European Hockey: Top 10 Lockout Defectors
Sep 22, 2015; Philadelphia, PA, USA; Philadelphia Flyers defenseman Yevgeni Medvedev (82) passes out of his zone against the New York Rangers during the first period at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-USA TODAY Sports
European hockey has evolved in some sorts over the last decade. Ever since the NHL lockout of 2004-05, we’ve seen an increase in players calling Europe home.
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For the longest time, European hockey was thought of as a destination for guys who didn’t have enough skill to make it in the NHL. It was also a place for players who had few options left to play, who could still make a career for themselves.
Over the last decade, we’ve seen players being signed out of European Hockey almost every year. This year we’ve seen guys like Artemi Panarin, Yevgeny Medvedev, and Steve Moses among others make the hop across the pond. Other guys in recent years have been Jonas Gustavsson, Damien Brunner, and Fabian Brunnstrom.
Back in the day, the best talent from around the world was present in the NHL. Nowadays, most of the best talent is found in the NHL, but some of that talent can also be found in European hockey leagues. To understand the difference, all one needs to do is look at the rosters from these teams in these leagues.
The KHL is the most prominently talented league with the most ex NHL talent. You can also find some of that talent in the Swedish Elite and SM-Liiga (Finnish Elite). Some of the smaller leagues in Germany (DEL), Austria, Norway, etc are also home to ex NHL players.
Consider this the first installment of a few pieces dedicated to European hockey. Today’s piece has a specific focus. With the 2015-16 NHL regular season now upon us, it marks exactly 10 seasons since the NHL dropped the puck after a year long lockout to changed our game forever.
In this new modern day cap era where skill has been the focus up and down the lineup, tough guys were pushed out of the game. Our game got faster and quicker and brought with it a host of rule changes to keep up with the pace of the game.
But one thing was missing 10 years ago when the NHL dropped the puck again. They lost scoring talent. As skill and speed has increased over the past decade, scoring has gone down. But could the European hockey movement be to blame?
Today we take a look at the top 10 players that we lost to the 2004-05 lockout. We’ve set a few guidelines though. The player needs to have stayed in Europe after the 2004-05 lockout. Any players who made an appearance with a North American club (AHL, ECHL, etc.) are excluded. We’re doing this to better accurately measure the talent that was lost. If a guy made a comeback attempt with a NA team and couldn’t hack it, then its not really lost talent is it?
The ranking of our top 10 is based on the potential scoring that was lost in the NHL. While some guys who had better careers rank a little lower, it is based on what we think they had left in the tank to produce at the NHL level.
Before we get into our honorable mentions and our top 10. Let’s take a moment to look back at the players who retired following the lockout. Some of these guys probably had 1-3 years (maybe more) left in the tank, so it makes you wonder what could have been with a few of them.
Trent Klatt
In 2003-04 with the Kings, Klatt put up 43 points in 82 games. He was 32 when he retired. In 782 NHL games played, Klatt tallied 343 points.
Vincent Damphousse
In 2003-04 with the Sharks, Damphousse scored 41 points in 82 games. An exellent career spent between Toronto, Montreal, and San Jose was cut short at 36. In 1378 NHL games played, Vinny Damphousse produced 1205 points.
Brian Holzinger
Spent most of his career between Buffalo and Tampa Bay. He spent a bit of time in the AHL during the 02-03 season, but came back and put up 21 points over 61 games with Pittsburgh before being traded to Columbus where he managed 1 goals over a 13 game span. He retired following the lockout season.
Donald Audette
He was only 34 when the lockout forced him to retire. His game was trending down his last few seasons but had a great NHL career. He produced 509 points over the course of his 735 NHL game career.
Magnus Arvedson
Another career cut far too short at 32 years old. Arvedson spent his first six years with the Senators before playing the 2003-04 season with Vancouver. He had 39 points in 01-02, 37 points in 02-03, followed by 15 points in 41 games with Vancouver the year before the lockout.
Joe Juneau
An old warrior that most should remember. He put up 102 points with the Bruins in 1992-93. His production dwindled his last few seasons with the Montreal Canadiens. He retired when he was 36. In 828 career NHL games, Juneau tallied 572 points over 828 games.
Scott Pellerin, Ted Donato, Jody Hull, Sean Pronger (lockout year in Europe then retired), Karl Dykhuis (two years in Europe then retired), and Stephane Quintal (lockout year in Italy then retired) are all guys who were bouncing back and forth between the NHL and AHL before they retired.
Next: Honorable and Special Mentions
Before we get into our honorable mentions and the top 10, we’d like to take a moment to include a special mention for one particular player. It wouldn’t have been fair to try and find a spot for him in the top 10 due to the circumstances of his situation.
SERGEI ZHOLTOK (SERGEJS ZOLTOKS)
Sergei Zholtok was drafted in the 3rd round 55th overall by the Boston Bruins in 1992. He spent his first 4 seasons back and forth between Providence and Boston. He spent the next season and a half with Ottawa’s IHL affiliate Las Vegas Thunder before being called up and producing 28 points in 57 games with the Sens.
He spent one more season with Ottawa before playing 2 1/2 seasons with Montreal before being moved to Edmonton, where played for half a season. He signed with Minnesota in 2000-01, and was an assistant captain for the Wild in 02-03. After spending most of the season with Minnesota the year before the lockout, he spent the last 11 games of the season with the Nashville Predators.
During the 2003-04 World Championships, Zholtok was captain for the Latvian team and produced 5 points in 7 games. During the lockout, Zholtok decided to play in Belarus for HK Riga 2000. He had 7 points in 6 games before tragedy struck.
Sergei Zholtok tragically suffered from heart failure (heart attack) while playing a game in Belarus. And, unfortunately died from the incident. This is not to be confused with the KHL tragedy of Alexei Cheraponov in 2008.
The saddest part is to think of how this could have potentially been avoided. I wouldn’t wanna speculate on the details of how medical staff worked at the time in Belarus, but I imagine it wasn’t much better than that of the Cheraponov situation, probably worse.
Had the 2004-05 NHL lockout not occurred, we may very well have had Sergei Zholtok around for much longer. The first of many tough losses in the hockey world since the lockout.
Now for our honorable mentions. The following are the guys who didn’t quite make our top 10 but were still worthy enough to be considered:
Petr Schastlivy, Riku Hahl, Pavel Rosa, Andreas Johansson, Artem Chubarov, Boris Mironov, Marcus Ragnarsson, Pavel Trnka, Igor Korolev (tragically lost in KHL Lokomotiv plane crash), Rob Zamuner, Mattias Timander, Darby Hendrickson, Espen Knutsen, and Josh Holden
Next: #10
#10 DENIS SHVIDKI
Denis Shvidki is a Russian born player who was drafted 12th overall in the first round over the 1999 NHL draft by the Florida Panthers.
Playing for the Barrie Colts in his draft eligible year, he produced 94 points, and followed that up with 106 points the following season with the Colts. He spent much of the next 4 seasons bouncing back and forth from the AHL to Florida.
In 2003-04, he spent nearly the entire season with the San Antonio Rampage. He tallied 54 points in 77 games. This is usually the point where a player hits his ceiling in the AHL and is ready to make an impact at the NHL level.
Instead, he spent the next 5 1/2 seasons in Russia before spending some time in Finland in the SM Liiga. He spent the next three seasons after that playing in Germany (DEL). His last season of hockey before retiring after the 2013-14 was spent between the VHL (Russian league) and MOL Liga (based out of Hungary, Romania, and Slovakia).
He may not have had an exceptional NHL career, but its hard to say what could have been. Just to compare. Montreal prospect Sven Andrighetto put up 43 points in the AHL last year and made it to final rounds of cuts. It shows you just how ready Shvidki was to make the jump to the NHL after his 54 point campaign in the AHL just before the lockout.
Next: #9
9. MICHAL GROSEK
Grosek is a Czech born player that was drafted by the Winnipeg Jets in the 6th round 145th overall in the 1993 NHL draft.
He spent parts of his first three years bouncing around from the WHL to the AHL to the NHL before settling in with the Buffalo Sabres in 1995-96. He went on to have the best season of his career in 1998-99 with the Sabres when he put up 50 points in 76 games.
Surprisingly, Grosek only managed one full 82 game season, as he had struggles staying healthy. Michal Grosek will never be remembered as the most talented player, but he was an excellent role player who could still produce with a little less ice-time.
During the 2004-05 NHL lockout, the Bruins Grosek took his talents to the Swiss-A league where he spent the next two years. After playing one season with St.Petersburg in Russia, he went to play another two seasons in the Swiss-A league. 2007-08 was his last season of hockey which was split between Swiss-A and Sweden-1 (just below SEL).
In 526 career NHL games played, Michal Grosek put up 221 points. In 2008-09, Grosek accepted a coaching position with CP Meyrin of Switzerland4 league. He’s coached them for the past six seasons.
Next: #8
8. ANDREAS DACKELL
Dackell is a Swedish native that was a bit of a late bloomer over in Europe so he was drafted when he was 23 after a few good seasons in the SEL (Swedish Elite). He was drafted in the 6th round 136th overall at the 1996 NHL draft by the Ottawa Senators.
He put up 31 points in his rookie season and followed that up with a career best 50 points two years later. He spent 5 seasons in Ottawa before spending the last three in Montreal before the lockout. Andreas Dackell produced 250 points in 613 career NHL games.
During the lockout, Dackell played for Brynas IF of the SEL (Swedish Elite), where actually spent the next 8 years before retiring. With Brynas IF, he spent two years as an assistant captain, before captaining the squad his last five seasons of European hockey.
Since retiring, Dackell joined Brynas IF as a development coach in 2013-14 before being promoted to assistant coach in 2014-15 where he currently resides. Dackell was pretty consistent as an NHLer in the 30 point range. Makes you wonder if he had a few of those left in him when he left Montreal for European hockey.
Next: #7
7. ANDREI NIKOLISHIN
A Russian-born player that was drafted by the Hartford Whalers in 1992 in the 2nd round 47th overall. In just his second season, Nikolishin tallied 51 points in 61 games with the Whalers. After spending his first three years with Hartford, he went to play in Washington for the next six seasons.
By this point Andrei Nikolishin had represented Russia at the World Championships five times. He spent 2002-03 with the Chicago Blackhawks before spending the 2003-04 season before the lockout with the Colorado Avalanche.
He spent the lockout season in Russia where he played for 8 more years (eventually named the KHL). Nikolishin actually captained Traktor Chelyabinsk in 2009-10. He played his last year of European hockey in Ukraine in 2011-12 with Sokol Kiev in Ukraine where he went out with a bang producing 61 points in just 36 games played.
Since retiring, Andrei Nikolishin was hired as head coach for Traktor Chelyabinsk of the KHL (where he played 4 seasons).
His son Ivan Nikolishin is yet to be drafted but is currently playing the WHL with the Everett Silvertips. Ivan is expected to captain the Russian U20 team at this years World Junior Championships.
Next: #6
6. ALEXANDER KOROLYUK
The man known to some Sharks fans as “Corky” was drafted in the 6th round 141st overall by San Jose at the 1994 NHL draft.
He spent the first five seasons in North America before spending 2002-03 in Russia. He came back to San Jose in 2003-04 before the lockout and put up 37 points in 63 games with the Sharks.
Korolyuk played in Russia during the lockout and spent the next 11 seasons in Russia/KHL before finally retiring after the 2014-15 season.
In 6 seasons in the NHL, Korolyuk tallied 142 points in 296 games. He never had a fully healthy season in the NHL.
But he played 7 full healthy seasons in Russia following the lockout. 11 more seasons of Alexander Korolyuk and we could have been looking at him very differently from the shaky start to his NHL career that we all remember.
Next: #5
5. MIKAEL RENBERG
If Renberg should be remembered for any particular reason, it should be the role he played on Philadelphia’s “Legion of Doom” line. Not only was the line productive in scoring, but was feared by opponents with the combined weight between Mikael Renberg, John LeClair, and Eric Lindros being 701lbs. A memorable line for Philly in the mid 1990s.
Renberg was drafted in the 2nd round 40th overall by the Philadelphia Flyers in 1990. He put up 82 points in 83 games played his rookie season with the Flyers. He was highly productive his first 4 seasons with Philly before captaining the Lightning in 1997-98, where he spent season and a half.
In 1998-99 he made his way back to Philly where he spent the next season and a half before finishing the 99-00 season with the Phoenix Coyotes. He decided to go across the pond and play European hockey in Sweden during the 2000-01 season before coming back to North American and spending the next three seasons with the Toronto Maple Leafs.
During the lockout, Renberg signed with Lulea HF of the SEL (Swedish Elite). He spent three seasons there, captaining the team during the 05-06 and 06-07 season. Renberg then went on to captain Skelleftea AIK in 07-08 before stepping down to assistant captain during his last season of European hockey in 08-09 with Skelleftea AIK.
Over Mikael Renberg‘s career, he appeared in two Olympic Games for Sweden as well as four World Championships. Over his NHL career, Renberg put up 464 points in 661 games.
Next: #4
4. ROBERT REICHEL
Reichel is a Czech born player that was drafted in the 4th round 70th overall in the 1989 NHL draft by the Calgary Flames.
In his rookie season with the Flames, Reichel produced 41 points in 66 games. He followed that up with 54 point during his sophomore season, then exploded with 88 points and 93 points the next two seasons with Calgary. He played 5 1/2 seasons with the Flames before joining the New York Islanders late in the 1996-97 season.
After 2 1/2 seasons with the Islanders, he joined Phoenix for a short stint at the end of the 1998-99 season. Reichel decided to played European hockey in the Czech Republic for two seasons before coming back to North America and joining the Toronto Maple Leafs in 2001-02. He put up 51 points in his first year with the Leafs. His totals dropped to 42, then 30 the next two years with Toronto before the lockout hit.
He spent the lockout season with HC Litvinov, where he spent his last six seasons of hockey. Reichel captained HC Litvinov during his two year hiatus from 1999-2001, and took over captaincy again in 2004-05 during the lockout where he remained captain for his last six seasons being highly productive in the Czech league.
Over the course over his career, he represented Czechoslovakia/Czech Republic 9 times at the World Championships. He also appeared in two Olympic Games. During his NHL career, Robert Reichel tallied 630 points over 830 games.
With six seasons left on the table after the lockout, who knows if Reichel could have surpassed 1000 points. Since retiring from playing in 2009-10, Reichel has gone on to coach Czech international junior teams each season ranging from the U16 squad to more recently the U20 team.
Remember the name Kristian Reichel when you do your 2016 NHL mock drafts. Robert’s son should be draft eligible this year and is European hockey player who has been coached by his father over the course of the last 5 seasons as he’s climbed from the U16 to the U18, to now the U20 squad. He’ll be a kid to watch at this years World Junior Championships.
Next: #3
3. MILAN KRAFT
I’m willing to bet this is a name that a lot of people are unfamiliar with. For those hockey die hards or fantasy junkies of old, you should remember this guy. Drafted in the first round 23rd overall at the 1998 NHL draft by the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Milan Kraft is a Czech born player that was expected to be a turn-around piece for a struggling Penguins team. He was a European hockey player when drafted who had been tearing up the score sheet for Czech junior teams. When he was 16 years old playing for HC Plzen of the Czech U18 league, he produced 95 points in 49 games.
During his draft year, he played for HC Plzen’s U20 squad where he put up 45 points in 24 games before being called up to the Czech’s top league. After being drafted by the Pens, he played two seasons with Prince Albert of the WHL scoring over a ppg pace both years.
From 2000-01 to 2002-03 he spent a lot of time between Wilkes-Barre of the AHL and Pittsburgh. In 2003-04 he finally adjusted and developed to NHL play and put up 40 points in 66 games. He went on to represent the Czech Republic that same season at the World Championships.
During the lockout, Kraft went back to his native Czech Republic playing in the top league for the next five years before spending his last four seasons of European hockey in the Czech2 league. He spent his last two years as captain for Pirati Chomotuv.
With only 82 points over the course of a 207 game NHL career, one might wonder why he’s so high up on our list. Milan Kraft was only 23 when forced over to European hockey. He spent 9 more seasons playing hockey before retiring in 2012-13 at the young age of 32.
Perhaps if he had stayed in North America, he could have extended his career longer. Maybe if Pittsburgh had gotten Kraft back following the lockout, then Sidney Crosby as a Pittsburgh Penguins player may never have been?
Next: #2
2. KENNY JONSSON
This Swedish-born defenseman was drafted by the Toronto Maple Leafs in the first round 12th overall at the 1993 NHL draft.
He only spent a 1 1/2 with the Leafs before joining the Islanders for the next 8 1/2 seasons. He was a mainstay dependable d-man for the New York Islanders between the late 90s and early 00s. He spent two seasons as captain of the Islanders and four other seasons as assistant captain. He was still holding the “A” in 2003-04 just before the lockout took place.
After returning home to Sweden for the lockout season, Kenny Jonsson never returned to North America to play. He spent the four seasons after the lockout captaining Rogle BK in the Allsvenskan/SHL. Jonsson represented Sweden three times at the Olympic Games and seven times at the World Championships over the course of his career.
Kenny Jonsson retired after the 2008-09 season when he was 35 years old. For those who remember, Kenny had a brother named Jorgen Jonsson who appeared in the NHL but never really had much impact. Over Kenny Jonsson’s NHL career, he produced 267 points in 686 games played.
The time spent in Sweden after the lockout saw Jonsson produce 89 points in 88 games. You don’t find many PPG d-men in the Swedish top leagues. The NHL didn’t lose just a quality d-man in Kenny Jonsson, but a good leader on and off the ice.
Since retiring, Jonsson was an assistant coach for Rogle BK in Sweden for 3 years before joining Skane in the TV-Pucken. In 2015-16 Jonsson made the move from Skane of TV-Pucken to Helsingborgs HC in Dvision 1. Kenny Jonsson has since been inducted into the New York Islanders hall-of-fame in 2012.
Next: #1
1. ALEXEI MOROZOV
After the Penguins lost both Milan Kraft and Alexei Morozov because of the 2004-05 lockout, the debate to whether or not the Penguins would have gotten Sidney Crosby in 2005 is less debatable. While they’re not two guys that would have made a dramatic difference, it would have been enough of a difference maker to keep them out of the basement.
So maybe Pens fans should be thanking Alexei Morozov and Milan Kraft? Morozov was drafted in the first round 24th overall by the Pittsburgh Penguins in 1995. The Russian-born played appeared in one Olympic Games and 2 World Championships before ever touching the ice in the NHL.
He never had as big of years as Mikael Renberg or Robert Reichel, with his career best coming in 2003-04 where he had 50 points. He also had 49 points two years before that. His NHL career wasn’t as flashy as some on the list, but the destruction he caused in European hockey over the next decade is enough to garner our top spot.
It’s obvious that of all the names, the most potential points lost would have likely come from Alexei Morozov. Over his 7-year NHL career, Morozov managed 219 points in 451 games. After making the jump to European hockey during the lockout, he joined AK Bars Kazan of Russia eventually joining the KHL where he produced 528 points in 513 games over 10 seasons.
He spent his last season of European hockey with CSKA Moskva of the KHL in 2013-2014. He captained Ak Bars Kazan 6 of the 9 seasons he played for them, while captaining CSKA Moskva in his last season of hockey.
Following the lockout, he appeared for Russia four more times at the World Championships, along with one more Olympic Games appearance. Morozov went on to win a ton of KHL awards over his last 10 seasons of European hockey.
There’s no doubt he could have continued to play in the NHL if he wanted to. I wonder what would have happened if the Pittsburgh Penguins had Evgeni Malkin, Sidney Crosby, Alexei Morozov, and Milan Kraft together in this modern day NHL. Might have seen another Stanley Cup or two.
And that’s our top 10 folks! Let us know what you think below. Do we underrate or overrate any players? Were there snubbed players that you think were worthy of the list?
Aside from the list itself, let’s hear what you think about the evolution of European hockey and how it has possibly effected the drought in scoring in the NHL? Would Sidney Crosby have ever landed in Pittsburgh is Milan Kraft and Alexei Morozov had returned after the 2004-05 NHL lockout?
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