1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season

The 1997–98 Pittsburgh Penguins season was the team's 31st in the National Hockey League (NHL). It was their first season under Head Coach Kevin Constantine and first after the initial retirement of Mario Lemieux.

Offseason
Following the 1996–97 season which saw their Hall of Fame star Mario Lemieux retire, the Penguins attempted to continue keeping their recent success. Over the previous nine seasons, no NHL team had been more successful than Pittsburgh in terms of regular season points, although the team had not won a Stanley Cup since 1992 (part of the reason why Head Coach Eddie Johnston was asked to resign down following the 1996–97 season). Former San Jose Sharks Head Coach Kevin Constantine was hired as Johnston's successor, promising to replace his predecessor's free-form style of play with a more disciplined approach. Additionally, Ron Francis was named captain in Lemieux's absence, and the team acquired center Martin Straka via free agency to add offense. The team also acquired the rights to defensive-defenseman Jiri Slegr, who had spent the 1996–97 season playing for Sodertalje SK in Sweden.

Regular season
The Penguins tied the Chicago Blackhawks, Florida Panthers and New York Islanders for most short-handed goals allowed, with 16.

Regular season

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 * Legend:      = Win       = Loss       = Tie

Playoffs

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 * Legend:      = Win       = Loss

Player statistics

 * Skaters

†Denotes player spent time with another team before joining the Penguins. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.
 * Goaltenders

‡Denotes player was traded mid-season. Stats reflect time with the Penguins only.

Transactions
The Penguins have been involved in the following transactions during the 1997–98 season:

Draft picks
The Penguins drafted the following players at the 1997 NHL Entry Draft at the Civic Arena in Pittsburgh:

Farm teams
The Johnstown Chiefs of the East Coast Hockey League finished last overall in the Northern Conference with a record of 23–41–6.

The American Hockey League (AHL)'s Syracuse Crunch finished in third place in the Empire State Division with a record of 35–32–11–2 record. They were eliminated by the Hamilton Bulldogs in the first round of the playoffs.