NHL: Who is the greatest goal scorer of their generation?

Pavel Bure

Reign: 1999-2001
Team: Florida Panthers
Goals Scored during Reign: 117
Games Played: 156 out of a possible 164
Adjusted Goals per Game: 0.71
Goals per Game of Era: 2.75
Scoring Titles: 2

Bure always had the skills and speed, but the fact that he was from the Soviet Union caused nearly everyone to become hesitant to select him in his draft year of 1989. Vancouver eventually picked him in the sixth round, and were rewarded as soon as he hit the ice in 1991. Bure’s second and third season saw 60 goals each, including a scoring crown in 1993-94.

Bure had a solid career with the Canucks but decided he no longer wanted to play there for personal reasons, and after a lengthy holdout, was traded to Florida in the 1998-99 season. He then led the NHL in goal scoring the next two seasons, scoring 58 and 59 goals during the 1999-2000 and 2000-01 seasons.

He wasn’t called the Russian Rocket for nothing. His blazing speed and stick-handling skills got him room on the ice that none others could hope to find. However, he had injury troubles throughout his career, and after a brief stint with the Rangers and the lockout, Bure retired from those injuries.

Few could have matched speed with Bure, but when his knees ultimately betrayed him, it again left us with questions as to how good he really could have been. After Bure’s brief stint at the top of the heap, we move on to a player with an entirely different skill set – Jarome Iginla.