Hall of Famers without Continental Cups; Part 1

[Victor 10,680]

As more and more players join the VHL and vie for a Hall of Fame place in an age of extreme parity and lower career stats, team accolades seemingly mean more than ever. A number of Hall of Fame hopefuls such as Jake Davis @Josh and Joseph McWolf @McWolf, not to mention a number of active players, might be wondering whether a Continental Cup might make or break their chances. Fortunately, of the 121 players in the Hall of Fame as of S70, 16 never won a championship. It's not a lot, but it's a bit of hope. In the first part of this 2-part Media Spot, I will look at the first 10 to do it.

 

Petr Shirokov    @nibbz

The tragic near-misses: To be honest, Shirokov didn't give himself the best chance at a cup by only playing 4 seasons. He was always the star player on the underdog teams, coming closest to the holy grail in S3 Game 7 with a Helsinki team that had no business being there, in his only trip to the finals.

How he got in anyway: By retiring early, Shirokov was one of the few players available for the inaugural Hall of Fame induction in S5. To be fair, he did carve out a very solid career of helping the league's also-rans get to the playoffs. Amstel and Hamilton experienced their best seasons with Shirokov, and the S3 Titans were far from a powerhouse and were making their first playoff appearance.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Not particularly, as per above – good timing and a niche of being the MVP of the underdogs.

 

Maxim Desny   @brooks.

The tragic near-misses: Like Shirokov above, Desny didn't play for the cup favourites, instead spending all but 33 games of his 5-season career with a Helsinki team with a fair few issues. It was Desny who was the face of that S3 Titans team, and he helped them to another finals appearance in S5. There was a bit of sadness when rookie Dominik Stryker managed to backstop Helsinki to the cup in S6, right after Desny's retirement.

How he got in anyway: In a league dominated by offense, Desny went against the grain by being a goalie whose stats might look weak today, but one who performed miracles for some limited Titans squads. For some context – in S3 he managed to thwart Scotty Campbell's Vasteras and steal 3 wins off Brett Slobodzian's Calgary, while in S5 defeating Christian Stolzschweiger and Stockholm meant a meeting with the powerhouse Campbell-led Seattle.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Desny's legacy was probably enhanced by the near-misses. The league appreciated his heroics and he was awarded playoff MVP in S3 despite never winning a cup.

 

David Night    @Knight

The tragic near-misses: As the face of the short-lived Hamilton Canucks, Night had an uphill battle to claim a Continental Cup – Hamilton only played 6 playoff games in 6 seasons of existence. Later on, he'd be on the wrong side of some European conference finals – losing to Helsinki with Avangard in S6, and to Avangard with Vasteras in S7. Without a finals appearance, none of those really qualify as near-misses.

How he got in anyway: Night was certainly one of the better defencemen of the first generation, but could have easily ended up on the outside looking in. He was helped by being future commissioner David Knight's first player and a bit of a media campaign to belatedly get him inducted. He certainly belongs in the HOF, but is one of the weaker defencemen in it.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Definitely, as evidenced by the fact he waited 10 seasons to be inducted in S17. He was probably the fourth or fifth best defenceman of his generation but in the end voters appreciated that he was handicapped by playing on weak teams.

 

David Henman   @Knight

The tragic near-misses: There was a point in time when there was something known as a “Knight Curse” due to David and to a lesser extent Phil Knight @Phil, with David only winning a cup with the inactive player between Night and Henman. While Night never really came close, Henman had to wait a while for his Toronto team to grow into a contender and then finished his career by playing on two of the best teams to never win a cup – S16-S17 Toronto and S18 Madrid.

How he got in anyway: Like Night, Henman wasn't the biggest physical presence on defence, but after a slow start, grew into an all-time great offensive defenceman. He helped open the door for a new generation of defencemen and no one held the bad luck of his era's Legion against him.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? It probably stopped Henman from being first ballot, as the voting committee opted for some players who had been waiting around for a while. His stats were still enough to comfortably get in by his third season of eligibility however.

 

Tarik Saeijs    @frescoelmo

The tragic near-misses: The Slovakian sniper Saeijs was part of a few teams which underperformed in the playoffs – first the high-flying Reign who got stymied by Davos in each of his first three seasons, then some ageing squads in Helsinki and Toronto. He only really came close once, when he joined the Titans after their S22 cup and helped them to Game 7 in S23, where they were upset by Calgary.

How he got in anyway: Saeijs was one of the the best natural talents to grace the VHL, scoring at will wherever he played and whomever he played with. It's no coincidence teams' offensive units improved when Saeijs joined, and his 1.51 career point-per-game mark and trophy case made up for his lack of playoff success.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Not really. No S18 player was dislodging the Kanou/Shaw juggernaught from the first ballot, but Saeijs got in on the second time of asking, alongside Anton Brekker who won a lot more championships.

 

Jukka Hakkinen  @James

The tragic near-misses: For a more modern player, Hakkinen is quite an outlier among Hall of Famers. He only made the playoffs 3 times in 8 seasons and had just one 5-game appearance in the finals in his last season, where his New York was outclassed by the experienced Davos.

How he got in anyway: Hakkinen's loyalty was very rare, as he battled through not having much of a supporting cast and often no starting calibre goalie to play out his entire career with the Americans. Despite this, he was constantly among the league's top scorers, a lone bright spark on a New York team going through a bad period.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Not just the lack of cups, but also any individual trophies of note. Hakkinen is probably the main glimmer of hope for anyone worried they don't have the hardware for a Hall of Fame career, although he did put up a lot of points.

 

Daniel Braxton   @Jericho

The tragic near-misses: It doesn't get much more tragic than the story of Braxton and his goaltender, Benjamin Glover. In eight seasons, all but one played together in New York, the duo would make a remarkable five cup finals, a huge departure from the days of Hakkinen, but won none of them. There was a loss to Vasteras who would never win a cup again, then choking away a 2-0 lead for the first time in Continental Cup finals history in S27, then a loss to hated rivals from Seattle. The cherry on the cake was choking away a 3-1 lead for the first time in finals history in S31, losing Game 7 to Davos in what was Braxton and Glover's last ever game (Braxton having played in Davos the season prior).

How he got in anyway: Braxton could console himself by becoming the first ever player to win 4 Sterling Labatte Trophies. His legacy has been superceded by a few other great New York defencemen, but he still features heavily in the best of all-time conversation, which meant he was an easy first ballot induction, finals curse be damned.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? It hurts him in the conversation against other legendary defencemen, but his Hall of Fame case was sealed long before the Game 7 heartbreak in S31.

 

Benjamin Glover  @scoop

The tragic near-misses: See Braxton above – only difference being that Glover never left New York.

How he got in anyway: It wasn't as clear cut a case as Braxton, but Glover had proven himself as one of the top goalies of his generation, and ultimately going 0-for-5 in the finals was deemed bad luck and not an indictment on Glover's talent itself. Also, as one half of a nearly inseparable duo with Braxton, their joint induction seemed inevitable.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Again, not really, as he had the regular season stats to go in pretty comfortably. Unlike Braxton though, it's contributed to pushing him out completely of the greatest goaltenders discussion.

 

Ansgar Snijider   @Kyle

The tragic near-misses: Snijider's career was a long build up to the ultimate heartbreak. After struggling to carry some poor Riga squads, he made it to the finals in his fourth season, as Davos lost to Toronto in a close-fought series. Chasing the cup, Snijider left Davos via free agency to go back to Riga, but ended up losing the Dynamo as they went onto finally claim the cup in S31. In S32 though, everything seemed to be going the Reign's way up until they had a 3-1 lead over New York, but the Americans came back to win in seven and end the league's longest cup drought of the time. That dubious title was passed to Riga, who would break their curse the very next season, but Snijider had retired at the end of S32.

How he got in anyway: Snijider was, quite frankly, one of the best and most consistent forwards at both ends of the ice that the VHL had seen. It was never enough to be top scorer or MVP, or to win a Boulet, but he was in the conversation for almost his entire career. The lack of a championship seemed like a cruel joke given his talent.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? That, and the lack of much of any silverware, helps explain why Snijider had to wait until S38 to get the call while fellow S25 draftee Tukka Reikkinen was inducted straight away in S33. However, it was very much a case of when, rather than if.

 

Kameron Taylor  @Kendrick

The tragic near-misses: As the Cologne Express' first ever draft pick, Taylor's chances were directly intertwined with Cologne's progress, and the franchise did not quite get its break in its first decade. Taylor only ever made it to the conference finals, once with Cologne, and twice with Riga to close off his career.

How he got in anyway: Taylor was a prolific scorer and lived up to the franchise player tag for the Express, even if it was the next generation that brought the cup home. Playing in a highly competitive VHL, Taylor was overshadowed by a few other greats of the time, but the numbers did the talking when all was said and done.

Did the lack of cups hinder his chances? Even without being one of the better centers of his generation, helping build Cologne from the ground would have worked in Taylor's favour regardless. It wasn't a major consideration.

[Beketov 8,795]

Holik... oh wait 

[McWolf 3,114]

I'm curious, how many of these 16 never even made the Continental Cup Finals?

[Victor 10,680]

1 minute ago, McWolf said:

I'm curious, how many of these 16 never even made the Continental Cup Finals?

Just Night and Taylor in this article. No one of the 6 in the next part.

[McWolf 3,114]

1 minute ago, Victor said:

Just Night and Taylor in this article. No one of the 6 in the next part.

Only 2. So... McWolf could be #3 :V

[Beketov 8,795]

7 minutes ago, McWolf said:

Only 2. So... McWolf could be #3 :V

#4, Holik never made the finals

 

I can dream.

[McWolf 3,114]

Just now, Beketov said:

#4, Holik never made the finals

 

I can dream.

I'll settle for #3 ex-aequo.

Let's make it in the same class somewhere in the 90s.

[Advantage 2,849]

Came for Braxton and Glover.

[Victor 10,680]

22 minutes ago, Advantage said:

Came for Braxton and Glover.

That's what Jericho said.

[Advantage 2,849]

56 minutes ago, Victor said:

That's what Jericho said.

@Jericho what a scrub

[Mr_Hatter 1,603]

@Victor Do you know what the most amount of cup wins without HOF is?

[Victor 10,680]

50 minutes ago, Mr_Hatter said:

@Victor Do you know what the most amount of cup wins without HOF is?

That would be 4, take your pick of Doug Schneider, Marcel Faux, or Phil Shankly: https://vhlforum.com/topic/10505-continental-cups-by-player-and-member/

 

[frescoelmo 1,234]

@Victor

 

[Baozi 1,638]

Meanwhile there's me with few individual awards but cups out the wazoo

[Victor 10,680]

Week numba two

[Victor 10,680]

This was 1,813 words btw so week 3 of 3, oh yeah.

[Kyle 667]

God damnit