1. Tocchet. Could put in 50 and was always game to throw down. Perfect.
2. Lindros. Would be everyone's #1, if not for how it ended. It felt ... Unfinished? Tainted? Little of both?
3. Leclair. There was just something so excellent about him, for a while he played inhuman and it was inspirational. Every shot finding the back, impossible to knock down or even move very much. It lasted somewhere between 2 and 4 seasons and was one of the most supernatural-looking things I ever observed. Especially when you consider that when he came into the league, his balance was a laughing stock.
4. Hextall. Gotta love the crazy MFer.
1. Giroux. I hate to be so shallow that a single play could make all the difference, but if not for shift 1 of game 6 vs Pit, he might drop to third. It was a perfect representation of what he brought to the series though.
2. Hartnell. Consistently aggressive and a great energy for the locker room to feed off of. Does so many of the little things (and not so little) that affect the emotions of everyone involved in a game, be it his team or the other one, or whichever crowd he's playing in front of. He's like a momentum bulldozer.
3. Simmonds. He's gaining offensive confidence by the minute. Also, Time Place Fight. He might not always do better than a draw but you rarely see him get beat.
4. Talbot. It's impossible not to feel the intensity he brings to the current best rivalry in sports.
I like Couturier but he sure gets a lot of votes based primarily on potential. Do you think it's because everyone wishes they could go back and start their lives over again, with the same sky-high aspirations, only going about it much more cautiously and reservedly this time around?