| 1999–2000 NHL season | |
| League: | National Hockey League |
| Sport: | Ice hockey |
| Pixels: | 200px |
| Duration: | October 1, 1999 – June 10, 2000 |
| Draft: | Draft |
| Draft Link: | 1999 NHL Entry Draft |
| Top Pick Link: | List of first overall NHL draft picks |
| Picked By: | Atlanta Thrashers |
| Season: | Regular season |
| Season Champ Name: | Presidents' Trophy |
| Season Champs: | St. Louis Blues |
| Mvp: | Chris Pronger (Blues) |
| Mvp Link: | Hart Memorial Trophy |
| Top Scorer: | Jaromir Jagr (Penguins) |
| Top Scorer Link: | Art Ross Trophy |
| Playoffs: | Playoffs |
| Playoffs Link: | 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs |
| Finals: | Stanley Cup |
| Finals Link: | 2000 Stanley Cup Finals |
| Finals Champ: | New Jersey Devils |
| Finals Runner-Up: | Dallas Stars |
| Playoffs Mvp: | Scott Stevens (Devils) |
| Playoffs Mvp Link: | Conn Smythe Trophy |
| Nextseason Year: | 2000–01 |
| Prevseason Year: | 1998–99 |
| Seasonslistnames: | NHL |
| No Of Games: | 82 |
| No Of Teams: | 28 |
| Tv: | CBC, CTV Sportsnet, SRC (Canada) ESPN/ABC (United States) |
The 1999–2000 NHL season was the 83rd regular season of the National Hockey League. With the addition of the expansion Atlanta Thrashers, 28 teams each played 82 games. This was the first season played in which teams were awarded a point for an overtime loss. The New Jersey Devils defeated the defending champion Dallas Stars for their second Stanley Cup championship. During the regular season, no player reached the 100-point plateau, the first time in a non-lockout season since the 1967–68 season. Also, in the 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs, the New Jersey Devils overcame a three-games-to-one deficit against the Philadelphia Flyers to win the Eastern Conference Finals.
The 1999–2000 season was the inaugural year for the Atlanta Thrashers. They would join the Southeast Division, marking the return of the NHL to Atlanta since the Atlanta Flames moved to Calgary in 1980. The 1999 NHL expansion draft was held on June 25 to fill the new Thrashers roster.
The 1999 NHL Entry Draft was held on June 26 at the FleetCenter in Boston. Patrik Stefan was selected first overall by the expansion Atlanta Thrashers.
The All-Star Game was held on February 6, 2000, at Air Canada Centre in Toronto, the home to the Toronto Maple Leafs.
See main article: article and 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs.
In each round, teams competed in a best-of-seven series following a 2–2–1–1–1 format (scores in the bracket indicate the number of games won in each best-of-seven series). The team with home ice advantage played at home for games one and two (and games five and seven, if necessary), and the other team played at home for games three and four (and game six, if necessary). The top eight teams in each conference made the playoffs, with the three division winners seeded 1–3 based on regular season record, and the five remaining teams seeded 4–8.
The NHL used "re-seeding" instead of a fixed bracket playoff system. During the first three rounds, the highest remaining seed in each conference was matched against the lowest remaining seed, the second-highest remaining seed played the second-lowest remaining seed, and so forth. The higher-seeded team was awarded home ice advantage. The two conference winners then advanced to the Stanley Cup Finals, where home ice advantage was awarded to the team that had the better regular season record.
The Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award was introduced this season for the goaltender with the best save percentage.
| Award | Recipient(s) | Runner(s)-up/Finalists | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dallas Stars | |||
| Presidents' Trophy (Best regular-season record) | Detroit Red Wings | ||
| Prince of Wales Trophy (Eastern Conference playoff champion) | Philadelphia Flyers | ||
| Clarence S. Campbell Bowl (Western Conference playoff champion) | Colorado Avalanche | ||
| Art Ross Trophy (Player with most points) | Jaromir Jagr (Pittsburgh Penguins) | Pavel Bure (Florida Panthers) | |
| Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy (Perseverance, Sportsmanship, and Dedication) | Ken Daneyko (New Jersey Devils) | N/A | |
| Bud Light Plus-Minus Award (Best plus-minus statistic) | Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | Chris Chelios (Detroit Red Wings) | |
| Calder Memorial Trophy (Best first-year player) | Scott Gomez (New Jersey Devils) | Scott Gomez (New Jersey Devils) Brad Stuart (San Jose Sharks) Mike York (New York Rangers) | |
| Conn Smythe Trophy (Most valuable player, playoffs) | Scott Stevens (New Jersey Devils) | N/A | |
| Frank J. Selke Trophy (Defensive forward) | Steve Yzerman (Detroit Red Wings) | Michal Handzus (St. Louis Blues) Mike Ricci (San Jose Sharks) Steve Yzerman (Detroit Red Wings) | |
| Hart Memorial Trophy (Most valuable player, regular season) | Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | Pavel Bure (Florida Panthers) Jaromir Jagr (Pittsburgh Penguins) Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | |
| Jack Adams Award (Best coach) | Joel Quenneville (St. Louis Blues) | Joel Quenneville (St. Louis Blues) Alain Vigneault (Montreal Canadiens) Ron Wilson (Washington Capitals) | |
| James Norris Memorial Trophy (Best defenceman) | Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | Rob Blake (Los Angeles Kings) Nicklas Lidstrom (Detroit Red Wings) Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | |
| King Clancy Memorial Trophy (Leadership and humanitarian contribution) | Curtis Joseph (Toronto Maple Leafs) | N/A | |
| Lady Byng Memorial Trophy (Sportsmanship and excellence) | Pavol Demitra (St. Louis Blues) | Pavol Demitra (St. Louis Blues) Nicklas Lidstrom (Detroit Red Wings) Teemu Selanne (Mighty Ducks of Anaheim) | |
| Lester B. Pearson Award (Outstanding player) | Jaromir Jagr (Pittsburgh Penguins) | N/A | |
| Maurice "Rocket" Richard Trophy (Top goal-scorer) | Pavel Bure (Florida Panthers) | Owen Nolan (San Jose Sharks) | |
| NHL Foundation Player Award (Award for community enrichment) | Adam Graves (New York Rangers) | N/A | |
| NHL Plus-Minus Award (Player with the best plus-minus) | Chris Pronger (St. Louis Blues) | Chris Chelios (Detroit Red Wings) | |
| Roger Crozier Saving Grace Award (Best save percentage) | Ed Belfour (Dallas Stars) | Jose Theodore (Montreal Canadiens) Dominik Hasek (Buffalo Sabres) | |
| Vezina Trophy (Best goaltender) | Olaf Kolzig (Washington Capitals) | Curtis Joseph (Toronto Maple Leafs) Olaf Kolzig (Washington Capitals) Roman Turek (St. Louis Blues) | |
| William M. Jennings Trophy (Goaltender(s) of team with fewest goals against) | Roman Turek (St. Louis Blues) | N/A |
| First team | Position | Second team | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olaf Kolzig, Washington Capitals | align=center | G | Roman Turek, St. Louis Blues |
| Chris Pronger, St. Louis Blues | align=center | D | Rob Blake, Los Angeles Kings |
| Nicklas Lidstrom, Detroit Red Wings | align=center | D | Eric Desjardins, Philadelphia Flyers |
| Steve Yzerman, Detroit Red Wings | align=center | C | Mike Modano, Dallas Stars |
| Jaromir Jagr, Pittsburgh Penguins | align=center | RW | Pavel Bure, Florida Panthers |
| Brendan Shanahan, Detroit Red Wings | align=center | LW | Paul Kariya, Mighty Ducks of Anaheim |
Note: GP = Games played; G = Goals; A = Assists; Pts = Points
| Player | Team | GP | G | A | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pittsburgh Penguins | 63 | 42 | 54 | 96 | ||
| Florida Panthers | 74 | 58 | 36 | 94 | ||
| Philadelphia Flyers | 82 | 28 | 63 | 91 | ||
| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 74 | 42 | 44 | 86 | ||
| Mighty Ducks of Anaheim | 79 | 33 | 52 | 85 | ||
| San Jose Sharks | 78 | 44 | 40 | 84 | ||
| Chicago Blackhawks | 82 | 43 | 41 | 84 | ||
| Dallas Stars | 77 | 38 | 43 | 81 | ||
| Colorado Avalanche | 60 | 28 | 53 | 81 | ||
| Detroit Red Wings | 78 | 35 | 44 | 79 |
Note: GP = Games played; Min = Minutes played; GA = Goals against; GAA = Goals against average; W = Wins; L = Losses; T = Ties; SO = Shutouts; SV% = Save percentage
| Player | Team | GP | MIN | GA | GAA | W | L | T | SO | SV% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Philadelphia Flyers | 35 | 2038 | 65 | 1.91 | 20 | 10 | 3 | 4 | .903 | |
| St. Louis Blues | 67 | 3960 | 129 | 1.95 | 42 | 15 | 9 | 7 | .912 | |
| Dallas Stars | 62 | 3620 | 127 | 2.10 | 32 | 21 | 7 | 4 | .919 | |
| Montreal Canadiens | 30 | 1655 | 58 | 2.10 | 12 | 13 | 2 | 5 | .919 | |
| Philadelphia Flyers | 50 | 2950 | 108 | 2.20 | 25 | 15 | 9 | 3 | .906 | |
| Buffalo Sabres | 35 | 2066 | 76 | 2.21 | 15 | 11 | 6 | 3 | .919 | |
| New Jersey Devils | 72 | 4312 | 161 | 2.24 | 43 | 20 | 8 | 6 | .910 | |
| Colorado Avalanche | 63 | 3704 | 141 | 2.28 | 32 | 21 | 8 | 2 | .914 | |
| Edmonton Oilers | 70 | 4164 | 162 | 2.33 | 27 | 28 | 13 | 2 | .914 | |
| Ottawa Senators | 38 | 2038 | 79 | 2.33 | 19 | 14 | 3 | 3 | .905 | |
The following is a list of players of note who played their first NHL game in 1999–2000 (listed with their first team, an asterisk(*) marks debut in playoffs):
The following is a list of players of note that played their last game in the NHL in 1999–2000 (listed with their last team):
This was the second season of the league's Canadian national broadcast rights deals with CBC and CTV Sportsnet. CBC aired Saturday night Hockey Night in Canada regular season games, while CTV Sportsnet's telecasts included Tuesday Night Hockey and other weeknight games. Coverage of the Stanley Cup playoffs continued to primarily be on CBC, while CTV Sportsnet aired first round all-U.S. series.
This was the first year of the league's five-year U.S. national broadcast rights deal with ESPN and ABC. Much like ABC's initial contract with the NHL in the 1992–93 and 1993–94 seasons, ESPN essentially purchased time on ABC to air selected NHL games on ist sister broadcast network. This was noted in copyright tags at the conclusion of the telecasts (i.e., "The preceding program has been paid for by ESPN, Inc."). ESPN later signed a similar television rights contract with the National Basketball Association in 2002, allowing it to produce and broadcast NBA games on ABC under a similar time buy arrangement on the broadcast network.[10] ABC's terms of this deal included four to five weeks worth of regional games on selected Saturday afternoons,[11] [12] typically between beginning in January or March for the first two seasons. ABC also had the All-Star Game. ESPN and ESPN2 continued to air weeknight games throughout the regular season. During the first two rounds of the playoffs, ESPN and ESPN2 aired selected games, while ABC had weekend regional telecasts. Each U.S. team's regional broadcaster produced local coverage of first and second round games (except for those games on ABC). ABC's weekend telecasts continued into the Conference Finals, while ESPN had the rest of the third round games. ESPN then aired the first two games of the Stanley Cup Finals before the rest of the series shifted to ABC.