1996–97 Eliteserien (Denmark) season
The 1996–97 Herning IK won the championship.
First round
| Club | GP | W | T | L | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Herning IK |
27 | 18 | 3 | 6 | 144 | 74 | 39 |
| 2. | Esbjerg IK | 27 | 17 | 1 | 9 | 134 | 103 | 35 |
| 3. | Rungsted IK |
27 | 16 | 2 | 9 | 135 | 98 | 34 |
| 4. | Vojens IK |
27 | 16 | 2 | 9 | 131 | 107 | 34 |
| 5. | Rødovre Mighty Bulls | 27 | 11 | 7 | 9 | 100 | 99 | 29 |
| 6. | Hvidovre Ishockey |
27 | 13 | 2 | 12 | 94 | 96 | 28 |
| 7. | IC Gentofte |
27 | 11 | 2 | 14 | 121 | 137 | 24 |
| 8. | AaB Ishockey |
27 | 10 | 1 | 16 | 82 | 128 | 21 |
| 9. | Frederikshavn White Hawks | 27 | 8 | 2 | 17 | 92 | 121 | 18 |
| 10. | Odense Bulldogs | 27 | 4 | 0 | 23 | 75 | 145 | 8 |
Final round
| Club | GP | W | T | L | GF | GA | Pts | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Herning IK |
15 | 12 | 1 | 2 | 94 | 36 | 25 |
| 2. | Vojens IK |
15 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 67 | 72 | 19 |
| 3. | Esbjerg IK | 15 | 8 | 2 | 5 | 82 | 57 | 18 |
| 4. | Rungsted IK |
15 | 6 | 1 | 8 | 86 | 70 | 13 |
| 5. | Rødovre Mighty Bulls | 15 | 4 | 0 | 11 | 60 | 91 | 8 |
| 6. | Hvidovre Ishockey |
15 | 3 | 1 | 11 | 46 | 91 | 7 |
Relegation round
| Club | GP | W | T | L | GF | GA | Pts (Bonus) | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | IC Gentofte |
14 | 12 | 0 | 2 | 97 | 37 | 27(3) |
| 2. | Frederikshavn White Hawks | 14 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 90 | 34 | 24(1) |
| 3. | Odense Bulldogs | 14 | 11 | 1 | 2 | 85 | 42 | 23(0) |
| 4. | AaB Ishockey |
14 | 10 | 0 | 4 | 84 | 41 | 22(2) |
| 5. | KSF Copenhagen |
14 | 4 | 1 | 9 | 41 | 71 | 12(3) |
| 6. | IK Århus | 14 | 3 | 2 | 9 | 55 | 117 | 8(0) |
| 7. | Gladsaxe SF | 14 | 2 | 0 | 12 | 37 | 83 | 6(2) |
| 8. | Herlev Hornets |
14 | 1 | 1 | 12 | 36 | 99 | 4(1) |
Playoffs
| Quarter-finals | Semi-finals | Final | ||||||||
Herning IK | 3 | |||||||||
| Frederikshavn White Hawks | 0 | |||||||||
| Herning IK | 3 | |||||||||
| IC Gentofte | 0 | |||||||||
IC Gentofte | 3 | |||||||||
| Herning IK | 4 | |||||||||
| Esbjerg IK | 0 | |||||||||
Hvidovre Ishockey | 0 | |||||||||
| Esbjerg IK | 3 | |||||||||
| Rungsted IK | 1 | Third place | ||||||||
Rungsted IK | 3 | |||||||||
| Rødovre Mighty Bulls | 1 | |||||||||
| Rungsted IK | 2 | |||||||||
| IC Gentofte | 0 | |||||||||