Players who played forever but didn't hit the 1000 NHL games mark?

[DropTheGloves]

Sean Hill is kind of a funny case- made his NHL debut for Montreal in the 1990-91 playoffs, then played four more games in the 1992 playoffs... but didn’t actually see a regular season game until October 1992. From then on he “only” played 876 games, retiring in 2008. Depending on where you start the clock from, he either did it over 16 seasons or 18.

 

[Albatros]

Dallas Eakins spent 10 years in the league, playing 120 games.

 

[The Panther]

Dallas Eakins spent 10 years in the league, playing 120 games.

By coincidence, he also spent a year and a half coaching, trying to get to 12 wins.

 

[DJ Man]

If I have this correct, Ted Lindsay, after a long and productive career, retired with 999 games played. This enabled Gordie Howe to become the first to play 1,000. Lindsay made a one-season comeback after a few years, and only then topped 1,000 himself.

 

[frisco]

Peter Forsberg. 13 seasons and 709 GP. Plus, I think there's a rule that Forsberg has to be mentioned in every thread in the History Of Hockey section of the board so I may as well be the one to do so.

Rob Ray was around forever but only got to 900 GP.

My Best-Carey

 

[K Fleur]

Peter Forsberg. 13 seasons and 709 GP. Plus, I think there's a rule that Forsberg has to be mentioned in every thread in the History Of Hockey section of the board so I may as well be the one to do so.

Rob Ray was around forever but only got to 900 GP.

My Best-Carey

Uuuuh this rule clearly applies to every section of HF, not just HOH

 

[CaptBrannigan]

Peter Forsberg. 13 seasons and 709 GP. Plus, I think there's a rule that Forsberg has to be mentioned in every thread in the History Of Hockey section of the board so I may as well be the one to do so.

Rob Ray was around forever but only got to 900 GP.

My Best-Carey

You know, that actually touches on something quite interesting, like a rating of how interesting a career was. Forsberg fits into so many categories and topics because he was a standout star, the retirements and returns, inclusion in a big trade...etc. There were a ton of high importance or otherwise meaningful moments in his career so a lot of conversations can include him.

 

[double5son10]

Rick Green 845gp in 15 seasons

 

[Dread Clawz]

It seemed like Dana Murzyn was around forever, but he only played 838 games.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Rick Green 845gp in 15 seasons

It seemed like Dana Murzyn was around forever, but he only played 838 games.

good ones. it seems like there are a lot of 80s/90s dmen that fit this, including jj daigneault and michel petit, whom i mentioned upthread.

bruce driver is another one, bryan marchment, gerald diduck, curt giles... i would have sworn they all would have hit 1,000.

 

[Voight]

Rick DiPietro; first game in 2000, last game in 2013.

In those 13 years (11 seasons) he played 318 games.

& for someone who basically never missed a game, it always surprised me Doug Jarvis finished 36 games short of 1,000.

 

[frisco]

Mark Howe didn't get to 1000 NHL games. He did have over 400 WHA contests before he started his NHL career. J.C. Tremblay is another WHA guy that would've gone over a thousand had he not gone to the rival league.

My Best-Carey

 

[Voight]

Brian Skrudland finished about 120 games short. I believe thats mainly due to his body breaking down near the end tho.

 

[SealsFan]

Bob Bassen, 15 seasons, 765 games

Brad May just cleared 1,000 in 18 seasons with 1,041

 

[seventieslord]

Bob Bassen, 15 seasons, 765 games

Brad May just cleared 1,000 in 18 seasons with 1,041

Whenever I think of Bassen, I think of the "Bob Bassen on bad teams", Mike Eagles.

16 seasons, 853 games.

 

[NyQuil]

Good old Kelly Kisio - 13 seasons, 761 GP.

 

[Nick Hansen]

Steve Larmer was as durable as they come with eleven (11) straight seasons with all games played but barely hit 1000 with his 1006 games. It's somewhat surprising looking back. He broke into the league a little late at 21 as a regular but really only missed a few games at the tail end of his career with the NYR quitting at 34. I guess it only reinforces what a tremendous achievement it is to reach a 1000 NHL games.

Steve Larmer at eliteprospects.com

 

[The Panther]

Thomas Steen, for me, fits both "played longer than I thought" and "didn't hit the 1000 NHL games mark". This is because I first became aware of him when I was about 9, in 1985, and then nine or ten years later when I was at university I went to a Flames / Jets game and he was playing. My first thought was, "That's not the same 'Steen', is it?" Somehow, I had thought he was long gone. But it was still him. So, he played longer than I thought. But he reached only 950 games (though he also had 56 playoff games, so I guess it's actually 1006 total games).

 

[scott clam]

Bob Probert(935). Tie Domi just makes the mark in his last season, finishing with 1020.

 

[Nerowoy nora tolad]

Steve Larmer was as durable as they come with eleven (11) straight seasons with all games played but barely hit 1000 with his 1006 games. It's somewhat surprising looking back. He broke into the league a little late at 21 as a regular but really only missed a few games at the tail end of his career with the NYR quitting at 34. I guess it only reinforces what a tremendous achievement it is to reach a 1000 NHL games.

Steve Larmer at eliteprospects.com

Youd think he could have tacked on another 10 years if he had really wanted to in the 1995-2004 period as a gritty veteran

 

[Dingo]

Foppaloppadingdong played for 16 calendar years, 708 games.

The Big E played 14 years for 760.

Russian Rocket 11 for 702.

Markov 16 for 990

Sami Salo 15 for 875.

Kariya 15 for 989.

 

[Dread Clawz]

Foppaloppadingdong played for 16 calendar years, 708 games.

The Big E played 14 years for 760.

Russian Rocket 11 for 702.

Markov 16 for 990

Sami Salo 15 for 875.

Kariya 15 for 989.

Kariya 15 for 989. Jeez, he got knocked around more than a beachball. Shame, he's one of the most electrifying players ever.

 

[vadim sharifijanov]

Tony Hrkac's last season was his 16th, or would have been, if he didn't spend full seasons in the minors in the middle of his career. He played 758 games over that time, just 47 per season if you include the goose eggs.

Of course, he actually played a ton of hockey, 1121 games in those 16 seasons, to be exact. And then, once he was no longer an NHL player, 145 more. And.... Who knew he came back to the AHL after three years off, and played 25 more games at the ages of 42 and 43? I didn't, until just now!

even more drastically, jarrod skalde, who sadly has been in the news recently, had an 18 year pro career.

he played 115 NHL games, spread out over 12 seasons, from fall 1990 to spring of 2002.

top 30 pick out of oshawa in the 89 draft, just as lindros was about to join them, and became a hockey lifer in every sense of the word. starred in the O, the A, and the IHL, played in the swiss league, the swedish elite league, the austrian league, and even the japanese league before finishing as a player coach back in the IHL, which who knew that it even still existed in 2008.

his coaching career then took him to the ECHL after the IHL folded, and he worked his way up from an assistant in the AHL to interim head coach, then head coach with guelph in the OHL, and most recently as an assistant in the AHL again with wilkes-barre before he was let go recently for... probably not very good reasons.

 

[The Pale King]

Reviving this to add Jamie Huscroft. Was a bit stunned to see he only played in 352 games over parts of ten seasons. Seemed like he was around for more than that.

 

[Ivo]

Was going to say Gaborik, but to my surprise, he just barely made it over 1000 games. Quite impressive for someone with his injury list. It helps that he started very young.