Brendan Shanahan

Brendan Frederick Shanahan (born January 23, 1969) is a Canadian professional ice hockey executive and former player who currently serves as the president and alternate governor for the Toronto Maple Leafs, having previously served as the director of player safety for the National Hockey League (NHL).

Originally drafted by the New Jersey Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft, Shanahan played in the NHL with the New Jersey Devils (two stints), St. Louis Blues, Hartford Whalers, Detroit Red Wings, and New York Rangers.

Shanahan was drafted by the New Jersey Devils second overall in the 1987 NHL Entry Draft after Pierre Turgeon.

Expectations for Shanahan were high after a stellar career with the London Knights of the Ontario Hockey League (OHL), with whom his number 19 has been retired.

In his rookie season with the Devils, in 1987–88, he scored 26 points in 65 games as an 18-year-old.

The following season, in 1988–89, he improved to 22 goals and 50 points.

In his third NHL season, he emerged as a point-per-game producer with 72 points in 73 games and a top scorer with the Devils; his 30 goals finished tied for second in team goal-scoring behind John MacLean.

In his fourth and final year of his initial stint with the Devils in 1990–91, he scored 29 goals and 66 points.

At the age of 22, Shanahan was already an established scorer in the NHL.

He had also played well in the Devils' playoff runs.

Becoming a free agent following the 1990–91 season, Shanahan was signed by the St. Louis Blues on July 25, 1991.

According to the collective bargaining agreement, he was a restricted free-agent, and therefore, the Devils were due compensation.

Ordinarily, this compensation would be in the form of draft picks, but the Blues already owed four first-round draft picks to the Washington Capitals for signing defenceman Scott Stevens the previous year.

The Blues made an offer for compensation that consisted of Curtis Joseph, Rod Brind'Amour and two draft picks even further down the road.

However, the Devils were only interested in Scott Stevens.

An arbitrator eventually decided that Stevens was to be the compensation, so Shanahan joined the Blues in exchange for Scott Stevens.

Shanahan's first season for the Blues yielded similar statistics to his seasons with the Devils, but he reached another level in 1992–93 with 51 goals and 94 points in 71 games.

He finished second in team goal-scoring to Brett Hull and third in team point-scoring overall.

Continuing at that pace the next season, in 1993–94, he recorded personal bests of 52 goals, 50 assists and 102 points.

Competing for Canada internationally, Shanahan won a gold medal at the 1994 World Championships, 2002 Winter Olympics, and a 1991 Canada Cup championship.

Having won what are considered the three most prominent team titles in ice hockey, an Olympic gold medal, a World Championship and a Stanley Cup, Shanahan is a member of the elite Triple Gold Club.

In addition to leading the Blues in points, he was named to the 1994 NHL All-Star Game at mid-season and the NHL first All-Star team at the end of the year.

During the 1994–95 NHL lockout, Shanahan played three games for Düsseldorf EG of the Deutsche Eishockey Liga (DEL), scoring five goals and three assists in his short stay overseas.

When NHL play resumed, he continued to play well for the Blues, recording 41 points in the lockout-shortened season.

In the 1995 playoffs, he led the team in scoring with nine points in five games.

After four seasons with the Blues, on July 27, 1995, Shanahan was traded to the Hartford Whalers in exchange for defenceman Chris Pronger, succeeding Pat Verbeek as team captain.

In Shanahan's only full season for Hartford, he scored a team-high 44 goals and 78 points and for his efforts was selected to the 1996 All-Star Game.

With the uncertainty of the franchise, however, Shanahan requested a trade, and on October 9, 1996, just two games into the 1996–97 season, he was moved with Brian Glynn to the Detroit Red Wings for forward Keith Primeau, defenseman Paul Coffey, and a first-round draft pick.

Shanahan finished off the 1996–97 season with his usual productivity, scoring a total of 47 goals for the season, and being named to the 1997 NHL All-Star Game.

While playing with the Red Wings, he won three Stanley Cup championships (1997, 1998, 2002).

In the 1997 playoffs, he also contributed with nine goals and eight assists, helping the Red Wings to their first Stanley Cup since 1955.

They repeated as Cup champions the next year, despite an off season for Shanahan in which he managed just 57 points.

The following season, in 1998–99, Shanahan continued at that pace with 58 points, but was still invited to another All-Star Game.

Entering the 1999 playoffs as back-to-back Stanley Cup champions, the Red Wings were eliminated by the rival Colorado Avalanche.

The next year, in 1999–2000, Shanahan scored 41 goals, indicating a return to his usual form, however, the Red Wings were once again eliminated by the Avalanche in the 2000 playoffs.

After the season, he was named to the first All-Star team for the second time in his career.

Shanahan was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame on November 8, 2013, as a member of the Red Wings.

In 2017 Shanahan was named one of the '100 Greatest NHL Players' in history.

With his physical play and goal-scoring ability, Shanahan scored 656 goals in his NHL career spanning over 1,500 NHL games and, at the time of his retirement, was the leader among active NHL players for goals scored.

Shanahan is the only player in NHL history with over 600 goals and 2,000 penalty minutes.