1997–98 QMJHL season
The 1997–98 QMJHL season was the 29th season in the history of the Quebec Major Junior Hockey League. The Quebec Remparts name is revived after twelve years when the Beauport Harfangs change identities. The QMJHL continues to grow in eastern markets with an expansion team in Baie-Comeau and the relocating of the Granby Prédateurs relocated to Cape Breton.
The league inaugurates the Philips Plaque, awarded to the player with the best faceoff percentage. The Ford Cups are renamed the Telus Cups, one each for the offensive and defensive players of the year.
Fifteen teams played 70 games each in the schedule. The Quebec Remparts finished first overall in the regular season winning their first Jean Rougeau Trophy, since the original name was revived. The Val-d'Or Foreurs won their first President's Cup, defeating the Rimouski Océanic in the finals.
Team changes
- The Baie-Comeau Drakkar joined the league as an expansion franchise.
- The Beauport Harfangs relocated from the nearby suburbs, to Quebec City, becoming the second incarnation of the Quebec Remparts.
- The Granby Prédateurs relocated to Sydney, Nova Scotia, becoming the Cape Breton Screaming Eagles, and switched to the Dilio Division.
- The Shawinigan Cataractes switched to the Lebel Division.
- The Victoriaville Tigres switched to the Lebel Division.
Final standings
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; Pts = Points; GF = Goals for; GA = Goals against
| Dilio Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Quebec Remparts | 70 | 46 | 18 | 6 | 98 | 285 | 204 |
| Rimouski Océanic | 70 | 40 | 27 | 3 | 83 | 296 | 257 |
| Chicoutimi Saguenéens | 70 | 36 | 33 | 1 | 73 | 272 | 285 |
| Moncton Wildcats | 70 | 29 | 32 | 9 | 67 | 240 | 229 |
| Halifax Mooseheads | 70 | 24 | 41 | 5 | 53 | 263 | 316 |
| Cape Breton Screaming Eagles | 70 | 19 | 46 | 5 | 43 | 211 | 295 |
| Baie-Comeau Drakkar | 70 | 18 | 47 | 5 | 41 | 215 | 332 |
| Lebel Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rouyn-Noranda Huskies | 70 | 43 | 23 | 4 | 90 | 338 | 245 |
| Victoriaville Tigres | 70 | 40 | 23 | 7 | 87 | 274 | 209 |
| Shawinigan Cataractes | 70 | 40 | 24 | 6 | 86 | 262 | 217 |
| Val-d'Or Foreurs | 70 | 37 | 26 | 7 | 81 | 263 | 228 |
| Laval Titan Collège Français | 70 | 37 | 28 | 5 | 79 | 276 | 220 |
| Hull Olympiques | 70 | 32 | 37 | 1 | 65 | 270 | 268 |
| Sherbrooke Faucons | 70 | 26 | 41 | 3 | 55 | 220 | 273 |
| Drummondville Voltigeurs | 70 | 23 | 44 | 3 | 49 | 221 | 328 |
Scoring leaders
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points; PIM = Penalty minutes
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | PIM |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ramzi Abid | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | 68 | 50 | 85 | 135 | 266 |
| Pierre Dagenais | Rouyn-Noranda Huskies | 60 | 66 | 67 | 133 | 50 |
| Mike Ribeiro | Rouyn-Noranda Huskies | 67 | 40 | 85 | 125 | 55 |
| Mathieu Benoit | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | 59 | 56 | 61 | 117 | 32 |
| Vincent Lecavalier | Rimouski Océanic | 58 | 44 | 71 | 115 | 117 |
| Brad Richards | Rimouski Océanic | 68 | 33 | 82 | 115 | 44 |
| Sebastien Roger | Moncton Wildcats | 70 | 53 | 61 | 114 | 64 |
| David Gosselin | Chicoutimi Saguenéens | 69 | 46 | 64 | 110 | 139 |
| Derrick Walser | Rimouski Océanic | 70 | 41 | 69 | 110 | 135 |
| David Thibeault | Victoriaville Tigres | 70 | 46 | 56 | 102 | 95 |
Playoffs
Jean-Pierre Dumont was the leading scorer of the playoffs with 46 points (31 goals, 15 assists).
- Division quarterfinals
- Quebec Remparts defeated Cape Breton Screaming Eagles 4 games to 0.
- Rimouski Océanic defeated Halifax Mooseheads 4 games to 1.
- Moncton Wildcats defeated Chicoutimi Saguenéens 4 games to 2.
- Hull Olympiques defeated Rouyn-Noranda Huskies 4 games to 2.
- Laval Titan Collège Français defeated Victoriaville Tigres 4 games to 2.
- Val-d'Or Foreurs defeated Shawinigan Cataractes 4 games to 2.
- Division semifinals - Round-robin
Note: GP = Games played; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; PTS = Points; GF = Goals For; GA = Goals Against
| Dilio Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rimouski Océanic | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 6 | 24 | 14 |
| Quebec Remparts | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 16 | 20 |
| Moncton Wildcats | 4 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 11 | 17 |
| Lebel Division | GP | W | L | T | Pts | GF | GA |
| Val-d'Or Foreurs | 4 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 4 | 19 | 17 |
| Laval Titan Collège Français ‡ | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 6 | 16 | 15 |
| Hull Olympiques ‡ | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 18 | 21 |
‡ Laval Titan Collège Français defeated Hull Olympiques in a one-game playoff to determine 2nd place in the round-robin standings.
- Division finals
- Rimouski Océanic defeated Quebec Remparts 4 games to 2.
- Val-d'Or Foreurs defeated Laval Titan Collège Français 4 games to 1.
- League finals
- Val-d'Or Foreurs defeated Rimouski Océanic 4 games to 0.
All-star teams
- First team
- Goaltender - Mathieu Garon, Victoriaville Tigres
- Left defence - Derrick Walser, Rimouski Océanic
- Right defence - Remi Royer, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Left winger - Ramzi Abid, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- Centreman - Vincent Lecavalier, Rimouski Océanic
- Right winger - Mathieu Benoit, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- Coach - Guy Chouinard, Quebec Remparts
- Second team
- Goaltender - Patrick Couture, Quebec Remparts
- Left defence - Alexei Tezikov, Moncton Wildcats
- Right defence - Jonathan Girard, Laval Titan Collège Français
- Left winger - Pierre Dagenais, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Centreman - Mike Ribeiro, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Right winger - Sebastien Roger, Moncton Wildcats
- Coach - Claude Julien, Hull Olympiques
- Rookie team
- Goaltender - Jean-Marc Pelletier, Rimouski Océanic
- Left defence - Alexei Tezikov, Moncton Wildcats
- Right defence - Mathieu Biron, Shawinigan Cataractes
- Left winger - Brad Richards, Rimouski Océanic
- Centreman - Mike Ribeiro, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Right winger - Michael Ryder, Hull Olympiques
- Coach - Christian Larue, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- List of First/Second/Rookie team all-stars.
Trophies and awards
- Team
- President's Cup - Playoff Champions, Val-d'Or Foreurs
- Jean Rougeau Trophy - Regular Season Champions, Quebec Remparts
- Robert Lebel Trophy - Team with best GAA, Quebec Remparts
- Player
- Michel Brière Memorial Trophy - Most Valuable Player, Ramzi Abid, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- Jean Béliveau Trophy - Top Scorer, Ramzi Abid, Chicoutimi Saguenéens
- Guy Lafleur Trophy - Playoff MVP, Jean-Pierre Dumont, Val-d'Or Foreurs
- Telus Cup – Offensive - Offensive Player of the Year, Pierre Dagenais, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Telus Cup – Defensive - Defensive Player of the Year, Mathieu Garon, Victoriaville Tigres
- AutoPro Plaque - Best plus/minus total, David Thibeault, Victoriaville Tigres
- Philips Plaque - Best faceoff percentage, Eric Demers, Victoriaville Tigres
- Jacques Plante Memorial Trophy - Best GAA, Mathieu Garon, Victoriaville Tigres
- Emile Bouchard Trophy - Defenceman of the Year, Derrick Walser, Rimouski Océanic
- Mike Bossy Trophy - Best Pro Prospect, Vincent Lecavalier, Rimouski Océanic
- RDS Cup - Rookie of the Year, Mike Ribeiro, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Michel Bergeron Trophy - Offensive Rookie of the Year, Mike Ribeiro, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Raymond Lagacé Trophy - Defensive Rookie of the Year, Alexei Tezikov, Moncton Wildcats
- Frank J. Selke Memorial Trophy - Most sportsmanlike player, Simon Laliberte, Moncton Wildcats
- QMJHL Humanitarian of the Year - Humanitarian of the Year, David Thibeault, Victoriaville Tigres
- Marcel Robert Trophy - Best Scholastic Player, Michel Tremblay, Shawinigan Cataractes
- Paul Dumont Trophy - Personality of the Year, Mike Ribeiro, Rouyn-Noranda Huskies
- Executive
- Ron Lapointe Trophy - Coach of the Year, Guy Chouinard, Quebec Remparts
- John Horman Trophy - Executive of the Year, Lionel Brochu, Val-d'Or Foreurs
- St-Clair Group Plaque - Marketing Director of the Year, Jeff Rose, Moncton Wildcats