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July 30, 2005 |
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Westin Hotel (Ottawa, Ontario) |
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| It is only once every generation that the NHL junior draft gets to be known for the drafting of one player. In my age it was the Eric Lindros draft of 1991 when the much hyped Lindros ruffled the feathers of an entire province when he refused to put on the sweater of the Quebec Nordiques. Seven years before it was the Mario Lemieux draft of 1984 when the ‘Super’ was first added to Mario in a Pittsburgh Penguins t-shirt. And before I was born in 1971 it was Montreal Canadiens drafting of Guy Lafleur, a player that led the Habs to five Stanley Cup championships. Now for the current generation there is the 2005 NHL Draft or I should say the Sidney Crosby draft. The Nova Scotian born Crosby, who has been touted as a future NHL Superstar since he was 14 years old, was taken no. 1 by the Pittsburgh Penguins in one of the most curious drafts in NHL history. It was because of the protracted labour dispute between the owner and players that cancelled the 2004-5 season that all 30 teams were entered into the lottery to gain the no. 1 pick. Pittsburgh had three balls in the lottery and with winning Crosby have moved from being a troubled franchise on the verge of collapse to one of the hottest destinations for fans and free agents. |
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