Babych44
Registered User
- Sep 8, 2012
- 73
- 10
If talking about raw talent, and not players that were good at all areas, 2 names come to mind : Alex Semin and Nikolai Zherdev, if only you could transplant canadien heart for these two..
How about Phaneuf? Came in looking like Scott Stevens (the Washington version). Piled up points and goals in his first three seasons, finishing third in Calder voting to Ovechkin and Crosby, also finishing second to Lidstrom in Norris voting in his third season.
Fell off a cliff after that. Traded to Toronto in his fifth season with hopes that he'd bounce back, named captain of the storied franchise in the offseason. Had a couple solid seasons, but never really got back to the level he showed early on.
Don Murdoch, Barry Pederson - health, Michel Briere death in car accident, maybe Dan Blackburn training injury.
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.
Not a hall of fame talent, but Jonathan Girard had a great season in 02-03 and was on his way to being a great puck-moving defenseman, then got in a car accident and never played again.
C1958, how MUCH do you think Pederson's career numbers were affected by his arm surgery (and other injuries)? Do you think his first 4 seasons (320 points in 246 games) before the arm problem, would have been indicative of his entire career or do you feel that was just a "hot start"? Needless to say, Barry's career numbers were still almost a point per game, but I don't know how much to "upgrade" him, career-wise, considering the injuries?
Another one I wonder about was Samsonov. Sammy looked like he was on his way to big things till the wrist injury at 24 years old. His numbers definitely fell off for the rest of his career after that. Again, can we attribute that to "just" a wrist injury though? In Pederson's and Samsonov's cases their injuries were not career ending nor debilitating, but it is difficult to tell just how much their affect was throughout the rest of their careers?
I think this is a good one. I used to subscribe to Goalie's World magazine back in the day and they did a feature on Theodore which basically painted him as the new paradigm in goaltending for all future goalies to follow! Now this was a Quebec-based publication who might not have been completely unbiased (Jose was a Quebecois star playing for Les Glorieux after all) but clearly the opinion was that Theodore was going to be a dominant goalie in the league for some time.
In the end he had one huge season (2001-02: Vezina, Hart, and strangely only 2nd All-star) and maybe 1 other above average season (2003-04), and then a bunch of middle-of-the-road or below. He was basically done being an elite player by 28 at a time when goalies were being dominant well into their 30s.
I can recall an extremely divisive debate on HF regarding which of Dion Phaneuf or Joni Pitkanen would earn more Norris trophies.
The idea was that it wasn't a one-off for him. He had that huge season in 2002, then upset the Bruins in the playoffs. Then a pretty good year in 2004, another upset of the Bruins in the playoffs. Then he is the 3rd string goalie for Canada at the 2004 World Cup. After that he was photographed with Paris Hilton and was known for taking that anti-hair loss drug. Man, what a way to remember a former Hart winner. I wouldn't have thought he'd have gone this direction.
wasn't there also something about the french mob?
wasn't there also something about the french mob?
Kirk Muller seemed to drop off a bit. I wasn't a fan of him personally, but he played a strong two way game and was close to a point per game player the first half of his career (w/ NJ 520 pts in 556 games, w/MTL 247 pts in 267 games). Once he was traded to Long Island he put on his grumpy face and from then on he never quite put up the numbers or gave the same kind of effort that he had previously despite being a 1st/2nd line center. Not quite sure if injuries/wear and tear played a part, but his game definitely declined in the mid to late '90's which I found odd...being that his style of play and 'leadership' was suited for that era. After playing 7 seasons with the Devils, 4 with Montreal, Muller played another 526 games over 8 seasons between NY, FLA, DAL, and Toronto amassing 192 points.
Yeah, Richards played a good game, too. He had some off ice issues from what I remember, which I think threw things off for him. At the time, I thought he was a great addition to the Caps but he had nothing left in the tank, no legs, he looked lost out there. Could've had a better and longer career, no doubt.a similar case is mike richards. a lot of miles on both those guys from a very young age.
Good call on Kirk Muller. After the high-scoring 1992-93 season and the Cup with Montreal, he just seemed to fade into nothingness for another nine years or so.Kirk Muller seemed to drop off a bit. I wasn't a fan of him personally, but he played a strong two way game and was close to a point per game player the first half of his career (w/ NJ 520 pts in 556 games, w/MTL 247 pts in 267 games). Once he was traded to Long Island he put on his grumpy face and from then on he never quite put up the numbers or gave the same kind of effort that he had previously despite being a 1st/2nd line center. Not quite sure if injuries/wear and tear played a part, but his game definitely declined in the mid to late '90's which I found odd...being that his style of play and 'leadership' was suited for that era. After playing 7 seasons with the Devils, 4 with Montreal, Muller played another 526 games over 8 seasons between NY, FLA, DAL, and Toronto amassing 192 points.
Was that Hextall breaking his arm at Team Canada training camp?Sylvain Turgeon. He scored 40 or more goals in two of his first three years in Hartford. Best year was his age 21 season with 45-34-79 in 1986. Then his production plummeted due to an injury that never healed properly. After three seasons as an original Ottawa Senator, Turgeon left the NHL at the age of 30 in 1995.
Was that Hextall breaking his arm at Team Canada training camp?
I think this is a good one. I used to subscribe to Goalie's World magazine back in the day and they did a feature on Theodore which basically painted him as the new paradigm in goaltending for all future goalies to follow! Now this was a Quebec-based publication who might not have been completely unbiased (Jose was a Quebecois star playing for Les Glorieux after all) but clearly the opinion was that Theodore was going to be a dominant goalie in the league for some time.
In the end he had one huge season (2001-02: Vezina, Hart, and strangely only 2nd All-star) and maybe 1 other above average season (2003-04), and then a bunch of middle-of-the-road or below. He was basically done being an elite player by 28 at a time when goalies were being dominant well into their 30s.