Legends Who Never Hoisted The Cup & Ranking European-Born NHL Forwards
Welcome to the THW Hockey History Substack newsletter, with all the best from our extensive archives.
In today’s edition, we have a couple “Today in Hockey History” posts, legends who never hoisted the Stanley Cup, ranking European-born forwards, cool things about PK Subban, and more.
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Now on to the good stuff…
Today in Hockey History: Oct. 13
So many historical events occurred on Oct. 13 throughout NHL history. “Mr. Hockey” scored his first NHL goal in eight years, numerous big names lit the lamp for the first time in their careers, some legendary goaltenders earned shutouts, and the first-ever All-Star Game was played in Toronto. So, let’s go on our daily trip back in time to revisit some of hockey’s biggest moments.
Top 10 NHL Legends Who Never Hoisted Lord Stanley’s Cup
by Eugene Helfrick
If you ask any young hockey player what they want, more than anything, their answer will likely be to win the Stanley Cup. Precious few have the chance to play a game in the NHL, and even fewer get the chance to hoist the greatest trophy in sports.
Many NHL players have had illustrious careers. They were first-ballot Hall of Famers, but the Stanley Cup eluded them for their entire careers. For every Ray Bourque or Kimmo Timonen who gets one at the twilight of their career, there are dozens who don’t. Despite their great accomplishments, their lack of a Cup has almost seemed to define them.
They deserve to be celebrated for what they accomplished. Let’s honor them here:
Top 10 All-Time European-Born NHL Forwards
by Kyle Gipe
Joe Hall, who was born in England but moved to Manitoba as a toddler, made his NHL debut in 1917 and was the first European-born player in the league. However, the first European-trained player didn’t debut until Jan. 27, 1965 when Swede Ulf Sterner joined the New York Rangers. During the 1960s and 70s, Europeans started making names for themselves with the emergence of Stan Mikita.
This success continued in the 1980s and 1990s with the collapse of the Soviet Union, leading to the league’s current landscape. With many iconic names, Europeans have had great success in the league. Let’s look at the 10 greatest European forwards to ever play in the NHL.
Today in Hockey History: Oct. 12
Oct. 12 was another very busy date in NHL history. The laundry list of milestones that occurred includes two teams getting their first-ever wins, a bunch of first goals, some great goaltending, and the 100,000th goal ever scored in NHL play. So, let’s hop aboard the THW time machine and revisit all the great moments this date has given us.
Boston Bruins 50-Goal Scorers
by Brandon Share-Cohen
Throughout the 96-year history of the Boston Bruins franchise, there have been 11 different instances of a player reaching the 50-goal mark. Those 11 instances of 50-plus goals are made up of five different players who will forever live in Bruins’ history as legends. Interestingly enough, the 11 different 50-plus goals seasons all came within a span of 24 years between 1970 and 1994 without any player in Bruins’ history reaching the 50-goal mark prior to the 1970-71 season or since the 1993-94 season.
7 Things About P.K. Subban
by Kyle Gipe
Pernell-Karl Subban, known to most as P.K., is one of the most dynamic defensemen in recent memory. His electrifying play on the ice combines with his equally-charismatic personality off-ice into a person who is both beloved and criticized, often at the same time. But regardless of how you view him, he is one of the game’s most interesting players. Here are seven elements of Subban’s life, both on and off the ice, that make him unique and interesting.