As I sat around the other day, feeling utterly bored, I decided that it would be cool to look up all the great hockey players never to win the Stanley Cup. The same names kept coming up–Marcel Dionne, Gil Perrault, Adam Oates, etc. Then I realized that all of these players were ones that were retired, and can never win a Stanley cup. Which led me to the question of who are the best active players without a Stanley Cup ring?
Then I asked myself this: “If I had to pick a group of players that had never won a Stanley Cup Championship, and put them on a roster together, which ones would I choose?”
Here were my rules for establishing this hypothetical roster:
No player on the roster can have won a Stanley Cup (duh!).
The roster consists of 4 centers, 8 left/right wingers, 6 defensemen and 2 goalies.
Each skater on the team has to have played in at least 500 NHL games. Each goalie has to have played in at least 300 games.
Each player has to have played at least one game in the NHL in the 2006-2007 season.
Here’s what I came up with:
**Centers: **
Trevor Linden– “Captain Cunuck,” as he is commonly referred to by his fans, has played in 1319 games over his career, making the finals once, captaining the Cunucks to their Cinderella story trip to face the Rangers in the 1993-94 season.
Pierre Turgeon–The 34th player to score 500 goals and a 1000-point scorer, Tugeon has proven his capabilities, yet has never reached the Stanley cup finals.
Jeremy Roenick–Roenick is a 1000-point scorer, but has never gotten the Stanley. Rumors abound that he will retire after this year. If he does retire, he will be retiring 8 goals away from the 500 mark.
** Mats Sundin**–the 1st overall pick in the 1989 draft has reached the 500 goal mark and the 1000 point mark, yet has never lifted the Stanley cup over his head.
Wingers:
Scott Mellanby–With 1429 games and counting, Mellanby has earned a date with Stanley for a long time. He’s gone to the finals once with the Flyers, and he currently plays for the Atlanta Thrashers, a solid Stanley Cup contender this year.
Teemu Selänne–The player who exploded onto the NHL season in his rookie season has since broken the 500 goal barrier and the 1000 point barrier, with no Stanley Cup.
Paul Kariya- Despite having a distinguished career as one of the best snipers in the NHL, Paul Kariya has not won the Stanley Cup (yet).
Keith Tkachuk–Provided he stays for a few more years, Tkachuk is a sure-fire 500 goal scorer and 1000 point scorer, and is still chasing his first Stanley Cup ring.
Owen Nolan–A prototypical power-forward, Owen Nolan has been an injury-plagued player his entire career (twice missing entire seasons because of injuries). However, he has still managed 987 games with 365 goals and 773 points.
Marián Hossa—An admitted superstar, Marian Hossa is bound to win a Stanley Cup at some point in his career. Better sooner than later.
Markus Näslund–Ever since the 1998-99 season, this man has become a scoring machine and is on track to overtake all Canuck franchise scoring records. But he still needs that first Stanley cup.
Jarome Iginla–A career Calgary Flame, Iginla has made one Stanley Cup final, losing to Tampa Bay. He has become a consistent goal-scorer, not scoring blow 30 goals since 2000. He is also a locker room influence, becoming his team’s captain in 2003, and keeping hold on it ever since. Still no cup, however.
Defensemen:
Ed Jovanovski–An all-star defenseman, Jovanovski has won Olympic gold, but still doesn’t have that Stanley cup ring.
Bryan Berard–Coming back from a debilitating eye injury early in his career, Bryan Berard has managed career highs in goals and points in the last several years. That’s reason enough to give him a spot on this roster.
Chris Pronger–A Hart and Norris trophy winner and an Olympic gold medalist, Chris Pronger is still chasing that Stanley Cup.
** Derek Morris**–A well-rounded defenseman who manages to score well enough, but still plays his position. He has only played in seven playoff games in his entire career.
Teppo Numminen–Having a 1311-game career, Teppo Numminen has done his part to earn himself a Stanley Cup ring.
Luke Richardson–with 1339 games played, this man has never reached the Stanley Cup finals. While never being an offensive threat (he’s scored 33 goals throughout his career), he has played the part of a defenseman as a tough blue-liner and a stay-at home player. He’s a utility player, but a durable one, and he certainly deserves recognition for that.
Goalies:
Curtis Joseph– 5th all-time in wins by a goaltender, and no Stanley cups. While he may be a sure-fire Hall-of-Famer, a Stanley Cup ring would still be nice.
Olaf Kolzig–Playing his entire 655-game career with the Washington Capitals, Kolzig has managed an excellent goaltending career, and still needs his first Stanley Cup Championship.
So, comment on mine, or come up with your own, let the thread begin!
Moderators, if this thread doesn’t belong in this forum, please move it.[ul]
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