1998–99 Tampa Bay Lightning season

The 1998–99 Tampa Bay Lightning season was the franchise's seventh season of operation in the National Hockey League (NHL). For the third consecutive year, the Lighting were unable to qualify for the playoffs. They also finished in last place for the second consecutive year as well.

1998–99 Tampa Bay Lightning
Division	4th Southeast
Conference	14th Eastern
1998–99 record	19–54–9
Home record	12–25–4
Road record	7–29–5
Goals for	179
Goals against	292
Team information
General manager	Phil Esposito (Oct.) Jacques Demers (Oct.–Apr.)
Coach	Jacques Demers
Captain	Rob Zamuner
Arena	Ice Palace
Average attendance	11,510
Minor league affiliate(s)	Cleveland Lumberjacks Chesapeake Icebreakers
Team leaders
Goals	Wendel Clark (28)
Assists	Darcy Tucker (22)
Points	Darcy Tucker (43)
Penalty minutes	Darcy Tucker (176)
Plus/minus	Andrei Skopintsev (+1)
Wins	Corey Schwab (8)
Goals against average	Corey Schwab (3.52)
← 1997–98 1999–2000 →

Offseason

On the eve of the regular season opener, Mikael Renberg stepped down as team captain and was replaced by Rob Zamuner.^[1]

Regular season

The Lightning again finished last in scoring, with just 179 goals for. They also allowed the most goals of all 27 teams, with 292 goals against.^[2]

All-Star Game

The logo for the All-Star Game.

The 49th National Hockey League All-Star Game took place on January 24, 1999, at the Ice Palace in Tampa Bay, Florida, home to the Tampa Bay Lightning. It would be Wayne Gretzky's last All-Star Game.

Season standings

Southeast Division

R	CR		GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	PIM	Pts
1	3	Carolina Hurricanes	82	34	30	18	210	202	1158	86
2	9	Florida Panthers	82	30	34	18	210	228	1522	78
3	12	Washington Capitals	82	31	45	6	200	218	1381	68
4	14	Tampa Bay Lightning	82	19	54	9	179	292	1316	47

^[3]

Eastern Conference^[4]

R		Div	GP	W	L	T	GF	GA	Pts
1	y – New Jersey Devils	ATL	82	47	24	11	248	196	105
2	y – Ottawa Senators	NE	82	44	23	15	239	179	103
3	y – Carolina Hurricanes	SE	82	34	30	18	210	202	86
4	Toronto Maple Leafs	NE	82	45	30	7	268	231	97
5	Philadelphia Flyers	ATL	82	37	26	19	231	196	93
6	Boston Bruins	NE	82	39	30	13	214	181	91
7	Buffalo Sabres	NE	82	37	28	17	207	175	91
8	Pittsburgh Penguins	ATL	82	38	30	14	242	225	90
9	Florida Panthers	SE	82	30	34	18	210	228	78
10	New York Rangers	ATL	82	33	38	11	217	227	77
11	Montreal Canadiens	NE	82	32	39	11	184	209	75
12	Washington Capitals	SE	82	31	45	6	200	218	68
13	New York Islanders	ATL	82	24	48	10	194	244	58
14	Tampa Bay Lightning	SE	82	19	54	9	179	292	47

Divisions: ATL – Atlantic Division, NE – Northeast Division, SE – Southeast Division

bold – Qualified for playoffs; y – Won division

Schedule and results

1998–99 regular season[5]
October: 4–6–1 (home: 3–3–0; road: 1–3–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 1 L October 9, 1998 1–4 @ Florida Panthers (1998–99) 0–1–0 Recap 2 T October 10, 1998 4–4 OT @ Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99) 0–1–1 Recap 3 L October 14, 1998 0–2 New York Islanders (1998–99) 0–2–1 Recap 4 L October 16, 1998 2–5 Philadelphia Flyers (1998–99) 0–3–1 Recap 5 L October 18, 1998 1–4 Washington Capitals (1998–99) 0–4–1 Recap 6 W October 21, 1998 5–0 Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) 1–4–1 Recap 7 W October 23, 1998 3–2 Los Angeles Kings (1998–99) 2–4–1 Recap 8 W October 25, 1998 3–2 Vancouver Canucks (1998–99) 3–4–1 Recap 9 L October 28, 1998 3–5 @ Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99) 3–5–1 Recap 10 W October 30, 1998 3–0 @ Los Angeles Kings (1998–99) 4–5–1 Recap 11 L October 31, 1998 1–6 @ San Jose Sharks (1998–99) 4–6–1 Recap
November: 2–8–1 (home: 1–5–1; road: 1–3–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 12 W November 4, 1998 5–2 @ Washington Capitals (1998–99) 5–6–1 Recap 13 T November 6, 1998 2–2 OT Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99) 5–6–2 Recap 14 W November 8, 1998 3–1 New Jersey Devils (1998–99) 6–6–2 Recap 15 L November 10, 1998 2–10 New York Rangers (1998–99) 6–7–2 Recap 16 L November 13, 1998 1–8 @ Colorado Avalanche (1998–99) 6–8–2 Recap 17 L November 14, 1998 1–4 @ Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99) 6–9–2 Recap 18 L November 19, 1998 1–5 Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) 6–10–2 Recap 19 L November 21, 1998 2–5 @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) 6–11–2 Recap 20 L November 24, 1998 1–4 Boston Bruins (1998–99) 6–12–2 Recap 21 L November 27, 1998 1–2 Florida Panthers (1998–99) 6–13–2 Recap 22 L November 29, 1998 3–6 Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) 6–14–2 Recap
December: 3–10–1 (home: 1–4–0; road: 2–6–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 23 L December 3, 1998 1–4 @ Calgary Flames (1998–99) 6–15–2 Recap 24 W December 4, 1998 2–1 @ Edmonton Oilers (1998–99) 7–15–2 Recap 25 L December 6, 1998 5–7 @ Chicago Blackhawks (1998–99) 7–16–2 Recap 26 L December 8, 1998 2–4 Ottawa Senators (1998–99) 7–17–2 Recap 27 L December 11, 1998 1–2 Calgary Flames (1998–99) 7–18–2 Recap 28 W December 12, 1998 2–1 OT @ New York Islanders (1998–99) 8–18–2 Recap 29 L December 15, 1998 2–3 OT @ Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) 8–19–2 Recap 30 L December 18, 1998 1–4 Edmonton Oilers (1998–99) 8–20–2 Recap 31 T December 20, 1998 2–2 OT @ Philadelphia Flyers (1998–99) 8–20–3 Recap 32 L December 21, 1998 2–3 @ Boston Bruins (1998–99) 8–21–3 Recap 33 L December 23, 1998 0–2 @ Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) 8–22–3 Recap 34 L December 26, 1998 1–3 Florida Panthers (1998–99) 8–23–3 Recap 35 W December 29, 1998 3–0 New York Islanders (1998–99) 9–23–3 Recap 36 L December 30, 1998 3–4 @ Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99) 9–24–3 Recap
January: 2–9–1 (home: 1–3–0; road: 1–6–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 37 L January 4, 1999 4–5 OT @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1998–99) 9–25–3 Recap 38 L January 7, 1999 1–4 @ Montreal Canadiens (1998–99) 9–26–3 Recap 39 L January 8, 1999 1–5 @ Ottawa Senators (1998–99) 9–27–3 Recap 40 L January 10, 1999 2–5 @ New York Rangers (1998–99) 9–28–3 Recap 41 L January 12, 1999 3–4 Toronto Maple Leafs (1998–99) 9–29–3 Recap 42 L January 15, 1999 1–3 @ New Jersey Devils (1998–99) 9–30–3 Recap 43 T January 16, 1999 2–2 OT @ Boston Bruins (1998–99) 9–30–4 Recap 44 W January 19, 1999 2–1 Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) 10–30–4 Recap 45 W January 21, 1999 3–2 @ Nashville Predators (1998–99) 11–30–4 Recap 46 L January 26, 1999 1–2 Montreal Canadiens (1998–99) 11–31–4 Recap 47 L January 29, 1999 1–4 Dallas Stars (1998–99) 11–32–4 Recap 48 L January 30, 1999 2–6 @ Philadelphia Flyers (1998–99) 11–33–4 Recap
February: 2–8–1 (home: 2–6–0; road: 0–2–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 49 L February 2, 1999 0–3 Toronto Maple Leafs (1998–99) 11–34–4 Recap 50 L February 3, 1999 1–10 @ Washington Capitals (1998–99) 11–35–4 Recap 51 L February 5, 1999 3–5 Mighty Ducks of Anaheim (1998–99) 11–36–4 Recap 52 L February 10, 1999 4–5 St. Louis Blues (1998–99) 11–37–4 Recap 53 L February 13, 1999 1–3 San Jose Sharks (1998–99) 11–38–4 Recap 54 T February 15, 1999 3–3 OT @ New York Islanders (1998–99) 11–38–5 Recap 55 L February 17, 1999 1–7 @ New Jersey Devils (1998–99) 11–39–5 Recap 56 W February 19, 1999 4–2 Phoenix Coyotes (1998–99) 12–39–5 Recap 57 L February 20, 1999 2–3 Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99) 12–40–5 Recap 58 L February 22, 1999 2–3 New Jersey Devils (1998–99) 12–41–5 Recap 59 W February 26, 1999 4–1 Philadelphia Flyers (1998–99) 13–41–5 Recap
March: 4–9–1 (home: 2–4–0; road: 2–5–1) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 60 L March 2, 1999 2–8 Washington Capitals (1998–99) 13–42–5 Recap 61 W March 4, 1999 2–1 Colorado Avalanche (1998–99) 14–42–5 Recap 62 W March 6, 1999 6–1 @ Montreal Canadiens (1998–99) 15–42–5 Recap 63 L March 8, 1999 3–9 @ Ottawa Senators (1998–99) 15–43–5 Recap 64 L March 9, 1999 1–6 @ Toronto Maple Leafs (1998–99) 15–44–5 Recap 65 W March 11, 1999 5–2 @ Buffalo Sabres (1998–99) 16–44–5 Recap 66 L March 13, 1999 0–1 @ Florida Panthers (1998–99) 16–45–5 Recap 67 L March 17, 1999 0–2 Pittsburgh Penguins (1998–99) 16–46–5 Recap 68 L March 19, 1999 3–5 Detroit Red Wings (1998–99) 16–47–5 Recap 69 W March 22, 1999 6–3 New York Rangers (1998–99) 17–47–5 Recap 70 L March 24, 1999 0–3 Nashville Predators (1998–99) 17–48–5 Recap 71 L March 26, 1999 1–6 @ Detroit Red Wings (1998–99) 17–49–5 Recap 72 T March 28, 1999 3–3 OT @ Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99) 17–49–6 Recap 73 L March 31, 1999 4–6 @ Dallas Stars (1998–99) 17–50–6 Recap
April: 2–4–3 (home: 2–0–3; road: 0–4–0) Game Result Date Score Opponent Record Recap 74 L April 1, 1999 0–3 @ St. Louis Blues (1998–99) 17–51–6 Recap 75 W April 3, 1999 4–3 Washington Capitals (1998–99) 18–51–6 Recap 76 T April 5, 1999 4–4 OT Ottawa Senators (1998–99) 18–51–7 Recap 77 W April 8, 1999 3–0 Boston Bruins (1998–99) 19–51–7 Recap 78 L April 10, 1999 2–3 @ Boston Bruins (1998–99) 19–52–7 Recap 79 L April 12, 1999 1–2 @ New York Rangers (1998–99) 19–53–7 Recap 80 T April 13, 1999 2–2 OT Montreal Canadiens (1998–99) 19–53–8 Recap 81 T April 16, 1999 2–2 OT Carolina Hurricanes (1998–99) 19–53–9 Recap 82 L April 17, 1999 2–6 @ Florida Panthers (1998–99) 19–54–9 Recap
Legend:   Win (2 points)   Loss (0 points)   Tie (1 point)

Player statistics

Scoring

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

No.	Player	Pos	Regular season
			GP	G	A	Pts	+/-	PIM
16	Darcy Tucker	RW	82	21	22	43	−34	176
17	Wendel Clark‡	LW	65	28	14	42	−25	35
44	Stephane Richer	RW	64	12	21	33	−10	22
8	Vincent Lecavalier	C	82	13	15	28	−19	23
77[a]	Chris Gratton†	C	52	7	19	26	−20	102
33	Benoit Hogue‡	C	62	11	14	25	−12	50
21	Craig Janney‡	C	38	4	18	22	−13	10
13[b]	Pavel Kubina	D	68	9	12	21	−33	80
7	Rob Zamuner	LW	58	8	11	19	−15	24
61[c]	Alexander Selivanov‡	RW	43	6	13	19	−8	18
4	Cory Cross	D	67	2	16	18	−25	92
5	Jassen Cullimore	D	78	5	12	17	−22	81
23	Petr Svoboda†	D	34	1	16	17	−4	53
21	Alexandre Daigle†	C	32	6	6	12	−12	2
10	Sandy McCarthy‡	RW	67	5	7	12	−22	135
20	Mikael Renberg‡	RW	20	4	8	12	−2	4
26[d]	Mike Sillinger†	C	54	8	2	10	−20	28
18	Daymond Langkow‡	C	22	4	6	10	0	15
9[e]	Michael Nylander†	C	24	2	7	9	−10	6
49[f]	David Wilkie	D	46	1	7	8	−19	69
14	Robert Petrovicky†	C	28	3	4	7	−8	6
2	Mike McBain	D	37	0	6	6	−11	14
34	Mikael Andersson‡	LW	40	2	3	5	−8	4
28	Kjell Samuelsson†	D	46	1	4	5	−6	38
27	Colin Forbes†	C	14	3	1	4	−5	10
11	Steve Kelly	C	34	1	3	4	−15	27
32	Corey Schwab	G	40	0	4	4		4
14	Karl Dykhuis‡	D	33	2	1	3	−21	18
27[g]	Brent Peterson‡	LW	20	2	1	3	−2	0
55	Drew Bannister†	D	21	1	2	3	−4	24
23	Michal Sykora	D	10	1	2	3	−7	0
64	Jason Bonsignore	C	23	0	3	3	−4	8
3	Sergey Gusev†	D	14	0	3	3	−8	10
62	Andrei Nazarov‡	LW	26	2	0	2	−5	43
39	Enrico Ciccone‡	D	16	1	1	2	−1	24
22	Paul Mara	D	1	1	1	2	−3	0
46	Andrei Skopintsev	D	19	1	1	2	1	10
6	Karel Betik	D	3	0	2	2	−3	2
3	Sami Helenius†‡	D	4	1	0	1	−3	15
93	Daren Puppa	G	13	0	1	1		0
20	Corey Spring	RW	8	0	1	1	0	2
15	Paul Ysebaert	C	10	0	1	1	−5	2
1	Zac Bierk	G	1	0	0	0		0
12	John Cullen‡	C	4	0	0	0	−2	2
43	Xavier Delisle	C	2	0	0	0	0	0
31	Kevin Hodson†	G	5	0	0	0		0
71	Mario Larocque	D	5	0	0	0	−4	16
30	Bill Ranford‡	G	32	0	0	0		2
35	Derek Wilkinson	G	5	0	0	0		0

Goaltending

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

No.	Player	Regular season
		GP	W	L	T	SA	GA	GAA	SV%	SO	TOI
32	Corey Schwab	40	8	25	3	1153	126	3.52	.891	0	2146
93	Daren Puppa	13	5	6	1	350	33	2.87	.906	2	691
30	Bill Ranford‡	32	3	18	3	858	102	3.90	.881	1	1568
31	Kevin Hodson†	5	2	1	1	118	11	2.77	.907	0	238
35	Derek Wilkinson	5	1	3	1	128	13	3.08	.898	0	253
1	Zac Bierk	1	0	1	0	21	2	2.03	.905	0	59

Awards and records

Awards

Type	Award/honor	Recipient	Ref
League (annual)	Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy	John Cullen	[6]
League (in-season)	NHL All-Star Game selection	Wendel Clark	[7]
	NHL Rookie of the Month	Vincent Lecavalier (February)	[8]

Milestones

Milestone	Player	Date	Ref
First game	Vincent Lecavalier	October 9, 1998	[9]
	Andrei Skopintsev	November 19, 1998
	Mario Larocque	January 7, 1999
	Xavier Delisle	February 13, 1999
	Karel Betik	February 15, 1999
	Paul Mara	April 17, 1999

Draft picks

Tampa Bay's draft picks at the 1998 NHL Entry Draft held at the Marine Midland Arena in Buffalo, New York.^[10]

Round	#	Player	Nationality	College/Junior/Club team (League)
1	1	Vincent Lecavalier	Canada	Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
3	64	Brad Richards	Canada	Rimouski Oceanic (QMJHL)
3	72	Dmitri Afanasenkov	Russia	Torpedo Yaroslavl (Russia)
4	92	Eric Beaudoin	Canada	Guelph Storm (OHL)
5	121	Curtis Rich	Canada	Calgary Hitmen (WHL)
6	146	Sergei Kuznetsov	Russia	Torpedo-2 Yaroslavl (Russia)
7	174	Brett Allan	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
7	194	Oak Hewer	Canada	North Bay Centennials (OHL)
8	221	Daniel Hulak	Canada	Swift Current Broncos (WHL)
9	229	Chris Lyness	Canada	Cape Breton Screaming Eagles (QMJHL)

Notes

1. Gratton wore number 20 in his first two games.
2. Kubina wore number 3 in his first game.
3. Selivanov wore number 29 through December 8.
4. Sillinger wore number 18 in his first game.
5. Nylander wore number 25 in his first game.
6. Wilkie wore number 6 through January 21.
7. Peterson wore number 47 through January 21.

References

• "Tampa Bay Lightning 1998-99 roster and scoring statistics at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
• "1998-99 Tampa Bay Lightning Roster, Stats, Injuries, Scores, Results, Shootouts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
• Dinger, Ralph, ed. (2011). The National Hockey League Official Guide & Record Book 2012. Toronto: Dan Diamond & Associates. ISBN 978-1-894801-22-5.

1. Jones, Tom (October 9, 1998). "Zamuner steps in as captain". Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved July 3, 2023.
2. "1998-99 NHL Summary".
3. Dinger 2011, p. 155.
4. "1998-1999 Conference Standings Standings - NHL.com - Standings". NHL.
5. "1998-99 Tampa Bay Lightning Schedule". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved June 17, 2023.
6. "Bill Masterton Memorial Trophy". records.nhl.com. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
7. "1999 NHL All-Star Game Rosters". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved August 29, 2024.
8. "Lecavalier is top NHL rookie in February - UPI Archives". UPI. March 2, 1999. Retrieved June 27, 2023.
9. "1998-99 NHL Debuts". Hockey-Reference.com. Retrieved October 9, 2024.
10. "1998 NHL Entry Draft Picks at hockeydb.com". www.hockeydb.com. Retrieved June 28, 2023.