2023 Hockey Eligibles
Corey Crawford was drafted by the Chicago Blackhawks in 2003 (52nd Overall) but it was not until the 2010-11 Season where he saw significant playing time for the parent club. Crawford became Chicago’s top Goalie, where he had the task of helping them defend their Stanley Cup Title. The Blackhawks did not repeat as champions in 2011, but Crawford was the Goalie behind their wins in 2013…
Derek Roy played 11 seasons in the NHL (2003-04 to 2014-15), with the first half of it spent in Buffalo. As a Sabre, Roy had four straight seasons where he had at least 60 Points, where he peaked with 81 in 2007-08. Roy would later play for Dallas, Vancouver, St. Louis, Nashville and Edmonton, and would go on to play five years in Europe afterward. As…
Jimmy Howard was taken late in the Second Round in 2003, but the American Goalie only played in nine Games for Detroit before he truly became a Red Wings rookie (2009-10). Howard was the runner-up for the Calder and was Eighth in Vezina Trophy voting. He posted a 2.26 GAA that year, and he would later have back-to-back sub 2.20 GAA seasons (2011-12 & 2012-13), with…
Johnny Boychuk was a stay-at-home Defenseman through his career who split his career with Boston and the New York Islanders (save for four Games in Colorado). Boychuk was not known for his scoring, but he did have four years where he cracked 20 Points, and he won a Stanley Cup with the Bruins in 2011. He overall scored 206 Points with a Plus/Minus of +123.
Ron Hainsey could be classified as a journeyman Defenseman, yet if that is the only way you think of Hainsey it is an incomplete assessment. The American played collegiately at Massachusetts Lowell and was a First Rounder for Montreal in 2000. He would later have runs with Columbus and Atlanta/Winnipeg, where between the two teams he had a three-year run of 30-plus Point seasons (2006-07 to…