Day: April 30, 2020

Mats Sundin was the first European born player to be drafted first overall in the NHL. He shares the distinction as one of the longest-serving captains born outside of North America.  He became the first European captain in Toronto Maple Leaf history in 1996-1997. He will go down in Leaf history as one of their best ever. Let’s take a closer look at the great career of 6’5″ center, number 13 Mats Sundin.

Graceful, intelligent, smooth-skating, soft-spoken, and a heck of a hockey player. These are just some of the many words used to describe NHL legend and Hall-of-Fame defenseman, Scott Niedermayer. Throughout his illustrious 18-year career in the National Hockey League, Niedermayer only played for two franchises, a rarity in today’s game. His career was split between the New Jersey Devils, where he resided from 1991-2004, and the Anaheim Ducks from 2005-2010. Let’s take a look back at the storied career of Scott Niedermayer, widely regarded as one of the most talented and seldom-talked about defensemen of all-time.

Over the last 15-20 years, the United States has seen a surge of talented, American-born hockey players. From Mike Richter, Tony Amonte, Jamie Langenbrunner, Bill Guerin, Pat LaFontaine, Brian Leetch, Patrick Kane, Ryan Suter, Auston Matthews, and Jack Eichel, the  U.S. presence in the National Hockey League continues to rise at a steady rate. Enter Livonia, Michigan native, Mike Modano, and you have perhaps the cream of the crop of USA hockey. Let’s take a closer look at the NHL career of Mike Modano and the road he paved for the next generation of hockey players south of the Canadian border.

99. “The Great One”. “Gretz”. Holding or sharing a grand total of 61 NHL records, will garner you a few nicknames now, won’t it? When you think of the beautiful sport of hockey, it won’t take long for the name, Wayne Gretzky to pop into your head.