On April 21st, we celebrate the birthdays of 24 NHL players, past and present. Today's list includes two Hockey Hall of Fame members, several Stanley Cup champions, and a former No. 1 overall pick. Take a look at the celebrities who blow out the candles on their birthday cakes on this day.
Ed Belfour (1965)
Ed Belfour is probably one of the best goalies in NHL history. If he hadn't played against Patrick Roy, Dominik Hasek and Martin Brodeur, it might have been debatable whether he would have been the top goalkeeper of the 1990s. The undrafted native of Carman, Manitoba, signed with the Chicago Blackhawks as a free agent in 1987 after leading the University of North Dakota to a national championship.
Belfour eventually made his NHL debut at the age of 23 during the 1988-89 season, compiling a 4-12-3 record in 23 games. The following season, in 1990-91, he became the Blackhawks' starting netminder, winning the Calder Trophy, Vezina Trophy, and William M. Jennings Trophy. He finished third in Hart Trophy voting, was named to the All-Rookie team, and was named a postseason All-Star. In his second season, he led Chicago to its first Stanley Cup Final since 1973 with a dominant victory over Mario Lemieux and the Pittsburgh Penguins.
Related: A look back at the Dallas Stars' 1999 Stanley Cup run
Known as one of the most competitive netminders in the NHL, Belfour left Chicago in 1997 and briefly played for the San Jose Sharks before signing with the Dallas Stars as a free agent in 1997. -He led the Stars to their first Stanley Cup Championship and achieved great results. He completed a 17-season Hall of Fame career with the Toronto Maple Leafs and Florida Panthers, retiring after the 2006-07 season. Belfour won his Olympic goal medal in 2002 and ranks fifth all-time with 484 wins.
Vincent Lecavalier (1980)
Vincent Lecavalier was selected by the Tampa Bay Lightning with the top pick in the 1998 draft. The Bizarre, Quebec native made his debut in the fall of that year, scoring 13 goals and 15 assists for 28 points as a rookie. No one expected him to become the Lightning's all-time leading scorer and the first person in team history to score 50 goals and 100 points in a single season.
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The Lightning promoted Lecavalier to captain at age 19, making him one of the youngest leaders in NHL history. During his 14 seasons with Tampa Bay, he represented the team by winning the Maurice “Rocket” Richard Trophy and the King Clancy Trophy, and in June 2004 hoisted the Stanley Cup. He appeared in his All-Star game four times.
Eventually, Recavalier left Florida and played three seasons with the Philadelphia Flyers and 42 games with the Los Angeles Kings. He played in 1,212 games and finished his career with 421 goals, 528 assists, and 949 points.
Michel Goulet (1960)
Michel Goulet was one of the top scorers of the 1980s, scoring 897 points in 744 games, ahead of Wayne Gretzky, Peter Stastny, Jari Kurri, Dennis Savard, Paul Coffey, Mark Messier, and Dale Hower. He was ranked 8th behind Chuck. The Peribonca, Quebec, native was a star player for the Quebec Nordiques from 1979 to 1990, ranking third in franchise history with 946 points.
Related: Today in Hockey History: April 21st
Although he never won the award during his career, Goulet was a five-time All-Star and played in the 1992 Stanley Cup Final with the Blackhawks. Four years after his retirement, he was inducted into the Hockey Hall of Fame as a member of his 1998 class. He played in 1,089 games, scoring 548 goals and 605 assists for 1,153 points, good enough for his career average of 1.05 points.
Inactive players celebrating birthday (age)
Editor's note: bold name of stanley cup winner
- Thomas Coulter (1911 – 2003)
- jack evans (1928 – 1996)
- Reggie Fleming (1936 – 2009)
- Jacques Caron (84)
- Nick Beverley (77)
- Steve Vickers (73)
- Reg Thomas (71)
- Doug Sutert (69)
- Larry Skinner (68)
- Mark Lofthouse (67)
- Clayton Pachal (64)
- Doug Barrow (54)
- Stewart Margnas (54)
- Todd Simon (52)
- Scott Langkow (49)
- Roman Vopat (48)
- Eromo Miika (47)
- Carl Cozzini (45)
- Derek Meech (40)
- Alexander Edler (38)
- Riley Walsh (25)
