 3–2 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 13–14–4 Recap
32 W December 23, 1995 7–5 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 14–14–4 Recap
33 T December 26, 1995 3–3 OT @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 14–14–5 Recap
34 W December 31, 1995 5–3 @ Winnipeg Jets (1995–96) 15–14–5 Recap
January: 6–6–1 (home: 4–4–0; road: 2–2–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
35 L January 2, 1996 2–5 Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 15–15–5 Recap
36 T January 3, 1996 4–4 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1995–96) 15–15–6 Recap
37 W January 6, 1996 5–2 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 16–15–6 Recap
38 L January 9, 1996 0–3 Colorado Avalanche (1995–96) 16–16–6 Recap
39 W January 11, 1996 7–2 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 17–16–6 Recap
40 W January 13, 1996 3–2 New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 18–16–6 Recap
41 L January 15, 1996 0–6 Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 18–17–6 Recap
42 W January 16, 1996 4–2 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 19–17–6 Recap
43 L January 22, 1996 6–7 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 19–18–6 Recap
44 W January 25, 1996 4–3 Tampa Bay Lightning (1995–96) 20–18–6 Recap
45 L January 27, 1996 3–5 New York Rangers (1995–96) 20–19–6 Recap
46 L January 28, 1996 4–5 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 20–20–6 Recap
47 W January 31, 1996 3–1 @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 21–20–6 Recap
February: 6–6–2 (home: 1–2–1; road: 5–4–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
48 T February 1, 1996 2–2 OT Florida Panthers (1995–96) 21–20–7 Recap
49 W February 3, 1996 4–2 Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 22–20–7 Recap
50 L February 6, 1996 5–6 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 22–21–7 Recap
51 L February 7, 1996 1–2 OT @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 22–22–7 Recap
52 L February 10, 1996 2–6 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 22–23–7 Recap
53 W February 14, 1996 3–0 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 23–23–7 Recap
54 L February 15, 1996 0–3 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1995–96) 23–24–7 Recap
55 W February 17, 1996 4–1 @ Vancouver Canucks (1995–96) 24–24–7 Recap
56 T February 19, 1996 3–3 OT @ Los Angeles Kings (1995–96) 24–24–8 Recap
57 L February 21, 1996 3–4 OT @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1995–96) 24–25–8 Recap
58 W February 23, 1996 7–4 @ Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 25–25–8 Recap
59 W February 24, 1996 2–1 @ Calgary Flames (1995–96) 26–25–8 Recap
60 L February 27, 1996 3–4 OT Edmonton Oilers (1995–96) 26–26–8 Recap
61 W February 28, 1996 3–1 @ New York Rangers (1995–96) 27–26–8 Recap
March: 9–4–1 (home: 4–3–1; road: 5–1–0)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
62 L March 2, 1996 0–2 Washington Capitals (1995–96) 27–27–8 Recap
63 L March 5, 1996 3–5 @ New York Islanders (1995–96) 27–28–8 Recap
64 W March 7, 1996 4–3 New York Islanders (1995–96) 28–28–8 Recap
65 W March 9, 1996 3–2 Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 29–28–8 Recap
66 W March 10, 1996 4–1 @ Florida Panthers (1995–96) 30–28–8 Recap
67 W March 14, 1996 4–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 31–28–8 Recap
68 W March 15, 1996 5–2 @ Washington Capitals (1995–96) 32–28–8 Recap
69 T March 18, 1996 3–3 OT San Jose Sharks (1995–96) 32–28–9 Recap
70 W March 20, 1996 2–1 @ New Jersey Devils (1995–96) 33–28–9 Recap
71 W March 21, 1996 3–1 Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 34–28–9 Recap
72 L March 23, 1996 4–5 New York Rangers (1995–96) 34–29–9 Recap
73 W March 27, 1996 6–5 OT @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 35–29–9 Recap
74 L March 28, 1996 3–4 OT Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 35–30–9 Recap
75 W March 31, 1996 6–5 @ Buffalo Sabres (1995–96) 36–30–9 Recap
April: 4–1–2 (home: 2–0–1; road: 2–1–1)
Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap
76 T April 1, 1996 1–1 OT @ Ottawa Senators (1995–96) 36–30–10 Recap
77 W April 3, 1996 4–1 @ Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 37–30–10 Recap
78 T April 4, 1996 3–3 OT Montreal Canadiens (1995–96) 37–30–11 Recap
79 W April 7, 1996 4–2 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1995–96) 38–30–11 Recap
80 W April 11, 1996 3–2 Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 39–30–11 Recap
81 L April 13, 1996 0–2 @ Hartford Whalers (1995–96) 39–31–11 Recap
82 W April 14, 1996 6–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1995–96) 40–31–11 Recap
Legend:

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

Playoffs

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1996 Stanley Cup playoffs[4]
Eastern Conference Quarterfinals vs. (4) Florida Panthers – Panthers win 4–1
Game Result Date Score Opponent Attendance Series Recap
1 L April 17, 1996 3–6 @ Florida Panthers 14,703 Panthers lead 1–0 Recap
2 L April 22, 1996 2–6 @ Florida Panthers 14,703 Panthers lead 2–0 Recap
3 L April 24, 1996 2–4 Florida Panthers 14,922 Panthers lead 3–0 Recap
4 W April 25, 1996 6–2 Florida Panthers 14,810 Panthers lead 3–1 Recap
5 L April 27, 1996 3–4 @ Florida Panthers 14,703 Panthers win 4–1 Recap
Legend:

  Win   Loss

Player statistics

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Scoring

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  • 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 Bruins only.
  • ‡ = Left team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, release) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
No. Player Pos Regular season Playoffs
GP G A Pts +/- PIM GP G A Pts +/- PIM
12 Adam Oates C 70 25 67 92 16 18 5 2 5 7 −3 2
77 Ray Bourque D 82 20 62 82 31 58 5 1 6 7 −4 2
16[a] Jozef Stumpel C 76 18 36 54 −8 14 5 1 2 3 −2 0
14 Shawn McEachern LW 82 24 29 53 −5 34 5 2 1 3 −2 8
21 Ted Donato LW 82 23 26 49 6 46 5 1 2 3 −3 2
8 Cam Neely RW 49 26 20 46 3 31
20 Todd Elik LW 59 13 33 46 2 40 4 0 2 2 −1 16
17 Dave Reid C 63 23 21 44 14 4 5 0 2 2 −3 2
45 Sandy Moger RW 80 15 14 29 −9 65 5 2 2 4 −1 12
23 Steve Heinze RW 76 16 12 28 −3 43 5 1 1 2 1 4
32 Don Sweeney D 77 4 24 28 −4 42 5 0 2 2 −3 6
22 Rick Tocchet RW 27 16 8 24 7 64 5 4 0 4 −7 21
25 Kevin Stevens LW 41 10 13 23 1 49
27 Steve Leach RW 59 9 13 22 −4 86
46 Kyle McLaren D 74 5 12 17 16 73 5 0 0 0 −3 14
42 Tim Sweeney LW 41 8 8 16 4 14 1 0 0 0 0 2
11 Joe Mullen RW 37 8 7 15 −2 0
34 Rick Zombo D 67 4 10 14 −7 53
38 Jon Rohloff D 79 1 12 13 −8 59 5 1 2 3 −3 2
10 Ron Sutter C 18 5 7 12 10 24 5 0 0 0 −2 8
19 Mariusz Czerkawski RW 33 5 6 11 −11 10
28[b] Dean Chynoweth D 35 2 5 7 −1 88 4 0 0 0 −2 24
37 Clayton Beddoes C 39 1 6 7 −5 44
41 Phil Von Stefenelli D 27 0 4 4 2 16
30 Bill Ranford G 40 0 2 2 0 4 0 0 0 0
6 Alexei Kasatonov D 19 1 0 1 1 12
39 Scott Bailey G 11 0 0 0 0
1 Craig Billington G 27 0 0 0 2 1 0 0 0 2
40 Mark Cornforth D 6 0 0 0 4 4
36 John Gruden D 14 0 0 0 −3 4 3 0 1 1 0 0
47 Ryan Hughes C 3 0 0 0 0 0
31 Blaine Lacher G 12 0 0 0 4
44 Davis Payne LW 7 0 0 0 0 7
29 Marc Potvin RW 27 0 0 0 −2 12 5 0 1 1 −2 18
49 Andre Roy LW 3 0 0 0 0 0
19 Kevin Sawyer LW 2 0 0 0 1 5
48 Steve Staios D 12 0 0 0 −5 4 3 0 0 0 −1 0
26 Cam Stewart C 6 0 0 0 −2 0 5 1 0 1 0 2
35 Robbie Tallas G 1 0 0 0 0

Goaltending

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  • † = Joined team via a transaction (e.g., trade, waivers, signing) during the season. Stats reflect time with the Bruins only.
No. Player Regular season Playoffs
GP GS W L T SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI GP GS W L SA GA GAA SV% SO TOI
30 Bill Ranford 40 39 21 12 4 1,030 109 2.84 .894 1 2,306:31 4 4 1 3 112 16 4.01 .857 0 239:15
1 Craig Billington 27 24 10 13 3 594 79 3.44 .867 1 1,379:42 1 1 0 1 28 6 6.00 .786 0 60:00
39 Scott Bailey 11 8 5 1 2 264 31 3.26 .883 0 570:57
31 Blaine Lacher 12 10 3 5 2 284 44 3.94 .845 0 670:45
35 Robbie Tallas 1 1 1 0 0 29 3 3.00 .897 0 60:00

Awards and records

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Awards

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Type Award/honor Recipient Ref
League
(annual)
Lester Patrick Trophy Milt Schmidt [5]
NHL All-Rookie Team Kyle McLaren (Defense) [6]
NHL First All-Star team Ray Bourque (Defense) [6]
League
(in-season)
NHL All-Star Game selection Ray Bourque[c] [8]
Cam Neely
Team Elizabeth C. Dufresne Trophy Ray Bourque [9]
Seventh Player Award Kyle McLaren [9]
Three Stars Awards Adam Oates (1st) [10]
Ray Bourque (2nd)
Bill Ranford (3rd)

Milestones

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Milestone Player Date Ref
First game Kyle McLaren October 7, 1995 [11]
Phil Von Stefenelli October 26, 1995
Ryan Hughes November 4, 1995
Mark Cornforth
Scott Bailey November 16, 1995
Clayton Beddoes December 2, 1995
Andre Roy February 3, 1996
Davis Payne February 7, 1996
Rob Tallas March 7, 1996
Steve Staios March 21, 1996
1,000th game played Joe Mullen March 5, 1996 [12]
500th game played Bill Ranford March 5, 1996

Transactions

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Waivers

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Date Player Team
October 2, 1995 (1995-10-02) Brent Hughes to Buffalo Sabres in waiver draft

Draft picks

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Boston's draft picks at the 1995 NHL entry draft held at the Edmonton Coliseum in Edmonton, Alberta.[13]

Round # Player Position Nationality College/junior/club team (league)
11 9 Kyle McLaren D  Canada Tacoma Rockets (WHL)
1 21 Sean Brown D  Canada Belleville Bulls (OHL)
2 47 Paxton Schafer G  Canada Medicine Hat Tigers (WHL)
3 73 Bill McCauley D  United States Detroit Jr. Red Wings (OHL)
4 99 Cameron Mann RW  Canada Peterborough Petes (OHL)
6 151 Evgeny Shaldybin D  Russia Torpedo Yaroslavl (Russia)
7 177 P. J. Axelsson LW  Sweden Frölunda HC (Sweden)
8 203 Sergei Zhukov D  Russia Torpedo Yaroslavl (Russia)
9 229 Jonathan Murphy D  Canada Peterborough Petes (OHL)
Notes
  1. The Bruins acquired this pick as the result of a trade on August 26, 1994 that sent Glen Wesley to Hartford in exchange for first-round picks in 1996, 1997 and this pick.
  • The Bruins fifth-round pick went to the Detroit Red Wings as the result of a trade on January 17, 1994 that sent Vincent Riendeau to Boston in exchange for this pick (125th overall).

See also

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Notes

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  1. ^ Stumpel wore number 22 until Tocchet was acquired.
  2. ^ Chynoweth wore number 47 in his first two games.
  3. ^ Bourque was voted to the starting lineup.[7]

References

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  • "Boston Bruins 1995-96 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  • "1995-96 Boston Bruins Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  1. ^ "1995-96 NHL Summary". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  2. ^ "1995–1996 Conference Standings". National Hockey League. Retrieved July 3, 2014.
  3. ^ "Most Consecutive Playoff Appearances". records.nhl.com. Retrieved August 7, 2023.
  4. ^ a b "1995-96 Boston Bruins Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 6, 2023.
  5. ^ "Lester Patrick Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  6. ^ a b "Postseason All-Star Teams". NHL.com. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  7. ^ "NHL All-Star Game Starting Lineups by Year (since 1986)". NHL.com. Archived from the original on March 22, 2023. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  8. ^ "1996 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
  9. ^ a b Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p.239
  10. ^ Boston Bruins 2014–15 Guide & Record Book, p. 239–40
  11. ^ "1995-96 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 6, 2024.
  12. ^ "Islanders 5, Bruins 3 - UPI Archives". UPI. March 6, 1996. Retrieved August 27, 2023. Boston's Joe Mullen played in his 1,000th NHL game.
  13. ^ "1995 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved August 28, 2023.