Ronald Scott Stevens (born April 1, 1964) is an ice hockey coach and former Canadian player. As a defenseman, Stevens played 22 seasons at the National Hockey League (NHL) for the Washington Capitals, St. Louis Blues and the New Jersey Devils, serving as Devil's captain from 1992 to 2004. Despite being very capable, Stevens is known for his defensive play and body weight checking opponents.
Stevens started his career with the Capital, where he helped the team make the Stanley Cup playoffs for the first time. After spending a season with the Blues, he was acquired by Satan through arbitration. Personifying the first team's defense mentality, he captained the Devil to four Stanley Cup final appearances in nine years, winning three of them. In 2000, he won the Conn Smythe Trophy as the most valuable player of the 2000 Stanley Cup playoffs. Despite his team's success with the Devil, he never won the James Norris Memorial Trophy as the league's best defense. His career ended after a slapshot crashed into his head and caused post-concussion syndrome.
Stevens was then inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007, his first year of eligibility. Stevens retired with most of the games played by the NHL defenseman (1,635 games), then endorsed by Chris Chelios. Stevens is also the youngest player in league history to achieve the 1,500 games played, playing in his 1500th match at the age of 37, 346 days. He has no negative plus/minus in any of his 22 NHL seasons, and has the most penalty minutes of any player immortalized in the Hall of Fame until Chris Chelios was sworn in 2013. In 2017, Stevens was named one of the " 100 Greatest NHL Players "in history.
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Stevens was born in Kitchener, Ontario, to Larry and Mary Stevens, the middle child of three siblings. Larry owns a paper product company and also a semi-professional Canadian football player. The three brothers Stevens play hockey as children; Geoff's older brother will then become a talent scout for the New Jersey Devils, while Mike, the youngest, enjoys a brief NHL career with several teams. Growing up near Toronto, he is a Toronto Maple Leafs fan and idolized Leafs defenseman BÃÆ'¶rje Salming. Stevens attended the Eastwood Collegiate Institute, where he played the central midfielder. One of his teammates is Markus Koch, who will win the Super Bowl with Washington Redskins of the National Football League. However, hockey is Stevens' true passion. He and his siblings often play hockey at home, ruining furniture repeatedly. He finally earned a spot on the Kitchener Junior B team and graduated on the occasion for a Czechoslovakia tour with Kitchener midget team to play there. His game impressed the scouts and he was taken ninth overall by his hometown Kitchener Rangers in the Ontario Ontario Hockey League (OHL) draft.
The 1981-82 Kitchener Rangers is a team featuring some of the NHL players of the future. Corps of defense including Dave Shaw and Al MacInnis, Wendell Young is the team's early goaltender, and the top scoring line on the team is Jeff Larmer, Brian Bellows and Grant Martin. Stevens and Shaw are an integral part of Rangers defense, playing in every game of the season on the way to the team's Memorial Cup victory. In addition, both play in the OHL All-Star Game. Rangers head coach Joe Crozier said of Stevens, "He came so far this year... He is strong, tough, handles the chips well and has an incredible hockey taste." Stevens led all the rookie defensemen in the scoring and was named the second best defensive defensive and second best body inspector in the OHL coach poll.
Maps Scott Stevens
Washington Capital
Stevens was taken fifth overall in the 1982 NHL Entry Draft by the Washington Capitals. Due to injuries to other players during the training camp, Stevens made the team at the age of 18 and never played a game in the minor league. He made an immediate impact, scoring on his first shot in his first NHL match. He scored 25 points in his debut season and became the All-Rookie Team. In addition, he led all the rookie defensemen in the penalty minutes. He finished third in the voting for the Calder Memorial Trophy, which was awarded to the Rookie of the Year league. He is also named Rookie of the Year Capitals. Stevens' debut with the Capitals coincided with the team's first playoff appearance, though they were eliminated in the first round by the New York Islanders.
The following year, he will almost double his points total from the previous year, finishing with 13 goals and 32 assists for 45 points. Only team mate Larry Murphy has more points among the defensemen. The 201th minute of his sentence will lead the team; He will eventually lead the Capitals in categories five times during his tenure with the team, and finally set the team's record for the most minute minutes of his career by a defenseman. However, Stevens' personal success was not translated to the Capital, which was eliminated in the second round of playoffs by islanders. During this period, Stevens learned from veteran Rod Langway and defensive linemate Brian Engblom on key points in defense play. Chief coach Bryan Murray also helped calm the fiery young Stevens, who will learn to fight less and play harder. Stevens spoke happily about his time with the capital many years later, saying:
We have a lot of people and we work hard. We are very defensive. We may have been a bit challenging scorer and we may be a bit challenged in goal at the time... But no regrets.
The 1984-85 season will be a breakthrough year for Stevens. He set a team record for the defensemen by scoring 16 goals of power play, and tied the team's record for a goal by defenseman by 21. His performances were good enough to earn a place in the All-Star Game. Stevens will lead all Capitals defensemen in the scoring for the first time, finish the year with 21 goals and 44 assists, and earn Favorite Fan Award team. His offensive ability and size made Murray consider moving it to the winger. The Capitals took second place in the Patrick Division, but out of the playoffs earlier, this time belonging to the islanders. Prior to the next season, the Capital acquired Dwight Schofield in a draft of waiver. Schofield is known for his ability as an enforcer, and his goal is to keep the other teams away from Stevens and Langway, who are considered too valuable to lose the penalty. The plan was successful, when Stevens finished with 165 minutes of penalty, the lowest in his career up to that time. He also added 15 goals and 38 assists that season. However, the Capital continues their playoff misery; After defeating the Islands in the first half, they lost to the New York Rangers in the division finals.
The 1986-87 season saw Stevens return to his old ways, as he spent 283 minutes of his career in the penalty box. Total set of Capitals records (due to broken) for penalty minutes in one season. Despite missing three games with a broken right index finger, the injury he suffered against the islanders, Stevens will finish the third year on the team with a score of 61 points; 51 assists are also pretty good for both in the Capital. The Caps were once again eliminated by the Islanders in the first round of the playoffs.
During the 1987-88 season, Stevens set the Capitals record for most assists and most points by a defenseman in a match, with five assists against the Los Angeles Kings on December 6, 1987. Later in the season, he will score at least one assists in eight games in succession, setting another team record for defensemen. He finished his second year in the team in scoring with 12 goals and 60 assists for 72 points, the culmination among all the Capitals blueliners. He eventually finished second behind Boston Bruins defender Ray Bourque in a vote for the James Norris Memorial Cup. In addition, he was named the First Team NHL All-Star. Stevens will suffer a shoulder injury in the first round of the playoffs against the Philadelphia Flyers, the series to be won by the Capitals. He's back in time for the final of Capital's division against his future team, the New Jersey Devils. Despite tying the team record by posting four assists in Game 6 of the series, the Capitals fell four games to three.
The capital won the Patrick Division in the 1988-89 season, and Stevens' 68 points (including a team-leading 61 assists) led Caps Defensemen. He had a 225-minute penalty; this is the last time Stevens has more than 200 minutes in his career. He was named for the second All-Star game, and added help when the Wales Conference lost to Campbell Conference 9-5. However, Caps could not translate the success of their regular season into the playoffs, as they lost the first round to the Flyers. The 1989-1990 season saw mixed success for Stevens. He personally fought, because he was hit by injuries, including a broken leg that caused him to lose nearly two months. In addition, he was suspended for three games to gouge Chicago Blackhawks player Dave Manson in the eye during a fight. Stevens said he never hit Manson's eye, but the eye hit Stevens's helmet during the fight. Missing a third of the season caused Stevens's lowest point total since the rookie year; he finished with just 11 goals and 29 assists for 40 points, though it was still second among the Capitals defensemen. Although the statistics were lowered, the Capital made their furthest breakthrough in the playoffs. After defeating the Devil in the first round and Rangers in the second round, the Capital was in the final conference for the first time in the history of the team where they were swept by the Bruins.
Over eight seasons with the capital, Stevens finished with 98 goals and 429 points in 601 matches. He also set the team records (all for broken) for the penalty (1,630), the game played by defenseman (601), points by defenseman (429), goals by defenseman (98), assists by defenseman (331), playoff matches played (67), playoff points (53), playoff assist (44) and playoff goals by defenseman (9).
St. Louis Blues
After eight seasons in Washington, Stevens felt it was time to move on. The St. Louis Blues taunted him and offered him a four-year contract worth $ 5.145 million. Because he is a restricted free agent, Washington has the option to match the bid sheet. However, they refused and consequently received two first-round draft picks plus $ 100,000 in cash, turning into five first-round pickups if the Capitals did not have the top seven draft picks in the 1991 or 1992 draft entries, as compensation (two of these picks would be Sergei Gonchar and Brendan Witt).
The signing of Stevens has far-reaching consequences in player contracts on the NHL. At that time, the deal made him the highest-paid defender in the league. In addition, the deal includes a signing bonus of $ 1.4 million. Some defensemen consider superior players for Stevens, including Ray Bourque and Chris Chelios, earning less money, and Captain Kevin Hatcher's defenseman survives until he receives a contract similar to Stevens. The general manager is worried that these players will start demanding larger contracts. The players ended up asking for more money, and this escalation was one of the factors in the 1994-95 NHL locking a few seasons later.
Upon his arrival at St. Louis, Stevens was appointed captain of the Blues. He scored 5 goals and added 44 assists for 49 points, good enough for fifth on the team led by Brett Hull and Adam Oates. He also created the All-Star Campbell Conference Team. The Blues were eliminated in the second round of the playoffs by the Minnesota North Stars.
New Jersey Devils
Stevens time with the Blues will last only one season. In the offseason after the 1990-91 NHL season, the Blues signed Brendan Shanahan of the New Jersey Devils, which, like Stevens a year earlier, was a restricted free agent, granting Satan the right to compensation. Because the Blues still owe the first-round option to the Capital (now five instead of two, since the choice in 1991 ended up being the 21st choice), other compensation should be negotiated, and The Blues and Satan can not agree on what compensation is; The Blues offer goalkeeper Curtis Joseph, forward Rod Brind'Amour, and two draft picks, but the Devils only want Stevens. The case was brought to arbitration, and the arbitrator Edward Houston awarded Stevens to Satan as compensation on September 4, 1991.
1991-1995
Initially, Stevens refused to report to the Devil for the training camp, and would not report until 26 September 1991, 22 days after the arbitration award. Satan is worried after captain Kirk Muller left the camp. Stevens and his wife made plans to stay at St. Louis, and he wants to end his career with the Blues. In addition, he is concerned about the lack of unity within the organization, stating that Muller's walkout is proof. Some of the Devil players are upset over the feeling that Stevens is being forced on a team; some players, including Ken Daneyko, wanted more money, while other players wanted general manager Lou Lamoriello to trade Stevens. He will eventually report to the Devil three weeks later.
Stevens finished his first season in New Jersey fifth in the team with a score, first among the defensemen and good enough to earn a place in the Second All-Star Team. He earned a place on the All-Star star list for the second season in a row, and will miss just one All-Star game for the rest of his career as a Devil. Satan will be excluded from the playoffs by their rival, Rangers, in seven games. Out of season, Stevens replaces Bruce Driver as team captain, a title he held until retirement.
Although he will lose part of the next season with a concussion, his 12 goals and 45 assists still lead all Devils defensemen in scoring, The Devils crashing out in the first round of playoffs again, losing to the Pittsburgh Penguins in five games. Stevens upgraded his offensive in 1993-1994. He scored 18 goals and 60 assists, good enough to lead the team and a career high in points. She won the NHL Plus-Minus Award, ending with 53; only Vladimir Konstantinov has led the league with a plus/minus rating higher since Stevens' victory. The Devil made it to the Final Conference against Rangers, where they fell in double overtime Game 7. Stevens finished as runner-up to Ray Bourque for the Norris Trophy; difference of four votes is the closest in the history of voting Norris Trophy.
After the 1993-94 season, Stevens was a potential free agent. Officials of St. Louis Blues discussed his comeback to the team, and persuaded him to sign a $ 17 million offer for four years on July 4, 1994. Five days later, the Devils match the offer, and thus Stevens remains in New Jersey. However, Satan later learned Stevens had heard of St. Louis before the free agent period begins, which is illegal under NHL policy. After a five-year investigation, the league fined the Blues for $ 1.5 million and rewarded the Devils two from the first-round draft proposal. Louis. Devil General Manager Lou Lamoriello feels that punishment is not enough; he wanted five first-round draft picks plus damage. Despite the investigation, there is no evidence Stevens realized any errors.
After the 1994-95 season was postponed due to owner locking, the Devil departed to a slow start, winning just 9 of their first 24 games. Despite the reduced schedule, Stevens managed 2 goals and 20 assists, again leading the defensemen in scoring. Satan finished fifth in the conference, and advanced to the Stanley Cup Final, where they swept the highly favored Detroit Red Wings to win the first championship of the franchise. Stevens' reputation as a strong hitter was strengthened in Game 2, where he equated Vyacheslav Kozlov with a body check that temporarily made him unable to play. He then decided that Kozlov suffered a concussion. Stevens then turned to Wings forward and his former Washington teammate, Dino Ciccarelli, who was upset about the check, and said, "You're next!"
1996-1999
Satan is expected to retain their Stanley Cup title the following season. However, they became the first team in 26 years to miss the playoffs following the championship. Stevens voiced the team's disappointment, saying, "After winning the Cup, you hope to be in the playoffs next year... Maybe it's just a wake-up call to get back on track."
Stevens started the 1996-97 season with a one-match suspension due to high penalties against Igor Larionov, who took blood. However, the team returned to a solid style of play and finished the season above the Atlantic Division, although they will be eliminated in the playoffs once again by the Hudson River rivals New York Rangers. Stevens took second place in the team between the defensemen in scoring behind Scott Niedermayer.
Stevens' leadership continued into the next season. He signed a contract extension with the Devil, stating at the time he wanted to end his career with the team. Stevens is very important to Satan's defense corps, since long-time Demon Ken Daneyko is undergoing rehab for alcoholism. However, he suffered a hip hip injury against the Tampa Bay Lightning and missed several games. Stevens once again had a good defensive season, though his lack of judgment made him not considered for the Norris Trophy. Satan finished as the top seed in the Eastern Conference but was eliminated in the first round by Senator Ottawa.
Satan made several changes before the 1998-99 season, including hiring Robbie Ftorek as head coach to replace Jacques Lemaire. The team continued to focus on defense, as Stevens solid corps, Daneyko and Niedermayer finished with plus-minus 29, 27 and 26 respectively. Unfortunately, the team was once again eliminated in the first round of the playoffs, this time by Pittsburgh Penguins.
2000-2004
The 1999-2000 Devils focus more on offense, which is reinforced by 251 goals scored, good enough for second in the league. With four players scoring over 50 points, including rookie team Scott Gomez leading 51 assists, Stevens '29 points just enough for the tenth in the team and third among the defensemen, behind Niedermayer and Brian Rafalski. Stevens also set a NHL record after becoming the first player to play in 600 matches with two teams. After finishing the season in fourth place in the conference, the Devil swept the Florida Panthers and beat Toronto Maple Leafs in six games.
Satan then meets with their bitter enemy, the Philadelphia Flyers, in the Eastern Conference Finals. After being behind in a series of three games to one, the Devils managed to win games five and six, setting the stage for the seventh game in Philadelphia. During the first period, Flyers star center Eric Lindros was sliding himself through a neutral zone with his head bowed, when Stevens hit him with a shoulder that knocked him out and gave him another concussion. It was only Lindros' second game since returning from a March concussion against Boston Bruins. Stevens has previously taken up Fellow's Daymond Langkow center with a concussion after Game 2.
Satan completed his comeback against the Flyers with a 2-1 win and faced the defending champion Stanley Dallas Stars in the final of the Stanley Cup. Stevens and Rafalski were tasked with closing the Dallas assessment line, Mike Modano, Brett Hull, and Joe Nieuwendyk. Stevens scored the winning goal in the first game of the series on the way to a 7-3 Devil victory; his goal was his third goal in the playoffs. The Devil went on to win the Finals in six games, after Game 5 went to three overtimes and Game 6 was decided in double overtime. Stevens got help in Jason Arnott's winning goal, and he won Conn Smythe's Cup for his leadership role in the team.
During the 2000-01 NHL season, led by Patrik Elià ¢ ¡? 'franchise-record 96 points and 43 team goals Alexander Mogilny, the team finished first at the conference. After defeating Carolina, Toronto and Pittsburgh in the playoffs, Satan once again made the Final, this time against Colorado Landslide. However, despite up three games to two, Devils could not complete the avalanche and lost the series in seven games. Stevens was third in the vote for the Norris Trophy.
The following season, Stevens finished with the lowest total score in his career, though he became the youngest player ever to play in 1,500 games. Satan fell in the first round of the playoffs to Hurricanes, who then lost to Detroit in the Stanley Cup finals.
Stevens and Satan were once again successful in 2002-03, finishing first in the division. In addition, he was appointed captain of the Eastern All-Star team for the first time, and finished the season with the fewest penalty for a full season of his career. Satan played well in the playoffs, knocking out Boston, Tampa Bay and Ottawa to face Mighty Ducks of Anaheim in the Final. Stevens and Satan had little fears in Game 3 of the semi-final against Tampa Bay when slapshots of Pavel Kubina crashed into the side of his head and forced him to leave the game. Despite the uncertainty of whether he will return for Game 4, Stevens is in fact back and does not miss the game for the rest of the playoffs. In Game 2 of the Final, he set a record for most of the playoff matches by defenseman, breaking the record by former coach Larry Robinson. Stevens added his playoff hits list when he hit Mighty Ducks to advance to Paul Kariya in Game 6. However, Kariya returned shortly afterwards (much to everyone's surprise) and led the Duck to victory, forcing Game 7. Satan defended his goalless Ducks at Game 7, 3-0, to win their third Stanley Cup in nine years. Stevens 'appearance in Game 7 hooks Patrick Roy's record for appearances in Game 7s with 13. Although Stevens' games, Martin Brodeur, Jamie Langenbrunner and Jeff Friesen, Conn Smythe Trophy go to Ducks goaltender Jean-SÃÆ' Â © bastien GiguÃÆ'¨re. Some speculate that there are too many decent Satan candidates for trophies, resulting in a split voice among sports authors.
The 2003-04 NHL season will be the last for Stevens. Before ending the season, he surpassed former team mate Larry Murphy as the NHL's all-time leader in a game played by a defenseman when he appeared in the 1,616th game in November. He missed several matches in January with the flu, and when he came out, he was diagnosed with post-concussion syndrome (which would eventually force him into retirement). Despite missing the second half of the season, he is still selected as the starter for the Eastern All-Star team. Scott Niedermayer was filled as captain in Stevens's absence, but the loss of Stevens (as well as Daneyko, who had retired before this season) was too much of a loss for Satan's defenses, and they fell to the Flyers in the first round of the playoffs. Out of season, Stevens recovered and continued working out and is expected to return to Devil for the 2004-05 NHL season. However, the lockout canceled the entire season and Stevens retired on 6 September 2005, after 1,635 NHL matches, the fourth at that time (and now seventh) all the time in the game being played, the leader in the game played by a defenseman (since passed by Chris Chelios ), and 14 all the time in the career penalty minutes.
2012-2015
On July 17, 2012, the Devil announced Stevens would return to the team as an assistant coach. After two seasons of failing to make the playoffs, Stevens resigned as assistant coach in September 2014. His role as assistant coach for defenseman was filled by another former Devil, Tommy Albelin. However, just three months later, Stevens returned to Devil along with former assistant coach Adam Oates, releasing Peter DeBoer from his coaching job. In a unique move, both Stevens and Oates are referred to as temporary co-head coaches, with Stevens focusing on defensemen and Oates up front.
Minnesota Wild
On June 7, 2016, Minnesota Wild hired Stevens as assistant head coach Bruce Boudreau. Less than a year later, on May 30, 2017, Stevens resigned to "spend more time with his family".
International game
In addition to his NHL career, Stevens represents Canada in several international ice hockey competitions. He attended a summer camp with the Canadian Team before the 1983 Junior World Championships, but due to his commitment to the Capital, he was unable to join the team. His first experience with the senior team was at the 1983 World Ice Hockey Championship, where he won a bronze medal. The following year he made the Canadian team for the 1984 Canadian Cup, but he did not play. During the 1985 Ice Hockey Championships, he scored and added two assists as Canada finished with a silver medal. He played only two games during the 1987 tournament; Canada finished in fourth place. Two years later, he scored twice as Canada once again won a silver medal. During the tournament, he suffered serious injuries when Salenti BÃÆ'¶rje skate cut his face; he will receive 88 stitches for the wound. He eventually won international gold with Canada during the 1991 Canadian Cup. Five years later, he played at the 1996 Hockey World Cup, a substitute for the Canadian Cup. Done with two assists, Stevens won a silver medal; Canada finished in second place after giving up four goals in the last four minutes of the championship game against the American team.
The NHL player was first allowed to participate in the Olympic ice hockey tournament in the 1998 game. Stevens was selected to join the Canadian team, but finished pointless for the only time in his international career. Canada will finish fourth after losing in a semifinal match against the Czech Republic on penalties. Stevens will be part of the Canadian orientation camp for the 2002 Olympics, but he will not make the final list.
Legacy
Stevens left a controversial lasting legacy in the NHL. Stevens is the longest ruling captain in Satan's history. Later in his career, he guided the younger Devils defensemen like Colin White and Brian Rafalski, who was Stevens's linemat defense. Teammate Scott Niedermayer says Stevens "is not the most vocal person around", but he will talk to the players when needed. Stevens was honored by the Devil by being the first player in the team's history to have a number that was retired by team-number 4 raised to the rafters on 3 February 2006. In addition, Kitchener Rangers has retired number 3 for Stevens.
Stevens is also remembered as a hard hitter. Among the victims of Stevens' body examinations were Vyacheslav Kozlov, Eric Lindros, Paul Kariya, Shane Willis and Ron Francis, who were last inducted with Stevens to the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2007. Some players accused Stevens of playing cheaply and deliberately trying to physically injure players permanent. After examining Shane Willis, Carolina Hurricanes, Art, Artillers Irbe says Stevens "tried to kill [Willis] or get him out of the playoffs". Stevens replied:
On the other hand, Kozlov does not blame Stevens for his punches and says he's a clean player. He is often credited with changing the momentum of the game rather than with a goal, but with a hard check, giving him the nickname "Captain Crunch". He was named the fifth most frightening player in NHL history by Sporting News in 2001 and was voted the heaviest player in the NHL by voters. Currently the NHL defensions Dion Phaneuf and FranÃÆ'§ois Beauchemin are often compared to Stevens, and Phaneuf says he has idolized Stevens' style of play.
Personal life
Stevens met his wife Donna when she played junior hockey with Kitchener. The couple has three children; Kaitlin, Ryan, and Kara. He is a fan of the outdoors, and spent his summers away from hockey on Lake Catchacoma. He also enjoys duck hunting in his spare time, and is a fan of Three Stooges. After the attacks of September 11, 2001, he started a program called Scott's Kids for the victims' families. Stevens lives in the town of Far Hills, New Jersey. He joined NHL Network as a commentator in December 2017.
Career statistics
Regular and playoff seasons
International game
All-Star Games
Awards
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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