2. Marcel Dionne - When Marcel Dionne retired his 1771 points was second only to Gordie Howe. For all his regal seasons out in Los Angeles, he never earned hockey's ultimate crown.
3. Gilbert Perreault - The most entertaining player of his generation, Perreault led the Buffalo Sabres to the 1975, just five years into the franchise's existence. The Flyers rattled the Sabres that year, and Buffalo never got close to the Cup again in Perreault's time.
4. Brad Park - Brad Park never seemed to get his due. Although he ranks as one of hockey's all time great defensemen, he was always overshadowed, first by Bobby Orr and Denis Potvin and later Ray Bourque and Paul Coffey. Park did make it to 4 Stanley Cup finals, but was never allowed to hoist the silver chalice.
5. Jean Ratelle - Jean Ratelle played with Park in both New York and Boston. If anyone could understand Park's disappointment in those four finals, it was the slick Hall of Fame centerman Ratelle. He was there for all of them too.
6. Norm Ullman - Then there is the great Norm Ullman. The Hall of Fame standout with Detroit and Toronto played in five Stanley Cup championships, and not once was on the winning side.
7. Adam Oates - With 156 points in 163 playoff games, Oates is the highest scoring player in NHL history never to win the Stanley Cup.
8 & 9. Borje Salming and Darryl Sittler - These two were the face of the Toronto Maple Leafs throughout the 1970s. But they never were able to lead the Harold Ballard-shackled Leafs to the promiseland.
10. Pat Lafontaine - The US Olympic poster boy stepped out of the Sarajevo games in 1984 and directly into the New York Islanders drive for five Stanley Cups. Wayne Gretzky and the Oilers ended the Islanders' dynasty that spring. Despite a Hall of Fame career of over 900 games, Lafontaine never made it back to the Stanley Cup finals.
Honourable mention: Eric Lindros, Mike Gartner, Cam Neely, Dale Hawerchuk, and Brian Propp, who, like Ullman, lost 5 Stanley Cup finals including 4 in a row.
1 comment:
Very nice list. Only thing I disagree with is having Sittler and Lafontaine above Hawerchuk. Also, not sure if your list is in order, but personally I would have Dionne and Park above Stastny. But I guess those are all personal preferences.
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