NHL Stars of the Last 15 Years ... My List

A post on a forum I check out from time to time (HFBoards.com which has some great topics come up from time to time and has one section devoted to fan thought up trades which rarely are thought provoking and often bad enough that reading them and the replies that come are humorous and entertaining) recently had a post where the topic of discussion was the top 20 NHLers with the biggest impact on the sport in the last 20 years.

This was a great topic as it left so much open to interpretation.  The top 20 "impacts on the game" ... so how was impact to be defined?  Did that mean those that had memorable events such as Bertuzzi/Moore should be considered because that was one of the more memorable events even though a singular event and negative at that?  Did that mean those with singularly great seasons such as Selanne's seemingly unbreakable record of 76 goals as a rookie get into the conversation?  Is it players that were only truly stars?  The topic created some great replies and some great lists based on a number of different criteria based on how each person interpreted what it meant to "impact" the game.

For this post I am going to put forth my list of players, hoping to stick to around 15-20 as well, which I think of when I think of my time watching over the last 15 years or so.  I chose 15 years as opposed to 20 as I really wasn't watching in the early 90s so I can't truly consider that.  I am also going to make this list as players that are considered "greats" and people that come to mind as such for me during that time and I'll try to give some reasoning for each as well.  These will be positive impacts, not one time negatives like Bertuzzi/Moore.

Past Meet Present - A Show of Force

Another session has come and gone and I have to admit I was left shocked and second guessing a number of things afterwards ... things such as if I completely underestimated the party abilities (not players, characters).  An encounter I set up that I intended to take some patience or at least some crafty decision making and tactics from the party, and certainly not one I intended to be tackled head on without deaths to be had, was tackled head on and while part of it is luck of the draw the party, short a member already and then with another removed for a time because of a bad roll, took on double their number in foes and not only defeated them soundly but did so quickly and without taking much more than scratches themselves.  Anyway, without further delay we'll jump right to the recap...

NHL Free Agent Awards

Summers are really long when one is a hockey fan, and this one is just as bad as any other as we have passed free agency and signings and trades are few and far between now.  Teams have basically done most of what they will though there are a number of players out there that may or may not get contracts still, and now everyone waits for the start of training camp.  Sure, many teams may have a "rookie orientation" which may or may not have on-ice sessions but not all teams do and despite the very welcome glimpse at the future of the team, or potential future in all that youth anyway, it isn't until Rookie Camp and then Training Camp that things really get started.

For someone that does most of their blogging on the sport this is a time of year when the time between blogs can really grow, even when filled with things such as movie reviews and recaps for myself.  I've got some things in mind to help fill these gaps, and this is one of them.  This blog will look back at the time around the free agency period and give some of my own winners and losers to come from that time.  Without further delay, here we go.

Transformers from the Moon

Recently the wife and I took the kids to see "Transformers: Dark of the Moon" (that really is the title I guess, not "Dark Side...").  I used to have some Transformers when I was growing up and watched the cartoon as well.  I really enjoyed the first one, the second one was ok, so I was unsure about this one coming into it.  Just as with the second one though I found it to be ok, and for many of the same reasons.

Past Meet Present - To the Treasure!

On a night where I was suffering from little sleep after the week began as hectic as any in recent memory at work the group found themselves not only battling the setting and the game but occasionally a memory lapse or incorrect information from their GM.  All in all I think things went fairly well though considering the condition of the man "behind the screen".

No Bryz, No Coyotes?

So I began wondering a while back if losing Bryzgalov would spell doom for Phoenix ... and then he went to (and was later signed by) Philly.  Then after that it is announced that the investor that had shown interest in the Coyotes was now out of the running leaving the team without a potential buyer.  While not the only issue, could losing Ilya Bryzgalov spell the end of hockey in the desert?

Past Meet Present - Out Into the Rain

Yet another night has come and gone and the Karameikan Fist finds itself short a couple of people as they head West towards the x-marked location on the "treasure map".  The recap can be found after the jump...

Free Agency was a Frenzy

It turns out that this year's first day of free agency was pretty frenzied unlike the trade deadline and last year's free agent opening day.  At one point there were nearly 50 signings for contracts totaling over $200 million.  There were a number of minor signings and plenty of major ones as well, including the Rangers getting the most prized player available in Brad Richards, but I'm going to focus on just two teams.  The first will of course be the Avs, the second will be my girlfriend team, the Florida Panthers.

Killers - the movie

This one is going to be short, I'm sure, but a couple of nights ago we watched the movie "Killers" via Netflix instant play (you really have to love technology today).  The story is about a couple who meet, and the guy who previously was a hit man type gets out after falling in love, then later he becomes the target.  A pretty done over storyline with little originality, though this one was a comedy rather than a thriller.  It wasn't great, wasn't horrible, but rather was an ok movie that was worth spending the evening watching.