Although Peter Bondra was not born in Slovakia (he moved there when he was three years old), he is one of the best players to have ever emerged from the Eastern European nation. After four years in the Czech league, Bondra joined the Washington Capitals and, after a few years, emerged as their best offensive threat. The Slovakian Sniper not only possessed deadly shot accuracy, but he was also blessed with fantastic speed.

Gary Suter started off with a bang, winning the Calder Trophy with the Calgary Flames. Suter continued to rack up points for the Flames, and the star was able to hoist the Stanley Cup in 1989. Year after year, Gary Suter was among the league leaders in points by a defenseman. With a career garnering 844 points, he is among the elite and is in the conversation when discussing the best American-born defenseman ever. Had he ever won a Norris trophy, he would have likely seen his chances increase by a wide margin.

In the era of star centers, it is easy to forget about Bobby Smith. As a player who once scored more points than Wayne Gretzky to win the OMJHL scoring title, Smith entered the NHL with a bang, winning the Calder Trophy with the Minnesota North Stars. Smith was a quiet star in the NHL, whose leadership and passing skills seemed to go unnoticed, except during playoff runs with Minnesota and Montreal. Smith finished his career with over 1,000 points, but he seemed to do so without much fanfare.

If ever there was a hockey player who marched to his own tune, it would have to be Carl Brewer. A brilliant stay-at-home defenseman, Brewer would literally do whatever it took to stop any attacker. He was also the victim of rash decision-making as his uncontrollable intensity often cost his team costly penalties. Brewer also left the game on multiple occasions (even during the peak of his career) due to off-ice disagreements with other players, coaches, or management. Had Brewer stayed in the NHL consistently, his hockey accomplishments would be unquestionably larger, but as such, he will go down in history far more for his off-ice activities than on.