Hall of Fame talents who faded into oblivion

[Passchendaele]

If the date is somewhere in 2007, you probably have both Heatley and Spezza as very-likely Hall of Famers in the future, seeing as Heatley just scored 50 goals+100 points for two straight seasons, aged only 26.

Spezza produces at an insane pace during the same stretch (1.31 PPG) at only 24.

For some reason, both of them were basically irrelevant past 28 and if anyone on the Pizza Line is going in without a ticket, it's Alfredsson by far.

Kovalev is an interesting case as well.. watch highlights of him and you'd swear he's a first-ballot HOFer.

Click to read more...

 

[Filthy Dangles]

Rick Nash

 

[Nick Hansen]

Carey Price.

 

[bobholly39]

Carey Price.

He had one bad season...

 

[Canadiens1958]

Don Murdoch, Barry Pederson - health, Michel Briere death in car accident, maybe Dan Blackburn training injury.

 

[Canadiens1958]

If the date is somewhere in 2007, you probably have both Heatley and Spezza as very-likely Hall of Famers in the future, seeing as Heatley just scored 50 goals+100 points for two straight seasons, aged only 26.

Spezza produces at an insane pace during the same stretch (1.31 PPG) at only 24.

For some reason, both of them were basically irrelevant past 28 and if anyone on the Pizza Line is going in without a ticket, it's Alfredsson by far.

Kovalev is an interesting case as well.. watch highlights of him and you'd swear he's a first-ballot HOFer.

Spezza and Heatley with Alfredsson produced better together than their individual talents predicted.

 

[Neutrinos]

If the date is somewhere in 2007, you probably have both Heatley and Spezza as very-likely Hall of Famers in the future, seeing as Heatley just scored 50 goals+100 points for two straight seasons, aged only 26.

Spezza produces at an insane pace during the same stretch (1.31 PPG) at only 24.

For some reason, both of them were basically irrelevant past 28 and if anyone on the Pizza Line is going in without a ticket, it's Alfredsson by far.

Kovalev is an interesting case as well.. watch highlights of him and you'd swear he's a first-ballot HOFer.

Kovalev was over a PPG at 34 with the Habs, so I'm not really sure he qualifies as having had "faded into oblivion"

 

[Neutrinos]

Rich Nash and Dany Heatley are good ones

 

[BigBadBruins7708]

Jason Allison

 

[Neutrinos]

Todd Bertuzzi

 

[GlitchMarner]

Turgeon might be in if his production hadn't dropped off as drastically as it did after his signing with DAL.

Lecavalier would have a better shot if he had done better after the TB buyout.

Nash would have a more realistic chance if he hadn't dropped off so much after his big 2015 season.

 

[The Panther]

...Barry Pederson...

Barry Pederson has such a unique career curve. Usually with players who suddenly fade, they've had one mega-season (think Joe Juneau) that can be attributed to luck, situation, power-play opportunties, etc. But in Pederson's case he had three consecutive mega seasons between ages 20 and 23. He had a 116-point season, finishing 3rd in assists, in 1983-84. By the time he was selected to Team Canada in 1984, he was right there in his career development with Dale Hawerchuk and Denis Savard. But by 1989 he was largely forgotten in NHL circles, and by 1991 he was done.

Not really his fault, of course, due to his shoulder injuries. What a shame.

 

[Big Phil]

Yeah, no doubt in 2007 you figure that entire Pizza line is going into the HHOF. Right now the only shot is Alfredsson. Even early in the 2007-'08 season the Sens had the best start in NHL history. You read that correct. They started 16-3-0. Not even the Habs of the 1970s started out like that. Unfortunately the media went nuts with it and started comparing them to the 1977 Habs. I thought it was ridiculous. Then right after that start they went 0-4-3. Basically they were .500 the rest of the way and got bounced out early in the postseason. It seems as the Sens went so did Spezza and Heatley. I don't know.........

Markus Naslund is another name that comes to mind. Was arguably the best player in the years 2001-'04. How can a player who might be the best over three seasons not only not make the HHOF but be irrelevant two years later?

Kevin Stevens comes to mind as well. Not the same since that injury in 1993. Had 88 points surprisingly in 1994 but he just really slid after that.

And how about Jose Theodore?

 

[Canadiens1958]

Barry Pederson has such a unique career curve. Usually with players who suddenly fade, they've had one mega-season (think Joe Juneau) that can be attributed to luck, situation, power-play opportunties, etc. But in Pederson's case he had three consecutive mega seasons between ages 20 and 23. He had a 116-point season, finishing 3rd in assists, in 1983-84. By the time he was selected to Team Canada in 1984, he was right there in his career development with Dale Hawerchuk and Denis Savard. But by 1989 he was largely forgotten in NHL circles, and by 1991 he was done.

Not really his fault, of course, due to his shoulder injuries. What a shame.

Also survived cancer.

Barry Pederson - Wikipedia

 

[unknown33]

I don't know if he was a HoF talent, but Mike Green had over 70 pts in his 3rd and 4th season, never came close after that.

Finished 2nd in Norris voting in those seasons too.

 

[Big Phil]

I don't know if he was a HoF talent, but Mike Green had over 70 pts in his 3rd and 4th season, never came close after that.

Finished 2nd in Norris voting in those seasons too.

A good choice. I was actually shocked Green didn't make Team Canada in 2010. But just look at his stats post 2010, they are the epitome of "dropping off a cliff". I know Washington changed their style a bit, because Ovechkin's numbers took a dive too, but Green's just plummeted and never recovered.

 

[The Panther]

Green's 31 goals in 68 games during 2008-09 was ridiculous. That's the most by any D-man between 1993-94 and today, and only one player (Kevin Hatcher, of all people, in the wacky 1992-93 season) has scored more between Coffey's 48 and today. At that moment, it looked like Green was going to become an Al MacInnis/Coffey-lite, but after one more big year in 2009-10, he just has never looked the same.

 

[Neutrinos]

Bryan McCabe also came to mind

Perhaps not a Hall of Fame talent, but he finished 4th one year in Norris voting and was a 2nd Team All-Star, but seemed to completely fall off and was out of the league 5 years later

 

[GlitchMarner]

Bryan McCabe also came to mind

Perhaps not a Hall of Fame talent, but he finished 4th one year in Norris voting and was a 2nd Team All-Star, but seemed to completely fall off and was out of the league 5 years later

McCabe's game was better suited for the dead puck era type of style than the post 2004 lockout type of game IIRC.

Although he had a monstrous first-half in the 2005-2006 season. He was scoring goals and points at a crazy pace for a d-man before getting hurt mid-way through the season. The Leafs struggled badly in the games he missed and he ended up with 68 points in 73 games. The next season he screwed up a lot in the first-half but had a better second-half.

 

[unknown33]

Eric Staal had a great start to his career and hasn't matched it after that, but he hasnt faded into oblivion completly. Had a bit of a resurgence recently.
Fits the year 2007 perfectly too.

 

[Nocashstyle]

Zach Parise. He hasn’t exactly faded into oblivion, but he was looking like the best player from the 03 draft for a 2-3 year span earlier in his career.

 

[Nick Hansen]

Was Jay Bouwmeester a HHOF talent? He for sure did an impression on a lot of people back in Florida and then things just kind of fizzled out in Calgary.

Surprised he scored so much in Florida, never thought of him as a particularly good shooter...

 

[Ishdul]

Zach Parise. He hasn’t exactly faded into oblivion, but he was looking like the best player from the 03 draft for a 2-3 year span earlier in his career.

He's had a pretty good comeback year this year. He had lots of concussion problems.

Was Jay Bouwmeester a HHOF talent? He for sure did an impression on a lot of people back in Florida and then things just kind of fizzled out in Calgary.

Surprised he scored so much in Florida, never thought of him as a particularly good shooter...

Unquestionably. He was considered the best defense prospect in ages before he was drafted and it wasn't until deep in his career that he wasn't considered some multiple future Norris winner. I remember him even falling to #3 in the draft was seen as a miniature crisis. Even by the time he went to Calgary a lot of people thought he was being held back in Florida and that he would make the Flames a Cup contender and win the Norris trophies he was always supposed to.

 

[NyQuil]

Spezza and Heatley with Alfredsson produced better together than their individual talents predicted.

I think you’re incorrect.

Heatley was an up and coming star long before he came to Ottawa and Jason Spezza was both an underage exception to the OHL as well as one of the few 16 year old WJC players of all time.

Heatley and Spezza were both drafted 2nd overall.

Both were highly anticipated talents with enormous potential.

I agree that it is surprising that the guy drafted 133rd overall ended up as the best player of the trio.

 

[Normand Lacombe]

Pelle Lindbergh perhaps. Don’t know how his career pans out had he lived.