Today In NHL History - Pronger Shanahan Trade

On July 27th in 1995, Hartford Whalers GM Jim Rutherford and St. Louis Blues GM Mike Keenan swapped second overall draft picks in Chris Pronger (1993) and Brendan Shanahan (1987), marking a rare exchange of matched talent.

Pronger's slower than expected development coupled with his rookie season bar room brawling and drunken driving led Hartford to move their baby-faced bruiser for some scoring punch in Shanahan.

Pronger remained in St. Louis for nine seasons, captaining the club for seven. Shanahan, however, left Hartford after one season in a trade sending him and Brian Glynn to the Detroit Red Wings for forward Keith Primeau, defenceman Paul Coffey, and a 1997 first-round draft pick (Nikos Tselios).

After five years working for the NHL as Vice-President of Hockey and Business Development and Chief Disciplinarian, Shanahan was named President of the Toronto Maple Leafs on April 11, 2014.  Shanny was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 11, 2013.

Several blows to the head sidelined Pronger in December 2011. He has not skated since, nor does it appear he will ever return to the game, despite being under contract with the Philadelphia Flyers through 2017. On June 27, 2015, the Flyers traded his contract to the Arizona Coyotes for salary cap purposes. Three days later, Pronger was voted into the Hockey Hall of Fame. Despite still technically an active player, Pronger was eligible for the honor owing to his three season absence at the time of induction.
Pronger currently works for the Florida Panthers in hockey operations.

The pair played a combined 39 NHL seasons resulting in over 2,600 games, 2,000 points, 4,000 penalty minutes, and four Stanley Cup wins. Internationally, they won three Olympic Gold Medals and three World Championships for Canada.  Both are Triple Gold Club members.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Claude Lemieux

On July 16th in 1965, Claude Percy Lemieux was born in Buckingham, Quebec. Best known for his postseason success and dirty play Lemieux suited up for six teams (MTL, NJD, COL, PHO, DAL, SJS) terrorizing NHL opponents for 21 seasons.

Taken 26th in the 1983 NHL Entry Draft the feisty winger fetched four Stanley Cup wins (1986, 1995, 1996, 2000) and a Conn Smythe (1995) becoming 1 of 9 to hoist with three different teams and 1 of 11 to win in consecutive seasons with distinct clubs (NJD 1995, COL 1996). Resting 9th overall with 80 playoff goals, Lemieux thrice lit the lamp more times in the postseason than the regular season (1986, 1995, 1997).

Boasting a resume of biting (Jim Peplinski), boarding (Kris Draper), and pregame fighting (PHI v. MTL), Lemieux's vicious acts have earned him 2nd place in ESPN's Most Hated NHL Players of All Time.

In 1997, the dirty deeds of playoffs past caught up with the cheapshot francophone in a now famous brawl between the Red Wings and Avalanche featuring Darren McCarty pummeling his turtled mass.
Lemieux retired on July 8, 2009 after a one-season stint with the Sharks.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Clarence Campbell

On July 9th in 1905, Clarence Sutherland Campbell was born in Fleming, Saskatchewan. The Rhodes Scholar lawyer turned NHL referee went on to hold the league's highest post for 31 years (1946-1977) after a sojourn as a lieutenant colonel in WWII and Queen's Counsel prosecuting Nazi crimes against humanity.

Moonlighting as an official in the CAHA while lawyering at an Edmonton firm, Campbell whistled his way to the NHL. He lasted three years, witnessing Howie Morenz's career-ending broken leg and even taking a punch from Bruins' bruiser Dit Clapper, before NHL President Frank Calder stole his stripes on the urging of Maple Leafs owner Conn Smythe for an allegedly under-penalized incident that bloodied Red Horner.

Calder kept Campbell in the game, however, hiring him to work in the league office though he left shortly thereafter enlisting in the Canadian Armed Forces. With Calder's passing in 1943 a reluctant Red Dutton presided until Campbell's return upon which the presidency was passed.

Major events that occurred during his tenure as NHL President include:

• Extension of NHL regular season from 50 to 80 games;
• Introduction of NHL All-Star Game (1947);
• Expulsion of players Billy Taylor and Don Gallinger for gambling on NHL games (1948);
• Enactment of NHL Pension Fund (1948);
• Suspension of Maurice Richard for punching a linesman (1955);
• Richard Riot at Montreal Forum (1955);
• Limitation of one goal per minor penalty power play (1956);
• Placement of Hockey Hall of Fame in Toronto (1958);
• Implementation of NHL Amateur Draft (1963);
• NHL Expansion from 6 to 18 teams (1967-1976);
• Realignment to two conferences and four divisions (1974);
• Renaming of conferences and divisions (1974);
• NHL Relocation of two teams (1976); and
• Protection from rival league WHA (1972-1977).

Campbell's accomplishments earned him a position in the Hockey Hall of Fame along with a conference (Campbell Conference) and trophy (Clarence Campbell Bowl) bearing his namesake. He died in 1984.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Lindros Trade (QUE-PHI)

On June 30th in 1992, Quebec Nordiques owner Marcel Aubut and GM Pierre Page traded 1991 draft day holdout Eric Lindros to Philadelphia.



Amidst confusion among two competing bids, arbitrator Larry Bertuzzi selected Flyers GM Russ Farwell's proposal over New York Rangers GM Neil Smith's package of Doug Weight, Tony Amonte, Alexei Kovalev, John Vanbiesbrouck, three first round draft picks, and $12 million.

The trade ultimately saw Peter Forsberg, Mike Ricci, Ron Hextall, Steve Duchesne, Kerry Huffman, Chris Simon, two first-round picks (Jocelyn Thibault, Nolan Baumgartner), and $15 million going to Quebec in exchange for the inaugural Next One. The deal remains one of the most significant and lopsided trades in NHL history.

The club would later exchange Hextall for Adam Deadmarsh and package Thibault for Patrick Roy and Mike Keane, claiming two Stanley Cups as the Colorado Avalanche. The Flyers remain winless since 1975.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Luongo Trade (NYI-FLA)

On June 24th in 2000, New York Islanders GM Mike Milbury traded Roberto Luongo and Olli Jokinen to the Florida Panthers for Mark Parrish and Oleg Kvasha. The 2000 NHL Entry Draft day play saw the Isles select goalie Rick DiPietro 1st overall ahead of future all-stars Dany Heatley (2nd), Marian Gaborik (3rd) and Henrik Lundqvist (205th), to name a few.

In response to the move Milbury surmised, "In the end, we thought the quality that DiPietro will bring is just a notch above Luongo. If we're wrong, we may have made an unbelievable mistake. It'll be bonehead city. It's my job. If we're not a better team immediately, off with my head. I've been here five years, and I'm tired of losing."

Safe to say the Isles would have been better off with future Vezina/Hart/Pearson finalist Luongo, Calder winner and two-time 50 goal scorer Heatley, and Finnish national teamer Jokinen than the trio of DiPietro, Parrish, and Kvasha. Alas, the Milbury legacy lives on and on.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo's Playoff Poop.
* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo's Stick Gets Stuck.
* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo Trade (FLA-VAN).
* See also Roberto Luongo Interview - 2011 NHL Awards.
* See also Roberto Luongo Interview - 2009 NHL Awards.

Today In NHL History - Luongo Trade (FLA-VAN)

On June 23rd in 2006, Florida Panthers GM Mike Keenan traded Roberto Luongo, Lukas Krajicek, and a 6th round pick (Sergei Shirokov) in the next day's 2006 NHL Entry Draft to the host city's Vancouver Canucks for Todd Bertuzzi, Bryan Allen, and Alex Auld.

Both Bertuzzi (7 games) and Auld (27 games) enjoyed limited play during their one season down south while Allen (284 games) was a fixture for Florida before being traded to Carolina for forward Sergei Samsonov (20 games), skating in his final NHL season.

On September 2, 2009, Luongo signed a 12 year contract extension with Vancouver through 2022 where he's won Olympic Gold (2010), presided over two Presidents' Trophy wins (2011, 2012), been named to three NHL All-Star Games (2007, 2008, 2009), received four NHL Award nominations (Vezina 2007 & 2011, Pearson 2007, Hart 2007), captured a Jennings Trophy (2011) with Cory Schneider, set several Canucks franchise records, and authored a popular Twitter feed @strombone1.

Despite these successes, Luongo has been widely criticized for spectacular playoff losses to the Chicago Blackhawks and Boston Bruins, blamed for the Canucks failure to capture the Stanley Cup in 2011, and remains to this day a favorite whipping boy for hockey pundits everywhere.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo's Playoff Poop.
* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo's Stick Gets Stuck.
* See also Today In NHL History - Luongo Trade (NYI-FLA).
* See also Roberto Luongo Interview - 2011 NHL Awards.
* See also Roberto Luongo Interview - 2009 NHL Awards.

Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Kozlov

On June 20th in 1995, New Jersey Devils defenseman Scott Stevens dealt a devastating blow to Detroit Red Wings forward Vyacheslav Kozlov in Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Final, turning the tide of the game and series.

The 2nd period collision sparked the Devils, turning a 1-1 tie into a 4-2 win and eventually sweeping the series 4-0 to clinch their first Cup.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Lindros.
* See also Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Kariya.

Today In NHL History - Brett Hull's No Goal

On June 19th in 1999, Brett Hull scored 5 minutes and 9 seconds into the third overtime period of Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals giving the Dallas Stars a 2-1 win over the Buffalo Sabres and their first (and only) Stanley Cup.

The goal remains the most controversial in NHL history due to a now defunct rule banning a player's skate from entering the crease before the puck as it appears Hull's did. NHL Director of Officiating Bryan Lewis, however, claimed no crease violation on the play noting "Hull had possession of the puck when his skate entered the crease."

ESPN counts the non-call as the 5th worst officiating moment in sports history. The NHL removed the rule the following month.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Konstantinov Limo Crash

On June 13th in 1997, heartbreak hit Hockeytown when a limousine carrying two members of the Russian Five and the Detroit Red Wings masseuse struck a tree six days after their first Cup win in 42 years.

The crash left Vladimir Konstantinov and Sergei Mnatsakanov in a coma with severe head injuries. Both eventually awoke, Konstantinov suffering extensive brain and bodily damage and Mnatsakanov paralyzed from the waist down. The Vladinator would never play hockey again. Slava Fetisov walked away unscathed.

Bearing badges embroidered "Believe" the Wings repeated as Stanley Cup champions, engraving Konstantinov's name despite his on-ice absence. Though not officially retired, no player has worn his number 16 since the injury. His locker remains intact.
Driver Richard Gnida was sentenced to nine months for operating the vehicle with a suspended license and testing positive for marijuana.

That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Maggie The Monkey Retires

On June 13th in 2009, the Bowmanville Zoo's primate prophet Maggie the Monkey, technically a Crab-eating Macaque, made her last Stanley Cup Playoff pick at the ripe age of 18, leaving the stage to the paid pundits she's owned in the past.

Selecting the underdog Anaheim Ducks to swim away with it all in 2003 (they ultimately lost to New Jersey in the Stanley Cup Final), Maggie tamed TSN's braintrust and was invited back for five more seasons.

Year: Record
2003: 8-7 (beating James Duthie; tying Gord Miller and Gina Reda)
2004: 7-8 (beating Bob McKenzie; tying Gord Miller and Dave Hodge)
2006: 9-6 (beating Bob McKenzie, Pierre McGuire and Bill Berg)
2007: 8-7
2008: 8-7
2009: 5-10 Peaking in 2006 when she out-picked the entire TSN panel, Maggie slowed with age ending with an even 45-45 record after six seasons. Never nailing the Stanley Cup winner in her previous five playoff predictions, Maggie correctly picked the Pittsburgh Penguins in her Final finale putting McKenzie, Duthie and Darren Pang to shame one last time.
That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Kariya

On June 7th in 2003, defenseman Scott Stevens of the New Jersey Devils crushed Paul Kariya of the Anaheim Ducks in Game 6 of the Stanley Cup Finals with an unpenalized late hit rendering the speedy winger motionless on the ice. Amazingly, Kariya returned to the game scoring a goal and finishing with three points and the first star in a 5-2 victory to force Game 7. Two nights later New Jersey won their third Stanley Cup marking the first Final since 1965 where the home team won every game.

The hit ranks #2 on SportsCentre's top 10 Stevens hits of all-time, bested only by his hit on Eric Lindros in Game 7 of the 2000 Conference Final. That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Kozlov.
* See also Today In NHL History - Stevens Hits Lindros.

Today In NHL History - Cam Neely

On June 6th in 1965, Cameron Michael Neely was born in Comox, BC. Blessed with the rare trifecta of size, talent and toughness, Bam-Bam Cam became the NHL's prototypical power forward.
Selected 9th overall in the 1983 Draft, Neely spent three seasons with the Canucks before Harry Neale sent him to Boston on his 21st birthday with the club's 1987 first round draft pick (Glen Wesley) in exchange for Barry Pederson, the worst trade in franchise history.

Neely would collect 395 goals (395G/299A/694Pts) in his 726 game 13 year career, including three 50+ goal seasons ('90, '91, '94), placing him 15th overall in goals per game. Despite his Masterton winning perseverance (1994), Neely never recovered from a pair of Ulf Samuelsson-induced injuries in the 1991 Wales Conference Finals, finally buckling at the age of 31. In 2005, Neely was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame, a year after having his number 8 jersey raised to the Boston rafters. Today he serves as Vice President of the Bruins, a position held since 2007. Away from the rink Neely focuses on his Foundation, helping cancer patients battle the disease that took his parents, and appears in TV (Cheers, Rescue Me) and film (Dumb & Dumber, Me, Myself and Irene), most famously as the Farrelly brothers' recurring tough guy Sea Bass. That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - McSorley's Illegal Stick

On June 3rd in 1993, the Los Angeles Kings were two minutes away from taking a 2-0 series lead against the Montreal Canadiens in the Stanley Cup Finals when coach Jacques Demers called for a measurement of Marty McSorley's stick. Kerry Fraser described it as one of his easiest calls: "For any player to go into the third period in a Stanley Cup final with an illegal stick was, to my mind, absolutely asinine. The stick was so illegal, I mean, I just looked at it and said holy smokes, we won't need the gauge for this one."

With McSorley in the box and Patrick Roy on the bench, Eric Desjardins scored the tying goal on a two man advantage with 1:13 remaining in regulation. Desjardins completed the hat trick in overtime sending the series to the Great Western Forum tied 1-1. Melrose's Kings lost the next two games in overtime, surrendering the series 4-1 six days later at the Montreal Forum and denying the Great One his California crowning.

McSorley revisited the mishap 19 years later (beginning at the 2:45 mark below) prior to the Kings' first return to the Stanley Cup Final, acknowledging the illegality of his stick and accusing the Canadiens of foul play in measuring visiting players' sticks prior to the game. Amazingly, Marty admits to playing subsequent games in the Final with sticks identical to the illegal one that so dearly cost his team in Game 2.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Jason Spezza's Illegal Stick.
* See also Today In NHL History - Willie Mitchell's Long Stick.

Today In NHL History - Chris Pronger's Own Goal

On June 2nd in 2007, Anaheim Ducks defenseman Chris Pronger scored an own goal on Jean-Sebastien Giguere late in the second period of Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final, putting Ottawa ahead 4-3, their first lead of the evening. Pronger's own goal, created by the forecheck of Senators forward Dean McAmmond, held up as the game-winner in Ottawa's 5-3 win. Moments later Pronger exacted revenge on McAmmond with an vicious headshot, putting him out of the series that Anaheim eventually won 4-1. That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Pronger Hits McAmmond.

Today In NHL History - Pronger Hits McAmmond

On June 2nd in 2007, Anaheim Ducks defenseman Chris Pronger delivered a devastating elbow to the head of Ottawa Senators forward Dean McAmmond in Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Final rendering McAmmond unconscious. The third period cheapshot was likely in response to Pronger's second period own goal that was created by and credited to McAmmond. Pronger was assessed his 7th career suspension for the unpenalized play, earning the 3rd ever suspension during a Cup Final (Fischer 2002, Nieminen 2004) and marking the 3rd time a player was suspended twice during the same postseason (Lemieux 1996, Nieminen 2004).

Ottawa beat Anaheim that night 5-3 but Pronger returned after his one game suspension to win the Stanley Cup in Game 5. McAmmond missed the remainder of the series owing to a concussion suffered on the play.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Today In NHL History - Chris Pronger's Own Goal.
* See also Today In NHL History - Downie Hits McAmmond.

Today In NHL History - Larry Robinson

On June 2nd in 1951, Larry Clark Robinson was born in Winchester, Ontario. Blessed with exceptional size, strength and skill, Big Bird patrolled the blueline for 20 seasons in the NHL with Montreal (17) and Los Angeles (3) scoring, banging and scrapping as he saw fit.
Selected 20th overall in the 1971 NHL Entry Draft, Robinson earned six Stanley Cup wins ('73, '76, '77, '78, '79, '86), two Norris nods ('77, '80) and a Conn Smythe ('78). In addition to his 958 regular season (208G/750A) and 144 playoff points (28G/116A), Robinson holds NHL records for plus-minus (+730) and most consecutive post season appearances (20). Stepping behind the bench for New Jersey ('93-'95, '00-'03, '05) and Los Angeles ('95-'99), Larry locked lips with Lord Stanley's Mug three more times, twice as an assistant ('95, '03) and once as a head coach ('00). He was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 1995 and had his number 19 retired by Montreal in 2007. That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Paul Coffey

On June 1st in 1961, Paul Douglas Coffey was born in Toronto, Ontario. Selected 6th overall by Edmonton in the 1980 NHL Entry Draft, the slick skating blueliner spent seven seasons with the Oilers before suiting up for eight others (PIT, LAK, DET, HAR, PHI, CHI, CAR, BOS).

During his 21 year career, Coffey posted five 100+ point campaigns (1984, 1985, 1986, 1989, 1990), two 40+ goal seasons (1984, 1986), and four 80+ assist (1984, 1985, 1986, 1989) efforts. The three time Norris winner (1985, 1986, 1995) also made seven trips to the Stanley Cup Final, winning four times (1984, 1985, 1987, 1991) and losing thrice (1983, 1995, 1997). With 1531 points (396G/1135A) in 1409 games, Coffey sits 13th in points (behind Ray Bourque) and 28th in points per game (behind Bobby Orr), and still holds defense records for goals in a season (48 goals in 1986), points in a playoff (37 points in 1985), and points in a game (8 points on March 14, 1986).When he wasn't putting up points Coffey amassed penalty minutes, sharing the distinction with Bobby Orr of being the only two defensemen in NHL history to collect 100 points and 100 penalty minutes in the same NHL season three different times (1984, 1986, 1989).

Coffey was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2004 and had his number 7 retired in Edmonton the following year in 2005. That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Malkin Fights Zetterberg

On May 31st in 2009, with his team trailing 3-1 in the closing seconds of Game 2 of the Stanley Cup Finals, Evgeni Malkin of the Pittsburgh Penguins attacked Detroit Red Wings forward Henrik Zetterberg.Refs assessed 17 and 5 sin bin minutes, respectively, of which each served only 19 seconds. Despite Malkin's instigator penalty, Colin Campbell refused to enforce Rule 47.22 mandating an automatic one game suspension for such an act in the final five minutes, electing instead to exercise his broad right to rescind.

Thus, rather than sitting for suckering the 2008 Conn Smythe winner, the 2009 Conn Smythe winner-to-be returned in Game 3 to set up three goals en route to a 4-2 win. Absent Malkin's helpers, Detroit may have won Game 3, taking a 3-0 series lead and clinching consecutive Cup wins. Instead, Pittsburgh cut Detroit's series lead in half and won in 7.

That's today in NHL history.

* See also Carrying Over Penalties In NHL Playoffs.
* See also Today In NHL History - Malkin Boards Mitchell.

Today In NHL History - Lemieux Boards Draper

On May 29th in 1996, Colorado Avalanche cheapshot Claude Lemieux checked Detroit Red Wings grinder Kris Draper face first into the boards in Game 6 of the Western Conference Finals igniting a fierce rivalry between the teams that remains to this day.

The hit hospitalized Draper with a concussion, broken nose, fractured jaw, and shattered cheek and orbital bone requiring extensive facial reconstructive surgery, several stitches, and wiring shut his jaw.

Lemieux received a five minute major and match penalty to which the NHL added a two game suspension and $1000 fine. Colorado won the game 4-1 closing out the series that night 4-2 en route to their first Stanley Cup Finals appearance sweeping the Florida Panthers. Draper didn't return to hockey until midway through the following season.
That's today in NHL history.

Today In NHL History - Bourdon's Motorcycle Crash

On May 29th in 2008, Vancouver Canucks defenseman Luc Bourdon, the 10th overall pick in the 2005 NHL Entry Draft, died in a motorcycle crash when he collided with a semitrailer near his hometown in New Brunswick.

The accident shocked the hockey community, especially Kris Letang who missed Game 3 of the Stanley Cup Finals to attend Luc's funeral.


The Canucks honored Luc at their home opener against Calgary, presenting Luc's family with his last game worn jersey and screening a video tribute accompanied by a live performance of "Big League" by Tom Cochrane.

Vancouver shutout Calgary 6-0 with Bourdon's best friend Alex Burrows scoring twice and earning the game's first star. Burrows carried the momentum of that match into a 28 goal breakout season, acknowledging his fallen friend with a bow and arrow tribute from time to time.

Luc Bourdon, forever a Canuck.

That's today in NHL history.