Capitalizing On His Chances: Mike Gartner

When you think of great goal scorers, one often forgets the name Mike Gartner. But year after year after year Gartner has racked up an overwhelming amount of goals that places him near the top.

Very quietly, Mike Gartner scored 708 career goals. Only Phil Esposito (717), Marcel Dionne (731), Brett Hull (741), Gordie Howe (801) and Wayne Gretzky (894) have scored more often. (Note: Jaromir Jagr is sitting a 706 and counting). Mike Gartner scored more career goals than the much flashier and much more celebrated Mario Lemieux, Mark Messier, Steve Yzerman, Bobby Hull, Guy Lafleur and Mike Bossy.

Yet somehow Mike Gartner doesn't usually get the same accolades as all the pre-mentioned superstars. In 1997, when The Hockey News assembled a panel to determine the top 100 hockey players in NHL history, Gartner ranked 89th.

How is this so? Here's the full Mike Gartner story.