Everyone loves to get the first overall draft pick each season. The first pick is virtually guaranteed a long and prosperous career in the NHL. Just being drafted anywhere in the first round is a good sign for any up and coming hockey star. How about the ninth round and lower picks? Test and expand your knowledge of late round draft picks from the early 1980’s who made their mark with the following four trivia questions and answers. Q. In 1981, what 10th round pick, 196th overall, went on to an 841 NHL regular season game career and played for Canada at the 1992 Winter Olympic Games? A. Doug Hannon was taken by the Pittsburgh Penguins in what was, in 1981, the final round of the NHL Entry Draft. Hannon played for Pittsburgh, Edmonton, Toronto, Buffalo, Colorado and Ottawa during his career. Q. In the 12th round of the 1983 NHL Entry Draft, the Calgary Flames took a chance on what Russian veteran? A. The 231st pick in 1983 was Sergei Makarov. It was a longshot with communism still in full swing in the Soviet Union. Makarov won the Calder Trophy as the NHL’s top rookie in 1990 at the age of 31. Following that season, the NHL stated that to qualify for the Calder, a player must be under 26 years old. Makarov played 424 regular season games in the NHL with Calgary, San Jose and Dallas. He went to the Olympics three times for the Soviet Union and won gold twice. Q. One of the most famous goaltenders in the history of the game was taken deep in the tenth round of the 1983 NHL Entry Draft. Which goalie did the Chicago Blackhawks choose as the 199th overall pick? A. Dominik Hasek played just a handful of games with Chicago but went on to a career consisting of 735 regular season games with an additional 81 in the playoffs. Hasek won the Hart Trophy twice as the NHL’s Most Valuable Player and won the Vezina Trophy six times. He played with Chicago, Buffalo, Detroit and Ottawa during his NHL career and is still playing professionally in Russia’s KHL. Q. What Hockey Hall of Famer was a ninth round pick of the Los Angeles Kings in the 1984 NHL Entry Draft? A. Luc Robitaille was the 171st overall pick. Luc was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame in 2009 after a stellar career which saw him score 668 goals and contribute 1394 points over 1431 regular season games with Los Angeles, Pittsburgh, New York Rangers and Detroit. He won the Calder Trophy as NHL Rookie of the Year in 1987, played in eight All-Star Games and won a Stanley Cup. His 668 goals rank him tenth on the NHL’s all-time list.
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nhl entry draft, sergei makarov, dominik hasak, luc robitaille, doug hannon,
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